Reviews have been rolling in for neighborhood businesses – here’s the highlights:

Naam Thai, the newest addition to Madrona, gets two 5-star reviews, with jayf saying “This place is great!” and mkb calling it “tasty and friendly”.

All Purpose Pizza has a recent 5-star review from busybaby, who says it’s “Too amazing for words”. Tristen gave them 4 stars, commenting on good service and good pizza. J Coleman is the only one with low marks based on three recent visits.

Tougo has a total of six five-star reviews, with Tristen most recently saying that “The Barista’s are always nice, the coffee and tea is fantastic!”.

20/20 Cycles gets two big thumbs up from kedra and MattOnJackson, with kedra saying they had a “Great vibe, easy going personnel, knowledgeable”.

Central Cinema (a CDNews sponsor) has new vegan-friendly options on their menu, and mccar raves about “super comfortable seats, great food & fun movies”.

Bistro Turkuaz in Madrona gets high marks from jayf: “Fantastic restaurant – a total favorite” 

CDgal loves the Clean Greens Market, which is now open Friday and Saturday through November.

Two Big Blondes has consignment clothes in good condition and a “wide variety of clothing from designer to everyday”, according to Tristen.

Got junk that needs to go? Nik recommends Able Hauling

Is your favorite business missing? Anyone can add a business review to CDNews – just sign in or create an account and post your review.

Can you believe August is almost over? Here’s what’s happening on the streets of Seattle’s East Precinct:

RESIDENTS NEED TO PETITION FOR BETTER CABLE SERVICE TO THE CITY CABLE OFFICE. IF BROADSTRIPE IS HAVING FINANCIAL PROBLEMS, THE CITY NEEDS TO STEP IN AND ALLOW RESIDENTS TO UTILIZE A MORE SUITABLE CABLE COMPANY. THERE ARE ENOUGH COMPLAINTS THAT HAVE BEEN SENT TO THE CITY ABOUT THIS PROBLEM, FOR OVER 20 YEARS. IT IS TIME TO DO SOMETHING. MILLINIUM CHANGED IT’S NAME TO BROADSTRIPE; WHICH IS GOING THROUGH BANKRUPTCY; AND CONTINUES TO MONOPOLIZE APARTMENT COMPLEXES, AND WITH NEW APARTMENTS BEING BUILT; COMBINED WITH POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE, INADEQUATE SIGNALS, IT IS TIME TO DEMAND BETTER SERVICE OR ALLOW COMCAST TO COME IN.

We just got a note from Jenny Asarnow that her project “The Corner” is coming to a close on August 31st. It’s been a months-long experiment in community story telling, focusing on the history and memories people have for 23rd & Union here in the Central District.

They’ve had a phone line open since June to record oral history of the intersection. You’ve got until next Monday 8/31 to call in and leave your memories at 877-R23-UNION (877-723-8646). 

The project’s three-part radio finale is also playing this week on KUOW. Tune in at 2pm or 9pm on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday on 94.9FM. The entire series will play again on Saturday 8/29 starting at noon.

And in case you’re wondering about the art installation on the corner there, Jenny tells me that it will remain up until construction starts on Jim Mueller’s big apartment project. That’s currently unscheduled due to the economic downturn, so the art may stay with us for a while.

More details and history messages are available on the project’s website at http://23rdandunion.org

The Star of David from the Upperroom Church of God in Christ (26th and Fir) has been taken. The Star usually sits on top of the Church, but was temporarily sitting on the ground behind the building during some repair work. We need it back – please help us find it! If you have any information about the Star’s whereabouts, please call 799-4149.

Thank you!

Update by scott: Just talked to the building owner, who said that her husband had been working on the roof yesterday and he had temporarily removed the star. The theft evidently happened overnight as a deacon saw it on the ground behind the building late last night, but then it was gone this morning. 

The building is an old synagogue dating from 1933, and the owners are very upset that something with so much historical and cultural value would be stolen like that.

They are going to contact local metal dealers to see if the thief might try to recycle the metal.

