Brenna- 10th & Pike... (more)

Babylonia, your relationship is clearly doomed. But here's the thing, girl. You can't give up just because she'll be gone soon. There are so many worthy lovers on Capitol Hill. You must go on and live your life. To inspire you, here are a few Capitol Hill buildings we'd consider giving our big, big love to. We assume CHS commenters will have more.

• Former Horizon Books house, 15th Ave E: She's been empty since 2009 and sits waiting as 15th Ave E shuffles by her chain-link fences. She's lonely but she's adorable....

Chen enters the courtroom for an August hearing (Image: CHS)

The document filed following a hearing announcing the competency decision held Thursday is below.

Dr. Louis Chen is charged with two counts of first degree murder. He faces life in prison after prosecutors announced they would not seek the death penalty for the 39-year-old. According to prosecutors, Chen killed his son Cooper with a knife and stabbed his partner Eric Cooper more than 100 times in the attack.... (more)

Authorities have identified the man found dying on a Harvard Ave sidewalk after he was shot in the chest late on the night of January 17 behind Seattle Central Community College's Capitol Hill campus.

Darek Darewski died of his wounds at the scene as police attempted to resuscitate him.

The 49-year-old was shot to death just two weeks after serving one day in jail following his guilty plea in a 2010 harassment case.... (more)

Thanks to Adam for the picture and Mary for the headline. Here's to love.

UPDATE: Babylonia says Sunday's wedding is still on. Picture of the lovely couple together from @adamantra, below.... (more)

Police responded to a First Hill apartment early Wednesday morning after a man reported that his marijuana smoking buddy had just robbed him.

According to the report on the incident, police were called to an apartment building in the 1100 block of 8th Ave around 4:30a Wednesday. The victim told police he and his friend have medical marijuana cards and had planned to get together that night when the man showed up with a stranger in tow.

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(Images: Flora and Henri)

Children's clothing boutique Flora and Henri has announced it is closing its E Pine shop next week after two years in the space. The upscale shop opened next to Molly Moon's in September 2009 after closing their downtown Seattle location earlier that year.... (more)

There's probably still a dirty patch of snow or two left on Capitol Hill but things are decidedly back to normal. Go stomp in a puddle. Add your Capitol Hill events to the CHS Calendar.

Thursday, January 26

• The 2012 Children's Film Festival Seattle opens at 12th Ave's Northwest Film Forum tonight. CHS is a proud co-sponsor. Plays through the weekend and into the week. And there are still tickets left for Saturday's pancake breakfast....

Three nights before its biggest party of the year, Capitol Hill's largest dance club received a troubling letter. The Seattle Fire Marshal was threatening to shut Neighbours down by New Year's if the club didn't cut its capacity by 70% to less than 400 people before the event, a requirement the club's management said would cause irreparable damage to its business. The standoff, clearly, was resolved -- you only need dig through the piles of photos posted from the party by Seattle Gay News to see that the party went off as planned. But behind the scenes, a deal was struck that has the nightclub on the clock for a series of expensive changes that must be made if it wants to continue to operate as it has for decades on Broadway.... (more)

Here is a round-up of community initiatives around the East Precinct including a new City Attorney liaison assigned to the area and two upcoming community meetings on policing -- including one tonight.

• The City Attorney's office has announced it will again assign liaisons to the city's police precincts to "to augment the City's response to emerging and increasingly complex neighborhood public safety and regulatory issues." The positions were an early cut as Peter Holmes took office in 2010. According to the announcement on the new positions, the new assistant city attorney will be good news for the East Precinct's bars and restaurants as the role is intended to help streamline much of the regulation of the nightlife industry at the city level.

The precinct liaisons -- Melissa Chin (South/Southwest), Jana Jorgensen (North), Sumeer Singla (West) and Matt York (East) -- will provide critical legal services on the issues of high importance to their particular precincts. They also will be accountable for managing a number of regulatory provisions in a more effective and efficient manner because they will better understand the dynamics in the individual communities.

