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Axios Seattle
New crime fighting surveillance tech on the budget in Seattle
While ShotSpotter — a controversial gunshot detection system that's been debated for years — will not be used in Seattle, some of the city's proposed alternative surveillance technologies are raising concerns.Why it matters: The gunshot detection equipment, shelved last month by the mayor, had been criticized by some police chiefs, the ACLU of Washington and others for potentially sending police into neighborhoods on high alert.State of play: A spokesperson for Mayor Bruce Harrell's office said the acoustic location system will not be included in the city's public safety tech plan going forward due to budget constraints.Harrell announced plans to install...
Blitz is the NFL's most "forgettable" mascot
The Seattle Seahawks' feathered friend has sadly been named the most forgettable mascot in the NFL, according to a sports betting site's new survey. What they did: Using results from the quiz website Sporcle, OLBG analyzed the recall of mascots across the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB and the U.K.'s Premier League.
No joy for Seattle at 2024 James Beard Awards
Seattle-area restaurants and chefs were shut of the James Beard Awards in Chicago Monday for the third year in a row. Why it matters: Despite a full slate of outstanding nominees, Seattle failed to take home one of the culinary scene's most prestigious awards. The big picture: The James Beard Foundation — named for the iconic Portland-born food writer and chef — gives out 22 awards annually, spotlighting the crème de la crème in categories like baking, hospitality, wine, restaurant and regional chef.It's like the Oscars, but for food.Driving the news: Five Seattle-area chefs and restaurants made this year's list...
Seattle and Portland have received nearly 2,000 unaccompanied migrant children
Data: U.S. Department of Human Health and Services via New York Times; Note: Includes places that have received at least 100 unaccompanied migrant children; Map: Kavya Beheraj/AxiosThe majority of unaccompanied migrant children who arrived in Seattle and Portland between 2015 and 2023 are from Central America.That's based on U.S. Department of Human Health and Services data on migrant children sponsors' ZIP codes obtained by the New York Times through a Freedom of Information Act request.Why it matters: Unaccompanied migrant children are an especially vulnerable group as federal, state and city leaders spar over sheltering and supporting foreigners and asylum seekers...
How to tide pool in the Seattle area
Lower than average tides over the weekend will make for good clam hunting, beachcombing and critter watching.Driving the news: Tomorrow, the low tide in the Seattle area is forecast to be -2.9 feet at 12:45pm and -2.3 feet on Sunday at 1:28pm, according to US Harbors.Zoom in: The Seattle Aquarium will have beach naturalists at Carkeek, Golden Gardens, Lincoln Park and Dash Point and seven other Puget Sound beaches both days.They can identify animals, explain what sea stars eat and why barnacles stand on their heads, and show how to interact gently with the sea creatures and their homes, according to the aquarium.See the schedule and map.Before you go: Wear waterproof boots and bring a marine guide, sunscreen, a fleece or poncho and perhaps a change of clothes for kids.The Washington Trails Association recommends getting there about an hour before the lowest tide.Because the tide pool environment is fragile, kids should be taught to be careful about the sea creatures under their feet and to touch animals lightly with a wet finger.Clean up after yourself and leave shells and animals on the beach.
What to stream this weekend
Here's what's new on Netflix and Hulu this week.What we're watching: The Netflix reality universe combines to crown another couple the "perfect match" (with a Seattleite in the running), a local criminal gets the documentary treatment and Laurence Fishburne elevates a limited series on the worst owner in sports.Our picks"Perfect Match" season 2 — Available Friday on NetflixThe intrigue: The show that combines finding love with daily challenges is back with standouts including part-time Seattleite Micah Lussier ("Love is Blind"), plus Harry Jowsey ("Too Hot To Handle"), Jessica Vestal ("Love Is Blind") and season one winner Dom Gabriel.Think of it...
Million-dollar homes are now the norm in 18 Seattle-area cities
With the fourth-highest home sale prices and some of the tightest inventory in the nation, million-dollar homes are now the norm in 18 cities near Seattle.Why it matters: Rising home costs coupled with relentlessly high interest rates are making it even harder for new, young or single prospective homebuyers to break into a market during a decades-long housing crisis.By the numbers: The Seattle area saw a 9.6% year-over-year increase in April, according to the latest Re/Max National Housing Report.The current median home sale price in Greater Seattle is $740,000, per Re/Max.But many individual municipalities start much higher, according to Zillow.Issaquah,...
