A nine-day closure of the State Route 99 Alaskan Way Viaduct will mark the beginning of the end for Seattle’s double-deck highway. At 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 21, crews working for the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) will close the majority of the viaduct until 5 a.m. Monday, Oct. 31. To learn more about the SR 99 nine-day closure, visit our website.

 “One Mile Down Demolition Event”

Interested in spending a little time on the viaduct before it’s demolished? There will be a commemorative walk on Saturday, Oct. 22 near the stadiums. This is a perfect opportunity to get a firsthand perspective as this historic event unfolds.

• When: 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (celebration continues until 2 p.m.) Saturday, Oct. 22
• Elected officials make formal remarks and celebrate this major milestone at 1 p.m.
• Where: Construction area north of 1051 First Ave. S.
• No RSVPs are required, but some restrictions apply. Please wear sturdy shoes and be prepared for late October weather. No pets or bicycles are allowed on...

The man accused of killing his stepfather, Central District resident Glennis Parker, one year ago has been found not guilty. Zachary Collins was accused of killing Parker on First Hill last February after a fight at Parker's home. From Seattle Times:

On Friday, the jury in the first-degree murder trial told a judge that they were unable to come to a unanimous decision. Superior Court Judge Richard Eadie ordered jurors to keep going, and soon after deliberations resumed on Monday morning the not guilty verdict was announced.

...

Seattle police say that Collins and Parker got into an argument at Parker's Central Area home on Feb. 9, about an hour before the slaying, and that someone from the home dialed 911 at 1:36 a.m. The line was disconnected without anyone speaking with dispatchers, though a fight could be heard over the line, charges said.

When a dispatcher called the number back, Parker's wife answered and said there was no problem at the home, charges said.

After the fight, Collins left the home,...

In March, the 30-year-old American Handel Festival is coming to Seattle's First Hill - with concerts. lectures, dance and theater productions -- even a horticultural slide show! -- right in our neighborhood, at St. James Cathedral, Trinity Parish Hall (and Church), the Frye Art Museum, the Sorrento Hotel, Plymouth Congregational Church, and Town Hall.  For a complete schedule of events, here's a link to the festival brochure: http://www.americanhandelfestival.org/wp-content/uploads/American-Handel-Festival-Booklet.pdf

The international Handel scholars will hold their conference at St. James Pastoral Outreach Center March 24-27.  Down the hill in Trinity Parish Hall 100 choral singers will be rehearsing Handel Choruses March 23-26, and enjoying a baroque dance demo by Seattle Early Dance, a short course on Handel, a recital by Baroque flutist Janet See, and much more.  Stop by and hear them sing!  Then on Saturday they'll move to Plymouth Congregational and sing a noontime... (more)

From our sister blog SeattleCrime, we received this SPD report of a 5'11" 250 pound woman who assaulted her neighbor in the 800 block of Columbia Street for slamming the door in the early morning hours of 8/5/10:

I responded to an assault with injuries at 8   Columbia St.  I contacted the victim who stated that she lives across the hall from the suspect,   Officers are familiar with suspect  from prior contacts.    has a history of  and is masculine of build and strength standing 5'11 and weighing 250 lbs.   .   saidthat all   does is stare at her.  On this occasion   hadgone outside to smoke. When she came back into the building the door she used slammed shut. That door is attached to suspect   apartmentwall.   came out into the hall and confronted victim  about slamming the door.   did not speak to   and tried to put her keys in her front door to go into her apartment.   thengrabbed her from behind and...

• An armed robbery was reported in the early hours of 7/26/10 in the 1300 block of Boren Avenue. We spoke to SPD Media Officer Mark Jamieson who told us that a call came in around 2:30 am. The caller and victim was a female who was approached by two juvenile males, who grabbed her purse. Jamieson told us that the victim's description of the juvenile suspects matched that given by the victim of an armed robbery in the early hours of 7/25/10 near 13th & Denny in Capitol Hill, that the assailants were indeed very young.
• A strong arm robbery was reported by a 17 year old male around 6:50 pm on 7/25/10 near the Convention Center. The victim had returned home to Queen Anne, before calling the police.  The suspects were long gone and no further detail is currently available.
• Zachary Collins, the 20 year old, who police suspect of killing his stepfather Glennis Parker at the Union 76 Station at 9th & James in February 2010 surrendered himself to the SPD last Tuesday 

Police believe they know who pulled the trigger in this winter's murder of Glennis Parker as he sat in the cab of his truck at the Union 76 station at 9th and James. From the Seattle Times:

Prosecutors say Zachary Collins has been on the run since February, when he is accused of fatally shooting his stepfather in the head as the older man sat in his pickup outside a gas station on Seattle's First Hill.

