Rob Smith
Microsoft Awards $5M Worth Of Grants To AI innovators
The grants are part of the company’s 50th anniversary this year
Microsoft has given 20 organizations $50,000 each as part of its AI for Good grants program. The grants — part of an initiative to celebrate Microsoft’s 50th anniversary this year — recognize organizations for their innovations in artificial intelligence. The organizations — who applied for the grants earlier this year — receive resources to help…
Seattle Commute Survey Shows More Office Activity
Both transit travel and driving trips are on the rise
Downtown Seattle foot traffic still isn’t nearly what it was prior to the pandemic, but more people are commuting to offices on a regular basis. The 2024 Commute Seattle Survey finds that both transit travel and drive-alone trips are on the rise as remote working drops. Citywide, the percentage of people reporting that their jobs…
Master of Transparency
Award-winning architect Eric Cobb’s work seamlessly meshes glass, space and light
Noted architect Eric Cobb is collaborating on a second-home project near The Gorge Amphitheatre with a former junior high school soccer teammate, embodying a classic Seattle story of connection. The new Cliffe Pointe at the Gorge project located within the Cave B Estate grounds features 60 second homes surrounded by vineyards, natural sage, and rolling…
Seattle Pride Seeks Support As Sponsorships Dry Up
The nonprofit has launched a fundraising campaign to make up for a $350,000 deficit
For Patti Hearn, no amount is too small. Every little bit helps. Hearn, executive director of Seattle Pride, is working feverishly to bridge a $350,000 fundraising gap because of shifts in corporate sponsorship. Seattle Pride — a nonprofit foundation that produces the annual Seattle Pride Parade and a slew of other events, including Seattle Pride…
The Space Arranger
Kyle Gaffney and SkB take a holistic approach to building design
To say that Kyle Gaffney backed into a career in architecture may be a bit exaggerated, but he did get a late start. Gaffney, a cofounder and principal at Seattle architecture firm SkB, suffered a devastating knee injury and lost a soccer scholarship to the University of Puget Sound. Instead of college he went to…
Book Excerpt: Old White Man Writing
Seattle resident Joshua Gidding examines his own white privilege
In his book, Old White Man Writing, Seattle resident Joshua Gidding attempts to come to terms with his privilege. Gidding grapples with the rapidly changing cultural norms in 21st-century America while examining his own racial biases and prejudices. As Manhattan Book Review notes: “Old White Man Writing is an introspective deep dive into an eventful life…
Older Workers Thrive in Washington
State ranks No. 1 for older workers
A former colleague retired last year at age 64. He was, he says, “burned out” on everything from office politics to his difficulty understanding younger teammates. He had worked hard, saved money, and figured now was the time to begin to enjoy it. His father had died literally the day after cashing his first retirement…
Bellingham, Whatcom County Grapple with Plummeting Tourism
Visits from Canada are down about 30%
The city of Bellingham is just one of the many victims of the political turmoil roiling the United States right now. Dylan Deane-Boyle is on the front lines of it. Deane-Boyle has served as president and CEO of Bellingham Whatcom County Tourism for more than two years. He watched with apprehension as President Trump first talked…
PCC Sets July Opening For Downtown Seattle Store
Small-format store was first announced last year
PCC Community Markets has cemented plans to open a small format store in downtown Seattle. The store, called PCC Corner Market, is the Seattle-based co-op’s first small format store. It will open in July at Fourth Avenue and Union Street in a portion of the footprint of PCC’s former traditional store that closed in January…
How Taproot Theatre Survived A Financial Crisis
Theatre is planning for its 50th birthday next year
Karen Lund vividly remembers that sinking feeling she had in the fall of 2023. That was when Lund, producing artistic director of Taproot Theatre Co., first realized that the financially strapped, midsized professional theatre in the Greenwood neighborhood might not survive. The theatre had already weathered the worst of the pandemic, but costs were mounting….
Downtown Seattle Again Draws More Workers, Visitors
The number of visitors approaches pre-pandemic levels
Downtown foot traffic hit yet another milestone last month. The Downtown Seattle Association says March averaged 101,000 daily workers, the highest average since March 2020. The figure is still only 60% of foot traffic in March 2019 as employees continue working remotely, but is a 12% increase from a year ago. More than 2.5 million…
Humanities Washington Fights ‘Midnight’ Cuts
Nonprofit loses previously approved federal grants with little warning
The letter came without warning, like a slap in the face from an invisible hand. Humanities Washington CEO and Executive Director Julie Ziegler had already been talking with peers in other states, and she readied herself for the blow. The National Endowment for the Humanities (think DOGE) had terminated her nonprofit’s previously awarded federal grant…
Another Luxury Brand Opens in Seattle
Women’s apparel company Veronica Beard opens in University Village
Veronica Beard has become the latest national retailer to open in Seattle. The New York-based retailer has becomes popular with women because of its classic tailoring spanning workwear, casualwear, and evening attire. The brand is available at Nordstrom and other select retailers, but this is its first brick-and-mortar store in the Pacific Northwest. The new…
Join The Must List
Sign up and get Seattle's best events delivered to your inbox every week.