Startup chocolate maker snags a hi-profile storefront; more harassment charges against local politicos; could a hoops payoff scandal upend the NCAA?

In our big weekend missive: Art pastiches that are more than mere knockoffs; battle for 4Culture continues; a people-friendly Aurora Avenue?; our annual ode to snow.

Office art gets artier at local corporate HQs; Jenny Durkan’s ‘State of the City’ speech avoids easy answers; an Ijeoma Oluo essay didn’t take down Al Franken (despite recent claims that it did).

On a relatively slow news day we discuss an ocean-themed bowling alley (really!); a Muslim activist speaking to Japanese Americans; the Yakama tribe suing polluters; and a costly, no-electronics, teen ‘unboot camp.’

Flying cars (or something like them) at last?; did the state DOL help ICE prosecute Maru Mora-Villalpando?; stop pipelines with wine!

An icy valentine; UN human-rights watchers speak for Maru Mora-Villalpando; a legacy gay ‘steam room’ club’s for sale (again); the cost of faulty computer systems.

‘Dune’ author gets his memorial park at last; Valentine’s thoughts on jaded cynicism (hint: it’s passé); one more ‘bad apple’ caught at ICE.

An outspoken Seahawk preaches understanding; how awful the proposed federal budget is on just about everything; saving a mural in a ‘mothballed’ building.

Right-wing rally turns to nonsense; Amazon’s ‘Spheres of Panopticon’; another beloved cinema to be razed?; could Boeing v. Airbus turn ballistic?

A cartoon guide to economics; who is, isn’t at city/Amazon summit; minor pot convictions in Seattle are erased; thoughts on the Winter Olympics; dozens of weekend events.

Amazon Spheres open on a rainforest-esque day; T-Mobile vows to go all “renewable”; oil-by-train port trashed; whatever happened to hemp?

King County Council wants to retake control of 4Culture; Chinatown-Intl. District park’s hi-tech addition; another local radio revivalist passes.

In your big weekend mail: Dave Grohl does his part for Seattle tourism; a filmmaker who was forbidden to make more films; workers sue a blueberry farm; more contamination found at Hanford; many weekend event listings.

Relics found in the Rainier Square demolition; different notions of who’s attracted to move to the NW; State House votes to punish Sound Transit; #MeToo in science.

Color-coded photo-illustrations of Seattle’s massive growth; one of the NW’s finest authors passes; grim homeless stats; we miss the ‘Big One’ quake again; an ‘odd threesome’ promotes worker-benefits reform.