West Seattle, Washington
28 Thursday
Back in July, we reported that the King County Water Taxi had found enough money to continue its West Seattle run through December, but money for the first few months of the year hadn’t been secured yet. Now, it has. Just announced in King County Councilmember Jan Drago‘s e-mail newsletter, the Water Taxi will continue uninterrupted – though the months of November through March will be morning/evening commute hours only. More details here. 4:05 PM UPDATE: Drago staffer Jodie Vice explains that the funding for this winter was freed up when the county got a Puget Sound Regional Council grant for maintenance work; since the maintenance already was in the budget, the money could be moved to operations. For at least the two following winters, she says, it’ll be covered by state funding given to the county for mitigation of Alaskan Way Viaduct construction effects. P.S. Speaking of maintenance – don’t do a doubletake if you see a different Water Taxi next Friday through Wednesday – the Rachel Marie is going in for some work, and the Spirit of Kingston will replace it, no schedule changes.
It’s been the hottest topic before the Fauntleroy Community Association board for months – the originally proposed design of the RapidRide bus stops by the Fauntleroy ferry dock, and concern the design could choke traffic — and it looks like there’s finally some progress. Tonight at Fauntleroy Schoolhouse, FCA saw a new proposal presented by Metro’s Paul Roybal and Jack Lattemann, incorporating some of the group’s counterproposals. This one only has a curb bulb on the water side, only affecting northbound traffic – but it would also remove some of the parking in the park-and-ride lot. The revised plan would try to preserve the existing artwork at the bus stops, add a bike locker, and try to keep the traffic lanes more open. In discussion after an hourlong presentation, the FCA board decided they’ll draft a letter to Metro and King County Executive Dow Constantine saying they’re in favor of the revision and against the original plan (which was thoroughly explained on page 2 of FCA’s summer newsletter). FCA’s Susan Lantz-Dey got props for taking on a traffic study to make sure the county was dealing with accurate numbers – board members including Vlad Oustimovitch and president Bruce Butterfield thought that had helped move toward the changes.
The meeting also included an update on another long-thorny topic, a disputed path to lower Laurentide, and ongoing struggles over right-of-way access; a South Brace Point rep said their lawyer had found a 1945 easement filed by Ken Colman that covers the path, so the two sides are now in talks. Last but by no means least, the Fauntleroy Fall Festival is just one month away, 2-6 pm October 17th (with a fundraising pasta dinner this Friday); in addition to food, fun and festivities, nurses from Swedish will be there offering flu shots.
The Fauntleroy Community Association board meets the 2nd Tuesday of the month, 7 pm, The Hall at Fauntleroy (old schoolhouse).
Just in from the state Department of Transportation – a call to help with an official count of bicyclists and walkers in early October – read on for the announcement, and how you can sign up to help:Read More
We’d heard a bit about West Seattle’s “Green Bikes” but hadn’t come across one for a WSB photo-op till Jason Grotelueschen photographed the one shown in our photos – then today, they got a citywide spotlight on Slog (read the story here; thanks to Max for the link). They’re donated and fixed-up bikes you can borrow (if you come across one); Guy Olson is leading the West Seattle Green Bikes effort and has a Facebook group for it here if you want to find out more.
(Click graphic to enlarge – sketch of new Admiral plan)
Less than four months after we first reported the city was looking at “rechannelization” – also known as a “road diet” – on Admiral Way north of The Bridge, the decision is in. Just arrived via news release, this announcement – no lane reductions:
After hearing from the community and conducting additional analysis, the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) today announced changes to SW Admiral Way to improve pedestrian and bicycle safety without impacting existing vehicle travel lanes.
SW Admiral Way will be restriped between SW City View St and SW Manning St in September 2010. After the work is complete, the 0.7 mile stretch will feature the existing two travel lanes for each direction along with a bike lane with a striped buffer on the northbound (uphill) side of the roadway and shared lane markings in the outside southbound (downhill) lane. A pedestrian crossing island will be constructed at SW City View St to accommodate pedestrians crossing SW Admiral Way to the Metro transit stop on the west side of the roadway. On-street parking will remain on the east side of the roadway north of City View, while underutilized parking will be removed south of City View to accommodate the two travel lanes and the buffered bike lane.
