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WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Arson alert; tree theft

March 8, 2021 12:01 pm
|      32 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news | West Seattle police

Two West Seattle Crime Watch reports so far today:

ARSON ALERT: Seattle Police are investigating small set fires early this morning on west Charlestown Hill. According to a preliminary summary from SPD, the first report was of someone “igniting a light pole on fire … Officers arrived on scene and observed some plastic and Styrofoam materials placed on a crosswalk sign that was scorched, but not on fire.” The caller had no description of the fire-setter Officers checking the area found trash containers on fire at 55th/Charlestown and 53rd/Charlestown; SFD was called to those scenes around 4:15 am. Officers weren’t able to find anyone in the area, but are hoping to examine residential security video that might have images of the arsonist.

One reader report:

TREE THEFT: Jessica says somebody dug up this dwarf lodgepole pine from her planting strip at 37th/Graham and took it away:

She explains, “It was yellow for the winter.” We asked if there’s any chance the recent gusty winds blew it down. “There is a decent-sized hole where it was with torn roots. It was too established to blow away. Someone yanked it out. I searched the surrounding blocks in case someone carried it a bit and threw it, but I didn’t have any luck.”

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32 Replies to "WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Arson alert; tree theft"

  • Nature March 8, 2021 (12:56 pm)

    Dang, people are stealing trees now!? Sorry Jessica, that is a beautiful tree :(

  • Buddy March 8, 2021 (1:42 pm)

    On ring during the summer there was a recording of a woman digging up flowers that had been planted on a planting strip in front of an apartment.  And so digging up other people property is not new.  Many years ago I had an old neighbor who went around the neighborhood digging up bulbs and flowers from people’s garden, but after speaking with the family members I discovered he was disabled and just looking for plants to plant in his garden and meant no harm, 

  • alki_2008 March 8, 2021 (2:53 pm)

    I was under the impression that the planting strips, between sidewalk and street, are public property and that any planting or other modifications must be approved by the city?   Or at least that trees are on the approved tree list. Maybe that tree is not allowed and an overzealous neighbor reported it, so it was removed by the city.

  • TT March 8, 2021 (3:03 pm)

    What a shame. Did you receive a permit to plant the tree? Planting trees in a public right-of-way requires a permit (I didn’t know that). Maybe the city dug it up?https://www.seattle.gov/trees/planting-and-care/street-trees

  • Delridge Mom March 8, 2021 (3:47 pm)

    I could be wrong, but I think you have to have a permit (they’re free) to plant in the parking strip and only certain kinds of trees are permissible. Is it possible that the city removed the tree? I would think they would inform the home owners, but maybe it wasn’t clear who had planted it. Either way, sorry for your loss of such a pretty tree!

    • Kersti Muul March 8, 2021 (4:15 pm)

      Not how the city does things. If there are no power lines she can plant any vegetation. If there are, you can plant compatible vegetation. You do need to call before you dig however, for underground utilities locates

      • BetteDavisEyes March 8, 2021 (5:52 pm)

        Delridge Mom is correct – an Urban Forestry permit is required for planting a tree on your parking strip.  I’ve obtained a permit in the past and it was free, but my tree choice had to be approved.  The city maintains lists of approved street trees for various parking strip widths. Based on my conversation with the City Arborist when I got my permit, the trees on the list are chosen for a variety of reasons, including being less likely to heave up sidewalks with their roots and less likely to cause a hazard from things like brittle limbs.  There are also ordinances governing other parking strip vegetation, including restrictions on height and distance from intersections.  Kersti, in practice, yes, most people just plant whatever they want and the city doesn’t interfere if no one complains, but there are, in fact, applicable ordinances.  It’s also true, though, that the city usually won’t just yank out a tree you planted.  They’re more likely to post a notice on your door if they had a complaint about it.  Sadly, I think the little lodgepole pine was stolen. :-(

        • Joe Z March 9, 2021 (8:21 am)

          When I built raised beds in my planting strip I read the SDOT regulations (they are long and detailed)…most of the raised garden beds in the city are not in compliance. In the end I didn’t bother with the free permit since it was too much of a pain to fill out all of the paperwork. But I did follow the rules….mostly. The easiest one to ignore is the max height of garden plants can only be 3 ft :) 

    • Rick March 9, 2021 (7:26 am)

      I wouldn’t think the city would be required to notify anyone to remove a tree from their own property but if they did in fact do it, it would have been a nice courtesy. But I think it was stolen.

      • Rick Cook March 9, 2021 (7:33 am)

        I meant their own property (as in the city’s property).

  • David Turnipseed March 8, 2021 (4:17 pm)

    Yeah, that was my recycling bin that was set on fire. The smell woke me up. So grateful SPD was there so quickly.

    • Alkiswimmersteve March 8, 2021 (10:34 pm)

      Someone lit your recycle bin on fire? Wow, how scary for you and your family. People on this post are more concerned with a tree being stolen than an arsonist who lit a fire by your house. Wow.

