With the exception of an increasingly gentrified Chinatown, Portland doesn't have, never did have, the traditional enclaves of immigrants (Italians, Jews, Poles, Japanese, Germans, Greeks, etc.) whose cuisine and culture would define a neighborhood. Today's population is increasingly imported from elsewhere, a "creative class" without ethnicity. more ›

"Queers Against Gentrification," spotted by the lovely and talented Katelyn Hackett on Capitol Hill "right across from the light rail construction site, John and...10th, I guess." ACT UP! indeed. more ›

In the latest edition of her quarterly-ish email newsletter, Marya Sea Kaminksi--actress, writer, director, Genius, and WET co-founder, just to name a few--shared some info on one of her upcoming projects. She's developing a monologue on a timely topic: Seattle's rampant condo abuse, in a work titled Condomillennium: A New Play About Fantasy and Real Estate. more ›

• Finally, a condo sign that got it right! Thanks, MyBallard, for making our morning...we literally laughed out loud.
• Woah, West Seattle: a gallon of gas below $3! We didn't think we'd be seeing that any time soon.
• The Rainier Valley Post and the Beacon Hill Blog want to let you know the city is hosting meetings in neighborhoods near light rail stations to discuss parking. If you live in the south end, there's likely a meeting near you in the next few weeks.

• The Big Blog gleefully reports there will FINALLY be a World Series in Seattle. The Gay Softball World Series will be hosted on several Seattle fields in August.
• Central District News brings their regular and always interesting reads, the CD Police Scanner, where it was a boring Monday--fights and narcotics activities--and a development update about where the next condo is going in the CD. We are always pleased not to see our block or home on this week's update.
• Capitol Hill Seattle seems to be down for the count--we haven't been able to log in successfully for a good week. Have they changed their address or gone AWOL? UPDATE: Apparently they've simply changed their URL to blog.capitolhillseattle.com. Thanks Jack!

Seattlest has lived in eight cities across the country, and we have to be honest. We've lived in Seattle longer than we have anywhere else because we love it here. It's clean, it's culturally vibrant, it's full of extraordinary natural beauty, it's safe. But, we've never been able to reckon with the fact that it's just so damned wealthy and white. Much as we like to think of ourselves as forward-thinking, inclusive citizens, we all know our lovely little city is about as diverse as a carton of eggs. more ›

We understand you're upset, Belltown. What, with all these drug deals going on right outside your high-rise condos. You've video-taped and photographed the deals going down, you've created a YouTube channel and taken your complaints to local blogs and newspapers...and still it doesn't stop. Maybe that's because the drug dealers and users in Belltown were there long, long before the condos and well before the neighborhood was given its trendy name. more ›

The South Lake Union Trolley has struck again! Literally. Yesterday, the trolley struck its fourth car since its December debut. That averages an accident every month of the S.L.U.T.'s short existence, although this is the second accident we've reported in April. Yesterday's accident occurred when a car leaving the Center for Wooden Boats' parking lot hit the streetcar's right front bumper. No one was hurt in the accident. The collision shut down the streetcar for about half an hour, but then it returned to service. more ›

There was little real reason to expect anything different during Sunset Bowl's last night of operation. We read histrionic predictions somewhere that hipsters would swarm the place; this never materialized. There were perhaps a few more people--though that place was always packed whenever we went--and some may have stuck around later, but by and large the clientèle consisted of the same combination of loud, scruffy, tattooed, pierced, well-groomed, young, old, middle-aged, beefy, wiry, scrawny, trashy, nerdy, slightly-off-kilter, and unironic miscreants that one normally found there. In short, the place was filled with bowlers, drinkers, and karaoke singers. more ›

The end is near for Sunset Bowl and its patrons. The local bowling alley, which has been open for over half a century, is set to close its doors April 13th. (Officially 1a.m. on Monday morning.) So take the time this weekend to say goodbye and get in a few last games at the old Sunset lanes. Don't be surprised to see a few more teary eyes than bleary drunk ones this weekend. It is a sad day indeed. more ›

