Community thrives on diversity

By MARK HIGGINS
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

Whites are a minority in Columbia City, representing about one-third of the neighborhood's residents. Blacks and Asians make up the other two-thirds of the population, an increase from the 1990 census. (See By the Numbers.)

Columbia City is a place where immigrant refugees, biracial couples, yuppies and gays can feel comfortable, safe and accepted.

William Filicetti and his partner, Mark Hannum, moved to Columbia City about six years ago after a real estate agent dragged them there to check out at a stately, turn-of-the-century home built on 3-1/2 lots.

They fell in love with the 4,000-square-foot home and paid less than $150,000 for a 2-1/2-story house that would sell for twice that if it were in any other Seattle neighborhood.

Hannum and Filicetti say at least seven other gay couples or gay singles live in their immediate neighborhood, and they suspect others live nearby.

"It's real accepting here," Hannum says. "No one feels like they are the outsiders here. It's a fully integrated community."

Neighbors share house keys and everyone tends to look out after one another, Filicetti says.

Hannum and Filicetti made a name for themselves when they opened one of Columbia City's more noted restaurants, Rutabaga. But working seven days a week proved too much of a grind, and the restaurant closed about a year ago.

Their decision to close was based more on personal reasons, and not because the community is not a good place to run a restaurant, the couple say.

Ethnic diversity is one of the things that makes Columbia City so interesting. Many residents, who say everyone seems to get along, consider the ethnic melange one of the neighborhood's finest attributes.

Jennifer Healey Thornton and her husband moved from Fremont to Columbia City about a year ago. Thornton, who is leading a neighborhood planning effort, says Fremont was "about the whitest place I had ever lived."

"I wanted some culture," says Thornton, who describes herself as a Jew who grew up in New York and Chicago.

Elisabeth Mitchell teaches English as a second language at Columbia City's branch library. Her students come from Asia, North Africa, Mexico, Central and South America and eastern Europe.

The Born to Read class, sponsored by the Seattle Public Library, is intended for immigrant mothers who may not have other opportunities to attend English classes. Day care is provided at the library.

"They're so eager to learn because they want to make changes in their lives," Mitchell says. The class is only 10 weeks long, and students may enroll only twice -- not enough time to conquer a new language.

Chau Luong, a 39-year-old student, came to Seattle in March from Vietnam and was reunited with her husband, who immigrated seven years ago and now works for The Seattle Times.

Luong was a midwife in Vietnam and must pass exams in English to continue her career here, making learning English crucial.

Columbia City's diversity includes biracial couples, such as Darryl Smith, who is black, and his wife, Andrea John, who is white.

That they are black and white is incidental to their lives and doesn't bother anyone, the couple say. Smith, a real estate agent, says the couple chose to live south of the Ship Canal "because we thought we would be more comfortable." He thinks the neighborhood also offers some of the best real estate deals in town.

Columbia City and Rainier Valley has been a perfect fit for them, Smith says. In fact, the valley was identified in a national magazine on interracial relationships as one of the best, most tolerant communities in America.

The couple have actively promoted the Valley, and Smith is credited with starting Beat Walk, a musical outing the first Friday of each month. For $5, people can sample live music at five Columbia City businesses. This month, about 300 people walked the walk.

Smith and John also are helping lead the Columbia City Revitalization Committee, which has organized community projects such as painting storefront murals where no shops exist.

One of the goals, John says, is to overcome language barriers and get business owners from all backgrounds to learn to work together and expand their customer base.

Columbia City, she says, is fertile ground.