Give me an R, an E, a G, an I … SWAC registration time!
Over the past few months, we’ve brought you advance notice of registration season for several West Seattle-based youth-sports groups, and now it’s time for one more: The Southwest Athletic Club (SWAC) will host early-registration sessions at Westwood Village for football and cheering this Saturday and three other Saturdays this month and next. Here’s what they want you to know:
Registration will be held on four Saturdays (March 8th and 15th, and April 5th and 12th) from 11 am to 1 pm at Big 5 Sporting Goods in Westwood Village.
The Southwest Athletic Club (SWAC) is a West Seattle-based nonprofit organization with the purpose of teaching youth teamwork, discipline and self-esteem through participation in youth football and cheer activities. They serve youth between the ages of 7 and 14, providing a safe structured and positive environment that stresses dedication, teamwork, and sportsmanship, which teaches as much about life as it does football and cheer. Practices start on August 1st with weekly games starting the third weekend of August. Practices and home games are held at the Southwest Athletic Complex at 2600 SW Thistle.
Lee Newgent, the SWAC Board President, is proud of last season and looks forward to next season: “We congratulate last year’s participants on a very successful year, and we look forward to seeing them next fall.†Regarding new players, he added: “We also look forward to seeing any young people and their families who are considering participation in football and cheer at Big 5. Coaches will be on hand to meet the children and answer any questions parents may have.â€
The registration fee for cheer is $100 and football is $200. Early registrants will receive a SWAC water bottle.
More information about SWAC can be found at www.swaccougars.org
Major new apartment/retail construction proposed in The Junction
(this post is a work in progress, as we continue to research details available online on this major Junction project that’s just gone public; we’ll put it all together into a more coherent update once we think we’ve found everything there is to find online tonight)
Twice a week, the city sends out its Land Use Information Bulletin, Mondays and Thursdays. Today’s came fairly early. It did not include a rather newsworthy project that made its debut later in the day on the Design Review Upcoming city page (maybe just a coincidence, but we notice this sort of thing every so often — major new proposal appears on the city website hours AFTER the latest biweekly bulletin goes out). Anyway, enough backstory. This one, scheduled for an Early Design Guidance meeting of the Southwest Design Review Board on April 10, is listed for 4706 California SW, which is the address currently held by Funky Jane’s. It’s described as a building with 12,000 square feet of ground-level retail and 5 floors of apartments above , two floors of parking beneath – so that would be a dramatic change for the block (though Mural will be rising high almost directly behind it). County records show the parcel stretches all the way north to Alaska (Super Supplements corner) and south to 4710 California (Rubato). The same owners, “4700 California LLC,” also own the neighboring parcel (Rocksport etc.). According to a project number on the Design Review Upcoming page, a proposal for that site will be discussed at the April 10 hearing too; this page for the project at that address, 4203 Alaska, mentions a building with 21,500 sf of retail and 6 floors of apartments over that. We are still researching right now to find out more online, since it’s after business hours and we won’t be able to get ahold of any of the listed contacts before tomorrow. Contacts listed on the official city project page include Weber Thompson (architects) and Conner Homes. This obviously has been in the works a while, as the history on the “fees and receipts” tab of this page goes back to August.
Food that goes with wine? West Seattle Cellars wants you
West Seattle Cellars owners are continuing to work on finishing the neighboring space they once hoped would become a wine bar. It’s been a while since our last update, and signs of construction are more noticeable outside the building, so we dropped by today to check on how it’s going. Turns out that work will be done next month; Tom and Jan are showing the available space to anyone interested in opening a “compatible food store” – but only by appointment, no drop-ins (and no other wine vendors) – they’re setting appointments by phone at 937-2868.
Got a house you’d like to see saved?
From the WSB inbox, sent by Kelsey Diller:
I am writing to ask your help to save homes in West Seattle from being torn down. I was inspired to start a company, Orbit Homes LLC after watching my neighbor’s home get scheduled for demolition. After compiling a competent team of specialists I am now looking for a charming home located in West Seattle that is 18 ft. high or less and no more than 27 ft. wide to fit on a property I bought to move a house onto. If you know of any homes that may be within this size range please call me at 206 554-1622 and become a part of saving the environment and preserving West Seattle’s flavor.