"It's an opportune time to launch a completely reengineered Precinct Liaison Program 2.0," said City Attorney Pete Holmes, "simultaneously bringing closer together SPD's five precincts, the City Attorney's Office and Seattle's diverse communities to better address local problems and concerns. Relying on input from across Seattle government, we have retained what worked and rethought the challenges ahead. Our selection process was inclusive and yielded excellent candidates from whom we've selected some of our most promising attorneys. They represent a direct link to me and will be instrumental in helping Seattle to move forward during the work ahead with the Department of Justice."... (more)

(January 24, 2012  - Seattle, WA)  Ingersoll Gender Center announces a new support group for people in the Transgender  community who want to find work or improve their career.  Seattle Transgender Economic Empowerment Project (STEEP), a program of Ingersoll Gender Center, will meet twice monthly, on the first and third Thursdays.  We will address issues related to the challenging job market.  The group will be led by veteran Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor Joy Shiels and Ingersoll Board Member, Ryan Blackhawke.  Joy has 25 years of experience working in vocational rehabilitation and currently... (more)

Remember that guy who got nailed with an $800 bill after his truck was towed from a 13th Ave E apartment complex? The holidays and snow and such conspired to bury this one, but a judge let him off the hook -- on a technicality:

The judge didn't rule the bill was too high (there's no legal limit on what a tow company can charge). But rather that the tow-away sign in the lot was obscured by a tree. And also that Citywide hadn't given Swanicke the proper forms.... (more)

Vision of the future at St. John's (Image via Facebook)

It's only mid-January and Capitol Hill has already seen six new ventures -- Five Fish Bistro, Manhattan Drugs, Little Uncle, Lucky 8's, 8oz Burger Bar, a revamped Poco Wine Room -- join the area's burgeoning food and drink economy since the last days of 2011. And there is more to come.

Below, we count down the 2012 Capitol Hill projects to look forward to -- and a few mysteries that should play out in coming months. Which ones are you most excited about?

15+ to look forward to in 2012

• Regent Cafe & Bakery: Frankly, we expected Regent by now but that's the way opening a new place goes. The sister to the Eastside restaurant of the same name, Regent's 14th at Pine location will serve Chinese dishes as well as sweet treats, tea and their much-loved cakes. With a full bar. Enjoy. Forecast: Any day now.
• The Wandering Goose: With an all-star cast of backers, Heather Earnhardt teams up with Ethan Stowell in a 15th Ave E duet. Forecast: "spring"...

There's a fair amount of single family home bias in the document -- silly given Seattle's housing makeup -- but a newsletter being sent around to community groups by the Seattle Police Department has some interesting commentary on criminal trends and good tips for warding off burglars -- as well as a few tips that are useful in life no matter the situation:

When you see your neighbors, wave and say “Hi.” Acknowledge each other. When you see people you don’t know on your block, wave and say “Hi.” Acknowledge them, too. Send the message that you are engaged in your neighborhood and that you are attentive to what is going on and who is around. People who want to break into homes don’t want to be noticed. If they are noticed, they can be identified.

Full newsletter below.... (more)

Just as a wind advisory for the area was about to expire at midnight, a large boom echoed through the blustery night in the 700 block of 13th Ave E as reports of power outages in the area followed. The outage hasn't yet shown up on the City Light Status map but should soon as the automated system records the service issue. We'll update as events warrant but the good news is the wind is supposed to let up over the coming hours (UPDATE: Advisory has been extended to 4a). In the meantime, about 7,500 customers are reported to be without power in the area following the windy night.... (more)

The last time we reported that demolition of this building was imminent, a group of Occupy Seattle protesters and squatters tried to take it over before being repelled by police. This time, somebody wants to marry it.

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As the Seattle City Council gets its first briefing on Seattle's snow response to last week's storm, it's a good time to look at our own streets and sidewalks and ask, "How'd we do?"

CHS's summary judgement:

• 23rd and Madison were passable when we needed them
• Broadway traffic seemed to be doing fine with its Level 2 status (one lane bare) but the piled up snow in intersections and along sidewalks was a drag for pedestrians
• SDOT must have brined the hell out of John -- we were only a little disappointed to not find the usual car and bus graveyard stacking up during the snowiest days
• Side streets took a long time to clear out -- but it's difficult to imagine trying to get a snow plow truck down most of the Hill's secondary streets with cars parked on both sides.
• City needs to find a way to make street sledding a non-disturbance issue so 911 callers don't force a deployment of limited SPD resources
• The new map showing latest road clearance work was useful
• The good citizens of Capitol Hill should put out some community-managed garbage receptacles so Denny Way doesn't get trashed. Also, if you haul in a mattress, consider hauling it out.
• And, yeah, not many shoveled their sidewalks

If we were being selfish, the only requests would be finding ways to do more to clear slippery sidewalks on heavily taveled slopes like E Olive Way and solving the crosswalk problems along Broadway. But maybe we're not asking for enough. You can let us know below.... (more)

Let's be frank. Who else but Capitol Hill is going to give a shit about an E Pine development replacing a parking lot of the Camlin building wedged between the transit station and downtown? And we should care. We're going to have to look at this thing ever time we make a trek downtown. The design for the six-story mixed use building will come before a Seattle design board for the first time Tuesday night.

