CDNews reported recently that the funding and plans for a streetcar running between First Hill and Capitol Hill were about to snap into place. Tuesday morning, the City Council's transportation committee will possibly help get things snapping with bill #116636:

C.B. 116636
DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE VOTE
Implementation of the First Hill Streetcar Connector Project:  This proposed legislation authorizes an agreement with the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority for implementation of the First Hill Streetcar Connector Project.

In much of our coverage of the streetcar route, CHS has reported on the line as the 'Capitol Hill streetcar' or 'Capitol Hill/First Hill streetcar.' Nobody can deny that the possible routes for the line will run between First and Capitol hills. But our Capitol Hill focus reduces First Hill's role in all of this. And, worse, sometimes, we've focused only on the Capitol Hill opportunities.' In reality, the route needs to benefit the people that live and work in both neighborhoods. CHS asked First Hill advocate Michael Gray what he feels First Hill needs from the streetcar route the two neighborhoods will share. Here is his reply:

View Larger Map

I’m a current Board member and past president of the First Hill Improvement Association, and helped spearhead the efforts to get the streetcar once we lost the First Hill Light Rail Station. I needed to vent my frustrations after reading some of the comments dismissing the need for a streetcar for First Hill, and due to the fact there is a very organized effort to pull the streetcar to the east, in order to serve Capitol Hill businesses and residents.

Both the First Hill Community Council and First Hill Improvement Association have always supported an alignment headed up Broadway to Boren, from Boren eastbound to Broadway via Madison or Seneca, and then north on Broadway to John Street. That alignment runs along the geographic center of First Hill, and makes the streetcar line no more than 3 blocks away from all four major institutions on First Hill. The ‘Broadway – only’ alignment was a compromise we were willing to accept, but is not at all convenient for the 20.000 daily visitors and employees at Harborview and Virginia Mason.

Any alignment that includes 12th Avenue, including the “loop” option, renders the streetcar useless for most First Hill residents and workers. The travel times with the streetcar running one direction would mean travel to either Capitol Hill Station (counter-clockwise route) or International District Station (clock-wise route) would require a commuter to travel almost the entire length of the loop to reach their destination. It then would be faster to just walk to/from Downtown, if the person is physically fit and can traverse the hill climb required. But we’ve already got that option. The streetcar was intended to improve our options. As you well may know, most of our major arterials are clogged during peak hours, and bus travel is no better than walking in most cases.

Stay tuned. CHS will have details from Tuesday's council committee session and what's next for the, ahem, First Hill-Capitol Hill streetcar.

Tomorrow night the Capitol Hill Community Council's Planning and Policy Committee will host a discussion with the developer, Point32. Point32 is a real estate company with some prominent projects lined up here on the hill; both the rehabilitation and addition of the historic Belroy Apartments and the Bullitt Foundation's new headquarters on Madison will shift the urban fabric in their respective micro-hoods.

Bullitt Foundation director Denis Hayes, Miller Hull architect Craig Curtis, and Point32 CEO Chris Rogers will discuss the new Bullitt Foundation headquarters. The Bullitt Foundation, one of the largest enivronmental foundation's in the country, has plans for a new headquarters at Madison and 15th, currently home to C.C. Attles (CDN coverage here). True to their mission, Bullitt wants a living building that sets a new standard in green architecture. They have also said that they hope to create a building that is "uniquely Northwest" in style. In addition to the Bullitt offices, the building will likely have...

Pat Grimm is Owner/Broker of Windermere Real Estate/Capitol Hill located on 19th Ave E. His office is not currently representing and does not own property in the Brix building.

Last week, Seattle Real estate pundits were predicting that the Brix and Gallery auctions would yield prices that would be 30% off the original asking prices, but I wouldn’t  have bet on it. Patterns from previous auctions at The Press (-17%), Queen Anne High(-32%) and Lumen (-38%) and the sheer number of units being sold at one time … 80 plus … suggested to me that the discounts would be greater. Interestingly, the pundits were almost dead on.

The numbers are in and it looks like the Brix and Gallery average auction prices came in at 30.37% and 32.47% respectively off original prices. Did the winning bidders get a good deal? Well, I’d have to get out my crystal ball to answer that but that thing broke last year. In all seriousness, time and the marketplace will ultimately define the good deals. My gut is telling me that these buyers did...

