The Belltown Bugle's First Issue
What are we doing? What's going on?
About the Bugle
What is this? Why start it? In short, my friends and I had been discussing creating a neighborhood newspaper for a few months when I came across the New Yorker article ‘Your Friendly Neighborhood Newsletter’…and I loved the idea.
What these [neighborhood newsletter] projects have in common is a desire to fight back against two forces: the disintegration of local media and the impersonality of the algorithmic internet, which aims content at the widest possible audience. As Dornblaser put it, “You’re more likely to be served restaurant recommendations for Paris or real-time updates on a Senate primary than relevant information about what is happening in your own neighborhood.”
- Kyle Chayka in Your Friendly Neighborhood Newsletter, The New Yorker
What the Belltown Bugle is:
A ~twice-a-month neighborhood newsletter, with a focus on hyper-local news impacting Belltown (or Downtown, Queen Anne, etc.), neighborhood events, restaurant recommendations, rants, and occasional deep dives into special topics.
In an era of increasing alienation and placelessness, the Belltown Bugle is meant to be a small force to reinforce neighborhood and community ties.
Human-written. No AI slop. Ever.
What this is not:
The Stranger or Seattle Times or Queen Anne & Magnolia News or the West Seattle Blog. This is its own thing!
An ‘official’ voice for Belltown residents/businesses. For that, please check out Belltown United (they have a newsletter!) and the Belltown Community Council.
Real journalism: I’m not a journalist. None of my friends who might pitch in are journalists. But the truth is important to me, so wherever relevant I’ll do my best to include sources.
The now-defunct Belltown Messenger (though we aim to fulfill a similar purpose!)
A for-profit venture. We’ve enabled donations to help cover any future costs (stickers ain’t cheap!) and to encourage deeper dives, but they aren’t expected and we do not intend to run ads or need paywalls for the primary newsletter.
About the Editor:
Hello! My name is Ethan. I’m in my mid-20s and moved to Seattle (Belltown!) after college with my boyfriend, Matthew. We’ve loved it here and plan to stick around. You may have seen me walking around the neighborhood, or from more popular exploits such as when I walked from Pike Place to SeaTac.
Ask me anything by emailing Ethan@BelltownBugle.com and I will respond in a future issue or directly. I read everything!
Without further ado, our first newsletter!
In the News:
Zahilay and Wilson Partially Dismantle KCRHA Amid Rising Homelessness. The regional agency’s future has been in question for years following concerns over accountability, its effectiveness, and most recently its bookkeeping practices. The agency lists 35 programs/shelters in the broader District 7 region, all of which could see their funding shift to be under the purview of Seattle’s city government.
Link light rail hit a record number of 309,000 riders on the day of the US-Belgium World Cup game.
Seattle Gay News: Dykes on Bikes celebrates 50 years: A tale of resilience, pride, and camaraderie
The girlies are fighting: As the mayor seeks to increase transit service via her Seattle Transit Measure proposal, Publicola reports an amendment to Wilson’s proposal from Bob Kettle could have resulted in a decrease in bus service. Kettle’s amendment failed in Thursday’s council vote, 7-2.
How Would a Boost in the Seattle Transit Measure (STM) Impact Belltown?
Should Katie Wilson’s proposal move forward without further amendments, it would raise the STM sales tax from 0.15% to 0.30% — an annual additional cost to the median two-person household in Seattle of $29. Currently, more than 1 in 20 bus trips in Seattle are funded by the Seattle Transit Measure (King County Metro has other funding sources, including fares).
But how would it impact Belltown, specifically? While the STM does not require funding to be deployed to specific bus lines, the Seattle Department of Transportation has highlighted several routes for potential investment:
The D Line, Seattle’s 3rd highest ridership line from Downtown through Belltown to Ballard & Crown Hill, could see daytime frequencies increased from every 15 minutes to every 10 minutes — 7 days a week.
Route 21 from Belltown to West Seattle could see daytime service increase from 20/30 minute frequencies to 15 minutes, alongside doubling weekend service to align with weekday service.
Route 36, connecting Downtown to South Seattle, is Seattle’s 7th highest ridership route and could see weekday & evening service increase from 15-30 minute frequencies to every 10-15 minutes.
In addition to the potential routes proposed for investment, SDOT has outlined broader goals and a potential investment map, below, that includes much of Belltown’s bus routes.