Collins was charged with second-degree murder on Monday and a $1 million warrant was issued for his arrest, said Dan Donohoe, a spokesman for King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg.

Collins, 20, has no verified address or phone and is known to move between Seattle and Portland, according to prosecutors. He is described as black, 5-feet-10 and 170 pounds with brown eyes, black hair and a medium skin tone.

According to charging documents, a security guard at the Puget Sound Blood Center called 911 to report shots fired just before 2:30 a.m. Feb. 9.

He saw a man with dreadlocks running from the 76 gas station...

Commenter Cindy got two of three right in the "Name the Franchise" game for the retail activity taking place in the 1200 and 1300 blocks of Madison Street.  We confirmed with Swedish Medical Center's broker, Lori Granberg of CB Richard Ellis, that Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches will be moving into the former Organic to Go space at 1221 Madison Street in Swedish Medical Center's Arnold Pavilion.  This will mark the eighth Seattle location for the Champaign, Illinois based chain.

In addition, Granberg affirmed that Crêpan Crepe World, a Japanese-style crepe restaurant will be taking over the former Jamba Juice location at 1303 Madison. 

Finally , we learned that MAD Pizza will be moving  from 1314 Madison (the other side of the street) to the former Quiznos location at 1321 Madison.  All three of these new stores plan to open in September 2010.

Hotel Sorrento has been putting on an innovative series of events featuring authors, musicians and performance artists. On Monday July 12, as part of the Night School series, the Sorrento will feature artists performing a scene from Intiman Theatre's upcoming production of Ruined, as well as a moderated conversation delving into how the play was created and developed with Artistic Director Kate Whoriskey, several actors, and Tim Appelo. Tickets are available online through Brown Paper Tickets for $20. The event takes place from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm. 

Travel Channel recently published its list of Top 10 Free Museums in the U.S.  First Hill's Frye Art Museum made the cut:

The Frye Art Museum has been carrying on the legacy of its founders and bringing free art to the larger Seattlecommunity since 1952. In addition to the free exhibits at the museum, visitors can participate in Art Talks with curators and educators, 1-hour interactive Guided Tours and the Magic Lantern series with screenings and talks on the art of film. For a real splurge, pay $5 for Tuesday’s Tea and Tour event which includes a guided stroll through the galleries followed by some discussion over tea and snacks.

Have you been to the Frye? What is a favorite piece of art in the collection?

Earlier this year, the media (this writer included) was abuzz with reports of I Love New York Deli opening a third location on Capitol Hill.  Owner Jon Jacobs had planned to open his location off Broadway, close to the Pike Pine corridor.  However, he recently announced that his third location will instead be sited on First Hill, near the intersection of Madison and Boren. Jacobs told Hugo Kugiya of Crosscut that the First Hill location will be very different from the original stand at Pike Place Market and the Ravenna location.

First Hill's I Love New York Deli will be "a full-service, authentic, New York-style deli on First Hill, open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, helping fill the void in this city of around-the-clock dining . . . [This] third restaurant, near the corner of Boren and Madison, will be his largest by far at 6,300 square feet and will have its own bakery, the culmination of a long-held dream for Jacobs."

Photo posted by @Mkyles007

This rather incredible collision prompted a major emergency response to Madison over I-5 at the tail end of Friday afternoon's commute but luckily none of the medics were needed. No details yet on what led to the tangle around 6:30 PM Friday.

Kabab House, a casual eatery, offering kebabs and Indian dishes just opened up next door to Lundgren Monuments at 1011 Boren Avenue.  This outlet does not seem related to the Kabab House Pakistani chain (with locations in Greenwood and Lynnwood).  We have an inquiry to the Kabab House chain to confirm this.

