Community Blogs
Yesler Terrace
Uwajimaya
Wing Luke
Storefront Studios
Pike Market Senior Center
Assisted living community garden
International Children’s Park
Neighborhood Design Build Studio
Charles Mitchell
Bakhita Gardens
Neighborhood Medical Clinics
Husky Central
The retail and financial core of modern Seattle began in Pioneer Square and spread north through Belltown. At the same time, Pan-Asian cultures from across the Pacific were building Seattle’s International District. In 1861, before Seattle became a city, the Territorial University of Washington opened on a forested knoll at what is now 4th Avenue and University Street.
Some Neighborhood Notables
Assisted living community garden
With Daniel Winterbottom, landscape architecture students have created a new therapeutic garden at Nikkei Manor in the International District.
Charles Mitchell
Charles Mitchell, ’65, who first gained acclaim as a standout Husky and NFL running back, has devoted his professional life to assisting disadvantaged students. Now in his 12th year as president of Seattle Central Community College, Mitchell coordinated a partnership with Seattle Public Schools to implement a “middle college” for high-risk high school students.
Yesler Terrace
Yesler Terrace on First Hill was built in 1941 through the idealism of Jesse Epstein, a University of Washington Law School graduate who successfully tapped Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal funds to build the nation’s first racially integrated public housing. It is now being renovated.
Wing Luke Museum
The original Wing Luke Museum in the Chinatown-International District was designed by Environmental Works, a non-profit community design center founded in 1970 by students from the UW Department of Architecture (now College of Built Environments) to provide sustainable planning services to low-income community groups.
Bakita Gardens
Bakita Gardens in Belltown, offering shelter and support services for homeless women, features innovative “sunshades” designed by Environmental Works.
Neighborhood Design Build Studio
In 2010, the University of Washington Neighborhood Design Build Studio partnered with Helping Link to renovate their entry and terrace and improve its accessibility, safety and security, function, visibility, cultural relevance, and beauty – while working around the significant challenges of building upon an existing historic building and a site, a grassroots community-based nonprofit organization in the heart of Little Saigon, to revitalize and rebuild its community center.
Storefront Studios
Art displays such as this metal sculpture in Occidental Park are made possible through Storefront Studios, a partnership between the UW Department of Architecture and local communities to create more connections between people and their physical setting.
International Children’s Park
A redesigned International Children’s Park in the Chinatown-International District was dedicated in March 2012, the product of five years of collaborative community work by Jeff Hou, chairman of the Department of Landscape Architecture, and 18 of his students.
Pike Market Senior Center
A UW 360 video spotlights a UW student volunteer at the Pike Market Senior Center, one of many service opportunities provided through the Carlson Leadership and Public Service Center.
Neighborhood Medical Clinics
Neighborhood clinics throughout Seattle offer the full range of primary care services, including family practice with obstetrics, internal medicine, geriatrics and pediatrics, delivered by an integrated team of physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners and medical assistants. The UW Neighborhood Belltown Clinic provides a range of health-care services, including preventive medicine and treatment for existing problems.
CHAP Foot Care Clinic
At Mary’s Place Drop-in Center for Homeless Women, Downtown Emergency Service Center, foot care is provided by UW health care students under the direction of the Department of Family Medicine and CHAP (Community Health Advancement Program), an organization created to nurture the ideas and goals of health care students interested in working with medically underserved populations.
Dermatology Clinic for Homeless Men and Women
Dermatological care is provided at the Downtown Emergency Service Center (DESC) by health care students under the direction of the Department of Family Medicine and CHAP (Community Health Advancement Program), an organization created to nurture the ideas and goals of health care students interested in working with medically underserved populations.
Street Youth Health Projects
UW health care mentors assist students with health education presentations, one-on-one tutoring , creative art projects, field trips and most of all, listening to their voices as they experience working with medically under-served populations through CHAP (Community Health Advancement Program).
Perinatal Care Project
Provided by CHAP (Community Health Advancement Program), an organization created to nurture the ideas and goals of health care students interested in working with medically under-served populations, the Perinatal Care Project provides advocacy and emotional support for possibly at-risk mothers-to-be, acting as a liaison between women and the medical community. Sites that offer assistance include:
- International District Community Health Center
- Group Health
- Harborview Medical Center
Health Mentoring
Middle- and high school-aged immigrant youth who are new to the Seattle area tend to be at a higher risk for unhealthy behaviors. CHAP (Community Health Advancement Program) students from medicine, nursing, pharmacy, public health, social work and physician assistant training provide youth with the tools and support to make positive physical and mental health decisions. Mentoring can be found at Seattle’s Secondary Bilingual Orientation Center.
Seasonal Flu Vaccines
Vaccinations are provided at the Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center for men and women participating in the Adult Rehabilitation Program by students in the School of Pharmacy
Boosting Local Economies
Architectural historian and UW alum Maureen Elenga, ’07, takes readers on a leisurely tour of downtown Seattle in her book, Seattle Architecture, illustrated with hundreds of color photographs.
Maverick Apparel Printing
Maverick Apparel Printing in downtown, co-founded by UW alums Mark Pattison and Greg Smith, has clients that include the Seattle Art Museum and The Triple Door.
Greg Smith, founder and CEO of Urban Visions, a sustainable real estate development company in downtown Seattle, holds a Certificate in Commercial Real Estate from UW Professional & Continuing Education. His work in sustainable living and increased urban density helped put Seattle on the list of top green cities in America.
Located at 1319 Fourth Avenue downtown, Husky Central is a one-stop location for “everything Husky” for people living, working and visiting downtown.
New Start-Up Companies
Many downtown businesses trace their origins to technologies developed at the University of Washington. These include:
- Axio Research Corp. – A clinical trial and research company
- BioSonics Inc – An international engineering & consulting firm for hydroacoustic systems
- Cell Therapeutics Inc – A research company for cancer treatments
- Cirrus BioSystems (Acedia) – Develops operating systems for research labs
- Corensic – Designs programming technology for multi-threaded software development
- Discovery Biosciences – A consulting service that helps clients bring new products to market
- GeneLex – Providing DNA testing
- Geospiza Inc. – Producer of DNA sequencing software
- Immunex Corp. Creator of Enbrel, one of the first bio-engineered drugs. It marketed globally to treat rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis.
- Measurement Technology NW – Manufactures a wide range of precision instruments for measuring and evaluating thermal energy
- Medical Training Services – Training consultants
- Natural Resources Consultants Inc – A consulting service for the marine and fishing industries
- PathoGenesis Corp. – Pharmaceutical company that develops drugs to treat chronic infectious diseases
- Skytap (Illumita) – A virtual lab space for software developers
- Teranode – Software developer for life sciences and healthcare
- Thetagen (New Chemical Entities) – Dedicated to the preparation and study of new molecular compounds