West Seattle, Washington

11 Sunday

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day : 26/11/2008 16 results

Thanksgiving Eve miscellany before you tune out for the holiday
November 26, 2008 11:48 pm
|    Comments Off on Thanksgiving Eve miscellany before you tune out for the holiday
 |   West Seattle businesses | West Seattle jail sites | West Seattle news | West Seattle people

In no particular order, just various loose ends and other items we wanted to mention:

JAIL-SITES FIGHT: One thing we didn’t mention after Monday night’s Highland Park Action Committee meeting — HPAC is urging a big turnout at next Wednesday’s (12/3) City Hall hearing about the newly proposed downtown site for a new jail — they had been advocating downtown siting, and feel their research on the issue has helped put this site on the list (which still includes one West Seattle site, Highland Park Way/West Marginal Way). They want to show strength in numbers to back the potential downtown site. Doors open 6 pm Wednesday (program starts 6:30), City Hall downtown.

BIKE SHOP MOVE COMPLETE: We first reported three months ago that Aaron’s Bicycle Repair was moving into the now-former Morgan Junction state liquor store space. The move is complete and owner Aaron Goss sent this link with photos taken as the renovation work proceeded (and was finished).

TWO NOTABLE NEW SEVEN-FIGURE REAL-ESTATE LISTINGS: The multiplex at 2810 Alki SW, just east of the Alki Urban Market/All the Best Pet Care/Cactus building, is up for sale, $1,850,000. Last year, there was a development proposal for this site to be the new home of Pegasus Pizza, which of course has since gone into the ex-Coyotes on Alki (etc.) space further east. Also up for sale, a 9-unit apartment building on Ferry SW in North Admiral, $1,250,000 (here’s that listing).

WEST SEATTLEITES FEATURED IN TV HEALTH REPORT: Dr. Tami Meraglia and Seattle Civic Dance Theatre‘s Kim Dinsmoor are in this story examining concerns about the body-care-product ingredients called parabens.

WSB is 24/7/365 (this year, 366) so we’ll still be here on Thanksgiving Day, but not planning to publish as many items as usual (unless of course major news happens). First up, the “final” coffee/supermarket hours list in the early am (the info’s already on the Holiday Happenings page).

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Crime Watch update: Admiral burglary suspect out of jail
November 26, 2008 10:46 pm
|      13 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

Followups are our specialty, from development projects to road-work plans and beyond, and we’re trying to do a better job of following up on crime coverage too. Toward that end: We’ve been tracking the status of two suspects from recent high-profile burglary cases in West Seattle, so we wanted to report that one of them has just gotten out of jail — 18-year-old Skyelar Hailey, the only adult suspect arrested 10 days ago in the Admiral neighborhood incident we covered here. The county jail register indicates he posted bail (which had been set at $7,500) just before 5 o’clock tonight. Online court records indicate he has a significant prior criminal history. (The other suspect whose status we’re tracking, Fauntleroy burglary suspect Richard Lovejoy, remains in jail.)

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Southcenter shooting suspect arrested
November 26, 2008 10:13 pm
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 |   Crime | Not WS but we're mentioning it anyway

If you haven’t already heard – police have arrested the man accused of shooting two teenagers, killing one of them, at Southcenter last Saturday night. 21-year-old Barry Saunders was taken into custody in Portland.

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Crash briefly blocks northbound 35th from golf course to Avalon
November 26, 2008 9:29 pm
|    Comments Off on Crash briefly blocks northbound 35th from golf course to Avalon
 |   West Seattle news

Police have the street blocked because of a crash that may involve a bus. Avoid the area.

UPDATE: The collision involved a Metro bus and a car, but no medics were called out and it appears no one was hurt, 35th is reopening at the scene. ADDED LATER: Two photos – the bus (which didn’t appear much the worse for wear) stopped on westbound Avalon and the car (which wound up along the south side of eastbound Avalon):

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Thanksgiving Day info: Grocery-store hours too
November 26, 2008 8:01 pm
|      4 COMMENTS
 |   Holidays | WS miscellaneous

Also from the WSB Holiday Happenings page, just in case you forgot something and have to rush out tomorrow to find it: Metropolitan Market will be open till 2 pm (then closing till 6 am Friday); Thriftway will be open 5 am-4 pm; QFC will be open till 6 pm (then closing until 5 am Friday); the Safeways remain open 24 hours; PCC will be closed.

