MetroSpokane

Sign is up at Kendall Yards

OK, while this may be a sign, the jury is out on whether it's a good sign.  Something about soliciting drivers during their daily commute just doesn't instill confidence.  Although, it could be that all the plans are a go, the anchor tenants are in place and they're raising interest while filling in the gaps in some of their smaller storefronts. 

• Dirt begins moving on Monday [MetroSpokane]

South Perry: Summer theater begins this Friday

[Photo courtesy of zenamoonbeam via Flickr]

If it's summer you can bet the South Perry Summer Theater is just around the corner.  Actually it all begins this Friday in the Perry District.  The location is per the usual in the Parking lot of the Shop and movies generally begin at dusk, twilight, nightfall or whatever measure of darkness is required to see the thing.  For your browsing convenience see the schedule below...and bring a lawnchair, couch, papasan, or whatever works best for you.  Although it's free, bring some scheckles to support this fine tradition.

Transportation and housing: What do they cost you now?

A tip from a reader led us to the topic of transportation costs and how drastically they've changed from 2000 to 2008.  The reader supplied a link to a nifty calculator from the Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT) that compares housing and transportation costs from 2000 to 2008 (sorry Spokane's not listed) for major metropolitan areas.  Generally speaking, those residing closer in to the city center spend much less of their annual income on housing and transportation.  Significantly less.  With cheap gas prices, that 20 minute drive provided a nice, new, and affordable home.  But now?

Tacoma you too shall fall...

We kid.  We kid. Spokane's Out There Monthly has raised a shrill call of WTF with the news that Tacoma has made the list of Outside Magazine's list of "Where to live now: The twenty best cities."  Congrats to Tacoma, but c'mon.  As Outside defines their list:

"20 great American towns that have withstood hard times and reinvented themselves as havens of the good life. Why not make a move?"

Shuttered: Spokane dodging the Starbucks' axe?

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As third places go, Starbucks is probably one of the most recognized and plentiful brands out there.  Now with the closure of 600 U.S. shops imminent, it was only a matter of time until someone thought to build a Google mashup documenting the fallout (dammit!  Too late). 

Enter the Seattle Times.  Above is their map based on speculation and rumors from baristas to regulars.  Though highly based on second hand info, so far Spokane is "off the map".  But for how long?  If anyone has the inside scoop on local SBs closing up submit it to the Seattle Times site.  We'll be at The Shop.

How competitive are we?

Awhile back KPMG, the big consulting firm, release its 2008 Competitiveness study meant to compare business locations in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific.  Wondering how our region (and city) fared against others in the Pac NW we drilled down in the data a bit.

The table above is the result.  We looked at Portland and Boise to simplify.  Seattle was left out of our comparison because for some of the data above (GDP and R&D expenditures) they were included with Spokane in the analysis.

Spokane water woes . . . or not

[Image courtesy of Rachel Schell via the MetroSpokane photo pool]

Seemingly on the heels of the Seattle PI article concerning per capita water usage in Seattle and Spokane, Mayor Verner has proposed new regulations that could prohibit sprinkler use between noon and 6 PM for the months of May through September.  She has also proposed restrictions allowing even-numbered addresses to water only on even-numbered days and odd-numbered addresses to water only on odd days.

In case you were at the lake...

Forty seconds of pyrotechnic luv - fireworks' grand finale as seen from the streets of downtown Spokane.  BONUS:  multiple car alarms.  Hope you had a good Fourth o' July.

Stop lights? Stop signs? Take 'em down

Tired of traffic and congestion?  How about removing all the traffic controls and lettin' 'er rip.  The town of Bohmte, Germany recently did such a thing.  Fed up with heavy traffic and concerns for pedestrian and bicycle safety has done the opposite of the typical response to such issues and instead have removed directed traffic control from the central core of their town. They exchanged the typical signals, curbs, and elevated sidewalks for a system of common signage, painted pedestrian/bicycle paths, and a complete lack of any direct control over traffic in any mode.

If we were in Venezuala...

...filling up your 26 gallon SUV would run about $6.25, or .25/gallon.  This according to the Lundberg Survey released last week.  In the U.S. that same SUV would run you about $104 at the pump, and $132 in Canada.  Of course Venezuala heavily subsidizes the price at the pump, but the chart above created by the NY Times gives an interesting comparison of the breakdown of the price in each country.