We have been alerted to an apparent shooting near the intersection of Union and Boylston. At 5:55 PM, emergency units were dispatched to 702 E Union St. for an assault with weapons response.

We received the following e-mail from an eyewitness:

Shooting on Union between Boylston and Harvard. One guy shot, was conscious and speaking when police arrived.

More as we get it.

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If my interview with Roy Street Coffee and Tea manager Jacob Webber taught me anything, it’s that despite being a much better coffee shop than your typical Starbucks, Roy Street Coffee and Tea is still a Starbucks.

Jacob describes the store as his “pipe dream,” and seemed really excited about all the new features they’re trying out in the store, like their new Synesso espresso machine, and a pull down movie screen to host film showings for local filmmakers.  He said a lot of positive things and really seemed committed to making the concept work.  

On the other hand, Jacob said he didn’t know much about Capitol Hill, he didn’t have much to say about the well established coffee scene on the Hill, beyond “they make great coffee”, and he didn’t offer direct responses to any of the criticism they’ve been getting from many in the community -- namely that it's disingenuous to not display the Starbucks name, and the clipboard observers that were...

A man so high on cocaine and wine that he needed to be hospitalized after being arrested was chased down by customers of nearby Tougo Coffee as he made his getaway after burglarizing 18th Ave boutique Gossamer Collective. The colorful details of the bust come from Tweets reported by the Central District News blog:

mgrummer tweets that it was Gossamer Collective which lives in the spot just south of Tougo. He says that he and other Tougo customers helped apprehend the perp: "I was there this am right after it happened. Another customer followed as the guy took off w/ the goods & directed patrol officers over the phone as to the thief's location"

Here's what SPD had to say about the incident:

Photo: alk17000

CHS talked with Seattle Police Department spokesperson Renee Witt about Thursday's accident scene on Madison to try to clear up exactly what happened to draw the large emergency and officer response.

Witt said the officer whose foot was run over is in better condition than previously thought -- she has a severely sprained ankle, not a break as was first reported.

Witt said the large response -- reported to include as many as 17 police cruisers -- is standard procedure when an officer is injured.

"Any time there is an officer that is injured it garners a large response until we can figure out what was going on," Witt said.

According to Witt, the officer who was injured was directing traffic at the scene where a person in a wheelchair had been struck by a vehicle at the Madison intersection. Witt said a truck turning west onto Madison from 15th ran over the officer's foot. The truck's driver told police that he was distracted by another pedestrian and didn't see the officer. Witt said the driver was interviewed and released and will likely be cited.

The original accident involving the pedestrian in the wheelchair did not result in serious injuries. According to the Seattle Fire Department, the victim and the driver in that accident were not transported from the scene. Witt said she did not have information at this time about any citations issued in the first accident.

CHS joked the other night about a Tweet we saw that was too artsy for us to fully comprehend. Turns out, the Tweeter is the owner of represents a new art gallery that is opening on the Hill tonight:

I wanted to follow-up to this tweet you posted recently and tell you a little more about "The Shogunate Revisited", opening tonight at pun(c)tuation on Pike Street. (The storefront that has been covered in newspapers for a few months and used to be Laced Up, next to the HoneyHole.)

 "The Shogunate Revisited", a show featuring new work from Seattle-based artists Mike Wagner and I AM, will be kicking-off with an opening reception from 6-10pm. You can read our press release below and there are pictures and flyers available on our Flickr page. (I can send you any of those as an attachment if you have problems opening or need a higher rez image.)

 This show is actually the first of three we have planned between now and January, including a tribute to Miles Davis coming soon, so I will be sure to pass that information along to you to share with the readers of CHS. Let me know if you have any questions and I hope you can join us tonight!

 Thanks,
Kizha Davidson @kydinseattle

Here's more from the Slog on the event and a slideshow from pun(c)tuation's flickr stream. Also, don't forget about this weekend's Expo 87 'micro-fest.'

Republic of Koffee,
originally uploaded by flckrd1.

Some business changes at 1720 12th Ave (between Olive & Howell, Lucky Devil Tattoo Parlor building), none lost, one added:

The People's Republic of Koffee stand has left their garage-on-the-street location and moved into the house next door and expanded with seating (and future food service).  Also in the space is the new People's Republic of Komedy office.

http://www.prokomedy.org/

Zone 4 Printing has moved into the old PRK space and has a great, compact retail store right on the sidewalk with T-shirts and posters, etc.

http://zone4printing.com/

While I wouldn't have picked it as the venue in which to discuss the issue, there was some healthy debate in the comments thread that accompanied the CHS coverage of the memorial procession for slain Seattle Police Department officer Timothy Brenton. On its surface, the debate centered around whether a public ceremony of that scale was justified by the killing of a police officer. But below, there were bigger questions of authority, respect and society. This won't end it -- and it may very well re-ignite some of it -- but CHS would like to share a letter sent out by acting Seattle Chief of Police John Diaz and new East Precinct Commander Jim Dermody thanking people for their support in the weeks following the Brenton murder: