South Bellevue Community Center marks 20 years with free fitness week: The South Bellevue Community Center is celebrating its 20th anniversary January 5-11 with free fitness classes, drop-in sports like pickleball and badminton, giveaways, and special activities open to everyone. The center opened in 2005 after seven years of planning with community input and has operated in partnership with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Bellevue since day one, serving as a neighborhood hub for everything from preschool programs to senior fitness classes. Located in the Eastgate neighborhood at 14509 SE Newport Way, the facility has grown into what Parks Director Michael Shiosaki calls "a third place" where neighbors connect beyond just working out—hosting celebrations, meetings, and events that bring the community together. (info)

Award-winning Los Hernandez Tamales now available at Seattle and Bellevue Pasta & Co stores: Los Hernandez Tamales, a James Beard Award-winning operation that's been handcrafting tamales in the Yakima Valley since 1990, is now selling its products at Pasta & Co locations in University Village and Bellevue—marking the company's first wholesale expansion outside central Washington. The tamales, sold frozen in half-dozen packages, feature traditional chicken and seasonal asparagus varieties made with scratch-made masa from corn milled in-house and local ingredients that support regional farms. The partnership came together after Pasta & Co reached out in spring 2024 and spent months discussing how to help Los Hernandez grow without compromising the quality and traditional methods that owner Felipe Hernandez has maintained for over three decades. (info)

Eight-story apartment building with 225 units proposed for Bellevue's Wilburton neighborhood: High Street Northwest Development has submitted plans to build a new residential tower at 1200 116th Avenue Northeast, featuring 215 to 225 apartments (about 10% affordable housing, the rest market rate) along with two levels of underground parking and rooftop amenity decks. The 250,000-square-foot project would replace a one-story medical office building from 1970, with current tenants relocating to another commercial space before demolition begins. Designed by Weber Thompson, the development is going through design review now and construction is slated to start in summer 2027, though at least one commenter has already raised concerns about adding more traffic to an already congested 116th Avenue. (info)

Bites of Bellevue Walking Food Tour on January 6th. (info)

Network With Us 'After Hours' on January 15th. (info)

Small Business Workshop: Stop Chasing, Start Leading on January 28th. (info)

No News this Week!

Kenmore Business Alliance on January 8th. (info)

Coffee with Council on January 12th. (info)

City Council on January 12th. (info)

Project Open House: Wayne Open Space Action Plan on January 15th. (info)

Bullets strike Fall City home on New Year's Eve, narrowly missing teen's bedroom: A Fall City family says two bullets pierced their home just after midnight on New Year's Eve, with one shattering the window above their teenage son's bed—where he would have been sleeping if he'd been home that night. Toni and Dale McCormick believe someone in their rural neighborhood off 308th Avenue Southeast was firing guns to celebrate the new year, and they've turned the recovered bullet over to the King County Sheriff's Office, though deputies found no suspects or additional evidence during their search. The couple says the incident has left them shaken and anxious in what they once considered a safe home, especially coming just months after a neighbor's house caught fire in a massive September blaze. (info)

Two trees topple onto power lines, blocking SR 202 near Snoqualmie Falls: Heavy rain caused two massive evergreens to fall onto State Route 202 just west of Snoqualmie Falls on Sunday afternoon, bringing down power lines and completely blocking the road between the Snoqualmie Falls Lodge and Fall City. The rain-saturated soil gave way on an embankment above the highway near 372nd Avenue Southeast, sending the towering trees crashing down around 2:49 p.m. Crews spent the afternoon clearing the tree trunks and dealing with downed electrical wires while drivers were left without a detour, forcing them to either wait or turn around. (info)

SnoValley Innovation Center Meet-up on January 9th. (info)

Snoqualmie Valley Connect Business Networking on January 15th. (info)

Issaquah sales tax rises to 10.5% in 2026 for public safety funding: The sales tax rate in Issaquah jumped from 10.3% to 10.5% on January 1, 2026, following a new state law that allows cities and counties to add a 0.1% public safety sales tax—with both Issaquah and King County implementing the increase for a combined 0.2% bump. The additional revenue, authorized under Washington House Bill 2015, will fund law enforcement staffing and training as emergency call volumes grow, expand behavioral health crisis response teams pairing police with human services workers, and cover rising public defense costs due to new lower caseload requirements. The state law also created a three-year, $100 million grant program to help cities hire, retain, and train new officers and co-responders. (info)

Guardianship dispute preceded deaths of four family members in Issaquah and Mercer Island: Court documents reveal a heated family guardianship battle was underway before four family members were found dead just before New Year's Eve—two at a Mercer Island home and two in Issaquah—in what police are investigating as a murder-suicide. Danielle Cuilliver and her middle-aged son Mackenzie "Mack" Williams were found at her Mercer Island home on Wembley Lane after a family attorney requested a welfare check, with Danielle's death ruled a homicide and Mack's a suicide; two other family members were found at Mack's Issaquah residence. The dispute centered on guardianship of Danielle's younger son Dominick, who has Angelman syndrome, with court records showing Danielle won full-time guardianship in November 2025 after accusing Mack of removing Dominick from his home earlier that year and influencing him to sign a new power of attorney naming Mack as his agent.(info)

City Council Meeting on January 5th. (info)

Pop Up Blood Drive at Blakely Hall on January 8th. (info)

Special City Council Meeting on January 12th. (info)

Ken Ludwig's Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery Opens at Village Theatre on January 20th. (info)

No new news this week!

