🎃 Pumpkins Now. Sonics Maybe by Christmas.

Happy Tuesday all! And welcome to my new subscribers - there are a lot of you this week 🙂

🎃 Seeing pumpkins at all the local grocery stores inspired me to put together a pumpkin patch guide this week, covering ten farms ordered by how far you have to drive from Wedgwood. The thing I didn't expect: at most of them, you can pick a pumpkin without paying for a wristband. (Our family's routine is still the Hunter Farms lot on 35th. Zero minutes, zero roller coasters, great pumpkins!)

🏀 A Sonics update: the NBA now says it will hold a formal approval vote on two expansion teams by the end of December, with Seattle and Las Vegas being the only cities in the running. If it goes our way, the Sonics could be back for the 2028–29 season. Not counting championships yet. Counting days until Christmas, maybe.

🌳 Have you been wondering what’s up with the little ‘pocket park’ at 35th & NE 86th? It’s been due for a rehaul for some time now. Don't hold your breath. According to a Wedgwood Garden Club column on the WCC site, the park slated for this summer now isn't expected until late 2027. In the meantime, the pollinator plants left behind on the lot have been thriving on no water and pure neglect, which is its own kind of neighborhood story.

🍱 While we all wait for ‘new news’ about the Wedgwood Center (shopping center at 35th and 85th) there is grocery news for the Uwajimaya crowd: Hashi Market, the New York Japanese grocer known for late-night deep discounted sushi lines, has reportedly signed a lease for its first Seattle location, in the former Amazon Fresh space on Aurora. No opening date yet, but I'll be watching.

📅 A programming note: there will be no newsletter next week! We will be back on October 20th.

Please send this issue to anyone who might enjoy it - it helps a lot!

My husband really enjoys cider and we were excited to learn about Press then Press Cider Shop! Last weekend we tried the Seminary Hill cider which was light & refreshing - perfect for a sunny fall evening.

Erik and Storie have built one of the biggest cider selections in the country - 500+ bottles, mostly from small, farm-based cideries. While 95% of their business ships nationwide, local cider lovers are in for a treat. Fun fact: Press Then Press runs out of Erik and Storie's home and office right here in Wedgwood, and if you're local, pickup is free (or they'll deliver). They're both Certified Pommeliers who got into selling cider after serving it at their own wedding and watching everyone ask where to find more of it — so if you're not sure where to start, that's genuinely their favorite part of the job. Sign up for their email list for a welcome discount on your first order. → pressthenpress.com.

Use the discount code WIRE at checkout to get a bonus cider added to your first order!

🔧 Johnson's Auto Repair | 9418 35th Ave NE (at NE 95th). After 77 years, Johnson's is closing, and their last day is Friday, Nov 13. The business goes back to 1949, when WWII veteran Roy Johnson opened a full-service gas station at NE 45th and Union Bay, where Tully's and Burgermaster are now. His son Jeff took over in 1989, moved the shop to 35th and 95th, and turned it into the repair shop half of Wedgwood has trusted with their cars ever since, mostly by word of mouth. If you've been putting off that brake check, now's the time. Word in the neighborhood is that Jeff's son RJ plans to open his own shop at the gas station on the northeast corner, so the Johnson name may not be leaving 95th Street after all.

🏘️ Roosevelt Neighborhood Association — Wed, Oct 7 (tomorrow), 7:30–9pm, Cedar Crossing Apartments, 6620 Roosevelt Way NE. Use the courtyard entrance on 66th or 67th.

🛼 Free Skate Night at Ravenna-Eckstein Community Center — Thu, Oct 8, 5:30–7pm
Bring your roller skates. Drop-in skate nights are free for kids and adults, with free snacks. Helmets required. If you miss this one, the next is Nov 12.

🌿 SER-UW Native Plant Nursery Fall Sale — Online orders Sun, Oct 11–Wed, Oct 14; in-person sale Sun, Oct 18, 10am–2pm (Douglas Research Conservatory, 3507 NE 41st St, at the UW Center for Urban Horticulture)
This is a student-run nursery at UW that grows plants native to the Puget Sound, mostly for restoration projects. Twice a year they open it up to the rest of us. Fall really is the time to plant here, because the rain handles the watering until spring (which is the closest thing to a free gardener I've found). If you already know what you want, order online starting Sunday. If you'd rather wander the greenhouse and decide on the spot, save the morning of the 18th.

⛷️ Snowvana — Fri–Sun, Oct 16–18 (Magnuson Park Hangar 30, 6310 NE 74th St)
Winter has a preview, and it's in our backyard. Snowvana is a three-day ski and snowboard festival with one of the largest ski swaps and gear sales in Seattle, plus resort deals and ski films included with admission. Hours: Friday 1–8pm (early access at noon), Saturday 10am–7pm, Sunday 10am–4pm. Advance tickets are $5. There are about 2,500 free parking spots, but overflow parking can mean a two-block walk, so carpool if you can.

🎻 Benaroya Hall Open House — Sun, Oct 18, starting at 10am (200 University St, downtown)
Benaroya Hall is reopening after a $21 million renovation and celebrating with a free all-day open house: performances in every room, guided tours, family activities, and food. It ends with a free 4pm concert by the full Seattle Symphony with members of The Head and The Heart, then a dance party in the lobby. The catch: concert tickets are in-person only, handed out starting at 9am that morning, two per person, while they last. Pair it with the plant sale that morning if you're ambitious, or just get downtown early.

