Happening Now Possible Protest At University Village

The Laurelhurst Blog has received many reports of a possible protest which started at 3pm today at the University Village and also at the University of Washington.

It is reported that the University Village is closed.

These comments were posted on Twitter just now:

At University Village in Seattle entrances are blocked to cars and shops are boarded up amidst reports of 3pm demonstration.

Over 50 cops in full riot gear are at University Village. Every store is shut down and being boarded up, including QFC. Cops claim body cameras are on.

SPD are swarming University Village, boarding up businesses and shutting everything down

For anyone in #Seattle thinking there is a protest in #UniversityVillage: There is not. This was a probably an attempt at organized crime, which the police have been alerted of and have now blocked off. University Village is private property and cannot be used for a protest.

Please avoid roadways around UW campus, to the extent possible, to allow emergency vehicles to access the area if needed.

A neighbor told the Laurelhurst Blog:

I saw what appeared to be national guard troops -- in full military gear, not Seattle  Police. I also saw cars with people (with masks and backpacks) driving to the U Village and trying to get in but could not; same with people on the Burke Gilman.  There were several individuals banded together with masks -- not the type of protective wear to address COVID -- with backpacks. Also saw some business on 55th near the Duchess boarding stores up.

Laurelhurst Community Club Collecting Dues And What The Funds Go Towards

The Laurelhurst Community Club is currently collecting annual dues which go towards supporting a variety of neighborhood projects and issues.

LCC invites neighbors to its monthly meeting on the second Monday of each month at 7pm at the Laurelhurst Community Center Fireside Room. 

This information was recently published in a recent LCC newsletter:

Annual Dues Drive and a Look at LCC’s Stewardship on Behalf of Neighbors

LCC’s 2020 membership drive brochure and dues statement have been mailed out. While all Laurelhurst residents and businesses are members, collection of annual dues is necessary to pay for professional services such as legal fees, expert studies and reports, design, and printing.  Land use efforts require consultants, attorneys, and communication costs, plus tons of volunteer hours.

Dues support LCC’s proactive efforts on land-use matters, traffic and transportation issues, neighborhood improvements, crime prevention, newsletter publishing, email updates, and website maintenance. An extra $20 contribution pays for landscape maintenance on the Mary Gates Way / NE 41st Street planted median. Additional contributions are always welcome to support special neighborhood projects. 

Your neighbors on LCC’s all-volunteer Board of Trustees contribute hundreds of hours each year on your behalf to maintain the livability and vitality of our community and stretch the membership dues.

Highlights of LCC’s 2019-2020 goals and accomplishments: 

• LCC advocates for a context-sensitive solution for development on the  17+ acre Talaris site. LCC dues pay for legal counsel and expert consultants on historic preservation as well as on hydrology and soils.
• LCC representatives attend the Seattle Landmark Board deliberations and its Architectural Review Committee meetings in reference to Talaris and other local landmark preservation issues. 
• LCC works with SPD on public safety and increasing coverage. 
• LCC works closely with the LEAP (Laurelhurst Earthquake Action Preparedness) team and supports its efforts. In 2018, LEAP secured funding and began preparations for the neighborhood HUB. LEAP helps create and organize local clusters for emergency response and participated in UW’s resilience research project for local communities. 
• LCC works with the UW, Sound Transit, and Metro to improve the  neighborhood’s needs for transit connections and pedestrian safety. 
• LCC funds maintenance for public median strips along NE 41st Street and replaces dead plants and maintains the irrigation system. 
• LCC successfully advocated for more City of Seattle budget support to restore Laurelhurst Community Center operating hours and programs. 
• LCC works with City Council as it develops a new tree ordinance to provide improved urban habitat and enhance its tree canopy. 
• LCC is working with the car share providers to create more access at the Montlake Light Rail station. 
• LCC participates in SR520 construction and design meetings to ensure continuous access from the northern approach to the Montlake Interchange and worked successfully to reduce glare lighting and expansion joint noise.
• LCC researches, produces, and delivers 10, in-your-mailbox editions of the Laurelhurst newsletter, offering neighborhood news and prospective on key issues.
• LCC provides the private security patrol subscription service, which is especially utilized for vacation house checks.
• LCC monitors Seattle Children’s Hospital’s new building construction process and advocates for low noise and traffic easing.
• LCC representative attends the semi-annual SCH helicopter landings review committee and offers feedback on issues.
• LCC trustees regularly address or write the Seattle City Council to comment and share views on issues such as priorities for the City budget, election reform, climate change, affordable housing, transportation, and land use issues.
• Trustees also meet regularly with our District 4 council member and state legislators.
• LCC hosts City Council members at monthly trustee meetings to offer views on programs and policies.
• An LCC representative is a member of CUCAC, which addresses land use, safety, parking, and issues related to the implementation of the UW Campus Master Plan.
• LCC provided specific design and traffic analyses for proposed new developments in the area, such as the planned Aegis facility on Five Corners, as well as for mixed use residential projects on adjacent parcels.
• LCC continues to address neighbors’ concerns regarding transportation issues and gridlock through letters to City Council, Seattle Children’s Hospital, University Village, and the University of Washington.
• LCC supports and offers volunteer staffing for Laurelhurst Park’s Spring Egg Hunt and Salmon Bake.

