It’s official: as of 3 pm this afternoon, Murphy’s has re-opened their doors under new management.

On a tip from Brett Jennings and Kevin, I popped my head in around 4, and the place was already filling up nicely, despite Paddy and Eamonn’s attempts to keep things quiet for a “soft opening”.

The bar looks like a cleaner, less cluttered version of the old Murphy’s: the walls have been stripped of memorabilia and knick knacks, but the same deep green, homey feel remains. The remodel left the basic layout intact with a few notable exceptions: the darts area is now …

Wallyhood welcomes Ian Thompson, Wallingford resident and HomeStreet Bank mortgage consultant:

Ian is a local to Wallingford and makes mortgage loans for Seattle-based HomeStreet Bank. While Ian is able to help people get financing for their homes anywhere in the Pacific Northwest and HomeStreet’s west coast footprint, Ian loves helping others buy homes right here in the neighborhood. Having lived in Wallingford for almost 15 years both his children attended the John Stanford International School, you may well know them.

Ian’s teams approach to lending is simple. It is to guide clients through the home financing process as smoothly and …

(Mike Ruby contributed this update)

A detailed report on the planned transit improvements that are being agreed to between Seattle and Metro can be found on the Seattle Transit Blog.

Specifically for Wallingford there will be improvements in reliability through schedule changes to give more time between stops and at layover for the driver. This does not mean increased frequency of service but it does force a few more buses on the route to keep the current frequency.

The following routes are identified: 16, 26, 26X, 31, 32, and 44. The big problem with delays for the 26 is not …

Recent outbreaks of measles in the US, enabled by the false belief that the measles vaccine can lead to autism, has been an increasing source of concern among parents. And for good reason: prior to 1980 (and widespread vaccination), measles caused 2.8 million deaths per year worldwide, and it remains a leading cause of death in young children. The greater the pool of unvaccinated children, the higher probability of a general outbreak, which can impact even vaccinated adults and children (not to mention babies, who are at the greatest risk and can not be vaccinated until one year).

Washington State …

T.J. Lehman from Mack Urban, the developers building the new complex at 45th and Interlake (no, not the one without parking, the other one) writes:It is time for our building at 1321 N 45^th St to complete its water main tap in. Unfortunately, that main is on the north side of N 45^th Street. People should expect N 45^th Street to be partially closed between Interlake and Stone Way from 9 AM to 5 PM on Saturday, February 7th. Seattle Public Utilities will be doing the work, and if things go as planned they think they will …

Wallingford’s organic donutery Mighty-O will be featured on the Food Network (for the third time) this coming week, and they’re celebrating with a viewing party:

Announcing another Food Network showdown featuring the Mighty-O Donut Queen, Julie Twiggs.  Invited by the Food Network to compete in the Donut Showdown, Julie goes up against other international top donut creators.  This is the third time the Food Network has invited Mighty-O Donuts to appear on one of their networked shows.

On Wednesday, February 11^th (6:30pm-8:30pm) Mighty-O will be showing the Food Network episode ‘Great Outdoors’ at the café (2110 N. 55^th…