Here are the results of the Brix Auction that happened earlier today at the Grand Hyatt.  I estimated the crowd size to be between 450 and 500 people.  Urbnlivn estimates that there were about 200 registered bidders, and the rest of the crowd were guests.  According to Zillow, the average sales price per square foot of a condo in the 98102 zipcode (where Brix is located) was $378 in July 09.  I have highlighted (in yellow) the units where the bidders were able to secure the condo for below this market valuation - click to enlarge the table.  Units (or Homes) are listed by the order they were sold at auction.

For an opinion on Sunday's auction, check out patgrimm's write-up.

(Photo: Jeff Romeo special to CHS)

An estimated 2,500 people came out for the 2009 walk for AIDS, held by the Lifelong AIDS Alliance. Now in its 23rd year, the event hopes to raise money and continued awareness of the disease as well as bring the community together around a common cause. According to Executive Director David Richart, this year's total reached half of a million dollars as of Saturday morning after 10 weeks of fundraising. 

After a quick stretch led by the Rain City Soccer team, the giant crowd took off, led by the student AIDS awareness group Aspen. The 5k route took participates down 12th Ave. all the way to Union, and back up to Volunteer Park via Broadway. Some chanting, some just chatting, participants filled the blocked off streets with what appeared to be a never ending chain of people.

(Photo: Jeff Romeo special to CHS)

After the route was completed, walkers and runners were greeted with music, food, and plenty of water in addition to the cheering group of hundreds of volunteers that made the event possible.

(Photo: Lucas Anderson)

(Photo: Jeff Romeo special to CHS)

Produce Originally uploaded by aaronbrethorst

Capitol Hill has known for a long time now that its farmers market is going to have to move. A recent vote by the City Council is going to make that move much less painful:

Due to development pressures, some farmers markets that set up on private property are getting shuffled around. When private property exchanges hands or is scheduled for redevelopment, the markets are sometimes forced to relocate. Representatives of the markets asked the city to help them secure more stable sites on public property to avoid this problem. The city identified that land owned by the Department of Parks and Recreation (Parks) and Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) would be the most suitable areas for hosting farmers markets.

However, to obtain a permit for a farmers market stall on public land, vendors had to pay weekly or “per use” administrative fees, which were costly. The ordinance noted that this was a “major barrier” to using city property for farmers markets. It aims to lessen the burden on vendors by instituting a lower annual fee in place of the weekly fees.

The City Council approved the ordinance reducing the fees and streamlining the process. Which brings us back to Broadway. The parking lot that the Broadway Farmers Market calls home was purchased by a developer with plans to construct a mixed-use building on the site. CHS hears, btw, that SRM Development is about to finally make its plans public -- more on that soon, we hope. Capitol Hill's market was one of those in the city being 'shuffled around.' CHS asked the head of Seattle's Neighborhood Farmers Market Alliance, Chris Curtis, what the new rules will do for the Broadway market. Here is her reply:

The markets, as you well know, have been under development pressures at several locations.  Lake City had to move last year and the best location turned out to be Albert Davis Park and closing the street in front of library.  Street closure permits and parks dept fees are prohibitively high, so we approached OED, the mayor’s office and the council about helping us get the fees lowered – if not waived – and the results became the ordinance that was passed on Monday.

The Columbia City Farmers Market is faced with development pressures and the Broadway Market will have to move eventually.  The very preliminary discussions we’ve been having with ST have been around perhaps locating the market along Nagle Place (north of Denny), on Denny itself - and maybe at the entrance to Cal Anderson.   Given this scenario, the lowered street closure and parks dept fees would really help our non-profit market operations stay within budget.

The Broadway Market will certainly need to move before the ST station is complete, so we are looking at Seattle Central as a possible interim location for the market.  Nothing is set or certain at this point.

(There are also certain requirements that the Fire Dept must meet as far as right of way for their trucks, so some streets are too narrow to stage a market AND provide space for a fire truck.)

