My Ballard » Ballard

Scenes from the Ballard Jazz Walk

Geeky Swedes — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 16:57:49 +0000

A good crowd attended the Ballard Jazz Walk Friday night, enjoying 18 bands across 12 venues in Old Ballard and Market St.

This is Todd Bishop’s Art Pop 4 playing at Resolution Audio.

And the McTuff Trio heating things up at the Lock & Keel. Photos by Luke McGuff, and you can see many more on on his Flickr page here. (And special thanks to Luke because our camera seized up and ate the photos we took of the Jazz Walk.)

Food Network cancels filming at Farmers Market

Geeky Swedes — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 13:59:51 +0000

Update: We heard from Dante first thing Saturday morning who tells us the filming tomorrow has been canceled. The producer for the show says the crew, who is based in Vancouver, does not wish to venture down with the chance of inclement weather. They might try again next weekend, but as Dante says, the weekend after Thanksgiving is usually slow at the Market.

Previous story:Dante Rivera says he won’t be getting much sleep on Saturday night. That’s because come Sunday he’ll be the center of attention. The Food Network will be shooting a show on street food at Sunday’s Farmers Market which will include Dante’s and his Inferno Dogs and the folks from Veraci Pizza. Filming starts at 12:30 on Ballard Avenue so come on down and see behind-the-scenes of the Food Network. Who knows, you may even make it on TV! (Disclosure: Dante is a sponsor of MyBallard).

Helicopter over car accident near 20th on 64th

Gladys — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 00:55:35 +0000

Kiro 7 sent their chopper to the scene of a car accident at 2031 NW 64th St. this evening. They reported that a truck was on its side and flipped upright just about 5 p.m. Pictures from Chopper 7 show it was a black or dark colored truck. More than a dozen fire units were dispatched to a “heavy rescue” just before 4:45 this afternoon. When crews arrived on scene they sent all but a handful home. The fire crews asked for one ambulance.

The weekend events calendar

Geeky Swedes — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:30:32 +0000

Don’t get bored Friday afternoon, get board. The Ballard Library is starting up a weekly board game drop-in program from 3:30-5:45 p.m. Blue Highway Games will be there tonight with fun, unusual board games.

The Ballard High School swing dance is Friday. Lessons start at 5:30 and the dance is from 7 - 9 p.m. The Ballard High School Jazz band and vocal ensemble will provide music. Adult tickets are $12 at the door. More info here.

See some of Ballard’s best shorts! Tonight is the Ballard Filmmaker Night at the Sunset Hill Community Association (3003 NW 66th St) featuring short films by our neighborhood filmmakers. The free event starts at 7:30 p.m.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! This weekend is the annual Yulefest at the Nordic Heritage Museum. Traditional Scandinavian foods, entertainment, decorations and of course, plenty of gift ideas. The event runs Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Krumkake… MMmmmmm.

For more live music, check out the calendars for Tractor Tavern, Sunset Tavern, Picolinos, The Bit Saloon, Conor Byrne and Egan’s Ballard Jam House. As always, check out our events calendar. And if you have an event to add, just email us at tips@myballard.com.

Domanico Cellars, Ballard’s newest winery

Geeky Swedes — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:00:48 +0000

Inside this nondescript building on NW 49th Street hides a surprising new addition to an industrial part of Ballard: a new winery called Domanico Cellars.

Jason and Jill Domanico are a husband and wife team who are passionate about three things: family, wine and Ballard. They have a four-year-old daughter, both have full-time jobs and now a winery in a neighborhood not known for wine. “We’ve always been pretty community-centric and we’re pretty proud of Ballard,” Jason says about their decision to open here. As far as they know, Animale is the only other winery in the neighborhood.

The Domanicos use grapes that come from three different vineyards in eastern Washington, and the couple is very hands-on during harvest. “It’s exhausting,” Jason says. They’ve been making wine since 2003, and their first commercial vintage is the 2006. “We are very excited to finally see this dream come to fruition,” Jill says. They make a Cabernet Sauvignon, a Merlot, “Mesa Rojo” or red table wine and a Riesling. Wine Advocate’s Robert Parker gave their Le Monstre (the Cab) a score of 90 points (outstanding.) “I walked on air for a couple of days” after hearing about the rating.

The tasting room at 825 NW 49th St. is open during the holidays on Saturdays from noon to 5 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. This weekend they’re holding a food and item drive for the Ballard Food Bank. Bring in two items and get 10% off your wine purchase. If you’re looking for a Thanksgiving wine, Jason says their Riesling, which is drier than most, would be perfect with turkey.

