That video clip shows one of the most crowded, and liveliest, ribbon-cuttings we’ve ever seen, and after all these years in media, we’ve seen our share. Sanislo Elementary School (map) students joined Mayor Nickels – and other city officials including SDOT boss Grace Crunican, who like Nickels is a West Seattleite, plus City Council Transportation Committee Chair Jan Drago, as well as reps from the pedestrian-advocacy group Feet First – to celebrate the new sidewalks leading up Myrtle to Sanislo. We first showed them to you as work was finishing up in August; here’s how they look today – this is the view eastward down Myrtle:
At today’s event, Sanislo Principal Debbie Nelsen introduced one of her fifth-grade safety helpers, Miles, who talked about the difference the new sidewalks have made:
None of the five schools listed this morning as getting safety improvements next year is in West Seattle, though Concord isn’t far away; here’s the official city news release with the full list. Councilmember Drago noted that the improvements along Sanislo walking routes also included the nearby staircase down to Delridge, which she took us to have a look at (note the new lighting fixture at right):
That’s the same staircase City Council members visited eleven months ago as they announced a new emphasis on pedestrian safety (WSB coverage, with video, here). Today, meantime, Drago even brought along a favorite walking partner — her 19-year-old “grand-dog” Nicky, who recently came to live with her and, she said, successfully completed his first circumnavigation of Green Lake before they came to the Sanislo event:
The mayor also announced more schools in line for pedestrian improvements next year; more on that, and more video from this morning’s event – including a student’s speech! – coming up.
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