History we might want to forget, but shouldn’t
Tonight at South Seattle Community College (in West Seattle), the Japanese American Citizens League of Seattle and SSCC presented a program for the Japanese American Day of Remembrance — commemorating the internment order signed February 19, 1942. As the years go by, we have fewer survivors left to tell the story firsthand; one of them, 81-year-old Sam Mitsui, spoke last night about having been interned, and having served as one of the celebrated, decorated WWII Nisei fighters:
Sam is not only a veteran and internment-camp survivor, but also a UW graduate and Boeing retiree. Though he doesn’t live in West Seattle, SSCC tells WSB he had local ties, teaching martial arts at the West Seattle YMCA in the ’60s and ’70s. Also featured at tonight’s event was Suma Kato Yagi; she was a high-school freshman when her family was ordered to leave Seattle. Suma and Sam were among more than 13,000 Seattle-area residents of Japanese descent who were ordered to the internment camps.
West Seattle Crime Watch: Dog bites kid; fare beats cabbie
From the latest reports filed at the Southwest Precinct: A nine-year-old girl had to be rushed to Harborview Medical Center yesterday afternoon after a dog bit her in the face. It happened in the 7900 block of Delridge around quarter past 1; the dog’s owner wasn’t around when it happened, but the girl’s parents were. The report describes the dog as a 3-year-old pit bull named “Cain” and says it was taken away by Animal Control, along with another dog found at the location. Next, the cabbie attack:Read More
Lunar eclipse, high in the eastern sky
First photo in, from WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli. At least one more pic to come. And go out and have a look if you see this relatively close to when we posted it! 8:25 PM UPDATE: Er, hope you got a chance to see it – in the past 15 minutes, a cloud layer has swept in, though the edge of the emerging-from-eclipse moon is peeking through. Anyway, here’s another photo, this one from WSB contributing photojournalist Matt Durham:
9:26 PM ADDITION: Thanks also to Minette Layne, who sends this photo from Gatewood Hill:
11:29 PM ADDITION: And thanks to Jill in Highland Park for this pic:
What awesome photos, compared to the lousy example we ourselves provided during that wee-hours eclipse six months ago. Apparently we won’t see another one for a couple years.
Bulletin: 3811 California advances to next landmark round
(photo by WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli)
First time we’d ever gone to a city Landmarks Preservation Board meeting. Had no idea it would take four hours for them to get to 3811 California (aka Charlestown Court). Four fascinating hours, though, considering the first three were mostly devoted to the Ballard Denny’s nomination (as you may have read elsewhere, perhaps at our hyperlocal counterparts MyBallard.com, it was approved, shocking many members of the capacity crowd). Once all the dust settled from that, and the capacity crowd cleared (before/after photos coming up), it was time for the West Seattle presentation (most of which you can read here), which was interrupted briefly so everyone could view the lunar eclipse through the meeting room’s huge windows (south-facing, 40th floor of the Municipal Tower downtown). Anyway, we’ll add more detail shortly, but the headline – Landmarks Board members voted in favor of city staff’s recommendation to consider the exterior of Charlestown Court for potential landmark status. Next step in the process – a public hearing April 2. ADDED 10:10 PM: Here are the details from tonight’s vote —Read More
Sunday dinner – for Olivia’s sake
That’s 10-year-old Olivia Shain, cuddling her cat Bebe during one of the many hospital stays Olivia’s had to endure in her short life. She has been living with Crohn’s disease – which seldom strikes children – since she was a toddler. Olivia’s West Seattle church and school community are coming together to raise money for her massive medical bills, and inviting you to join them for a spaghetti dinner and silent auction this Sunday. Olivia’s mom, local pet-sitting entrepreneur Demery Shain, agreed to talk with WSB about her daughter, their life, and how you can help:Read More
Busy day on 35th SW: Paving, cameras, cables
(Thanks to Val for the newly added second photo.) As the city Transportation Department promised yesterday, their crews are out on 35th just north of Alaska today, starting repair work on what became known in WSB-land as “Bruno” the megapothole. (Backstory here.) Reminder that they expect to work for a week, 8 am-2 pm, reducing 35th to one lane at that spot. Meantime, thanks to several WSB readers for pointing out that SDOT crews were busy elsewhere along the 35th corridor even earlier in the morning, putting down detection cables and installing cameras like this one:
That camera is near 35th/Thistle, identified as one of the two West Seattle intersections that will be first to get red-light cameras, so we have a message out to SDOT asking if that’s what this is all about. One more camera note: Remember the speeder-cam bill (much-discussed here last weekend)? You can track its status here; right now, it’s moved on to the state House Transportation Committee – whose membership does not include either of West Seattle’s state House reps.
Free plants!
Too good not to share immediately (the deadline to apply is Friday) – someone in West Seattle just might be perfect:Read More
Speaking of history: Charlestown Court landmark hearing today
This afternoon, the city Landmarks Board considers 3811 California, aka Charlestown Court (historic King County Assessor photo above), the brick Tudor four-plex across from Charlestown Cafe that otherwise is proposed for demolition and replacement with a mixed-use building. Its history is told, with copious photos, in the 46-page landmark-nomination document by West Seattle-based Nicholson Kovalchick Architects (you can read it here), with details such as “this was one of many apartment buildings for which the architect William H. Whiteley was well-known locally”; the document also includes a summary of West Seattle history and the background of the “bungalow court” type of apartment building this is considered to be, with an addendum cataloging some of West Seattle’s “bungalow courts” (such as the “Green Ghetto” whose ex-residents eulogized it in comments here after its demolition, and the 3400-block California buildings torn down recently, before/after photos here) The Landmarks Board meeting (3:30 this afternoon, 40th floor of the Seattle Municipal Building downtown) should be lively – also on the agenda, the much-discussed Ballard Denny’s.
Are you the documentary-maker Fauntleroy needs?
Last month, we told you a documentary was on the drawing board to tell the story of West Seattle’s Fauntleroy neighborhood, as planners sought marketing help. Now – they are ready to hire a producer – and have just issued a request for proposals. Here’s what they need and how to apply:Read More
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