day : 11/05/2008 7 results

Another coyote caught on cam, and a side benefit

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Not quite as clear as the set of coyote photos published Friday night, but “Seacat,” who blogs at seacat.wordpress.com, added an interesting side note that made us want to share the pic:

This little coyote is a regular visitor in our yard; this picture was taken right outside my home office window. Since he’s been hanging around, we don’t have a problem with rats at the bird feeder–which also means the variety of birds has increased. That’s not just the coyote, of course, but he fills out a tiny eco-system in our backyard wildlife sanctuary and things are improved with his presence. We live over by Lincoln Park, and welcome our coyote co-habitants. It’s all good!

Encampment cleanup aftermath: One more visit

May 11, 2008 8:51 pm
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 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

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This past Friday, one week after city crews cleared the trash-strewn homeless encampment at Camp Long that had been chronicled by WSB contributing photojournalist Matt Durham, he was there as city workers made one more sweep, and he reports:

Seattle Parks Department workers performed their final sweep through the dismantled encampment, on the north boundaries of Camp Long. The Park’s staff performed a final collection of large pieces of rubbish and looked for signs of activity along the camp sites. The area has been visited by hikers but encampment activity has ceased, for the time being.

Litter remains in an area covering more than an acre. The refuse is impregnated into the mud that evolved under vegetation that died off under layers of garbage and human waste.

The Seattle Parks Department does not have the resources to sift through soil and encourages the community to assist with the maintenance of the area by calling 206-684-8028 or e-mailing: ParksVolunteer@Seattle.Gov

Previous WSB coverage:
Original report, April 28
“Strategy visit,” April 30
Deadline set, May 1
Camp cleared, May 2
Matt’s commentary, with a suggestion re: park utilization, May 5

Attention, Patches Pals: JP is West Seattle-bound

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(WSB photo of JP Patches in July 2007 West Seattle Grand Parade)
Seen on the Admiral Theater marquee and website: A morning with JP Patches, legendary TV clown, 11 am next Saturday, May 17; tickets available online. So we don’t have to wait till parade season to see him here in West Seattle! The campaign for a JP Patches statue continues, by the way; find out more at his site.

Time and tide: Looking back, looking ahead

May 11, 2008 6:07 pm
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 |   Seen at sea | West Seattle history

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One more look back, not just at this past week’s megalow tides, but into history … Susan Grossman of Singingpixel Photography sent that photo of the old Luna Park pilings during one of their low-low-tide appearances. This gives us an excuse to remind low-tide fans to mark the calendar for the first week of June (tide table here), when we will again see this type of low tide (and even lower, with two minus-4 tides, “bottoming out” just before noon on June 4th, with a -4.1).

Online onboard: Rate changes for Washington State Ferries wi-fi

May 11, 2008 3:01 pm
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 |   Transportation | West Seattle news | West Seattle online

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(Fauntleroy/Vashon ferry photo by Jessica Stewart of West Coast Image & Design)
Thought this was worth a mention since it doesn’t seem to have received wide exposure; we stumbled onto it while reading a news release about dockside wi-fi service in the North Sound. The company that provides wi-fi service for Washington State Ferries wi-fi routes, including Fauntleroy/Vashon/Southworth, recently unveiled “new pricing options” (follow the link on its website). We haven’t had occasion to use the service, but looking back into online archives, it appears the most significant change is in the short-term rates.

2 WSCGSD followups: Sale today; playground meeting Friday

May 11, 2008 11:54 am
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 |   Community Garage Sale Day | West Seattle parks | West Seattle schools

First, the Sunday sale: The folks at Community School of West Seattle want you to know their megasale (100+ families) is continuing today, till 4 pm. (And yes, they have tents, so don’t let the rain stop you! Address and Saturday picture are here.) Next, a sale report from the North Delridge Neighborhood Council, which sent this Saturday photo (we showed a pic of the NDNC bake sale yesterday):

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That sale raised money and volunteer hours (important for matching funds) to expand the play area at Cottage Grove Park (5206 26th SW; city info page here) with tot-size equipment, particularly in hopes of affording a fun setup similar to this:

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Next step is where you come in, if you can help: An organizational meeting Friday morning. Here’s the invitation from organizers:

Neighbors are planning to build a playground for babies and toddlers at the Cottage Grove Playground in Delridge. We need YOUR input – which playground design should we choose? Which equipment do we want? How can we best raise money? Come give your input at a playground meeting.

Friday, May 16, 10 am at Cottage Grove playground if the weather is good; or at the Delridge Community Center common area if the weather is bad. If the indoor play area is open we’ll meet there. Bring kids, blanket for the grass & snacks for your family.

Questions? Betsy(at)hoffmeisters(dot)com

West Seattle Farmers’ Market: WS 101, plus the “fresh sheet”

May 11, 2008 6:07 am
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 |   West Seattle 101 | West Seattle Farmers' Market

bookcover1.jpgThe author behind one of our newest WSB sections — West Seattle 101 (note the “tab” link on our header) will be at the West Seattle Farmers’ Market today; you can meet Lori Hinton. lorimugshot.jpg and talk to her about the “West Seattle 101” book, which will also be available for purchase. In honor of this, we’re adding the West Seattle Farmers’ Market feature from Lori’s book to the list of “West Seattle 101” stories available on WSB; read it here, and see the full WS 101 on WSB archive here. And as always, we want to bring you this week’s Farmers’ Market fresh sheet — here you go:Read More