Creative ideas presented for 9th Ave park

Geeky Swedes — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:55:35 +0000

More than 50 people joined in last night’s conversation to brainstorm ideas for the new 39,000 square foot park on 9th Ave NW between 70th & 73rd.

The larger group broke into smaller groups and were told two things: there will not be a wading pool or an off-leash dog park. With that, the groups formulated ideas. Some brought up playground equipment for different ages, walking paths around the park, picnic areas, garden areas and “skate dots,” which are skateable benches or ledges. There was also discussion about adding a “nature play” feature that uses rocks or other earthworks for kids to play. Jacqueline, one of the neighbors at the meeting, tells us that there were a lot of creative ideas presented. “It was a great meeting!” she says.

The design group, Site Workshop, will work with Seattle Parks & Rec to come up with three plans before the next meeting on December 17th.

Construction is slated to start in August of 2010 with a completion date in the spring of 2011.

Ballard Jazz Walk tonight

Geeky Swedes — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:41:26 +0000

It will be all jazz all the time in downtown Ballard tonight.

The Ballard Jazz Walk starts at 7 p.m. and boasts 18 bands and 12 venues. Here is a schedule (.pdf) for the night. Although it’s too late to buy advance tickets, you can still buy tickets for $25 at Sonic Boom, New York Fashion Academy (starting at 5 p.m.) and Egan’s Ballard Jam House (starting at 6 p.m.). One ticket pays gets you in to all the shows.

Police standoff ends with arrest

Geeky Swedes — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:57:16 +0000

Update 10 p.m.: Officers say they arrested the man after a long standoff, and it’s taking some time for officers to wrap up the investigation. A man matching the name of the suspect has a long rap sheet ranging from car theft to burglary, according to SeattleCrime.com. We’ll be checking for an official update in the morning. (Thanks Silver for the updates!)

Earlier: A large number of police units along with a SWAT team converged at 8th and Leary this evening, and officers have closed Leary just west of 8th Ave. Seattle Police Detective Jeff Kappel tells us its an ongoing investigation and officers are serving a warrant. Given that this is an active investigation, he says that he doesn’t have any other information.

My Ballard reader Silver sent in this photo that she snapped from Bernie’s Automotive across the street from the standoff, and she says two people have been handcuffed and placed in the back of an unmarked vehicle.

The armored SWAT vehicle (above) drove up to the front of the building. Silver says that officers are still yelling for at least one more person to come out. She has also heard quite a bit of breaking glass and several “flash bangs,” and she’s posting continuous updates in comments below…

B of A closing Fishermen’s Terminal branch

Geeky Swedes — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:57:28 +0000

The Bank of America branch at Fishermen’s Terminal is closing.

MagnoliaVoice is reporting that the bank sent letters to its customers saying the branch will close February 26th. Current customers are being directed to the branch in Ballard, although there is also a B of A in the Magnolia Village.

Top Banana closing for the season

Geeky Swedes — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:11:19 +0000

Top Banana, on the corner of 15th & 65th, is closing for the season.

Owner Jimmy Wild tells us that everything is 25 percent off today and will be discounted even more tomorrow. His plan is to lock up tomorrow afternoon.

His Christmas tree lot will open for business the day after Thanksgiving. (Thanks Beth for the tip!)

Share your ideas for new 9th Ave park

Geeky Swedes — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:30:11 +0000

Tonight is your opportunity to share ideas for the new park on 9th Ave NW between NW 70th & NW 73rd.

Seattle Parks and Recreation is hosting the meeting at Whittier Elementary (1320 NW 75th St) from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Parks will gather ideas from the community and will start formulating some plans. Another meeting is scheduled for December 17th when the design team will present initial design concepts and the community can provide further input and direction. At a third meeting in early 2010, the team will present a preferred design developed from community input.

New Seattle school boundary maps approved

Geeky Swedes — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 07:07:12 +0000

Just after 11 p.m., the Seattle School Board unanimously approved the new boundary maps assigning which schools Seattle children will attend for years to come. The vote stretched into the night as directors added amendments to the plan, slightly adjusting boundaries here and there. For the Ballard area, the boundaries for Whittier Elementary/West Woodland and Loyal Heights Elementary/Adams Elementary were shifted slightly from last round of changes. The updated maps and address look-up tool will be available here by next week.

