Contractors have started grading the new community garden space at Greenwood Park, 602 N. 87th St. Workers will then build a concrete wall and fence, crushed gravel pathways, and benches.

This space on the east side of Greenwood Park will soon be a community garden.

The work is expected to be completed by Aug. 12, in time for the Third Annual Party in Greenwood Park on Sunday, Aug. 14, from 12-4 p.m. Mayor Mike McGinn, who lives just down the block from the park, will attend the garden’s ribbon cutting at 1:30 p.m. Pickled Okra and River Rust will play live music for the party.

Vision Greenwood Park, a volunteer group, will schedule more volunteer work parties to build the tool shed, compost bins, and raised garden beds. VGP is having a design workshop for the art pieces that will be attached to the garden fence at 7 p.m. next Wednesday, July 29, at 9528 Dayton Ave. N.

VGP is also soliciting donations to help pay for the garden materials. You can donate online or in person at the monthly Bingo Karaoke at the Greenwood Senior Center next Friday, July 29.

Here are a few highlights of weekend events here in our neighborhood and beyond. You can always check out our Events calendar for more.

The Phinney Farmers Market is from 3-7 p.m. at the Phinney Neighborhood Center, 6532 Phinney Ave. N. Get fresh veggies, fruit, nuts, chocolates, soup, pasta, pizza, flowers, jams, meat, and lots more. Jazz music by Marc Smason & friends from 4-6 p.m.

Fathia et Les Troubadours play French Gypsy music at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Couth Buzzard Books Espresso Buono Café, 8310 Greenwood Ave. N. Saturday evening at 7:30 p.m., listen to folk music by Gary Kanter and friends.

The Museum of History & Industry (MOHAI) is giving a guided historical tour of Aurora Avenue North from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday. The tour is called “Aurora: Life on Seattle’s Mother Road,” and will be led by local historian Roger van Oosten. A light lunch will be served in Licton Springs Park following the tour, weather permitting. Meet at the corner of N 90th St. and Stone Ave. N. Purchase tickets ($15 for MOHAI members, $20 for general public) at Brown Paper Tickets, or by calling 1-800-838-3006.

Seattle Parks and Recreation invites the community to a planning meeting for the Bitter Lake Reservoir Enhancement project, from 9:30-11 a.m. Saturday at Tressa Apartments, 14200 Linden Ave. N.

Beppa Studio at 7600 6th Ave. N.W is holding a garage sale from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. “This event is cash only, and will be a ‘cleaning out’ of items collected by Becky, Gretchen, and Diane throughout the year. Sorry, this is a true ‘garage sale,’ so there won’t be any Beppa clothing, but there will be lots of other interesting things out!”
The Shop Agora at 6417-A Phinney Ave. N. is hosting an Argentinean Wine Tasting Saturday from 1-5 p.m. Saturday.

After the weekend is over, the King County Council will take final public testimony on the proposed two-year, $20 annual motor vehicle registration surcharge to continue funding levels for Metro bus service. The Council’s Transportation, Economy and Environment Committee heard from hundreds of people at three public meetings over the last couple of weeks. The final public hearing is at 3 p.m. Monday in front of the full County Council. The council is expected to vote after the public hearing.

To accommodate the large number of people expected to testify on the proposal, and to reduce crowding in Council Chambers, the public will be able to sign up to testify on the legislation starting at 1:00 p.m. at City Hall Park, located just south of the King County Courthouse.

Those testifying on the Congestion Reduction Charge will receive cards with an assigned number and the approximate time they should be inside Council Chambers to present their remarks.

Update Friday, July 22: We stopped by Bluebird’s ice cream cart on Thursday night to see Bluebird Owner Josh Reynolds serving ice cream to customers.

Reynolds said Bluebird will have its ice cream cart out every evening that’s nice, from around 5-9 p.m. Check out Bluebird’s Twitter or Facebook for daily updates on whether they’ll be there. Reynolds said he hopes to have the store open in about three weeks.

Earlier: Bluebird Microcreamery is opening an ice cream shop on the corner of North 74th Street and Greenwood Avenue North later this summer. In the meantime, they’ve been scooping up ice cream from their mobile cart the last several evenings.

