Alicia shared that photo from 30th/Henderson in Westwood last night, saying it had just “popped up.” (We went over to verify – it’s still there.) Wondering if any specific recent incident had inspired the sign, we checked the city’s “incident response” map; nearest notable crime shown on the map is a burglary attempt early last Tuesday one block east, in which, according to the police report, the victim tried to scare off the suspect, who was reportedly trying to kick their door in, “by yelling for his wife to call the police and get his gun.” The report also says police arrested a suspect nearby.

Salvage work has started at the residential properties that will be demolished to make way for the million-gallon underground tank anchoring the Murray Basin Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Control Project. An update on the CSO project was one of several major items at Wednesday night’s Morgan Community Association meeting:

MURRAY COMBINED SEWER OVERFLOW PROJECT NOW STARTING ‘FINAL DESIGN’: Doug Marsano from the county was back with an update. He recapped the design process to this point. The facility across from Lowman Beach Park will not only cover a million-gallon storage tank but also will include road changes to “calm traffic” on Beach Drive. He showed the “first cut” design shown originally in January, and mentioned multiple rounds of feedback since then. Primary among them: “You need to do more to minimize the industrial look of the facility” and “try to use landscaping to soften the mass and bulk of the facility.”

So “Refined Concept A” (from three concepts first shown in February) came out as the most popular one, so that’s what they are working with, said Marsano. It includes multiple viewpoints and a narrower Beach Drive – the county proposed 34, but the city is suggesting 25 feet. That would still include room for parking, though, he said. Right now, the project is technically at “30 percent design,” but Marsano described it as the “beginning of final design.” They’re still taking comments. Marsano also mentioned that the project is eligible for “1 percent public art,” and the process of working on that is now under way, with a citizen panel working to choose a group of artists to be vetted through interviews to create public art for the facility. They’re down to three, he said – a visual artist, a sculptor, and a “multimedia” artist. No particular spot on the site has been chosen for the art at this point. The next Design Advisory Group meeting is May 10th, 6:30 pm, Fauntleroy Church (9140 California SW). Marsano also mentioned something we had noticed earlier today – salvage work is already under way, with a team going in to salvage as much as possible from the now-empty residential buildings on the future project site. There’s also some hazmat work – asbestos (popcorn ceilings) – that will be happening. The actual “deconstruction” of the buildings, says the county, is expected in late summer.

RAPIDRIDE CONSTRUCTION UPDATE: SDOT‘s Mike Ward and James Sido were there to share information and answer questions about the abundant road and sidewalk work that’s been under way for some weeks now. He recapped that Tri-State Construction is doing work for SDOT – which is partnering with Metro on this – from Fauntleroy/Rose northward (as first reported here). He said the work at Fauntleroy/California should be done within two weeks or so. Concrete was poured there today, MoCA board members noted. Some of the cement is being replaced with a material called Pozzolans that has a lower carbon footprint – one downside, it takes a week to cure, Ward explained. He said the RapidRide work should be done by “early summer,” with SW Yancy/Avalon being the “last zone we’re going to work on,” and Bradford/Avalon on the southbound side of the street. Wiring work is expected in May to June for the stops and shelters so they can start testing the timing in June-July, fine-tuning how the route information signs work, etc. P.S. Look for a model RapidRide bus at the Morgan Junction Community Festival on June 23rd – more on the festival plans later in this report.

MoCA board member Chas Redmond asked about plans for restoring the street where gas-line work has been done, along California SW, before all this; Ward said he would check with the street-maintenance division. Meeting attendees suggested that better markings are needed for drivers headed westbound on Fauntleroy approaching California, where the channelization will change because of the RapidRide work on the south side of Zeeks Pizza. Next question was regarding eastbound traffic on Fauntleroy at California and how signal timing would be changed so that the big RapidRide bus isn’t the only vehicle that will get through the light. Ward said they do NOT have “transit signal priority” there but did say they’re talking about “re-phasing” the signal. More construction concerns came from a meeting attendee who said she lives at Strata on the southeast corner of California/Graham. Ward also said the rechannelization of SW Alaska between 35th and California is expected to happen in May – and will take about four days of work, hopefully starting on a Monday and wrapping up on the following Thursday. The signs are being worked on right now. One other question that came up, though not in the Morgan area: Is the structure going in on the southeast corner of Alaska/Fauntleroy going to be a stop or a station? The map on a flyer circulated at the meeting says stop, but Ward said it’s meant to be a station.