Pay dues on LCC’s secure website or by mail to:

Laurelhurst Community Club

PMB #373

4616 25th Ave. NE

Seattle, WA 98105

For more information go here. LCC:

Laurelhurst Resident, Mrs. Cooks Retiring And Closing Store

Carol Bromel, long-time Laurelhurst resident, and owner of Mrs. Cooks in the University Village, is closing her store.  Carol started the store 42 years ago in 1976 on Sandpoint Way in the space that is now the jewelry store and was in that location for 5 years before moving into University Village around 1981.  She moved to Laurelhurst in 1974 and added "for you neighborhood history folks that’s about the time the power station by Laurelhurst Park was blown up on a New Year’s Eve."   Carol told the Laurelhurst Blog staff: I started the business essentially because I was an elementary school teacher at a time when there were very few teaching jobs. I had worked in retail off and on and enjoyed most, the experience I had working in a kitchen shop in Denver. When my husband and I decided to settle in Seattle, opening the store seemed like a logical thing.   We named the store after my husband’s grandmother, Hylie Cook. She loved to cook and gave me a box of family recipes when I joined the family. We thought it would be a nice tribute to her and a bit of a play on words.  It was very much a do it yourself store, we built the shelves, papered the walls, we even had a giant rubber stamp that we used to stamp our name on the brown paper bags.   When the opportunity  arose to move into University Village I took it, we doubled our space and added a larger selection of items. This was the time when Woolworths was still there, Ernst and Lamonts. There was a huge sunken rock garden down the center of the stores and we were in the location that is now Brighton.   Sometime later the Village was sold and began the transformation that you see today. At that same time we moved into our current location again doubling our size and adding yet more merchandise.  Every time we find some new wonderful thing at the gift show I think, where on earth will we put it! So far we have managed to find a home for all the things we find and love.   When I think back to the first store opening and remember spreading out the Le Creuset on as many shelves as I could so that the store would look like it had more merchandise than it actually did I am amazed to see it now.  So there you have it, we are an independent retail store, locally owned by me.  We have a terrific staff,  people that love to cook and love to make sure we have all the new hot gadgets. They are knowledgeable and approachable, they like nothing better than to talk about their favorite things.   We have great prices, and a wide assortment.  We like to offer a wide range of choices, something for everyone from the novice  to the pro. We pride ourselves on using what we sell. We like to say that—“ all our cookware is used. By us!”  We constantly have new customers tell us that as an independent store, they were expecting us to be high priced and unapproachable and that they were surprised and delighted by our selection, pricing and friendly staff.   We have a “lending library” so that if you are thinking about  getting new cookware you can try it and compare before you buy.   We do book signings and cooking and product demonstration on Saturdays, we have a Bridal /Gift registry on our web site.  We also gift wrap, ship and offer gift cards.  We have supported the Laurelhurst Neighborhood Appreciation Day, our local schools,  the Make-a-wish Foundation and numerous other worthy causes. The website says: My husband and I built Mrs. Cook’s around the idea learned by Hylie Cook that great cooks cook to have fun. They cook for the thrill of a new recipe, the excitement of new smells and flavors, the surprises that come with experimentation. They love to see oil streaming into a silvery pan, to smell sautéed garlic in the air, to feel dough squeezing through their fingers. The best thing to come out of cooking is the act of cooking itself – whether you’re making a masterful soufflé or your first batch of chocolate chip cookies.     Jeannie Hale, Laurelhurst Community Club President, said of Carol: She has a long standing commitment to the neighborhood.  Mrs. Cooks has consistently donated beautiful items for the drawings at our neighbor appreciation celebrations.   LCC is grateful to have still have one last Laurelhurst business owner represented in the UVillage since Miller Pollard closed its doors in January of 2011.  Mrs. Cooks carries "A History of Laurelhurst" written by former long-time Laurelhurst resident Christine Barrett, who lived for many years at Laurelon Terrace, which was torn down in January of 2011 and replaced with a new wing of Seattle Children's Hospital. For more information go here.  https://www.mrscooks.com/

Laurelhurst Community Club Collecting Dues And What The Funds Go Towards

The Laurelhurst Community Club is currently collecting annual dues which go towards supporting a variety of neighborhood projects and issues.

LCC invites neighbors to its monthly meeting on the second Monday of each month at 7pm at the Laurelhurst Community Center Fireside Room. 

This information was recently published in a recent LCC newsletter:

Dues Time And A Look Back on LCC’s Work in 2017

Neighbors recently received LCC’s 2018 membership brochure and dues statement in the mail. Your $65 dues payment supports proactive efforts on land-use matters, environmental and traffic issues, crime prevention, sidewalk safety, neighborhood improvements, community forums, earthquake/emergency preparedness, newsletters, email updates, website hosting, and more.  

An extra $20 contribution pays for landscape maintenance on the Mary Gates Way / NE 41st Street planted median. Additional contributions are always welcome to support special neighborhood projects.  

