On June 13, 2009, a new Burien Library officially opens as part of Burien Town Square, a public-private development intended to revitalize the city's downtown core. The library shares a three-story bu...
On July 1, 2009, activist Estela Ortega becomes the executive director of El Centro de la Raza (The Center for People of All Races), a community gathering place in Seattle’s Beacon Hill neighbor...
On July 18, 2009, Seattle's light-rail era begins as Sound Transit's Link light-rail trains carry their first passengers between downtown Seattle and Tukwila in south King County. The event, anticipat...
On July 29, 2009, a scorching weeklong heat wave across the Pacific Northwest peaks with record-high temperatures being set in various area towns. Seattle reaches 103 degrees Fahrenheit for the first ...
On July 29, 2009, a record-breaking 103-degree day in the Puget Sound region, a ribbon-cutting celebration is held in Tacoma's New Salishan neighborhood for the grand opening of the Kimi and George Ta...
On Sunday, August 2, 2009, Everett citizens celebrate the renewal of the 1911 Snohomish County courthouse with a tour of the facility, a display and program about its history, and a ribbon-cutting cer...
On August 18, 2009, Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels (b. 1955) finishes third in the primary election and loses his seat after two influential terms in which he built a national reputation as an environment...
On September 4, 2009, visual artist Jesse Higman; Seattle Opera director Speight Jenkins (b. 1937); Artist Trust, a nonprofit providing support to individual artists; Northwest Tap Connection, an urba...
On October 7, 2009, workers install a sparkling new vertical marquee on the historic Paramount Theatre at 9th Avenue and Pine Street in Seattle. The marquee, fabricated by The Sign Factory of Kirkland...
On October 11, 2009, at 6 a.m., a massive landslide in the Nile Valley demolishes a half-mile of State Route 410 and redirects the flow of the Naches River. This is one of the largest landslides in th...
On November 2, 2009, five antinuclear peace activists break into Naval Base Kitsap -- Bangor, a nuclear-submarine base on Hood Canal northwest of Bremerton. Their Disarm Now Plowshares protest is a sy...
On November 3, 2009, Washington voters become the first in the nation to ratify a legislative measure recognizing "domestic partnerships" for same-sex couples and older unmarried heterosexual couples,...