West Seattle, Washington
29 Friday
A last-minute location change for the North Delridge Neighborhood Council on Monday night led to a gathering at a nearby playground’s picnic shelter. Five council members discussed topics including:
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4:30 PM: Police are investigating a report of two cars with people inside shooting at each other in the 26th and Hudson vicinity, according to Det. Renée Witt. Still working on more details. So far no report of anyone being hit/hurt. A search is under way. We’ve asked police for detailed descriptions; so far, via the scanner, we have one car described as a white Taurus/Monte Carlo type of car.
4:38 PM UPDATE: Roads are blocked in the area while police search.
4:47 PM UPDATE: WSB co-publisher Patrick Sand reports from the scene that police are checking on a red Cadillac near 26th and Hudson with a bullet hole through the windshield. They told him they believe it to be one of the cars that was involved. (Photos added)
What will be Delridge’s biggest apartment building when it’s finished is halfway to completion. Youngstown Flats is a block away from the park where we took the top photo at its booth during Saturday’s Delridge Day festival; Maria Barrientos (left) and Nicholas Ames (with community member Nancy Folsom) were there to get opinions about the street-end pocket park that’s become part of the project even though it’s not on the site.
Days earlier, we viewed that site from Youngstown Flats itself – its improvements are yet to come, so it still resembles a simple grassy space along the street:
We were at the construction site for a hard-hat tour.
Our photo tour, ahead:
(Photo by Nick Adams for WSB, added post-festival: Giorvi Merca, 9, at 3-legged race finish line)
11:25 AM: It’s the biggest festival of the summer in eastern West Seattle – and Delridge Day 2012 has just begun, in and around Delridge Skatepark (Delridge/Genesee), which was dedicated at last year’s DD.
(As-it-happened photos, through 3:01 pm update, by WSB’s Patrick Sand)
All the info’s here – lots to watch, lots to do, lots to see. The festival is an all-volunteer production again this year – presented by the North Delridge Neighborhood Council:
At the NDNC booth, that’s Kirsten Smith and Parie Hines. (Parie also leads WSB sponsor LD Arch Design.)
11:40 AM UPDATE: It’s not a festival without RapidRide Man – who’s here along with the big red and yellow bus, previewing the service that will be launched in West Seattle next month, parked along 26th SW on the northwest side of the playfield:
That’s also where you’ll find a food truck, Athena’s from Highland Park. Meantime, here from across the street at Youngstown – it’s the West Seattle Tool Library’s new mobile unit:
That’s Stu Hennessey from Sustainable West Seattle and Alki Bike and Board – ABB is sponsoring the skate competitions that are under way till 2 pm (with free skate to follow) at the skatepark during today’s festival.
12:12 PM UPDATE: The sun has just emerged! When you come to the festival, say hi – we’re by the entrance along Genesee, west of the skatepark. We’re here not just to cover it but also as co-sponsors:
Face painting, bouncy house, balloon art, all part of the Kids’ Zone.
1:12 PM UPDATE: After looking over at the Evo booth near ours and noticing a regal little Shiba Inu, we went over for a photo:
That’s Ryu, sitting on the table in front of Hahn. Lots of dogs here – there’s plenty of space between booth rows, for them to walk comfortably with their people. Meantime, a Zumba performance, flash-mob style, erupted over by the stage a little while ago:
(Video to come.)
2:16 PM UPDATE: First politician sighting – just talked to City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, who was marveling at how well the skatepark is working out, especially considering, as he recalled, it was originally slated to be built up by Myrtle Reservoir – until neighbors opposed it so strenuously, alternate sites were sought; Delridge welcomed it.
Just about everyone we’ve talked with has described today’s festival, meantime, as “mellow,” “low-key.” The police are here – but it’s community outreach, not an emergency response:
The festival’s on till 3.
3:01 PM NOTE: And so soon, it’s over! Thanks to everybody who came by to say hello. We have more photos to add, from WSB contributing photojournalist Nick Adams, which we’ll add later – have to move on now to more of what’s happening today.
ADDED SATURDAY NIGHT: As promised, more photos! From here on out, they’re all by Nick Adams for WSB:
That’s Rafael Newman break dancing with groups Break Animal and Catch Them All.
BIG Saturday ahead. You can preview it all right now on the WSB West Seattle Events Calendar. And here are a few details on two of the biggies:
(Click to see map full size in Delridge Day brochure, with vendor list)
DELRIDGE DAY: Tons of fun packed into a four-hour festival, 11 am-3 pm Saturday in the park between Delridge Community Center and Delridge Skatepark. We’re sponsoring the Kids’ Zone, with a bouncy house, face-painting, picnic games, and balloon art. You’ll also find live music (the schedule’s in the official brochure), dozens of booths (come say hi!), two food trucks, the Alki Bike and Board skate competitions, and more.
