West Seattle, Washington
25 Thursday
From last night’s Delridge Neighborhoods District Council meeting at Youngstown Arts Center, lots of updates, including new information about what’ll be the biggest Delridge Day event ever, as well as this fall’s Gathering of Neighbors. Read on for the full report:Read More
For the second time in three nights, a rollover crash has blocked traffic on Highway 99. This time, it’s northbound, near the stadiums, so if you are heading toward downtown from West Seattle, avoid that route TFN. Not much info about the crash yet except that it’s one vehicle this time, someone was rescued from the vehicle, and police were searching for someone who reportedly ran away from the crash scene.
Beth asked that this be passed along so others in her area would know:
The water for a block or so (it’s at our home at 40th & Hinds [map]) is brown. Apparently it is rust in the water & in response to an emergency call today that they had at 39th & Hanford. The lady at the city of Seattle Water dept said that it should go away within a few hours but she recommended not drinking the water with the high amount of rust in it. We thought we had a major plumbing issue & imagine everyone in the neighborhood is concerned about that as well.
Here’s the official city information on what causes water discoloration and what you should do if it happens at your home.
(7:44 pm – updated with Parks Board chair’s reaction in appearance before Alki Community Council)
ORIGINAL 5:44 PM REPORT: Just in from the Parks Department:
Seattle Parks and Recreation Superintendent Tim Gallagher today decided to relax the rule that would have banned smoking in parks effective April 1, 2010, and to approve the recommendation of the Board of Park Commissioners.
The Board recommended this language in the Code of Conduct: “Smoking, chewing, or other tobacco use is banned within 25 feet of other park patrons and in play areas, beaches, or playgrounds.”
“Based on the input from the public that followed my initial decision,” Gallagher said, I have decided that a gradual approach to a smoking ban is reasonable.”
We were first to report yesterday that Gallagher had decided not to accept the Parks Board’s recommendation and instead was going to put a total tobacco ban in place; strong reaction ensued, including (so far) 90+ comments on our Wednesday afternoon story. We’ll hear from Parks Board chair Jackie Ramels in about an hour, as she is scheduled to guest at the 7 pm meeting of the Alki Community Council at Alki UCC.
7:44 PM UPDATE: We’re at the Alki CC meeting now, where Ramels says she was asked by a reporter earlier if the turnabout represented a waste of time – first the superintendent decides to overrule the board, then changes his mind – but her reaction was instead: “I think it illustrates that the Parks Department is responsive to public comment.” In response to questions, she acknowledged the board had concerns that a total tobacco ban would be part of what some had seen as a pattern in the proposed code changes of grounds for targeting homeless people for park removal. She also said she expected enforcement of the new code would be focused more on downtown, since “that’s where the park rangers are.”
Thanks to those who forwarded this to us (we’re on the list too but just got the note) – From King County Public Health:
The *Saigon Boat Café* located at 2632 Alki Ave SW, Seattle was closed by a Public Health food inspector on February 18, 2010, 11:30 AM for operating without valid food business permit and approved plans. The restaurant will be reopened once the inspector confirms that the person in charge of the establishment satisfies all requirements to get a valid permit per the instructions online at
www.kingcounty.gov/healthservices/health/ehs/foodsafety/FoodBusiness
The restaurant opened less than a month ago. (You can track all current Public Health-ordered closures, and their status, here.)
In case you “don’t usually read the comments” – there are tons today, and we thank everyone for taking the time to share their thoughts. Two things of note we just found by reviewing the most recent wave:
TOM STEWART MEMORIAL SITE: As with many highly successful people, the owner/chair of formerly West Seattle-based Services Group of America clearly had a lot of fans, and non-fans. For those who wish to share condolences in a more official way than commenting on news stories, a commenter on WSB points out that SGA has now set up a webpage with links to family and business photos as well as an option for commenting. Here’s the link. Meantime, nothing new so far in the investigation of the Arizona helicopter crash that killed him along with his wife, 5-year-old daughter, and two others.
GRAFFITI TIPSTER: Our filter (which has saved the site from more than a million spammer “comments,” so we try not to get mad at its occasional error) held onto this comment for a long time till we just spotted it – Paul says he tipped police to the suspected graffiti vandals arrested last night, and implores you to “get involved”:
I am the person who witnessed the 3 kids applying their tags to the Rite-Aid wall. I called it in and while waiting for police, followed the kids from a distance, then called back to alert police of their location. No flag waving but the point is that I got involved and stayed involved until (luckily) resulted in the 3 arrests. These are young (young!) kids. Please get involved when the opportunity arises. The only way to end tagging is to make it difficult for taggers to achieve their goal. Handcuffs do that really well.
Police reiterate, call 911 when something is happening NOW – don’t worry about evaluating if it’s a real emergency; the 911 operator’s job is to sort that out. Meantime, following the graffiti-arrest story, we asked your opinions on the state of the spray-paint (etc.) vandalism problem in West Seattle – please consider joining the discussion if you haven’t already.
