Just in case you haven’t been putting the puzzle pieces together, there’s so much going on within McKinley Business District — and a group of us who live here have even given this area a new name.



Most recently, the Washington State Liquor Control Board approved an Alcohol Impact Area that includes the district, which, starting Oct. 1, will ban the sale of high-octane alcohol (think Old English 800), and hopefully will rid our area of the chronic public inebriants who try to kick it here.



At the same time, the City of Tacoma is considering changing the zoning and land use for this area in an attempt to attract mixed-use development.



I’m also anxious to see what the City of Tacoma’s Community Based Services program, in partnership with the neighbors in my hood and others, will accomplish in eliminating blight and reducing crime.



The Dometop Neighborhood Alliance is growing in both organizational structure and passion.

Metro Parks Tacoma has just started incorporating $1.5 million in improvements to our beloved McKinley Park.



Even better, several of the businesses within the McKinley district have added fresh coats of paint and façade improvements, and the Top of Tacoma Bar and Café just incorporated some sweet sidewalk seating.



As more and more good neighbors are continuing to populate and refurbish the gorgeous, historic homes, what used to be the true Scene of the Crime now has a new face, and more potential than ever before.



For this reason, and so many others, you really need to check out what the McKinley buzz is about during the Heart of the Hill McKinley Art and Street Festival, taking place this Saturday, Aug. 16, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the middle of the district between Division and 34th on McKinley Avenue.



This year’s festivities will include all kinds of live music, dancers, vendors, food, a school supply giveaway, a Madonna lookalike contest, a pet parade and hundreds upon hundreds of people.

During our festival you’ll get a chance to mill around and interact with all sorts of Eastsiders, purchase gifts and art, and take in different forms of entertainment, including indie rock, jazz, pre-teen all-girl, Motown and gospel bands.

Those of us who live up here, and will be at this festival with force, are obviously very anxious to shed the perception that this is an awful area, which is why we’ve given it a new name:

Thanks to the genius of Patron Rob, we hipsters in the area now refer to our home as the Upper Eastside, and we think that you should too.

So be sure to roll on over to the Upper Eastside this Saturday for the Heart of the Hill McKinley Art and Street Festival from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. to check out what’s goin’ down, or rather, UP!



Tell me where you like to party at sceneofthecrime@hotmail.com.