Todd Olsen, co-owner of Solsticio cafe at Stone Way & 35th in lower Wallingford, is serving up some bitter news this weekend. Solsticio & another nearby retail business were broken into & burglarized early Friday morning.
One of Solsticio’s floor-to-ceiling windows was smashed out & a robber entered the building, rifling through the till before absconding with the shop’s digital music player. Solsticio doesn’t keep cash in the building overnight, so the music device & the window were the only real losses, but that’s gotta suck if they’re yours.
SPD K-9 units traced the burglar’s scent to another lower Wallingford business that was also robbed of a substantial amount of cash. I won’t name the business here because they seemed uncomfortable with my questions this morning — and that’s ok. They don’t know me, aren’t familiar with this blog, and didn’t understand how I’d heard about the crime. And they just got burglarized so a little extra caution is both understandable and laudable.
We were told, though, that K-9 units further traced the burglar’s scent to a homeless encampment near or at Gas Works Park where the scent was lost. Other rumors include freed prisoners from Walla Walla camping in the ‘hood (Anybody have any info on that??). And there is talk about some very unhappy condo owners down by the water who feel they are being impacted by a growing homeless community (including some rather large nightly bonfires).
So I’d like to accomplish 2 things with this post:
1) Warn retail neighbors to be extra vigilant in light of the recent thefts.
2) Find out if we have a growing problem in lower Wallingford. We’ve always had campers down here. And, related or not, crime is a fact of city life. But are things escalating lately? Talk to us! Make a comment so your neighbors can get/stay informed. Let’s keep the discussion as respectful as possible, though.
Also, I hereby pledge to buy a couple of extra coffees or lunches at Solsticio this week to help them recover from this crime.
Correction: inaccurate references to “robberies” have been revised.
That totally sucks. Glad to hear Solsticio is wise enough not to keep cash in the building overnight. Sorry to hear about the other business though.
Isn’t this just another result of us having half the police force that other cities our size have?
You may be right, kerrizor…
Astute Facebookers have pointed out that the word “robbery” should be replaced here with “theft” since the theiving occured when the buildings were empty. Sorry about that!
what does the size of the police force have to do with this?
double the force and imagine still how much territory there is to cover in the seattle city limits.
it’s very disheartening to learn of this crime. it’s time to clean house.
@kerrizor: what are your data sources on this? If your statement proves true, then my answer is that this doesn’t logically follow.
Sorry to hear about your loss, Solsticio.
I live near Gas Works and frequently take my dog there during the weekend. I did notice this weekend (for the first time) 2 people hiding/loitering in the bushes near the far west entrance. I found it odd and a little unsettling. I can’t say this has anything to do with the post however it was the first time I have noticed “campers” in the location.
Thanks, Wallygirl. Glad to hear from someone who frequents the area and hasn’t noticed a lot of activity.