We have an update on Todd Boettger, the man who was robbed and left for dead in Greenwood early Tuesday morning. “He has been heavily sedated, basically a drug induced coma since the incident,” writes his younger brother Forrest Boettger in an email. But there is a glimmer of hope. “He opened his eyes for …
The owner of Cupcake Royale is headed to Washington D.C. to talk healthcare. As the representative of the Washington Small Business for Secure Health Care Coalition, Jody Hall is one of several small business owners participating in a roundtable discussion tomorrow morning with Nancy-Ann DeParle, Director of the White House Office of Health Care Reform. …
Seattle Department of Transportation crews are busy digging up Leary Ave NW in front of Canal Station and the Ballard Landmark exposing the old brick road. Marybeth Turner from SDOT says that crews are repairing pavement that was previously excavated for work on underground utilities. Dan emailed us to say that traffic is being funneled …
Several people are shaken up this morning after an accident at 8th and Market. Just before 7 a.m., a witness tells us that the red Oldsmobile and Jeep Wrangler collided, causing the Jeep to tip over. A man, woman and dog were inside. The two people in the Jeep were taken to the hospital, but …
Representative Reuven Carlyle has emailed us a new blog post covering the flurry of activity in Olympia, especially surrounding the state budget. As is customary now, Carlyle is asking for your feedback on a wide range of issues — and he reads the comments. His post follows below:
In the waning days of the 2009 session in Olympia, legislators are debating, advocating, prodding, pushing and voting on major issues ranging from greenhouse gas emissions to education reform, domestic partnerships and job initiatives in cooperation with the Obama Administration.
Serving as a member of the state House has been a tremendous experience on a personal and professional level. The best part has been making a difference on profoundly important public policy issues that impact real people living real lives. The worse part has obviously been spending so much time away from my wife Wendy and our four children. I’m chomping at the bit to come home!
On the budget front: House and Senate budget negotiators are holed up in conference rooms in the Capitol forging a deal on how to address a $9 billion projected deficit in the $33 billion biennial operating budget. The central theme of the session has been jobs, jobs, jobs….
Kiss Cafe (Cafe) BallardKissCafe.com 2817 NW Market St (map) (206) 789-5477 Yelp.com customer review: “Staff was very friendly, and warmly welcomed our 6-month-old baby.” [ratings]
This afternoon we received an email from Jennifer at the Phinney Ridge Animal Hospital. She says a “mystery cat” was found near 57th and 11th with bite wounds on his face, neck and legs and taken to PRAH (pictured here.) She also posted the description of the cat in the forum. A couple hours later, …
We posted back in March that it looked like RapidRide, the new express bus service coming to Ballard in 2012, will run along 15th Ave. instead of the other option, 24th Ave. Today we received the final recommendation from the RapidRide advisory committee. “Nearly all panel members support or could live with RapidRide located on …
Members of the homeless group that were planning to move into an overnight shelter at Calvary Lutheran Church have written a letter responding to the controversy over sex offender screening. The letter, faxed to My Ballard, explains that the SHARE group was “disinvited” from staying at Calvary after “some neighbors became hysterical and threatened the church if they let us come.” The SHARE members said the church asked them to changing their screening process to begin checking for sex offenders, a requirement they called “un-American” and a result of “homelessphobia” discrimination.
(File photo of SHARE members with Our Redeemer’s Pastor Steve Grumm). “How many times have we had a problem with a sex offender at a SHARE shelter? NEVER. NOT ONCE,” the letter reads. “Sex offenders are not welcome in SHARE church shelters. We just don’t need a sex offender check during screening to move them on. The proof is in our well-run shelters and the complete lack of neighborhood problems where we stay.” The letter explains they believe they can find another church, temple or mosque that won’t require the checks. “We’ll be all right,” they write.
The controversy began when Our Redeemer’s Church, which oversees the now-vacant Calvary Lutheran Church, invited 20 members of SHARE to form an overnight shelter. Many neighbors in a community meeting demanded that SHARE submit to sex offender checks, a request that the church passed to SHARE, which as you can see, has refused to submit to them. Our Redeemer’s says it’s still working with SHARE in an attempt to come to a resolution.
Meanwhile, a My Ballard reader pointed out in comments on an earlier story that the city of Redmond has included a sex offender screening requirement in the temporary use permit for Tent City 4 (.pdf), which is made up of SHARE members. “Tent City 4 shall report any positive results of sex offenders or warrant checks to the Redmond Police Department,” the requirement reads.
The full letter from SHARE members follows below…
Ballard’s biggest music event of the season gets underway this evening. The four-day Ballard Jazz Festival kicks off with the Brotherhood of the Drum where five Northwest drummers take the stage at The Sunset Tavern at 8 p.m. Tomorrow night is the Guitar Summit, also at The Sunset, with five great jazz guitarists starting at …
The building that will soon become Ballard’s newest French restaurant in Old Ballard is sporting a fresh coat of paint. Here’s a look at what the building used to look like. The owners of Bastille Cafe & Bar have also started the ball rolling for a liquor license. Just last week they submitted their application. …
Our sister site PhinneyWood has been covering a disturbing story in Greenwood. Early Tuesday morning just before last call, a man left a bar at 85th and Greenwood. A short time later, he was found severely beaten in the street, his wallet missing. He’s so badly injured, he may not survive. KING 5 reports the …