West Seattle Crime Watch alert: Bogus bills at businesses
That’s a cameraphone photo of bogus bills snapped by a WSB team member who says they don’t look much better in person — badly defined imagery on back, for example — fake $50s that have turned up so far at Funky Jane’s Consignment and Many Moons Trading Company in The Junction (3-4 pm this past Monday), according to those businesses’ owners. We’re awaiting suspect description to share, but wanted to get the word out first to anyone who hadn’t heard.
New Coast Guard info on the low-bridge-restrictions proposal
(photo by WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli)
As reported here earlier this week, West Seattle-residing City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen‘s campaign for rush-hour restrictions on the opening of the “low bridge” is making some headway. We told you yesterday that the Coast Guard’s regional bridge commander was quoted in a newspaper story as saying the proposal was about to be published for public comment and that we had a call out to him for further elaboration. He called back this morning and indeed had more details than were included in that newspaper article:Read More
Traffic alert: NB I-5 emergency roadwork north of WS Bridge exit
Just in from WSDOT: “Crews must close two right lanes on northbound I-5 approaching I-90 to perform temporary emergency repairs on an expansion joint. Crews will weld the steel expansion joint cover in place.” This could take at least an hour or so and is apparently under way now; more work is planned later tonight (and those same two lanes will be closed 10 pm-4 am as a result), but bottom line, if you have to head to I-5 right now, wait if you can, or find a way to get onto I-5 from mid-downtown.
Wildcats lose, but move on to the consolation bracket
AdamOnAlki reported it in the comments late last night:
74-43 in favor of Squalicum. Great season, boys. You surprised and impressed us all!
And as David went on to add, the West Seattle High School boys’ first trip to the state basketball tournament in more than 30 years isn’t quite over yet:
(Today) they play Auburn (22-3) … They have the potential to finish in 5th place, if they can win 3 straight games. It’ll be tough but it’s not over.
Today’s WSHS-Auburn game is at 2 pm at KeyArena.
Another Crime Watch reader report: South Admiral break-in
We’re overdue for a Southwest Precinct report review but today it seems most of the reports are coming directly to us, too, anyway – like this one just out of the WSB inbox:
SW Stevens and 46th Ave SW Break-In
Today, Wed. March 5th, our high school son came home for early dismissal and found our house ransacked. After giving the police a report, we are realizing we were lucky no one was hurt. After kicking in our back door the thieves had time between 9 and 11:30 am to go through, search and make a mess of 6 different rooms in our house. They took coins, cash, cameras, and I-Pods. If you saw anything suspicious in the neighborhood 2-4 blocks west of PCC today please call the police.
One side note, thanks to everyone for clearly describing their location when sending in these types of reports. It really helps alert your West Seattle neighbors to exactly where things are happening so they can be on the lookout too.
First round in “Painted Lady” front-lawn development fight
It wasn’t criminal court, but at times it felt almost that contentious — with occasional interjections of OBJECTION! — as the city Hearing Examiner heard the first witness today in the fight over whether homebuilding will be allowed on the expansive front lawn of Beach Drive’s “Painted Lady.” The home — an official city landmark — is also known as the Satterlee House, and its former owner David Satterlee was the first witness to testify, several days before lawyers on both sides will present the bulk of their cases. We went to the Hearing Examiner’s windowless room on the 40th floor of the Municipal Tower downtown to see how this would unfold:Read More
Crime Watch reader report: Admiral firewood thieves
Just out of the WSB inbox:
I would like to report the following incident that occured around 5:10pm today:
I noticed 2 cars speeding down our alley between Lander & Stevens while I was working in the backyard. I looked up and saw the male driver of the first car (not sure if there were others in that car) who evidently noticed me. The second car was driven by a female and had 4 people in it.
I heard the cars stopping by my neighbor’s house. I looked to see what was going on and saw the people taking firewood from a stack by the garage and throwing it into their cars.
I told them to stop stealing the wood and they just stared at me. When my husband came around the corner, they got back into their cars and left.
One car is a white sedan, the other one is is a beige sedan with a license plate number (ending in) TQW. I’d guess the age of the people high school age to early 20’s.
The SW precinct told me to call 911, which I did.
Updated city bike map available
Attention, bike riders – this city announcement is for you:
The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) released today a Special Edition Bike Map highlighting 20 miles of new bicycle facilities and promoting the 2008 International Pro Walk/Pro Bike conference coming to Seattle this September. Seattle and the northwestern region have embraced sustainability and are making major investments in bicycling and walking. The conference will showcase some of these accomplishments and inspire hundreds of other communities around the United States to undertake similar programs. The map identifies bike lanes, climbing lanes, the new section of the Burke-Gilman Trail from the Ballard Locks to Golden Gardens Park and the Chief Sealth trail starting at S. Dawson Street and ending near 51st Avenue S. It also includes information on ‘sharrows’ and illustrates routes where they are used.
