National Gang Threat Assessment: Read it online
Just saw a KING5 followup about the FBI’s just-released “National Gang Threat Assessment,” but we don’t see a link to that actual FBI report on their website; we have the link from an FBI news release e-mailed today, so we wanted to let you know that if you want to read it, you can find it here. Page 18 focuses on the current/predicted Northwest gang situation, and names the gangs the FBI believes are most “criminally active”; information on those individual gangs starts on page 23. No Seattle specifics, but local law-enforcement agencies are listed as contributors.
West Seattle Crime Watch: Vandalism spree on wheels
Robert e-mailed to report that a carful of people went along 47th from at least Erskine to Raymond (map) about an hour ago, hitting cars with a hammer. Police were called; no word of arrests so far. 9:54 PM UPDATE: Checked back with Robert to see if he had a description of the car — “light/white-colored sedan. With a low rumble of an exhaust.”
OK, guess we can’t get away with not mentioning this one
We saw this earlier today and thought “yawn, we’ve seen that done before on other topics.” 
But more than a few people have sent it to us via e-mail, Twitter, and Facebook, so we’re thinking maybe it’s worth sharing in case you haven’t seen it yet. The site was just registered this morning so clearly a goofy reaction to the early-am earthquake. Let us be perhaps the last to introduce you to: HasTheViaductCollapsedYet.com. (Please forgive us if at any point AFTER this it turns into a redirect to a scam, porn site, or RickRoll … ) P.S. Looks like ownership was claimed, here.
Suspected pet-theft alert: Shiba Inu missing
At left, that’s Butch the Shiba Inu, for whom Ray and Mary Eldridge are frantically searching right now. They e-mailed to say, “We believe someone stole our dog, a black and tan Shiba Inu … from in front of the West Seattle Library this afternoon. He looks like a miniature Malamute, weighs about 22 lbs. He has a microchip in him, and tags with our phone number. Please be on the lookout for him and call us if you see him. Our number is 206-914-1290.” They say they’re reporting it to police as well. UPDATE: They clarify, this happened outside the High Point library.
Current and former mayors at West Seattle High School on Monday
This just in from the King County Public Health department:
In the span of 20 years, Seattle’s School-Based Health Centers have grown from a modest pilot program at Rainier Beach High School to a system that now serves the health needs of 5,000 students every year across 14 Seattle School District middle and high schools.
On Monday, February 2, City of Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, Former City of Seattle Mayor Norm Rice, Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Maria Goodloe-Johnson and Public Health – Seattle & King County Director and Health Officer Dr. David Fleming will join health care providers and community partners to celebrate this 20-year milestone in providing high-quality, comprehensive adolescent health care that improves the health of our community and promotes school success for our youth. …
* Celebration: At 10:30 a.m., Mayor Nickels, local officials and community partners will meet in the school library for a celebration and remarks, including testimonials from current students who use the School-Based Health Centers.
The announcement also mentions that WSHS principal Bruce Bivins will participate in the event, along with Lib Kratz, a Nurse Practitioner from Sealth Teen Health Center.
West Seattle Weekend Lineup: Three “super” days
Drama! ’60s rock nostalgia! Yoga to help an ailing teacher! Free coffee and breakfast treats for everyone who helps with the Admiral Adopt-A-Street cleanup! And of course, West Seattle Super Bowl parties! All happening in West Seattle now through Sunday night, more than 40 events ahead in the Super Bowl weekend edition of the West Seattle Weekend Lineup (sponsored by Skylark Cafe and Club):Read More
Alki-based boutique Coastal closing University Village location
Out of the inbox: Coastal, the Alki-based boutique that expanded to the north end a couple years ago, just sent this to its e-mail list:
For the past two years, we have loved being a part of University Village; enjoying new customers and giving our Alki customers another place to shop Coastal on the north end of town. However, at the end of February, we will be closing the University Village Coastal and moving exclusively back to the beach.
A similar move was made last year by Capers, which closed its Fremont expansion location to focus exclusively on its flagship store in The Junction. ADDED 9:40 PM: We e-mailed Coastal’s owners to ask if they had any additional comment – here’s what Christy and Sarah wrote back:
While we are sad to be closing Coastal at University Village , we are very much looking forward to focusing our efforts on the Alki Beach store and bringing even more fun and energy to our West Seattle community. We intend to be on Alki for a very long time and appreciate the support we’ve received from our customers there for the past 5 ½ years.
During this time of economic instability, we’d like to encourage our friends and neighbors to continue to shop locally to ensure the success of the small businesses we all love and value.
Science+math=fun: Meet the Gatewood Elementary robotics team
(From left, students “Skate,” “Crash,” “K-Mart,” “Bubbles,” “Splat,” “Pie,” “Gears,” and “Panic,” with robots Trek, No Name, Wall-E, and Robo – the stuffed monkey at middle is Swinger)
One of the West Seattle schools scheduled to get a significant influx of new students as a result of last night’s closure vote is Gatewood Elementary. Just so happens, hours before the vote, we were visiting Gatewood at the invitation of Erik Christensen, who volunteers with its Robotics Team. What? You thought robotics was mostly for older kids? No way! These young creators are working with a Lego-based system, in a setup like this:
The Gatewood Robotics Team meets after school on Thursday afternoons; its members are getting ready for a big outing to the UW next week, so we stopped by in advance to meet the students (who wanted to be known by their “robot-building” nicknames) and their robots, and thought you’d like to meet them too. (If you’re school-shopping for next year, by the way, Gatewood has tours coming up in the next few weeks; dates/times are listed here; the full tour list for Seattle Public Schools can be found atop our Events page.)