  • anonyme March 8, 2021 (5:39 pm)

    A couple of things.  First, pines do not turn yellow in winter.  Some take on a yellowish tinge, but they still retain most of their usual color.  The exception is a pine that has suffered severe cold damage – in which case it’s probably in trouble.  This tree looks like it might be a Chief Joseph lodgepole pine, which has golden foliage.  If so, it is pretty valuable.  I would never plant anything valuable on the right of way, as there are a lot of people laboring under the delusion that anything on a right of way – even things attached to the ground – are up for grabs.  A lame excuse for theft, IMO.  I like to point out to these people that, under their definition, I have the right to take their car any time it’s parked on the street…

    • BetteDavisEyes March 8, 2021 (6:12 pm)

      anonyme, I may borrow your logic argument – I love it!  And I, too, wondered if it might be a highly prized Chief Joseph pine, or if it just wasn’t healthy.  If the former, then the person who took it may very well have known exactly how valuable it is.  Jessica, I’m so sorry that happened.

    • Joan March 9, 2021 (7:16 am)

      I have walked that route and admired those Chief Joseph trees. I’ve seen them in the South Seattle college arboretum.  They are so lovely. Sorry one was stolen. I’d worry about the others.

  • Mj March 8, 2021 (5:52 pm)

    Kersti – the City can restrict the type of vegetation in planting strips, for example to preserve sight lines. 

    And wow, theft of plants is now happening?  Not good at all. 

  • Alex March 8, 2021 (6:53 pm)

    I have seen similar yellow pines at nurseries for $150 for a MUCH smaller plant so your thief, if they knew what they are doing, must have thought they hit the jackpot.   You might try looking at Carpinitos for an affordable replacement.

  • Carole March 8, 2021 (7:18 pm)

    Several years ago our building landscaper planted 8 plants in a side yard intending to create a hedge.  A few weeks later someone stole 3 of them, and came back a week later and stole 2 more.  

  • Auntie March 8, 2021 (8:36 pm)

    Once again, this is why we can’t have anything nice. Stealing trees and shrubs – really? It’s not like there is a black market for them like catalytic converters, is there? Someone who just wants that particular plant and is too cheap to go buy it, I guess. 

    • WSB March 8, 2021 (9:18 pm)

      People really do steal growing things as well as inanimate objects. This reminds me that someone stole a planter full of blue shade-loving flowers from one of our borders more than a decade ago … and before we left San Diego 30 years ago, someone stole a potted plumeria I had outside our apartment door. Sad because it – despite SD temps not being quite tropical – was about to finally bloom!

  • Lynda B March 8, 2021 (9:15 pm)

    Sorry to hear your tree was stolen.  The greenway project tagged the tree at 36th and Graham for replacement.  It looks gnarly but has pretty pink apple blooms and hot pink blooms from whatever blended in.  Perhaps you can reach out and see of they’re looking to plant more trees?  I emailed westseattlegreenway@seattle.gov to find out what tree they’re going to replace it with.  I have a response that they have received my email but they’re going to get back to me about my question. (Also, they noted the project website just updated today. I didn’t realize they are putting in speed bumps on Graham.)

  • ada March 8, 2021 (9:24 pm)

    Those Chief Joseph Pines can be pretty pricy, in part because they are fairly slow growing. Sorry some jerk felt entitled to steal it. 

  • 1994 March 8, 2021 (10:11 pm)

    Is there a 2nd Chief Joseph pine further back — in the upper left of the photo? Is that gone too?

    • WSB March 8, 2021 (11:08 pm)

      She moved the other one to her yard so it wouldn’t get stolen too.

  • anonyme March 9, 2021 (7:23 am)

    Someone actually stole a yard of pea gravel from my driveway a few years back, tarps and all.  Before that, someone tried to steal the large container planting I had outside my front gate.  I heard a scraping sound and found a guy trying to drag the whole thing over to his truck.  Middle of the day.  He used the all-too-common excuse that he thought it had been put out for “free”.  I gave him some free advice instead, which may have included a recommendation for self breeding.   I’ve since propagated a bunch of ‘William Penn’ barberry, which makes a lovely, lethal barrier.  Great for under windows.

  • wseaturtle March 9, 2021 (8:23 am)

    Make sure you don’t plant your trees anywhere near a sewer line. That beautiful tree will endup costing you  in a sewer line repair. Saw one just the other day. I asked how much.  $29K.

    • Derek March 9, 2021 (10:43 am)

      People with sewers where trees can mess up should be replacing them anyways. PVC cannot be interrupted by roots, only the clay pipes. Which should be replaced by now anyways. They’re always bad, roots or no roots. 

    • Cheaper option March 9, 2021 (3:24 pm)

      We opted for a “sewer sock” liner and it cost roughly 5k. Saves you from needing to completely replace the old line and it is strengthened so roots can’t enter the pipe anymore.

  • Steve March 9, 2021 (3:11 pm)

    Someone once stole my bagged dirty cat litter that I didn’t want to take to my garbage in the dark.  I put it in front of my door intending to throw it away in the morning but somebody took it.  Ha ha on them.  I am sorry about someone stealing the tree.  Rude!

  • wseaturtle March 9, 2021 (9:05 pm)

    Granted, any concrete or clay pipe is quite fragile after 100 years,  but any tree root than can lift a sidewalk or street  will easily push thru plastic too.   Keep ’em small.

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