This decision is based on current and future traffic conditions on the corridor, recommendations in the Pedestrian and Bicycle Master plans, and community input received via letters, phone calls and the July 13 open house [WSB coverage here]. The final roadway layout carefully reflects the needs of motorists, freight, transit, bicycles, pedestrians and emergency response. Additional information about the changes, to include frequently asked questions and plans for the project, can be found on the project’s Web site at:
http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/bikeprojects/sw_admiral_way.htm
That page says the work will start “mid-to-late September.” If that still leaves you wondering, so what’s really going to change? here’s the bottom line from the project website:
WHAT WE PLAN TO DO
* Maintain the existing 4 vehicle travel lanes
* Install a pedestrian median crossing island at SW City View
* Install a 5 foot wide uphill bike lane with a 2 foot wide painted buffer
* Add shared lane markings (sharrows) to the outside, downhill lane.
* Remove parking south of SW City View St to maintain existing travel lanes and add the uphill bicycle lane
(Photo by Jason Grotelueschen)
Two months and one day after the shutdown of the old South Park Bridge (WSB video coverage here), the first major part of the demolition work has begun – King County Department of Transportation confirms that one of its “leaves” (the actual drawbridge sections) will “be detached and lowered onto a barge sometime this afternoon.” The KCDOT announcement continues:
Prior to removal, nine steel cuts will be required to separate the leaf from the remainder of the bridge. Once the cuts have been made, the leaf will slowly be lowered onto the barge. This work is extremely complicated and may take a few hours to complete.
This process will be repeated when the second leaf is removed over the next few days. Both leaves will then be barged to another site for salvage and recycling.
During this first demolition phase, crews have also been demolishing vacant structures on county-owned property adjacent to the bridge to accommodate future construction staging. The work will set the stage for future construction of a new South Park Bridge when a funding package is in place.
UPDATE 4:40 PM: As of this afternoon there is still not a whole lot of movement as work progresses slowly. Jason Grotelueschen staked out the bridge this afternoon, reporting only an occasional drizzle and a few showers of sparks, as workers continued to make cuts in the steel. Here’s one more photo from Jason, with a closer view of workers on aerial lifts:
6:30 AM (Wed) UPDATE: According to eyewitness reports and the YourSouthPark newsgroup, the “South Park side of the bridge” was finally dismantled and lowered safely onto a barge below, at around 7 pm last night (see photos from SeattlePI.com). The other side of the bridge should be removed by later this week.
(Photographed Saturday, August 28th by Christopher Boffoli)
We had reported last week that some of the leaves of the now-closed South Park Bridge might be removed this week, as the process of taking apart the bridge begins.
We asked Linda Thielke, spokesperson for the King County Department of Transportation, if that might be happening today, and the answer is “no.”
From Thielke:
They are still doing prep work. Looks like the earliest it could be dismantled is mid-afternoon on Tuesday, but that is still a bit tentative.
1:42 PM UPDATE: Another update from Thielke, with the caveat that this plan could certainly change by tomorrow:
Looks like the barge with the crane will move in tomorrow morning. Then, there’s the work to hook the crane with the leaf. So, the lift is looking more like happening late afternoon Tuesday.
When the Aurora Bridge Fence Project affected traffic on northbound 99 last Sunday, we heard from West Seattleites who got stuck in backups – so we’re passing along the advisory that just came in for THIS Sunday, in case you were planning to use 99 – which will have closures in both directions that day – read on:Read More
Three South Park notes tonight, 2 related to the closure of its old bridge almost two months ago: First, the official application has been sent off in hopes of a federal grant to complete funding of a new bridge. King County is asking for $36 million in the TIGER II grant process; the first TIGER process is the one in which its $95 million request was denied, but the county says it’s done many things differently this time; read more here. Meantime, the process of taking apart the existing, permanently-out-of-commission bridge enters a new phase next week, and the county wants to be sure you’re not startled to see the bridge’s leaves moving for the first time since the June 30 closure – they’ll be raised and lowered as part of the process of getting ready for their dismantling within the next few weeks.Last but not least, you’re invited to a big event at Duwamish Waterway Park in South Park tomorrow – a community garage sale and barbecue, 11 am-3 pm, also featuring kids’ craft activities, entertainment, and kayaking. It’s a fundraiser to establish Wi-Fi access along South Park’s 14th Avenue South retail corridor. Here’s a map to the park (7900 10th Ave. S.)
SDOT‘s out with another one of those big-event traffic-alert roundups – including the SW Webster shutdown (west of Delridge) on Saturday afternoon for Picnic at the (Southwest) Precinct – read on to see what’s happening where this weekend around the city:Read More
Six weeks after the South Park Bridge closed for good – by opening the drawbridge leaves and keeping them that way – demolition is about to begin, according to a news release from King County, though the leaves won’t be the first thing to go. Read on for details:Read More
As of very early this morning, the downtown transit tunnel was still closed because of a “malfunction” — affecting buses, light rail, and drivers/bike riders on the streets that carry more buses when needed. To get the latest on its status, go here. 8:59 AM: As you probably know by now, all’s well again, and has been for most of the commute. The link, however, is a good resource for all Metro riders – it’s a blog-format website where they track the commute status daily, even when nothing extraordinary’s happening.
