Tag Archives: graffiti

Mayor’s ‘Day of Service’ includes Cal Anderson and Capitol Hill street clean-ups

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(Image: City of Seattle)

Dozens of volunteer efforts this Saturday to “turn the values” of Mayor Bruce Harrell’s One Seattle vision “into shared action and meaningful improvement” will include clean-ups of Cal Anderson Park and the surrounding streets of Pike/Pine and Broadway.

CHS reported here on Harrell’s launch of the One Seattle Day of Service effort last month. As mayor and through his career in Seattle politics including years on the Seattle City Council, Harrell has often focused on the trash and graffiti end of public safety, sometimes stopping in his tracks on community visits to comment on a tagged building or busted glass.

The Day of Service push also is centered around his administration’s championing of philanthropy and volunteer efforts to help address Seattle’s issues of drug, mental health, and homelessness. In February, big givers led by the Ballmer family worked with Harrell to launch a $10 million program supported by philanthropists and corporate donors to place “peer navigators” to move campers into services and reduce the presence of homeless people in downtown Seattle.

Meanwhile, CHS reported on efforts from mutual aid volunteers to provide food and resources to Capitol Hill’s homeless community. Continue reading →

With ‘graffiti clean,’ Harrell to unveil ‘major community service initiative’ — UPDATE: One Seattle Day of Service

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Bruce Harrell does not like graffiti. The new mayor will be in the Chinatown-International District Monday morning to unveil what his administration says will be a new “major community volunteer effort” in partnership with public, private, and nonprofit organizations. It will involve an issue that has repeatedly been a pet peeve for Harrell over his years on the council and on the campaign trail will apparently be in the crosshairs.

Monday’s Harrell administration media event will center around a “volunteer activity and graffiti clean,” according to a press release.

UPDATE: Monday, Harrell announced a “One Seattle Day of Service” citywide volunteer event will take place on May 21st “with over 2,200 volunteer opportunities across more than 80 different activities throughout all seven City Council Districts.”

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Synagogue hate graffiti part of string of Trump-echoing vandalism around Capitol Hill, Central District

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Another case of hate tagging -- thanks to EV for the picture

Another case of hate tagging — thanks to EV for the picture

“LOVE WINS,” read the sheet quickly put up by a neighbor to cover the hateful graffiti found Friday morning targeting 16th Ave’s Temple De Hirsch Sinai on a day when even a box of old history books left innocently for the synagogue’s rabbi caused fear and uncertainty. If love wins — and is going to keep winning — it has some work to do around Capitol Hill and the Central District where Friday’s vandalism appears to be part of a string of similar property damage with messages hitting all of progressive Seattle’s deepest fears about the Trump administration.

Neighbor EV sent us the example seen outside an apartment complex in the Central District and quickly painted over. EV writes: Continue reading →

‘LOVE WINS’ — Neighbor’s quick work covers anti-semitic graffiti targeting Temple De Hirsch Sinai — UPDATE: Suspicious package

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A Capitol Hill neighbor took things into his own hands after anti-semitic graffiti was found Friday morning near 14th and Union on the property of Temple De Hirsch Sinai.

UPDATE 2:30 PM: SPD’s Arson and Bomb Squad was called to the synagogue around 1 PM after a box was found outside the temple and reported to police. After photographing and investigating the item, police determined it was harmless and reopened the area around the temple’s 16th Ave entrance. The box, it turns out, contained a donation of old history books. Police said they were acting out of an “abundance of caution” following the graffiti found Friday morning and a string of threats against religious and community centers.

“I just met with the leadership of this temple a few days ago,” SPD Chief Kathleen O’Toole said at the scene Friday during the investigation of the package. “With all that is happening nationally and with the graffiti issues here, we want all of the people in our communities to feel safe.”

O’Toole said she was attending the mayor’s proclamation of Irish week in Seattle when she heard about the suspicious package investigation. “I was out and about and said, gee, I’m going to head there myself and try to reassure them that we’re here with them and that we take these cases very seriously.”

Robert Merner, assistant chief in charge of investigations, said his department has been visiting with area groups including Temple De Hirsch Sinai over concerns about national threats. He also had some advice for anybody considering dropping off a box of old books – call ahead.

Original report: CHS arrived to find the neighbor covering the spray painted message with a message of his own painted on a bed sheet and taped to cover the wall. The neighbor told CHS he felt compelled to cover the graffiti because he didn’t want the message of one bad person to take on greater significance and reflect poorly on his new neighborhood.

An official at the scene declined to comment until he had an opportunity to talk with others at the temple about any messages the synagogue wanted to share about the incident. Continue reading →

Washington’s Most Wanted? Show on hunt for Capitol Hill tagger

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LOLCAM 20141006_005100_2 (2)The TV program Washington’s Most Wanted is leading the hunt for this Boylston Ave tagging suspect caught on surveillance video early Monday morning:

Justin Christie was in bed when the motion sensor on his surveillance camera set off an alert on his phone.

“As soon as I saw it, I jumped to the door and wanted to scare him away at least, but by the time the alert came through, he had already finished; he was pretty quick,” said Christie.

What the suspect left behind will cost the Home Owners Association between $300 and $500 to remove.

“I respect street art. I don’t think this is street art,” said Christie.

The video was provided to police who passed it on to the show’s producer who, in turn, shared it with us. The producer tells us police are looking for tips to help identify the tagging bandit. “[T]he tagging subculture responsible for millions of dollars in damage every year,” the show reports. You can call 1-800-222-TIPS with information or SPD directly at (206) 625-5011.

Welcome to Capitalist Hill: This studio apartment available

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Jason shares the latest Capitol Hill street art commentary on the state of the neighborhood, above. He found it on 12th Ave though we’re sure it also appears at several other nearby locations. It makes a companion piece to this witty wheatpaste poster in the blocked-off doorway of the classic old building at 11th and Pine destined to become not another new apartment project but offices. CHS has been sent notes about the doorway art all summer but had hoped to wait to post it after we found out more about what happened to the young woman that called the doorway home in recent months. We haven’t been able to track her down. But here’s the painful poster anyhow. As we’ve noted before, Capitol Hill seems to die a lot. It’s true. And we get some funny art out of it. Again and again.

Sidewalk signs hyping Capitol Hill apartments hit with Independence Day weekend blackout tagging protest

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A 15th Ave victim

A 15th Ave victim

In the meantime, the Central District has taken anti-development angst into a much more creative direction.

In the meantime, the Central District has taken anti-development angst into a much more creative direction.

We don’t know exactly what set it off but somebody was busy with a spray can over the 4th of July weekend tagging a-frame sidewalk advertisements for various Capitol Hill apartment complexes from 19th Ave E to Pike/Pine.

This picture below from Twitter was claimed to show a tagger at work Sunday night.

With rents continuing to rise and City Hall so far powerless to do much to stem the tide, it’s possible the weekend’s blackout tagging was an angry response to the ongoing rise in the cost of Capitol Hill living. Or maybe whoever is responsible is a sidewalk muni code vigilante tired of what can be a cluttered pedestrian experience. Whatever the cause, the response was thorough if not elegant with apartments and condo buildings new and old included in the sweep.

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Was it you? Tell us why in comments, text or call (206) 399-5959 or tell us via email at [email protected].