Farmers Markets are a wonderful amenity in all the neighborhoods they take place.  None of us could have imagined when we got started (at our tiny grass roots level) how popular they would become and how much advocacy they would demand.  People love them...but they do need open space to stage and secure and permanent locations if they are to be around for the future.

The Broadway Farmers Market is open every Sunday through December 20, from 11am to 3pm, at 10th Ave E and E Thomas.

Artist rendition of 10th Ave sound wall

Sound Transit Construction Update Forum
When: Thursday, October 8, 2009 06:00 PM - 08:00 PM
Where: Seattle Central Community College #1110
What: Topics will include--
Update on construction
Noise variance
SDOT info
Art program

CHS talked briefly with Sound Transit spokesperson Bruce Gray about the forum and a few other ST items of note:

• Gray said the forum will discuss the noise variance application. According to the City of Seattle Department of Planning and Development Web site, the application has not yet been submitted. BTW, here's the notice for the University of Washington light rail work site application that came through the pipeline -- and was approved -- back in spring. We've also attached the UW application document to this post.
• Gray also said that there will be an update on Barbara Luecke's project to add art to the construction area and empty lot of pavement at Broadway and John. Remember, come 2010, the area will be surrounded by large construction walls. They'll block some sound -- and they'll also make interesting canvases for some public art.
• As for that empty lot, Gray said there aren't yet any community events scheduled for the empty construction area but that Sound Transit is 'leaning toward' working with a group on an outdoor movie project.

Pat Grimm is Owner/Broker of Windermere Real Estate/Capitol Hill located on 19th Ave E. His office is not currently representing and does not own property in the Brix building.

Sunday, September 27th, condo developer, Schnitzer West, will be attempting to move 40 units at Brix on Capitol Hill and 43 units at Gallery in Belltown…all within a 6 hour period. The issue is that no one has ever attempted to sell…bang of the gavel…gone…80 plus condominiums in a single afternoon in the City of Seattle.  It’s a little like trying to predict the outcome of the Seahawk game this weekend, but there’s no question in my mind that the outcome will impact Seattle real estate.

Which brings up some interesting questions:  Is the market deep enough? Are there enough sideline players waiting for this kind of opportunity? How much more than the minimum bid will they go for? What percentage off the original list price will they go for? The outcome of this event could speak volumes in terms of where we really are with the Seattle real estate market … as it applies to condos.

But Schnitzer West isn’t the only one laying things on the line here.  Every condo owner in the city has something at stake here as well, especially the condo owners with their property on or soon to be on the market. It should be noted that more than half of the dwelling units in the City are now condos, townhomes or co-ops.

Hundreds of potential buyers and curiosity seekers have been through these projects over the past few weeks. It will be interesting to see how many show up on Sunday. On one hand, I’m visualizing low bidding and the outcome to be like ripping off a bandage and exposing a very ugly and painful sore with the realization that market values are significantly less than current expectations.

On the other hand, I can also see the potential for a lot of bidding and a ratification that the expectation adjustments that have already been made are true to the market.  Either way, I think we’re going to find out where the market really is, and right wrong or indifferent, it is what it is. And that is bound to create some certainty in the minds and hearts of Buyers and Sellers, which can be stabilizing. … and after the past couple of years, I welcome stability.

As for me, I’ll have to choose between the Seahawk game and the auction on Sunday afternoon. I have to admit, the auction could be way more interesting.

http://www.auctionbrix.com/index.php?keyword=brix%20condos

http://www.auctionthegallery.com/

CHS just heard a call go out on East Precinct police radio regarding a woman reporting being assaulted by a demonstrator on Broadway. We were wondering what kind of demonstration was happening on Broadway that we'd somehow missed. Then we saw this picture in @kevinseattle's tweet stream and everything made sense.

More when we can find out what happened from SPD.

There's more than one way to remove the layers of multilevel marketing and rock posters that accumulate on Capitol Hill utility poles. This afternoon around 1:25 PM, two Seattle Fire trucks were dispatched to extinguish a utility pole aflame at the corner of 11th and Pine. No official word on cause. Though God's wrath can't be ruled out, SPD was at the scene interviewing -- or, really, being interviewed by -- one of the neighborhood's colorful and loud-yelling inhabitants.

