West Seattle, Washington
25 Thursday
Are you a quilter? Know one? Look what’s up for grabs on one of the tables at Tibbetts United Methodist Church‘s big indoor garage sale tomorrow, 9 am-5 pm. It’s a little different from the rummage sales you might remember in Tibbetts’ past, but one thing’s the same – a huge room full of stuff. Crystal, anyone?
We stopped by tonight while volunteers finished sorting and arranging the thousands of items ready for you to browse tomorrow. One day only! Tibbetts is on the northeast corner of 41st and Andover.
(WSB photo from 2015 WS Garden Tour)
You love gardening … you love helping others enjoy gardening … how about helping grow a 2016
The West Seattle Garden Tour is looking for new committee members to join the West Seattle Garden Tour to help produce our July,2016 Garden tour.
We have open volunteer opportunities, including PR & Marketing, Sponsorship, Graphic Design as well as several administrative positions. We’re a lively committee that meets monthly to discuss the business processes of moving the West Seattle Garden Tour forward toward our July, 2016 tour day that benefits many local non-profits.
For more information, please call Clay Swidler — PR Chair at 206-669-4653.
5:11 PM: If you use the Westwood Post Office drive-up box, take note. From regional U.S. Postal Service spokesperson Ernie Swanson:
Mail deposited in a drive-up collection box outside the Westwood Post Office, 2721 SW Trenton St., Seattle WA 98126, was destroyed in a fire at about 4:30 a.m. Friday, Aug. 28.
Mail deposited in the box after about 5:30 p.m., Thursday, August 27th, was burned beyond recognition.
An investigation is being conducted into the possible cause of the fire. The Seattle Fire Department extinguished the fire.
We’re checking on the mailbox’s status.
ADDED 5:23 PM: Before we could even do that – we received the photo we’ve added above, from Megan (thank you!). Note the sign says you can’t use the burned mailbox – asking customers to take their mail inside. We’ll be checking on replacement plans, as well as the aforementioned investigation.
P.S. This is the same drive-up-mailbox location that was briefly out of service five and a half months ago after the box was hit by a car.
6:40 PM: Just went to Westwood for a firsthand look, and the burned mailbox has been removed.
8:04 PM: We’ve also heard back from USPS’s Swanson, who says the box *will* be replaced, no timetable yet.
WEATHER ALERT: The National Weather Service now has a “Wind Advisory” up for our area for 11 am-5 pm Saturday, forecasting wind from the south at 15 to 30 mph with gusts to 45 mph. That could be enough to bring down trees/limbs and cause power outages, so be sure to charge everything you need to have charged, as well as taking other steps. Significant rain remains in the forecast, too.
CANCELLATION: Just before news of the alert, we heard from the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, which is canceling Alki Point Lighthouse tours for tomorrow, and will assess Sunday’s outlook later. Debra Alderman from the Auxiliary says they do plan to host tours all three days on Labor Day weekend, but after that, your next chance won’t be until Memorial Day weekend 2016. (Any other weather-related cancellations/postponements? Please let us know so we can help get the word out.)
An Early Design Guidance packet is on file and a date is set for the Southwest Design Review Board’s first look at “Perch,” the mixed-use project proposed for 1250 Alki SW: 6:30 pm October 15th. (Remember as you look at the “packet” above that Early Design Guidance is for size and shape – once those are determined, the details follow.)
We first reported on the proposal three months ago; it’s the first new 100+-residential-unit project proposed in West Seattle in a few years – all the others in the pipeline are under construction or complete. The developer is SODO-based SolTerra, which began as a company focused on sustainability-focused systems such as solar power, and has branched out into housing. Their designs are aimed for LEED Platinum and Perch, SolTerra says, will be designed to that standard “at minimum.”
From the packet, key points of the project:
PROPOSAL INFORMATION
+/- 125 residential units
Five stories of residential floors over a ground floor of lobby space, support, service and public parking
188 Parking Stalls for residents and visitors, in a below-grade garage
Dedicated space for car-sharing programs
Ample bike storage for residents and exterior bike parking for guestsNOTABLE FEATURES
Extensive vegetated green roof with a variety of seating areas and scenic viewpoints
Solar panel array on the rooftop
Rainwater collection cistern
Potential native marine bird habitat on the rooftop
Public green space along Alki Ave. with multi-purpose programmed uses for the neighborhood
Rear courtyard space at the foot of the hillside with a water feature and lush plantings
Five 2-story residential structures – described in the packet as three multiplexes and two single-family homes – would be demolished to make way for this development. A SolTerra spokesperson tells us that in addition to the Design Review process, they also will be seeking feedback from community members including the Alki Community Council.