An Italian court reconvicted Amanda Knox of slander
An Italian appeals court reconvicted Amanda Knox of slander Wednesday, finding she wrongfully blamed an innocent man for the 2007 murder of her roommate Meredith Kercher while she was a suspect in the case, the Associated Press reports.Why it matters: After a highly publicized trial and conviction in Kercher's murder, Knox was ultimately acquitted of any involvement, but the slander charge remained, despite Knox's stance that the confession, which she later tried to retract, was coerced.Reversing the slander conviction would have cleared the Seattle-area resident's name "once and for all," she said.Flashback: Knox, then a student at the University of...
Demolishing dangerous vacant buildings in Seattle gets faster
A bill that would allow the city to demolish vacant, unsafe or abandoned buildings faster if necessary was approved unanimously by the Seattle City Council Tuesday.Why it matters: Because fires in vacant buildings have risen over the past three years — including one on Tuesday in which one person was killed and three injured — the city has been looking for more effective ways to deal with such buildings.By the numbers: Over 100 buildings in the city are currently deemed derelict, unsafe or a public nuisance, according to a report by Ann Gorman, a public safety analyst for the city.Over...
How to celebrate Pride month in Seattle
The start of Seattle Pride Month marks the city's 50th annual celebration of gay rights — a major milestone for the city's LGBTQ+ community and queer visibility in the Northwest.Yes, but: With programming all month, it can help to plan ahead. Here's what to do when:Thursday: Attend a special Pride-themed Pioneer Square Art Walk curated by youth interns with Seattle Pride and Seattle's LGBTQ Center from 5pm to 10pm at the RailSpur Building (419 Occidental Ave. S).Friday: The Seattle Symphony will present a slate of "Pride Anthems" at Benaroya Hall spanning 50 years of music from Donna Summer, George Michael,...
University of Washington study finds new paralysis treatment restores use of hands
A new treatment that restores the use of paralyzed limbs is expected to be approved by the FDA this year.Why it matters: The simple treatment could be life-changing for many of the 5.4 million Americans who live with paralysis, said lead researcher Chet Moritz, a professor at the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Washington.State of play: Among 60 participants in a clinical trial of the device that provides electrical current to the spinal cord through electrodes on the skin, 72% saw significantly improved strength and function from using the treatment for two months, according to a UW...
This Seattle shop is the top spot for Negro Leagues apparel
Started as a mom-and-pop shop in 1988, Seattle-based Ebbets Field Flannels is one of the only places to get authentic paraphernalia for baseball's once-overlooked Negro Leagues.Why it matters: The recent inclusion of stats from Negro League players has recast the records — greats like Babe Ruth and Ty Cobb no longer hold some top spots — and awakened new interest in the teams that were excluded from the MLB during segregation.Negro League stars now populate top 10 lists, and more records may change as the MLB analyzes other numbers from seven professional Negro Leagues that operated between 1920 and 1948.Combined,...
Where to hike when it's hot out
If you're a hiker, summer in the Pacific Northwest is the most wonderful time of year, when a paradise of trails to explore opens up after the spring melt.Yes, but: On scorching hot days, hiking in direct sunlight is probably the last thing you want to do.Pro tip: Choosing trails with unique cooling features makes all the difference.Other tips include bringing sunscreen, remembering to hydrate, reducing your mileage if it's extra hot and being mindful of any heat or smoke advisories in effect.Here are some of the region's best shady and pleasantly cool, low-mileage and low-elevation hikes that fit the...
Where to swim outside in Seattle
Whether you're a weekend warrior at lap swim or a casual pool partier, swimming is better when it's outside, and Seattle has no shortage of outdoor pools and beaches to get your flutter kicks.Yes, but: These places aren't open year-round in our soggy city — or necessarily safe to swim in when it's cold out — so summer is the best time to enjoy them.Pro tip: If you want to go somewhere on this list, other people do too, so give yourself plenty of time to park.Here are some of Seattle's best pools and beaches for swimming and lounging in...
Nostalgic fun for everyone at Seattle-area drive-ins
Washington is home to a few drive-in theaters that offer the nostalgic charm of 1950s Americana and outdoor spaces for kids to play as a fun alternative for movie night.You can bring pets too, and no one cares where you put your feet or if you chat it up during the climax.Pro tip: Feel free to wear your pajamas. Back in if you have a hatchback or truck and set up a comfy little nest for viewing. Or, bring a tarp and blankets or lawn chairs.Most drive-ins feature two movies, a kid-friendly one that begins when night falls, around 10pm, and a feature movie playing around midnight. Check out one of these this summer:Blue Fox Drive-In Theater in Oak Harbor: $6.50 for 11 and older; $1 children 5-10; 4 and under free. Rodeo Drive-In in Bremerton: $12 adults; $7 for kids 5-12 and seniors; 4 and under free.Skyline Drive-In Theater in Shelton: $8 for 12 and older; $3 for kids 6-11; 5 and under free.Wheel-In-Motor Movie in Port Townsend $10; $8 for seniors 65 and up and kids 6-12; kids 5 and under free.On the other side of the mountains: Auto Vue Drive-In Theatre in Colville.