🎻 Fiddler's Inn | Thursday music at 9219 35th Ave NE: Kathy Moore & Gary Westlake (Oct 8), Brittany Davis (Oct 15). Plus Bruce & Nancy's going-away BBQ, Sat, Oct 10, 5–7pm.

🎷 Growler Guys | 8500 Lake City Way NE. Jazz Thursday with Kindred Blue Notes (Oct 8). The Downhouse EP release party (Fri, Oct 9), followed by an 11pm late show on the new downstairs stage.

🥕 Lake City Farmers Market | Now on Saturdays, 10am–2pm, through Dec 19, at NE 125th & 28th Ave NE.

🎨 Magnuson Park Gallery | Small Works from the Artists of Building 30 West, through Oct 31. Free, and an easy add-on to a Snowvana trip.

☕ Co-Working Wednesdays at Cafe Blameless | 5751 33rd Ave NE, Wednesdays 9am–2pm. Bring a laptop, no registration needed. Coffee is from Gloom and Elm, and the workspace is a 100-year-old church.

🍛 85th Socials by NOLA — 8515 35th Ave NE. Giving the 85th Socials team another shout-out! (Please note: the folks at 85th Socials have zero affiliation with the people who replaced the beloved Wedgwood Ale House)

The team behind NOLA soft-launched 85th Socials on Sept 24 — a kitchen, bar and community space built around "Two Cities. One Soul.": Kolkata flavors, Seattle neighborhood. Worth a visit while it's still finding its feet, which is exactly when new places are happiest to see you. And if you like cocktails, the bar is coming in a few weeks!

♻️ Reuse Commons Lake City | 12558 Lake City Way NE. The old Aurora Rents building is now a 7,000-square-foot reuse and repair hub. You can shop used tools, bikes, and household goods, get clothing or small appliances fixed, borrow equipment, or take a workshop on sewing, home maintenance, or gardening. Furniture Repair Bank, Salvation Art Collective, and Redyoos are all under one roof. It's a one-year city pilot, so if you want it to stick around, go use it.

🎃 Spirit Halloween — If you need your costumes, here’s your spot! Upper Level of Roosevelt Square, 1027 NE 65th St, Suite 37 (the old Daiso).

🏈 The Husky game moved to Friday. UW vs. Iowa is now Friday, Oct 9, with a 6pm kickoff at Husky Stadium, rescheduled from Saturday. That means game traffic and the Friday commute will overlap. If you're headed toward U Village or Montlake that afternoon, go early or wait until after kickoff.

🌉 SR 520 eastbound off-ramp to Montlake Blvd — overnight closures this week, Mon–Thu, 10pm–6am, for material hauling ahead of a 2027 traffic shift. Also, the westbound 520 off-ramp to northbound I-5 is closed the same nights, and again Oct 19–22, and drivers coming home from the Eastside get detoured to southbound I-5. Take the Montlake exit instead!

🚈 Late-night light rail swap this week. Tuesday through Thursday nights (Oct 6–8), starting around 10:30pm and running through the end of service, shuttle buses replace trains between Northgate and Westlake. That includes Roosevelt and U District stations.

This one's an easy pick for us. Hellbent just has a great vibe, and we rarely have to hover waiting for a table. There's plenty of seating inside and a big outdoor section, which is where you'll usually find us. Our order is the hazy, pretty much every time. There's no kitchen, but there's a food truck every day, and you're welcome to bring your own dinner, which makes it an easy place to land on a weeknight with no plan. Heads up that the taproom is 21+, so this is a grown-ups' night out. They've been pouring in Lake City since 2015, and I'm a little surprised more people outside the neighborhood haven't caught on.

(Open daily from noon; until 11pm Monday–Thursday, midnight Friday–Saturday, and 10pm Sunday.)

In case you missed them — a few guides worth bookmarking:

🎃 Pumpkin Patch Round-Up! — All the great pumpkin patches worth visiting in the greater Seattle area.

🥡 NE Seattle's Takeout Roundup — neighborhood by neighborhood, the order-ahead spots that keep coming up in our house

🎂 Where to Host a Kids Birthday Party Near NE Seattle: 17 Venues — from our backyard to worth-the-drive

🌃 Date Night in Northeast Seattle — restaurants, bars, and spots worth staying out for

Can you guess the price of this real estate listing based on just one photo? Hint: 2 Bed, 2 bathroom, 1656 square feet

$599K
$639K
$699K
$719K

🧑 Ravenna-Eckstein Community Center | Ultimate Frisbee Drop-In (ages 9–13, Wednesdays 3:30–4:30pm), Tween Time (ages 10–13, every other Wednesday, 5:30–6:30pm), Skate Night (2nd Thursday monthly, 5:30–7pm), Teen Kitchen Creations (Tuesdays 4:30–6:30pm), Teen Baking Club (Wednesdays 4–6pm), and Pokémon/Minecraft Club (Tuesdays 5:30–6:30pm).

🏊 Green Lake Community Center | Teen Swim & Gym Night, Fridays 6–9pm.

🏓 Magnuson Community Center | Teen Pickleball Drop-In, Saturdays 2:45–4:45pm; Family Open Gym, Saturdays 12:30–2:15pm.

🎸 Northgate Community Center | Teen Guitar Lessons, Mondays 5:15–6:15pm.

🏟️ Seattle Sports Schedules

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