(The Olympics and The Sound, photographed today by Christopher Boffoli)
Four notes this afternoon, all with a green theme:
END MIDWINTER BREAK WITH A FREE ECO-HIKE: Looks like tomorrow will be as beautiful as today when the Nature Consortium leads its free monthly guided eco-hike through West Duwamish Greenbelt – great way to wrap up the week-long school break if you’ve got students at home, still a great time if you don’t. 1 pm Friday, meet at 14th/Holly (map), mild terrain suitable for kids too. Please RSVP to Lisa, lisa@naturec.org or 206- 923-0853. (P.S. Signed up for the Nature Consortium’s benefit brunch yet? March 14; event sponsors include WSB – see you there!)
SEED SWAP ADDITION – BRING OLD SHOVELS AND GARDEN TOOLS: One more feature’s been added to Saturday’s Seed Swap ‘n’ Sale that Community Harvest of Southwest Seattle is presenting at South Seattle Community College (WSB sponsor) – north side, horticulture area: “Bring any old shovels or other garden tools which could be transformed into garden art. We are looking for mosaic artists, welders, anyone with imagination to turn rusty old tools into something beautiful to put in the garden. Finished pieces will be auctioned at our summer Edible Garden Tour.” 1-4 pm Saturday (here’s the seed list).
FAUNTLEROY CHURCH RECYCLING EVENT REMINDER: Another reminder to be ready to bring your stuff to Sunday’s electronics/appliances recycling event with 1 Green Planet at Fauntleroy Church‘s parking lot (map) – 9 am-2 pm, more details here (and yes, it’s open to EVERYONE).
“CROW PLANET” AUTHOR AT HOPE LUTHERAN: Just got word today (thanks, Gwen!) that Gatewood-based Lyanda Lynn Haupt will discuss, sell and sign her newest book “Crow Planet” (featured here) at Hope Lutheran Church Commons (map) at 1:30 pm Sunday. This is the first event in the new “Third Sundays at Hope” lecture series. Everyone’s invited – you don’t have to be a church member.
Tully’s Coffee has just confirmed what we first heard from a barista yesterday – they’re closing their Morgan Junction store next month. Tully’s marketing VP Scott Earle tells WSB that the lease was up, the traffic reconfiguration in the area isn’t working so well for them (among other business factors), so they decided not to renew, and will close the store. He says it’s a store-specific situation and stresses two things: The Alki Tully’s is alive and well, a store they’re “very, very proud of” and “excited about” – and in fact, they’ve just renewed the Alki lease. Second, he says, they’re continuing to look at possible new locations in this area and elsewhere, though nothing’s locked in. The store at Fauntleroy/California is scheduled to close March 28 (that’ll be its last day); he says the company is trying to place its employees in other stores. The location, meantime, is listed as available for lease, with a multi-page flyer already describing the space as a “former coffee house.” The Tully’s store has been at California/Fauntleroy almost a decade – replacing a “Cafe Starbucks,” as briefly noted in this March 2000 Seattle Times column by now-City Councilmember Jean Godden. (Added: Earle says both stores opened in April 2000.)
Another brilliantly sunny day, even with the late-winter chill, keeps the spring/summer dreams rolling in. And so does news of another West Seattle “sidewalk café” permit application – this one noted in this morning’s Land Use Information Bulletin from the city: Prost (3407 California SW) is seeking one. See the notice here, including information on how to comment by the March 4th deadline. (2009 Prost photo by Christopher Boffoli)
U.S. REP. JIM McDERMOTT IN WEST SEATTLE: Tonight, the man who’s long represented Seattle in the U.S. House of Representatives will be at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way) for his “Winter 2010 Community Meeting.” It’s scheduled to start at 7.
ALKI COMMUNITY COUNCIL: Two major topics on the agenda for tonight’s monthly ACC meeting at Alki UCC (6112 SW Hinds) – city Parks Board chair (and former ACC president) Jackie Ramels will talk about Parks’ just-finalized-yesterday Code of Conduct and in-the-works Fees and Charges Policy; Martha Tuttle from King County Wastewater Treatment will discuss the 2-years-and-not-done-yet 53rd Avenue Pump Station Project. This also starts at 7.
TRAFFIC ALERT: More road work just east of West Seattle, with new closures kicking in today. From SDOT:
Till 4 pm today: Right lane eastbound on Spokane St will be closed from just east of the Duwamish River East Waterway to Duwamish Ave.
24/7 Closures also start (today):
Right lane eastbound on Spokane St will be closed from Duwamish Ave to E Marginal Way S from Thursday , Feb 18, until summer 2011.
Duwamish Ave will be closed from Spokane St to E Marginal Way S from Thursday, Feb 18, until Summer 2011.
Local access ONLY for businesses.Plan for congestion in the area – especially over the first week while drivers adjust to the closures.
These closures will accommodate the construction of the E Marginal Way S Overpass.
That’s a Port of Seattle project, by the way.
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