7th ANNUAL MORGAN JUNCTION COMMUNITY FESTIVAL: June 23rd is the day and since this was the last quarterly MoCA meeting before then, Redmond provided an update – “The festival’s growing; it’s all local … a fun family day,” he summarized. Like years past, there will be multiple locations on both sides of California – the east side of California, by Washington Federal Savings, will include kids’ activities, as well as related vendors … Music will start at 10:30 am on the main stage; Bubbleman will be back, at about 11:30 am in Morgan Junction Park, which also will feature music throughout the day, alternating with the main stage area, including the return of the Tongan choir from Seaview Methodist Church (scheduled for 3:30 pm); the Bite of Morgan will have more food this year; and again, “pretty much everything is free.” They’re getting lots of support from local merchants, said president Deb Barker, who pointed out that many new businesses have opened in the area in the past year, many in the “live-work” buildings along the west side of California north of SW Graham.

MORGAN SPRING CLEAN? To take advantage of assistance available from the city for groups that want to do these cleanups, MoCA president Deb Barker is thinking about organizing this type of event – she’s checking into dates and locations, but it apparently would have to happen before the end of May, as part of the city’s parameters.

SEATTLE SUMMER STREETS: Almost every community group in West Seattle has had a presentation this winter/spring from SDOT regarding Summer Streets – car-free day – coming up on Alki May 20th. Sonia Palma was at MoCA Wednesday night. The street party’s details are starting to firm up – she said it will include a youth chess tournament with the famous “Officer Cookie” from Rainier Valley (who has done this in other neighborhoods); SPD also will sponsor a kids’ bike parade and will have officers available for “chats”; something else new – Alki Art Fair organizers will bring artists for demonstrations; she reiterated that the street closure will only run between 56th and 63rd again this year, once the West Seattle 5K is over at 11 (the run/walk will close the waterfront road all the way to Don Armeni Boat Ramp, starting at 8 am).

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS/UPDATES: Gathering of Neighbors is this Saturday, April 21st, and while MoCA won’t have a table, two of its board members (Redmond and Cindi Barker) are among the volunteers helping with the event … May 19th is a preparedness drill … Through Seattle reLeaf, “tree ambassadors” are being sought by the city of Seattle … President Deb Barker mentioned help needed for hole-digging at Walking on Logs this Saturday (as reiterated here earlier this week), to pave the way for its “woodland glen” makeover (75 aspen trees, among others, which will be planted the following Saturday, April 28) … Linda Cox from Kiwanis Club of West Seattle mentioned that West Seattle Thriftway (WSB sponsor) in Morgan Junction is one of the local spots for this Saturday’s Kiwanis food drive – when you go in, pick up something extra, then drop it off on the way out, 9 am-3 pm Saturday … MoCA needs a secretary. The role involves taking minutes for the group’s four quarterly meetings, just eight volunteer hours a year – volunteer via contact info on morganjunction.org!

NEXT MoCA MEETING: July 18 – watch morganjunction.org for updates.

What would make our neighborhood a great place to live in 2020?

The GSNC is embarking on a neighborhood Vision 2020 planning process, and we want YOUR input and involvement! Please come to our next meeting and share your ideas with us:
• What do you like about our neighborhood now?
• What short- and long-term changes would you like to see?*

Thursday, April 26, 2012
6:30-7 p.m. Social Time (refreshments will be served)
7-8:30 p.m. Meeting (with lots of time for input and perhaps a speaker or two)
Howell Auditorium, West Side Presbyterian Church, 3601 California Avenue SW

* Some areas to think about:
Social events, parks, communication, traffic improvements, beautification projects, education and support, crime prevention, emergency preparedness, gardening, policy, shared interests/resources, volunteer opportunities

For more information (including a map), please visit our website at www.genesee-schmitz.org. If you would like to be added to our mailing list, please send your name and email address to gsncouncil@gmail.com

