One of the most delightful things about Seattle is the abundance of nature surrounding us.  Although this is a large metropolitan city, I appreciate the fact that you can escape to nature at any time.  Big or large, we have parks situated in every neighborhood and convenient access to rivers, lakes, and vast ocean.  However, with the rapid development and higher cost of real estate, many Seattleites resorted to condos and townhomes that did not leave much space for those with green thumbs.  So, when I noticed community gardens or patches popping up everywhere, I wasn’t surprised at all.

Community gardens are simply a piece of land gardened by a group of people.  The neat thing about them is that not only it provides a mean for people to garden and produce fresh produce, it also promotes sense of community, healthier urban environment, and pride of ownership.  People can experience both the joy of growing and being in touch with the source of their food.

In Seattle, the city began the non-profit organization P-Patch Trust 35 years ago.  According to the City of Seattle website, the organization acquires, builds and protects community gardens in Seattle.  Most of the supplies are provided at the sites, such as water and tools.  Your responsibility as a community gardener is to care for your plot.

Interesting facts about P-Patch:

- The “P” originally stood for “Picardo”, after the family who owned Picardo Farm, part of which became the original P-Patch.

-The P-Patch program only allows organic farming techniques to be used on these plots.

-The P-Patch community gardeners give back to the city by supplying 7 to 10 tons of produce to Seattle food banks each year.

-You are not allowed to sell what you grow, only share it or donate it.

As the broadening interest in organic food source and gardening increases, you will see the demand for community gardens increase.  The city currently has 55 patches in the city but most of them do have a waiting list.  If you are interested in starting your own Community Patch or for more information, check out City of Seattle website!

Community Patch in Seattle Neighborhoods

Seattle Neighborhood market data is unique to each...

As of April 25, 2010, the statistic is that a median single-family home in “The Seattle Market” is $392,731.00 and I can say confidently right now, there is no move-in ready 3-bedroom house on Montlake, Capitol Hill, Mount Baker or Queen Anne for this price.  But in Maple Leaf?  Yes this price point will buy a house and yard, maybe a nice 2-bedroom mid-century home.  In West Seattle?  Yes definitely in some micro-neighborhoods in West Seattle this is possible.  In Beacon Hill?  Yes again, a mid-century or Craftsman bungalow at $392,731.00 is definitely possible.  So for buyers, it quickly becomes clear what neighborhoods your price point allows and this makes your search constructive and efficient.  And for sellers, be the best option in a certain bracket within your neighborhood, because even in this economy, we still see multiple offer situations if you’re priced right.  Buyers know a good residence when they see it!

Marybeth Cicirello * 206.214.6556 * marybeth.cicirello@exprealty.com * Downtown Seattle Real Estate

Giving the Bash some serious competition are two major parties, one is DList Magazine’s “New Year’s Eve 2010″ being held at Fremont Film Studios (9 p.m. to 2 a.m.).  If you haven’t at least been in the neighborhood when the Studios are lit up with a celebrity event, noticed the strings of limos and party-goers approaching (the friendly smiles of the Valet guys tell us it’s Fremont after all) then you’ll want to make it a point to attend something there, and here is a great possibility.  General admission is $55 and Ryan Leslie is featured along with DJ Ikon.  21+, dress to impress!

But wait, it gets even more tempting with the 8th Annual all-out bash at EMP!  It’s called “Indulgence 2010“, a party featuring varied music, many dance floors, national music acts, hot DJs, comedians, great experiences!  There are tickets for $60 as well as VIP packages at $189 and $350.  And views of the Space Needle and City Lights.  Actually, I wanna go.  Problem is, I wanna go to all three, and then there’s the all night cruise, the Rock the Boat party that starts out at the Islander Yacht Club, boarding and pre-funk starts at 9 p.m., boat leaves the dock by 10:30 p.m., and parks about 20 minutes before midnight at the South End of Lake Union to watch the fireworks.  The tickets are $70, it’s usually a private party but this year for the first time has been opened to everyone, black tie attire.  Oh, I forgot, the event is hosted by Harrison Wood from Kube 93 and the music is slated to be “the best hip hop and R&B”… all night!  Let’s!  The Islander Yacht Club is at 1611 Fairview Ave E in Seattle.

There are warnings abroad that any and all of these just might sell out so if you are going to one it’s recommended to get your tickets early (so I’m posting it now to give you a week).  And don’t forget to post your comments and photos so we can all enjoy!  Happy New Year, Seattle!

I will never forget New Year’s Eve on the Mound in Gasworks Park, watching the fireworks. Last night around 11:30 p.m. we arrived at Gasworks Park. There were cars everywhere parked nearby, but turning toward the water we discovered the whole parking lot behind the park was empty. But we boldly parked there anyway, and 10 minutes later so did about 15 other people, it just took one car and the whole place filled up!

New Year's Fireworks from Lake Union

Gasworks Park is just at the north end of Lake Union. It is right down the street from our office and famous for a great kite-flying location (there is even a kite shop just down the street from us!) but there is also a great view of the Space Needle and downtown, and there were, I would say, over 1,000 people sitting on the hillside facing the Lake and the Space Needle. We only got there 15 minutes before midnight, but was my rear ever cold in those 15 minutes. Next time remind me to bring a blanket or at least a square of cardboard to sit on!! But it was wonderful, a bright black night with lighted boats crusing the lake and the space needle with it’s little pointed Christmas tree on top standing up right across the lake from us.

The people around us were in high spirits laughing and joking and calling out to the crowd, and one guy kept saying, if they don’t do the fireworks pretty soon, then definitely the aliens are going to arrive…it really did look like the scenes in movies where people gather at the top of a mountain and raise up their arms to the sky waiting for the aliens to show up. My son started calling out “We come in peace!” My camera, not on a tripod, did not get any real crisp photos of the fireworks, so what I have to share here are some blurry, impresionistic images of the lake, night, the lights on Queen Anne Hill and the Space Needle spouting fire and glory

It was definitely the place to be and the thing to be doing, I doubt I will ever be anywhere else ever again on New Year’s Eve. If Fremont is the Center of the Universe (as you may know this truth was discovered more than 20 years ago by a Fremont native), then Gasworks Park must be the Center of the New Year in Seattle. We watched 2008 being born on the Pacific Rim, in the dark and the crisp air among a crowd of joyful people who had no intention of letting the joyful event go by unnoticed!

May 2008 bear out the promise this celebration brought into life, and bring you all to Seattle to enjoy it with us!

Edy Kizaki, Realtor