The new building going up on the corner of 45th and 1st, across from Dick's, went up in flames early this morning, starting around 6 am. Jeff Garfield, owner of Bedrooms and More, shared this photo of the blaze: Fire trucks were still on the scene as of late afternoon, and the interior was a dripping, soggy mess. According the Fire Department, the cause of the blaze is "still under investigation". The building has been under active construction during the lockdown,…
By now, I am sure all of you have heard about the revival of the Victory Garden. During WWI and WWII Victory Gardens were vegetable, fruit, and herb gardens that were planted at homes and public parks all over the US, UK, Canada, Australia, and Germany during both wars. From coast to coast, even public land was utilized, with gardens installed in both the Boston Commons and San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. People plowed front yards, lawns, back yards, flower gardens…
Amid the numerous events canceled and postponed due to the coronavirus, it will surprise no one to learn that the 2020 Fremont Solstice Parade has also been, in their words, “postponed.” Some may prefer to call it a cancellation as the new date will be June of next year. We received this from the Fremont Arts Council: It is with heavy hearts that we announce the postponement of the Fremont Solstice Parade and Celebration at Gas Works until June 2021. After assessing…
Here's another from Deep Tote's drop of Wallingford historical photos. Again, I could use some help on the year. I'm not a vintage car expert (and I'm also not old enough to remember), but the cars on the right suggest early 1950's to me. Visible in the mid-ground is the Wallingford Police and Fire Station (now the Neighborcare Clinic), with the "Police" sign still visible. This little tidbit of memory adds some color to what that would have been like in…
A staple of Wallingford for almost 40 years, the founder and original owner of Golden Oldies Records, Dean Silverstone, passed away on March 26th. He led many different lives, all of them colorful. At different periods, he was a wrestling promoter, owner of a chain of record stores from Olympia to Bellingham, and a Hollywood soundtrack consultant. There's an interesting profile of him on the KIRO news website; it is well worth a read. Silverstone sold the Wallingford Golden Oldies record…
[Note: After this story was written, but before it could be published, Mayor Durkin announced a 2-day suspension of construction beginning Thursday, April 9, so that city employees and contractors could more rigorously implement social distancing policies at their work sites. Presumably, then, there will be no work on 40th St. during that time.] Yes, I’ve cribbed my title from the Postal Service Creed, but today I’m going to apply it to the workers of SDOT and their contractors. For the…
No one needs to be told that Covid 19 has not just caused a whole lot of damage to global health; it has also caused widespread, serious economic damage as well. Literally millions of people have been rendered jobless nationwide in just the past couple of weeks. Front and center has been the food industry. It’s impossible to walk down Stone Way or 45th and not notice all the closed restaurants and cafes which have left unemployed cooks, wait staff, baristas…