 We stopped in for a snack of samosas - which were fresh and crisp - and served with a minimal amount of oil.  They have the standard Indian curries: Saag Paneer, Chana Dal, Malai Kofta, as well as kebabs.  Let us know in the comments what you think of this and other items at Kabab House.  For a limited time, they are offering a $1 off on all menu items between 11 am and 3 pm Monday thru Friday.

First Hill Seattle received a tip from reader Robby Delaware, who alerted us that an interesting sculpture he had photographed at Jefferson Terrace, had fallen in to disrepair.  It was originally designed as a fountain and finished in 1969.  

The sculptor was James Fitzgerald (1910 - 1973), who designed the original fountain sculptures that decorated the entrance to the 520 Evergreen Point Floating Bridge when it opened in 1963.  These two fountain sculptures were later shut down to save money on electricity and maintenance.  The sculptures that we now see ("Aurora Borealis") were conceived by a businessman named Max Gurvich and donated to Washington State in 2002.  Fountain sculptures were Fitzgerald's trademark and his "Fountain of the Northwest" sculpture is still visible at Seattle Center.

We contacted Seattle Housing Authority to alert them regarding the sculpture's sad state and will update this post when we hear back from them. 

KIRO 7 just reported that one of two men suspected in the beating death of an 80-year old Arkansas woman has been arrested in Bremerton.  U.S. Marshalls arrested suspect Rene Patrick Bourassa Jr., while he in possession of Lillian Nelson, the victim's car.  

KIRO 7 reported last night that police suspected that two men wanted in connection with Lillian Nelson's homicide had fled to Seattle.  Police were able to track the two men through their use of Nelson's credit card at the McDonald's located at 1122 Madison.  Nelson's body was found in her empty Arkansas church Sunday morning between two church pews. 

The First Hill Improvement Association, a community service organization for Seattle's First Hill neighborhood since 1958, will hold its monthly general meeting tonight.  Nonmembers are welcome to attend:

Tuesday, June 8th, 6:30 pm  Swedish Medical Center B-Level Conference Room  #1

Ms. Allison Schwartz, from the Seattle Department of Transportation, will give us a final update on the implementation of new parking regulations on First Hill.

Ms. Candy Castellanos, Waste Division Project Manager from Cleanscapes, will provide us with information on the Neighborhood Waste Reduction Rewards Program. 

We will also be bidding farewell to Mr. Fred Savaglio from Virginia Mason Medical Center. Mr. Savaglio is retiring this month, and thus will be stepping down as Major Institutions Chair for the FHIA. We wish him all the best, and thank him for his many years of dedicated service to our organization. 

Street Treats, a just-launched mobile sweets vendor, will travel to First Hill on Tuesday, June 8.  You can avail yourself of their homemade cookies, High 5 Pie and Half Pint homemade ice cream on the corner of 9th Avenue & Cherry from 12 to 3 pm.  To find other locations and their schedule, check their website and follow them on twitter.

006
Originally uploaded by Joey Veltkamp

Greg Lundgren has a beef with the death-care industry, with itscookie-cutter headstones and its flat, identical graveyards: It's impersonal, aesthetically bankrupt, and boring. He began his assault by making luminous, cast-glass headstones, then building a death-care gallery where artists and architects can show off monuments and urns of their own design. He's hosting a group show at this gallery,The Architect and the Urn, with work by Iole Alessandrini, Heather Flood, Stranger Genius Alex Schweder La, and many others. (Lundgren Monuments, 1011 Boren Ave, info@lundgrenmonuments.com. Opening reception 5–9 pm, free.)

Tuesday at noon, a "flash mob" gathered to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Swedish Hospital.  Some of the "mobsters" were dressed as Swedish hospital workers, and some mobsters were actual hospital workers.  See if you can pick out which is which.  Of course, they danced and karaoked to something suitably Swedish--ABBA's "Dancing Queen":

Full coverage on sister site CapitolHillSeattle.com:

We're still collecting details but a major police response tonight shut down northbound lanes of Boren in front of the Stockbridge apartment building around 7:30 PM. Inside the lobby, an emergency crew was working to stabilize a fallen white male. He was rushed to a waiting ambulance and transported to the hospital just after 8 PM. We'll continue to update this story as we learn more.

Police and emergency medical crews are responding to Harborview this afternoon where a woman has been stabbed. SeattleCrime reports the victim is a 31-year-old female and says she came to the hospital with a stab wound to her abdomen. Central District News says HMC security "may have the suspect in the building. White male, 250, 40s, 6' tall, hooded gray sweatshirt, bluejeans."