This Seattle bar was just named one of the best in America
Next time you're in need of some liquid therapy and a light meal, check out one local bar that's made it to the national stage.State of play: Bar Bayonne on East Jefferson Street near Swedish Hospital was named one of Esquire's 42 Best Bars in America.Zoom in: The space offers a tiny French market, baguette sandwiches, charcuterie, local oysters, wines by the glass and cocktails.And, the "cheerful yet urbane" space provides a "fun, communal break from the boring rest of the world," writes Bethany Jean Clement.Dig in: Esquire recommends the martinis, made with jambon-infused gin, dry sherry and briny piparra peppers.They also suggest the kalimotxo — a Coke and red wine concoction — oysters, and Spanish potato chips topped with thin slices of the slightly sweet and salty meat for which the bar is named.Fun fact: Bar Bayonne is the creation of Zac Overman and J.J. Proville, the people behind the neighboring L'Oursin, described by Seattle Met as one of the city's reliably great bistros.
Banking seeds in Washington for the future of food
Washington state is home to one of the most precious collections of valuables on the planet: seeds that hold living codes for building the world's future food supplies.Why it matters: Amid seemingly endless bad news about the climate and the death of pollinators, projects like these aim to ensure food in the pipeline no matter what.How it works: More like a library than a bank, the USDA's National Plant Germplasm System in Pullman stores seeds for critical food and foraging crops in temperature-controlled cabinets, which are ready to send to scientists, breeders and geneticists all over the world, said Sarah...
Seattle-area therapist talks about shame and addiction in Asian cultures
Being an Asian kid in Seattle meant bullying and discrimination outside the home and shame-based teachings inside, says local psychotherapist Sam Louie in his third book.Why it matters: Asian American Pacific Islanders looking to unravel cultural trauma, shame and the wounds it leaves behind will connect with the memoir, one reviewer writes. What's happening: "Passport to Shame: From Asian Immigrant to American Addict" examines the role of ethnicity and culture as contributors to toxic shame, now recognized as a bedrock of addiction and other disorders.In Chinese culture alone, more than 100 different ways exist to describe shame, says Louie, who emigrated...
Week of wild weather for Seattle
Whether you crave sheets of rain and snow — or warm sunny days — next week is setting up to have something for everyone.Why it matters: Plans can be thwarted when they depend on Seattle's June-uary weather, so it's nice to know which days may be better for gardening, biking and crossing the passes.Driving the news: A moderate late-season atmospheric river could bring more than an inch of heavy rain to Seattle and up to five inches of snow in the mountains Sunday and Monday, local meteorologist Michael Fagin told Axios.By Friday, some models suggest temperatures in the Seattle-area could be near 80°, per Fagin.What's next: Some forecasts indicate we may see highs in the 90s the following week thanks to a developing ridge of high pressure, said Fagin.Forecasters at NWS' Climate Prediction Center highlight the period as particularly hot, describing as "persistent" a heat dome projected to park itself across the West from early-to-mid-June," writes Axios' Andrew Freedman.
Weekend guide: 5 fun things
Don't feel guilty if you want to stay in bed and read on a rainy spring weekend, but if you want to get out, then here are ideas. Thursday👩🏻🌾 Fans of female folk can celebrate the music of Alison Krauss, Nanci Griffith and the Highwomen at a country tribute show featuring Seattle musicians at The Royal Room. Doors open at 6:30pm for the 7:30pm show. Tickets $25. Friday📜 Gather at Town Hall Seattle for a discussion with Aziz Rana, Michael Hardt, and Jaleh Mansoor about Rana's book, "The Constitutional Bind," exploring how our flawed national document gained mythic status and shaped both domestic and foreign policy. 7:30pm. Sliding scale $5-$25. 🕺🏻Get your secret Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC dance fix when Seattle's tribute boy band #All4doras plays at the Tractor Tavern. 9pm. $10.Saturday 🐞 Catch "Bugs!," a free and family-friendly play about preventing bullying and celebrating differences, at the Taproot Theatre.Tickets free; seating general admission; but registration recommended. Doors open at 9am. Show starts at 9:30am.Sunday🦖 Dig into paleontology at the Burke Museum's annual festival of fossils with ancient animal identification, microfossil sorting, crafts, and more. Timed tickets $14 for ages 4-17 and $22 for adults.
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