Update: KOMO Television also picked up the story about the Kaffeeklatsch bike rack on Wednesday evening. They set up a live truck in front of Kaffeeklatsch and broadcast the story on 5 p.m. news. Their story is below.
A City of Seattle inspector again paid a visit to Kaffeeklatsch on Lake City Way and informed the owners that their unique bike rack is not up to city code. This even after the portable rack was rotated 90-degrees to try to meet the city's distance clearance code for bike racks. The rack is about one foot too wide for the spot, according to Kaffeeklatsch co-owner Brian Hensley. The unique rack was commisioned by the business after owners Brian Hensley and Anette Heide-Jessen asked the City of Seattle to install a rack in front of their business. They were told then that the City did not have funds for racks so they built their own. At the time they were told that the rack needed to be moved into the business when they were closed so they commissioned the young artists at Coyote Central to make a portable bike rack. Douglas Park Cooperative originally reported on the story on March 12th. When contacted on Monday by the Seattle P-I, a spokesperson for the Seattle Department of Transportation said the City now has funding for bike racks and plans to install one in front of the business. He also said the City plans to enforce the rule that will not allow the custom-built rack to remain in front of the business. The P-I story also reported that the City has plans to install 300 bike racks city-wide at a total cost of $186,000. Each of the simple racks will cost taxpayers $618. The elaborate Kaffeeklatsch rack cost $400. Kaffeeklatsch has set up a Facebook page to save their bike rack and on Wednesday local KIRO radio talkshow host Dori Monson threw his support behind the Kaffeeklatsch bike rack on his radio show. Monson has more on the topic here.  |
| A City of Seattle inspector checks the bike rack's distance from the curb on Monday as Kaffeeklatsch co-owner Brian Hensley talks to the inspector. |
I suggest we modify it at the city's expense. I'll be happy to put a drawing together for city review and approval, after which Coyote Central can modify it. The city should foot the bill.
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