Category Archives: Their future is in question

Tea at Green Spot, University Place

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One of my favorite group of friends gathered today at Green Spot Tea and Art Gallery at 3318 Bridgeport Way University Place, WA 98466. For lunch I had a pot of Ginger Tea ($2.00), a Verrrry Spicy Ranch and Grilled Chicken ($6.50) and a key lime tart ($3.00) for a grand total of $11.50. That is a lot of great food for the price! And I brought 1/2 the wrap back home with me.

I really like the decor at the Green Spot, it has clean lines and not a bunch of cute clutter like many tea stores. The hanging show of fabric based art was lovely.

The Green Spot’s Web Site can be found here: http://www.greenspottea.com/

Update: I went past today (8/20/12) and it was gone. Looks like a wine bar is moving in

Honk! Honk! Goodbye Ruston Tunnel

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I knew when I read the paper yesterday that I needed to drive through the 1912 Ruston Tunnel one more time, honking all the way! And so I did, — four times actually, two in each direction. And there were plenty of other cars there too and everybody was honking and yelling and taking photos. The Tacoma News Tribune produced a nice write up about the tunnel which can be found here:

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2011/07/11/1741529/honk-if-youll-miss-ruston-way.html

Be sure to check out the historic photo which is part of the article.

Use to be the Hillside Grocery

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Use to be the Hillside Grocery by Gexydaf

I hate when I go to find a new place of the day and the building isn’t there! I went to 1602 South G Street in Tacoma to see the vacant Hillside Grocery, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. The building that isn’t there was built in 1889 and burnt to the ground in 7/28/2009. The building began as a Estil K. Christie Grocery Store and residential rooms and over the course of its existence it has also been the Wm. Schnack Grocery Store, Nelson W. Caldwell Grocery Store, Florence Ellis Grocery Store, Thomas F. Ruckman Grocery Store, Burns Grocery Store, Orville L. Cary Grocery Store, Seizaburo Kinoshita Grocery Store, Carl Schievelbein Grocery Store, Corner Grocery Store and most recently as the Hillside Quickie Market. To see the building as it use to be look here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Building_at_1602_South_G_Street.jpg

Nalley’s

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Nalley's by Gexydaf
Nalley’s, a photo by Gexydaf on Flickr.

I’ve been meaning to stop at Nalley’s Fine Food at 3303 South 35th Street, Tacoma for a while. When I went to write up it up as the new place of the day, I found an article in today’s newspaper discussing how the company is closing soon. Nalley Valley was named after the Nally’s Fine Food, which was established in 1918. When the plant closes, 160 people will lose their jobs.

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2010/12/04/1451025/nalleys-fine-foods-to-close-after.html

Organic Herbs & Spices, Plus Organic Espresso

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Organic Spice

Originally uploaded by Gexydaf

Today’s new place is the recently (maybe today) opened Organic Herbs & Spice Plus Organic Espresso. Located at Organic Spice Traders, 1127 Broadway Plaza, Suite 101, Tacoma, WA 98402. The owner is a nice guy and makes a very tasty organic Americano! The store features a wide variety of spice and herbs as well as the espresso stand.  There are also some tables to sit and relax.  While I was there I bought a small packet of cinnamon, which I’m sure will be tasty in my morning oatmeal. It is nice to see an interesting new business open up in downtown Tacoma and I wish them well.

http://www.organicspicetraders.com/index.cfm

Update, my daughter told me that the store is closed now. Makes me sad!

 

Star Lite Swap Meet

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Star Lite Swap Meet

Originally uploaded by Gexydaf

I was driving around this evening looking for an interesting place when the Star Lite Swap Meet appeared in all its glory! Located at 8327 S. Tacoma Way, in Lakewood The drive in opened in 1948 and it was the second drive in to open in Tacoma. It closed in 1996. It now functions as a swap meet.

To see a photo of the property from 1957 go here
http://search.tacomapubliclibrary.org/images/dt6n.asp?un=9&pg=1&krequest=subjects+contains+Star-Lite+Park+In+Theatre+and+Tacoma+&stemming=&phonic=&fuzzy=&maxfiles=

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow (Sorry!)

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I was driving around today looking for something interesting when I spotted an interesting bar (the Opal). But when I walked up there were two guys there complaining up a storm about how their girlfriends didn’t appreciate them going out drinking every Friday. I thought I’d leave those two fun seekers alone and instead found this wonderful and vacant building at 5216 South Tacoma Way. The building had been the home to Untouchable Cuts Barbarshop and peering though the window I could see some remains of the business. The is now for lease. The Tacoma Public Library’s Northwest Room has little on the building except that it was built in 1906 and in 1913 it had housed American Dye Works (Hashime Imamura, operator). The present day bars on the windows and door suggest perhaps there have been security concerns. I love the paint job! 🙂

Lincoln Bowl in the Lincoln District

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Lincoln Bowl by Gexydaf

Lincoln Bowl is located at 3828 South Yakima Avenue, Tacoma, WA. I’ve read that it no longer functions as a bowling alley, but instead is being used as warehouse space.  It does however still have the great sign.

Update: 12/12 The building and the great sign are gone! Dear husband tells me that it will be a new Asian grocery store.

Borders Books in Tacoma

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I really debated using Borders Books in Tacoma as one of my new places of the day. But today I stopped in to say goodbye. This is the closest bookstore to my house and my family has spent hours here. Its practically a family tradition to go on a rainy Sunday for a cup of coffee and to read the magazines in the cafe. And of course, we’d always end up with a book or two. I’m pretty sure my daughter has never walked out of the store without a book!

But our Borders, which is almost always busy, is closing no later than the end of May. The cafe is closed, items are heavily discounted and some of the shelves are pretty empty. The GIg Harbor and Federal Way Borders are also closing with only Puyallup Borders to remain open in Pierce Co. Across the country Borders is closing 200 of its 643 locations as part of a bankruptcy reorganization.

So, goodbye Tacoma Borders. We’ll miss you.

For Sale $275,000

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For Sale $275,000 by Gexydaf
For Sale $275,000, a photo by Gexydaf on Flickr.

When I see property like this for sale I wonder what happened. Somebody obviously had a vision for the site as some kind of multifamily living unit but now it is for sale with an asking price of $275,000. The concrete footings will only have value if a new buyer has a very similar vision. For now, this property on the southwest corner of Yakima Avenue and South 15th Street awaits purchase and development. Oddly, I couldn’t locate information about the Delaurenti Realty Co. on the internet.