Above is a look at the new Loyal Heights/Adams Elementary boundary change. According to the Omnibus Amendment (.pdf), “Based upon current data, it is believed that moving the southern boundary for the Loyal Heights atttendence area from Northwest 75th Street to Northwest 73rd Street starting at 32nd Avenue Northwest running east to 24th Avenue Northwest, following the jog south in Northwest 73rd Ave at 28th Avenue Northwest to 24th Ave Northwest will result in a projections of 19 students shifting from Adams to Loyal Heights. This results in the projected enrollment at Adams moving from 13 in excess of functional capacity to 20 under functional capacity. Following the streets in this manner also ensures that the students who move into the Loyal Heights atttendence area are within the Loyal Heights walk zone.”

The southern boundary for Whittier Heights Elementary was adjusted from NW 67th to NW 65th St. Students north of 65th will go to Whittier, while students south of 65th will go to West Woodland.

The biggest remaining controversy was the dividing line between Ballard High School to the south with Ingraham High School to the north.

“Many families would’ve liked to have seen the boundary for Ballard to be further north than 85th St., especially those communities, North Beach, Blue Ridge, Olympic Manor, which now largely attend Ballard High School,” explained Seattle Schools Director Peter Maier. “I wish it would’ve been possible… but there simply isn’t the capacity at Ballard High School to do that while we’re serving the entire city.”

From here, a transitional plan will be developed, taking into consideration sibling grandfathering, transportation and educational programs for schools that will reopen. Viewlands Elementary is slated to reopen in 2011.

‘Sustainable’ to fill empty Market St. space

Geeky Swedes — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 02:50:34 +0000

A new business is opening on the corner of 20th & Market, leaving one less vacant space at the nearly empty intersection.

Work is underway behind the plastic to transform the former All the Kings Flags space into “Sustainable.” We spoke with Wanna, the owner of the new shop, who tells us she’ll sell recycled furniture, lighting and artwork. Now seemed like the perfect time to follow her dream, “Hopefully I can turn crisis into opportunity,” she says, referring to the economy. All the Kings Flags closed at the beginning of the year followed by Ballard Camera and Epilogue Books, leaving All the Best Pet Care as the lone business at the intersection. Wanna hopes to have Sustainable open in the next week.

NW 80th closed for tree removal

Geeky Swedes — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 23:38:10 +0000

Traffic alert:The Seattle Department of Transportation has closed NW 80th Street between 27th Ave NW & Earl Ave NW so crews can remove a tree. According to a press release, the tree has split and could possibly fall into the street. Crews expect to be finished and have the road reopened by 5 p.m.

School Board to vote on school boundaries today

Geeky Swedes — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 16:55:26 +0000

The Seattle School Board is voting on the new school boundaries at their meeting this afternoon.

Before the final vote, the Board will heard public comment on the assignment plan from 13 community members, including one Franklin High School student. The meeting agenda is here (.pdf). View the recommended motion from the Seattle Public School Staff here (.pdf), and the proposed amendments to the plan, which will also be voted, here (.pdf). The School Board meeting starts at 6 p.m. in the auditorium of the John Stanford Center, located at 2445 3rd Avenue South.

As part of the Student Assignment Plan approved back in June, the district was given the green light to redraw boundaries around each school based on addresses rather than preference. Under the proposed plan, the Ballard High School cutoff will be NW 85th, sending students north of there to Ingraham High School. Viewlands Elementary at 10525 3rd Ave. NW. would also be reopened under the plan. You can look up your proposed school using your address here.

A new look for a ’scraggly’ planter

Geeky Swedes — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:08:50 +0000

Taking advantage of the nice weather, Kathleen decided to make the planter in front of Embrace the Moon on Market a little nicer. “More and more people live here and walk here all the time and it makes a difference,” she tells us.

Kathleen originally agreed to trade maintenance for a quarter at the dojo, but decided that the planter with the tree looked “kind of scraggly” so she took on the larger project. With plants, a watering can and compost at her side, Kathleen spent the day finishing up the garden. She did the first half on Saturday and said passersby were happy with the change. “So many people stopped and said, ‘It looks great!’ and ‘Thank you so much!’” she says.

Swalwell charged with multiple arsons

Geeky Swedes — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:02:11 +0000

Kevin Todd Swalwell, the suspect arrested in the Greenwood arson cases has just been charged with setting multiple fires. PhinneyWood is going through the charging documents and posting a summary.

A rare look at the Ballard Locks

Geeky Swedes — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 19:31:40 +0000

Each year the Corps of Engineers “de-waters” the Ballard Locks, which is the official term for letting the water out, to scrape barnacles off the walls and make sure all the mechanical systems are working properly.