LCC appreciates your continued generosity and support. Pay dues on LCC’s secure website (preferred – laurelhurstcc.com, Clickand Pledge) or by mail to:

Laurelhurst Community Club

PMB #373

4616 25th Ave. NE

Seattle, WA 98105

2017 activity highlights of your all-volunteer LCC board:

• Along with other councils and organizations, appealed the Shoreline Permit Revision granted by the City to WSDOT for demolition and construction of the new SR520 due to potential contaminants. 
• Continued work with SPD on public safety and increased coverage.
• Joined LEAP (Laurelhurst Earthquake Action Preparedness) in efforts to educate and organize neighbors in the event of a major disturbance.
• Worked with WSDOT and community coalitions on SR520 Bridge issues concerning overlighting and noise from expansion joints, as well as nighttime noise variance.
• Continued involvement with Talaris and Seattle Landmark Preservation Board for a neighborhood-friendly Talaris redevelopment as well as more consistent property maintenance.
• Continued to address neighbors’ concerns regarding transportation     issues and gridlock through letters to City Council, Children’s Hospital, University Village, and the University of Washington.
• Challenged the City’s major U District Upzone through extensive comment letters in an effort to retain the character, affordability, and livability of the U District.
• Met with Seattle Children’s Hospital on monitoring helicopter landings, traffic, and parking issues as well as plans for the construction of Forest Building B.
• Succeeded in retaining connecting bus service between Laurelhurst and the Light Rail Station at Husky Stadium.
• Reviewed and commented on the University of Washington’s 10-year master plan including its impact on congestion and traffic.
• Provided input to the City of Seattle on affordable housing proposals and monitored land-use change issues such as DADUs and new row houses being built in Windermere Circle.
• Met with representatives from Aegis Living and provided extensive written comments to consider in their planning process.
• Invited the King County Assessor to LCC’s annual meeting for a lively presentation on property values and tax assessments.
• Provided the private security patrol subscription service.
• Surveyed the readership regarding the Laurelhurst Letter’s content, frequency, cost, relevance.

For more information go here. 

Laurelhurst Community Club Collecting Dues And What The Funds Go Towards

The Laurelhurst Community Club is currently collecting annual dues which go towards supporting a variety of neighborhood projects and issues.

LCC invites neighbors to its monthly meeting on the second Monday of each month at 7pm at the Laurelhurst Community Center Fireside Room. 

This information was recently published in a recent LCC newsletter:

Dues Time And A Look Back on LCC’s Work in 2017

Neighbors recently received LCC’s 2018 membership brochure and dues statement in the mail. Your $65 dues payment supports proactive efforts on land-use matters, environmental and traffic issues, crime prevention, sidewalk safety, neighborhood improvements, community forums, earthquake/emergency preparedness, newsletters, email updates, website hosting, and more.  

An extra $20 contribution pays for landscape maintenance on the Mary Gates Way / NE 41st Street planted median. Additional contributions are always welcome to support special neighborhood projects.  

LCC appreciates your continued generosity and support. Pay dues on LCC’s secure website (preferred – laurelhurstcc.com, Clickand Pledge) or by mail to:

Laurelhurst Community Club

PMB #373

4616 25th Ave. NE

Seattle, WA 98105

2017 activity highlights of your all-volunteer LCC board:

• Along with other councils and organizations, appealed the Shoreline Permit Revision granted by the City to WSDOT for demolition and construction of the new SR520 due to potential contaminants. 
• Continued work with SPD on public safety and increased coverage.
• Joined LEAP (Laurelhurst Earthquake Action Preparedness) in efforts to educate and organize neighbors in the event of a major disturbance.
• Worked with WSDOT and community coalitions on SR520 Bridge issues concerning overlighting and noise from expansion joints, as well as nighttime noise variance.
• Continued involvement with Talaris and Seattle Landmark Preservation Board for a neighborhood-friendly Talaris redevelopment as well as more consistent property maintenance.
• Continued to address neighbors’ concerns regarding transportation     issues and gridlock through letters to City Council, Children’s Hospital, University Village, and the University of Washington.
• Challenged the City’s major U District Upzone through extensive comment letters in an effort to retain the character, affordability, and livability of the U District.
• Met with Seattle Children’s Hospital on monitoring helicopter landings, traffic, and parking issues as well as plans for the construction of Forest Building B.
• Succeeded in retaining connecting bus service between Laurelhurst and the Light Rail Station at Husky Stadium.
• Reviewed and commented on the University of Washington’s 10-year master plan including its impact on congestion and traffic.
• Provided input to the City of Seattle on affordable housing proposals and monitored land-use change issues such as DADUs and new row houses being built in Windermere Circle.
• Met with representatives from Aegis Living and provided extensive written comments to consider in their planning process.
• Invited the King County Assessor to LCC’s annual meeting for a lively presentation on property values and tax assessments.
• Provided the private security patrol subscription service.
• Surveyed the readership regarding the Laurelhurst Letter’s content, frequency, cost, relevance.

For more information go here.