day : 14/05/2009 14 results

Delridge Playground update: $670 to go …

May 14, 2009 11:48 pm

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| Delridge | How to help | West Seattle parks

Two nights after all those kids (and some accompanying grownups too) got together to design the future Delridge Community Center playground, Betsy Hoffmeister posted this pitch via Facebook, reminding they just need a bit more cash for the project:

Shameless plea for cash: NDNC must raise $670 more in earnest money for the Delridge Community Center Playground Project. Here’s how to send anything from $5 to $670: go here https://app.etapestry.com/hosted/DelridgeNeighborhoodsDevelop/OnlineDonationDNDA.html and make a donation. In the comment box write “FOR NDNC PLAYGROUND PROJECT.” Tell me how much you sent so I can keep track and send a TXU/tax letter.

Betsy’s at betsy (at) hoffmeisters (dot) com. NDNC is North Delridge Neighborhood Council, for which she serves as co-vice chair.

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Thursday night notes: One sign, two links

May 14, 2009 10:28 pm

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| Not WS but we're mentioning it anyway | Seen around town | WS & Sports

SIGN: Amy reports a sign sighting on the Fauntleroy “overpass,” which would be the first one in a long time, since extra DON’T YOU DARE DO THAT-type signs went up … Unfortunately, she says the sign bears an unfriendly message we won’t repeat. Off to check it out as soon as we hit “publish” on this item. (Added later – Nope, it was gone.)

LINK #1: Remember the Cat’s Eye Cafe’ on Fauntleroy north of Lincoln Park, closed after a car hit it three years ago, now the Four Aims Center? Its former owner Julie Malcolm is in the street-food business up north, according to this Edmonds article about Here and There. Sounds a little bit like the Snohomish County version of Skillet

LINK #2: Husky football players visit Roxhill Elementary, and gohuskies.com tells the tale.

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“When we said ‘babysitting,’ we didn’t mean literally …”

May 14, 2009 9:45 pm

| 1 COMMENT

| Seen around town | Wildlife

We know we’ve shown you the Harbor Ave Canada geese over and over again … but this afternoon, we just happened to be working in the car at Don Armeni for a short time, and there they were, and we were powerless to resist the desire to pull the camera out of the laptop bag, and … Besides the two little guys shown with the adults here, there were also two — elder siblings? — in the group (and note the aft end of the Magnolia-docked cruise ship at left):

ADDED 11:28 PM: David Hutchinson, who has shared excellent photos of the Harbor Ave goose families, says he and wife Eilene have been observing them all and he happens to have a lot of backstory:

The 2 older goslings were hatched on one of the pilings near Salty’s the thirdweek of April. Their father is the larger adult with the large indentation in his feathers on the right side of his chest. Based on our observations, he is the “alpha male” goose along Harbor Avenue. When he and his family approach, everyone else leaves very quickly – even the 4 adults with the 19 goslings.

We have observed him and his mate since last year when they had 4 goslings. Only 1 lived to adulthood – 2 disappeared and we took the 3rd to PAWS with a badly injured leg (it later had to be euthanized because the injury led to a severe infection). This year there were originally 4 again but 2 of those disappeared. The 2 smaller goslings you photographed were “adopted” by this family on Mother’s Day, May 10th. That morning they showed up at Don Armeni with a different family and by afternoon, they had joined their adoptive family and their parents had left. From what we have read, very young goslings have not “imprinted” on their biological parents and will go off with other goslings of similar size. Once this happens, the adoptive parents will not allow the biological parents near.

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Update: The Kenney before Design Review Board, again

May 14, 2009 6:39 pm

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| Development | The Kenney | West Seattle news