WEST SEATTLE OUTDOOR MOVIES: Second-to-last Saturday for the year (!) … The Beatles’ animated “Yellow Submarine” is the movie; trivia with Jessie from Skylark Café and Club is the preshow fun; the courtyard next to Hotwire Online Coffeehouse (WSB sponsor) is the place. You’ll also find Furry Faces Foundation there selling/making pet tags (read about the program here) starting around 6 pm. Movie’s at dusk – it’s free, but bring $ for pet tags and nonprofit-benefiting raffles and concessions!
You can donate to the bake sale at the Delridge Day festival this Saturday without even baking. Francesca Annis from the Delridge Community Center Advisory Board explains:
There will be a bake sale to benefit youth programs at Delridge Community Center during the Delridge Day Festival hosted by the Delridge Community Center Advisory Board. Goodies made by the School Age Care and Teen Programs include snickerdoodles and bacon-chocolate-chip cookies!
Contributions from C&P Coffee Co., Great Harvest Bread Co., Sugar Rush Baking Co., and Zatz a Better Bagel will also be available.
We are also accepting homemade and store-bought items from the community. If you are interested in making a donation you may drop it off at the community center on Friday (please make sure to label it) 11 am-6 pm or bring it directly to the table on Saturday beginning at 9:00 am. If possible, please wrap homemade items individually and mark if the item contains nuts.
Question about the bake sale? E-mail Francesca, wskeekai@gmail.com. For full details about the festival (with co-sponsors including WSB) – check out the brochure, which includes a vendor list/map and schedule of events (music, contests, more).
WSB is proud to be a co-sponsor of West Seattle’s next summer festival – Delridge Day, coming up this Saturday (August 18th). We’ve been bringing you previews, and today we asked organizers if the official vendor list is out yet; turns out they had just finished the brochure, with the list and map and other details of this Saturday’s festival, 11 am-3 pm at the park between Delridge Community Center and Delridge Skatepark (Delridge/Genesee) – see it all here (and we’ll see you there!).
Story and photos by Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Three weeks from tomorrow, the sprawling Seattle Public Schools campus at 5950 Delridge Way SW will reopen as the new K-5 STEM at Boren elementary.
It’s been boarded up for two years, since the end of Chief Sealth International High School‘s two-year stay.
Now, elementary schoolers are moving in, and crews have been working to “make it a respectable place,” as project manager Jeanette Imanishi puts it.
She was our guide for a tour on Monday, along with district communications specialist Tom Redman. Outside, of course, there’s fresh paint. Even the north-side portables, which won’t be used but are staying on the site, are getting a new coat.
Inside, the floors are shining:
Read on to see the rest of our photo tour – from the classrooms to the playground, and beyond:
New info tonight about this weekend’s big Delridge Day festival (with WSB among the co-sponsors) – here’s what Holli Margell is sharing tonight:
Only 4 more days until the Delridge Day Festival takes over Delridge Park on August 18th from 11 am-3 pm. Here’s a short preview of what’s happening, and when:
– The Music Stage has a full 4-band lineup from 11 am-3 pm: Ellis Brothers, Moongirl, Sidesaddle Cowboy, and from the North Delridge Neighborhood, Low Land High.
– Skate Competition prizes have been counted and there’s plenty of decks, hats, shirts and other swag for lots of contestants. Registration starts at 10 am, closes at 11 am for competition. Parental signature (minors only) and helmets required for entry. A $15 registration fee includes Festival Shirt.
– Kids Zone has a Face painter and Balloon Artist booked. Bouncy House and Picnic Games are ready!
– The vendor-booth area is up to 60! You’ll see local artists, businesses, and non-profits. Bring some cash for a new plant start, local art or books. Youngstown Flats, the new development on 26th, will be giving out free Ice Cream tickets on a first-come, first-serve basis until they run out.
– We need your help to make it an amazing day! A completely volunteer led festival, we depend on volunteers for event day to help the event run smoothly. Any time you have to give is helpful from setting up tables for an hour in the morning to picking up trash after the festival in the evening. If you can help make it an awesome event with your time, please e-mail delridgeday@ndnc.org or visit http://tinyurl.com/ddvolunteer for more details.
To check out more about the festival, Skate Competition, Food Truck Chow Down, Kids Zone, and Vendors, visit the webpage: www.ndnc.org/delridgeday
The park is along Delridge south of Genesee, adjacent to the Delridge Skatepark and Delridge Community Center.
