All hail the liberation of Pike-Pine! The BMW Concentration Camp, where thousands upon thousands of good, upstanding people were sentenced to years upon years of hard douchebaggery, is finally coming down. In its place will be … wait … what? … oh fuck me … another douchebag dormitory? Really? Details of the new project are on the Capitol Hill Blog, and the development...

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again … hot, sunny days aren’t my thing. If I travelled everywhere in an air-conditioned car, my opinion might be different, but I’m a big guy, Seattle is hilly, and I get around mostly on foot. This being the case, sunshine equals three things, and only three things to yours truly: sunburn, sweat, and glare. Give me 50...

The day after it was announced that Melrose & Pine would be razed and turned into Kirkland, complete with ample parking for car-dependent residents, I made it a point to get some updated shots. I hung out at Bauhaus for a bit, and then I walked to the next block for a few dozen shots of that corner as well. I don’t think I mentioned it in my last article, but the red brick building on...

At 10:00am this morning, the Seattle Department of Parks & Recreation sponsored “The Greatest Easter Egg Hunt Ever” at Cal Anderson Park, and I was in attendance. I watched as my sprogs jumped in a moon bounce, got their faces painted, and of course … hunted for Easter eggs. Now, when 200 kids are involved, an “Easter egg hunt” is always a misnomer. Trust me,...

I love Pike/Pine. It’s the heart of urban Seattle. It’s the only neighborhood that, at least in my opinion, is equally part of Downtown, First Hill, and Capitol Hill. As someone who lives on the western edge of the neighborhood, it is where I spend probably the majority of my life. This is why today, I sit here, heartbroken. According to the Capitol Hill Blog...

Well, kids, the former Marion Apartments turned South Bronx understudy are no moe. I was a bit confused when I stumbled upon the corner of Bellevue & Pine last week, because it’s the first time I’ve seen this lot vacant. Ever. Soon, 132 apartments will occupy this very spot … assuming the developer’s plans have not changed since I last looked into it about 6 months...

The demolition of the Pine Street eyesore is on its way down, soon to make room for yet another hipster habitrail. Yay?

I’m sitting here in the parking lot of the Greenwood Market, and I’m truly sad. Mere moments ago, I stopped in during one of my thrice weekly visits, and the place was being picked clean by shoppers. “What’s going on?”, I asked the nearest cashier. “We’re closing on February 5th”, he said, “the owner of the property decided not to renew our...

When the citizens of Seattle decide to do something, it is rare that they do it in a half-assed manner. Instead, they are very likely to pour their heart and soul into the endeavor. This is why Seahawks Stadium is widely regarded as the most supportive in the USA for both football and soccer. It’s why we have massive parades when something as inconsequential as the freaking season...

Yesterday, I had a couple of hours left on my Zipcar rental, so I decided to take a short trip to the “other” Seattle. West Seattle. Home of Eddie Vedder, Mark Arm, Matt Lukin, and an ambiguously gay junkie named Trent. I don’t get out to West Seattle as often as I would like, but when I do make it to the other side, I’m reminded that it’s quite possibly the most...

Last Sunday was a busy day for yours truly. In addition to Cal Anderson Park, Big Mario’s, and the 12th Avenue Festival, I also spent two hours at the “Freeway Park Noon Tune Concert for Kids”. This was a concert for Seattle city kids, and it featured two bands — Brian Vogan and His Good Buddies and Recess Monkey. Brian Vogan’s band sounded a lot like Soundgarden, only heavier,...

Today, the second annual 12th Avenue Festival was held in Pike/Pine, and after hanging out in Cal Anderson Park, I walked over to check it out.  Here is the release: http://12thaveseattle.com/festival.php Join us for the second 12th Avenue Neighborhood Festival this August! This unique community Festival features your favorite restaurants offering international flavors of the neighborhood for...

When you look at this photograph, it’s hard to imagine that you are looking into the middle of a major city of 600,000 people, but that’s why we’re called the Emerald City. PIctured above is Green Lake, the geographic center of Seattle’s northern half. It looks like Olympia, feels like the Pacific Northwest of yesterday, and seems like a world away from Downtown/Capitol...

‘My Goodness’ is probably my favorite “new” Seattle band. They’ve got a White Stripes meets Black Keys meets Mudhoney thing going on, and if they aren’t a household name in Seattle (if not wider) within the next few years, I’ll be surprised. A couple of other bands that have the potential to save Seattle from folk and video game music are the Absolute Monarchs and He Whose Ox is...

The Capitol Hill Block Party kicked off one hour ago, and I walked up the hill to check it out. So far, the only thing going on is security folks being kind of obnoxious. No music, no vendors, just guys in black shirts running around saying “you can’t walk here!” and “you can’t walk there!” while glaring at you in their most humorous,...

Yesterday evening, I hung out in the new and improved Cal Anderson Park. Now that the obnoxious fence on the lawn has been taken down, there is twice as much green space as there was earlier this year. Of course, nothing lasts forever, and word is that another fence is going to go up soon … so get up on The Hill and enjoy it while you can. I captured the photos on this page during my...

Today, I had a few things to take care of on The Hill and I rolled my camera for the majority of the trip. I obviously didn’t ride over the entire hill, but I covered most of the Pike/Pine and Broadway sections. I got the clanking sound issue worked out and I also experimented with looking left and right to capture some of the sidewalk action. Anyway, for what it’s...

I’m not sure what these things are, but I went down to get a shot of them this morning. I have a short writeup here: http://www.downtownseattlenews.com/2011/tree-warmers-in-occidental-park/

Located on the grounds of the Seattle Central Community College at Broadway and Pine Streets, the Broadway Farmer’s Market will run between 11am – 3pm every Sunday from today until December 18th. True to my word, I arrived at the market this morning, and I was even there for the ringing of the opening bell which officially launched the 2011 season. As you can see, I was not alone....

Begins this Sunday at Broadway & Pine in Pike-Pine/Capitol Hill. We’ve been eagerly anticipating this day, as it’s only about 5 blocks from the nerd cave. Cash has already been set aside, and plans have already been made to eat heartily this weekend. Be there or be, well, not there. You should certainly lean toward the former.

The building next to the Marion Apartments has been knocked down and Marion Apartments themselves are the next to go. This is part of a new project that is coming to Pike/Pine’s most blighted block. I wish the building that is slated to replace the Marion was a little more “urban”, but honestly, anything is better than what currently sits at this prime...

The Capitol Hill Summit Slope Park at E. Summit & E. John is open “officially”. Come down for free coffee, ice cream, and live music.

Not long ago, the primary news source for Capitol Hill, the Capitol Hill Blog, ran a story about a man named “Joe”. You see, Joe is a man who lives in Pike/Pine, and Joe is upset that a nearby nightclub (The Baltic Room) has been increasing their noise level over the months. To try and solve his problem, Joe has called the police on several occasions, and the SPD has been trying to mediate...

When I awoke yesterday morning, that was the forecast. Not only was it the forecast, but my Twitter feed lit up like a Christmas Tree as news stations across Seattle rushed to be the first news outlet to post 100 “the sun is out!” tweets. This, in turn, caused me to massively unfollow just about every news station in Seattle. As I have posted before, I am really, really sick of the...

The 25-story McGuire Building on the corner of 2nd and Wall in Belltown will be demolished next month. Supposedly, the 10-year-old building has structural defects, and it must come down. It will take more than a year to remove the hi-rise and 95% of the concrete will be re-used. It’s a pity, really, as it’s a beautiful building which helps keep the Belltown skyline vertical.