CRIME TRENDS: Community Police Team Officer Ken Mazzuca says Admiral and vicinity currently isn’t standing out as a particular “hot spot” for property crime, though there have been a few auto thefts in the past month. “Call data” for the past month has been “fairly low,” he said, including “reportable accidents” – damage above $750. Many calls in the area are actually initiated by officers, doing “park checks” at places like Hamilton Viewpoint during hours when the parks are supposed to be closed, according to Officer Mazzuca. Of course, he cautioned, “the weather hasn’t really drawn out the crowds yet” in terms of warm-weather problems such as underage drinking, though he acknowledged that Alki activity has “picked up the last couple days” because of the weather. They’ve been working with other city agencies such as SDOT and Parks to clean up areas where transients have been living – under bridges, for example. And they’ve been watching vacant homes – most of which turn out to have been foreclosed on – to get or keep squatters out, though he said there are “so many” that sometimes it’s tough to track down the owners. He said the same thing his colleagues have said in different forums – if you see something suspicious or have an ongoing concern, call 911. ANA’s David Whiting asked about the always-a-hot-topic speed limit on Admiral Way hill – does it work? Yes, said Mazzuca, adding it always reminds him to slow down too, and he believes “the speeds have come down considerably” as a result of both education and enforcement.

CRIME PREVENTION: Officer Mazzuca handed the baton to Crime Prevention Coordinator Mark Solomon, saying nothing is as effective as neighbors getting organized and being watchful – they will notice problems before police, because they know their neighborhoods. “You know (that) – we don’t, because we don’t live there,” Solomon said. “If you don’t tell us, we don’t know, and if you don’t call, we’re not coming.” He also reminded everyone that “most residential burglaries happen during the day” – so know who’s home during the day. He’s the guy to contact if you want to set up a Block Watch (here’s how). ANA president Katy Walum noted that two members suggested last month that an ANA Crime Prevention Committee would be a good idea – and that they could regularly attend the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council (next meeting one week from tonight) on ANA’s behalf. Solomon summed it up, “You don’t have to get all up in your neighbors’ business – but at least get to know each other,” and that will make for a stronger community. Wave and say hi when you see ANYONE on your street – whether you know them or not – if it’s a stranger, that lets them know, if needed, that you acknowledge their presence and if they do anything wrong, you’re watching. He also pitched Night Out – first Tuesday in August – as well as the West Seattle Blockwatch Captains’ Network, which meets on the 4th Tuesday of each month.

WEST SEATTLE HELPLINE: Now that Helpline’s Clothesline clothing bank has moved to the Admiral area (as reported here), executive director Tara Byrne came to ANA to tell them more about what WSH does. The Clothesline alone “gives out $70,000 worth of clothes a year” to people in economic emergencies, she explained, adding that the Admiral move has drawn new support from local businesses, such as Merrill Gardens-Admiral Heights (WSB sponsor) and Umpqua Bank. Accompanying Tara was Helpline team member Nadine, who said they can use volunteer help and clothing donations. The new location can’t accept dropoff donations but their office at 35th/Morgan can, according to Nadine, and they accept monetary donations through their website. You can also get tickets for their upcoming Taste of West Seattle fundraiser at The Hall at Fauntleroy on May 17th – Tara said more than 50 food/beverage establishments are participating this year – they had to turn some away! – and they’re selling VIP tickets (half-hour early admission, $80) as well as regular admission ($40). The Helpline has been serving about 3,000 people a year, according to Tara. “We’re about neighbors helping neighbors,” she summarized. ANA will explore other ways to team up with and help Helpline, given its new Admiral ties.

LIFELONG RECREATION: ANA heard from Roberta Fowler of the Lifelong Recreation Advisory Council, who talked about the Lifelong Recreation courses and programs, geared for people 50 and over, at city-run community centers and swimming pools around the city. “The benefits of seniors staying active has been proven in many studies,” she observed. She also said they’re trying to schedule more programs in the early evening, especially to reach those on the younger end of the demographic, since historically the seniors’ programs have been in the morning and afternoon, but that puts them all but off-limits to people who have not yet retired. (You can see the LR program’s spring brochure in PDF form here.)