Update: Post-earthquake bridge inspections – no problems
From SDOT:
Responding to this morning’s earthquake, the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is inspecting the city’s elevated roadway structures for any possible damage. The department has already examined the Ballard, Fremont, University and Spokane Street bridges and has found no indications of damage from the earthquake. The inspections will continue with assessments of the Magnolia, Emerson Street and Jose Rizal bridges, the 15th Avenue NW Interchange and the Spokane Street Viaduct.
Given the small size of the earthquake, the department is carefully examining a key number of its bridges, viaducts and overpasses. If any earthquake damage is discovered, SDOT will then escalate its inspection to all citywide elevated roadway structures.
The Washington State Department of Transportation is responsible for inspecting the Alaskan Way Viaduct and is already at work on that important elevated structure.
ADDED 12:16 PM: SDOT has sent an update:
Inspections of elevated roadway structures across the city
by the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) revealed no damage
from this morning’s earthquake. … In addition to visual inspections, SDOT performed test openings on the four movable bridges and found all systems operating correctly. This testing covered the Ballard, Fremont, University and Spokane Street bridges.
Help Waunda get healthy: Friends seek auction donations
Friends and family are working to help raise money for a woman known to many who shop and do business in The Junction — Waunda from the Sports Junction (in the breezeway on the west side of California, south of Oregon). Lee Blanchette explains:
Waunda has been at the Sports Junction since the 80’s and is the epitome of West Seattle. She has done more things for more people than anyone you will ever know. On October 31st Waunda was diagnosed with TTP (thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura): A rare life-threatening disease involving embolism and thrombosis (plugging) of the small blood vessels in the brain and has spent the last 2 ½ months at Swedish Hospital. She is finally home but has many months of rehabilitation ahead of her. We will be having a silent auction February 7th at the Rocksport from 7 to 9 pm, followed by live music throughout the evening. We are asking local businesses to donate to the auction to help with Waunda’s recovery. Please call the following numbers or contact her daughter Deanise at the Rocksport.
Tara 253 353-6622
Lee 206 898-6986
West Seattle stories from this morning’s Kitsap County quake
We have a few notes from people shaken up by the 4.5 quake this morning in Kitsap County; here’s its official page on the UW quake-tracking website. Dan Riley, in a 5th-floor apartment along Avalon, described it as: “Ripple ripple, Big Jolt, ripple ripple.” That area may have shook more than most: According to Talani from Stor-More (WSB sponsor), at least one TV station is roaming around here looking for quake stories; she posted on Facebook (where you’ll find us as WS Blog), “We just got interviewed by Channel 7 at the Alki Starbucks about the earthquake”; her original quake report was, “We rocked for a long time … lying in bed totally still and yet both moving and waking up…so wild! I know Luna Park is on pylinks, and it seems we rocked longer than others who just felt a boom.” LeeAnne Beres, near The Junction, felt it too: “Our whole house shook for 12-15 seconds and we had just enough time to figure out what was happening, look at each other and say “earthquake!” before it stopped. It was nothing like the rolling waves of the 2001 Nisqually quake, but definitely enough to make our 1915 house sway significantly. Lisa points out that the USGS is interested in reports from anyone who felt it; you can send yours in by going here and clicking the “Did you feel it? Tell us!” link. Since the last somewhat notable quake, the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network has upgraded its “recent earthquakes” page – here’s where to go (worth bookmarking) if you ever think you felt something but weren’t sure if it was a quake. ADDED 12:02 PM: Cool page of web-based seismographs that show the motion pattern – like this one that’s at Vashon HS.
Junction parking review update: Want to take a tour?
New information from Dante Taylor, who’s managing the upcoming Junction parking review that may — or may not — lead to signs like the one at left. Our last update was January 13th, when Taylor appeared at the Junction Neighborhood Organization (JuNO) meeting and said the first phase would involve both informational mailers and walking tours. If you live in the area that’s being studied (Dakota to Brandon, 47th to 39th, plus the Triangle area) you should receive a mailer within the next week. As for the walking tours – Taylor would like to hear from you if you are interested in participating – it’ll involve scheduling a time to join a small group walking around the area and discussing the reality of the parking situation, good and bad, and whether any specific “tools” might be needed to improve the situation – e-mail him at JunctionParking@seattle.gov ASAP.
National notice for Seattle Lutheran soccer standout
From Bil Hood at Seattle Lutheran High School:
Congratulations to Seattle Lutheran High School student Ashley Shaw! Ashley was featured in this month’s ESPN Rise Magazine for her achievements in this past soccer season. Ashley ranked #3 in the state for most goals scored and the SLHS Saints team took 3rd in state. Look for plenty more where that came from; Ashley is just a freshman and the team will be returning all but one starter next year.
| 3 COMMENTS