We’re at the Senior Center of West Seattle, where more than 50 people are gathered as The Kenney‘s $150 million redevelopment project is back before the Southwest Design Review Board. Architect Gene Guszkowski has just announced that the cupola-topped Seaview building was formally nominated today for landmark status (not listed yet on this page, though), which triggers a separate city process that, as he noted, will proceed in parallel. Much of this presentation should duplicate what was shown at the community meeting we covered last week (here’s our report; here’s the official presentation packet), but we will add to this report with anything else new that’s disclosed tonight, as well as first word of the SWDRB’s decision – whether the project will advance to the next step in the process – once it’s in (not likely to be before 8 pm). 6:44 PM UPDATE: Guszkowski just announced the long-requested (and ultimately required) tree survey will be done at the site next Monday. 8:09 PM UPDATE: The board has unanimously agreed to let the project move on to the next phase of Design Review, which could be the final phase. Most public concerns involved the massing of the large square “donut” shaped building at the heart of the project – board members suggested perhaps “eroding” its western side and building up its eastern side, to allow more sunshine in the courtyard. They’re also asking architects to look at whether they really want the potentially relocated Seaview building to be the complex’s main entry – they’re asking to see entryway options when the project comes back for the “recommendations” round.

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History-making Seattle assistant fire chief: “Best day of my life”

May 14, 2009 6:03 pm

| 2 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | West Seattle people

By Kathy Mulady
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

Susan Rosenthal was all smiles this afternoon at City Hall as she was recognized and honored as Seattle’s first woman firefighter to rise to the rank of assistant chief (first reported here yesterday).

She called it “the best day of my life.”

Rosenthal, who recently bought a house and moved to West Seattle after years of living in Wallingford, was one of the first few women hired by the Seattle Fire Department in the 1970s. (On the card in the photo atop this story, she is the firefighter in the front, with the hose.) “We were told it would require strength and stamina. Now I know that meant more than just muscles,” she said.

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Hot Dog Joes update: SDOT releases citation details

May 14, 2009 5:12 pm

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| West Seattle news

We promised a followup on the hot-dog cart controversy: As reported here yesterday, we had learned that the Hot Dog Joes cart which set up outside Beveridge Place Pub in Morgan Junction in late February didn’t just go away because its trial period ran out, HDJ’s Joe Jeannot told WSB he’d been cited by the city twice and was having trouble working the situation out. Part of the problem is a city ordinance saying vendors aren’t allowed within 200 feet of parks, but as we noted yesterday, Jeannot acknowledged there was more to the story, though he declined to discuss details. Today, SDOT has some details in this statement sent to us by communications director Rick Sheridan:

The cart’s operator, Hot Dog Joes, was cited by SDOT for vending without a permit in the right of way. They did not have a health certificate or insurance to serve at that location. While cited for being within 200 feet of a park, the health and safety issues were the overriding reasons for the citations. The permit, health certificate and insurance are common requirements for food vendors, to prevent folks from getting sick or being injured, and can be easily obtained.

We tried to work with the cart operator so they would be in compliance with the law. Our Street Use inspector, who helps regulate right of way areas like sidewalks, warned the onsite vendor in person and sent a follow-up e-mail about the violations well before writing the citations.

Hot Dog Joes was aware of the requirements as they started the permit application process but never completed it. Given that they had received several warnings and refused to follow the law, the department was forced to write the citations. However, we are happy to work with Hot Dog Joes and help bring their hot dogs and bratwursts back to West Seattle.

So will they be able to work it out? Jeannot is a West Seattleite and told us in our initial conversation that whether it’s outside BPP or elsewhere, he would love to have a cart here. We’ll be contacting him for an update on whether there’s progress in working out the situation with the city. Meantime, we also contacted Councilmember Tom Rasmussen‘s office regarding the 200-foot rule, since he runs the Parks Committee, and he promised to look into the rationale for it, and to see if it might merit changing.

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West Seattle food news: From salmon to Swinery

May 14, 2009 4:05 pm

| 10 COMMENTS

| West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

WSB photojournalist Christopher Boffoli got that photo of Taku River salmon at Seattle Fish Company in The Junction this morning – he says that while everybody’s talking about the Copper River season right now, Taku has already arrived and is “not as well-known but is less expensive and has a fat content similar to the famed Copper River salmon. This fish comes from Southeast Alaska’s largest salmon producing river with up to 2 million salmon returning annually.” Meantime, if you haven’t already heard, bacon fans have a new reason for Westside pride — we somehow missed this earlier in the week (thanks to MargL for alerting us today): Seems the storied Swinery is apparently now going to be based in West Seattle, per this Slog report.

