Author Archives: Kali Herbst Minino

Are you ready to rock, Montlake? School of Rock planning 24th Ave E location

Posted on by

(Image: School of Rock)

The national music school franchise School of Rock is planning to open its second location in Seattle to start 2024 in a space not far from Capitol Hill’s bustling nightlife and live music scene. Are you ready to rock, Montlake?

News of the planned opening comes as a key Capitol Hill music venue where some of those Montlake kids might eventually rock faces permanent closure.

The new “School of Rock Seattle Downtown” will be offering music classes and camps for ages six and up along 24th Ave in Montlake.

“We want to be the music in the community,” says Chad Fondren, co-owner and general manager. “There’s no better way to learn an instrument through the performance-based music education program that we offer. We use rock music and rock instruments as a vehicle, so it’s gonna be a little more fun.”

There have been School of Rock performances on Capitol Hill in the past. Cafe Racer and Neumos have all hosted end-of-season performances. The new spot might mean Capitol Hill will see more of them.

But Cafe Racer may never host another young Seattle band. The 11th Ave venue has been shuttered since being forced to close earlier this month over unpaid rent. Racer’s Jeff Ramsey said he has been scrambling to change the club’s business model and find a more sustainable path forward. So far, the cafe has remained dark.

Chad and Tracy Fondren also run the School of Rock in Issaquah while planning the Montlake location. School of Rock in Issaquah grew to hire 19 instructors and teach around 250 students. They’ll also be bringing a third co-owner and music director with them, Cole Paramore, who was the first instructor hired in Issaquah. Fondren says he and his wife love Issaquah, but are excited to be in Seattle. Continue reading →

How Urban Animal plans to become nation’s first worker-owned veterinary co-op — and what it means for the people who care for Capitol Hill fur babies

Posted on by

(Image: Urban Animal)

(Image: Urban Animal)

 

HELP KEEP CHS PAYWALL-FREE
Subscribe to CHS to help us hire writers and photographers to cover the neighborhood. CHS is a pay what you can community news site with no required sign-in or paywall. To stay that way, we need you.

Become a subscriber to help us cover the neighborhood for as little as $5 a month. 

 
After more than a decade of providing walk-in veterinary care to Capitol Hill, Urban Animal will be transitioning to a co-op business model — the first of its kind in the nation. Drawing from 24 years of veterinary experience, founder Cherri Trusheim is responding to her observations of increasing corporatization and high levels of burnout within the industry.

“It is an emotionally taxing field to work in and sometimes the job lifespan isn’t too long,” Trusheim said. “We’re having a hard time finding veterinary professionals because corporate has come in and designed these jobs for them in a way that’s not sustainable.”

Trusheim’s vision for the cooperative emphasizes giving employees a say in how they provide veterinary care and other business decisions. The business will be owned by workers, which is different from other co-op models, where ownership falls on the consumers or producers of the product. Trusheim says there’s a lot of variance between each cooperative.

“For me, it was really that governance piece. Giving people a voice and not just giving them money,” Trusheim said. “Really having a voice at the table because burnout is, that feeling of overwhelm coupled with helplessness, you just don’t feel like there’s anything you can do to make it different.” Continue reading →

12th Ave’s MariPili bringing its art of Spanish culinary delight to First Hill’s Frye Art Museum’s cafe

Posted on by

(Image: Frye Art Museum)

(Image: Maripili)

MariPili owner and chef Grayson Corrales received an email in her inbox last December notifying her that Frye Art Museum was looking for new energy to run CafĂŠ Frieda, a cafeteria space within the First Hill cultural center that has been closed for over three years after the catering company running it changed their business model due to the pandemic. Corrales applied, not expecting the cafĂŠ to be in the cards. Now, MariPili will be opening at CafĂŠ Frieda next month.

On her first day in a new position, Frye Museum executive director Jamilee Lacy tasted food from multiple Seattle-area businesses who wanted to run the café in January. Lacy was looking for food that was different from the usual museum cafeteria fare. She kept her vision for “fine dining in the daytime” in mind, and says MariPili was the clear leader.

“It became really clear to me, and aligned best with my vision for the museum, that a small yet well-positioned, somewhat avant garde purveyor was the best way to go,” Lacy said.

Some details need to be worked out before the café stats its new life. Grayson says she’s still finishing placing equipment and setting up the POS system. One other employee will also need to be hired. The menu is still subject to change, but Corrales envisions quick, accessible, food service.

