In a world in which typewriter stores are rare,
Bremerton now has two.Typewriter Fever joins the
longtime Bremerton Office Machine
Company on the fifth floor of 245 Fourth Street, and, in
this latest Bremerton Beat Blast, you’ll get to take a look
around.
By the end of the year, the blue parking enforcement
signs once prevalent in downtown Bremerton will be a thing of
the past. A judge ruled
they violate state law and the city claims it was already
beginning to replace them. The whole project will cost the city up
to $8,000 to remedy, the public works department says.
The story generated a firestorm of comments, ranging
from: “More tax dollars wasted! Research people! Research!!!!”
to: “Stupid! I liked the signs. Apparently people don’t want to
have to read? The blue was different and nice looking.”*
Here at the Kitsap Sun, we received a lot of feedback with a
simple question: if the Poulsbo man
who generated the lawsuit had demanded the city use federally
allowed white signs with red lettering, what’s the city doing
erecting all that green lettering?
For that answer, we turn to the Manual
on Uniform Traffic Devices (MUTCD), devised by the U.S.
Department of Transportation. The manual, adopted by Washington
state, is what the Kitsap judge relied on in making his decision
Bremerton’s signs are unlawful.
The manual states that for areas where parking is prohibited,
red letters will be used. For areas where parking is limited to a
certain number of hours, the signs are green. Here’s a diagram to
help:
sign, sign, everywhere a
sign.
So, now that the city is following the MUTCD on parking signs,
that’s the end of the case, right? Not quite. Kitsap County
Superior Court Judge Kevin D. Hull has not ruled on a remedy for
what happens now. But since the city has already chosen to replace
the signs, the only other big question is whether the
thousands of people who got parking tickets since 2012 could recoup
their fines. Hull has asked both lawyers for the plaintiff and the
city to “provide further briefing.” The next hearing in the case is
Dec. 9.
For this week’s Bremerton Beat Blast, consider me your
social calendar. Culturally, this city’s got a lot going
on this week, and I wanted to share with you four ways you can join
in the fun.*
So, enjoy the episode, and here’s my inside tip sheet on what
must not be missed:
Yvonne’s 95th: Yvonne McAllister turns 95
today. As she always does, she’ll grab the trumpet she bought in
1958, and she’ll play McCloud’s in
East Bremerton, on the corner of Perry Avenue and Sheridan
Road.
Happy 95th,
Yvonne.
Paint Your Heart Out: Artist Angela Perryman
brings the paints, the location supplies the pints, and you get to
take home the canvas. First up: 6 p.m. at LoveCraft
Brewery on Fifth Street; next is 6 p.m. at Hot Java Cafe on
Pacific Avenue; and next week, at 1 p.m. Nov. 26 at Hot Java
for the
little ones. Adults: $45, kids, $25. To reserve your spot,
email clayworks_ceramics@yahoo.com or call LoveCraft or Hot
Java.
Tradition 5: Looking to see some amazing
all-style dancing? On Saturday, breakdancers and hip hop artists
will come to Bremerton for Tradition 5,
an annual celebration and competition. At noon, the preliminary
rounds will be held at The Eagles on Sixth Street. At 6 p.m. the
final rounds will be at the Fountain Room inside the Puget Sound
Naval Museum on First Street. Tickets are $10 and kids get in
free.
Bremerton Jazz Festival: All day Saturday,
choirs and jazz bands from around the northwest will be performing
at the Bremerton High School Auditorium. (The host 13th Street Jazz
Band performs at 9 a.m.) For the main event at 6:30 p.m., Dave Tull
— a drummer, vocalist
and songwriter who’s even been featured on the TV show Family
Guy — and Rebecca
Kilgore, a song stylist featured on NPR and at Carnegie Hall,
will perform. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at the door.
Kitsap Quiz Night: I host my monthly news
quiz at the Manette Saloon on E. 11th at 7 p.m. Thursday. Join
us; there will be free pie.
Story Walk: And last but not least, the
Bremerton Police Department will throw open its doors for our
latest Kitsap Sun
Story Walk, at 1 p.m. Saturday at 1025 Burwell Street. Tours
will be provided and the event is free. Be sure to RSVP.