This morning I had the opportunity to climb 55 feet down the scaffolding to the bottom of the large Lock and see the structure from a rare point of view.

Here’s a short video clip (above) taken inside to give a sense of perspective.

Dru Butterfield, the Natural Resource Manager at the Locks led the tour. He took the small group into the filling conduits, or tunnels, along the side of the large locks, where volunteers are busy scraping barnacles off the walls. The sound of the scraping is deafening and the smell is eye-watering.

“The reason we hand-scrape barnacles is because we haven’t found a way to mechanically remove them that is more efficient than scraping them,” Butterfield says, “and we haven’t found any chemical that we can use that isn’t hazardous to the fish.”

Here’s some video above of the scraping in the filling conduit. (It’s a little loud. Make sure your audio is turned down before playing.)

It’s important for the barnacles to get scraped each year so juvenile fish don’t get de-scaled or injured as they make their way to the sea.

On the other side of those gates is 45 feet of fresh water pushing hard to get into the empty space where we’re standing. Thankfully the gates don’t budge.

When the Locks were first built back in the early 1900’s the gates used pulley systems. With the water gone, we got a glimpse of the old pulleys.

The Locks will be “de-watered” until November 25th.

Market Street Traders to close

Geeky Swedes — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:32:49 +0000

After two years on Market Street, Market Street Traders is closing.

We spoke with Peg, who has been an employee with the company for years, who tells us that the recession has been really tough on them. She says that they hope to continue selling the fair trade goods online. As of right now there is no official closing date, but it will be after the holidays, around the end of the year. (Thanks Steve for the tip!)

Get ready for some strong winds

Geeky Swedes — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 14:29:29 +0000

It seems the first major wind storm of the season is upon us and this may be just the beginning.

PhinneyWood took this picture early this morning of a tree that fell onto two houses on the 100 block of 78th Ave N. One of the homeowners says they heard “a crack and a crash. I thought it was lightning.” Everyone got out of both houses safely.

The windy weather is expected to continue. King5.com says, “In the greater Seattle-Tacoma-Everett areas, south winds will increase to 30 to 40 mph with gusts to near 60 mph after midnight on Monday and will continue into Tuesday morning.” Heavy rain is supposed to come along with the high winds. Cliff Mass says in his weather blog that, “We will see huge amounts in the Olympics and northern Cascades, some Olympic slopes getting more than 10 inches.”

Arson suspect confesses, evidence revealed

Geeky Swedes — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 00:57:08 +0000

In court Saturday afternoon, a judge set $1 million bail for Kevin Todd Swalwell. According to the statement of probable cause (.pdf), Swalwell “was captured on surveillance video at 8516 Greenwood Ave. N at the time of a fire being set to the rear of the restaurant there that was determined to be arson. Suspect admitted to detectives, after Miranda waiver, that he was solely responsible for setting the fire, along with several other arson fires.”

Previously convicted for arson, Swalwell has been homeless with a mailing address at the Ballard Food Bank. He’ll be formally charged next week.

Also on Saturday, hundreds of people packed the Greenwood Sip & Ship for the reopening of the Green Bean Coffeehouse, which was destroyed in that Oct 23rd fire. Green Bean even hung their old sign, which was virtually undamaged in the fire, outside along the sidewalk. PhinneyWood has complete coverage.

Nearby: Coyote, arson, plane noise, power

Geeky Swedes — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 18:34:22 +0000

Some recent news and a great photo from our nearby neighborhoods:

- Magnolia residents report coyote sightings with a photo to prove it
- Greenwood arson suspect reportedly admits to setting several fires
- Airport, FAA execs listen to complaints about airplane noise in Magnolia
- More power outages in Queen Anne, while City Light plans rate increase

Frost, hail and a chilly morning

Geeky Swedes — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 15:20:09 +0000

We looked out our window this morning to see a very light dusting of hail/snow on rooftops and cars in East Ballard.

It appears to be limited mostly to our neighborhood, but we saw hail on the ground in Crown Hill as well. Other areas just had a little frost. Regardless, it’s a very chilly morning and a reminder that winter is on its way.

Here’s the view from Sunset Hill Park with ominous clouds above.

Arson suspect in custody, another being questioned

Geeky Swedes — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:12:20 +0000

This morning, 46-year-old Kevin Todd Swalwell was booked into the King County Jail on investigation of arson after being taken into custody several blocks away from a warehouse fire in Shoreline last night. Swalwell has a long history of arson. According to this Seattle Times article from 1995, he has convictions both in the 1990’s and 1980’s. The Seattle Times is reporting that a second person-of-interest is also being questioned.

