Fire prompts building evacuation

BELLEVUE - — A fire in a restaurant in a downtown Bellevue office building forced an evacuation of the entire building yesterday morning and prompted the closure of two downtown streets for several hours.

The fire in the kitchen of the top-floor restaurant Spazzo Italian Grill was quickly snuffed out by firefighters wielding hand-held fire extinguishers, said Bellevue Fire Department spokesman Lt. Todd Dickerboom. No injuries were reported.

The fire started when a pot of cooking oil was put on a stove overnight that was accidentally left on, Dickerboom said. It caused an estimated $15,000 in damage.

As many as 250 people were forced to leave the nine-story KeyBank Building soon after the fire was reported at 8:48 a.m., Dickerboom said. They were allowed back into the building at around 10:30 a.m. Forty firefighters converged on the building at Northeast 4th Street between 106th Avenue Northeast and 108th Avenue Northeast.

Spazzo was open for business at 5 p.m. yesterday.

Groups to hold 6 forums on Monorail issues

BELLEVUE — Citizens for King County Monorail, the group working to extend a monorail throughout King County, is holding six community forums on the Eastside to discuss details of a proposed system. Residents are invited to learn about possible routes, cost and funding. The public meetings will take place at:

• 7 p.m. today at Bellevue Community College, 3000 Landerholm Circle S.E., N Building, Room N201.

• 1 p.m. Saturday at the Fairwood Public Library in Renton, 17009 140th Ave. S.E.

• 7 p.m. Monday at the Issaquah Public Library, 10 West Sunset Way.

• 7 p.m. Feb. 10 at the Bellevue Regional Library, 1111 110th Ave. N.E.

• 7 p.m. Feb. 26 at the Fairwood Public Library in Renton, 17009 140th Ave. S.E.

• 7 p.m. March 3 at the Redmond Regional Library, 15990 N.E. 85th St.

For more information, call 206-860-4366or visit www.kingcountymonorail.org

Redmond woman crashes Jeep into restaurant

REDMOND — A 20-year-old Redmond woman crashed her 1990 Jeep Cherokee into a restaurant's storefront yesterday, hitting a concrete pillar so hard that it was knocked off its foundation.

Around 10 a.m., the woman was driving westbound on Northeast Redmond Way and was stopped at a light when her vehicle left the roadway, went through a landscaped area and through the parking lot and smashed into the glass windows at Taqueria El Gallo, said Redmond police Officer Stacey Holland. The restaurant, at 16720 N.E. Redmond Way, sustained structural damage, she said.

The woman was taken to Evergreen Hospital Medical Center as a precaution. The three employees inside the restaurant and the woman's male passenger were not hurt, Holland said.

Instructor's documentary to air at community college

BELLEVUE — A Bellevue Community College instructor will air his award-winning documentary tomorrow on campus.

Phil Lucas, a media communications and technology teacher, won a CINE Golden Eagle award for co-directing an episode of "Vis-à-Vis: Native Tongues," a PBS international documentary series. The awards recognize excellence in documentary production.

The show features two performance artists, an Aboriginal Australian woman named Ningali Lawford and a Native American named James Luna.

Lucas co-directed with Steve Lawrence, and the documentary aired in November on PBS.

The film will be shown in room C120 at the college, 3000 Landerholm Circle Southeast in Bellevue.

State legislators to hold general-information meetings

EASTSIDE — Republican state legislators from the Eastside's 41st District will hold a series of information meetings Saturday, Feb. 14.

Sen. Jim Horn and Rep. Fred Jarrett, both Mercer Island residents, will offer updates about the legislative session and take comments and questions from the audience. The district includes Mercer Island, parts of Bellevue and Newcastle and nearby unincorporated areas.

The three meeting locations are: Newcastle City Council Chambers, 13020 S.E. 72nd Place, 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.; Bellevue City Council Chambers, 11511 Main St., 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.; Mercer Island City Council Chambers, 9611 S.E. 36th St., 3:30 p.m.-5 p.m.