Here’s a Google streetview of what the star looked like when it was in its place:

View Larger Map

Here’s the beat from the streets of Seattle’s EP on a cloudy August day:

JoshMahar over at Capitol Hill Seattle has a real score, getting hold of the first architectural rendering of Seattle University’s plan for the old storage building on their property on the southwest corner of 12th & Madison. The university has owned the building since 1985 and have alluded in recent months that its days of dedication to storage were numbered.

Here’s what the university has planned:

According to CHS contributor JoshMahar:

I followed up with Mr. Kerns via email about this project he informed me that the University had conducted a preliminary study of the site in 2007 to address “needs for academic space and housing”. According to Kerns:

The study suggested that the university add three floors to the existing 5 story structure:

• Floor 1 (street level) – retail and main entrance
• Floors 2-5 –  [student] housing
• Floors 6-7 – academic space (classrooms and facility offices)
• Floor 8 – conference and meeting room space

In addition, Kerns said that the project was aimed at improving the streetscape and the University’s interaction with the community. Kerns wrote that, “this will be the most important future SU project in terms of neighborhood redevelopment. This will be a signature facility for the university” (emphasis added).

Seattle U is targeting the project for completion sometime in 2013-2014.

We were just talking yesterday about how the 12th street corridor was exploding with dining options. This project will add a lot more retail options and place them even closer to us here in the Central District.

(From Meghan, my next-door neighbor. Andrew)

I wanted to let you know about an event I host every Tuesday at Denny Blaine Park through my recently formed yoga company, Roar Yoga. I hold an all-levels, donation-based vinyasa yoga class from 6:30pm-7:45 weekly through summer as long as the weather holds out. It’s a great way to enjoy the long-lasting summer sunshine and a good way to meet other folks in the (extended) neighborhood.

My website is www.roaryoga.com and I’m happy to answer any questions you might have about the event.

Roar Yoga™: Yoga That Comes to You℠

web: www.roaryoga.com

cell: 410-978-1828

If the weather isn’t cooperating, feel free to email [email protected] to check if event is still on.

About Roar Yoga: 

Roar Yoga is a Seattle-based company that offers unpretentious, accessible, and affordable on-site yoga for a variety of clients including workplaces, corporate events, athletes and teams, private individuals and groups, bridal parties, and more. We come to you–wherever, whenever–and we work with all levels, ranging from the total yoga newbie and/or yoga skeptic to the seasoned practitioner. Check out www.roaryoga.com for more info. Flexibility not required.

SPD is getting really regular about releasing monthly crime stats now, which is a good change after we went most of 2008 without any updates at all. The stats for June are now out, and there’s good news about them too, with total crimes in the Greater Central District* down 10% over June 2008, and down 2% YTD vs. 2008.

Crime rates are down in almost every category except robberies: (stats given are June 09 vs. June 08)

• Assaults: Down 20%
• Robberies: Up 125%
• Burglaries: Down 17%
• Theft: Down 3%
• Vehicle Theft: Down 47%

The stats are organized by police beat, which you can see mapped on the SPD website. Crimes are down in three Central District beats and up in one, with the northeastern part of the neighborhood seeing a huge improvement:

• C3 (Montlake, Madison Park, Madison Valley, Madrona): Down 37%
• G1 (Squire Park, Radio Point): Down 8%
• G2 (Jackson Place, Little Saigon, Judkins Park): Up 10%
• G3 (Garfield, Leschi): Down 11%

Here’s some overview graphs that will give you a feeling of the seasonal variation in crime:

Last Tuesday August 18 between 8am and 7:30pm, two bikes were stolen from our garage on S King St between 18th and 20th Ave. The garage is separate from the house. The bikes were visible from the window. Someone was obviously wandering through backyards, found our bikes and made the theft. I was out of town at the time.

Can you keep an eye out for our bikes?  A road bike and a mountain bike. 

Road/touring bike (skinny tires, drop handlebars) description:

Silver color; black electrical tape and stickers (a prominent large red one said “Memphis”) covering the down tube; blue handlebar tape; black seat with red striping at back; 27 speed; brand/make: Specialized Sequoia Expert. Please see the grainy picture attached, swiped from Google Streetview.

Mountain bike: brown and blue, no shocks. No other description.

Thanks for keeping an eye out!  If you have any news, please contact me at [email protected] or call 206.684.3662 (day), 901.489.6731 (evening).