BREMERTON — With much less fanfare than the parking garage piece painted early this summer—or the Wycoff underpass installation on the other side of town later in the summer—Bremerton got a brand new permanent mural last month. This one (while technically still on Quincy Square, if you look at it as a ‘square’) is tucked away in an alley in downtown Bremerton. It was envisioned, organized and paid for by a local business and building owner, with little to no city involvement. I’m not gonna tell you who the business is (although they deserve many props for supporting local art) and I’m not going to tell you where it is (although the internet has probably already spilled the beans by now) because it’s way cooler if you stumble upon it yourself. I almost missed it, and I knew it was being painted that day. While tucked off the street, the painting fills almost the entire back side of the building, a giant depiction of a grunge-looking long-haired dude playing a red electric guitar, a speech bubble above his head singing the phrase ‘Never shut up, Bremerton.’ It’s an ode to the city’s long and storied punk and rock music scene and the new downtown music studio space in this very building. It was designed by Port Orchard cartoonist Pat Moriarity. He brought in Portland muralist and chalk artist M’Lynn Suwinski to help with the scaling and painting of the large-scale 50-some-foot piece. The art was originally published in the 1990’s-era Seattle magazine The Rocket, Pat said.. Originally, there was no guitar. The long-haired guy was playing ‘air guitar’ and wearing a Soundgarden t-shirt. Poulsbo also got a new privately-funded public art installation last month, a bronze statue of an 18th century Norwegian fisherman in traditional garb hauling in a bounty of codfish, at the newly constructed Eliason Square building on Front Street.
ALSO BREMERTON — And most of the county… and the state… and nation. The most recent government shut down is approaching the record for the longest in history (since that of the 2018/19 federal administration) reaching more than 34 days as of press time. Funding gaps have resulted in ‘government shut downs’ since the 1980s with 11 leading to non-essential federal employees being furloughed. This time around, in this town, it seems most federal employees, especially those in the department of defense, are considered essential and have been required to still come to work, despite a now-more-than-a-month-long deferred payment from their employer. Industries across the local economy are feeling effects. The Bremerton food bank made the regional news as they announced they were opening their doors extra hours exclusively for shipyard workers, while cafes, bars, restaurants and businesses across the county have rallied in support, offering discounts and collecting community pay-it-forward donations for those affected by the shut down. Also last month, Amazon announced its plans to lay off thousands of workers. Some of the first effects were felt in Bremerton when a local contract delivery company folded after losing its Amazon contract and laid off its entire staff of more than 100.
IN LAST MONTH’S NEWS — After successfully raising one of the two boats that sank in Sinclair Inlet in September, crews were not able to raise the wooden-hulled former US Army tugboat that sunk at the Bremerton marina Sept 17. After two attempts at lifting the sunken ship with a crane, it was determined the structural integrity of the boat had been too far compromised to be refloated. It was lowered back into the water while the Department of Ecology reviewed its plans for next steps and pollution control measures remained in place. As of October 11, the department reported it had recovered nearly 9,000 gallons of oily water, nearly 100 tons of oiled solids and more than 1,700 pounds of household waste from the site.
IN OTHER NEWS — A derelict steel-hulled fishing vessel broke its anchor and ran aground in the north section of Miller Bay near Indianola last month. The Suquamish Police Department reports contractors were bringing a barge on scene as of press time. MEANWHILE… The body of a 42-year-old deckhand was found underwater in an apparent drowning at the Kingston marina on Oct. 16. The body was recovered and scheduled to be examined by the county medical examiner. ALSO… The Suquamish Tribe recently honored late Tribal member Merle Hayes (a lifelong fisherman, advocate for treaty rights and protection of natural resources, who passed away in 2022 at age 80) by renaming its salmon hatchery the ‘Merle A. Hayes Salmon Hatchery at Grover Creek.’ PLUS… The Roxy is hosting a free film series celebrating Native American Heritage this month including the 2024 documentary ‘Fish War’ and more. PLUS… Mac & Jacks African Amber is now being brewed in Bremerton as that company announced last month it would close its brewery in Redmond and move its brewing production to operate jointly with Silver City Brewery. <3smokestack
