Ballard Avenue between NW Market Street and Vernon Place shuts down around sunrise this Friday and for the first time since 1974, and the banners will read something different: Ballard Music & Seafoodfest.
The rebrand is the first name change in the festival's 52-year history. What started as a neighborhood salmon BBQ fundraiser for the Ballard Alliance (then the Ballard Chamber of Commerce) has grown into a three-day, free-admission weekend that has drawn more than 75,000 people in past years, according to the Ballard Alliance.
Mike Stewart, the Ballard Alliance's executive director and the festival's producer, said the new name better reflects what the event has become. "It was time for a name that captures the full energy and fun of what we've become, while keeping the heart and identity of our community spirit front and center," Stewart said in the Alliance's announcement.
Hours: Friday, July 10, 5–10 p.m. (music and beer garden only, no vendor market). Saturday, July 11, 11 a.m.–10 p.m. Sunday, July 12, 11 a.m.–8 p.m. The full vendor market with more than 50 food booths, arts and crafts vendors, Kids Deck, and the annual lutefisk eating contest opens Saturday and Sunday.
The main stage sits near the bell tower at 22nd Ave NW and Ballard Ave. Saturday's headliner is Built to Spill at 8:30 p.m. Friday night closes with NITE WAVE. Sunday wraps with Wild Rumours at 6:30 p.m. All proceeds go back into Ballard Alliance community programs.
Street closures: Ballard Avenue NW and 22nd Avenue NW close at 6 a.m. Friday, July 10. At 10 p.m. Friday, closures expand to NW Market Street between 24th and 20th avenues NW and Leary Avenue NW between Vernon Place and NW Market Street. Everything reopens by 1:30 a.m. Monday, July 13.
The rest of the week in Ballard
Tuesday, July 8 — BYOC (Bring Your Own Craft) at Artemis Coffee, 5507 17th Ave NW, 5–7 p.m. Free. Bring whatever you're working on and craft alongside neighbors. Recurring weekly.
Wednesday, July 9 — Trivia with Head in the Clouds at Reuben's Brews, 5010 14th Ave NW, 7–10 p.m. Free. Categories include music, movies, and local lore.
Thursday, July 10 — It's About Time Writers Reading Series at Ballard Library, 6 p.m. Four Pacific Northwest writers: painter-poet Duane Kirby Jensen (exhibiting since 1989), multi-genre author Celaine Charles, Bellingham spoken-word poet J. Wesley Fullerton, and Seattle author Sibyl James, who has published 15 books spanning poetry, fiction, and translation.
Saturday, July 11 — Lavender U-Pick at Interbay P-Patch Community Garden, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Paper Hearts Romance Zine Fest at Swoon City, 2–6:30 p.m., free, featuring local queer zine makers Nicole Capó Martínez, Nell Kerr, and Clarissa Kleveno.
Sunday, July 12 — Ballard Farmers Market, 9 a.m.–2 p.m. on Ballard Avenue NW. Community Yoga with Flood Yoga, 8:45–9:45 a.m. Ballard Bookworms Storytime at the Ballard Locks lawn, 10:30–11:30 a.m. (ages 5 and under, free).
Seattle Community Week Ahead
- Wednesday, July 9, 10 a.m.–2 p.m. — Columbia City Farmers Market, Rainier Ave S and S Edmunds St (Rainier Valley, year-round).
- Thursday, July 10, 3–7 p.m. — West Seattle Farmers Market, California Ave SW and SW Alaska St.
- Sunday, July 12, 10 a.m.–2 p.m. — Capitol Hill Farmers Market, Broadway and E Pine St.
City Council and neighborhood planning meeting schedules were not confirmed in this week's reporting. Check seattle.gov/council for updated agendas.