Just as another fun-filled weekend is beginning – take a minute to check your schedule for next weekend, to and see if you can spare a few hours to help make the sixth annual Delridge Day festival happen one week from today at Delridge Community Center/Park. Organizers are circulating one last call for volunteers; they’re all volunteers too – including members of the North Delridge Neighborhood Council, which took over the festival last year when previous organizers were unable to keep it going. Next Saturday’s fun, 11 am-3 pm, includes the Alki Bike and Board (WSB sponsor) skate contest, live music, food trucks, and a kids’ zone (co-sponsored by WSB), and dozens of vendors. All they need now is some more help for setup and cleanup – 8:30-10:30 am and/or 3-4:30 pm – if you can help with either, please e-mail Tanya ASAP, ocean_bee@hotmail.com. See you there!
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Bartell Drugs, which has two stores in West Seattle, soon will have its corporate headquarters here too.
The company has leased space in North Delridge at the West Seattle Corporate Center, confirms marketing vice president Theron Andrews.
That’s the building known best for its huge flag, a legacy from its 1991 origins as the headquarters of Services Group of America, which moved to Arizona six years ago, blaming a “punitive estate tax” here. (A related entity still owns the building.)
Bartell Drugs, family owned and operated since 1890, is moving here from Georgetown, where it’s been headquartered for more than a quarter-century.
The city made the rounds of northeastern West Seattle community groups a year and a half ago to talk about work planned for Fire Station 36, the station by the West Seattle Bridge and the north end of Delridge. Now, as the project gets closer to construction, you are invited to a design open house later this month: The station will open its doors 2-4 pm on August 26th. The project, as described here and during those meetings in early 2011 (North Delridge coverage here, Pigeon Point here), will involve seismic/safety upgrades and a small building addition to handle decontamination, among other functions, all funded by the 2003 fire levy. While the work is done, station equipment and personnel will relocate to temporary quarters on the same site.
A man arrested in West Seattle early today is a suspect in two street robberies – one here, one in Capitol Hill – according to police, who are still seeking a second suspect. From the report published on SPD Blotter this afternoon by Det. Jeff Kappel:
At approximately 1:00 a.m. this morning the two female victims, 26 and 27 years of age, were walking in the area of Delridge and Genesee when they were confronted by two black male suspects. One asked for a cigarette which the victims didn’t have. Both victims continued walking. A couple seconds later they were approached from behind by one of the suspects. This time he was armed with a handgun and demanded their purses.
At the same time a witness was leaving his house to walk his dog and interrupted the robbery, causing the suspect to run off. The witness and the victims chased the suspect and observed him enter a waiting vehicle driven by a second suspect at 25th and Genesee.
(Photo by Sage K)
12:31 PM: Still working to find out what’s going on but Delridge is blocked off at and around the Boren Building – avoid the area. More to come.
12:38 PM: The road has reopened. Lt. Pierre Davis tells us at the scene that it involved shots fired – no one hurt – two people in custody – shell casings found. It actually happened in the 5600 block of Delridge (we originally mentioned the Boren school building, but it turns out police were just staging there).
1:33 PM: Adding a photo from Sage K, taken during the half-hour road closure – the photo was taken looking northeast over the Delridge/Juneau intersection. Police also say that some kind of argument/fight preceded the firing of shots. When they first arrived, Lt. Davis tells WSB, they talked to witnesses who had seen that, and that’s what led them to the two suspects, who were in an apartment in the 5600 block.
2:43 PM UPDATE: Some new information has just been published via SPD Blotter. Police say the Gang Unit is investigating this, and that they arrested three people in all.
Along Delridge, near SW Brandon, there’s a sign urging you to drive carefully “in memory of Marcus Ryan Anderson.” North Delridge community advocate Mike Dady points out via the ND e-mail list that today marks the 25th anniversary of the crash that killed 7-year-old Marcus (whose mother fought for seven years to get that sign put up, and for other safety improvements). Remember him, wherever you’re driving/riding.
Notice the line of scooters outside Skylark Café and Club in North Delridge this morning? Paul from neighboring PB&J Textiles (WSB sponsor) did, and shared the photo. It was a brunch stop for the 25th annual Scooter Insanity, the Northwest’s longest-running annual rally of its kind (per its Facebook page). The schedule posted online by the local Westenders club shows the group was to head out on a Poker Run afterward, ending up on Capitol Hill this evening, and finishing the rally in Georgetown tomorrow.