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Another West Seattle team heads for state-level competition
November 26, 2008 6:43 pm
|      13 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle people | WS & Sports

John MacKenzie, who’s been coaching girls’ soccer for six years, e-mailed WSB to share the news with you that his current team is headed to the state tournament next Saturday and Sunday, after a big win last weekend – here’s the story:

The GU-12 West Seattle Cheetahs girls’ soccer team won the District 3 Presidents Cup on Sunday, November 23rd, at Starfire Soccer Complex in Tukwila. They will now move on to the State Championships in Burlington December 6th and 7th. After tying their first game 2-2 they went on to win the next 3 games by a combined score of 11-0 with the final game being a 1-0 nailbiter. Coaches John MacKenzie and Cori Roed cited their tough relentless defense and speedy offense as the key to their success. “They are the most determined group of kids I have ever coached in any sport,” said Coach MacKenzie. “That is something that you can’t coach.”

Congratulations to the West Seattle Cheetahs! Pictured above: Back row left to right: Sam Tanzer, Nicole Roed, Anne Jorgenson, Ali Campagnaro, Julia Nark, Charli Ann Elliott, Abby Tuthill, and Kelsey Klapperich. Front row left to right: Annalisa Ursino, Danielle Nielsen, Sami MacKenzie, Laura Jetland, Julia Denison, Maddy Winter, and Tatum Dahl. Not pictured: Gabby Rivera

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From the WSB Forum: Traffic bottleneck unstopped
November 26, 2008 4:50 pm
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   Transportation | West Seattle news

ORIGINAL POST: We won’t get a chance to verify this for about half an hour, but wanted to pass it along if you don’t frequent the WSB Forums — another reminder that news gets broken there as well as here on the main page, thanks to eagle-eyed WSB’ers: Longtime forum member “m” reports that southbound 35th to eastbound Avalon (map) is now posted as “no left turn.” 5:11 PM ADDITION: Just drove through. The sign says left turns are off-limits at that spot 3 pm-7 pm, Mondays-Fridays.

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Welcoming a new WSB sponsor: White Center Swap Meet
November 26, 2008 4:20 pm
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 |   Fun stuff to do | West Seattle online | White Center

Please help welcome our newest WSB sponsor, the White Center Swap Meet and Flea Market. As we reported earlier this fall, the former Southgate Skate Center (map) has been renovated to become the Southgate Event Center, which is home to the White Center Swap Meet and Flea Market – the only one of its kind in the West Seattle/White Center area. After several weeks in “soft launch” mode, the Swap Meet is ready to welcome you to its official grand opening – as it launches expanded winter hours, just in time for holiday bargain shopping: 8:30 am to 4:30 pm (12/6/08 update – hours are now 10 am-4 pm), Saturdays and Sundays. In true swap meet/flea market tradition, you never know who’s going to be selling what (like the items you see at left), or what treasures you might find. Operator Dean Burgess invites you to stop by and check it out – there’s no admission, and the building is open to the public. As for the Southgate Event Center itself: Now that the historic 13,000-square-foot center has been remodeled, you can book it for parties and other events, starting in January (here’s more information from the center’s website). There’s an attached kitchen, and a small business-office space upstairs. Free space also is available to nonprofits (by appointment only). Dean and his team say they are “proud and thrilled to be retaining this building and returning it to its use as a community outpost and meeting place.” Drop by and say hi this weekend during the grand opening, 8:30 am-4:30 pm both days — 9646 17th Ave SW (map), barely a block over the line from West Seattle, and immediately west of the heart of the 16th SW business district. Welcome to the White Center Swap Meet and Flea Market; we’re glad to have them on the WSB sponsor team – you can see the latest lineup here, along with information on how to become part of it!

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West Seattle school-closure hearing officially set: December 16
November 26, 2008 1:58 pm
|    Comments Off on West Seattle school-closure hearing officially set: December 16
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle school closure | West Seattle schools

We just checked with Seattle Public Schools to see if the official dates were set for the public hearings at the school buildings proposed for closure – and this list is hot off the pixels. (We’d reported earlier that West Seattle School Board rep Steve Sundquist said this morning that he thought the West Seattle hearing would be December 16th, and he was right.) From the official announcement:

In order to strengthen academic programs across Seattle Public Schools and protect its long-term financial health, the School District is now considering building closures. Public hearings will be held at buildings proposed for closure from 6:30-8:30 p.m. on the days and locations below.