COMMITTEE UPDATES: This is where the ANA dreams-turned-reality updates came in. One project come to fruition in the past year is the new Admiral District business organization; vice president Kirk Mead from Umpqua Bank presented an update; he’s the vice president, Parris Sadow of Atomic Boys is president, Eric Renn of CrossFit West Seattle and Krystal Kelley of Mind Unwind are secretaries, and Jay Wergin of Heartland Café/Benbow Room is treasurer. They’ll have a logo and slogan soon, he said. The group will meet again in May (it usually meets on the second Monday). They were heartened to see the success of last Saturday’s egg hunt at Life Care Center of West Seattle (WSB sponsor). In response to a question, Mead said that the group has not yet decided whether to seek “business improvement area” status (which for example is what The Junction has). … The slate for this year’s Summer Concerts at Hiawatha will be announced next month, and Walum says ANA has received a much larger grant than in the past to help fund the event and promotion. There will be a barbecue at the August 23rd concert as a community-center benefit, to try to raise a little money in the face of ongoing budget shortfalls. “So come hungry,” said Walum. The community centers’ combined egg hunt last Saturday is one of the things the combined, staff-reduced West Seattle Community Centers have tried (a debriefing is coming up, said a community-center rep at the meeting; she added that 1,600 people turned out for it). The mention of the benefit barbecue kicked off a discussion of why local restaurants aren’t selling food at the concerts (one answer: they haven’t sponsored the concert series; another, there’s a lot of red tape, and Parks would take a share of the proceeds). Mead suggested they could revisit the issue by talking again with local restaurants.

COMING UP: In the Admiral District, VP de Jong said, West Seattle High School and Madison Middle School are two of the locations for the Democratic Party caucuses at 1 pm Sunday (more information on the 34th District Democrats‘ site).

The Admiral Neighborhood Association meets the second Tuesday of the month, 7 pm, in Admiral Congregational Church‘s lower-level meeting room.

Complete news release:

Puget Sound Area Police and Fire Marine Units to Participate in a Multi Agency, Open Water Search and Rescue Drill with the Coast Guard.

What: Northwest Maritime Rescue, a subsidiary of Puget Sound Dive Charters, together with Exotic Aquatics, will be hosting their second annual multi agency open water search and rescue drill. This yearʼs drill is based on emergency cases that have occurred on the Puget Sound throughout the past year. This drill is designed to give local law enforcement, fire rescue, and Coast Guard marine units an opportunity to work in together in a multi-agency setting. The units will be working together along with Coast Guard helicopters to implement a variety of maritime emergencies on both the open water and limited access coastline areas. The following agencies are participating in this drill; Bainbridge Island Police Department, Bainbridge Island Fire Department, Suquamish Police Department, Washington State Fish and Wildlife, Poulsbo Police Department, Poulsbo Fire Department, Coast Guard Station Seattle, and Coast Guard Air Station Port Angeles.

Northwest Maritime Rescue was created to provide training opportunities for Law Enforcement and Fire Rescue Units throughout the Puget Sound in order to make our waters safer for everyone. Northwest Maritime Rescue aims to expand their training opportunities to the recreational boating community and offers courses in search and rescue, boater safety, navigation, water survival, CPR/AED, and remote first aid.

When: Monday, March 26th, 12:00 PM

Where: On Puget Sound, near Blakely Rock, which is just off the southeast coast of Bainbridge Island. [map] The drill will commence in the area between Restoration Point and Eagle Harbor. Depending on weather conditions, the drill activities may be seen from Alki Beach in West Seattle and both Blakely and Eagle Harbor areas of Bainbridge Island. The area of operation for this drill is between two major ferry routes; the Seattle to Bainbridge run as well as the Seattle to Bremerton. We expect the event to generate a lot of curiosity from not only ferry passengers, but residents in the area both from King and Kitsap County.

Neighbors of Emma Schmitz Park and Me-Kwa-Mooks Park will gather at 7 p.m. tonight, Sunday, March 18, for a walk and vigil to remember Greggette Guy and to claim the park as a safe public space. Please join us at the north end of the park, on the waterfront side of Beach Drive at 7 p.m. Bring flashlights and candles although it will still be light at the beginning of the walk. We’ll walk the length of the park together. We’ll anyone who needs company walking home. Please join us.

We have been following up with police, but so far they have no new information to report, and continue to request any and all tips that might help them solve the mystery of who killed Ms. Guy, who is believed to have come to the area for a waterfront walk last Sunday evening. On Thursday, they published this photo of her car, found Monday at Emma Schmitz Overlook:

That’s close to where the vigil/walk will start tonight (here’s a map). In a report published Saturday, Beach Drive Blog shows why there have long been concerns in the area.

