SLU Faces & Places: Renee Klein

Get to know Renee Klein from the American Lung Association. Renee sits on the SLU Chamber Board of Directors, and we're happy to introduce you to her as our very first feature in SLU Faces & Places.

What is your favorite thing to do in South Lake Union?
Breathe Boot Camp every second Wednesday in Denny Park

Tell us about a business or business person who has inspired you.
John Carrico, Excellence Health and Fitness -- so positive and fun!

Share a fun fact about yourself.
I'm also a Registered Yoga Therapist

Share a fun fact about your business.
We help champion healthy lungs and healthy air; after all, breathing is the most important thing we have to do each day!

Where's your favorite place to grab happy hour or coffee in SLU?
My couch! Great view of Denny Park and the Space Needle, while I'm wearing jammies and fuzzy slippers.

  

Mercer Corridor Project: Fairview Ave. N fully re-opens to two-way traffic on Saturday, March 9th, final stage of Mercer East to begin

The following is from an SDOT email that came out on Monday, Feb 25th:

SDOT announces a milestone for the Mercer Corridor Project with the full re-opening of Fairview Ave. N to two-way traffic on Saturday, March 9, weather permitting. The re-opening of Fairview Ave. N is a pivotal part in the completion of the East Phase of the Mercer Corridor Project and marks the transition to Stage 4 - the final stage of Mercer East construction.

Since August, 2012, Fairview Ave. N has been restricted to one northbound lane between Harrison St. and Valley St. as crews complete work including undergrounding of electrical distribution, transmission and communication lines, replacement of storm drainage systems, widening Fairview Ave. N between Republican St. and Valley St., installation of new pavement, sidewalks, signals, lighting, signage and landscaping.

The newly re-opened Fairview Ave. N will feature two northbound lanes and two southbound lanes between Republican St. and Mercer St., with two dedicated right turn lanes onto the I-5 on-ramps, a left turn lane onto westbound Mercer St. and one through lane at the intersection of Mercer St. Southbound travelers on Fairview Ave. N will now have the option to continue south on Fairview and connect to Mercer St. with two dedicated left-turn lanes onto the I-5 on-ramps in addition to options for southbound travel towards City Center.

Lane Restrictions on Mercer Street the Evening of Friday, March 8

In preparation for fully re-opening Fairview Ave. N to traffic, Mercer St. will be restricted to two lanes in each direction beginning at 8:00 p.m. on the evening of Friday, March 8 through the morning of Saturday, March 9, as crews perform final signal work at the intersection of Fairview Ave. N and Mercer St. Two westbound lanes on Mercer St. will remain open from the I-5 off-ramps at Mercer St. to Boren Ave. N and two eastbound lanes will remain open from Boren Ave. N to the I-5 on-ramps. Uniformed police officers will be positioned in the intersection of Mercer St. and Fairview Ave. N to facilitate traffic flow.

Following signal work at the intersection of Fairview Ave. N and Mercer St., Fairview Ave. N will re-open to traffic in its final configuration on Saturday, March 9. Traffic engineers will remain onsite on Saturday to monitor traffic flow and adjust signal timing as necessary.

Final Stage of Mercer East to begin Saturday, March 9

The re-opening of Fairview Ave. N is a major milestone for the Mercer Corridor Project and signifies the transition into Stage 4-the final stage of Mercer East construction. Beginning Saturday, March 9, Valley St., Terry Ave. N, Westlake Ave. N and Broad St. will be restricted in the following areas:

· Valley St. will restricted to one westbound lane between Fairview Ave. N and Terry Ave. N and closed to traffic between Terry Ave. N and Westlake Ave. N

· Westlake Ave. N will be restricted to one northbound lane between Valley St. and Aloha St.

· Broad St. will be closed between Westlake Ave. N and 9th Ave. N

· Northbound Terry Ave. N will be restricted to local access only between Mercer St. and Valley St.

· Access to Lake Union Park will be maintained via Fairview Ave. N and Valley St.

This temporary configuration will be maintained during Stage 4 of construction as crews complete work on Valley St., Broad St., Terry, Westlake and 9th avenues. Work during Stage 4 includes undergrounding of electrical distribution and communication lines; replacement or relocation of water, sewer, and storm drainage systems; relocation of gas lines; and the installation of new pavement, sidewalks, signals, lighting, signage, bike lanes, landscaping and urban design features. Stage 4 is anticipated to be completed in July.