Finally, we can look at the 2020 Seattle Transit Measure to see how Seattle’s investment has historically benefitted the neighborhood:
Belltown’s E, C, and H lines each saw increased mid-day frequencies from 15/12-min to 10-min.
The E-Line now runs 24-hours a day.
Routes 1 and 40 also saw both day and evening frequency increases.
The council is tentatively slated to vote on the final proposal this Tuesday, July 21st. You can contact them at council@seattle.gov, or our representative Bob Kettle at robert.kettle@seattle.gov.
It’s Election Season!
Which leads us nicely to: Elections! Ballots are now in Belltown and we have compiled a list of endorsements to make your voting process easier. For the full (free) compendium please see our other post linked here:
A Third Party Has Entered The Race? | By Parker
Every year, multiple times a year, my partner and I sit down and vote together. It has become something of a ritual for us. The ballots arrive in the mail, we make a pot of tea, maybe a little charcuterie board, and get to work combing through our local papers’ endorsement lists and the internet’s various fact sheets for the misters, misses, mx, and measures on offer.
In voting together, we have gotten the chance to better connect to our local elections and each other. When I asked the editor how he and his partner filled out their ballots, the same rang true. Beyond my wondering whether ballots are the modern cornerstone of dating, it made me question why we hadn’t been filling out our ballots with friends the whole time. This year, for Seattle’s August 4th primary, I proposed a first-of-our-kind party with this in mind. If a second voice helps us find our footing when completing our sacred, civic duty then why not invite others into the circle?
Thus, I’m proposing to you a different kind of political party. Not just for Democrats or Republicans, but for you and your friends to set a date, do your research, and have fun completing one of the most important, but monotonous parts of adulthood. And hey, the specifics are up to you. You could throw a Ballot Brunch one late July afternoon, soaking up political insight and tiny sandwiches in equal measure. Or how about a Politics Powerpoint Night: everyone takes a turn presenting on their selected issue. Graphic design meets public speaking meets knowing the names of your local representatives.
Eat Here: Kalabaw 2328 1st Avenue
I can’t say enough good things about Kalabaw. My friend, on a sojourn across the United States (mostly by train!), told me Kalabaw was one of the best meals he had on his trip. Also, apparently they have pool tables for rent now?
If you’re a fan of Southeast Asian food, order the Kalabaw Curry. If you prefer American food, get the pulled pork sandwich. Thank me later.
Get Off the Couch:
As a general note, these are not sponsored. We will be incredibly clear if anything is ever sponsored. We just think you’d enjoy these events!
Belltown Jazz Night: August 4th @ 7PM at The Labour Temple
Unexpected Productions Improv: Runs many days of the week. If you haven’t been, we totally recommend as an affordable weekday/weekend outing. Situated in the market by the Gum Wall.
Twisted Tea Trivia @ Vindicktive Wings: Tuesdays 7-9PM.
Photography Challenge: Grab a friend, a lover, or a secret third thing. Agree on two colors or styles and do a walk around the neighborhood taking photos for an hour or two and see who can better capture their theme! Have a friend judge, or consider sending some top contenders in to Ethan@BelltownBugle.com for consideration.
Sunday Soundtrack:
One of my biggest pet peeves is learning about a band right after they play a live show in Seattle — who ever knows when they’ll be back! So in this column I will endeavor to recommend artists either local to the PNW or who are playing here within the next few months.
Up first is self-described ‘heavy pop’ band Growing Pains. Based out of Portland, you will find them at Baba Yaga on August 19th. I would describe them as a medium-light roast with notes of Paramore, Jimmy Eat World, and The New Pornographers. Check ‘em out.
That’s all, folks!
We’re very excited to continue sending these out and to see what this becomes. Please consider emailing us feedback at Ethan@BelltownBugle.com — tell us what you want to read more of!
Great first issue! I sincerely enjoyed each section. It feels like having the password to a really cool speakeasy all about our neighborhood. Seeing how the STM will impact Belltown is truly helpful. Parker's idea of voting with friends makes a civic duty into a party! Love it! I also loved your idea for the Photography Challenge. What a fun way to get outside and explore Belltown. You have my undying support! So excited you're doing this.
I wish my neighborhood had something like this lol (the maple leaf leaflet is a bit too tame for my taste)