Today we welcome Mailbox West as a new WSB sponsor. Here’s what its new owners want you to know about what they’re doing and what’s ahead:
Mailbox West has been a part of the West Seattle community – in one iteration or another – serving mailbox, shipping, and business-services needs for 27 years. As the new owners, Vince Harrelson (above) and Erin Coopey are proud to be part of this long-standing local business. While Vince is primarily running the store (along with our incredibly knowledgeable and friendly employee, Natasha), Erin is busy writing cookbooks and teaching culinary classes.
We have lived in West Seattle for 8 years now and absolutely love it! We definitely ascribe to the “local first” mentality. We rarely ever leave our lovely little West Seattle neighborhood. In fact, I’m so local to Mailbox West, my commute is 4 blocks. Best commute I’ve ever had! What does it mean to have a “local first” mentality? It means you look to your neighbors and fellow local business owners for what you want/need before you go anywhere else. There is nothing like the personal touch of a face-to-face conversation with someone who is friendly, informative, and ready to help!
That’s what we pride ourselves on at Mailbox West: Being a friendly, helpful, community-focused small business.
What does our little local business do? We provide private mailboxes with 24-hour access, mailing and shipping, business services, notary services, packing supplies, gift boxes, gift bags and wrapping supplies, and a growing stock of locally sourced greeting cards. We hope to offer some fun gift options (e.g., small locally made gifts and food items to local art pieces) later this year.
We really do believe we are part of the West Seattle neighborhood and try very hard to make you feel a part of the “hyper-local” Mailbox West family. When you come in, we really do want to get to know you and to help you with whatever it is we can. We get to know your faces, your names, and your pets’ names. Don’t forget, we have really yummy treats for your dogs, too!
A business like Mailbox West is just a store until you give it character and personality. How do you do that? You have caring owners and a great staff that offer great quality services and products, extraordinary customer service, and to forge long-lasting ties to the West Seattle community…that’s how you make a place special. Being an independent, locally owned and operated local store gives us the power (and opportunity!) to be able to bend over backward for our customers.
Please stop by anytime for your mailbox, mailing/shipping, notary, business-service, and greeting-card needs … or just stop by to say hi and introduce yourself and your pet. You can find us at 6523 California Avenue SW (across the street from Thriftway at Morgan Junction) and on the web at MailboxWest.com.
We thank Mailbox West for sponsoring independent, community-collaborative neighborhood news via WSB; find our current sponsor team listed in directory format here, and find info on joining the team by going here.
(Photo by Paul Walchenbach)
Happy almost-the-weekend! Highlights from our calendar, for the rest of your West Seattle Friday:
NATIONAL VOLLEYBALL LEAGUE AT ALKI: The beach-volleyball pros are at Alki for the Seattle Championships, a three-day tournament, seven of eight stops on a coast-to-coast tour. Today, it’s qualifier match play, 2 pm to dusk, according to the online schedule. (57th SW & Alki Ave. SW)
MUSIC AT THE MOUNT: STRUM (Seattle’s Totally Relaxed Ukulele Musicians) is scheduled to perform outdoors at Providence Mount St. Vincent tonight – free concert (and free popcorn and snow cones!) at 6 pm, dinner and beverages available for purchase at 5:30 pm. If we get word of any weather-related changes, we’ll update this listing. (4831 35th SW)
TRUE ROMANS AT SALTY’S: 6-9 pm, enjoy rock ‘n’ roll covers along with drinks and/or dinner by the water at Salty’s on Alki (WSB sponsor) – more info in our calendar listing. (1936 Harbor SW)
‘GIRL RISING’: Good turnout for the first screening of this inspiring documentary earlier this week hosted by Girl Up teen adviser Alina Guyon:
(Photo courtesy Jackie Clough of Alki Party Treasures [WSB sponsor])
If you didn’t catch that one – or want to see it again – you have another chance tonight, 6:30 pm at Fauntleroy UCC Church. Admission $2.50. (9140 California SW)
FIVE BUCK BAND AT C & P: ’60s/’70s pop/rock is this band’s focus, and you can enjoy the tunes at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor) 7-9 pm tonight. (5612 California SW)
INTO THE COLD AT EASY STREET: Record-release party with live, free, all-ages in-store performance by Into the Cold at Easy Street Records in The Junction, 7 pm. (California SW & SW Alaska)
And a reminder …
DEADLINE DAY: Last day to sign up 3- to 11-year-old players for West Seattle YMCA (WSB sponsor) soccer! Details here.
