As a generation of Capitol Hill’s biggest, most ambitious food and drink projects fades and shutters, many new smaller neighborhood projects are focused on community and space along with the hospitality and flavors.
Calling Open Form a cafe sells the concept short. “A gathering space inspired by the art of Persian hospitality. Persian tea, coffee, and natural wine — by reservation,” the new project is set to debut next week above E Pike Continue reading
Welcome to I-5 Shores!
A project underway for this year’s Seattle Design Festival is right up CHS’s alley.
The “Name That Neighborhood” project is crowdsourcing the hyperlocal knowledge of Seattleites to define — and name — neighborhood boundaries across the city.
“We are gaining feedback on Seattle City Clerk’s Official Neighborhood Map from Seattleites to see if they agree or disagree with the neighborhood the City has them in,” designer — and onetime mayoral candidate — Andrew Grant Houston tells CHS about the project.
“I think this is particularly poignant given the different neighborhoods the City currently divides Capitol Hill into and could be a way to answer the question: what do we call the area around 15th?” Continue reading
(Image: Post Options)
Small businesses and entrepreneurs around Capitol Hill and the Central District are losing valuable resources as summer ends with the closure of two neighborhood mailbox and business center shops.
Veti Cmoesongrsi and Nongnuch Paungpornsri agonized this week as they announced their decision to permanently close Post Options and end efforts to rebuild the mailbox and small business center that has served Capitol Hill restaurants, bars, shops, salons, tattoo parlors, etc., and an amazingly diverse roster of B corps, C corps, S corps, LLCs, and more for 13 years.
Meanwhile, in the Central District, The Postman business center is also closing.
On Capitol Hill, the decision to close Post Options did not come easily.
“After weeks of emotionally draining and frantic effort to try and rebuild our former operation, we came to the realization that we do not have enough in us to rebuild, restart, and run the Post Options the way we did before,” the owners said in a message to supporters and customers who contributed to a community fundraiser started after the E Pike business center was charred in a damaging accidental electrical fire in July. Continue reading
(Image: Reverie Ballroom)
Raav (Image: Reverie Ballroom)
By Matt Dowell
A major facelift is underway inside the 117-year-old Odd Fellows Building south of Cal Anderson. This year, Hallie Kuperman stepped away from the building’s Century Ballroom and its accompanying bar-restaurant The Tin Table after 28 years of ownership.
Century is now called Reverie Ballroom and its new ownership has spent the summer renovating the building’s marvelous dance halls. But what happened to The Tin Table?
Sander Raav, nine-year bar manager there, has assumed ownership and plans to reopen under the name The Art Table this fall. Along with the name change, he’s got a few changes in the works. Continue reading
The roar of I-5 was a little more subdued this weekend with northbound lanes through the city shut for Washington State Department of Transportation maintenance.
The community group advocating for permanently quieting the freeway — and adding a cap covered with parkland, housing, and development — gathered nearby to illustrate the opportunity.
The Lid I-5 group is also asking the public to support needed work in the original I-5 lid between First Hill, Capitol Hill, and downtown — Freeway Park.
Saturday, the group gathered off Boren in Pillars Park above I-5 to mark the weekend’s northbound closure and spread the word about progress being made in plans likely to stretch out for decades to cover the freeway through Seattle. Continue reading
The Seattle City Council’s public safety committee could vote Tuesday morning on legislation expanding the Seattle Police Department’s surveillance camera pilot program to include Capitol Hill and the Central District. The expansion could also bring changes that will allow SPD to use select Seattle Department of Transportation traffic cameras in the program.
CHS reported here on the proposed legislation to expand the SPD “Real Time Crime Center” surveillance camera system to include the Capitol Hill nightlife core around E Pike and Cal Anderson Park and a major swath of the Central District from E Cherry to Jackson it says it necessary to prevent gun violence near Garfield High School. Continue reading
Comesongsri is making things work on 11th Ave (Image: CHS)
Thanks to the kindness and support of surrounding businesses and loyal customers, Post Options is serving Capitol Hill again from a new temporary location. Meanwhile, neighboring bar Unicorn is preparing to reopen after an overhaul and repairs.
Veti Comesongsri and Nongnuch Paungpornsri are expressing their gratitude this week following the July 30th electrical fire that caused more than $175,000 in damage to the 12th and Pike buildings the neighborhood business center and the circus-themed bar call home. Owners of The Woods on 11th Ave have opened the nightclub space for Post Options to continue serving customers while the long path to reopening the E Pike business center take shape.
Comesongsri says Post Options is only able to provide mail and package delivery for existing mailbox customers in the new temporary location where Pike/Pine’s annual Christmas Dive Bar pops up during the holidays. Continue reading
East Precinct police responded to a rush of gun-related incidents Friday night including the pepper spray-soaked aftermath of an attempted armed carjacking at Melrose and Thomas.
The Seattle Police Department says officers were called to Melrose around 11 PM to a report of a fight involving armed assailants. 911 callers reported a fight involving guns and pepper spray at the scene but no shots fired.
Officers arrived after the suspects fled the scene.
SPD says witnesses reported multiple suspects pulled up in a car near where they were parked and two males armed with handguns “pulled the victims out of their vehicle, threatened them at gunpoint, stole items from them, attempted to carjack them.” During the altercation, the suspects hit the victims with pepper spray and fled the area after the unsuccessful car theft.
There were no additional injuries reported and no immediate arrests.
Meanwhile, police were also responding to Broadway and Pike where a suspect was threatening to shoot the security guards outside a business. Continue reading
Don’t tell Donald Trump but the latest safety improvement for walkers, joggers, bikers, scooter riders, and drivers at one of Capitol Hill’s busiest crossings is being paid for with federal cash.
The new pedestrian island at 10th and Pike is part of 80 planned safety upgrades across Seattle under the Safe Streets for All program. The island helps protect people using the crosswalk at the busy intersection in the heart of the Pike/Pine nightlife district.
CHS reported here as Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), then-Chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, touted the $25.6 million grant to Seattle under the program to help local governments carry out “Vision Zero” upgrades. By the way, to give you a little idea of how times have quickly changed, that committee is chaired by Ted Cruz these days. Continue reading
Sunday, August 17th will be a fun day in Cal Anderson Park and around the neighborhood as “Seattle’s longest running community-wide garage sale” returns. Yup, it is time for Capitol Hill Garage Sale Day:
The Capitol Hill Garage Sale returns Sunday, August 17th from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Cal Anderson Park! This annual event is Seattle’s longest running community-wide garage sale and regularly features over 100 people selling their treasures in Cal Anderson Park in addition to many independent garage sales at homes across Capitol Hill.