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Video: 34th District legislators brief 34th District Democrats

May 14, 2009 1:27 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle politics | West Seattle video

That’s one of your two State House members, Rep. Sharon Nelson, briefing last night’s 34th District Democrats meeting about the legislative session just concluded – note that she explained she is expecting word sometime today about the ultimate fate of her “payday lending” legislation. With her, the 34th District’s other two legislators – State Sen. Joe McDermott gave the longest briefing, including updates on education-related legislation:

And since health care issues are a focus for Rep. Eileen Cody, that’s where her briefing focused:

The 34th DDs also heard last night from a long list of people running for local office this year, primarily Seattle City Council candidates (all of whom we will be profiling here on WSB in the weeks ahead) – although mayoral candidate James Donaldson was there too. The meeting ran nearly three hours and included a somewhat contentious vote (background here) on the group’s rules for candidate endorsements – which they plan to make at their meeting in July. Announcements at the meeting included a reminder of the June 1st King County Executive candidates’ forum, sponsored by inSPIRE, to be held at Fauntleroy Church (more info here).

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Hike tomorrow, lupus 5K Sunday – and the weather’s improving!

May 14, 2009 11:22 am

| 1 COMMENT

| Environment | Health | How to help

It just might get into the 70s by tomorrow. So if you’re free in the afternoon, join the Nature Consortium‘s free monthly hike in the West Duwamish Greenbelt, 1 pm tomorrow (14th/Holly; map), RSVP to Lisa Corbin (lisa@naturec.org), who tells WSB, “There has been a lot of work done recently with the trails and an entire hillside has been cleared of blackberry and planted with natives, not to mention the spring growth of skunk cabbage, trillium, etc. A great time to see the greenbelt.” Then on Sunday at Alki, you can join the 5K to help fight lupus, a chronic auto-immune disease:

To be specific, Sunday’s event is the Seattle/Puget Sound Walk with Us to Cure Lupus Walk-a-thon (photo above is from last year’s event). The ALR Walk with Us to Cure Lupus event will be a 3 mile (5K) walk, starting at Alki Bathhouse at 9 am To be part of it, call Laurie Gray at 206.919.6270 or visit walk.lupusresearch.org/seattle (where you can also pledge to support walkers, if you can’t be there in person).

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King County Sheriff announces “burglary task force”

May 14, 2009 10:33 am

| 1 COMMENT

| Crime | West Seattle news

From e-mail just sent out by King County Sheriff Sue Rahr:

During the past several months we have seen an increase in the number of
burglaries throughout King County. … Despite having to cut many property crime detective positions this year due to our budget being reduced, I am still doing everything I can to keep you safe. I am teaming up with other local law enforcement jurisdictions, crime analysis teams and representatives from the King County Prosecutor’s Office to form a burglary task force. Much like the very successful task force created to reduce auto theft, we will be focusing on the most serious repeat offenders. We reduced auto theft by more than 30% through this coordination and focus. It is my hope we will achieve the same results with burglaries.

KCSO does not have jurisdiction in West Seattle, of course (but does, in unincorporated White Center) – however, we hadn’t heard of this task force before, so we’re checking to see if SPD is part of it. (And of course, the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office handles cases for the entire county, cities as well as unincorporated areas – we covered PA Dan Satterberg touting the auto-theft task force during his recent Rotary Club of West Seattle speech – and who could forget the video he showed?)

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Tonight: Taste of West Seattle; Kenney review; Art Walk; concert

May 14, 2009 9:50 am

| 7 COMMENTS

| The Kenney | West Seattle Art Walk

TASTE OF WEST SEATTLE: Why wait for the Bite of Seattle when you can try the Taste of West Seattle? It’s happening tonight, benefiting West Seattle Helpline, 6 pm at The Hall at Fauntleroy, with participating food/beverage providers: Alki Bakery, Bakery Nouveau, Beveridge Place Pub, The Bohemian, Cafe Revo (WSB sponsor), Cupcake Royale, Eats Market Cafe, Elliott Bay Brewing, Endolyne Joe’s, Husky Deli, Lee’s Asian, Metropolitan Market, Prost, Salty’s, Starbucks, Tuxedos and Tennis Shoes, West 5, West Seattle Cellars. $40/door. P.S. Helpline executive director Anna Fern also tells us, “We are also having a raffle of 24 donated gift certificates from local restaurants and business. And an auction for four items: Beecher’s Cheesemaker of the Day, Crowley Tug Ride at Maritime Festival, Art of the Table Supper, and Health through Hypnosis.”

