On September 18, 2010, Sound Spirits celebrates its grand opening and likely becomes the first legal distillery in Seattle since the 1930s. The Interbay-based company operates under a craft distillery...
On the sunny Saturday of September 25, 2010, Seattle's new 12-acre waterfront park in the South Lake Union neighborhood is formally dedicated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The culmination of a two-d...
On October 1, 2010, Fort Lewis and McChord Air Force Base merge to become Joint Base Lewis-McChord. This merger had been directed by the 2005 Base Realignment Commission. This joint basing is intended...
In the election of November 2, 2010, Patty Murray (b. 1950) becomes the fourth senator in state history to win at least four terms in the United States Senate. All eight of Washington's U.S. Represent...
On February 15, 2011, a Seattle Police Department Firearms Review Board rules unanimously that police officer Ian Birk's shooting of Native American woodcarver John T. Williams (1960-2010) was unjusti...
On April 29, 2011, participants in the Muckleshoot Food Sovereignty Project plant an orchard at the Muckleshoot Tribal School in Auburn. Valerie Segrest and other program staff work with students to p...
On June 23, 2011, the Fisherman's Tribute Committee and the Port of Everett unveil a bronze sculpture erected at the Port's new North Marina plaza. The statue honors the contributions made by the men ...
On July 9, 2011, the King County Library System (KCLS) opens the new Kenmore Library at 6531 NE 181st Street. The 10,000-square-foot sustainably designed building is a welcome addition to the communit...
On August 1, 2011, the Suquamish Tribe votes unanimously to recognize same-sex marriages and grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples. The vote is largely due to the efforts of tribal member Heath...
On Friday, August 19, 2011, the Hibulb Cultural Center, located on the Tulalip Indian Reservation in Snohomish County west of Marysville, opens to tribal members and invited guests. It opens to the ge...
On September 1, 2011, Donald Byrd (b. 1949), Quinton Morris, Jack Straw Productions, On the Boards, Pratt Fine Arts Center, and Tet in Seattle receive the 2011 Seattle Mayor's Arts Awards. Mayor Mike ...
On September 17, 2011, Governor Chris Gregoire (b. 1947), many more state and federal officials, Lower Elwha Klallam tribal leaders, conservationists, and other dignitaries attend a ceremony on an Elw...
On October 21, 2011, construction crews begin demolition of the southern mile of the Alaskan Way Viaduct in Seattle. After more than 10 years of study, debates, votes, and intergovernmental negotiatio...
On October 22, 2011, The Lands Council, a major non-profit environmental organization in the Inland Northwest, holds the first annual Reforest Spokane Day. As second-place winners in a nationwide onli...
On December 6, 2011, Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn (b. 1959) signs a resolution designating a Downtown Historic Theatre District to support the preservation, promotion, and maintenance of Seattle's histor...
On Saturday, January 7, 2012, the Lake Forest Park Library reopens in the city's Towne Centre mall. Relocated from a previous space in the mall and expanded using green products and methods, the libra...
On February 3, 2012, the Washington Department of Ecology gives Spokane environmental activist Julian Powers (b. 1926) the Environmental Excellence Award for his work on global warming. This award, th...
On February 26, 2012, the John T. Williams Memorial Totem Pole, in honor of a slain Native American woodcarver, is erected at Seattle Center. Over 100 people carry the pole from Pier 57 to its designa...
On March 1, 2012, the Seattle Theatre Group's (STG) Historic Theatres Library, located in the Paramount Building at 901 Pine Street, opens to the public. It is 84 years to the day after the Seattle (l...
On April 21, 2012, the six-month Next 50 celebration kicks off opening day festivities at Seattle Center, marking the 50th anniversary of the 1962 Seattle World's Fair, also known as the Century 21 Ex...
On May 18, 2012, paleontologists from Seattle's Burke Museum collect the first dinosaur bone ever found in Washington state. They are on Sucia Island, a U-shaped dot of land two miles north of Orcas I...
On June 2, 2012, the first annual Seattle Science festival starts with Science Expo Day on the grounds of Seattle Center. The month-long festival will feature displays and programs on science, technol...
On Thursday, June 7, 2012, Key Compounding Pharmacy celebrates its grand opening in Federal Way. The opening-day ceremony begins at 4 p.m. with remarks by the pharmacy's majority owner HeeJoo Park (b....
On June 29, 2012, the Seattle Great Wheel opens to the public on the Seattle central waterfront. Located at the end of Pier 57, the 175-foot-high ride features 42 climate-controlled gondolas that can ...