UPDATE: SeattleCrime reports that the woman's injuries were self-inflicted.

The SPD Blotter has this report of a strong arm robbery near Pike and Boren in the early hours of Tuesday morning:

On May 25th at approximately 3:45 AM, a man was walking in the area of Pike Street and Boren Avenue when an unknown male approached him and said “What’s up with you?”  The victim said nothing so the suspect swung a fist at him.  The victim ran westbound on Pike Street with the suspect chasing him.  The suspect caught up to the victim and grabbed at his backpack.  The victim was able to wrestle the suspect to the ground but when the suspect stated that he was “sorry” the victim let the suspect get up.  The suspect then grabbed the victim’s backpack again and ripped it open, spilling the contents onto the street.  The victim was able to retain his cell phone and call 911.  The victim saw the officers arrive and went back to retrieve his stuff.  The officers had stopped the suspect a short distance away and recovered several...

Yesterday King 5 aired a report that Seattle-King County Public Health has begun cracking down on hookah clubs, claiming that they are circumventing and flouting the smoking ban.  The King 5 report was triggered by a Seattle-King County Public Health filing against hookah club Majiles Cafe at 912 12th Avenue (across from the Seattle University campus):

Some businesses have turned themselves into private, members-only "smoking clubs." Technically non-profit and using volunteers as employees, the ban does not apply to them, they said.  Abud said he modeled Majles after those clubs when he opened it two years ago.

"No one [who is] not a member [has] ever been here," said Abud.

But last summer, health inspectors disagreed. They said among other violations, Majles was not checking for membership and was letting anyone in. As a result, Seattle-King County Public Health fined Abud about $100.

Abud said he refused the fine, that paying would amount to admitting guilt.  Instead,...

Have you tried Kanpai's spicy baked mussels?  The Seattle Weekly recently included Kanpai in its Best Happy Hours issue.  Here is their report:

It's possible you were wandering around First Hill near Eighth and Marion one day when you were stopped dead in your tracks by a delicious smell you couldn't quite identify. That smell is Kanpai's spicy baked mussels, covered in scallops, roe (fish eggs), and something they call a Japanese spicy sauce (think Sriracha and mayonnaise). It is one of the best things I have ever had the privilege of putting in my mouth, and from 2:30–5:30 p.m. daily, 10–11 p.m. Friday–Saturday, and all day Sunday, you can get the world's most delicious appetizer for only $4.50.

Sushi Kanpai is located at 900 8th Avenue (corner of 8th & Marion) and serves lunch Mon to Sun 11:30 am - 2:30 pm and dinner Mon to Sun: 2:30 PM to 10:00 PM, Fri & Sat: to 11 PM.  

Seattle's Department of Transportation (SDOT) invites all First Hill residents, businesses and property owners to a public hearing to discuss "Final On-Street Parking Changes" for the neighborhood.  The meeting will be held 5/21/10 from 6:30 to 8 pm at Seattle Central Community College (Room 1110).  Public comments begin at 6:45 pm and are limited to 2 minutes each.  Below are the agenda items: 

What’s the plan?

• To improve customer and visitor parking, SDOT will change 1-hour and 2-hour ti me limitsigns to 2-hour paid parking

• To improve residential access, SDOT will make the following changes to First Hillrestricted parking zones (RPZs):

• Change unrestricted parking to new Zone 7 and Zone 21 blocks
• Add new Zone 21 parking to several blocks that are currently 2-hour paid parking
• Add 2-hour paid parking to existi ng Zone 7 and Zone 21 blocks
• Valid RPZ permit holders will not need to pay when parked on RPZ blocks

• SDOT will replace aging meters with...

Earlier this month, Seattle celebrated Sweden Week.   The Swedish Consulate in Seattle hosted the weeklong celebration of the enduring relationship between Sweden and the Pacific Northwest.  In conjunction with Swedish Medical Center celebrating its 100th anniversary and Sweden Week, Crown Princess Victoria visited the Broadway campus of Swedish Medical Center and was awarded  an “I heart Swedish Babies” T-shirt, whichSwedish created in honor of their centennial and is giving to all babies born at Swedish this year.