Mayoral candidate Mike McGinn released his proposed music and nightlife policy. It sounds like great news for existing bars and clubs. According to the Seattle P-I article:

Seattle mayoral candidate Mike McGinn on Wednesday came down on the side of the city's bars and nightclubs, saying new residential developments "must not be able to drive out existing nightlife establishments."

He also said he favored staggered closing times to cut down on rowdiness when bars and clubs close

This is particularly great for queer nightlife on Capitol Hill. I don't know if any one else has been nervous about the re-development next to The Cuff. Hopefully, this would protect bars (especially gay bars) who are harassed by new neighbors who want to live in a vibrant part of the city but then don't want to deal with noise and traffic. 

A group driving the effort to make sure Referendum 71 passes says recent polling data suggests they have their work cut out for them. While 51% of respondents in the survey said they would vote to approve when read the exact text of the referendum, survey participants who were 'unsure' of what R-71 is about "tend to vote 'no,'" according to the Approve 71 campaign.

Here is the language for the referendum voters will see in November:

REFERENDUM 71 Ballot Title Statement of Subject:

The legislature passed Engrossed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5688 concerning rights and responsibilities of state-registered domestic partners [and voters have filed a sufficient referendum petition on this bill].

Concise Description: This bill would expand the rights, responsibilities, and obligations accorded state-registered same-sex and senior domestic partners to be equivalent to those of married spouses, except that a domestic partnership is not a marriage.

Should this bill be:

Approved ___ Rejected __

And here is the release about the polling data from Approve 71:

SEATTLE – The Approve 71 campaign today released polling data that shows the campaign to protect all of Washington’s families and the state’s domestic partnership law promises to be a tough fight that hinges on strong voter turnout and broad voter contact.

 Following certification of R-71 on Sept. 2, 2009, the Approve 71 campaign commissioned Greenberg Quinlan Rosner (GQR) to conduct a statewide survey of voters likely to vote in Washington's upcoming general election.

 “We have seen over the years that an increasing majority of Washingtonians support equality under the law for all Washington families,” said Anne Levinson, Approve 71 campaign chair. "But we know that in an off-year election voter turnout trends to older, more conservative voters, and as much as half of the general population won’t be voting, so we wanted to ask just likely voters about specific ballot language."

 The poll result numbers strongly suggest it will be a close election.

•  When voters are read the exact ballot language, they divide 51 percent “approve” and 44 percent “reject.”

 “The poll suggests the same trend we’ve seen across the country, the highest margins of support are among younger voters and those who vote less frequently, particularly urban voters,” Levinson said. “The R-71 election is likely to have a very narrow margin and since the measure was certified so late, we only have a few weeks to reach voters to explain what the domestic partnership law is and how it protects families. It is critical that those who support the law turn out to vote.”

Further complicating matters is the fact that when voters are unsure of what a measure is about, they tend to vote “no.” With R-71, supporters of domestic partnership law have the approve position.

“Every voter who cares about ensuring that all Washington families have equal protection under state law must talk to their friends and family about the importance of voting approve on R-71. Thousands of families across the state are counting on us,” Levinson said.

Here is the Slog's take on the poll data and the Weekly's. Check out GayCapHill.com for ways to get involved on the Hill.

CHS wants to see one of the individual leaders of the Hill's 'transit oriented development' process buy into the very area the process will transform. Sound Transit officials, Capitol Hill Housing reps, City of Seattle planners, 110 10th Ave E waits for you.

When CHS covers the 'transit oriented development' process related to Sound Transit's construction of the Capitol Hill light rail station, we're generally pretty positive. There is a huge opportunity to build something great. And there are plenty of signs that a community-driven process really will continue to emerge and define what gets built in the heart of Broadway and, to increase the import even further, the heart of Capitol Hill. That's what transit oriented development should be about -- TOD should be public transit focused, community minded and shaped by the people who live, work and ride in the area of development.

But there is another side to all of this. TOD is a euphemism for market driven development -- except, in this case, the developer happens to be a gigantic public agency. Already the framework is in place for requiring any of the TOD to achieve 'fair market value' -- you'd have to build condo towers to the moon to counterbalance the community and arts facilities some of the pinko commies (like me!) would rather see in the space.