(WSB photo of Sherri Chun speaking to participants before last year’s 4th of July parade)
The longtime coordinator of the 4th of July Kids’ Parade, which has grown far beyond its origins as a fun little North Admiral event, is asking the Admiral Neighborhood Association to consider taking it over. At Wednesday night’s ANA meeting (a day later than usual, to avoid a Valentine-night conflict), Sherri Chun came to talk about the parade’s past, present and future. That, and other toplines from the meeting, ahead:

4TH OF JULY PARADE: First a bit of backstory – this is the only 4th of July parade in West Seattle, but it’s not the classic “floats and marching bands” type of parade; hundreds of kids and their families come from all over the peninsula to walk and ride (bicycles, scooters, strollers, wagons) the route through residential streets in North Admiral. No preregistration – they just show up, and everybody gets to be in it. (Here’s our report from last year, with video.)

Chun said it had largely originated with a group of parents who knew each other from Holy Rosary School and had worked with the school to help with underwriting and miscellaneous costs. It’s grown to the point, though – in costs as well as participation – that starting in 2013, a group/organization of some kind will have to be involved; people who contact her about it now have expectations of organization and structure that just didn’t exist when it was a casual little neighborhood event put on by an informal group of parents. With the Admiral Neighborhood Association’s growing prominence in the area – it’s also participated in the after-parade gathering at Hamilton Viewpoint the past few years – Chun thought it might be a natural fit to take over the event.

ANA president Katy Walum agreed that in concept, it seems like a fit, while noting that her group already has one huge public event to manage each summer, the Summer Concerts at Hiawatha series (which, by the way, has dozens of applicants for this year’s lineup, she said later). Bottom line – ANA isn’t saying “no” to the parade, but needs to discuss the idea further. Meantime, Chun made it clear, the parade is NOT in jeopardy for this year – July 4, 2012, is a go, and she’s set to organize it again – she’s looking to hand it off for 2013 and beyond.

ADMIRAL DISTRICT BUSINESS ASSOCIATION: The ANA got this group launched, and now it’s ready to fly solo, Walum reported, after electing its own slate of officers this week:

President – Parris Sadow (Atomic Boys)
Vice President – Kirk Mead (Umpqua Bank)
Treasurer – Jay Wergin (Heartland Café)
Secretary – Krystal Kelley (Mind Unwind)/Eric Renn (West Seattle Crossfit)

The merchants’ group also had a recent networking meet-and-greet at the Benbow Room, with big participation, hailed as a success.

One other note: Mead and ANA’s David Whiting, who has worked for months on helping get the merchants’ group off the ground, talked about an Admiral survey by the city’s Office of Economic Development. Its findings included a conclusion that the two major draws for the business district are its three grocery stores (Metropolitan Market and PCC Natural Markets [WSB sponsors] and the new Admiral Safeway) and its restaurants/bars.

HAMILTON VIEWPOINT CONCERNS: An area resident came to the meeting to bring up concerns about the viewpoint park – including voluminous litter (she brought a sample) and the fact that it’s becoming “Party Central” on weekends. Some others at the meeting suggested it’s more like “Party Central” every day of the week. They subsequently discussed talking with local police about more patrols at the park – and that segued into a discussion of the Block Watch program (got yours yet? info’s here).

Next month, ANA will be back to its regular meeting night, 2nd Tuesday of the month – 7 pm, lower-level meeting room at Admiral Congregational Church, California/Hill.

Other major agenda items included an update on design of the Murray CSO-control project across from Lowman Beach Park, and upcoming electrical-cable work in Gatewood. Read on for details:

MORGAN JUNCTION PARK SAFETY: Southwest Precinct Community Police Team Officer Ken Mazzuca was at the meeting. Regarding the shooting itself, he couldn’t comment because of the “ongoing investigation” (latest WSB coverage, here). Regarding park concerns, several attendees asked about drinking in the park and “aggressive panhandling” across the street. Not only is alcohol use – which is illegal in the park – a problem, it’s starting earlier and earlier in the day, they said. Officer Mazzuca said they would patrol the area more closely, and provided his contact information (which you can find on the CPT webpage) for citizens to report specific concerns directly.