The most impassioned campaign speech at tonight’s 34th District Democrats meeting came from a semi-surprise visitor – and he wasn’t even speaking on his own behalf, though he’s on the ballot for next Tuesday’s primary. Our clip includes most of what U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott had to say, mostly on behalf of U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, and why McDermott believes this may be the most important election of his lifetime. Also campaigning, State Sen. Joe McDermott (no relation), making one more pre-primary pitch for his King County Council District 8 campaign (vs. three opponents). And there was a mini-fundraiser for Reps. Eileen Cody (running for re-election against Republican Ray Carter) and Sharon Nelson (running unopposed for State Senate) before the meeting. But the hottest race on the ballot – 34th District State House, Position 2 (for which the 34th DDs have endorsed Marcee Stone, one of 4 candidates) – did not come up at all, and we didn’t spot any of the candidates in attendance. That may be a different story this Friday, when the group throws its annual fundraiser Garden Party at West Seattle Nursery – Chris Porter, who’s heading the effort, got up to talk about it twice. But the heart of the evening’s program was a panel on transportation – from current projects, to future possibilities – with a trio of panelists, including WS-residing City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, chair of the council’s Transportation Committee. In addition to the Spokane Street Viaduct offramp-opening announcement we published as a separate bulletin earlier, they talked tolls, taxes, transit, and more – read on:Read More
Tonight’s marquee event in West Seattle – the 34th District Democrats‘ monthly gathering (7 pm, The Hall at Fauntleroy). And a timely topic, too – transportation, from the Alaskan Way Viaduct to the city’s future vision (which could include more taxes to pay for improvements). Here’s the full agenda, which includes West Seattle-residing Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, chair of the council’s Transportation Committee. (You’re also bound to hear an update on the 34th DDs’ biggest annual event, the Garden Party dinner/auction, coming up this Friday.)
The RapidRide bus-stop plans for the Fauntleroy ferry terminal remained the top topic for the Fauntleroy Community Association as its board met Tuesday night. While board members continue to meet with Metro rep Paul Roybal – who also is scheduled to attend the next meeting (Sept. 14) – they don’t believe their concerns about a potential traffic bottleneck are being addressed. As reiterated at last month’s meeting, they’re worried that will be a result of the current design, which brings traffic past the terminal down to one lane each way. And they’re concerned that many people don’t realize that – nor the potential for more traffic to divert onto 45th SW to avoid it – so time was spent Tuesday night discussing how to raise awareness – possibly via a mailing or door-to-door campaign. FCA also believes Metro is working with inaccurate traffic-flow numbers; while they say the county numbers show 400 cars an hour in the area during peak ferry-traffic hours, FCA’s Susan Lantz-Dey did a car count the past two days, and said she counted at least twice that – even without school in session (there’s dock traffic from West Seattle parents picking up Vashon-school-attending kids). She and FCA president Bruce Butterfield plan to push for a new traffic study. Also discussed: The ongoing discussions about how the county will control Combined Sewer Overflows from the basins that feed Barton (Fauntleroy) and Murray (Lowman Beach) pump stations, with the Barton “green stormwater” meeting last week and ongoing Murray citizens advisory group meetings (FCA board member Vlad Oustimovitch is a Murray group member).
The Fauntleroy Community Association board meets the 2nd Tuesday of the month, 7 pm, The Hall at Fauntleroy (old schoolhouse).
We’ve received several notes asking about this in recent days – so in case you were wondering too: The project that is starting to resembling a ramp to connect The Bridge and Highway 99 southbound in this area is something entirely different: It’s the East Marginal Way Grade Separation Project, which is being handled by the Port of Seattle and hasn’t gotten nearly as much publicity as the Alaskan Way and Spokane Street Viaducts. (We mentioned the start of construction back in January.) Here’s a fact sheet explaining it, rendering included, and a little more info here. It’s supposed to be done in about a year.
(SDOT aerial photo of new ramp, July 31st)
Since the final touches are in progress – namely, concrete curing – on the new 4th Avenue South offramp from the eastbound Spokane Street Viaduct (aka the West Seattle Bridge between 99 and I-5), we checked today with SDOT to see if they have an opening date for the ramp, which in turn would be reopening day for the eastbound lane that’s been closed for 3 weeks. SDOT’s Marybeth Turner confirms the big day “may” be next week – but the exact date isn’t set yet. (If it does happen next week, that’s one-third shorter than the “up to 6 weeks” lane-closure timetable first projected.) P.S. A reminder that we have area traffic cameras – including the closest ones to that area – “live” on the WSB Traffic page, including the city’s semi-new Junction and Lincoln Park-area cams, along with links to traffic alerts from a variety of sources.