Questions? Comments? Send them to me at
josh.farley@kitsapsun.com.
*The fifth story on the Beat Blast is unabashedly about
whales.
The concrete span that connects Manette to West
Bremerton turns five years old today. The $60.6 million
span, completed after years of planning and construction,
opened to much fanfare on Nov. 10, 2011.
I’ll often ask Bremertonians which bridge they prefer — that
classic green steel truss or the far more functional new span?
Closer to the new bridge’s opening, the vote was mixed. However,
has time has wore on, the city’s residents increasingly prefer the
new bridge. Particularly popular its wide pedestrian walkway.
Walkers are crossing it constantly, taking in views of Bremerton
and the Port Washington Narrows — especially on a sunny day.
Happy birthday, new Manette Bridge. You’ve got a long way to go
to get to 81 years old, the age of the old one, but you’re on your
way. Here’s some photos of the bridge over its first half
decade.
Opening day. The outer railing
on the bridge had not been completed.The old bridge’s truss comes
down. The company that did the work recycled the old span. Yet some
of its steel is still a fence in Manette.Bridge in fog.From construction: The bridge’s
foundations.That’s how far into the Narrows
its foundations of steel and rebar go. The massive tower on the
left is completely underwater, where it will be for the test of
time.
One more photo of the old
bridge. If you have photos you’d like to add, send them to
josh.farley@kitsapsun.com.
Be it the
possibility of property tax breaks or a chance to deliver
on Bremerton’s thirst
for housing, developers have pushed more than a handful of
apartment projects through city hall in recent years.
Some are more likely than others to materialize.
Here’s a list of those projects, what we know about them, and
where they currently sit in the realm of possibilities.
Water, Wind & Sky
rendering
Water, Wind & Sky: This one’s new. City
community development officials have received plans for a
110-unit complex off Lower Wheaton Way at Schley Boulevard,
overlooking the Port Washington Narrows. Seattle Developer Mark
Goldberg, who
spearheaded the 400 Condos in downtown Bremerton, has been
working on the project. There’s a city sign up about the project
but it is merely at the start of the permitting process.
Spyglass Hill: Work is wrapping up
on the $15 million, 80-unit project on Highland Avenue
(see photo at the top of the blog). It looks like the project,
developed by Sound West Group, will open in late winter.
Pre-renting has begun.
Fourth Street
North.
Fourth Street North: And speaking of
Sound West Group — the Bremerton-based development company is also
at work on Fourth Street,
having purchased the Roxy Theater and two properties east of it
(as well as others downtown). They received about $240,000 of
federal grant funding from the City Council to install new facades
on the dated buildings there. That work could begin soon. Once
done, the developer plans 35 or so apartments to go with existing
parking and two commercial spaces. (This is also the area where
Quincy Square is proposed.)
Wheaton Way apartments
underway.
The Wheaton Way Apartments:
Work has already begun on the 160-unit complex off Broad Street
in East Bremerton. The seven-acre property will be home to 10,
three-story apartment buildings. In the future, Kitsap Transit
plans to build its new transfer station between the development
and Wheaton Way.
The 1010 apartments at Burwell
Street and Warren Avenue.
1010 Apartments: The Bremerton City Council
recently decided to give Lorax Partners, the developers of the
25-unit complex,
$210,000 to demolish the dilapidated row housing currently on the
property. The federal money to do it won’t come until next
year. But the project could get underway once that work is
complete. Lorax is the same developer that built the Park Avenue
Plaza and
71-unit 606 apartments.
Inhabit Bremerton.
Inhabit Bremerton: The 51-unit
project by longtime Kitsap County resident and developer Dale
Sperling is being built in blocks in China and will then be
constructed at
the site of the former Nite Shift Tavern and Evergreen
Upholstery. I don’t have word yet for when the “modules,” as
they are called, will arrive. But when they make it here, I am told
putting them together on site will be quick.
Smaller projects downtown: Last, but
not least, there are some smaller commercial-retail projects going
downtown. Chung’s Teriyaki,
under construction near the Bremerton ferry terminal, will have
three apartments atop it. And Sound West Group is doing one other
project on Pacific: the 707, which is a renovated retail space and
five apartments above. That project has cleared the city’s design
review board.
