Neighborhoods

Fish, With a Side of Ballard History

Pete Knutson is a 47-year commercial fisherman, a fourth-generation Ballardite, and a college professor. When he’s not up in Alaska catching salmon, you’ll find him down on the dock at Fishermen’s Terminal selling it.

/ March 27, 2019

Neighborhood Spotlight: Ballard

Ballard is no longer Seattle’s sleepy little fishing village, but amid all the shiny apartment buildings and swanky new restaurants, its Scandinavian heritage and maritime roots live on. For our latest neighborhood spotlight series, we visited local landmarks like the Ballard Locks and Sloop Tavern. We brushed up on our board-game strategy at Mox Boarding […]

/ March 27, 2019

How Did Ballard Get So Scandinavian? You Asked, We Answered

The flags of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden fly high at Bergen Place in downtown Ballard. (📷: Caitlin Moran) When Seattle’s old-timers think of Ballard, the first thing that comes to mind might be lutefisk. Or Aquavit. Or freshly baked Kringle. Scandinavian culture has been a fixture of the neighborhood for decades, but a […]

/ March 27, 2019

Broadcasting live from Ballard’s Mox Boarding House

THE NEIGHBORHOOD: Ballard THE PLACE: Mox Boarding House is a board game store and cafe founded in 2011 by two brothers. They have locations in Bellevue, Ballard and plan to open in Portland soon. Mox offers more than 600 games for people to play in the store. THE STORY: When you meet Michael Tessier, the […]

/ March 26, 2019

Meet the guy who runs Ballard’s boat elevator

THE NEIGHBORHOOD: Ballard THE PERSON: Larry Meyer, lockmaster of the Ballard Locks THE STORY: What do you get when you combine a fish ladder, a botanical garden, and a bunch of boats? The Hiram M. Chittenden Locks – also known as the Ballard Locks. And you can find one person at the center of it […]

/ March 19, 2019

Becoming a Ballardite in three steps

THE NEIGHBORHOOD: Ballard THE PERSON: It’s true that Ballard has changed a lot over the years, but there’s one person who has probably seen the neighborhood transform more than anyone. Louis Larsen was born in 1924 and grew up five blocks from downtown Ballard. You may remember that the neighborhood was its own city before […]

/ March 15, 2019

Neighborhood Spotlight on South Lake Union

South Lake Union seen a lot of change over the last decade. (Case in point: The neighborhood’s sometimes called “Amazonia,” after our local tech giant, but was once mostly known as Cascade.) In recent years, South Lake Union has become synonymous with Seattle’s tech industry. But there’s more to the neighborhood than blue badges and shiny new buildings. Our latest neighborhood […]

/ February 28, 2019

A space for makers in South Lake Union

WHO: Jeremy Hanson (Maker/Founder) and Joy Gerhard (Designer/Founder) of Seattle Makers. THE STORY: Seattle Makers can be a little tough to find — tucked between Glazers Camera Rentals and the new 99 tunnel. But once you’ve climbed the stairs and stepped inside, the maker space can be even more difficult to leave. Jeremy was working a […]

/ February 28, 2019

Athletic Awards: The trophy shop behind Seattle’s largest trophy

To say that South Lake Union has gone through some major changes over the years would be quite the understatement. And in the marathon that is surviving all the neighborhood’s construction and gentrification, one local business is clearly #winning. WHAT: Athletic Awards, a trophy shop that opened its doors in Seattle in 1949 and moved to […]

/ February 25, 2019

7 places to feel the pre-Amazon vibe in South Lake Union

Amazon opened its first building in South Lake Union in 2010, and ever since then, some Seattleites have debated whether the neighborhood has any deep culture or soul. But it’s there. You just have to squint a little.

/ February 25, 2019