Bellingham Public Library has secured capital funding of $3.03 million in the 2025-2027 Washington State budget for the Bellingham Central Library Renovation. The allocation represents a $2 million Library Capital Improvement Program (LCIP) grant, as well as $1.03 million in Local & Community Projects (LCP) funding, both administered by the WA State Department of Commerce.
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Beginning Sunday, June 15, Whatcom Transportation Authority (WTA) will introduce new service to several areas and improve service to several others.
Highlights of the service expansion include:
● More frequent service to the Bellingham Waterfront:
○ Route 47 will travel between Downtown Bellingham and Squalicum Harbor every 30 minutes, connecting riders to Squalicum Harbor, the Granary, the Portal Village, and other waterfront destinations.
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Western Washington University’s end-of-year celebrations will shut down Commercial Street in downtown Bellingham with an event called Last Night Out on June 4, 2025, for graduating seniors and all students.
This event will be similar to First Night Out, the beginning-of-the-year celebration where Western students walk from Red Square to downtown and enjoy live music, free food and support local businesses at a discount. Unlike First Night Out, students will not walk from Red Square. Rather, they will be responsible for getting themselves downtown.
Last Night Out has a twist. The free food will be provided in a Longest Table style with two 200-feet tables placed down the middle of the street; There will be seating for around 450 people.
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From My Bellingham Now article by Sam Kristofferson June 4, 2025 10:00 am
If you take a walk through downtown Bellingham on the first Friday of the month, you may hear the sound of live music echoing down the bustling streets as the sun begins to set.
These musicians are curated and booked by one man: Pace Rubadeau, a trumpet player and cornerstone of the Bellingham music scene.
Since moving to Bellingham 10 years ago, Rubadeau has made a unique impact on not just the music community but on the lives of thousands of Bellingham residents.
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Mount Baker Theatre (MBT) is proud to announce that Peoples Bank has been named the official 2025-2026 Season Sponsor as MBT prepares to unveil its 99th season of serving Northwest Washington and Southern British Columbia. In addition they will continue as the annual Concessions Sponsor. The longtime supporter of the region, Peoples Bank, is a locally owned and operated community bank headquartered in Bellingham.
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The Downtown Bellingham Partnership (DBP) is excited to announce the lineup and several new attractions for the 21st annual Downtown Sounds, featuring free live music in the Arts District on five Wednesdays from July 9 to August 6, 2025, from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. This all-ages event transforms five blocks of Bay, Holly, and Prospect Streets into a lively hub of music, food, and activity, featuring an electrifying mix of funk, soul, and reggae music from national headliners and regional openers to the outdoor stage.
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IDA’s program cohort from 27 cities to learn essential leadership and place management skills
The Downtown Bellingham Partnership (DBP) is proud to announce that Executive Director Lindsey Payne Johnstone has been selected as one of the urban place managers for the 2025 International Downtown Association (IDA) Emerging Leader Fellowship (ELF) program. Through a competitive selection process, IDA selected 27 of the industry’s brightest senior staff professionals from 15 states and provinces around North America including Philadelphia, PA; Charlotte, NC; Cleveland, OH; Austin, TX; Boulder, CO; Lethbridge, AB; Bellingham, WA; San Fransico, CA. Alumni of the IDA Emerging Leader Fellowship program, launched in 2016, are fast becoming sought-after leaders for the future of city building worldwide.
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Gallery Alley is an outdoor art exhibition in the alley between Wild Buffalo and what was Mindport Exhibits, now the future home of the Children of the Setting Sun Productions, on West Holly Street in Bellingham.
It is organized by the Downtown Bellingham Partnership in collaboration with the RE Store, which aims to use reclaimed doors as canvases.
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