Lotus Thai Closed For Remodeling. Under New Management.

Have you noticed that Lotus Thai (2101 North 45th Street) is closed? Wallyhood reader, Neil, tells us his wife spotted the sign on the door and paper on the windows, so we did some calling and got the scoop: The restaurant is now under new management, and we spoke to the new owner, Lucky, who told us that they're closed for remodeling. They hope to re-open some time in February, with a shiny, new name, "Silver Tray".

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Big Turnaround in 2012 for the Wallingford Housing Market

What a difference a year makes. Record low interest rates, a significant shortage of inventory, continued strong hiring by Amazon, Microsoft and a slew of smaller to midsize companies and a general belief that the market has hit bottom has resulted in strong appreciation for most Seattle home owners and sellers in 2012. For the 11th consecutive month the median sale price for single-family homes sold in Northwest Seattle, including Wallingford, met or exceeded the sale price for the same period…

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Seattle Schools Capacity Issues Affect Hamilton

It seems that the Seattle Public Schools in the north end of Seattle has had its share of capacity issues -- including here in Wallingford where John Stanford International School has had its boundaries resized twice since the New Student Assignment Plan. Now a capacity issue looms large over the middle schools in the north end -- particularly with the influx of kids planning to attend sixth grade in the fall (2013-14 school year). Back in December, the School Board looked at…

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Playfield repairs and a new dog park? There’s a grant for that.

Back in December, we posted about the Wallingford playfield closure, a post which spurred a lot of comments from concerned neighbors. In true Wallyhood fashion, most comments were civil, though the off-leash-dogs-at-the-park issue clearly does push our collective buttons. Reader and community leader Greg, who was the driving force behind the playfield and who still keeps a watchful eye over it, filled readers in on some the history of the park and the challenges posed by rain, cleats and paws: During…

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Spring Cleaning

Did you make a New Year's resolution to clean out the basement of all that junk? But now you've got that liberal guilt of not wanting to fill landfill with all that mercury in the electronics and waste perfectly good metal and what have. But then, you're too lazy to actually do anything about it. So what's to do? Fret not, because there's a solution that aligns with your environmental concerns and your inclination for convenience. Consider hiring a professional cleaning…

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Burn Ban

Cold enough for you? Ha ha ha. Yeah, I never really got that joke, either. Well, it is cold (by Seattle standards) and promises to stay that way for the next little while. Shelly Rae Clifton tweeted at us "Hummingbird feeder is frozen but 2 hummers buzz busily around & stop to drink. Seattle clean & refill your hummer feeders!" and the PSCAA let us know there's a burn ban in effect: The Puget Sound Clean Air Agency is issuing a Stage…

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Fremont Changes

Yes, yes, occasionally even we neighborhood bloggers wander outside our neighborhood, and a recent ramble through Fremont had some surprising changes. Just a few that we know of: Maria Hines (of Wallingford's Tilth and Ballard's Golden Beetle has opened a new restaurant in the spot where 35th Street Bistro stood (and, more dear to our hearts, where Still Life in Fremont used to be). According to their press release, Agrodolce will rely on local products that are sustainable and organic. Maria will import a…

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