View Larger Map

All of this leads to a very real opportunity to put money where mouths are. On 10th Ave E, across the street from the expanse of blacktop currently capping the light rail station construction zone, one residential property has recently sold, one is sold but pending and another is for sale. To buy a home on 10th Ave E right now is to have deep faith in the TOD process. It is truly putting skin in the game.

110 !0th Ave E is a 3,000 sqft, 5-bedroom home built in 1908. It last sold in November 2002 for $410,000 -- that would be a 50% appreciation if you offer full price. The gain would be about in line with other similar homes in the area for the period. It currently has a Walkscore of 97 -- imagine what kind of score it will have once the trains start running and if TOD produces a great space.

The home directly to the south at 106 10th on the corner with Denny has an offer and is currently pending sale.

The house last sold in December 2006 for $500,000. Other homes in the 98102 ZIP code have fallen more than 10% in this period. This buyer is buying into TOD.

Meanwhile, this 10th Ave E condo sold back in January for less than it was paid for in September 2006.

For a transit official or community group leader with deeper pockets, there's also this larger development project to consider -- though the neighbors don't seem very welcoming.

So there's the opportunity. The lucky stakeholder who moves into the neighborhood has to put up with eight years of construction. When that works is complete, they'll either live across the street from a development that is public transit focused, community minded and vibrant or they'll be staring at a massive wall of expensive condos and a mall. And, yeah, they'll probably actually look out on something in between. But knowing that one person has skin in the game and is truly part of the community directly affected by TOD would give us a whole new appreciation for the process.

Last week, we told you about the latest new business taking up residence in the restored Odd Fellows building. A press release issued today by the building's developer has details about Flora and Henri's move and three more tenants set to hang their shingles at Pine and 10th Ave:

The new tenants will add to the building's creative vibe, and include: established Seattle children's and fancier retailer flora and henri; a new environmental-focused mercantile known as Nube Green; hydration tablet creator nuun; and Smith-Harmon internet marketing firm.

The release describes Nube Green thusly -- you can find out a little more here http://www.nubegreen.com/

Also on the ground floor -- sandwiched between the popular OddFellows Café and Molly Moon's, and right next to flora and henri -- Nube Green plans to open the doors on its 2,300 square foot mercantile store in November. This retailer will carry a broad array of simple, fun and elegant gifts for the ecologically minded consumer. The store will only sell products...

City Attorney and candidate Tom Carr (Photo: City of Seattle)

The Stranger doesn't like Tom Carr. Comrade Bunny's mom doesn't like Tom Carr. You can not like him yourself or welcome him to the East Precinct Thursday night -- your call.

East Precinct Crime Prevention Coalition Meeting

Thursday, September 24, 2009
6:30-8:00pm
Seattle Vocational Institute
Room 401
2120 S. Jackson St.

Topics: Special Guest Seattle City Attorney Tom Carr
Community Concerns & Precinct Updates

By the way, Carr's opponent in the City Attorney race, Peter Holmes, racked up yet another endorsement last week, the Seattle Times reports.

If you heard the sirens very early Sunday morning on the east slope of the Hill, here's the scoop. Fire spokesperson Dana Vander Houwen said that the 4-alarm response to 2421 E. Aloha around 2:45 AM Sunday morning involved a fire in an attached garage with a second story above the garage. Vander Houwen said firefighters put the fire out quickly and the fire did not spread to the second story. There were no injuries.

The residents of McKinney Manor senior housing are picketing this Sunday morning at 19th and Madison in protest of what they say is chronic neglect of their housing by the manor's owners, Mt. Zion Baptist Church.

The senior group says it has been asking for help from city agencies since March 2008 because of the lack of repairs and leak problems in the building managed by Quantum Management.

Samuel B McKinney Manor is located at 1916 E Madison St across the street from Mt. Zion.

A row of blossoming trees along Pike aren't enjoying this rainy Saturday morning. Whether by douchebaggery or nature, four of the trees have tragically snapped limbs. Branches break. Blossoms drop. It rains a lot in Seattle.

There's an empty storefront on Broadway. The stuffed-to-the-gills convenience store at the corner of Harrison and Broadway is out of business as of September 13 according to a paper sign hanging from its glass door. Broadway Grocery didn't carry a lot of things you might include in the 'grocery' category but it was a pretty typical convenience store. Anybody going to miss it?