In addition to its geographic relationship to our normal design and development beat, the 1601 9th Ave development happens to be an interesting project on the engineering end of things. In a zone for high-rise heights, developer Teutsch Partners says its 74-unit approach is the only design that is financially feasible given the lot's precarious position above the Metro tunnel below:... (more)

Swenson (Image: via Facebook)

11th Ave's Richard Hugo House has named former Academy of American Poets head Tree Swenson as its new executive director.

Ms. Swenson brings to Hugo House a wealth of nonprofit literary arts leadership experience. Since 2002, she has served as the executive director of the American Academy of Poets in New York City, where she provided inspirational leadership, vision, strategy and management of the $1.8 million national organization. Before that, she served as the Director of Programs at the Massachusetts Cultural Council in Boston.

CHS reported in October on the search to fill the role as Sue Joerger's resigned following what the Stranger's books writer Paul Constant called "four rocky years" for the non-profit literary organization under her guidance.

Swenson is a New York City resident. Hopefully Seattle can keep her entertained. And vice versa.

Following Governor Christine Gregoire throwing her weight behind the movement, we were only partly joking when we wrote recently that you should start planning your 2013 gay wedding venue on Capitol Hill. With news Monday that Olympia is aligning around passage of a same sex marriage bill, it really might be time to start making phone calls:

Gay marriage in Washington: Legislature has the votes
Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen, D-Camano Island, announced Monday that she supports gay-marriage legislation in the Senate, giving proponents the 25 votes needed for passage.... (more)

We're sure the overall Capitol Hill food and drink economy took a solid hit from last week's snow and ice but there were definitely some pockets of strength. For some, it was a showcase of their place in the local community. If the logistics worked out and employees could make it to work, there were some bars and restaurants that packed the locals in. But it wasn't easy. Nice work, everybody. Here's hoping for some easier to manage weather. Got a tip? Hook us up at chs@capitolhillseattle.com.

• Seattle U's new Douglas residence building at 12th and James will soon put its woonerf to work with a new Cherry Street Coffee coming to the neighborhood. ...

Following last snow week's ugly tagging of Cal Anderson Park, we can understand it if citizens might be a little jumpy about people painting Capitol Hill walls. Earlier today, CHS heard East Precinct radio reports about a man spotted tagging a brick wall near 14th and Madison. Thanks to @GordonWerner, we can tell you this project was an entirely different type of street art:... (more)

With a couple of years of work under its belt, Sound Transit has posted a survey looking for feedback on the contractor tasked with the $154 million tunneling phase of the U-Link light rail project connecting downtown to Capitol Hill's Broadway Station:... (more)

• Cal Anderson purse snatch: A woman who told police she was in Seattle to see a concert with a friend was injured when she was shoved to the ground by a purse snatcher in Cal Anderson late Sunday night. According to police, the woman said her friend had walked ahead to their car when a man came up behind her and tried to engage her in conversation as she exited the park near E Olive St. The woman told police she ignored the man who suddenly shoved her to the ground, grabbed her purse and ran to a waiting vehicle that sped away. A witness who tried following the getaway car called 911 from near Broadway and Roy but the Ford Taurus or Focus-type vehicle could not be found. The woman suffered a scrape to her leg in the attack. The suspect was described as a black male in his 20s with a bald head.
• Pine/Broadway earbud tussle: Another reported street robbery on Capitol Hill over the weekend was driven by more than greed. A man told police he was punched in the mouth and the rubber buds from his earphones were stolen early Saturday morning by a man he had encountered that night flirting with the victim's female acquaintance. It's not clear exactly what transpired between the two men later that night when they began verbally sparring just before 3a at Pine and Broadway but the situation ended with one man's mouth bloodied as the other left northbound on Broadway. The victim refused medical treatment and the suspect could not be located.

A snowy week also saw the wheels of justice slowly turn forward for three men accused of crimes on Capitol Hill. Here's an update from the courts on three recent cases:

• "Shots fired" suspect does time, pays fine: The 32-year-old man who police say told them he was firing shots in the streets of Capitol Hill because "he wanted to see if the gun still worked" has pleaded guilty to a reduced set of charges in the January 12th incident. North Capitol Hill resident Aaron Weinstein pleaded guilty to two weapons charges while having two others dismissed. He spent a week in jail for the shenanigans and agreed to pay $6,000 in fines, according to court documents.


• Artist charged for construction site damage: Charges have been brought against the 23-year-old police busted inside the Cameo Apartments construction site at 15th and Pine following reports of a man breaking windows on machinery early on New Year's Day. ...