LOWMAN BEACH CSO PROJECT: After seven meetings to discuss the design of the site where a million-gallon storage tank will be installed to reduce sewer overflows, Doug Marzano from King County brought some of the renderings. You can see them all here (including the one above) – note that there is not a final design yet. Two notes of interest include “traffic calming” for the stretch of Beach Drive between the facility and Lowman Beach Park, and plans for public access on the storage site – the tank is now envisioned as a circular design, which the county says would free up a little more of the surface as greenspace. (P.S. We asked county spokesperson Annie Kolb-Nelson a few followups while writing this story – she says they are still negotiating with the owners of four of the six properties at the project site; the other two have been purchased, including the one where the bogus Craiglist sale was advertised earlier this month – more security measures are in the works, she says. Seven of 15 tenants in the site properties have been relocated already and the others, she says, are on schedule for relocation by April. Demolition work is expected in late spring/early summer, but a contractor hasn’t been chosen.)

GATEWOOD CABLE WORK: Seattle City Light reps presented a briefing on silicon reinforcement of underground electrical cables in north Gatewood. There’s some info (including a map) on their website; they say a community meeting is in the works to discuss what happens next, with about a tenth of the targeted cables still needing work.

MYRTLE RESERVOIR PARK: MoCA president Deb Barker noted that the large chain-link fence that was up for most of the construction project has been replaced by what appears to be the permanent fence for certain off-limits-to-the-public parts of the park – a lower black-chain-link fence.

DATE SET FOR THIS YEAR’S FESTIVAL: The Morgan Junction Community Festival just keeps growing. Go ahead and mark your calendar for this year’s date – it’s June 23rd, with the time frame roughly 10 am-6 pm.

The next MoCA meeting will be in April; watch for info at morganjunction.org.

(Star Anna & The Laughing Dogs at 2011 Summer Concerts @ Hiawatha finale)
We’re proud to have been a sponsor of the Admiral Neighborhood Association‘s Summer Concerts at Hiawatha each year since the series began – and tonight, we have word that ANA is tuning up for the fourth season of free outdoor performances on the east lawn at Hiawatha Community Center! ANA president Katy Walum has just put out the call for interested bands:

The Admiral Neighborhood Association is putting out the call for bands to apply to perform for our 2012 Summer Concert Series at Hiawatha Park! The series will again run Thursday evenings, 6:30-8pm, on the park’s east lawn. This summer’s dates will be July 26th, August 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, and 30th.

Interested bands may e-mail us at info@admiralneighborhood.org. Please include with your message (1) a website or other means by which we may listen to samples of your music, (2) dates you are available, (3) your band’s price for a 90-minute set (please take into consideration that we are a community organization with a fairly limited budget, and that there is value in the great exposure your band could receive as a part of our series – last year’s series drew crowds of up to 1500 people per show), and (4) stage size and/or sound requirements for your group.

Our series last year included performances from The Gothard Sisters, Massy Ferguson, Caspar Babypants, LeRoy Bell, Star Anna & The Laughing Dogs, and Yogoman Burning Band. Highlights of prior seasons included Pearl Django with Greta Matassa, Camille Bloom, Swamp Soul (zydeco), and Alma Villegas (Latin jazz). We strive in our series to provide a range of musical genres that can appeal to all members of our community.

We welcome band recommendations from WS Blog readers, though it is helpful if readers can include as much of the above requested information as possible with their notes.

We also invite local businesses and others to sponsor our 2012 Summer Concert Series. This is an opportunity for folks to support a fantastic community event and to gain substantial exposure for their business! Please e-mail us (again at info@admiralneighborhood.org) to find out more about sponsorship levels and benefits available this year.

Thanks so much, and we look forward to bringing more fabulous music to Admiral/West Seattle in 2012!

Katy Walum
President, Admiral Neighborhood Association

(The association does a lot more than sponsor concerts, of course, and if you’re an Admiral resident/businessperson interested in seeing what ANA is up to, check out its next monthly meeting this Tuesday, 7 pm, lower-level meeting room at Admiral Church, California/Hill.)

Admiral won’t lose as much Metro bus service as the first draft of the transit service’s “restructuring” plan proposed.