“It’s supposed to be a menu that’s more approachable and faster to fire so that the hospital workers surrounding the Frye Museum can stop in and grab a sandwich on their lunch break,” Corrales said. Continue reading →

With avocado toast and a juice bar boost, The Naked Grocer keeps ‘waste-less’ grocery dream alive on Capitol Hill

Posted on by

Toast and sandwiches to the rescue (Image: The Naked Grocer)

The Naked Grocer is the dream of making a package-free grocery shopping experience available to everyone and it is really happening right here on Capitol Hill.

But it might take avocado toast and a juice bar to help that dream stay a reality.

It has been about a year since Capitol Hill’s bring-your-own container grocery store first opened its doors at Pine and Boylston. The Naked Grocer is filled with bulk bins and shelves of spices, and recently added a cafe to the mix. Owner Jayne Truesdell says her favorite part of the past year has been her daily interactions with regulars. She is also hoping to get more people through the doors.

“We need people to participate in what we’re trying to do or we won’t ultimately be sustainable for the neighborhood. I know sometimes people are happy to have us here but don’t utilize us,” Truesdell said.

Truesdell calls the work a balancing act due to steep business costs on Capitol Hill. She still hears customers say they’ve never heard of the store before — which is frustrating — and has dealt with graffiti on her windows.

“There’s always shit going on in Capitol Hill, which everyone who lives here knows. I think we get to experience the best of the neighborhood, getting to know our neighbors and have those relationships and regular daily interactions, but then also feeling so depleted by some of the vandalism,” Truesdell said “For it to be expensive and difficult, I think that’s really hard.”

The dream is still alive. And it is growing. The newest addition to the space is a juice bar and cafe Truesdell opened in July. The crowdfunding campaign she ran gathered a total of $7,800 from 117 backers over the course of 17 days. Continue reading →

The Capitol Hill Wishing Tree is rising again

Posted on by

The Wishing Tree in happier days when CHS visited in 2016

(Image: CHS)

Jane Hamel, friend and “owner” of Capitol Hill’s wishing tree, woke up on a July night to crashing and chaos outside. The neighborhood landmark — an E Galer tree not far from the Volunteer and Interlaken Parks that held the wishes and hopes of the community and passersby — had been vandalized and the wishes, destroyed.

With the old wishing tree sign stolen and the wishing bench shattered, Hamel is now growing plans for the tree’s revival with new hopes powered by the community.

It has only been a few weeks without the wishing tree but it can feel longer when you think about why somebody would want to to do damage to something so simply good. Hamel doesn’t think that way.

“Instead of focusing on 20 minutes of bad behavior — I made some stupid decisions when I was 18 or 20 — I’d rather focus on the eight years we’ve had, so much love down there,” Hamel said.

“I want to let the community be more involved because it is their tree. It wouldn’t be here if all these individual people had not spent all that time,” Hamel said.

The community wants to be involved, too. Continue reading →

Broadway’s Boca ready for an even bigger presence on Capitol Hill with plans to add new Argentine asadora to join its ‘restobar’ and bakery

Posted on by

A meat-y addition is coming (Image: Boca)

By Kali Herbst Minino

Boca, the “Argentine, funky neighborhood grill,” as the owner calls it, has plans to expand again on Capitol Hill. But it won’t be adding a new Argentinian grill to another part of the city. It is growing on Broadway — the second time in two years the Boca family has grown on Capitol Hill’s core street.

Owner Marco Casas-Beaux tells CHS the restaurant will grow by expanding into the adjacent retail space next door to add an Argentine asadora — a traditional grill.

“I want to tell the people of Seattle—it’s very pretentious of me to say the people in Seattle— Something really unique is coming in, and they’re going to be truly, truly impressed, and they’re going to be immersed, go out for dinner every night, in Buenos Aires,” Casas-Beaux said. Continue reading →

A CHS visit with the crowd at the 25th Capitol Hill Block Party

Posted on by

By Kali Herbst Minino

Anyone who tried to drive anywhere last weekend knows it was a busy, hot weekend for Seattle. Capitol Hill Block Party and celebrated its 25th edition, attracting groups of people from other states and various parts of Washington.

Taking place in a historically LGBTQ+ neighborhood, Block Party organizers have said they hope to continue balancing the impact of a three-day, ticketed music festival with community involvement. CHS reported here on their efforts in 2023.

Capitol Hill’s cultural value shined through for some. Brittany Sides traveled from Tacoma, and thinks Capitol Hill is one of the most fulfilling and creative neighborhoods in Seattle.

“I had a professor who lived here back in the 90s and she remembers when these bars were lesbian bars, she doesn’t really love Capitol Hill now, it was just a little bit grimier,” Sides said. “It’s definitely more gentrified now than it historically was, but, the heart is still there.”