There's a new neighbor moving to the Odd Fellows building. And they've got kids.

Top shelf children's clothing retailer Flora and Henri are moving into the empty space on the ground floor of Odd Fellows at the corner of Pine and 10th. Sign says they plan to open in October. The sign also notes the retailer is 'not just for kids anymore.'

This is not the first visit to Capitol Hill for Flora and Henri. They've kept a store in the Loveless building on Roy after closing their downtown store in February. There is also a Flora and Henri in New York City's Upper East Side.

A truck hauling a trailer carrying two cars bottomed out on this hill on Aloha near 23rd this afternoon blocking traffic and leaving the driver and police looking for a solution to get things moving again.

The Sylvie, a new 12-unit townhome at 311 14th Ave E. is set to open Thursday. The homes, designed by Seattle-based DB2 were designed as some of the greenest units in Seattle, targeting both 5-star Built Green and LEED Platinum certifications. The homes utilize all low energy fixture and appliance, tankless water heaters, and are also pre-wired for solar panels (but you have to purchase the actual panels yourself). All the units are 3-bedrooms and range between 1,478 - 1,615 sq ft. including a rooftop deck. No word yet on the asking prices but the fact that it's on near Seattle's original Millionaires Row is probably a good clue.

Sylvie Grand Opening

311 14th Ave E.

September 17th, 5-8pm

Drinks and hors d'oeuvres available

We're not the only site covering Capitol Hill:

• Seattle Times reports that Seattle police have arrested Quincy Quinn. Quinn, prosecutors says, is part of a duo responsible for a strong of bank robberies including this September 3rd hold-up at 15th Ave E.'s Group Health Credit Union:
  

  Quinn was arrested Friday night on a misdemeanor warrant for bank robbery after he was identified by an acquaintance, prosecutors say. That person contacted police, according to a probable cause affidavit written by the King County Sheriff's Office. The affidavit says the handgun used by Quinn during many of the robberies was an unloaded BB gun.

  
  
• Another tenant of Liz Dunn's Melrose Building project has been revealed. The Stranger reports that Terra Plata will join Sitka & Spruce when the redevelopment of the building is complete later this year.
• Shiny bright and brand new, The SunBreak has details on 'the coolest theater fest you don't know is going on:
  

  Last weekend, Infinity Live Productions kicked off The Suitcase Festival at Annex...

Update 10:05 PM by Lucas Anderson, Neighborlogs.com:
A cast of candidates gathered at the University Heights Community Center Tuesday night, as the 43rd District Democrats made their endorsements for the fall election. Mayoral candidate Mike McGinn came out on top with 69% of the vote, breeching the 60% level needed to receive endorsement despite Mallahan's roots in the 43rd district.

The Candidates played to the usual line up of topics, fielding questions on background, nightlife and development, transportation, budget, and the standard Alaskan Way Viaduct/deep bore tunnel question. When asked about what they would bring to the position, Mallahan cited his executive experience, and his background as a business leader with "insider support." McGinn responded, saying "Having the support of insiders is one thing, and having the support of people is what is important."

With help from Mike O'Brien, a candidate for City Council, McGinn fought Mallahan's accusation that the "decision has been made" on the deep...

A huge story for Pike/Pine development below Broadway starts its next chapter this week as BMW Seattle has moved all of its operations off Capitol Hill to new facilities in SoDo. We first reported on the pending move back in March. Thanks to @matthickey for the tip that the Capitol Hill facilities had closed and all the cars are gone.

This spring, general manager Steve Bates said BMW was leaving Capitol Hill after 20 years because it needed a 5-story building and more than 2.5 acres to sell its cars. "This space is way too small," Bates said at the time. Bates said he expected to be operating in their new location on Airport Way by the end of July.

Despite the delay, a BMW Seattle employee this morning confirmed that the Capitol Hill has been closed this week and all activities have moved to the new location.

View Larger Map

The BMV move leaves another potential gaping hole in the middle of lower Pike/Pine. In addition to the main 14,000 sqft lot that faces Pike, BMW operated its garage and service facility in...