February 2013

The first year that Ballard Historical Society mounted a Classic Homes tour, in 2001, the most impressive home was the one known as The Captain Swanton House. Based on archival and anecdotal research the BHS description of this 1903 Sunset Hill home on a 16,300 sq. ft. corner lot noted, “Reportedly Mrs. Swanton wanted to eliminate the chance that it could ever be divided so the house was built right on the center line of the two lots.”

One-hundred ten years after it was built in the center of a large property along an orchard, facing the water, the house has been picked up and moved to the east, where it will now orient more north, its angled windows no longer commanding an unobstructed view to the Sound. The large corner lot is now being divided so three homes will reside where there was one.

By Christy Wolyniak

Desiderio “Des” de Castro was no stranger to the dangers of the crosswalk by Salmon Bay K-8 the day he got hit.

It sits squarely in front of his house and just about every day for the past 12 years, he has helped children and adults alike cross the street as a crossing guard.

But even though he wore a bright orange and yellow vest and waved a flag, that did not stop a 93-year-old driver from striking Salmon Bay’s crossing guard, de Castro last week.

De Castro was helping children cross NW 65th St when the red Buick was approaching. He said the car was slowing down and that he thought it was going to stop. Instead, as De Castro proceeded to the middle of the intersection, the vehicle sped up and hit him, sending his head through the windshield and knocking him unconscious.

From Mayor McGinn's office:

The City of Seattle and Gigabit Squared signed an agreement in December for Gigabit Squared to provide high-speed internet to 12 demonstration neighborhoods in Seattle. As Mayor McGinn mentioned today, this has been increased to 14 demonstration neighborhoods, to include Ballard and West Seattle. In addition, Gigabit squared has secured the necessary funding to begin detailed engineering in these neighborhoods which they plan to complete over the next six weeks or so.

Below is an excerpt from the Mayor’s remarks:

Excerpt from Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, State of the City address:

Seattle Fire responded to a house fire call on the 1700 block of 46th Ave. S.W. at 4:16 p.m. on Feb. 19. It was called in by a neighbor who noticed a power surge just before the fire broke out next door, visible by flickering lights and electronic devices.

Firefighters were able to get the fire under control within 20 minutes and there were no reported injuries.

The SFD incident commander on scene said the fire originated in the home’s electrical panel but that the power was partially detached from the house.

SFD said Seattle Public Utilities was investigating the possible power surge.

We’ll update when more details become available.

With North Highline and White Center residents clearly rejecting the City of Burien’s annexation proposal in 2012, Seattle’s City Council met with city staff on Feb. 19 for an update on whether they will pursue the unincorporated area of King County in the future.

The short answer? Maybe, but no decision will be made until late 2013 or early 2014.

Meg Moorehead with Council Central Staff reminded the council that they have declined pursuing annexation of North Highline in the past, also known as “Area Y,” because a City of Seattle analysis found the costs of taking the area on exceeded revenue they could pull from it “by several million a year.” Seattle stepped aside and let Burien take a crack at annexation.

After 37 years in Capitol Hill, B&O Espresso is now serving its beloved desserts in Ballard at 5404 Leary Ave NW, across the Ballard Landmark.

One neighborhood's sad loss is another's very joyous gain.

What's more, despite early rumors that the arrangement would be temporary, Owner Jane Lukatah said she might be here to stay -- at least, for the foreseeable future.

When asked if she would be leaving, she said, “I don’t think so. I’m not really looking forward to move back. It’s a lot of work. I’m really happy here so far.”

B&O Espresso's new location is considerably smaller than the old one, which was demolished for a new development. Whereas the Capitol Hill location could seat 125 people and had two huge kitchens, one for baking and one for cooking, the Ballard location only seats 24 and has one modest kitchen.

Location is smaller, but desserts are still just as good./Photo by Zachariah Bryan

With a rash of assaults in North Seattle, people may undoubtedly be concerned about self defense.

Between Friday, Feb. 8 and Monday, Feb. 11, four separate incidents of assault occurred in North Seattle. In three of the cases, the description of the suspect is between the ages of 20 and 30, between 5-foot-7 and 6 feet, 140 to 160 pounds and with short brown hair. One suspect may be responsible for all three of the cases, but police are unsure if all of them are linked.

On Wednesday, Jan. 23, Fighting Chance Seattle offered a free community kickboxing and self-defense class at Umpqua Bank in Ballard. Neighbors were taught the basics of boxing, Muay Thai and karate.

While the event is long gone now, it's not too late to learn a few moves yourself. Fighting Chance Seattle offers drop-in kickboxing classes and self defense classes for women. You can learn more about them here.

Here are some photos from the community event. All photos and captions are courtesy of Fighting Chance Seattle.

After what is described as an "exhaustive search," Erick Eriksen has joined Nick's Off Market (1556 NW 56th St) as the new head chef.

One might say Ericksen has some experience behind him: Chef de Cuisine at Local Harvest (Bainbridge Island), Sous Chef at Maggie Bluff’s and Palisade (Seattle), Sous Chef at Oceanaire Seafood Room (Seattle) and Executive Chef at Islay Manor (Bainbridge Island). His experiences in cuisines spans French, American and Northwest.

“I’m very glad we were able to bring Erick on board. It’s been a long search for the right individual who has a combination of talent, creativity and drive – and who fits the Ballard ‘feel’,” said owner Nick Simonton in a statement.

Ericksen is taking over the post formerly filled by Chef Terry Campbell, who retired in September. It will be his job to head the kitchen and the menu.

You can meet him at a "Meet the Chef" night in early March. If you are interested in participating, please visit http://www.nicksoffmarket.com/meet-the-chef to request a seat.

Follow Ballard News-Tribune on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ballardnewstrib

By Patrick Robinson and David Rosen

UPDATE Feb. 21 9:58am
The crew from Northern Marine Salvage brought out a crane equipped barge to remove the debris and wreckage of the trimaran that went aground last week next to the Harbor West Condominiums on Beach Drive. The work is now proceeding and should be complete in short order since some of the wreckage, the smaller pieces were either cleaned up or contained by a boom earlier.

UPDATE Feb. 20 9:15am
A salvage effort for the now destroyed trimaran is set to get underway. Eric Muller, Director of Marketing and Sales for Ballard Diving & Salvage who was contracted to handle the work spoke to the Herald.

AUBURN - Patience rarely goes unrewarded.
Exercising more than a trace of patience, the Mount Rainier girls basketball pulled away from a close game to put the state of the Union Titans into dire straits in a 53-38 semi-final win of the Class 4A West Central/Southwest Washington bi-district tournament at Auburn High School on Saturday, Feb. 16.
"Neither team got going," said Ram head coach Bob Bolam. "I told the girls at halftime to be more patient and get better shots. The other team played physical and we had to get used to it. We played good defense and finally got going."
Mired in a close 32-27 lead with 3:18 left in the third quarter against the unheralded Titans, the Rams (23-1) began to kick away their opposition with more judicious choices and an opponent-dehydrating defense to go on a 9-0 run that extended their lead to 41-29 as 5:48 remained in the fourth quarter. The SWW No. 1 seeded Union forces were unable to climb Mount Rainier thereafter.