Delaney Trujillo, who was working at a booth during Block Party, grew up on Capitol Hill and says that while they see gentrification happening, they feel that the spread of the LGBTQ+ community reaches further than it did five to seven years ago.

“I’ve seen real good queer shit on the pier, you wouldn’t see that 10 years ago,” Trujillo said.

Trujillo felt that the festival leaned on the club-side, and would have liked to see more representation. Continue reading →

There is still a local push in Capitol Hill Block Party’s 25th year

Posted on by

By Kali Herbst Minino

“I know music festivals can’t be free anymore, but I’m hoping to see an even bigger local push from Block Party for local artists and local businesses,” Avery Cochrane, a performer at this year’s Capitol Hill Block Party tells CHS.

The 25th year of the music festival takes place this weekend in the heart of Pike/Pine starting Friday and running through Sunday. Three days of sun, warm evenings, and lots of music are predicted.

The price of a one-day ticket to this year’s Block Party is sitting at $95, far above its origins as a free neighborhood event. The now three-day music festival that takes over the blocks around E Pike and Broadway has had split reviews from community members over its 25-year lifetime. Some business owners enjoy increased revenue while others struggle outside the fences put in place for the event. Tensions peaked in 2019 when the city asked for community feedback, but that seems to have faded during the recovery from the pandemic.

As the event has grown and ticket prices risen, so have efforts from CHBP organizers to engage with and support local artists and businesses.

Cochrane wasn’t expecting to receive an email from organizers about playing this year’s block party. She attended the event in 2018 and never necessarily had the ultimate goal of playing at it.

“It’s still weird seeing my name on there, and the font size for my name isn’t even that small, so I’m kind of mind-blown,” Cochrane said. Continue reading →

Students were the draw but new Plantiful Superfoods has plant-based ‘superfood’ for everyone now on 12th Ave

Posted on by

(Image: Plantiful Superfoods)

(Image: Plantiful Superfoods)

By Kali Herbst Minino

A growing chain of plant-based cafes is sprouting around Seattle with a start on 12th Ave across from Seattle University.

Family-owned Plantiful Superfoods opened its new location earlier this year in this area bustling will college kids. The plan is for more “superfood” to come.

“When people come in they think that 10 dollars is on the higher branch for a smoothie, but later they understand the value,” Jessie Nguyen said.

Open since May in the former Mr. Saigon sandwich shop, co-owners Son and Jessie Nguyen started their business two years ago with their first location in South Lake Union.

The menu includes a wide variety of foods: acai bowls, smoothies, lattes, burgers, sandwiches, pizzas, and air-fried tater tots and fries. About half of their options are vegan and gluten-free, and most of the items boast health benefits listed on the menu like skin health, energy, recovery, and immunity.

Son Nguyen placed value on the quality of ingredients in a conversation with CHS, and their website says they carefully choose the source of their ingredients to “assure freshness, vibrant colors, and stunning taste.” There’s an environmental aspect to their business, too, and Son Nguyen says the restaurant strives to have no food waste. Continue reading →

A backbone of a bustling bookstore: Bibliopole turned owner Tracy Taylor talks shop as Elliott Bay Book Company turns 50

Posted on by

(Image: Elliott Bay Book Company)

Hall, Taylor, and Burgess

By Kali Herbst Minino

Today, staff at Elliott Bay Book Company will lift piles of books up and down the wooden stairs and replenish tall bookshelves for customers to wander through. Tracy Taylor, general manager turned co-owner of the store, continues to work alongside her floor staff as the group of booksellers restock the colorful merchandise celebrating Elliott Bay’s 50th anniversary. Having worked at the store for more than 30 years before purchasing it alongside Murf Hall and Joey Burgess last year, Taylor has been there through the majority of the bookstore’s half-century of history that started in Pioneer Square — and now is an even bigger part of its future on Capitol Hill.

The first time she submitted an application to Elliott Bay, she wasn’t hired.

“The person at that time didn’t hire me because they didn’t think I’d stick around long enough,” Taylor said. “I laugh about that now and say ‘I’m here just to show them that I could stay long enough.’”

Taylor moved to Seattle at the beginning of 1990 after getting a teaching certificate and working at an independent bookstore chain in Denver, the Tattered Cover. She moved to Seattle to pursue teaching, but her love for bookselling changed her plans.

A couple of days later, Elliott Bay gave her a call because the other applicant hadn’t worked out. Learning as much about the bookselling business as possible, she was mentored by the original founder of the bookstore, Walter Carr. Taylor eventually became a co-manager, and when Carr sold the business in 1999, she was offered a position as general manager. Continue reading →