West Seattle, Washington
29 Friday
Though we don’t have an official “obituaries” section right now, once in a while somebody sends us one. In this case, James Mahon e-mailed WSB to say his mom died this week and “as a West Seattle resident for over 50 years, she should probably get a notice posted in your blog.” Services for 81-year-old Josephine Mahon are planned on Friday – read on for the obituary and photo sent by her son:Read More
Thanks to Denise Davis, who sent that photo with word her husband Duane Davis “is finally done” with elaborate holiday lighting that’s been a couple weeks in the making, unmissable from 46th and Genesee (map). Next photo’s courtesy of Wendy Hughes-Jelen, who spotted biker Santa at Hans’ VW Repair, 35th and Graham (map):
Got a photo? Or a Christmas-lights address you think we should go photograph? Please let us know – thanks!
Posted tonight by the P-I: 44-year-old Kevin Palmer, getaway driver in the Admiral Wells Fargo heist that was followed by a downtown standoff and shooting, has been sentenced to 4 years in prison and will testify against the accused robber, 51-year-old Douglas Cox. Here’s our running coverage from while it was all unfolding on July 1st.
The school-closure-related meetings already reported here weren’t the only newsworthy, West Seattle-related events happening last night; we had a reporter at the Admiral Neighborhood Association‘s monthly meeting too, and she’s sent in an update including the latest on California Place Park — read on:Read More
WSB sponsor note: Right now, till 9 pm, it’s a holiday savings event at Curious Kidstuff in The Junction — 25 percent off everything in the store. (You may have seen advance word on the Curious Kidstuff coupon that’s in the first-ever WSB Coupons, downloadable here.) Till 8 pm, you can bring along your child (5 and up) and give her/him a chance to play at The Little Artist upstairs, while you, um, help Santa.
Latest from the National Weather Service gets right down to, or should we say “up to,” elevation: Snow level in Seattle on Friday night, 400 feet. Read the forecast here. What’s particularly interesting is that a big event is happening at about 500 feet elevation Friday night, in the vicinity of the highest point in West Seattle (also the city’s highest point) – 35th/Myrtle, where Our Lady of Guadalupe invites one and all to its Community Christmas Tree Lighting (7 pm; 2007 tree at left). One more weather note – A comment on today’s earlier post provides a reminder that one of Seattle’s best-known non-TV meteorologists has his own website; here’s what Cliff Mass says about the upcoming wintriness.
We’re checking with the Southwest Precinct for any more info on this, including whether anyone’s been arrested. But we didn’t want to wait any longer to share the original reader report, from Zack:
Two of my neighbors were violently mugged last night in Highland Park as they were walking home. The mugging took place at the intersection of 14th and Cambridge [map] around 7:30 pm. The muggers worked in tandem. One approached the couple asking where the closest bus stop was, while the other hid out of sight. The first mugger wrestled one of the victims to the ground, using a blade of some kind to cut open the victim’s pants and remove his wallet. The other mugger stepped out from behind a car and flattened the second victim, ripping her purse and handbag from her. The muggers fled in a vehicle heading south. The muggers made off with both of the victims’ wallets, a lap top computer, and various personal items (including house keys). Within minutes, the criminals had attempted to use the victims’ credit cards at a gas station with a 98116 ZIP code.
The victims described the assailants as Asian Pacific Islanders or Samoans in their early 20s. The muggers did not have any distinguishing features or marks. They were both large men.
The victims are friends. My wife took them to the hardware store last night to buy replacement locks. Needless to say, we are all shaken up over this. The violent nature of the crime is particularly disturbing. The police who responded said that as the economy worsens, they are seeing a rise in these types of snatch and grab crimes.
Please alert your readers to call the police the first moment they notice any suspicious looking vehicles or people in their neighborhood.
That’s the Pet Angel Tree at Pet Elements in Morgan Junction – we got word of it from Teri Ensley at Furry Faces Foundation, who e-mailed WSB this writeup about three holiday-pet-help opportunities that are all “on site” at Pet Elements, in conjunction with F3 and Purrfect Pals:
Holiday Pet Food Drive: People of all income levels have pets that are near and dear to them and there is a spike in the surrender rate of pets to shelters because of tough economic times. Therefore, Melanie Wells, owner of Pet Elements, is sponsoring this pet food drive in conjunction with seven other small independent pet supply stores. She says that by helping people with pet food, we can help these animals stay with their humans instead of being surrendered to a shelter.
Pet Angel Tree: People can show off their beloved companion by putting a photo and/or name on Pet Angel Tree. Ribbons, cards, scissors and other ‘ornament’ accessories are provided. There is a suggested donation of $5, however, it is not mandatory. Any donations will support Furry Faces Foundation’s ‘Oliver’s Fund’, which assists animals, whose humans are financially restricted, with unexpected Veterinarian bills and healthy pet food…because everyone deserves unconditional love.
Cat Sponsorship Holiday Cards: Purrfect Pals has wonderful Holiday cards with photos & stories of their permanent resident cats that people can give as a gift to their animal loving family members and friends. The cards are a wonderful, green gift and only a $25 donation. Purrfect Pals is an excellent rescue group who teams with many other groups, including Furry Faces, because we all want the same thing–happy, loving, permanent homes for animals. (and of course, spay/neuter).
Pet Elements is at 6701 California (map). Any other pet-helping holiday opportunities? Let us know and we’ll add them to the WSB Holidays page! (P.S. Teri also sends word that the recent “Catsino” fundraiser for F3 [WSB coverage here] raised more than $1,200 on behalf of “It’s Hip to Be Snipped” spaying/neutering work.)