Monday, Dec. 15, 2008
▪ T.T. Minor – 1700 E. Union St.
▪ Pinehurst – 11530 12th Ave. N.E.
▪ Van Asselt – 7201 Beacon Ave. S.

Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2008
▪ Genesee Hill – 5012 S.W. Genesee St.
▪ Mann – 2410 E. Cherry St.
▪ Old Hay – 411 Boston St.

Thursday, Dec. 18, 2008
▪ Lowell – 1058 E. Mercer St.

Public testimony will be limited to 3 minutes per speaker, and should focus on the school building about which the hearing is being held. To sign up to give testimony, please call (206) 252-0042 or e-mail hearing@seattleschools.org.

For more information, visit www.seattleschools.org, and select “Capacity Management.” Comments may be e-mailed to capacity@seattleschools.org, schoolboard@seattleschools.org, or mailed to School Board,
P.O. Box 34165, MS 11-010, Seattle, WA, 98124-1165.

Direct link to the “Capacity Management” page is here. We also have just created a coverage category for all reports we publish related to this round of school changes – you can click “West Seattle school closure” in the WSB CATEGORIES list on the right sidebar, or just bookmark this (you can subscribe to this category or any other one in RSS, if you read WSB that way – choose the RSS link next to the category name in that sidebar list).

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Holiday traffic alerts, if you’re going downtown this 4-day weekend
November 26, 2008 1:49 pm
|    Comments Off on Holiday traffic alerts, if you’re going downtown this 4-day weekend
 |   Holidays | Not WS but we're mentioning it anyway

Finally, an excuse to use the photo we took as the holiday merry-go-round near Westlake Center was being set up last weekend! Just got the SDOT traffic alert about holiday 4-day weekend activities including the Friday parade (we’ll be there – never met a parade we didn’t like) and tree lighting/fireworks plus the Seattle Marathon, so here’s the announcement in all its glory:Read More

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Next Design Review meeting set for 4502 42nd SW
November 26, 2008 1:17 pm
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   Development | West Seattle news

450242nd.jpg

It’s been more than a year since the last Design Review meeting for 4502 42nd SW (map), a mixed-use project (7 stories, 81 residential units over almost 8,000 sf retail/office, 122 underground parking spaces) proposed on the site of the three little old houses you see above (and just up the block from the recent 4532 42nd SW demolition). The next one has just been posted on the city website today: It’ll return to the Southwest Design Review Board on December 18th. (The Morgan Community Association bulletin says The Kenney may be on the agenda that night too, but as of this writing, the city only lists 4502 42nd SW for that night.) No time/place listed for the meeting yet – we’ll post an update when that’s available. At the time of the first 4502 42nd SW design review last year, board members wanted the applicant to return for a second “early design guidance” meeting – but that didn’t happen — the city’s official meeting report says planners determined board members had given the applicant enough guidance for the project to proceed to the next stage.

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Looking for West Seattle Thanksgiving info?
November 26, 2008 12:46 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Holidays | West Seattle businesses

We’ll post everything here on the home page first thing in the morning as has become a WSB tradition, but in the meantime, if you want a preview of who’s offering a free dinner, who’s offering a free workout, which supermarkets and coffee shops are open, all the info we have gathered so far is all on the Holiday Happenings page.

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Followup on early morning Delridge crash
November 26, 2008 10:45 am
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news

Here’s the scoop from police: They answered a disturbance call around 5:40 in the 6900 block of Delridge. Arriving, they saw a white Volvo fleeing southbound – shortly afterward it hit a tree and wound up in the middle of the road. The driver was arrested on suspicion of DUI and taken to the hospital. The road was closed for a while to all but buses. 12:40 PM UPDATE: Police have posted more details on SPD Blotter (their updates for major Southwest Precinct activity go onto the WSB Crime Watch page instantly via automated updates, so you may have seen it on that page already).