According to Nancy McKinney, the director of the Ballard Food Bank, Swalwell had his mail delivered there. “I actually talked to him within the last five days,” she tells us, but doesn’t know who he is. “I couldn’t pick him out of a line-up.” He is one of about 600 people to use the food bank for their mail service.

PhinneyWood has complete coverage of the arrests, the Shoreline fire and reaction from the Greenwood business community.

Teen pleads guilty to Ballard murder

Geeky Swedes — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 04:47:51 +0000

The teenager accused of killing a Ballard convenience store worker in July pleaded guilty to first degree murder.

The Seattle Times reports that 17-year-old Elijah Hall entered his plea at a court hearing and now faces up to 25 years in prison. Hall was arrested (photo above) one day after the murder at a home just blocks away from the Pit Stop at 15th Ave NW & NW 58th St, where 28-year-old Manish Melwani was killed. The crime was captured on security video, and charging papers say Hall’s fingerprints were found at the crime scene.

Neighborhood Status Report meeting tonight

Geeky Swedes — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:59:17 +0000

This summer the Seattle Planning Commission invited communities throughout the city to participate in an online survey and attend meetings to help update the neighborhood plans that are now 10 years old. The plans are a major part of Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan, which describes how the city would like to grow over the next 20 years in ways that improve its neighborhoods.

More than 900 Ballard/Crown Hill residents filled out the online questionnaire to review and comment on changes pertaining to the original neighborhood plan. After compiling the information, the Neighborhood Plan Advisory Committee and Seattle Planning Commission have reported back on trends that were noted.

Tonight the Neighborhood Plan Advisory Committee and the Seattle Planning Commission are holding a second round of community meetings to determine priorities and new issues before presenting the final Status Reports and a State of the Neighborhood Report to the City Council and Mayor. The community meeting for our area is tonight from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the cafeteria of North Seattle Community College (map).

Rain garden construction begins at Adams

Geeky Swedes — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:22:32 +0000

The front of Adams Elementary is a construction zone as crews start working on the rain garden.

Jay and Andrew from Joplin Concrete have been working on the project since last Friday and are sure happy to see the sun. They hope to pour the concrete next week if they get some special steel pieces in and if it’s not raining too hard. The project is designed by Guy Michaelson and David Minnery and will not only harvest the rain, but will be a learning tool for students once it’s finished. This addition to the front of the school comes on the heels of the new playground equipment that was installed by parent volunteers earlier this year.

Get in shape for The Seattle Turkey Trot

Geeky Swedes — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:04:30 +0000

This Thanksgiving don’t just pig out, lace up for the third annual Seattle Turkey Trot and help raise money for the Ballard Food Bank.

The 5K fun-run (or walk) starts at 9 a.m. at the intersection of 32nd Ave NW and NW 85th, heads south on 32nd (jumps over to 34th @ 80th for the southbound leg) and ends at Golden Gardens. Organizers chose this route for the view of the Olympics and the path along the water. “In my family it was a tradition to go for a run on Thanksgiving morning,” says Erin Fortier, one of the organizers. “It was a way to spend time with family on the holidays and feel better about all the food we’d be eating for the rest of the day.”

Last year more than two-hundred people participated and $2,500 was donated to the food bank. This year they’re hoping for five-hundred participants and hope to raise $6,000 for the local charity.

You can sign up for the Trot here. If the run-walk isn’t your thing, organizers are still looking for volunteers.

Airplane noise meeting in Magnolia tonight

Geeky Swedes — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:56:05 +0000

Over the last few days, there have been a couple incidents of loud airplanes over the greater Ballard area that “sounded like it might come right into the living room,” wrote one My Ballard reader earlier this week. Turns out, this is quite the issue in our neighborhood to the south, where our sister site Magnolia Voice has been awash in comments complaining about an apparent rise in airplane noise. And tonight (Thursday), the Magnolia Community Club is hosting a public meeting with representatives from the Port of Seattle, Boeing Field and Alaska Airlines. It’s at 7 p.m. in the Catherine Blaine School Cafeteria at 2550 34th Avenue West, next to Magnolia Community Center.

Flags fill the yard for Veterans Day

Geeky Swedes — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:45:31 +0000

Happy Veterans Day!

As with all “flag-appropriate” holidays, the man who lives on the corner of 32nd & 57th has decorated his yard with flags. Not only is his yard covered with the red, white and blue, all four corners of the intersection are covered with flags.