City Council Meeting on January 6th. (info)

Google Lights now till Jan 9 from 4-9pm. (info)

Kirkland Ice Rink form now till Jan 11th. (info)

Youth Council Meeting on January 12th. (info)

Mercer Island police confirm murder-suicide in deaths of mother and son: The Mercer Island Police Department confirmed that Mackenzie P. Williams, 45, died by suicide and his mother Danielle Cuvillier, 79, was killed in a homicide at their home in the 8400 block of SE 46th Street on December 30, 2025. Officers responded around 10:45 a.m. for a welfare check requested by an attorney representing the homeowner, who had received a concerning email, and found the two deceased with firearms nearby—police later recovered four guns inside the home and one from a vehicle. Detectives are continuing forensic analysis of the firearms and working with the King County Medical Examiner's Office, and there's no ongoing threat to the community; police also requested a welfare check at a separate Issaquah residence out of concern for another individual who had previously lived at the Mercer Island home. (info)

Michelle Bennett named permanent Mercer Island police chief after interim role: City Manager Jessi Bon has appointed Michelle Bennett as Mercer Island's permanent police chief after Bennett served in the interim role since July 2025, leading a department of 32 officers and five support staff through an operational transition period that included functioning without a permanent police facility. Bennett brings 30 years of law enforcement experience, including stints as the first female police chief in both Maple Valley (2004-2014) and Sammamish (2016-2019), plus a recent tenure leading the Edmonds Police Department where she modernized technology systems and expanded specialized programs before retiring in February 2025. The new chief, who holds a doctorate in Education and has taught criminal justice courses for decades, started her career with the King County Sheriff's Office in 1990 and worked her way up through patrol, detective, and command roles before becoming a major overseeing strategic planning—and she says she's excited to work with "an outstanding team" to continue aligning the department with modern policing practices. (info)

Stay Active & Independent for Life (SAIL) Fitness Class on Jan. 5 at 12pm. (info)

Blood Drive at MICEC on January 5th. (info)

Restoration Event | Native Plant Nursery on January 8th. (info)

Puget Sound Energy rates rise statewide: PSE customers saw electric rates increase about 12% and natural gas rates about 7% starting Jan. 1 after the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission approved hikes tied to clean energy compliance, grid reliability investments, and low-income assistance costs for Puget Sound Energy under Washington’s Climate Commitment Act and Clean Energy Transformation Act. (info)

Boots & Brews Line Dancing on Jan. 8 from 7-8pm. (info)

Pagliacci Redmond Grand Opening Party on January 10th. (info)

RISE Community Happy Hour at Woodblock on Jan. 15 from 3-5pm. (info)

Children safely reunited after custodial interference case: Two children reported missing in a custodial interference investigation were located and reunited with their legal guardian Friday evening after an update from Lakewood Police Department, which thanked the public for assistance in the Renton-area case. (info)

Renton seeks community partners to activate Legacy Square for 2026: The City of Renton issued a Request for Interest inviting artists, community groups, and organizations to propose free, inclusive programming at Legacy Square from July 20 to Oct. 1, 2026, with events aligned around the FIFA World Cup 2026, with submissions due Jan. 9. (info)

Branding Your Startup Workshop on Jan. 8 from 1-4pm. (info)

Renton Chamber of Commerce Drop-In Business Coaching on Jan. 8 from 11-2pm. (info)

Sammamish City Hall launches rotating local art exhibit The City of Sammamish is displaying rotating two-dimensional artwork by local artists at Sammamish City Hall, curated by the Sammamish Arts Commission, with exhibits refreshed up to four times a year under the city’s new Arts Strategic Plan. (info)

Arbor Montessori Preview Event - Open House on Jan. 17 at 10am. (info)

Lunar New Year Celebration 2026 on Jan. 31 at 1pm. (info)

Woodinville warns residents about fake police donation mailers: The City of Woodinville cautioned residents that unsolicited mail claiming to solicit police funding on behalf of the Woodinville City Council is fraudulent, urging verification of sources and reporting suspicious requests to the Federal Trade Commission. (info)

Building Relationships Breakfast on Jan. 8 from 7:30-9am. (info)

Paired Dinner Experience at Evergreen Family Wines on Jan. 9 from 6-8pm. (info)

Yoga at The Carol Edwards Center on Jan. 12 from 7:15-8:30pm. (info)

RaajGharana (Issaquah, WA): Issaquah’s newest dining destination brings regal Indian fine dining to the Eastside with rich curries, perfectly tender tandoori offerings, and aromatic biryanis that feel like a spice-laden journey through an upscale palace kitchen. Locals are already buzzing about the balance of tradition and modern technique; every dish tastes thoughtful, bold, and utterly satisfying.

Bellevue starts the week of January 5th in full winter stride, with overcast skies, cool air, and a steady chance of rain lingering through the days. It’s a quiet, reset-style week—perfect for easing back into routines, taking reflective walks between showers, and keeping things cozy as the new year settles in.