August 26, 2009

Construction begins soon on bridge barrier

Editor’s note: This is the first column written by lifetime Fremont resident Kirby Lindsay, who has written for the North Seattle Herald-Outlook and the Seattle Press. We’re happy to welcome her as a regular contributor.

On September 2nd, bids for construction of a safety barrier on the George Washington Memorial Bridge are scheduled to be opened, according to Washington Department of Transportation (WSDOT) spokesperson Greg Phipps. Phipps reported a contractor shall be announced in mid-September. Currently construction of the barrier on the bridge, more commonly known as Aurora, is scheduled to begin in January or February but Phipps admitted, “there is a chance it could be earlier.”

After two years of public meetings and consideration among representatives of the City of Seattle and the State of Washington, construction plan cleared final hurdles on June 3rd when WSDOT representatives presented their final plan to the City of Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board. Beth Chave, coordinator for the board, reported issuance of a certificate of approval for changes to the bridge, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Washington Heritage Register and a designated City landmark, on June 16, 2009.


(Photo by WSDOT of a mock up panel installed as a test on March 29th.)

August 26, 2009

City turns up the heat on Aurora motels

After years of criminal activity in and around five Aurora Ave motels, the city has had enough.  According to a release from the Mayor’s Office on Tuesday, there were more than 460 calls for police help in 2008 alone.  Confiscating significant amounts of drugs and drug paraphernalia have become routine for officers, and public safety is a major concern.  Last


August 26, 2009

Paper mache people draw attention at Gasworks

A mysterious art installation popped up overnight at Gasworks Park, drawing plenty of curious attention on Tuesday.  Nine gold paper mache figures were left by an unknown artist near the water sometime Monday night.   Each piece appears to be a person at various stages of emerging from a shell.  A plaque in front of one of statues reads: Anew is gifted to the citizens of Seattle in


August 26, 2009

Fremont Universe partnering with Seattle Times

We’re excited to announce an editorial partnership with the Seattle Times that encompasses Fremont Universe and the rest of Next Door Media’s sites: My Ballard, Queen Anne View, Magnolia Voice and PhinneyWood. The partnership originated with a grant by American University’s J-Lab, which aims to explore how established media companies can work together with promising


August 25, 2009

Center of the Universe gets a ‘SPACE’ lift

For nearly 2 weeks, the galaxy has been appearing afoot at the corner of N. 36th and Evanston Ave N.  It’s the result of passionate – and tireless – efforts by Project Manager and Lead Artist Jessica Randall.  She comments, “This is the real center of the universe”. ArtSPACE has been in the works since 2005 but it it took