(Click photo for larger view)
In North Delridge, the Youngstown Flats development at 26th and Dakota is almost at its full six-story height, as our newest aerial view from West Seattle pilot/photographer Long Bach Nguyen shows. Its 190-plus units are scheduled to open next spring; the design approval and permits originally were obtained under different ownership, and then the project idled – before groundbreaking – until Legacy Partners and Barrientos LLC stepped forward last year. There are two components to the development that you don’t often find – one is that they’re working to turn the SW Dakota “street end” to the north into a pocket park with access to Longfellow Creek; the developers’ latest update mentions that the North Delridge Neighborhood Council is planning to seek a Neighborhood Matching Fund grant to help fix it up, and NDNC is looking for volunteers to be on a project committee – here’s more on their site. The other is their ongoing “artist engagement program”; we reported on one acquired piece in April, and the developers have announced that they’ve chosen two more artists to create work for the lobby – Michael Harrison and encaustic artist Patti Bowman.
11:06 PM: The day’s second “assault with weapons” call for local police/fire. This time, they are still trying to sort out, after about 10 minutes, what, if anything, has actually happened. A caller claimed there had been some kind of fight involving knives near the Super 24 store in the 5400 block of Delridge, but so far, per radio traffic, police haven’t found any sign of it, nor any victim(s). We’re continuing to monitor.
11:15 PM: Still no word of any victims being found – the call has been “closed” on the Fire Department’s 911 log – but police are still searching for suspects reported to be armed with knives.
A food-truck roundup is the latest addition to the lineup for this year’s Delridge Day, now less than two months away. Just in from organizers:
The Delridge Day Planning Committee is on a roll, with several updates for the Delridge Day Festival on August 18th from 11 am-3 pm.
The newest feature to the festival is the Delridge Day Chow Down. It is the first Delridge Food Truck roundup, set to feed festivalgoers. The trucks are: Athena’s (Greek), Jemil’s Big Easy (Cajun), and Full Tilt Ice Cream!
More ahead:Read More
By Tracy Record and Patrick Sand
West Seattle Blog co-publishers
When we saw the agenda for last night’s Delridge Neighborhoods District Council meeting, featuring an SDOT presentation about “Delridge rechannelization,” we expected more information about this – rechannelization planned in connection with Metro Route 120 changes on the north end of Delridge.
Nope.
This presentation was about a new plan for mid-to-south Delridge rechannelization – and as you can see if you watch our video from last night’s meeting, its details surprised the District Council members too:
The South Delridge rechannelization plan, the SDOT reps said, is bundled with the forthcoming resurfacing/repaving of the same stretch, which was most recently detailed during Mayor McGinn‘s Town Hall in The Junction on May 3rd (as mentioned in our report on that meeting).
Read on for details of what the city unveiled last night, including the graphics of what the configurations are supposed to look like for each affected stretch, and news of one block where parking will undergo a dramatic change:Read More
Sister the cat is helping greet visitors at the Cooper Artist Housing loft of Liv Browning, during the open house that continues till 9 tonight. We met Sister and Liv during a quick mid-afternoon visit. The artists really are opening their homes, as well as showing their work. Liv and Sister are on the third floor, as is the stairwell where music and spoken-word performances are scheduled throughout the event:
You’ll see art in many media lining the old Cooper School’s hallways:
And you can visit the nonprofits on the ground floor (like Nature Consortium) or check out demonstrations in the Movement Studio. It’s all happening inside Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, 4408 Delridge Way SW.
Just shared by Ed Pottharst from the Department of Neighborhoods: An announcement from the city that SDOT wants to put new bike racks in south-of-downtown neighborhoods “to help encourage cycling as a form of transportation to our business districts. We would like your help with finding places to install them where they will be most useful …” and the local neighborhoods where they’re seeking ideas are Delridge and South Park. This is NOT for private property, but for “public right-of-way” (sidewalks, for example), and the installation would likely happen late this year or early next year. Got an idea? Contact Doug Cox at SDOT, 206-684-8264 or doug.cox@seattle.gov.
(Police on 16th, north of Roxbury, south of the reported crime scene)
10:33 PM: Police are searching right now in South Delridge for a suspect in what was reported to be a robbery. We don’t have full details yet but we have gone to the scene and can confirm a heavy police presence, including K-9 teams. The scanner indicates one person is being detained and another being sought. More as we get it.
10:44 PM UPDATE: Police at the scene are not saying much but do confirm one person is being questioned and another being sought. They say two people went into a business in the 9400 block of 16th SW and one of them showed a gun; the details of the reported robbery are still being sorted out. No injuries reported; no description made available to us for the person who’s being sought.
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