Now I’m sure you’ve already heard plenty of whining about I-90 being closed Thursday morning, but allow me to pile on.
My 25 minute commute from West Seattle to downtown Bellevue ended up taking me 2 hours and 15 minutes.
Oh, and the Blue Angels flying thundering overhead did not make that 2 hours and 15 minutes any more enjoyable.
I know, I know — I’m cranky and bitter and hate fun. But can we please stop closing one of the two major highways that link the east and west sides, for an air sho
w? So how does this photo relate to my bitternes
s? Well, yesterday I was going about as fast as those cars parked there in the photo. Click for higher res. I hope that by the time you’re reading this I’m in my car “opening it up” on I-90 for the Friday commute.
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| Crowds and speakers at Freeway dedication in downtown Seattle, 1967. Frye Hotel and Smith Tower in background. Image courtesy Washington State Digital Archives. |
This is a great shot. Lots to study, including the backside of a ’67 haircut. Look! A podium in a truck! I’ve never seen that before, old as I am. I notice that it’s one of those beautiful days where the city’s buildings are being struck by sun while fog persists out over the bay. I love that. I also love the scaffolding for the Frye’s neon sign. I miss those. Thank heavens for the Roosevelt and Camlin.
Hope you’re whizzing along Jess! Thanks for this wonderful post!
January 3, 1967 – Governor Dan Evans cut the dedicatory ribbon for the “Seattle Freeway” section of I-5.
I agree with Matt that this photo contains some unusual elements, like I-5 being used as a stadium, and bring back the truck stage!
As for you, Mr. Cranky, you chose to live with a commute inherent with inevitable roadblocks. I’ve come to avoid I-5 almost completely during rush hours, for example, going up over Beacon Hill to get to Broadway on Capitol Hill. I get a serious physiological reaction being stuck in a sea of cars on a “free” way. And to add that intense heat to your situation, I free your pain. Welcome back, ocean air!
I like the KOMO TV 4 station wagon. I wish they still used those!
Strange white void going on beyond the city, must be a foggy morning.
I like the other radio van… KF… I suspect it was KFKF, for many years the ONLY radio station in Bellevue… the late Larry Nelson of KOMO started there…
I remember they had studios and offices in the Bellevue Square of yester year (the early version of Bellevue Square that was open air, had cars inside, and had an A & P, a J.J. Newberrys, J.C. Pennys and an elegant two story Fredrick and Nelson’s… and the center piece was Clarks Crabapple was fine dining on the Eastside).
The KFKF AP Teletype was in a window so you could read the news as it clacked away. KFKF was at 1540 AM, 92.5 FM, and rumor was that KFKF stood for Kemper Freeman, Kemper Freeman (father and son), but many called it “Keep Feeding Kemper Freeman”. There were a few other radio stations that came later to the eastside… KETO (101.5 AM) had a studio atop Cougar Mountain and a set of Ford Broncos to bring staff up and down. There was also a short lived AM called KILO in Kirkland but that is another story…
The tie back to the topic? Legend has it that Kemper Freeman Sr. walked into the State Highway department offices and showed them were to build the precursor to I-90, Highway 10 AKA the Sunset Highway, and that the road did not vary from his line by more than a half mile.