Here are stories making headlines in nearby neighborhoods:

The Food Network is doing a nationwide search for the country’s best food truck and Ballard’s newest mobile eatery, El Camión is in the running.

The El Camión truck is parked in the Mud Bay parking lot (5314 15th Ave NW).

The winning truck will receive a $10,000 prize and the opportunity to appear on the next season of The Great Food Truck Race. Other Seattle trucks vying for the top spot are Maximus Minimus, Molly Moons ice cream, Skillet, Hallava Falafel and Marination Mobile (currently in sixth place.)

Voters can submit up to ten votes each day. To vote for El Camión text FT159 to 66789 (text message rates apply) or go online to vote for any food truck.

This weekend marks the unofficial end to summer and it’s the final weekend for free concerts at the Locks. The line-up this weekend includes the Patria Band (Country Gospel Music) from 2 to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dissonance Jazz Combo from 2 to 3:30 p.m. on Sunday. The Michael Clune & Sleep till Noon Band wraps up the weekend with a free concert on Monday, Labor Day, from 2 to 3 p.m.

You may have noticed all the work going on at Gilman Playground (923 NW 54th St).  We got in touch with Seattle Parks and found out it’s all part of a big renovation project.  They tell us after years of sports use, combined with a lot of use of the field by unleashed dogs, the turf at the field had simply worn out. 

Work has now started to replace the turf and should take two weeks to complete.  Once the turf is in, security fencing will be put around the field so the turf can become established.  The Parks department worked with soccer organizers to relocate games while the work is being done.  The rest of the park is fully open, but comfort stations will close in November. (Thanks Kimberly for the tip!)

This Saturday, September 4th, Sustainable Ballard is hosting the “End of Summer Golden Gardens Party and Bonfire.” The party starts at 6 p.m. on the beach. From the Sustainable Ballard website, “Hang out with good people! Watch a sunset! Bring a dish to share, your plate, cup and utensils, something to sit on, something to keep warm, wood if you have it, a friend or family!” Just look for the yellow Sustainable Ballard flags. S’mores will be provided.

It didn’t make the list of top 20 farmers markets in the nation, but the Ballard Farmers Market did win a contest for the best in our state.  The online contest by the American Farmland Trust, which we first told you about earlier this summer, wrapped up just after midnight this morning.  The Ballard Farmers Market received 1285 votes, far ahead of the second place Olympia Farmers Market which got 257 votes.

Seattle’s newest fire station is up and and running on Crown Hill, a year after the facility’s groundbreaking at 8729 15th Avenue NW. It replaced the old Fire Station 35 which was built in 1920 at the same location for horse-drawn fire equipment. The old station lacked earthquake reinforcement.

The new station is state-of the art, and a big upgrade for firefighters. “It’s dramatically different,” said Rich Hennings, the senior project manager for the City of Seattle. “The room, the exercise facilities, the privacy, the comfort level, the beanery is much better.” The “beanery” is the kitchen, and it’s one of the places where Hennings gave us a behind-the-scenes video tour:

The fire station houses Engine 35 covering the northern end of Ballard, Crown Hill, North Beach, Blue Ridge and parts of Greenwood.

Sixteen total firefighters call Station 35 home, with 4 to a shift. Each firefighter on shift has a small bedroom slightly bigger than a closet.

One of the features of the station is this control center, which allows firefighters to control the traffic lights nearby the station.

So where’s the fire pole? There isn’t one. “To install a pole now, it takes so many safety features, they’ve become very expensive,” says Hennings. “The response time is not dramatically different using the stairs versus a pole.” We were there when a call came in, and we watched a firefighter zip down the stairs in seconds.

A sculpture called “Rescue” displays the number 35 outside the station. Created by local artist K. Kirkpatrick, it features an abstracted ladder and a neon flame, playing off the neighborhood’s 1950’s architecture.

Not only does the facility have more amenities — including a small outdoor deck with a BBQ — Hennings said it’s safer for the community. “If we ever have a major disaster, we’re going to be better prepared, by far,” he said. A dedication ceremony, complete with a visit by the mayor, is scheduled for next month.

