West Seattle schools: Arbor Heights Elementary celebrates writing
Thanks to the Arbor Heights Elementary School parent who shared the photo from today’s Young Authors Day, an annual celebration of students’ work writing, editing, and publishing work (by reading it aloud in a small group – each group has students from kindergarten through 5th grade). After the small-group readings, there’s an all-school autograph recess, during which our tipster photographed teacher David Wilkie, with young fans clustered around.
ARBOR HEIGHTS SIDE NOTE: Principal Christy Collins and K-5 STEM principal Dr. Shannon McKinney have sent families an update about the status of planning for the schools’ co-location starting next year (AH will be at Boren for two years while its new campus is built) – you can read it online here.
West Seattle scenes: WS Art Walk, April 2014 edition
West Seattle Art Walk – under way until 9 pm – extends beyond The Junction:
Our two stops tonight are reminders of that – and they are steps away from each other, just north of Morgan Junction. First we visited West Seattle Cellars (6026 California SW), where co-proprietor Jan Martindale is the featured artist. Her photographs are from her travels to Myanmar (Burma), as explained on the WSAW website. Thursdays are also the weekly nights for free tastings at WSC, and tonight they’re focusing on wines from the south of France.
Just to the south, at 6040 California SW, West Seattle Office Junction (WSB sponsor) is officially celebrating its new, larger location:
WSOJ is West Seattle’s only coworking-space provider. Tonight they’re showing the work of Cherylin Andre and James Zetterberg, along with celebrating the new space’s grand opening. Still time to get out into the night and make some stops, whether these or others in The Junction or Admiral – see the official map/venue list in the right sidebar of the official WSAW website.
West Seattle development: Hearing set for 6917 California appeal
(At left, California-facing front of project, from plan set filed with city; at right, front of Northeast Seattle project that developer says it’s based on)
A hearing has just been scheduled before the city Hearing Examiner for the neighbors appealing the land-use permit granted for the 6917 California SW project – three stories, 30 apartments, no offstreet parking. The group calling itself Morgan Neighbors filed an appeal after the approval was announced last month, and they are set to take it to the Hearing Examiner at 9 am Tuesday, May 6th. The grounds for appeal are summarized on a document in the appeal file as “inadequacy of review of project by the Department of Planning and Development.” In these types of hearings, city policy says, it’s up to the appellant to prove why the city’s decision was wrong; the public is welcome to attend the hearing, to be held in the examiner’s chambers on the 40th floor of the city Municipal Tower downtown. The developer owns three lots including and adjacent to the site; two have already been cleared for work to start on smaller units.
First SW Charlestown, next SW Genesee closing for road work
Just in from SDOT – another steep stretch of street in West Seattle is about to get some work:
Next week, SW Genesee Street will be closed between SW Avalon Way and 30th Avenue SW from 9 a.m. Monday, April 14 through 6 p.m. Friday, April 18. During the closure of the steep West Seattle hill, the Seattle Department of Transportation will repair several worn concrete panels.
Local access will be allowed, however, all other traffic will be detoured to the nearest arterials. Eastbound motorists on SW Genesee Street will be detoured northbound on SW Avalon Way to lower S Spokane Street, east on Spokane to Delridge Way SW and then southbound on Delridge to SW Genesee Street. Westbound traffic on SW Genesee Street will follow the detour in reverse – drivers will head northbound on Delridge Way SW, west on lower S Spokane Street, and south on SW Avalon Way to Genesee. The work is weather-dependent.
3:06 PM SIDE NOTE: A comment reminds us, both this project and the Charlestown work were on a list of SDOT’s 2014 plans for West Seattle, published here after we requested the information in January. If you missed it then (or forgot), see it here.
3:30 PM: Thanks to Mike for sharing the Metro Route 50 reroute notice for this work – see it here.
Another ramp? Light rail on the bridge? Road repairs? West Seattle Transportation Coalition’s Q&A with SDOT
(Some miss the 4th Avenue onramp that’s been gone 21 years. This sign was still up in 2008.)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Hours after announcing that it has a rep on the city’s advisory committee for choosing a new SDOT director, the West Seattle Transportation Coalition put two of the department’s managers in the hot seat for a special round of Q & A.
Bob Chandler, assistant SDOT director, came to the WSTC’s meeting Tuesday night to answer questions (while noting that he’s retiring in two months), and was joined midway through by a fellow SDOT staffer, Bill LaBorde.
The questions were asked by various WSTC interim-board members and other meeting participants.
Unless you see quotation marks, the Q/A are our summaries/paraphrases, not direct quotes.
Q: Is it possible to add a West Seattle-bound 4th Avenue onramp to the newly widened Spokane Street Viaduct, like the one that was closed more than 20 years ago?
Read More
1 month until West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day! 100+ sales so far, as signups continue
(WSB photo from West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day 2013)
Got stuff you just don’t need any more, ready for person-to-person recycling so it becomes somebody else’s treasure? Exactly one month from today, it’s the 10th annual West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day – 9 am-3 pm Saturday, May 10th, sales of all sizes all around West Seattle. WSB is coordinating the big day again this year, as we have since the 4th edition, and we opened registration last week; more than 100 sales are on the lineup so far – thanks to everyone who’s jumped in already! We also have group-sale sites signed up for Hotwire Online Coffeehouse and C & P Coffee Company again this year (both WSB sponsors; please inquire directly with those businesses about getting space there if you don’t have space for your own sale). April 23rd is the registration deadline, to give us enough time to make the Garage Sale Day Guide/Map so that it’s available a week in advance, but don’t procrastinate – if you know you’re having a sale, please go here to sign up.