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School closure aftermath: Big turnout for Sundquist gathering
November 26, 2008 9:25 am
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle school closure | West Seattle schools

We are at Coffee to a Tea with dozens of parents who have come to talk with School Board rep Steve Sundquist, many here to hear why Arbor Heights Elementary is being basically dismantled so Pathfinder K-8 can move there (coverage of the announcement and followup here and here). More later. 10 AM UPDATE: Sundquist offers this advice to concerned parents: Bring the board ideas and research, not emotion. First chance – sign up Monday to speak at next Wednesday’s board meeting. Sundquist says he has not made up his mind on the first recommendations and added that he doesn’t feel “bound” by them either – he is open to hearing alternative proposals. WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON P.S. We will write more about the meeting later (including the key points Arbor Heights parents made about why their school is a success and shouldn’t be dismantled – West Seattle parents of Lowell APP students had a significant presence too), but one other important piece of info to share now – Sundquist says he thinks the one public hearing that will be held in West Seattle, as required by state law when a building is proposed for closure, will probably be Tuesday 12/16 at Genesee Hill (Pathfinder), and he expects it will follow the format of up to 40 speakers, up to 3 minutes each. “Why no hearing at Arbor Heights?” asked an AH parent; “this is what’s required by law,” Sundquist explained, to which the parent wondered aloud if the district couldn’t go above and beyond what’s “required.” Meantime, we are checking with the district to see if they have a timetable for when the official announcement of the hearing will come (and we of course will publish the dates for all the hearings as they’re set, knowing local APP parents will want to attend the Lowell hearing).

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Possible scam alert: Looking for a charge
November 26, 2008 8:44 am
|      12 COMMENTS
 |   WS miscellaneous

Forwarded by Mike Dady from the North Delridge Neighborhood Council, who was asked by a Youngstown resident to “get the word out” about a suspicious situation:Read More

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Toplines on the school announcements, and what’s next
November 26, 2008 3:21 am
|      35 COMMENTS
 |   Arbor Heights | Genesee Hill | West Seattle news | West Seattle school closure | West Seattle schools

Following up on our live updates from last night’s 4-hour-plus School Board session where school closures and changes were officially proposed, here are the toplines/bottom lines on West Seattle effects, and what happens next:

-Ex-Genesee Hill Elementary building (map; photo right) proposed for closure
–Pathfinder K-8 proposed to move out of Genesee Hill, into Arbor Heights Elementary building (map; photo above)
-Arbor Heights Elementary would cease to exist as a “program”
-Arbor Heights’ current “regular” students would be dispersed among other West Seattle South cluster elementary schools (list)
-Arbor Heights’ current “special-ed” students would stay and become part of the Pathfinder K-8 “program”
-West Seattle students in the Advanced Placement Program (APP) would be assigned to Hawthorne Elementary (map), tabbed as one of two new homes for APP elementary students, who till now have all been housed together at Lowell (that building is to close) – this affects more than 50 West Seattle students (thanks to Molly for forwarding district documents that show how many West Seattle students from each “reference area” attend schools outside their “area,” including Lowell – here’s the WS north version, here’s the WS south version)

DETAILED INFO

All the presentations from the Tuesday night meeting are linked from this page (look under the Nov. 25 meeting header); for supplementary info, here’s Genesee Hill building history and Arbor Heights building history; Arbor Heights has set up a Save Arbor Heights site; before last night’s meeting, we published some background on the last round of school closure proposals, meetings, protests., etc.

NEXT STEPS

HOW TO COMMENT ON THE PROPOSALS: Various options all detailed here (including an e-mail announcement list you can sign up for)

TODAY: West Seattle’s School Board rep Steve Sundquist invites one and all to his monthly coffee chat at Coffee to a Tea with Sugar this morning, 9 am, in The Junction (map).

NEXT WEEK: First School Board meeting post-announcements, 6 pm Wednesday @ district HQ

AFTER THAT: The timeline remains the same as the one the district outlined previously:

□ December 4 – Community Meeting, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., John Stanford Center, 2445 3rd Avenue South
□ December 6 – Community Meeting, 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., Filipino Community Center, 5740 Martin Luther King Way
□ December 15, 16, 18 –Public hearings at buildings proposed for closure
□ Tuesday, January 6 –Final recommendation announced by Superintendent
□ Wednesday, January 7 –Board meeting: Capacity management motion introduced
□ Wednesday, January 21 –Board meeting
□ Thursday, January 22 –Final public hearing
□ Thursday, January 29 –Special board meeting (final vote)

Note that the 12/15-12/18 hearings will be at the BUILDINGS proposed for closure – so Genesee Hill will get one, though Arbor Heights, as a PROGRAM proposed for closure, apparently will not. The dates for those hearings are not yet set – we will publish that information as soon as it’s available.

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