February 2026

On February 21, 2026, the Hiawatha Community Center in West Seattle celebrated its grand reopening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, marking the end of a nearly six-year closure. The event signaled the completion of a comprehensive $7.5 million modernization project that transformed the historic facility into a model for urban sustainability.

A Historic Legacy Restored

Originally constructed between 1910 and 1911, Hiawatha is Seattle's oldest community center. Designed by the prominent firm Bebb & Gould, the center and its surrounding playfield were a key part of the 1908 Olmsted Brothers Supplemental Plan.

Information from Washington State Department of Transportation

Two lanes of the northbound State Route 99 First Avenue South bridge over the Duwamish River are closed until further notice following a bridge inspection on Wednesday, Feb. 18, that identified concerns with the steel grid deck.

In addition to the lane closures, out of an abundance of caution, the Washington State Department of Transportation Wednesday night reduced the speed on the bridge to 25 mph to limit additional stress on the deck. The HOV lane is open to all traffic until further notice to help with traffic flow, and traffic can exit at Michigan Street.

The bridge remains open and operational, including for maritime traffic. Vessel openings will continue as needed.

Washington state legislators are considering a significant shift in infrastructure financing that would allow regional transit authorities to issue bonds with terms of up to 75 years. The proposal, Senate Bill 6148, aims to help agencies like Sound Transit manage rising construction costs and align state law with recent changes in federal lending programs.

Addressing the "2030s Pinch"

The bill, which has already cleared the Senate Transportation Committee and is currently on its Second Reading, seeks to provide financial flexibility as major light rail expansions to Everett and Tacoma face inflationary pressures. Under current law, the maximum term for these bonds is 40 years.

On a classic Pacific Northwest day, local advocates, scientists, and city officials gathered at Roxhill Park to celebrate a "major milestone" in the restoration of the Roxhill Bog. The event marked the successful completion of a pilot project designed to rehydrate one of Seattle's last remaining peat wetlands, which had been slowly drying out for decades.

The Power of Peat

Peat bogs are rare, ancient ecosystems that take millennia to form. Created from Sphagnum moss, sedges, and grasses in oxygen-deficient (anaerobic) conditions, peat develops into a dark, sponge-like material that can consist of up to 90% water.

These wetlands are ecological powerhouses that serve several vital functions:

• Carbon Sequestration: Bogs are "huge key carbon" sinks, collecting more carbon than forests.

The West Seattle Nursery has been awarded the Display Garden Founders Cup – Best in Show award for Best Hardscape at the Northwest Flower and Garden Festival. The show is on now through February 22.

The winning display was a collaborative achievement led by owner Marcia Bruno and visual merchandiser Carmen Leslie, who worked with a dedicated team of approximately ten people to bring the vision to life.