The Weekend Wrap Goes to Bumbershoot

by Michael van Baker on September 4, 2010

Written from within the luxuriously appointed media room at Bumbershoot, stocked with both apple *and* orange juice!

“An agonizing crawl” is how the state’s chief economist, Arun Raha, describes the economic recovery in Washington. “Anemic,” “risk,” “uncertainty,” and “weaker” are also keywords. While corporate profits are now higher than pre-recession levels, Raha says:

We have cut our 2011 employment growth forecast roughly in half, from 2.7% to 1.3% (annual average basis). We do not expect to reach our prerecession peak in overall employment until the second quarter of 2013.

On the local front, both Costco and Nordstrom won praise from Barron’s for their Q3 results. TechFlash reported on AT&T’s boost to the signal at Qwest Field and Husky Stadium. The Storm continue to be awesome. Native Americans are understandably still outraged that a wood carver was shot to death by Seattle police. Keeping the unfortunate streak going, police shot an armed, reportedly suicidal man in West Seattle yesterday. Sound Transit will run one-car light rail during low-demand times to save money.

In Belltown, the Croc is “absorbing” the Via Tribunali space. The CD News had their own armed shooter to report on. Eastlake was plagued by a rash…of car prowls. A medieval country faire is holed up in Volunteer Park this weekend, battling the tide of modernity that is PAX. Blogging Georgetown envisioned Airport Way South on a diet. Watch out for angry Ents: 140 trees are being displaced for the Mercer Street Improvement Project. Yesler Terrace historic?

My Green Lake’s Streetwise Gardener has an informative  post about what’s growing well this season. Fred Willard visited Magnolia. U District Daily says it’s official, the NE 45th Street Viaduct will reopen on time, September 10. Wallingford continued to obsess over their Farmers Market.

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