West Seattle, Washington
18 Sunday
Supposedly next week brings the gray back, so we’re hoarding the beauty shots till then:
The ol’ Trader Joe’s rumor just keeps swishing around WS like a glass of Two-Buck Chuck in a Nisqually-length earthquake. An intrepid reader just e-mailed the company again, hoping perhaps for a pleasant surprise, and shared with us the following response. (Personally, we find the “check back in fall” rather intriguing!)
“At this time, we do not have any confirmed plans for Western Seattle. Feel free to check back sometime this fall for any updates.
Thanks for shopping with us,
Marci
Trader Joe’s Customer Relations”
Parents from the nonprofit Community School of West Seattle, which offers preschool through 2nd grade, say their little school is in danger of losing its building at 22nd/Roxbury (photo below). CSWS has been renting there since 2004 and has been raising money to try to buy the building since, according to one parent, the owner indicated last year it could be theirs for a reasonable price. Now, suddenly, events have accelerated — a developer has reportedly made an offer, and parents say that’s pushed the owner to set a deadline for the school to come up with the $. They have till August 31st to raise $88,000 more. They’re planning an intensive slate of summer fundraising events, including an auction, but also are hoping community donations (which are tax-deductible) will help save the day.
Call it a monstrous way to try to save the Sound. The “Mud Monster,” mascot of a new Puget Sound cleanup campaign (photo below), starred at a media kickoff event at Alki this morning. The campaign’s site says the “Mud Monster” is “designed and produced by the folks who brought us the Mariner Moose.” Couldn’t we just have somebody in, oh, say, a plush six-gill-shark suit?
TOMORROW: The West Seattle Community Resource Center at 35th/Morgan officially celebrates its grand opening (a few weeks after the WS Food Bank and Megawatt moved in) by opening the doors to all. An open house with tours, treats, and guest WS dignitaries (the press release promises Mayor Nickels and Councilmember Constantine) is set for 4-7 pm.
SATURDAY: Skylark celebrates its first anniversary with a day and night full of revelry: Brunch 9 am-3 pm, karaoke 5-8 pm, bands 9 pm-1 am (Electrochakra, Amy Stolzenbach, Brent Amaker & The Rodeo, The Delusions). Owner Jessie Summa-Kusiak also promises “prizes, and happy hour prices all day and night.” (She’s also put in air conditioning, quite visionary since summer heat arrived early!)
Taking a moment to more closely examine the land-use permit just granted for the burned-out Schuck’s site (second part of this post), we noted that what was originally described as approx. 5K square feet of “customer service office” has become approx. 5K square feet of “medical services.” (No change in the projected restaurant and retail space.)
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