A small crowd has gathered on East Pine to watch the demolishing of a once quintessential Seattle block. The condos have officially won, as the buildings which once contained Seattle divey-landmarks the Cha Cha, Bimbo's Bitchin' Burrito, and Kincora's are no more. more ›

Real estate search engine Rotten Neighbor promises to help you "find bad neighbors before you move." What evils have users uncovered behind the closed doors of the Emerald City? more ›

The past two days, contributors Jeremy "The Seattle Samurai" Barker and Katie "The Kalama Quickdraw" Tiehen debated the age-old question of whether Seattle or Portland is better. more ›

Seattle. Portland. Which one's better? You may say: "How can you choose? Each has their good points. It's like asking which religion is better." Guess what, asshole, that Negative Nellie attitude is the reason nobody ever asks for your fucking opinion. Jerk. Yesterday, Jeremy Barker advocated the pro-Seattle position. Now, it's Portland's turn. more ›

Seattle. Portland. Which one's better? You may say: "How can you choose? Each has their good points. It's like asking which religion is better." Guess what, asshole, that Negative Nellie attitude is the reason nobody ever asks for your fucking opinion. Jerk. To the debate! First up, it's a pro-Seattle opinion. more ›

When Amazon.com announced Amazon Fresh last week, it piqued some bloggers' curiosity, but we didn't spend much time thinking about it. Grocery delivery? Interesting, but we weren't going to dive in. more ›

Seattlest expects another round of the ever-fascinating debate on Seattle identity: Greater Seattle vs. Lesser Seattle, mossback vs. booster, REI vs. Macy's, McQ vs. Singles. Lusty Lady vs. Four Seasons (oh wait -- they struck a balance). Pick your thesis and antithesis. more ›

the "sterile" and "cookie-cutter" nature that Schultz bemoans. more ›

Before we begin, we'd like to extend our deepest sympathies to the family of James Kim. We are not, by any means, trying to discount that tragedy by juxtaposing posts about the Kims with more light-hearted posts. It's the nature of doing a compilation such as this one: we're trying to give a full slice of the goings-on in the Ist-a-Verse: the good, the bad, and the ugly. more ›

Hip-hop is ruled by ego. Whether it's the ego of an MC, that of a DJ, or a combination of the two, hip-hop is dominated by superlatives. Descriptions of being the biggest, baddest, and richest are the typical trappings of mainstream hip-hop, which is nothing new. The underground scene has its own failings, focused instead on being "realest," clamoring to fit as many syllables as possible into every bar. In both cases, the result is staid, tired output, dominated more by formula than feeling. After the lackluster Boot Camp Clik show a few weeks ago, Seattlest has been lucky enough to see the more desired portion of Sturgeon's Revelation the last few days, with MCs unafraid to be more than lyrical automata. more ›

KUOW is currently discussing issues of race, gentrification and community in the Central District. Go check it out. more ›

We're glad we stuck around for the audience Q&A after the panel discussion on gentrification Thursday night, hosted by the University of Washington's Evans School of Public Affairs. more ›

This Thursday the UW will host a panel discussion about change in Seattle's Central District, pitting gentrification against "revitalization"--the latter, we hope, being something said panel will subject to more rigorous definition. We are pleased to see this topic discussed in a public forum, but these days we wonder who listens to panels any more, much less an academic-sponsored one (as opposed to those ever-popular corporate-sponsored panels--everyone listens to them). What happens after the panel? Will EW cover the hot after-panel gossip? more ›

Seattlest dropped in at the Seattle Rep for the late August Wilson's final play in his ten-cycle series, Radio Golf. It's playing through February 18, and well worth making a trip to the Rep for, if only for the chance to see a Seattle theater audience that's not almost exclusively white. Tickets range from $22 - $36 ($10 if you're under 25 with ID). There are also rush prices 30 minutes before each performance. more ›

Seattle Weekly Editor-in-Chief Knute Berger white unflighted recently, moving from Kirkland back to Seattle. more ›