DESIGN REVIEW FOR THE KENNEY: On the heels of last week’s community meeting to unveil the newest design proposals (WSB coverage here), comes tonight’s Southwest Design Review Board meeting – 6:30 pm, Senior Center of West Seattle. These meetings always include ample opportunity for public comment, so if you have something to say about The Kenney’s $150 million redevelopment proposal, be there.

WEST SEATTLE ART WALK: The weather’s supposed to get better as the day goes on, but even if it doesn’t, note that the dozens of venues are indoors, with amazing art everywhere. Many displays are spotlighted on the official Art Walk site; one highlight is the opening reception for the student art show in the ArtsWest gallery. The Art Walk happens 6-9 tonight; get your map here.

FOOD BANK BENEFIT CONCERT: Also in The Junction, tonight’s the night that the junior high youth group at Holy Rosary is presenting Dennis Zender in concert as a benefit for the West Seattle Food Bank – admission is free, just bring a nonperishable food item. 7 pm.

Other events for tonight – including a discussion of the Duwamish River’s health, the West Seattle High School musical and the tango at Endolyne Joe‘s! – are on the WSB West Seattle Events calendar.

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From land-use land: Alki project approval, antenna application

May 14, 2009 8:58 am

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| Development | West Seattle news

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From today’s edition of the twice-weekly Land Use Information Bulletin: The city has approved “administrative design review” for the seven-unit project across the alley from Cactus at 3008 63rd SW (map). The decision can be read here; the deadline for appeals is May 28, and the online notice explains how they can be filed.

Not far away, AT&T Wireless is seeking approval to replace two rooftop antennas at 6609 Admiral Way (map), the apartment building overlooking Bar-S Playfield, which has been the site of fights over other antennas (including last year’s appeal of a different application) and has long been the site of other installations. The city is accepting comments on this application; the link is at the top of this notice page.

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West Seattle CoolMoms to rally, testify at EPA hearing in Seattle

May 14, 2009 6:03 am

| 17 COMMENTS

| Environment | West Seattle people

The West Seattle CoolMom chapter is getting the word out about both the Environmental Protection Agency hearing on climate change one week from today in Seattle and plans for a rally outside the hearing. They’re hoping West Seattleites — CoolMom families and everyone else who’s interested — will join in the rally; they’re also noting that CoolMom co-founder Kirsten McCaa is planning to testify during the hearing. Seattle is one of two cities the EPA is visiting for public hearings on its “proposed finding” that climate-change-related pollution is a threat to human health. Here’s EPA info (including how to pre-register to testify) about the hearing, set for 9 am-8 pm May 21 at Bell Harbor on the downtown waterfront; the rally is set for noon (here’s its official infopage).

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Tilden students learn “little things can make a big difference”

May 14, 2009 1:33 am

| 2 COMMENTS

| Environment | West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

It’s been a few weeks since Earth Day, but in the “EVERY day is Earth Day” spirit, we have one more story to share, this one — accompanied by the art shown above — from students at West Seattle’s Tilden School:

As is our tradition, Tilden School students spent time on Earth Day cleaning up garbage around the neighborhood. This year, all classes together gathered about 15 large garbage bags full of trash. Several students found it encouraging that this was less than they found last Earth Day! Students who collected near the Junction reported cigarette butts as the most common item; students who collected north on California reported more candy wrappers and beer bottles. Some of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th graders wanted to share their reflections on the experience:

Adrian: When my class and I went to pick up trash … it was horrible! There was garbage everywhere!!…

Mallih: … On Earth Day, Tilden School went out and about to the post office, and oh, my, there was so much trash in one little parking lot!…

Sam: It was a dim day, and the sky was full of gray clouds. We mostly picked up cigarette butts and pieces of paper. I mainly collected plastic and rubber. This year there wasn’t as much garbage as last year. In my opinion, people are thinking more about the environment…

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