From the Jul 11 – Jul 17, 2002 issue

News

Industrial-Strength Politics

Georgetown's Industrial Coffee Hosts Political Campaign Kickoff

by Amy Jenniges

Georgetown's Industrial Coffee, the year-old coffee shop and bar in South Seattle, has become a haven for Seattle's hip crowd, who flood down to the industrially minded neighborhood several nights a week to hear local bands like the Pulses and the Cripples try to play louder than the low-flying planes. But rock shows aren't the only thing that's been showing up in Georgetown recently. Politicians seeking votes, once a rare commodity in this often-overlooked neighborhood, are stopping by to see what all the fuss is about.

On Thursday, June 27, the bar even hosted its first political event, a campaign kickoff party.

"This is not your typical campaign kickoff," admits Natalie Reber, candidate for the open 11th district seat. She chose Industrial Coffee to jump-start her campaign, inviting several dozen supporters to head down to the bar after work, dance to her friend's band, and hear her campaign speech. Green-and-white political signs were plastered on the walls, and stacks of Reber's campaign pamphlets sat on every table. And Reber herself, in a sky-blue suit that perfectly matched her eyes, buzzed around the bar chatting everyone up, even the handful of after-work regulars.

Georgetown makes up a tiny corner of the 11th district, which doesn't make it standout as a campaign hotspot. Tukwila and Renton make up most of the district, while Seattle only takes up about a fifth of the area. Of that fifth--from Beacon Hill to the Duwamish Waterway--Georgetown is the least populous neighborhood. It's mostly warehouses and industrial buildings, with a few houses, apartments, and artists' studios mixed in.

"I wanted to have [the kickoff] in Georgetown," Reber, 28, explains. "It's kind of in between two hubs. There's a pretty solid group of people in South Park, and another in Beacon Hill [11th district neighborhoods on either side of Georgetown]. And the people who do live in Georgetown are community activists." (Lately, a group of Georgetown residents have been rallying to save the aging "Hat and Boots" sculptures near Boeing Field and incorporate them into a park.)

Industrial Coffee--along with Stella's Pizza and Ale, next door--has become the hub of Georgetown, but co-owner Mike McCarthy is humble about his bar. He didn't think it was a big deal to add politics to his usual lineup of local bands and open mics. "[Reber] just walked in the door and asked if she could have it here," he said with a shrug while tending bar. McCarthy was more interested in describing his plans to renovate the place (expand the bar and increase the seating area) than in discussing politics.

Reber took care of the political conversation. She chatted with nearly everyone, outlining her campaign and convincing people to send her to Olympia. The young blond woman has worked in Olympia for the past five years as a lobbyist, and wants to be on the other side of the legislative table. She's facing three other Democratic candidates--Zach Hudgins (who's been doorbelling in Beacon Hill and outside of Seattle), Azziem Underwood, and Roger Valdez. Since the candidates are all Democrats, whoever takes the September primary essentially wins.

So far, Reber's solidly feminist politics are a prominent part of her campaign: She wears her mother's old "59¢" button--a reference to the equal-pay Equal Rights Amendment battles of the '70s--and proudly lists her endorsements from pro-choice group NARAL and the Women's Political Caucus. (Much of her lobbying was on pro-choice and women's issues.) The issues she's bringing up--abortion rights, for example--aren't the norm for a state representative's campaign. But then again, neither was the locale of Reber's party.