The owner of a popular waffle shop in West Seattle said she had no choice but to shut down her business after the city’s new minimum wage law went into effect on New Year’s Day — hiking hourly pay to $20.76.

Bebop Waffle Shop, which was founded by a former New York City resident more than a decade ago, closed its doors for good on Monday.

“I’ve cried every day,” Corina Luckenbach, the waffle shop owner, told Fox 13 TV.

Luckenbach, who founded Bebop more than 10 years ago after relocating from New York to the Emerald City, said that her business had already been suffering from high inflation which caused the price of food to spike.

The waffle shop has also been hamstrung by lower foot traffic in the city — a result of many people working from home.

The minimum wage increase was the last straw, she said.

“This is financially just not going to make sense anymore. Because, just for me, the increase would cost me $32,000 more a year,” Luckenbach told Fox 13 TV.

Luckenbach, who named the cafe after her late dachshund, said that while in theory she supports workers earning a higher minimum wage, in practice she has been unable to keep up with the change.

Previously, large employers in Seattle whose payroll numbered more than 500 workers were required to pay a minimum wage of $18.69 per hour.

Small employers with 500 or fewer workers had to pay $18.69 per hour if the company did not contribute at least $2.19 per hour toward medical benefits or if the employee did not earn sufficient tips to meet a combined minimum compensation of $20.28.

If the minimum compensation threshold was met through tips or if the employer contributed at least $2.19 per hour toward medical benefits, the minimum wage for small businesses was $17.25 per hour.

The new $20.76 per hour law — which is $4 higher than Washington State’s minimum wage requirement — applies to large and small businesses. It also eliminates tip or benefit credits.

Luckenbach, who is gay, said “the hardest thing” about shutting down her business is that it “takes away a safe space for people.”

“The stories of like what it meant to people to come in and feel safe and to feel welcomed — I just, I didn’t know,” she said, wiping away tears.

The Post has sought comment from Luckenbach.

New minimum wage laws have either gone into effect or will go into effect in twenty-one states and 48 cities and counties sometime during the new year.

The Economic Policy Institute, a think tank that studies the effect of minimum wage, issued a report which estimated that 9.2 million workers will see their wages increase by a total of $5.7 billion.

The federal minimum wage of $7.25 has not increased in 15 years.

One injury report down, two more to go for the 2024 Seattle Seahawks.

With no playoff implications at stake, the Seahawks’ Week 18 game against the NFC West champion Los Angeles Rams will be their last one of the season. Their first practice for this week saw nine players listed on the injury report, including right tackle Abe Lucas and cornerback Josh Jobe. In last week’s win over the Chicago Bears, Jobe suffered a knee injury at some point in the third quarter and did not return. Mike Macdonald indicated that it wasn’t anything major.

The likes of DK Metcalf, Zach Charbonnet, and Geno Smith were not on the injury report. Five players were DNPs, with Leonard Williams and Jarran Reed effectively getting rest days. Laken Tomlinson, Ernest Jonves IV, Byron Murphy II, and Tyler Lockett were limited participants.

Not much more to really add! Here’s virtually everything I said but in a team-provided table:

The Rams, who will be resting starters, only had right tackle Rob Havenstein and receiver Jordan Whittington on the injury report, and Havenstein has already been ruled out. In other words, the Rams are healthy at the right time.

SEATTLE – A new year marks new research on the health and well-being of the brain. On January 1, the Allen Institute published its largest study to date on aging brain cells in animals. Scientists said these discoveries could help unlock ways to keep the mind sharper, longer.

This latest study at the Allen Institute gives insight into the aging of the brain, and how diet, inflammation, and brain health are deeply interconnected. The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Scientists analyzed more than 1.2 million brain cells from mice, ages young and old. They explained they used mice because their brains are similar to humans in structure, function, genes, and cell types. The experts said older mice are considered to be the equivalent of a late middle-aged human.

The new study took a closer look at identifying specific cell types, primarily glial cells (the brain’s support system), and how those cells change as they age.

They also focused on “hot spots” when changes occur in the brain cells. Representatives said the scientists discovered an aging accelerator, saying, “In older brains, inflammation surges into overdrive while genes critical for brain structure and function decline. This imbalance sheds light on how aging increases vulnerability to disease.”

In studying the cells, they also found the brain’s aging epicenter: the area near the third ventricle of the hypothalamus. That region of the brain is crucial in regulating food intake, metabolism, and how the body uses nutrients. That epicenter, also referred to as “hot spot,” hints at a strong connection between diet, lifestyle, brain health, and changes that can influence vulnerability to age-related brain disorders.

“Our hypothesis is that those cell types are getting less efficient at integrating signals from our environment or from things that we’re consuming,” said Kelly Jin, Ph.D., a scientist at the Allen Institute for Brain Science and lead author of the study. “And that loss of efficiency somehow contributes to what we know as aging in the rest of our body. I think that’s pretty amazing, and I think it’s remarkable that we’re able to find those very specific changes with the methods that we’re using.”

The Allen Institute said understanding the findings in that hot spot will be key in future studies. It not only helps scientists know which cells to target, but experts said it also could lead to the development of age-related therapeutics. This includes unlocking more specific dietary or drug interventions to maintain brain health into old age.

“Aging is the most important risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease and many other devastating brain disorders. These results provide a highly detailed map for which brain cells may be most affected by aging,” said Richard J. Hodes, M.D., director of NIH’s National Institute on Aging. “This new map may fundamentally alter the way scientists think about how aging affects the brain and also provides a guide for developing new treatments for aging-related brain diseases.”

The Allen Institute’s discoveries are now published in Nature, a weekly international journal highlighting all fields of science and technology from the finest researchers.

MORE NEWS FROM FOX 13 SEATTLE

4 found dead inside Graham home, deputies investigating

New 2025 WA laws that go into effect January 1

New restaurants Seattle residents are looking forward to in 2025

Seattle concerts we’re looking forward to in 2025

What’s open, closed on New Year’s Day in Seattle

New Year in Seattle means new minimum wage requirements

To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter.

Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national coverage, plus 24/7 streaming coverage from across the nation.