And according to their Facebook and Twitter messages, they’re at their post again tonight.

Woodland Park Zoo’s 35th annual Jungle Party fundraiser last Friday raised $1.5 million – nearly $70,000 more than its goal.

Performers with Versatile Arts in Phinney Ridge entertained the Jungle Party crowd. Photo by Ryan Hawk, Woodland Park Zoo.

From the press release:

Seattle Sounders FC co-owners, film producer and director Joe Roth and Adrian Hanauer, served as co-chairs of this year’s Jungle Party, themed “Animal All-Stars,” to commemorate the 1,000 animal conservation ambassadors living at the zoo. With celebrity Drew Carey headlining the evening’s jungle humor, more than 800 civic-minded business and community leaders converged on the North Meadow to raise funds for exemplary animal care, engaging education programs and wildlife conservation projects around the world and locally.

In the live auction, three Joe Roth movie experiences sparked ferocious bidding, raising $90,000 alone. Other top-selling items included a Georgia Gerber bronze sculpture that sold for $17,000 and an Alaska tugboat experience for two that went for $10,000.

Update 12:50 p.m.: The cat’s owner has been found!

Earlier: Lauri tells us she found a very friendly, small black cat near North 97th Street and Aurora Avenue North on Wednesday.

She says she’ll keep the cat in her garage for today, before taking it to the Seattle Animal Shelter. If you think this might be your cat, please put a note in comments below or email us with a detailed description of the cat’s markings and name, and we’ll forward the info to Lauri.

Seattle Parks Department’s’ Lifelong Recreation Sound Steps Walking Program aims to get walkers aged 50 and over moving by hosting three full days of walks to highlight Olmsted-designed parks, on Aug. 4-6.

This walk…highlights the historic Olmsted park plan and some improvements made possible by the voter-approved 2000 Pro Parks Levy and the 2008 Parks and Green Spaces Levy.

Thursday, August 4: Meet at Seward Park’s Caffe Vita (5028 Wilson Ave. S). The walk proceeds from Seward Park to Capitol Hill by way of Genesee Park, Jefferson Park, Cheasty Blvd, Mount Baker Park, and the many other parks along Lake Washington Blvd.

Friday, August 5: Meet at Victrola Coffee (411 15th Ave. E). Walk from Capitol Hill to Ballard, by way of Volunteer Park, Interlaken Blvd., the Washington Park Arboretum, the University of Washington campus, Ravenna Park, Green Lake Park, and Woodland Park.

Saturday, August 6: Meet at Aster Coffee (5615 24th Ave. NW). Walk from Ballard to Queen Anne by way of Discovery Park, Magnolia Blvd, Kinnear Park, and Queen Anne Blvd.

Total distance for each day is between 12 and 13 miles. Each day will begin with coffee at 8:30 a.m. and will include stops for lunch, afternoon cold drinks, and an early dinner. The walk itself is free, but you’ll need to pay for your own food and beverages. Although many rest stops are included, the walk pace is moderately brisk.

People can join the walk for one, two, or all three days. It’s one way, so walkers should plan to use Metro, or have an accommodating friend or family member to deliver them each morning and pick them up later in the day.

To join the group for this unique opportunity to experience Seattle’s Olmsted parks on foot, please respond by Tuesday, August 2 to Mari Becker at sound.steps@seattle.gov or 206-684-4664.

A men’s bicycle was found abandoned at a house in Crown Hill, near Dick’s Drive-In on Holman Road, this morning. The homeowners suspect it was stolen and dumped.

If you think it’s yours, email Chris with the name brand of the bike, color, number of speeds and any other identifying information, and include your phone number for him to contact you.

Here are a few headlines from nearby neighborhoods:

Offshore oil drilling rig from Alaska moving through Puget Sound.

Wallingford transfer station gets unanimous recommendation for reconstruction plan.

Actor/director Sean Penn seen running around Green Lake on Monday.

Tips on swimming in Green Lake.

Queen Anne homeowners find note addressed to “Future Man,” written by previous owner in 1973 and hidden inside wall.

