“Project Possible” helps West Seattle homeowner; can you pitch in?
Sometimes, there may be more to the story of what seems like a “nuisance house” in a neighborhood. At least, that’s what you could draw from this item we happened onto while wandering the Web – a West Seattle homeowner in dire need of help to fix up a house that got trashed while a crisis pulled her away (scroll down that page to see the photos). We contacted “Project Possible” to find out more; Scott Bishop told us his startup is meant to help people with extreme situations like this who run out of places to turn, but he then has to work to line up volunteer/donated help to pitch in. As you’ll see toward the end of the story on his website, some help is still needed, particularly a stump grinder; his contact information is there if there’s anything you can do.
New expected completion date for Alki pump station: November
You’ll be looking at that scene along Alki for two more months, because the expected completion date for the 53rd Avenue Pump Station expansion project on Alki has moved back a few more weeks. Two recent notes asking us for updates led us to contact King County Wastewater Treatment spokesperson Martha Tuttle, who says they’re now expecting the project to wind up in early November, instead of the October date discussed when we published an update in late spring. She explained:
Although the construction is substantially complete, the new pump station must go through significant testing to be fully functional. … We will not be clearing away the barricades/signs/ materials until the pump station is fully operative, which is around the first of November. Sorry for that news. We know the walkers, joggers and bikers are really tired of our presence.
Work on the pump station began 19 months ago (here’s our first report from February 2008). The county website explains what’s being built – tripling the size of the underground pump station.
Quick update from Angelina’s new owners: “Now closed”
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As scheduled (and reported here 2 weeks ago), Angelina’s Trattoria is now closed in Admiral so its new owners can make renovations. We got a note via Facebook from co-owner Allison Rich, regarding the closure and the staff status:
I wanted to let you know that Angelina’s is now closed; the paper will go up on the windows tonight, and the buildout will start when all permits are in order. We are still hoping to open in early October. We are keeping the chef and manager, as well as meeting with all of the current staff tomorrow.
Staffers had posted an open letter to customers in the comment section following our previous report. The new owners are planning to add new restrooms and a bar during the renovation work; they’ve said they’re keeping the name, and while the menu will remain Italian-focused, there’ll be some “not Italian” offerings too.
West Seattle Crime Watch: Suspected prowler, caught on cam
The person at left was photographed prowling a townhouse in the 4500 block of 40th Ave SW just a little while ago, according to WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli, who saw it happen and just finished talking with police. He says: “I was sitting at my desk working (with a view of the alley) and I saw this guy walk up to my neighbor’s door across the alley and try the doorknob. The door was locked. So then I saw him look in the window by the door. He was looking around, trying to appear casual, but clearly up to something. When I saw him go around to the other side of the house and jump the railing onto the deck I picked up the phone and called 911. I didn’t know it but my neighbor and his two small children were actually home. Apparently the thief saw or heard them and decided not to proceed any further. He jumped back over the fence and sauntered down the alley towards Alaska. I grabbed several pictures and was able to give print outs to the SPD. They were on the scene in less than five minutes with multiple officers looking for this guy. Perp was about 6 feet tall. Slim. Light skinned black man. At least one stud earring. Clean cut. Blue dress shirt with vertical dark stripes. Khaki pants. Black oxford shoes. He wasn’t carrying any bags or clipboards or anything.” To reiterate, what Christopher did — calling 911 — is what police urge everyone to do if you see something or someone suspicious.
Welcome, new WSB sponsor: Fitzpatrick’s Interiors & Upholstery
This afternoon, we’re welcoming a new WSB sponsor: Fitzpatrick’s Interiors and Upholstery, which has been in business in West Seattle for 37 years. 
Here’s what owner Margaret Fitzpatrick wants you to know about her business: She is an expert in upholstery and fabric selection. Margaret’s private selection of fabric is wonderful and she shops the Seattle Design Center for clients as well. Margaret offers personal design service for fabric selection in your home as a part of the upholstery process. The quality of the work is excellent and the work is guaranteed. Client satisfaction drives the business. Fitzpatrick’s Interiors and Upholstery has had two storefronts in West Seattle, and Margaret taught upholstery for the Community Colleges for 10 years. Now, Margaret works out of her home by appointment. Call for a free in-home estimate in West Seattle. Pickup and delivery is part of the upholstery service. Besides chairs and couches, Fitzpatrick’s services include cushions, decorator pillows, window seats, foam replacement and slipcovers. Margaret says, “I am hugged frequently when delivering projects because of client delight. I love my job, and it is ‘green business’!” You can call Fitzpatrick’s Interiors and Upholstery at 206-937-9643.
Thanks to Fitzpatrick’s for supporting independent neighborhood-based news/information/discussion by joining the WSB sponsor team, all listed here with info on how to join.
