We have received several notes about reports circulating in North Delridge that a woman was raped this morning in or near Greg Davis Park (26th/Brandon). We have not been able to get official police information on this yet – that is often challenging on weekends, unless we find out about an incident while it’s happening, and can go to the scene to talk directly with police. But the most recent note we received has specific information about neighbors mobilizing — so we want to make that public, while we continue to work on getting official information (hopefully tomorrow.) The first report we received today came from a woman who says she talked to officers who were investigating the incident this morning, saying they told her it was not a random attack. Another note says the victim got to a nearby gas station where help was called; the 911 log does show an aid call to the gas station/convenience store at 5235 Delridge at 7:25 am. Meantime, the most recent note we received, from a neighborhood activist who asked that we not use her name, says:
Already, plans for increasing safety in Delridge, and specifically, Cottage Grove, are brewing … a neighbor is organizing a self defense series for the women (and anyone else who wants to join) of the neighborhood and the Neighborhood Watch is on high alert and we are calling to report ANY and ALL suspicious behavior in Delridge! Group walks are being organized and the Neighborhood Council Meeting is this week and we will certainly discuss this incident and how to keep our neighbors safe.
The police told me by phone today that neighbors should ALWAYS REPORT ANY SUSPICIOUS BEHAVIOR THAT WE SEE–let the police decide if it is worthy of police action. The more information we provide, the better they can do their job. If in doubt, call 911.
There will be many in attendance at the upcoming North Delridge Neighborhood Council Meeting this Wednesday, Sept. 2nd 630-8pm at Olympia Pizza 5605 Delridge Way SW. All Delridge neighbors are welcome! We will discuss safety and other topics.
Several of the notes we’ve received say the victim reportedly was able to give police a license number. Again, we hope to be able to get official information tomorrow.
It’s one of the few things we have now covered four consecutive years since starting WSB in late 2005 – West Seattle-headquartered mega-best-selling fantasy-fiction author Terry Brooks made his annual late-summer appearance today at Westwood Village’s Barnes and Noble. His newest book, released this month, is “A Princess of Landover“; Erin from B&N shares this extra info:
Terry Brooks hosted a bookfair in conjunction with his reading, for the Interagency Academy for Seattle Public Schools. A portion of sales will go to this agency if community members shop at the West Seattle Barnes & Noble and either bring in a voucher if they received one or mention the Brooks bookfair to the cashier. It’s not too late to contribute!
B&N is open till 9 tonight. Less than a mile south of there, Holy Family School is hosting its first-ever “El Carnaval” street fair all weekend – we stopped by about an hour ago:
Bouncy toys for the little ones, too:
Last night’s grand finale to the monthlong Summer Concerts at The Mount (WSB sponsor) series at Providence Mount St. Vincent featured a bouncer too – with a tropical motif:
West Seattle residents and Square 1 Books (WSB sponsor) owners Gretchen Montgomery and Matthew Mors took second in today’s Great Urban Race downtown – this according to a note we just got from Gretchen’s proud mom Sue Montgomery. The GUR is described on its website as a “wacky urban adventure. Teams of two solve twelve clues, have a wild city adventure and complete fun challenges while discovering the city in a fresh way …” 4:59 PM UPDATE: Got a note from Matthew – they are back downtown right now to get their medals; he sent photos, including the one we’ve added atop this report with them at the finish line, and this one involving one of the tasks – a human pyramid by the Cinerama theater:
Just happened onto this project along the south side of the Super 24 convenience store at Delridge/Findlay (map) – the mural mentioned during the Community Safety Coalition meeting Thursday night is being painted right now. First the young painters are putting up a coat of primer (as seen above) over the store’s pre-existing peach-colored paint; next, artist Jonathan will paint the mural, and Maria from Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association tells us the whole thing should be done by day’s end, so we’ll check back later to see the finished product! (Other beautification work on Delridge today – the North Delridge Neighborhood Council‘s quarterly Adopt-A-Street cleanup was this morning – we passed by some of the bright yellow bags of trash getting loaded up to be taken away.)
Just got a phone call asking that we get the last-minute word out about this too: The West Seattle High School Class of 1989 has its reunion tonight at West Seattle Golf Course; we’ve confirmed this with WSGC, which is at 4470 35th SW (map). Admission free, donations accepted – the festivities begin at 4 pm, and the caller says WSHS’ers from years in that vicinity are welcome too.
