 |
 |
 |
Restaurant reviews...
We’re in the middle of summer, but the Phinney Neighborhood Association is already thinking about its Winter Festival, set for Dec. 2-3.
All artists and craftspeople interested in being a vendor for the annual event, need to apply by Aug. 18.
About 115 vendors will be chosen.
SEATTLE – In a decision issued July 24, 2017, Deputy Hearing Examiner Ryan Vancil reversed and remanded the City’s approval of the controversial “Phinney Flats” project, a 57-unit building with no onsite parking in the Phinney Ridge neighborhood. The project had generated unprecedented opposition in the community.
“This Decision is a game-changer for making the City accountable for
applying the Land Use Code properly,” said Irene Wall, a board member of Livable Phinney, the Washington nonprofit corporation that had appealed the City’s approval of the Phinney Flats project.
The Examiner agreed with Livable Phinney that: 1) the building was too
close to the rear property line and violated the required setbacks, and; 2) the building had an illegal rooftop structure that did not meet the definition of a clerestory, and that this structure was placed improperly on the rooftop. A revised building design will be required.
And, in a ruling with city-wide ramifications, the Examiner also agreed with Livable Phinney that the City was required to look at actual bus frequency, not just bus schedules, when allowing an exemption from onsite parking requirements. The Land Use Code allows a multi-use project in an Urban Village to proceed without any onsite parking, regardless of parking impacts, if the site is located within a specified distance of “Frequent Transit Service,” which requires 15-minute intervals between buses. The City insisted that a bus schedule showing 15-minute intervals was sufficient.
For more details visit: https://livablephinney.org/
Primary Election Day is Tuesday, Aug. 1. All ballots must be postmarked by midnight, or dropped in a King County Election Ballot Drop Box by 8 p.m. on Aug. 1 (they’re open 24 hours a day until 8 p.m. Aug. 1). See King County Elections’ website for more information.
Ballot Drop Boxes closest to our neighborhood are at the Broadview Library, 12755 Greenwood Ave. N.; Green Lake Community Center, 7201 East Green Lake Drive North; and the Ballard Library at the corner of NW 57th Street and 22nd Avenue NW. See the website for a complete list.
For candidate information:
Remember, the 67th annual Greenwood Seafair Parade starts at 6 p.m. tomorrow (Wednesday) with Grand Marshals the Seafair Clowns and the theme “Clownin’ Around in Greenwood.”
The Seafair Commodores help run all the Seafair events, including staging the entrants in the Greenwood Seafair Parade.
Thousands of people crowd the sidewalks of downtown Greenwood to see about 100 floats, bands, drill teams, community groups and the Seafair Pirates march and perform in the oldest Seafair parade.
The parade starts on Greenwood Avenue North at North 95th Street, heads south to 85th Street, then west to 6th Avenue NW.
Opus Co. Restaurant is opening at 7410 Greenwood Ave. N. on Wednesday. Opus will be open for dinner from 5-10 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday (closed Monday and Tuesday), cooking seasonal foods on a huge wood-fired grill.
Starting Aug. 1, you can make reservations through Open Table.
Its website is just a landing page at the moment, but there’s lots more information and photos of the inside on the restaurant’s Facebook page.
Seattle’s Emergency Operations Center downtown will activate on Saturday, July 29, for a city-wide drill emphasizing communication at 11 hubs. Hubs are designated neighborhood locations where people gather after a disaster to work together and share resources.
Saturday’s “emergency” will be a simulated earthquake.
In our neighborhood, the Phinney Hub will participate from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the upper parking lot of the Phinney Neighborhood Association, 6532 Phinney Ave. N. Participants will use walkie-talkies and will work together to determine the status of Swedish Hospital in Ballard and Northwest Hospital.
Just north of Greenwood, another hub will be at Broadview Lutheran Memorial Church, 13047 Greenwood Ave. N. And to the west, a hub is located at Loyal Heights Playfield, 2101 NW 77th St.
Hub volunteers invite you to stop by to observe and learn how you can help after a disaster. Information will be available and new volunteers are welcome! Part of their practice is to train people to be able to spontaneously step in and assist. You can help as a “citizen actor” or as a new volunteer.
For the seventh year, King County Executive Dow Constantine will recognize the importance and accomplishments of small businesses in our region with the Executive’s Small Business Awards. Nominations are now being accepted through August 5 at: www.kingcounty.gov/smallbusinessawards 
Nomination categories are:
– Overall Small Business of the Year
– Minority-Owned Small Business of the Year
– Woman-Owned Small Business of the Year
– Exporting Small Business of the Year
– Green/Sustainable Small Business of the Year
– Workforce Development Small Business of the Year
– Rural Small Business of the Year
To be eligible for the awards, businesses must be located in King County, have 50 or fewer full-time equivalent employees, and have been in business for at least three years. Previous award winners and last year’s finalists are ineligible for nomination. Small businesses can be nominated in more than one category, but a separate nomination form must be completed for each category.
Nominations close on August 5. Winners will be announced at an awards event in the fall.
Find more information about the Executive’s Small Business Awards, and the nomination form, at: www.kingcounty.gov/smallbusinessawards
Seattle Animal Shelter is offering free adoptions this weekend because it is overflowing with animals.
The Seattle Animal Shelter is bulging at the seams due to a sudden influx of stray, surrendered and case-related animals, which require additional care and attention from shelter staff and volunteers. To help the shelter make space for these incoming pets, adoption fees are waived this weekend on all adoptable pets, including cats, dogs and critters such as rabbits, guinea pigs and birds. This offer is made possible through a grant from the Seattle Animal Shelter Foundation.
With this special offer, from July 21-23, adopters pay only the cost of a pet license, if applicable. Regular adoption fees are available online at http://www.seattle.gov/animal-shelter/adopt/adoption-fees. Seattle residents adopting an animal will be required to purchase a pet license, which ranges from $24-$70.
The discount applies to cats, dogs and critters in the shelter and in foster care. For animals in foster care, any application received during the weekend will receive the discounted price, even if the actual adoption happens later. The adoption package includes:
· Initial vaccinations
· Spay or neuter (for dogs, cats and rabbits)
· Microchip with registration
· Feline leukemia/feline immunodeficiency testing (cats only)
· Certificate for a free health exam at local veterinarians
· $20 coupon for Mud Bay
· 30-day pet insurance policy from PetHealthThe Seattle Animal Shelter, located at 2061 15th Ave. W., is open from noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday for adoptions. For more information, call 206-386-PETS (7387) or visit http://www.seattleanimalshelter.org.
Woodland Park Zoo’s new baby giraffe has been named Lulu, which means “pearl” in Swahili.
Lulu was born last month to mother Tufani and father Dave. She was 5 foot 9 inches at birth and is already 7 feet tall.
Photo by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren, Woodland Park Zoo.
She was named by Al Buckingham, who won the opportunity by making a donation at the zoo’s Jungle Party fundraiser, which raised more than $1.5 million total (the zoo did not specify the amount of Buckingham’s donation).