One reported dead in E Fir shooting

A man was reported dead in an early Friday morning shooting in an alley off E Fir.

Seattle Police said they had responded to a shooting and that at least one person was wounded.

Multiple 911 callers reported gunfire around 4:30 AM and officers arriving at the scene found the victim down and shot in the chest and without a pulse in the alley near 11th and E Fir, according to East Precinct radio updates. Continue reading

Design review: 8-story mixed-use at 12th and Fir

Plans for a new 8-story mixed-use building at 12th and Fir will come before the Central Area Design Review Board Thursday night.

The proposal from developers Kamiak with designs by Hybrid and Hewitt would create an 8-story, 127-unit apartment building with street level retail above a 42-space underground parking garage. Continue reading

Police investigate gunfire and bullet through apartment window at 12th and Yesler

A round of gunfire sent a bullet into a nearby apartment and left at least one car riddled with bullets but there were no victims in a shooting late Wednesday night near 12th and Yesler.

Police and Seattle Fire were called just after 11 PM to the scene for reports of gunfire and a male down on the pavement. Police arrived to find bullet damage to homes and vehicles but there were no victims found at the scene. Continue reading

Homicide suspect reported in custody after standoff at Yesler Terrace homeless encampment

A major police effort was completed without incident Wednesday afternoon with a homicide suspect taken into custody from a tent in a homeless encampment area just below Yesler Terrace.

Seattle Police and SWAT officers were reported in positions surrounding the camp area near 10th and S Washington just before 3 PM. Continue reading

SFD handles small fire intentionally set inside 10th Ave apartment building

Firefighters quickly handled a small blaze investigators say was intentionally set Tuesday night inside the seven-story Alder Flats building.

The apartment building is on the same block where two 118-year-old homes used as apartments and a 1905-built duplex are slated to be demolished to make way for a new 111-unit apartment complex. Design review for the project is slated for Wednesday night.

Seattle Fire tells CHS the fire reported at the 220 10th Ave building just after 8 PM Tuesday did almost no damage and there were no injuries. Radio reports indicated papers inside a hallway had been set on fire. SFD says it investigated the fire and provided information to Seattle Police. Officers were called to the scene but there were no immediate arrests.

As redevelopment continues, community celebrates opening of Yesler Terrace Park

“As this city becomes increasingly dense, we continue to need spaces like this. This is the kind of space where memories will be created by all the young people here,” Christopher Williams, interim superintendent of the Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation, said at the grand opening of the brand new Yesler Terrace Park on Saturday. “This park will be the center of the Yesler community.”

Yesler Terrace Park includes a fountain, public seating, a soccer field, basketball court, an intricate playground and an expansive view of the Seattle skyline, all of which were designed and created by several city groups and local organizations. Community members, city officials, and families gathered to celebrate this new public space.

Continue reading

SPD investigating after escaped inmate reportedly shot by corrections officer at 8th and Yesler — UPDATE

An escaped King County Jail prisoner was shot by a corrections officer near 8th and Yesler Wednesday morning, according to radio reports.

All information regarding this incident is preliminary. SPD has confirmed it is investigating an “officer involved shooting.”

According to SPD and Seattle Fire radio dispatches, an inmate was reported to have escaped custody from Harborview around 10:15 AM. Minutes later, Seattle Fire and SPD were called to the area of 8th and Yesler after reports of shots fired.

According to emergency radio dispatches, the inmate was being rushed back to Harborview for treatment and Seattle Police had closed the area as they collected evidence at the scene where the corrections officer reportedly opened fire.

No law enforcement officers were reported injured in the incident.

UPDATE: SPD has confirmed the details of the shooting and says the inmate who was allegedly attempting to escape is a suspect charged with first-degree murder and domestic violence in the shooting death of an 18-year-old woman in Kent last week:

The guards chased him, but were not able to capture him. One guard shot the suspect at 8th and Yesler, and jail staff placed him back into custody at that time. The suspect was transported back to Harborview Medical Center and is receiving emergency care for non-life threatening injuries. Seattle Police are on scene and have agreed to conduct the preliminary investigation. King County Jail staff will conduct their own internal, administrative investigation regarding this incident.

 

Developer completes 12th Ave affordable housing trifecta

Reverb apartments as seen from the rooftop of its sister building, Decibel.

Reverb apartments as seen from the rooftop of its sister building, Decibel.

In 2014, CHS wondered whether Capitol Hill’s affordable housing might not be built on Capitol Hill but in the neighborhoods to the south along 12th Ave. Today, a trio of Capitol Hill-adjacent affordable housing developments from Spectrum Development Solutions has been completed.

Reverb Apartments, the final of three developments in the 12th and Alder area of the Central District, threw an open house party on Thursday featuring music and a community event to show off the newly opened building.

“It’s been a long journey, and we’re really excited to be a part of the community and to play hopefully an important role in bringing workforce housing to this area. It’s much needed,” Spectrum’s Jake McKinstry told CHS.

Across the three buildings, 56 units qualify as affordable with the other projects priced as “workforce” housing designed to appeal to young, working professionals willing to sacrifice space and perks like parking in exchange for proximity to employment centers and public transit. Spectrum is focusing on “the missing middle” — teachers, nurses and other young professionals, who are trying to live near their jobs and don’t qualify for affordable housing, McKinstry said. Continue reading

Design review: What Vulcan’s first Broadway project will look like, plus small efficiency dwelling units on 10th Ave E

Vulcan's Block 3 plan for Broadway at Yesler might finally justify the First Hill Streetcar

Vulcan’s Block 3 plan for Broadway at Yesler might finally justify the First Hill Streetcar

While Wednesday night’s review sessions will include one half of real estate giant Vulcan’s development plans for both sides of Broadway at Yesler and a review of a Central District project the review board was worried about being shoehorned into a residential area, the bigger design review decisions of the week won’t happen at a public meeting. More on Vulcan’s 120 Broadway development and a rowhouse project from Isola Homes at 18th and Spruce, below. But first, let’s stop by the squabble on 10th Ave E just past the curve from Broadway where neighbors aren’t happy about a planned five-story, “small efficiency dwelling unit” apartment building being lined up to rise above the lot currently home to a 1930s-built single family house.

screen-shot-2016-09-27-at-3-00-43-pmMcKee 10th
Though it will create a five-story building with 18 small units and one regular old “apartment”-style unit, the McKee 10th microhousing development being planned for 714 10th Ave E isn’t large enough to trigger a full design review. Instead, its “streamlined” review process wraps Friday without the full package of 90-minute meetings and a lineup of public comment by neighbors objecting to the bulk and scale of the project. But you can still have your say — here are some of the comments from letters sent to the city about the project: Continue reading