February 2009

Fighting against the mistreatment of dogs in Washington’s puppy mills, Theresa Edwards and Audrey Long, two seventh-graders from Whitman Middle School have spent two years getting involved in Washington’s legislature to create a bill to protect these neglected animals.

Edwards first wrote to Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles and other 36th District legislators two years ago regarding the issue of puppy mills in Washington State.

As of late January the Seattle Times reported nearly 600 dogs in Snohomish and Skagit counties were seized in raids. The dogs were sick, matted, standing in their own feces and left without food and water. They were deemed to be in need of immediate medical care.

According to the Humane Society, “Puppy mills are breeding facilities that produce purebred puppies in large numbers. Often puppies are sold directly to the public via the Internet, newspaper ads, or at the mill itself. In other cases they are sold to brokers and pet shops across the country.”

The Seattle City Council is reviewing a proposal to amend an ordinance in the city's land use code to create an exception to a requirement that museums in general industrial areas can only occupy buildings that existed as of Oct. 5 1987.

The change would directly benefit the Nordic Heritage Museum, which completed a $5.1 million deal to purchase the 75,000 square foot Fenpro building on Market Street between 26th Avenue Northwest and 23rd Avenue Northwest, the site being considered for the code amendment.

The site is located in the Ballard Hub Urban Village.

Eric Nelson, executive director of the Nordic Heritage Museum, has said he expects the museum to move to the new location by 2014. A new facility will be built, being designed now by Mithun Partners.

Tom Hauger with the city's Department of Planning and Development, said at the Feb. 11 city council planning and land use meeting, the change would allow museums to occupy new structures and that it would effect approximately 5 acres.

Hauger also said the area is designated within the Ballard Neighborhood Plan to encourage pedestrian activity.

A location has been announced for a car camp being planned by the Ballard Homes for All Coalition.

Vic Opperman, founder of Sustainable Ballard, said at a Feb. 17 Sustainable Green Lake meeting that the camp will be coming to St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Ballard.

The location was confirmed by a number of community members, though no date has been set for the establishment of the camp.

Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson (D-36th District), founder of the Ballard Homes for All Coalition, said in September that the purpose of the planned car camps is to create a safe and secure place for the homeless to park.

According to a September press release from the coalition, people hoping to use the camps would have to go through a screening process, and outreach workers would make regular rounds to make sure there are no problems.

There are approximately 50 car campers in Ballard, according to the press release.

Troy Gua, Ildiko Kalapacs, Shannon Kallsen and Mira Kamada explore identity, culture and society’s expectations of women in ArtsWest’s new exhibit, The Feminine Myth.

Admission is free from Noon to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday March 8 through April 4.

The exhibition was curated specifically to complement the stage production of "The History Boys," which ran Jan. 21 through Feb. 15.

In "The History Boys" we get a lot of male perspectives, so I wanted the gallery exhibit to serve as a counterbalance,” said Gallery Director Nichole DeMent. “In The Feminine Myth the viewer will find themselves surrounded by female perspectives and female forms.”

Troy Gua, (recently profiled in City Arts) challenges the cliché that’s rampant within the current media: the exploitation of the female form.  Gua’s hand-cut paper, glass and wood blocks of the female form include sensual materials such as velvet and vinyl to make a statement on the exaggerated associations of larger than life women and their iconic parts. 

The Green Seattle Partnership is looking for forest stewards and is hosting a Forest Steward Orientation on Saturday, April 4 from
10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Seward Park Environmental and Audubon Center.

This is an opportunity to be a part of an exciting partnership between the City of Seattle, its residents, and the Cascade Land Conservancy.
The purpose of the Green Seattle Partnership (GSP) is to restore, maintain, and steward Seattle’s forested parklands.

They build on restoration work that is already underway with a citywide goal of restoring 2,500 acres of forested parkland by 2025.
The enormous contributions of volunteer restoration groups play an integral role in the success of this effort.

Working with the GSP Project Manager and Parks Urban Forester, the forest stewards will develop site restoration plans and a system for tracking progress. In return, the Forest Steward will be eligible to receive tools, materials, technical assistance and specialized training needed to implement a successful community-based forest restoration project.

For more information contact Andrea Mojzak at andream@cascadeland.org /or by calling (206) 905-6920.