Heading north on Fauntleroy Way this morning, just before the straightaway that leads from Fairmount Springs to the Triangle area, we spotted Pothole Rangers in action, so we pulled over for a pic. Not far away, a relatively sizable group of people in safety vests was in position on both sides of the street – didn’t think much at the time, but when we returned southbound down the same stretch 2 1/2 hours later, what looked to be members of the same group were still on the move, this time up at Fauntleroy/Edmunds:
We’re checking with SDOT to see if there’s anything to say about what this delegation was doing, beyond inspecting curb cuts, which seemed to be the activity at that particular corner. Meantime, we’re also checking on the status of the decisionmaking/question-answering process on the big proposal involving that same stretch of Fauntleroy – “rechannelization,” as discussed at last week’s open house (WSB coverage here) as well as in several previous reports. 4:48 PM UPDATE: Here’s what Marybeth Turner from SDOT tells us:
City crews are constructing curb ramps in advance of the paving project. During the city budget process we had to stop and start the crews a few times when the future of the Fauntleroy paving was in question. They are getting ready to begin again and are meeting with Pavement Management staff and the Project Engineer to make sure they are built correctly.
Days after Arbor Heights Elementary was proposed for “program closure” in the “preliminary recommendations” from Seattle Public Schools leadership two weeks ago, its community prepared and released a “fact sheet” (WSB report here). Now, the morning after its official appearance on the potential closure list – its program, not its building – Cooper Elementary has created a “fact sheet” as well, so we wanted to share that with you. Read it here (7-page PDF) in its entirety. Among many other points, the document showcases some of Cooper’s programs, like these two:
*Cooper’s Bilingual Program serves a culturally diverse group of English language learners. Two bilingual teachers and three instructional assistants provide instruction and support to students and parents who speak Spanish, Cambodian, Vietnamese, and Somali.
*Cooper’s Autism Program continuum serves 24 students with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Eight students are served in Cooper’s general education classrooms with additional support and instruction provided by one special education teacher and 2 instructional assistants. Sixteen students are served in rooms 209 and 107, Cooper’s self-contained Autism K-2 and 3-5 classrooms. They are supported by two special education teachers and six instructional assistants. Additionally, Cooper’s resource room supports students with learning disabilities and developmental delays through both pull-put and push-in support.
The document also says closing Cooper’s program would eliminate the Earth Project (here’s its link on the Cooper site), which we’ve mentioned previously. Again, here’s where you can read the Cooper document in its entirety; the school is having a meeting tomorrow night – we covered the first Cooper meeting last Friday. Also, if you missed it last night, the latest “potential final recommendations” for school closures and changes citywide are summarized on the district website here.
Now that the end of the week is within sight, it’s time to start taking the forecasts REALLY seriously. Not only is cold weather, with possible snow, still said to be on the way, the National Weather Service says it’s going to get windy first – here’s an excerpt from the newest citywide forecast:
FRIDAY…WINDY. RAIN. HIGHS IN THE UPPER 30S TO MID 40S. SOUTH WIND 10 TO 20 MPH SHIFTING TO THE NORTHWEST 20 TO 30 MPH IN THE AFTERNOON.
FRIDAY NIGHT…RAIN AND SNOW. LOWS IN THE MID 30S.
SATURDAY…CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF SNOW SHOWERS. HIGHS IN THE 30S.
SATURDAY NIGHT…MOSTLY CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF SNOW SHOWERS. LOWS IN THE 20S.
SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY…PARTLY CLOUDY. HIGHS IN THE LOWER 30S. LOWS IN THE 20S
Safety information for “cold and icy weather” also has just been linked to the Regional Public Information Network website; read it here.
As we have mentioned in previous coverage, we learned from the district last night that schools have the option to have “closed” (school community only) meetings if they are not widely advertised – one such meeting was held last night at Pathfinder K-8. We asked Pathfinder parent Eric Baer if he could provide us with some notes about what happened at that meeting, to share with you, since their school too is involved in the closure/change process that has rocked hundreds of West Seattle families (we also have new information this morning from Cooper Elementary – now facing the possibility of “program” closure — which we will publish shortly) – read on for a summary:Read More
TONIGHT: The 34th District Democrats‘ annual holiday party. Among the highlights – two deep-fried smoked turkeys to be provided by outgoing chair Ivan Weiss, whose farewell message on the 34 Dems’ site is a must-read. (The organization elects new leadership next month.) Party’s at 6:30 pm, The Hall at Fauntleroy, bring a potluck item to share; more info here.
TOMORROW: West Seattle Democratic Women celebrate their holiday party at their monthly luncheon, 11:15 am, West Seattle Golf Course. Lunch costs $10 and there’s still time to RSVP; all the info (including e-mail and phone for reservations) is here.
A West Seattleite who wishes to remain anonymous sent this in to give you a heads-up:
I was shopping at Target (West Seattle) at 4:45 today. I got hot, took my coat off (and my bag), put all in cart, turned my back to it and then – poof – it was gone.
The brazen thing was, even as I was reporting it to security and the police, the thieves were shopping at the store! They spent 682.98 at Target (at 6 pm) and then ran off to Best Buy for another splurge of 635.44.
I cancelled my credit and debit cards and then something I’d never heard of until now – I put fraud alert on all my accounts.
This Seattle Police webpage includes some handy info regarding what to do if (hope not) this happens to you. We’re adding it to the “resources” list at the bottom of the WSB Crime Watch page.
| 2 COMMENTS