The bike map is one of SDOT’s most requested informational pieces. Thanks to Bridging the Gap SDOT has funding to implement many of the recommendations in the Bicycle Master Plan. As a result, updated versions of this popular cycling tool will continue to be released. This will help the city reach its goal of tripling the number of bicyclists over a period of 10 years.
Bike maps are available:
· at the Bike Expo this weekend, March 8 and 9, at Pier 30
· by calling the Bike Alliance at 206-224-9252
· by contacting SDOT online at
www.seattle.gov/transportation/bikeprogram.htm
This fall, a second version will be printed that will include 30 miles of new bike facilities being installed over the summer. If you have any suggestions or corrections for the fall printing, please email SDOT at walkandbike@seattle.gov.
Additional information on the 2008 International Pro Walk/Pro Bike conference can be found at www.bikewalk.org/2008conference/index.html.
We checked the SDOT link listed as a bike-map source – can’t tell if the downloadable map there is the new one or not (the page declares “the map was updated in 2003” though it also has an icon for that upcoming conference).
“Tree massacre” brings neighbors’ questions
The removal of a whole row of big evergreens along two lots lining the east side of 41st between Rose and Southern (take your pick whether this is south Gatewood or north Upper Fauntleroy) had several people e-mailing us today — one calling it a “tree massacre” — to ask “can they DO that?” We checked it out and the answer appears to be “yes,” since the trees were on private, already-developed property with older houses – if that defines your property, you can cut down trees without a permit. Both lots on the block appear to be real-estate listings no longer on the market; the site shown in the photo still has an aerial-photo map that gives you an idea of how many trees were there before. The parcel now likely has a major view, as it’s on the west-facing slope, looking toward the Sound, Blake, Vashon, Olympics, etc. No development permits filed for either lot so far.
Crime Watch reader report: Car window shattered on Alki
E-mailed by Mark, who then promptly headed off to get the glass replaced:
At around 1:30 this afternoon, I was driving down the 3000 block of 61st Ave. near Alki when my car’s front passenger-side window exploded. Apparently it had been struck by a really fast rock, or else shot with a pellet gun or something similar. I phoned in a police report on the spot, and they responded quickly by showing up and taking down details. Didn’t see the %$#*$@ who did it, although after I pulled over and went to the impact spot to see what I could find, I caught a glimpse of at least two people running behind the houses there, with a male voice shoutingsomething as they ran. The two police officers who responded mentioned that four youths have been caught in connection with the recent similar incidents in the Admiral neighborhood, and although the punks have some little bit of time in juvenile detention coming up, they are currently not being held anywhere. Whether or not this incident is connected to them is anyone’s guess, but the officers did say they were going to check out the nearby streets to see if they could find out anything more.
So that’s that. The good news is that neither my wife nor anyone else was in the passenger seat, otherwise they would have been sprayed with glass.
Stand by for more news
Sorry for the dearth of updates today, have just spent four and a half hours away from the keyboard (remote connectivity temporarily not available) at two events, including key testimony in the Satterlee House (Beach Drive “Painted Lady”) development appeal. Will file shortly; also checking out an Alki Crime Watch update and what one tipster describes as a “tree massacre” in Gatewood. Stand by and thanks.
Update: Progress reported on low-bridge restrictions
8 o’clock sharp this morning, we took that photo from Spokane/Marginal, with truck traffic backed up three ways while the low bridge was open about a mile ahead. Two days ago, we told you West Seattle-residing City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen was intensifying his push to restrict bridge openings during AM and PM rush hours, in hopes of cutting down on situations like the one you see above; today, there’s word of progress on the proposal — according to the Times, the regional U.S. Coast Guard district plans to publish a notice that will start a 60-day period for comment from the marine industry, after which another 30-day review period would be required before the restrictions (7-9 am and 4-6 pm) would potentially take effect. We have a call out to the USCG to find out more.
Sat in on tonight’s monthly meeting of the Southwest District Council and brought back lots of quick updates on West Seattle goings-on plus heard new and interesting things from the group’s guest speaker,
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