West Seattle, Washington
19 Friday
Another note from last night’s Morgan Community Association meeting (in addition to our Fauntleroy Way paving report; still to come, new information about the Morgan Junction park): Martha Tuttle from King County was there with updates on the Murray Avenue Pump Station project, which will dig up a major chunk of Lowman Beach Park when construction begins – read on to see what she announced:Read More
Zombies on California Ave! A “ghostly gala”! Trick-or-treating in The Junction and Admiral business districts! And looking beyond – dates for the Christmas Ship‘s West Seattle visits! All part of the WSB Holidays calendar page that’s now up; many thanks to those who already have e-mailed us about scheduled events to include on that page and our regular Events calendar – if you know of something that’s scheduled for Halloween or the winter-holiday season (November through New Year’s) and it’s not on the Holidays page, please e-mail us the basic info! We’ll continue to add info to the page as it comes in. (And also, for the holidays page and elsewhere, we’ll feature photos of West Seattle jack-o-lanterns and holiday lights again this year – e-mail your photos and/or your sightings!)
This is the only West Seattle murder case from 2007 to go to trial – and that trial started this week with jury selection. WSB is covering the trial of the Alki 18-year-old charged with second-degree murder for the 10/13/2007 deadly shooting in a car at 59th/Admiral; we have not published his name since it emerged last fall that his defense focuses on a contention he was a longtime victim of sexual abuse. Here’s the update from our reporter on what happened at the courthouse today:Read More
Congratulations to Redmond’s Mike Town, who won the webpoll portion of the “Cox Conserves Heroes” competition in which Fauntleroy’s Judy Pickens was also among five people in Western Washington honored for their work to lend nature a helping hand. Thanks to everybody who voted for Judy, not just because she does great work, but also in hopes her chosen nonprofit, EarthCorps, would get the $5K donation in the winner’s name; you can still help EarthCorps right this second with an online donation. And you can help Judy and the Fauntleroy Creek coho by being at the creek overlook (across from the ferry dock) later this month for a special event – here’s her latest update:
The annual drumming to call the salmon home to Fauntleroy Creek needs a lead drummer or two. The event will be Sunday, Oct. 26, 5-6 p.m. at the fish-ladder viewpoint (SW Director and upper Fauntleroy Way SW) and typically draws 40-60 people of all ages to sing, act out salmon stories, and enjoy spirited drumming. If you’d like to set the beat, e-mail Judy_Pickens@msn.com. In case of rain, instruments will have canopy cover.
Thanks to two people who e-mailed us in the past several hours that they’d heard Jefferson Square Starbucks has an official closing date (we had first word in July that it was on the Starbucks shutdown list) – we have just received confirmation from a PR firm working with SBUX (though they won’t get any more specific than “end of October”; if it’s really 11/7, that would be a few days short of what would have been the store’s 1-year anniversary, since it opened 11/9/07). Read on for the full statement we received (it’s mostly boilerplate but we always like to share the whole thing so you can read it for yourself if you so choose):Read More
A few quick reminders before the day’s too far gone, from the WSB Events calendar: Interested in the International Baccalaureate (IB) academic program at Chief Sealth High School? Special info night, 7 pm, cafeteria (at temporary Boren location). Also at 7 pm – West Seattle knitters welcome at the Pins and Needlers meetup at Uptown in The Junction; here are some of the friendly faces from last week:
A bit earlier – 6 pm – 2nd of 3 workshops where you’re welcome to help design a new fitness room for Southwest Community Center (read more here). And at 9:30 pm – Alki Idol @ Bamboo (more here).
FIRST SIGHTING OF WEST SEATTLE REGULAR GAS IN THE $3.10s: A short time ago at Gasco (35th/Henderson), it was down to $3.19. That’s a dime drop from their price at weekend’s end.
NOT EXACTLY ROSE-COLORED GLASSES: West Seattle entrepreneur Nate Eddings sent us his press release too, but we hadn’t gotten around to digitizing the profanity on his main product. Daily Weekly is PG-13 so they are showing his glasses in their full, um, glory.