West Seattle Thursday: First Art Walk of spring! Free shredding! Free co-working! Genesee-Schmitz NC meeting! More…
(Mahonia in bloom, by Don Brubeck, from the WSB Flickr group)
Here’s just some of what’s up today/tonight – you’ll find lots more (including the days/weeks ahead) on the calendar:
FREE CO-WORKING: Working at home today? Pack up and head over to West Seattle Office Junction (WSB sponsor) to see what co-working is like. It’s “free co-working week” in honor of the grand opening at WSOJ’s new, expanded location in Morgan Junction. (6040-B California SW)
METRO Q/A @ WEST SEATTLE CHAMBER: 11:30 am at The Kenney (WSB sponsor), as previewed here, the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce‘s monthly lunch meeting includes a Q/A forum with Metro Transit reps, less than two weeks before ballots are due for the special election to raise $ for transit and roads. Here’s an update on who’s expected to take part. (7125 Fauntleroy Way SW)
FREE SHREDDING: 2-6 pm at High Point Branch Library, free shredding! Details in our calendar listing. (35th/Raymond)
TALK WITH COUNCILMEMBER RASMUSSEN: West Seattle-residing City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen is having a series of “Little City Hall” conversation events around the area and today, you’ll find him at Southwest Library, 2-4 pm. (35th/Henderson)
DEMONSTRATION OUTSIDE MORGAN STARBUCKS: Thanks to Diane for pointing out that the minimum-wage-increase-supporting group 15 Now is starting a series of demonstrations outside local Starbucks stores with one at 5 pm today in Morgan Junction. (California/Fauntleroy)
WEST SEATTLE ART WALK: The spring quarter begins with a new venue list/map!
6-9 pm, stop by any or all of the participating businesses and enjoy art, often with a chance to meet the artist(s), usually with refreshments. Preview venues on the official site at wsartwalk.com.
GENESEE-SCHMITZ NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL: General meeting at 7 pm tonight, West Seattle Presbyterian Church auditorium. Emergency preparedness is part of the agenda; details on the GSNC website. (3601 California SW)
West Seattle Cup: You in? Registration open now; team captains’ applications due tomorrow
The West Seattle Cup soccer tournament/festival for local kids and families continues to take shape. We first mentioned it here in January – and now it’s just two months away. From organizer Terry Kegel:
Wanna meet Clint Dempsey, shake hands with your favorite Sounders players, and do a victory lap in front of 40,000 fans at CenturyLink field? 64 lucky parents and children will get this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. How? Sign up by this Friday to be a captain in the West Seattle Cup! The West Seattle Cup is a free World Cup-style soccer tournament and community festival for elementary-age children and their parents taking place at Walt Hundley Playfield in High Point on June 14th-15th, 2014. The event is FREE, thanks to a grant from the Department of Neighborhoods awarded to community projects, in addition to donations from local businesses.
All 448 participants get free t-shirts and other prizes. The 64 team captains must apply by this Friday to get free Sounders tickets and the VIP field pass to meet the players right after the game. Do you have an elementary-age child? Choose your country and register as a parent-child duo online at westseattlecup.org/play or in-person at the West Seattle YMCA or
Neighborhood House High Point Center. Learn more at
westseattlecup.org or on Facebook.
TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Thursday updates; fuel spill on the bridge
(Latest bridge and Viaduct views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
6:59 AM: All’s relatively well so far on the routes through/out of West Seattle. One big reminder for today, if you are driving the eastbound bridge between rush hours: Eastbound Spokane Street Viaduct surface-repair work is scheduled for 10 am-4 pm. We also updated the SW Charlestown closure on Wednesday – the city has changed the detour plan a bit; here’s the latest.
BRIDGE PROBLEM REPORTED, 7:56 AM: Trouble on the eastbound bridge and a text we just received might explain why: A truck is reported to have leaked/spilled fuel from the “Delridge merge” to 1st Avenue South. Fire crews are on the scene.
8:22 AM: The fire call for the spill has closed, and SDOT tells us via Twitter that it wasn’t major:
911 system problems: Use alternate number 206-583-2111 if needed
6:33 AM: After some early-morning problems with much of the state’s 911 system are reported this morning, some of the service is reported to be coming back online. But – if you have an emergency inside Seattle city limits and cannot get through, the recommended alternate number is 206-583-2111. Your mobile phone might get through even where a land line doesn’t, so you can also try that.
7:59 AM: Regional media quotes CenturyLink as saying service is fully restored.
High-school baseball: Shutout win for West Seattle Wildcats
(Cameron & Morgan get the scoring started with back-to-back hits)
Thanks to Greg Slader for the photos and report on West Seattle High School‘s Wednesday afternoon 4-0 win:
(Graham French driving in a run, with a hit down the 3rd-base line)
West Seattle Baseball snaps their 3-year losing streak at Nathan Hale as the offense steps up and scores runs on clutch two-out hits. Ben Wexler threw a complete game on 73 pitches as the Defense made all the plays. Next game is Friday against Nathan Hale at Hiawatha, 3:30 pm.
| 1 COMMENT