It looks like you could soon have a Bloody Mary at one of Ballard’s best known spots for breakfast.  Vera’s Restaurant at 5417 22nd Ave NW has just applied for a liquor license to sell spirits, beer and wine.

Vera’s Restaurant

The Missing Link Cafe, inside the newly opened Dutch Bike Co. on 4741 Ballard Ave., has also applied for a license to sell beer and wine.  The cafe and bike company are part of the renovated Kolstrand Building.

The Missing Link Cafe inside Dutch Bike Co.

Dick’s Drive-In is a Seattle staple (including the location here at 9208 Holman Road), yet the five-location chain hasn’t opened a new restaurant since the Lower Queen Anne location in 1974. But all of that is about to change.

For the first time in 36 years, Dick’s is adding a new location to its ranks—it just hasn’t decided where yet. The three areas under consideration are North Seattle (south Snohomish County/Shoreline), South Seattle (West Seattle through Renton and Tukwila) or the Eastside.

The hamburger joint is putting the question to the people, with a poll in its website. Currently the race is neck-to-neck, with North Seattle at 33 percent of votes, South Seattle at 32 percent, and the Eastside leading with 34 percent. If you vote, be warned that Dick’s website is running very slow.

One of Ballard’s newest dining options is hoping to cash in on what’s left of summer.  Staple and Fancy Mercantile has just been approved for a sidewalk cafe.  The restaurant is named for a newly-exposed old brick wall (pictured below) in the Kolstrand building (4742 Ballard Ave).  “Staple and Fancy” is the latest in a long line of restaurants run by chef Ethan Stowell.

Just a reminder that the Ballard Library (5614 22nd Ave NW) and all other Seattle Public Libraries are closed today and won’t reopen until Tuesday, September 7th.  Budget cuts forced the closure.  The good news is that no overdue fines will add up during this time.  For a list of things you won’t be able to do, click here.

Meanwhile, crews are pressure washing parts of the building, which explains the fencing and “sidewalk closed” signs along the north side of the facility.

It’s stinky, it’s steamy and it’s just waiting to go home with you. Dr. Doo, also known as the Prince of Poo has announced the Fall Fecal Fest at the Woodland Park Zoo – a time when local gardeners enter to purchase the coveted Zoo Doo or Bedspread.

Photo courtesy Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo.

According to the zoo, “Zoo Doo is the most exotic and highly prized compost in the Pacific Northwest, composed of exotic species feces contributed by the zoo’s non-primate herbivores. It’s perfect for vegetables and annuals. Bedspread, the zoo’s premium composted mulch, is like Zoo Doo but with higher amounts of wood chips and sawdust. It’s the perfect mulch for perennial beds and woody landscapes such as native gardens, rose beds, shrubs, tree rings or pathways.”

Send in a postcard between September 1 and September 19th for your chance to buy the poo. You are only allowed to send in one postcard for each drawing. For Zoo Doo, mark your postcard “Zoo Doo.” For Bedspread, mark your postcard “B.S.” Entry cards will be selected randomly for as many entrants possible. Dr. Doo will contact the lucky drawn entries only.

Send a standard postcard to:
Dr. Doo
Woodland Park Zoo
601 N. 59th St.
Seattle, WA 98103.

Include the following information:

• Name
• Day and evening phone numbers
• Preference: Zoo Doo or Bedspread
• Amount of Zoo Doo or Bedspread you’d like to purchase (anything from a garbage bag to a full-size, pick-up truck load)
• Weekday or weekend preference for pick-up

The cost for Zoo Doo and Bedspread: Pick-up truck 8×4 bed: $60; 6×4 bed: $45; 6×3 bed: $35. Limit one full truck per person. Garbage cans: $8 to $10 depending on size; bags: $4 to $6 depending on size. Two-gallon and pint-sized buckets are available anytime at the ZooStore for $14.95 and $4.95, respectively.

Pick-up dates for Zoo Doo or Bedspread begin Oct. 2 through Oct. 16. The zoo provides the shovels and the lucky winners load their compost.