Sandra White

Port Townsend's  beloved Rose Theater has added some new programs which bring a new dimension to the arts here in our little city of Port Townsend.

 This charming little theater opened in Downtown Port Townsend  in the 1930's and closed sometime in the 50's.  Re-opened in the early 1990's by Rocky Friedman, it is a delightful little theater with one small theater seating about 75 to 100, (I am guessing) with a balcony, and a tiny theater called the Rosebud seating about 35 to 50 people.  Charming 30's architecture and decor, intimate atmosphere and the best popcorn you ever tasted. 

School of Athens Passionate Minds Lecture Series , Nation, from the London National Theater in HD, and

La Danse, the Paris Opera Ballet.  Something for everyone with Avatar held over. 

My son says this is bigger than Christmas...well for some of us maybe.  I am glad to have the afternoon to snuggle up with my two Shit Zhu's for a little nap. 

This is a photo of Port Townsend at 8 am this morning, and a sign I saw in one of the windows.

Port Townsend's New Cafe. 

Don't tell the owner of the recently opened Undertown Coffee House in Port Townsend that things are slow.  He would not believe it.  He has taken an old underground basement downtown and turned it into our little towns newest hot spot. 

It is intriguing and inviting from the top of the stairs to back into the last room of the cafe.  You are instantly met with strong and luscious coffee aromas, small twinkling lights, and the sound of trickling water, all drawing you down the stairs to see what lurks beyond.  It reminds me of something in Paris in the late 50's.

These photos were taken at 8 am this morning and the place was humming.  It is equally busy in the evening hours with eccentric and quirky jazz groups (Last one I saw there was Hillbilly Jazz, and I liked it!)

In addition to coffee they sell wine, soups, muffins and other light fare.  They have art on the wall for sale, and wi-fi, with lots of sofas, easy chairs, and tables grouped into 4 or 5 rooms that flow from one another.  It is a great little spot and I wish them best.  This is a fun place to meet and greet and I am sure it has been discoverd by visitors and local alike. 

The Northwest Multiple Listing Service just published it's 2009 sales update with some interesting stats includeding: 

•  Sales totals were down 3.7% from 2008 (SFR and Condos)
• Dollar volume fell by 14.6%
• Highest median price for SFR  was $443,500 (San Juan County)
• Next was King County (Seattle area) with median of $380,000
• System wide median price was $280,000
• 8 out of 10 sales were co-op transactions
• 87 % of sales in 2009 were single family homes and accounted for 89% of dollar volume.
• The pace of sales as measured by "months supply" (an estimate of how long it would take for all inventory of active listings to sell at the current pace assuming no new inventory is added) showed improvement in many areas. In the four-county Puget Sound region, there was a 5.36 months supply at year-end; at the end of 2008 the months supply was at 7.9 months. System-wide, at the end of 2009 there was a 6.25 months supply, which compares to 8.66 months supply at the end of 2008. (Economists consider a supply of 3-to-6 months to be a balanced market, meaning the market favors neither buyers nor sellers.)

Port Townsend Churches

                                                                                                          I shopped for a new  church when I arrived in Port Townsend 10 years ago.  I had been attending the Saddleback Church in Mission Viejo, CA  for a few years because I really enjoyed the sermons of Pastor Rick Warren who has since become quite well known for his work in Africa, and hosted the candidates forum in the 2008 election.

 Needless to say nothing here would compare to that church that seats 5000 and usually has a full band on stage and sermons from Thurs. night to Sunday night to  fit everyone in.   Pastor Rick would wear an Aloha shirt and loafers with no socks,so the atmosphere was very casual, but his sermons always hit home and made me feel good. 

Port Townsend has many choices tho, and I am sure something for every religion.  I counted  33 in the area.  Most have their own chapel and they are usually quaint and charming.  We have one church that is the oldest in the Puget Sound area dating back to the 1870's.  There is also a Christian Science Reading Room downtown.  There is a Russian Orthodox Church with small onion domes located off the beaten path in a residential neighborhood.  There is also a church group that meets in our local Masonic Hall.  There is a Jewish congregation that meets in the Episcopal Church.  There is one church in Port Ludlow that has a Real Estate Broker for their pastor.   Some clients of mine went to a Seventh Day Adventist Church in Nordland recently and told me they were invited home for  dinner by at least 5 families.  They chose one and had a delightful time.  Something for everyone in this little town.

This tea pot is mad as hell! Tea Party to be held at the Chimacum Grange this afternoon.   See you there.  Bring your signs.

The Department of Ecology is trying to limit growth and therefore a private citizen's right to use his property by tripleing the current setbacks from waterfront, creekfront, or wetlands.  This could render a 5 acre parcel unusable.  They also want to limit the water we use by a morotorium on wells,  

Washington State Attorney General, Rob McKenna has requested legislation  to WA  congress to rein in the abuses of taking private property in the state through the Community Renewal Law's power of "eminent domain".  One issue is taking private property and allowing private citizens to develop it, and the other issue is the "blight" reason for taking the  property.

The hope is to narrow this definition which is vague and too broad.   "Blight" may include an entire area which includes property that is not "blighted" in with the the  rest, and "blight"  also includes inappropriate uses for the land, issues of diversity of ownership, high levels of crime, unemployment, or poverty. 

 In the past 10 years Washington local governments have applied the CRL to take property of more than 71,000 residents. 

 The bill Att. Gen Mckenna is backing is Hb2423/SB6199 and HB2425/SB 6200

Bread for Haiti

People in the  small town of Port Townsend are doing what they can, and there are examples in every corner of our daily life.  One that stands out is my favorite  bakery.

Sunday Jan. 24 the Pain d Amore Bakery baked twice the amount of bread for the day and gave all the proceeds($12,000+) to Haiti relief. 

Besides being a benevolent family owned business, they have bread and pastries that are the best you will ever have.  Located Uptown they have a small bakery with benches in front, hot coffee, newsapaper and a water bowl for Bowser. 

 I have heard a lot about this trail since I moved to Port Townsend over 10 years ago, but learned a lot about it last week on a walk with my Shih Tzus. Teddy and Lulu.

After doing an errand in the Cape George area I decided to check out the most recently finished trailhead of the Larry Scott Trail, which was well worth the time. 

It has a circular parking lot, picnick table, and porta-potty for the convenience of hikers, bikers and equestrians. 

Named after Larry Scott who was a cycling enthusiast here in Port Townsend who died in 1991.  He and his wife Judy met with other cyclers weekly for long bicycle rides and were in search of dedicated mulit-use trails.  Larry was the momentum in getting this done.  Through the efforts and support of the Jefferson County Public Works and a lot of volunteers, this trail is beautifully manicured with mile post markers, and scenic beauty on both sides. 

Port Townsend's San Juan Grocery

Built in 1940 and once a busy grocery store, this building is located on over one acre of prime real estate where North Beach and Uptown neighborhoods converge, at the intersection of San Juan and F Streets.   A mixed use commercial zoned property it presents many opportunites for development.  Near the Port Townsend Golf Course, schools, churches and residences.   Currently offered for $850,000