Please note the re-opening of Fairview Ave. N is dependent on weather and subject to cancelation.

Detour information available for Stage 4 construction

Detour maps illustrating the re-opening of Fairview Ave. N as well as restrictions on Valley St., Westlake Ave. N and Broad St. are available online for motorists at: www.seattle.gov/Transportation/ppmp_mercer.htm. Pedestrian and bicycle detour maps will be available online prior to Fairview Ave. N re-opening to traffic.

Impacts to transportation services

During Fairview Ave. N construction, Metro Transit rerouted several bus routes via Eastlake Avenue. As plans are finalized, Metro will alert riders with a specific date when bus service will move back to Fairview Avenue N. More information can be found here: http://metrofutureblog.wordpress.com/2012/08/13/routes-70-71-72-73-83-and-309-to-be-rerouted-aug-24-for-fairview-ave-n-construction/

Contacts and Information

If you have comments or questions about the Mercer Corridor Project, please contact us at:

Project and Construction Information

Email: mercerinfo@seattle.gov

24-hour Construction Hotline: (206) 419-5818

For more information about project purpose, benefits, and other information, visit our website at www.seattle.gov/Transportation/ppmp_mercer.htm.

If you need this information translated, please call (206) 733-9990.

Si necesita traducir esta información al español, llame al (206) 733-9990.

Business Marketing 2.0 - Follow-up from Matt Heinz' presentation

We want to thank CleanScapes for sponsoring and SpringHill Suites for hosting and catering this month's SLU Chamber luncheon. It was a great turnout and presentation from Matt Heinz. 

As Christi mentioned at the lunch today: we want to hear from you! Please consider submitting a guest blog post. This is a great opportunity to share an anecdote where you applied something you learned at a luncheon and saw results. Or just share something general about your experience with the SLU Chamber. Please send your post to Jodie at director (at) sluchamber.org.

The following are links to different tools and resources from Matt Heinz:

• Full presentation deckfrom today's luncheon
• Downloadable copy of Secrets to Productivity, Work/Life Balance & Success
• Downloadable copyof Successful Social Selling
• Link to directlyschedule your 10-minute brainstorm with me
• Downloadable copy of the Secrets to Content Marketing best practices guide 
• Downloadable copy of theSecrets to Successful Email Marketing best practices guide
• Downloadable copyof the Secrets to Trade Show & Event Marketing best practices guide
• The complete (but short) guide to getting started on Twitter

Downtown Seattle Association's State of Downtown Economic Report

South Lake Union was mentioned a few times in the 2013 Downtown Seattle Association's State of Downtown Economic Report. The DSA hosts several relevant resources on their website. We recommend reading through the entire report, but for your convenience, we have highlighted a few main points for you.


Convenient Transportation Options:
The South Lake Union Streetcar is a 1.3 mile line serving 11 stations in the South Lake Union and Denny Triangle neighborhoods. The total ridership for 2012 for the South Lake Union Streetcar line was 750,294.

South Lake Union and Denny Triangle, at a glance:

Downtown Seattle Showing Signs of Recovery:

Amazon.com is one of the major drivers of employment growth in Downtown Seattle. In addition to leasing 3 million square feet of new office space in the South Lake Union and Denny Triangle neighborhoods (much of which it is under contract to buy) the company also announced plans for development of an additional 3.3 million square feet in three towers in Denny Triangle.
 
Its presence has a halo effect on the immediate neighborhood and a positive effect on Downtown overall. The South Lake Union submarket saw a decrease in office vacancy rates from 17 to 5 percent between 2009 and 2012. In addition, dozens of new street-level businesses have opened in the area since Amazon started filling office space including restaurants, salons, spas and health clubs. This increasing density of residential, office, retail and services is having a positive impact Downtown by providing a diverse array of amenities for residents and employees alike.

Sources: Puget Sound Regional Council, CB Richard Ellis, 2012 MID Street-level Business Inventory

New Retail & Restaurants:

In addition to dozens of new retail shops, more than 100 new restaurants have opened Downtown in the past couple of years including a number of new Tom Douglas restaurants in South Lake Union...

Pedestrian Count Highlights:

After several years of increase, the sites in the South Lake Union area saw a leveling off this year. However, a site at Denny & Westlake saw a 47 percent increase during the lunch hour.

During the summer waves, 5th & Olive (near the South Lake Union Streetcar terminus at McGraw Square) saw the highest level of traffic in both August 2011 and August 2012.