The notorious “Fauntleroy stench” is back today – blamed on sea lettuce in Fauntleroy Cove generating hydrogen sulfide, according to Judy Pickens from the Fauntleroy Community Association, who offers this advice:
While we were able to secure funding from the 2009 legislative session for research and emergency response, the process of determining how to spend it has barely begun. Consequently, affected residents of Fauntleroy and other shoreline areas on the west side of the peninsula should exercise standard “stench protocol”:
– Note when low tide is, which is when sea lettuce on the beach decomposes and sends off the gas.
– Close all windows and skylights when you first notice the acrid smell.
– Stay indoors until the air seems fresh.
– Use a fan to blow out your bedroom before sleeping; the gas is heavy and needs a push.
– Leave home for awhile if the smell is especially strong.
Remember: It’s not just the smell of saltwater. It’s a noxious gas that can make you sick. Symptoms include eye irritation, headache, nausea, and vomiting.
We unintentionally skipped this in the Weekend Lineup but we just got a reminder note that it’s definitely on: The Ride and Glide “Extreme Sports Team” (featured above in a YouTube clip from last year) will be showing off BMX moves at the West Seattle Christian Preschool lot (41st/Genesee; map) tonight – free hot dogs at 5:30 pm, show at 6:30 pm. (If for some reason rain returns – not currently forecast – the show will move inside to the WSCC Activity Center, which is on 42nd just south of Genesee.)
(WSB photo by Christopher Boffoli) Seattle Police publish summaries of notable incidents to the SPDBlotter site (spdblotter.seattle.gov); we have the West Seattle Crime Watch page set up so that any tagged “Southwest Precinct” automatically feed there (here’s a direct link). Just spotted the summary of last night’s Admiral shots fired/victim beaten/suspect arrested incident (WSB as-it-happened coverage here) – here’s what police wrote:
On 8/28/09, at approximately 1130 p.m., the suspect and victim got into a fight in front of a Pub in the 2300 block of California Av SW. The suspect pulled out a hand gun, and pistol-whipped the victim, causing facial lacerations and possibly a broken nose. During the assault, a round apparently went off into the air, leading witnesses to believe that the victim had been shot. Seattle Fire responded and treated the victim on scene, he was transported to an area hospital with serious injuries.
The suspect ran off a short distance and tossed the hand gun away. A witness identified the suspect to the responding officers, and showed them the location of the gun. The suspect was arrested, and the gun was recovered.
The suspect was booked into King County Jail for Investigation of Assault.
(Thursday night photo by Christopher Boffoli) KENNEY SALE: West Seattle’s newest official city landmark, The Kenney‘s cupola-topped Seaview Building, marks the site of one of today’s many sales – Household goods, treasures, more, 9 am-4 pm, with this sale at The Kenney benefiting its fund taking care of residents who “outlive their financial resources.” 7125 Fauntleroy (map).
LOTS OF OTHER SALES: Other fundraising sales (like one for PAWS) and garage/yard sales happening TODAY are listed in the WSB Forums’ Freebies/Deals/Sales section – any time you have a sale, whether yard or business, you’re welcome to post there for free too.
HOLY FAMILY STREET FAIR: Holy Family School is on the line between West Seattle and White Center and inviting everybody in both communities – and beyond – to its El Carnaval street fair today and tomorrow, 10 am start both days. 20th SW will be blocked off just south of Roxbury for the fun (map).
North Admiral resident Jerry from JetCityOrange got that video on the West Seattle Bridge Friday night as the monthly Critical Mass group bicycle ride rolled into West Seattle (if you want to “fast-forward” through the clip, the first bicyclists appear around :24, the first major group around 1:40), with two Seattle Police cars alongside the front of the group, as you can see toward the end of the clip. (Independent journalist Johnathon Fitzpatrickreported via Twitter that one officer told him before the ride “I’m gonna be making sure nobody does anything ignorant” – in reference to cars around the riders; he also published a TwitPic from The Bridge.) We also got a tip about the bicyclists from Rhonda @ The Mortgage Porter (WSB sponsor) and got down to Alki in time for a photo:
Critical Mass happens every fourth Friday, leaving downtown at 5:30, via different routes that aren’t mass-publicized ahead of time. More info here. There was an online suggestion that World Naked Bike Ride participants might be along for the ride, but if you look closely at Jerry’s video – everybody seems to be dressed.
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