“The tunnel’s going to be closed for quite a while.” That’s what we just heard on the scanner, as police call in the major-incident investigators for a crash on northbound Highway 99 at the Battery Street Tunnel. We don’t have details of the crash, but in case you drive the Alaskan Way Viaduct northbound overnight, you should be aware. (“Quite a while” translates to “at least two hours,” according to more scanner traffic heard as we wrote this.) FRIDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE: SPD Blotter has the story of what happened – motorcycle crash with two people hurt.
North Delridge and Morgan Junction leaders have just learned that their neighborhoods are winners in the latest round of decisions about who should get a share of city Neighborhood Street Fund Large Projects money. These proposals went through a lot of review, including the local district councils. The decisions just announced will allot $112,000 for crossing improvements – such as striping and signage – at three California SW intersections – at SW Frontenac and SW Othello, as well as, north of Morgan Junction, SW Findlay (see the full proposal here). And $501,000 will be allotted for curbs and rain gardens 25th SW between Brandon and Juneau (see the full proposal here). These are two of 11 projects citywide (here’s the list) that were chosen for NSF money this time around; the mayor and City Council have to sign off on it for next year’s budget, and provided that happens, SDOT says design will likely start this December.
You’ve seen the city’s new traffic-messaging signs in action recently – with the alert about the Spokane Street Viaduct lane closure, for example – and now the state is sending a reminder that its “Smarter Highways” signs are about to be activated on highways including the stretch of northbound I-5 used by drivers leaving the West Seattle Bridge. So what are these signs going to do that the current “trouble ahead” signs don’t, you ask? Read on for the official news release:Read More
If you have a bicycle you can spare – somebody needs it on the other side of the globe. On Saturday, you can drop it off in The Triangle – and volunteers will take it from there. From Gatewood resident Tom Furtwangler:
A bicycle can truly have a transformative impact on the life of someone who lives several miles from their school, work, clinic, or water source: cycling reduces their time in transit, and increases the load they can transport.
There are many great organizations working to move used bikes to Africa, and build programs on the ground there to make sure bikes get in the right hands. And we have one right here in the Northwest – The Village Bicycle Project, which recently celebrated shipping its 100th container of bikes to Ghana!
Village Bicycle Project is having a bike drive this Saturday at the West Seattle YMCA from 9-5, which makes it incredibly easy to drop of an old bike, bike frame, bike wheel, pile of parts, whatever you have lying around, while you are out doing your weekend errands!
The Y is at 4515 36th SW (here’s a map).
(Photo by Cliff DesPeaux)
If you drive the Alaskan Way Viaduct or its parallel surface street – or if you ride the King County Water Taxi – you might have noticed this already today, or else you’ll see it on the way home: Crews have begun to demolish Pier 48 on the downtown waterfront, just south of the Water Taxi’s dock at Pier 50 (and the neighboring Washington State Ferries terminal). We remember it best as the dock for the Princess Marguerite car ferry between Seattle and Victoria, which shut down several years back. It’ll be a staging area for some of the Viaduct work. Photojournalist Cliff DesPeaux is there for WSB, and we’ll have more from him later in the day (click here to see a video snippet he tweeted); the entire demolition project, WSDOT says, could last up to four months. (added later – more video – the voice you hear is WSDOT’s Matt Preedy, a West Seattleite, explaining what’s happening)
ADDED 10:17 AM: Here’s a new WSDOT summary of the work that started today:Read More
(5:11 pm note – The hearing’s over; when we get code for the archived video, we’ll swap it out)
2:51 PM REPORT: Hit the “play” button to watch live – despite the slate you see, it IS in progress now. This meeting of the City Council’s Alaskan Way Viaduct Committee is the third of three events that we mentioned this morning. City Councilmember Sally Bagshaw just said about sixty people have signed up to speak in the public comment section, which has just begun, before the council discusses the proposed resolution announced this morning – which would say, the city intends to sign the tunnel agreements, but wants to see the bids (this fall) first. Here’s a photo sent by council staff via Twitter, showing the SRO crowd:
4:27 PM: The public hearing ended after about an hour and a half – primarily pro-tunnel – and has moved on into the councilmembers talking with a state team headed by Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond, who said, “Delay is not our friend” and insists that risk management is her team’s job. Meantime, Mayor McGinn’s reaction to the council’s “we’re passing a resolution but not signing yet” plan has finally come in – read on:
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