The hive inside the Kitsap County elections office is
indeed buzzing. More than 100,000 ballots have already
been turned in en route to what officials expect to be a
record breaking turnout on election night.
Learn more on this
week’s Bremerton Beat Blast, including:
City leaders got the go-ahead
from Quincy Jones to create a public square in his name. Photo by
Larry Steagall of Fourth Street, where the square is slated to
go.
And late this last month, Bremerton Mayor Patty Lent
got word he approved.
“As I’m sure you know Bremerton holds a very special
place in Mr. Jones’ heart and he is honored that the city has seen
fit to recognize him with the dedication of this square,” Jones’
publicist, Arnold Robinson, told Lent in an email.
Lent had hoped Jones, who discovered his love of
music while living in Bremerton as a child, could come here next
May for some festivities, including the Armed Forces Day parade. He
politely declined due to a scheduling conflict. But he offered his
blessing, Lent said.
“We can move forward with Quincy Square on
Fourth,” Lent told me Thursday, adding they’ll approach Jones again
if and when the project is finished. “Everyone’s excited.”
The concept, seen below, was developed by
the “Fourth
Street Action Group,” a gathering of community leaders for
the past two years at Rice Fergus Miller architects. It’s a
complete transformation of Fourth, between Pacific and Washington
avenues, that includes piano key-inspired sidewalks. Designer Emily Russell is
credited with introducing the idea to honor Jones.
The project is by no means a done deal and will cost
about $4.8 million start to finish. I’ll keep you posted as we
learn more about it.
You needn’t be a kid to get a kick out of
the new
indoor playground at Ahoy Kitsap Playland, owner Rhonda Koh
says. The massive jungle gym, which opens Friday, can be
enjoyed by parents and their children alike.
You’ll get the full scoop on this week’s Bremerton Beat Blast,
as well as:
Long live the queen. She can be
seen at the bottom of this photo.
Marie Vilà started and ended her first year of
beekeeping with a queen. The West Bremerton resident
decided to join a
growing number of urban Americans in trying her hand at raising
her own colony.
“It’s the right thing to do,” Vilà said. “The whole buzz about
bees — they’re in so much trouble right now. That resonated with me
a lot.”
But her first year included triumphs and tragedies.
Her queen bee, capable of living years, survived. Sadly, her
once-robust hive did not. Here’s what happened.
She started by taking a master bee-keeping class in the spring,
aided by the West Sound
Beekeepers Association. She bought what’s known as a langstroth
style of hive and put it atop her carport. For about $120, she got
a pound of bees from a California almond farm.
Her queen bee was separated from the hive so they can adjust to
each other’s smells (and the hive does not revolt). Once ready, a
cork keeping queen and the bees apart is replaced with a sugary
marshmallow that’s eaten through. And voila — the hive is
united.
Marie Vila.
Vilà said summer was amazing. The bees were abundant and the
hive productive, growing to 50,000. She started noticing the pears
of her garden, in particular, were growing spectacularly with their
newfound pollinators. The bees were producing great volumes of
honey, too, important to help the hive survive the winter.
Then, something happened: the bees began dying off. At
first, Vilà assumed some of it was just natural — after all,
bees don’t live too long. But fewer and fewer were left to protect
their queen.
Until one day, all that was left was the queen.
Vilà suspects the bees were infected with a Varroa mite,
an unfortunate but all too common cause of death. She did the only
thing she could — bundled up her queen and whisked her to the West
Sound Beekeeper’s Apiary.
“She was on her last legs,” Vilà said.
The queen is surviving there, she said. The queen can live with
another hive, which can support her for now, though she must remain
isolated from them for fear they would attack her. Queens can live
up to a few years and Vilà’s hopeful that in spring, she can get
new bees acclimated to her own queen again.
I’ll be sure to provide an update on Vilà’s efforts next spring,
as she attempts to build a new hive with her tried and true
queen.
You’ll get all the
details about the festivities on this week’s Bremerton Beat Blast,
and also these four other stories:
