PhinneyWood ‘Glow Cone’ lights up the ridge

More than 100 people gathered on a chilly (for Seattle, at least) evening to welcome in the holidays with caroling and a countdown for the first annual lighting of the “Glow Cone” on the historic air raid siren at the corner of Phinney Avenue North at North 67th Street.

The siren, a Cold War reminder built in 1953, is now home to a cheerier aspect – a 17-foot-tall, 20-spoked, 6,000-LED-light “Glow Cone” that shines on the Phinney Neighborhood Center.

PNA director Lee Harper kicked off the lighting saying the Glow Cone and 150 monkey holiday lights are something only our neighborhood can claim.
“What if an animal escaped from the zoo and ran up and down Phinney and Greenwood? And the monkeys were born,” Harper explained to the crowd. “It is unique. A lot of people, including my partner, said ‘I don’t get it. Monkeys?’ Exactly. But you’re talking about it and you’re not talking about the lights and trees in Ballard.”
Here’s a shot of the crowd singing carols before one lucky kid got to flip the switch on the lights. (Thanks to Mike Veitenhans for the two photos.)

KING 5 had a nice story about the Glow Cone and monkey lights on Sunday night.