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Business & Community Development Update

 
(Pictured left to right: Division Road, Inc., Il Corvo Pasta Studio, Swift Industries)
Things are bubbling in Pioneer Square, with new businesses making plans to join the fun and current business owners building upon what they’re already doing in the neighborhood.

  • Division Road Inc. has signed a lease for the space at 536 1st Ave S. Division Road is a menswear retailer featuring curated apparel, footwear, and accessories. Work is already underway in the space. Jason Pecarich, the owner, plans to first launch their “virtual” store this summer, followed by the opening of their Pioneer Square location. Stay tuned for details!
  • Yes, this rumor is indeed a fact. Rudy’s Barbershop will open a shop this summer in the Terry Denny Building at 109 1st Ave S.
  • Caffe D’arte will be moving from their current location at 2nd & Stewart to 1st Ave S & Yesler Way. They’ll be open for business this summer. (Rocky Mountain Chocolate is leaving to focus their attention on their shop near Pike Place Market. We will miss them, but they will still be just a stroll away.)
  • Gallery Voblikov has moved into the upstairs space at 625 1st Ave. They specialize in Old Master paintings and restoration. Intriguing, yes? Please stop by and welcome Sergei Voblikov and Nikolay Voblikov to the neighborhood.
  • Manu Alfau, owner of Manu’s Bodega , is opening a “street taco window” in the Furuya Building (aka Pacific Commercial Building) at 2nd Ave S & S Main St. The entrance to Buen Taco will be between Good Bar and Elm Coffee. Though it will be small, building out the space will be significant so an opening date is still to be determined.
  • As you may have heard, Mike Easton of Il Corvo Pasta is “reimagining” the space where Pizzeria Gabbiano used to call home. Soon we’ll be able to purchase everything we need at the Il Corvo Pasta Studio to make pasta at home.
  • We all know that some of the coolest spaces in Pioneer Square are in unexpected places. Swift Industries just moved into a hidden second-floor space at 562 1st Ave S. Martina, Jason, and the rest of the team make the most incredible bicycle bags. Though they are mostly a production space, their retail store in the front of the space is open Thursday + Friday 4:00-7:00 PM and Saturday 12:00-5:00 PM.
  • Sticking with the bicycle theme, venture into Nord Alley and see what’s happening at Back Alley Bike Repair. Ben Rainbow and his team are expanding their space to create the “Service Laboratory and Radventure Emporium”.Stop by on Thursday, May 5 during the First Thursday Art Walk, for their open house.

When you’re out-and-about in the neighborhood in the next few weeks, watch for new flower baskets that will be going up on the Good Arts Building at 1st & Cherry. The new baskets will be hanging from new brackets designed and made by Good Arts members, Steve Coulter and Jane Richlovsky. The seven brackets reference in pictures the various and colorful tenants in the course of the building’s history.

Get out and enjoy Pioneer Square. While you’re out there, introduce yourself to someone new. That’s what “neighborhood” is all about.

Karen Ture
karen[at]pioneersquare.org
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Alley Progress

Alley Rendering
(Alley design team: MIG|SvR, Olson Kundig)

Work begins in May to resurface two Pioneer Square alleys. Pioneer Square’s alleys are more walkable and inviting due to the collective efforts of art and lighting installation, resident stewardship, businesses opening and building façade improvements. In 2013, the International Sustainability Institute received a Department of Neighborhoods matching grant to redesign two alleys with a surface design acceptable to the Preservation Board, Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT), utilities, residents and businesses. Before completing the design, ISI partnered with the Alliance and Seattle Chinatown International District Public Development Authority (SCIDPDA) to secure funding for three alleys – Canton Alley, Pioneer Passage and Nord Alley.

Nord Alley lies to the south of Occidental Park, between 1st Avenue S and Occidental. The alley connects Main Street to the new streetcar on Jackson.  North of the park, Pioneer Passage runs from Washington to Yesler. These alleys feature shops, restaurants, event spaces and beautification efforts. If you’ve ever been Casco Antiguo’s back patio, you’ve traveled through Pioneer Passage.

The work is divided into two phases: utility upgrades & resurfacing. First, Seattle City Light will dig a trench through Nord Alley to upgrade the aging electrical network (approximately May – June). At the same time, several private properties will upgrade utilities. Once completed, utility work will shift to Pioneer Passage (approximately July-Aug). In the second phase (fall 2016), SDOT will upgrade stormwater systems and resurface the alleys with a Pioneer Square Preservation Board-approved brick pattern. The refinished alleys will provide much-needed utility upgrades and inviting, accessible alleys.

Funding is possible through a federal Transportation Alternatives Grant, Office of Economic Development, Seattle City Light and CenturyLink. We are working closely with the city to collaborate outreach and provide communication throughout the length of the project. For any questions, please contact liz@pioneersquare.org. More information. https://allianceforpioneersquare.org/what-we-do/public-realm/alley-activation/alley-designs/