Another followup: Thursday’s low, loud planes over West Seattle
(Boeing Field-provided graphic of air traffic from Thursday night)
We’re slugging our way through a big stack of followups – something we appreciate getting to do, because in our citywide media days, that’s what often fell by the wayside: If you have to cover an entire huge region, like Western Washington, there’s always something new to rush to, and you seldom get to look back. But for small independent sites focusing on a single neighborhood, followups are more feasible. Here’s the latest : Remember those low, loud passenger and cargo planes that startled many West Seattleites over the course of about an hour last Thursday night? We were finally pointed to local FAA spokesperson Bob Fergus, who confirms today what some aviation-savvy commenters had suggested:
… on the evening of complaints that you referenced, we experienced a peculiar weather pattern that, although not common it isn’t rare either, had prevailing winds from opposite directions at Boeing Field and Sea-Tac Airports. In this case Boeing takeoff pattern was to the north while Sea-Tac’s was to the south. That forces Boeing departures to make a much sooner turn westward after taking off to the north to avoid any potential conflicts with Sea-Tac departures headed south. While it is a safe operation, it nonetheless does cause more noise due to a lower altitude when turning westward very soon after a Boeing departure to the north.
WSB’er Karen also had forwarded a reply she got from Boeing Field (King County International Airport) noise officer Sharyn Parker, saying the same thing, enclosing the graphic above (the bold line was a cargo flight during that time; you also see green departing tracks from KCIA and red arrival tracks from Sea-Tac), and concluding: “Please be assured that this type of flight event seldom occurs and does not represent a change in flight patterns for KCIA.”
Meantime, we are now working with the FAA to answer a few questions that have arisen since our original inquiry, regarding regional-media stories over the weekend – unrelated to the Thursday night situation – about a possible future change in flight patterns, to save fuel. As detailed in this Sunday story from seattletimes.com (WSB partner), the potential change could result in turns over Elliott Bay rather than over North Seattle. Would that mean more jet noise for West Seattle? What’s the status of this proposal and how can you comment on it? Look for a separate update with whatever we find out.
Followup: 2nd suspect charged in West Seattle HS theft case
Later this week, 19-year-old Skyelar Hailey wlll appear in court to answer charges in connection with the August 18 case that started with an alleged purse theft inside West Seattle High School, continued with an alleged theft inside an acquaintance’s home, and ended with a foot pursuit that led to his arrest (all detailed, with the court-document narrative, in this August 21 story). At the time, police also took into custody a 17-year-old girl who was with him; they hadn’t yet decided about charges against her when they filed the charges against Hailey, but now they have: She is charged with two counts of residential burglary – which is what Hailey is charged with – and one count of second-degree identity theft, regarding ID from the victim that police say was in the girl’s purse when she was arrested. (We are not identifying her because she is charged as a juvenile; WSB policy is generally to not identify juveniles unless they are charged as adults, which can happen, but mostly in violent-crime cases.) Hailey remains in jail, with bail set at $25,000, pending Thursday’s court appearance; the juvenile suspect has been arraigned but information on her custody status is not publicly available.
West Seattle Crime Watch: P-patch pilfering; stolen-car swap…
Several West Seattle Crime Watch reports to share … First, if you haven’t seen it in the WSB Forums already, Jennifer reported what you might call the “stolen car swap” – her car was stolen, and someone else’s (similar) stolen car left in its place. Read her story, and see a photo, here. Now, to the P-Patch pilfering at Longfellow Creek, as reported by Shannon, who says the same thieves keep returning:
They have been spotted four times now in the past few weeks and confronted at least twice. They are two men driving a blue Isuzu truck with Washington license plates A35–3U. We would like to first warn other gardeners in the area to be on the look out for these folks. Second, we would appreciate any help with stopping these people by reporting them to the police immediately. If you see this truck anywhere, call the police.
Not only are these men stealing from the gardeners who work so hard on our plots in the Longfellow Creek P-Patch, but they are stealing from the food bank plots we maintain there as well. The P-Patch is on city property and is marked as a city P-Patch. There is no reason for confusion on their part as they have been confronted and told this is not open to the public.
Just to reiterate what police have told us and say publicly at every crime-prevention meeting we attend – do NOT hesitate to call 911 if you see a crime, or something suspicious, in progress. Possible life-threatening situations are their first priority, police note, so you may not always get instant reponse.
One more Crime Watch report, went by Thomas on Friday, that we didn’t get the chance to share till now:
I wanted to let you know about a break-in that my wife and I just discovered. It happened on 46th between Raymond and Graham [map] sometime between 9:30 and 1:30 [Friday].
As far as we can tell they took a playstation, 3 laptops, about 45 DVDs, 75 CDs and some costume jewelry. No obvious signs of forced entry. The front door was wide open when we got home. Thankfully our cats stayed inside and are safe.
Just noticed this, though
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