Applications are due to the city by Feb. 27 for the projects that can be funded through the Neighborhood Projects Fund, such as traffic circles, sidewalk repair, or playground improvements.

Approved projects will be implemented in 2010.

There are two funds set aside in the 2010 city budget for community-proposed streets and parks projects, approximately $1.2 million.

Neighborhood Project Funds can be used for small-scale (up to $90,000 per project) street or parks improvements, such as sidewalk repair, traffic circles and traffic calming, sidewalks, school zone speed limit signs and playground improvements, etc.

Proposed projects are required to meet the following criteria:

Projects must be related to the maintenance or repair of existing structures (not new construction) and must relate to the implementation of an existing Neighborhood Plan.

Projects funded by the Neighborhood Street Fund portion (approx. $200,000 total) must be transportation-related. These projects may include new construction and do not have to relate to Neighborhood Plans, but there is less money to go around in this fund.

Taproot Theatre Company presents Mitch Albom’s "Tuesdays with Morrie" by Jeffrey Hatcher and Mitch Albom this spring.

Based on the best-selling autobiographical book by Mitch Albom, "Tuesdays with Morrie" invites you to pull up a chair and join Mitch and his beloved, vibrant but terminally-ill professor, Morrie, for some of the greatest lessons life can offer. Directed by Karen Lund, it opens on March 27 and runs through April 25, with low-price previews on March 25 and 26, plus a pay-what-you-can performance on April 1.

“If you enjoyed the book you’re going to love the play,” said director Karen Lund, adding that the play goes beyond what’s covered in the book and brings more of Albom into the story.

Albom, a sports columnist for the Detroit Free Press, has captivated millions of people with his books, including "Tuesdays with Morrie" and "The Five People You Meet in Heaven." "Tuesdays with Morrie" earned a place on The New York Times’ Best-Sellers list, where it remained for more than four years.

(Editor's note: This opinion piece was sent to this newspaper from Seattle City Council member Nick Licata as part of his Urban Politics Newsletter.)

On Tuesday, Feb. 17 the Seattle City Council affirmed their unanimous support for universal access to quality health care. In doing so, Seattle joined 24 other cities and counties and 18 states passing similar resolutions.

I authored and sponsored this resolution upon the request of the Washington chapter of Physicians for a National Health Plan (PNHP).

Resolution 31111 urges the U.S. Congress to enact legislation to establish and implement this right by adopting HR 676, the U.S. National Health Insurance Act, proposed by Representative John Conyers or HR 1200, the American Health Security Act, proposed by Representative Jim McDermott.  

500 N.W. Market St.
11-9 Daily, Closed Thursday
206-525-1813

Nestled in the hilly terrain of Ballard's ThirMark neighborhood (the area near 3rd Northwest and Northwest Market) Veraci Pizza pumps out some mighty remarkable fare. In the former Dominos location, where the ghosts of bad pizza may linger still, the Veraci fare represents the complete anti-Dominos, leaving a fragrant smell of herbs, cheese, and wood.

We had heard that the long lines and impressive-looking slices at farmer's markets may not be translating into the same kind of pizza-manna the new location, but our experience there won us over completely. Sage and plum walls and dark carpeting soften the storefront feel. And while the family-friendly set-up may include cheerio chunks dotting the floor along with floor shows of a 4 year old doing jumping jacks, Veraci sends out staff on clean-up missions every few minutes, maintaining order and clean tables, even at peak times.

Beginning Monday, Feb. 23, a portion of First Avenue South, between South Stacy and South Horton streets, is receiving a complete overhaul by the Seattle Department of Transportation. The department will build a new street base, lay fresh pavement, install new curbs and new sidewalks, as well as replace existing water and storm drain lines.

The transportation department will essentially rebuild this entire section of street, which is more damaged than other areas along First Avenue South that were paved last year, according to a release from the city. The project is scheduled to be completed this fall.

Traffic will be limited to two northbound lanes and one southbound lane during the day on First Avenue South between South Stacy and South Forest streets. There will be no on-street parking in the construction area. Left-hand turns onto or off of First Avenue South will be restricted at many of the intersections.

The construction will also result in some reroutes, relocated bus stops, and delays for King County Metro Transit and Sound Transit express bus service for several months.