Life In The Pacific Northwest
Hey Seattle area ComiCon fans, Kobekon is in full swing this weekend. Hosted at Everett Mall, you will be far from the traffic mess that Seattle will be.
You can see all that’s going on right now, as well as the full schedule, on their Facebook page.
One of the great things about Seattle and western Washington is the number of these geek-culture events hosted locally. You can explore Seattle’s geek culture more here.
Heading to KobeKon? Let me know how it went.
Lately I’ve been considering growth. Seattle’s been growing in a huge number of ways: jobs, cost of living, rents, population. This growth changes things: traffic, greater economic fragility, more economic stress on nearly everyone. I
I read an article yesterday saying that San Francisco’s poverty line income was a bit above $114k. Seattle is getting close.
With this growth and pressure on finances, I see this region’s density increasing. I expect the single family home will slowly vanish as land costs continue to climb. Eventually, multi-family will be the only way to earn enough return on land investment for builders.
I expect well see lots of Seattle neighborhoods becoming predominantly multi-family, actually a region of apartments condos stretching from the center out to the burbs.
I do wonder if there’s an equilibrium. Will we get to a point where things will stabilize?
What do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
Though fireworks are illegal in a good portion of the county, there are plenty of events to enjoy. Far more than just fireworks!
What are you most looking forward to? I also enjoy the fun in Edmonds.
I hope you have a safe and fun Fourth!
​One thing I noticed about the Edmonds Arts Festival yesterday: food. Once upon a time portable food vendors were, well, mediocre at best. Often times they were dreadful, to the point of promising almost certain food poisoning. Quality was job two.
We’ve shifted from food trucks to, um, foodie trucks. Better put, food trucks are evolving. They’re becoming exercises is culinary creative excellence. This change is a beautiful thing, which I welcome. They add a new, positive element to our region’s festivals.
Does this upscaling come at a cost? Are they more expensive, making living in the region tougher for those earning less than the median! Or just uppity, gentrified fare challenging the more traditional palette? It seems we are able to have a blend of costs, foods and styles. So, I’m not concerned. I often wonder about such things, though. I desire the region to be accessible to all.
Higher quality food enriches the whole experience. I’m pleased at this change, seeing it as progress.
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It was a fun day down in Edmonds by the Bay. Stunningly beautiful with plenty of sunshine: a perfect day to be outside, with the Saturday Farmer’s Market, the Edmonds Arts Festival and extreme low-tide.
I’ve been dealing, lately, with some foot pain, and my back’s been bugging me, which drug my attitude down some. But it’s hard to be too grumpy when it’s a beautiful, sunny day spent with family and friends.
Highlights:
It was lovely, and I am tired. I took plenty of photos, which I’ll upload tomorrow. Here is my favorite.
I was sitting by this bush with flowers the bees adored. After taking around a dozen photos with my Olympus, but the autofocus hated this. The breeze was bouncing the flowers and the bees were, well, being bees. I gave up on the good camera, pulled out my Samsung S7 and was able to grab this one. I did need to zoom in and crop a bit. A lot of work for this one.
As this project is one of the first I’ve seen from concept to build, it’s of particular importance to me. Since I needed to be onsite, I thought it would be fun to share it with you.
Check it the video below.
Yeah, I realize I shot all the clips in portrait. Ugh!
Anyway, this house is for sale. Have your agent put an offer on this one! Tell them it’s MLS# 1233212 (in the NWMLS). Don’t have I agent? I can fix that for you.
We’re looking forward to turning this new house into someone’s new home. That’s the best part of this job.
I’ve been watching the evolution of this building for a few years. Moving from weathered to worn to abandoned to dilapidated and now, finally, getting refurbished.
I love this style of building. When I lived in downtown Seattle I got to live in a couple of similar vintage and style. Watching it come back to life fills me with joy. The only downside for me: I was hoping I couple work directly with that.
Everett has an amazing amount of potential. There’s some great buildings, nice eateries, and a solid arts community. It’s also quite affordable. I firmly believe the city is on the cusp of a rebirth.
The economics of real estate play a key part. Combine the great walkable streets with reasonable prices, it’s just a matter of time. And as light rail expands up here, de-brutalizing the commute (to Seattle, at least), the expansion should grow.
I’m fond of this city and delight in the opportunity to grow. Everett also is in a place to learn from the development mistakes of Seattle, and others. Keeping the city’s unique charm, and liability would be wonderful.
Quite the lovely day, today, north of Seattle. A wonderful sunny and warm respite in this gloomy spring of our discontent.
We have a project slightly north of Marysville, right off of Centennial Trail. So most of my team took a walk this afternoon. A delightful way to spend an afternoon.
The site’s going to have great views of the Olympics and the valley north of Marysville. It’s a really fun project. Been creative with AutoCAD and laying out lots. Getting to the site and seeing the land, the layout and flow is much more powerful than topographical lines on my computer.
Lots of wins. Though I did spent a chunk of this evening dancing with CAD. In all, a productive day, just in unexpected ways.
Ah, the Edmonds Top Pot donuts finally opened! It’ll be a lovely addition to the changing dynamic along the ferry lane.
I expect the good folks at Waterfront coffee, nor the proprietors of the little coffee shop and hot dog stand adjacent to the ferry holding lane will be fine.
Anyway, the shop isn’t quite finished. The upstairs seating area isn’t accessible, nor are all the pieces of the kitchen done (donuts were being unloaded from a van, so I don’t think the kitchen is operational yet). The soft serve ice cream machine isn’t finished yet, and the stairway doesn’t have handrails. But what’s there is nice. Well lit, with the books in the loft a northwest genteel touch. I’m looking forward to having the place done.
The sign on the door said it was open today and tomorrow until 2:00. Not sure about the week. But we have a little action after the years of waiting!
Welcome to the neighborhood Top Pot!
Moving to the north
Kerouac once cross this bridge
Aged concrete and steel