AND THE WINNER IS … Channel 7’s 5 pm news tonight is scheduled to include the announcement of who won the Cox Conserves Heroes web vote. Thanks to everybody who voted for Fauntleroy’s Judy Pickens (and therefore for EarthCorps, which gets a $5K Cox donation if Judy wins).
Those photos show the lineup of law-enforcement vehicles — and law enforcers — on 42nd SW between Holy Rosary‘s church and school this morning, after a motorcade that kicked off a “Red Ribbon Week” drug-awareness rally; (added at 1:47 pm) here’s video of the motorcade’s arrival, as students stood on the curb to welcome the visitors:
The rally had a bigtime guest list, including Seattle Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske (media weren’t allowed to photograph students’ faces closeup, a fairly common rule for coverage of schools’ events, so that’s why you’re seeing the tops of heads here):
Holy Rosary was chosen as the only school in Seattle to host this major event this year (there was one in Tacoma too) — and at the assembly that followed the show of force in the street (plus a helicopter landing on the playground), students heard from the widow of murdered DEA agent Enrique Camarena, the inspiration for “Red Ribbon Week.” This wasn’t your average “drugs are bad, don’t do them, see ya” rally – Mika Camarena spoke quietly and powerfully to ask the children to respect themselves and their health, as well as those in uniform. In the middle of the gym where she and others spoke was a bust of her late husband, which she acknowledged as she walked up:
Just before the indoor portion of the assembly began, this DEA chopper landed on the playground out back (who needs a helipad?):
The chopper and various law enforcers (including Duke the Seattle Police drug dog, shown below with his human partner) were on display as show-and-tell for Holy Rosary students after the assembly.
Today’s assembly was emceed by local TV reporter Jim Dever, who lives in West Seattle. As part of Red Ribbon Week, by the way, Holy Rosary students have made artwork that’s on display at Jefferson Square Safeway; you can see samples on the school’s home page (scroll down).
That’s a spot along the West Duwamish Greenbelt trail where the Nature Consortium leads free monthly hikes – and the next one is tomorrow afternoon, 1 pm, 14th/Holly trailhead (directions here). RSVP today by calling 206-923-0853 or e-mail lisa@naturec.org. (Here’s our report from taking that same hike last May.) The forecast for tomorrow is already better than it looked yesterday, so you might as well take a chance if you have the opportunity to check it out. (NC executive director Nancy Whitlock, who leads the hike as shown in our photo, notes that “extreme rain cancels.”)
WEST SEATTLE TRAILS KICKOFF: Chas Redmond mentioned this again at last night’s Morgan Community Association meeting – he and Feet First have been working on the West Seattle Trails project, with a free map available all over WS, and now a $100,000 city grant for signage along the routes of what’s envisioned as the West Seattle Trail Network. This will include 60 signposts and 10 kiosks (above, a rendering from the design process). Where, you ask? That’s where you come in – join the kickoff event Saturday morning, 10 am-noon, Camp Long Lodge.
(click to see full-size potential route map on Metro website)
Thanks to Michael Taylor-Judd for first calling our attention to this: He wrote, “… did you know Metro may propose a new Route 50 which would provide a new, direct connection between Seward Park and the Columbia City Link station, Beacon Hill, SoDo, Harbor Island, and Alaska Junction? In particular, it would run along Spokane St. to Delridge and then make a right turn up Genesee to Avalon and the Junction, providing a new link for folks in Youngstown and Pigeon Point to get up the hill to the Junction!” And indeed, the map you see above (which links here) is somewhat buried in the Metro website, where it’s categorized as a “Southeast Seattle” proposed service change. Nonetheless, wherever you live, you have a chance RIGHT NOW to comment on whether you’d be interested in this — and this page has all the details on how to do that, starting with a community meeting tonight in Columbia City, but also including e-mail, phone, and postal-mail options, or this online questionnaire.
According to this P-I story, roofing work that’s under way at a house near Schmitz Park represents the final chapter in a decade-long fight over neighborhood views. (More background in this story from three years ago.) For those who like to read court documents, here’s one of the appeals court rulings; interestingly, we also found the case cited in the court fight over the Lora Lake Apartments in Burien. 11:18 AM NOTE: This one’s turning up on TV – two channel 7 trucks in the driveway.
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