“Tuesdays in Ballard” is giving back to the community today.

A black cat named Mocha got out of her house near 1st Avenue NW and NW 72nd Street on July 3, and is still missing.

Her owner, Julie, said she wants to thank everyone who has been looking for her. She also asks neighbors to please check the hiding places in their yards, because Mocha is “a true scaredy cat who won’t approach strangers.”

Mocha is about 7 years old, all black (including whiskers and nose), about 10 pounds, with large round eyes.

If you’ve seen Mocha, call Julie at 206-406-5704.

Clay tells us that someone ditched a stolen truck in his garage near First Avenue NW and NW 72nd Street sometime late Sunday or early Monday. He called Seattle Police, who confirmed the truck was stolen.

Stealing and ditching cars on the street is not uncommon, but we’ve never heard of a thief parking a stolen vehicle inside a random garage. Anyone else?

The third annual Summer Streets event happens on Friday, Aug. 12, as Greenwood/Phinney Avenue is closed to cars from North 65th to North 87th streets from 6-9 p.m.

Summer Streets is designed to turn a major street into a playground free from cars for an evening so that neighbors can connect, play and get to know their neighborhood businesses. It’s in conjunction with the monthly Art Up Artwalk.

Last year, Greenwood Avenue was filled with people playing whiffle ball, drawing with chalk, riding their bikes, watching the Bubbleman perform, listening to live music, and children going through an obstacle course.

The intersection of Greenwood and 74th was packed last year.

Sponsored by the Seattle Department of Transportation, the Greenwood-Phinney Chamber of Commerce and the Phinney Neighborhood Association, organizers this year decided to change the name from Greenwood Summer Streets to PhinneyWood Summer Streets to “convey the unity of the community.”

Neighborhood businesses are starting to plan their activities, from an open mic outside Santoro’s Books to aerialists from Versatile Arts will perform at the intersection of Greenwood Avenue North and North 76th St.

Tasty art gallery and collectibles shop at 7513 Greenwood Ave. N. is hosting an art fair with some of their favorite artists; live music from Gavin Guss; a fire-spinning, stilt-walking performance by Cypris of Exuro Entertainment; and a live food art exhibition by Greenwood’s own “sensual chef,” Tiberio Simone, who will create food art on bikini-clad models in the front window to promote his new book, “La Figa ~ visions of food and form.”

Also planned: Skateboarders and trick bikes will show off their skills in a “Go Zone”; A-1 Piano at 7020 Greenwood Ave. N. is planning to bring a piano out into the streets for anyone to play; American Dance Institute at 8001 Greenwood Ave. N. will host street performances; Makeda Coffee at 153 N. 78th St. will have a face painter from Hazel Salon & Organics; Seattle’s largest food pyramid of canned food (to be donated to the Greenwood Food Bank); and a blind taste test of several of Phinney-Greenwood’s finest coffees.

A children’s obstacle course kept kids entertained at last year’s event.

While the streets will reopen to traffic after 9 p.m., organizers hope that many businesses will offer activities and specials to keep patrons around longer.

If your business would like to participate, or you’d like to volunteer, check out the Summer Streets Get Involved page for more information. If you have equipment you’d be willing to lend for the night, such as amps for live music, please contact Sheri Hauser at Tasty at 206-706-3020.

Businesses are also encouraged to post what they’re doing on the Summer Streets Facebook page.

The Greenwood Wing Dome’s 7-alarm hot wings take center stage in the series premiere of the Food Network’s “Heat Seekers” at 10 p.m. on July 29. The episode was filmed in early May.

Hosts Aarón Sanchez and Roger Mooking see why Wing Dome’s 7 Alarm Challenge is not for the faint of heart. Participants need to eat seven 7-alarm (read: wicked hot) wings in seven minutes. No napkins allowed, no drinks can be consumed and no meat can be left on the bone. Only one out of ten that attempt this challenge actually succeed—see how Roger and Aarón did.

Photo courtesy of Food Network. From left to right, Heat Seekers hosts Aarón Sanchez and Roger Mooking, with Phil Warchol, Director of Operations/Fast Casual, Consolidated Restaurants.