That’s what lead planner Jack Lattemann told the Admiral Neighborhood Association tonight, in the first public update on what’s happening since the public-comment period for that draft plan closed. The “restructuring” is planned in connection with next fall’s debut of RapidRide service in West Seattle (which will replace the 54).

And they got plenty of public comments, he said: 3,000 people took the online questionnaire; another 1,000 people provided non-online written comments. As an Admiral-specific result, he said, “I can assure you that we are going to submit a revised proposal that will include some level of bus service on California 7 days a week all the way as far north as Atlantic Street … it looks like that is going to be feasible,” said Lattemann. “We’ll have a second round of proposals out in about a month.”

That round will include another series of community meetings, he said, likely in the first two weeks of February. He says other “concepts” from the draft circulated online and at public open houses (including two in West Seattle) are being revised in response to public comments, too.

One option for that could be extending Route 128, Lattemann said, and that route already is up for an extension with service at least until midnight – California and Admiral both will be served at least that late, he said. (It also, he said, is up for the addition of two afternoon trips to help with the student load at those times.)

“The other possibility is Route 40, a new route we proposed from Alaska Junction to Georgetown, a new east-west route … to save people quite a lot of time,” he said. While it was proposed to end at The Junction, “it’s possible we could extend it farther north,” he said.

His bottom line: “I wanted to let people know, your comments have had an impact … stay tuned.”

He also wanted to be clear, though, that Metro is not talking about the status quo (the 51 and 53 are still proposed for elimination because they’re not performing up to expectations), but they’re looking at other combinations of service to cover more of North Admiral, and to cover late night. “We need to settle on what’s the routing pattern” before they know what stops might be dropped, he said, in response to a question. “In some cases, bus stops could be shifted,” he said, perhaps 3 could be changed to two. The guidelines are “every 1200 to 1500 feet,” he noted, averaging 4 per mile.

He also indicated they’ve noted public comments about safety hazards at road crossings near some bus stops, including some he said he had read about here on WSB. Dakota/California, in particular, came up, because he had mentioned The Junction, and then ANA members made sure that 47th/Admiral (scene of the 2006 pedestrian death that inspired their recent demonstration/tribute) was on his radar too.

ANA vice president Karl de Jong reminded Lattemann that saying “there’s a bus stop within a mile” means different things depending on where in West Seattle you are, given the topography – a flat mile is not equal to a hilly mile.

So what changed to enable Metro to pull back on some cuts? ANA president Katy Walum asked. Lattemann said he hadn’t supported everything in the proposal that was circulated, but the directive was for it to be taken to the public for comment, so that’s what they did. “I’m a believer in takng care of existing riders before (new ones),” he noted. “I asked the staff to take another look, and so they are.” But where’s the money coming from? Walum pressed. “There are lots of choices in running this transit system,” replied Lattemann.

However, he then tempered that statement, there’s no new funding – the decisions all have to be made with the “same pot” in mind. At that point, we asked about Route 37, which was proposed for the chopping block, leaving Beach Drive without service. Lattemann said they are looking at options for possibly keeping “some level of service” in that area – not what there is now, but something, rather than leaving Beach Drive busless. Again, it’s all in the works now, and the next proposal will be out in time for that second round of public meetings he expects to happen in about two months.

After Walum summarized Lattemann’s comments as “good news,” he said it might be better termed as “hopeful news.”

(Note that this was not a formal briefing on the entire West Seattle proposal; Metro was invited to update the Admiral group, and that’s what Lattemann focused on.)

Also at tonight’s ANA meeting: The group is drafting a list of its 2011 accomplishments, for distribution at events as well as via its website, so that people know it’s not just “the group that sponsors the concerts.” One of those accomplishments is facilitating the launch of the Admiral District’s new business association, which has been continuing to gather steam since the gathering we covered back in September.

In the year ahead, the group wants to get more involved with volunteering for area nonprofits, particularly ones working in the Admiral area; if you know of one that could use occasional help from their group, contact ANA via their website. Speaking of which:

The ANA is on the web here, and on Facebook here. Its meetings are usually on second Tuesdays, 7 pm, in the basement meeting room at Admiral Congregational Church.