You might have noticed the setup for this already. From the city:
Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) is conducting emergency sewer repair work on the West Seattle Bridge/Fauntleroy Way SW ramp heading eastbound. From Friday, August 28th, at 7:00 pm to Sunday, August 30th, at 3:00 pm, SPU crews will be excavating as part of an emergency sewer-repair project. The inside eastbound lane will be closed during this time and drivers should allow extra time for their trips due to possible congestion in this area.
SPU crews will continue the work with roadway panel replacement the weekend of September 11. They plan to work from Friday, September 11th, at 7:00 pm to the afternoon of September 13.
(WSB photos and video by Katie Meyer)
That’s what it took to see over the sea of fans last night as Caspar Babypants enthralled the last Summer Concerts at Hiawatha crowd of the year. Here’s the view from what you might call “backstage”:
CB’s music is catchy enough to be earworm fodder for grownups too. Here’s a bit of video:
As you can see in the clips, the littlest concertgoers just keep on dancing:
Caspar Babypants (aka West Seattleite and longtime rocker Chris Ballew) has another collection of Beatles remakes coming out next month – this time, it’s “Beatles Baby!”, following up on “Baby Beatles.” (If you were at last night’s show, you might already have a copy.) As for the concert series – presented each summer by the Admiral Neighborhood Association (with co-sponsors including WSB) – stand by for news next spring, when summer 2016 starts to get within view!
(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
7:25 AM: The rain has returned, as forecast; tomorrow is expected to be more intense than today. Meanwhile, a transit alert just tweeted and texted by Metro:
Transit Alert – Route 56 to downtown Seattle due to leave 61st Av SW & Alki Av SW at 7:33 has been canceled.
— King County Metro (@kcmetrobus) August 28, 2015
We’ll be asking King County DOT later if it was the same problem as chronicled here last Friday, a driver shortage.
7:40 AM: Sue notes in comments that the 7:18 am Route 55 also was canceled (texted/tweeted with half an hour’s warning).
8:19 AM: Also a reminder that the SW Myrtle closure from 17th SW westward to Sanislo is expected to continue today; the repaving work represents the start of work related to the Delridge-Highland Park Neighborhood Greenway. We’ll check on the progress later. Meantime, the rain has just picked up again.
Story and photos by Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
A “small organization with a big heart … the heart and soul of West Seattle.”
That’s how the Southwest Seattle Historical Society was described at a gathering to preview and celebrate an upcoming event that’s anything but small … its annual Champagne Gala Brunch fundraiser. As mentioned here a week ago, the date is set – Saturday, November 7th, 11 am, at Salty’s on Alki (WSB sponsor). The theme is an in-progress success story that was only a long-held dream at the time of last year’s gala – the restoration of the Alki Homestead/Fir Lodge.
More than 50 people, including SWSHS board members past and present, attended the gala preview Wednesday night at another historic West Seattle property, the Colman Estate on the Fauntleroy waterfront.
Its current owners were there for the preview too. Midway through the sips-and-bites event, SWSHS executive director Clay Eals took centerstage to formally announce the gala, themed “Coming Home to the Homestead.” The man who bought the fire-damaged landmark in March and has begun restoring it, Dennis Schilling, was also among the preview attendees.
While last year’s gala was “supremely successful,” SWSHS circulated a survey afterward to seek ideas for improving it this year, and so they determined it will be more focused, shorter, and with a little more room to roam in the Salty’s special-event rooms. The menu, Eals promised, will be reminiscent of the old Homestead – minus, he joked, the Jello (in a room full of history fans, laughter rippled around the room, which also filled with applause multiple times during the event).
Fittingly, one special presentation will feature, as explained on the SWSHS preview page, “Catherine Gruye Alexander and Rob Gruye, daughter and son of 1950s Alki Homestead chef and manager Robert Gruye.” Also planned for the Champagne Gala program, returning from last year’s gala – West Seattle personality Marty Riemer, who recorded this short sneak preview to explain:
You really, really don’t want to miss “Wait, Wait,” do you? Then don’t wait – assure yourself a seat with an early ticket purchase – go right here, right now.
P.S. One more announcement during the preview – SWSHS will lead a cruise group again next fall, this time to view autumn foliage along the Northeast coast, New York to Quebec. And if you’d like to join the group for this year’s Alaska Totem Cruise, September 19th-26th, it’s not too late to book a spot – scroll down this page to see how.
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