Generosity abounds all over! Today we met these folks, who live along 45th SW between Edmunds and Erskine, just west of the south end of The Junction, after finding out that they have a tradition of cleaning up the neighborhood this time of year. Marilyn Wolf explained, “Whomever is available comes out and sweeps up the leaves on the whole block. The city donates the bags and some supplies and come and pick up all the bags for free when we are done. We also check all the drains in a 4-block radius and make sure they are cleaned by the city to cut down on run off. This is part of the city’s fall clean-up and adopt-a-drain program.” And after those blasts of wind earlier this week – clearing the storm drain is a big help in any neighborhood. (You can find out more about Adopt-A-Drain here.)

“We’re an urban village. Urban villages are supposed to have bus service.”

So said one attendee at Tuesday night’s Admiral Neighborhood Association meeting, voicing opposition to the Metro restructuring proposal that could end Route 55 service in North Admiral.

Though there wasn’t a formal topic or presentation, the proposed Metro restructuring for next year, to be launched in conjunction with the debut of RapidRide, was a hot topic. Attendees were urged to speak up at Metro’s two West Seattle meetings about “restructuring” – the first of which is tonight (6:30 pm, Chief Sealth International High School). And ANA will draft a letter objecting to the prospective elimination of North Admiral service, while also extending an invitation for a Metro rep to speak at its December meeting.

“Can we make a trade for light rail?” somebody quipped.

“I’m a big fan of mass transit and I want to see it succeed,” said outgoing ANA secretary Jim Cavin. He, by the way, was the lone group leader not to be running in the election that also happened during last night’s meeting, along with a discussion of two potentially big events the group is planning before the year’s out – a tribute, and a tree lighting:

ELECTIONS: President Katy Walum, Vice President Karl de Jong, and Treasurer Ann Limbaugh were re-elected, unopposed. Sylvia Rolle was elected as the new Secretary, with Cavin stepping down.

REMEMBERING TATSUO NAKATA: He’s the City Council staffer killed in late 2006 at 47th/Admiral, where ANA plans an event in his memory, as it continues to lobby for safety improvements at the intersection, which they’ve been told is 13th on the list for a light. “Still not good enough,” says Walum. “Somebody has already died in that intersection, (hit by a driver) driving too fast and talking on their cell phone.” So they are planning a tribute the morning of November 28th, in connection with the fifth anniversary of Nakata’s death (which actually happened in mid-November 2006). They hope to have schoolchildren, neighbors, anyone and everyone concerned about safety, be part of it, while promising it will be “an educational and lawful event; we’re not trying to get in trouble, we’re trying to draw attention to it.” Watch for more details, including signmaking the night before at Alki Mail and Dispatch.

BUSINESS COMMITTEE – AND A TREE? Walum recapped the second meeting of the new group to organize Admiral businesses, which has already created subcommittees. One big thing: They’re looking at putting together the first-ever Admiral District Holiday Tree Lighting. No date or details yet, but they’re definitely hoping to pull it off for THIS year, saying the tree that would be used is between the Admiral Theater and Porterhouse Pub.

ADMIRAL TREATS AND TREASURES: Best-attended yet, president Walum says she heard from a couple business owners – including, she says, Alki Bike and Board, which reported handing out 1,100 pieces of candy! “It just keeps getting better and better.”

SEEKING NONPROFIT STATUS: With the events that ANA has been organizing, it’s become clearer the group needs official nonprofit status (501c3), and is seeking it – but looking for help in getting it organized, and help with accounting once it’s in motion.

Admiral Neighborhood Association meetings traditionally start with going around the table to find out who’s on hand, and there were a few guests, including:

ALKI ART FAIR VISITOR: Fred Madrid from the Alki Art Fair board – which is carrying on with the annual event despite the loss of official Parks Department support – visited ANA tonight for “outreach,” as the volunteer board looks ahead to growing the event.

UMPQUA BANK VISITOR: “You’re my new neighbors,” said Kirk Mead, explaining his visit as manager of the brand-new Umpqua Bank (WSB sponsor) branch next to the rebuilt Admiral Safeway. He also explained Umpqua’s ongoing contest to show some love for your favorite local businesses – get started on the Umpqua Facebook page.

ANA meets the second Tuesday of the month, 7 pm, in the lower-level meeting room at Admiral Congregational Church (California/Hill), and is online at admiralneighborhood.org.