month : 12/2010 311 results

New sign for Pigeon Point: Invitation and get-well wish

December 11, 2010 8:20 am
|    Comments Off on New sign for Pigeon Point: Invitation and get-well wish
 |   Pigeon Point | West Seattle news

If you live in, or travel through, northeast West Seattle’s Pigeon Point neighborhood this weekend, you’ll see that sign – another creation by PP Neighborhood Council co-chair Jim Sander, whose signs have told neighborhood stories before – from a traffic detour to a fight against vandalism. The face is that of Vivian McLean, legendary neighborhood advocate/activist (whose 90th birthday was feted last month [WSB coverage here]). According to Pigeon Point’s Pete Spalding, who shared the photo, Vivian is always the hostess of the neighborhood’s holiday party, but had to skip this year because she is recovering from an injury, so Jim created a sign that holds a get-well wish as well as a party invite.

Our Lady of Guadalupe tree lighting: Celebration and tribute

On the night of the Feast Day in honor of their church and school’s namesake, Our Lady of Guadalupe‘s Christmas tree shines bright near the city’s highest point. The tree lights went on during a festive, well-attended community celebration tonight. But before the lights, and the caroling, OLG’s Father Jack Walmesley had two things to share with the crowd – news about OLG’s principal Kristin Dixon, following a tribute in memory of parishioner Mitch Forrey, who along with wife Mary inspired the annual tree-lighting celebration:

Shortly afterward, the main event, the tree countdown, led by the event’s emcee Brian Callanan, a local TV journalist, West Seattleite, and OLG parishioner:

This is the tree’s second year with energy-saving LED lights, by the way. After the lighting – with the weather still blessedly dry – it was time for lots of crowd caroling, led by OLG choir director Ann Sager. “Jingle Bells” – with car keys used as impromptu bells if need be – is a tradition at this event:

Other caroling included “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing”:

Also noted during tonight’s event, Our Lady of Guadalupe’s ongoing fundraising campaign to add a new Parish Life Center and gym; according to the campaign’s website, the campaign has brought in more than half the $4.2 million they’re working to raise.

SIDE NOTE: OLG is one of the local churches whose Christmas services are listed/linked on the WSB West Seattle Holidays page – if yours aren’t there yet, we invite you to send the information so we can add it there too!

West Seattle wildlife: Another owl encounter

After reading CS‘s Tuesday report of a too-close encounter with an owl along Bonair in North Admiral earlier this week, Cory e-mailed to share this:

Mine happened last Wednesday morning at 4:45 am on California Ave as it heads around Hamilton Viewpoint and down to the beach. He took two passes….one skimmed the top of my head, and the next, 20 seconds later, he was clawing at my scalp. Needless to say, a loud scream and an arm wave scared him off. The spooky part of the whole incident was the fact that he/she was totally silent…….small animals don’t stand a chance!!

I have seen a large owl in the trees on Bonair, and can only imagine this is the same one that swooped on the other jogger and me.

The comments on our previous story have yielded some interesting comments and context since the original report – including this one about a possible reason, and this one with a “coexisting with owls” link!

West Seattle holiday scene: Caroling and Hotwire cocoa

December 10, 2010 5:14 pm
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 |   Holidays | West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

Not only was it the perfect holiday field trip – it was the first field trip ever, we’re told, for the Holy Rosary preschool class taught by Tauna Evans and Sara Velling. As you’ll notice in the background, the kids were headed for Hotwire Online Coffeehouse (WSB sponsor) for hot chocolate after caroling; Hotwire is just one short block from HR. Thanks to Shannon for sharing the photo.

HOLIDAY REMINDER: Don’t miss this weekend’s highlights on the West Seattle Holidays page – including Our Lady of Guadalupe‘s tree-lighting coming up at 7 tonight (35th/Myrtle) – and the Christmas Ship comes to West Seattle for three stops tomorrow (Saturday) night plus a fourth on Monday night.

Traffic alert for downtown commuters: 1st Ave. S. lane closure

This one was NOT planned, so we’re sharing it to warn everybody who heads home via 1st Avenue South southbound. Just in from SDOT:

The southbound, right hand lane of First Ave S, between the First Ave off-ramp from SR99 and Royal Brougham Way, was closed this afternoon for an emergency repair to a fiber optic line. At this time we do not have an estimated time for reopening the lane.

4:01 PM UPDATE: Another update from SDOT:

Construction crews have closed the right lane of southbound First Avenue S. between S. Dearborn Street and S. Royal Brougham Way to repair a damaged fiber optic line. The closure is not affecting the southbound off-ramp from the Alaskan Way Viaduct. It is too soon to determine how long the closure is expected to last. Repairs could last into the weekend.

West Seattle Weather Watch: Mudslide BEFORE the deluge

Good thing this isn’t along a particularly busy road – it’s on dead-end Maplewood Place, south of Fauntleroy, in the downhill lane – but it’s a reminder that the ground is already saturated even before this weekend’s expected heavy rain arrives. The city had a landslide-awareness workshop in West Seattle just last weekend, in fact. Right now, all of Western Washington is on alert for a flood watch in effect Saturday afternoon through Monday afternoon, with suggestions that even here in the “lowlands,” we could get two inches or so of rain. (P.S. If a slide does happen, here’s the city’s list of who to call/what to do.)

ADDED 3:01 PM: Not long after we finished this and ran out to an interview, Seattle Public Utilities sent its own advisory about the looming storm, including this information of note:

In preparation for the storm, SPU has assigned extra field operations workers to report to work Saturday and Sunday, and has staged flood control equipment at various locations around the city. The Utility is also delivering about 500 pre-packed sandbags to the Meadowbrook and Delridge Community Center (250 at each), today.

SPU is reminding the public to play it safe by staying out of low-lying areas during times of heavy rains. If your basement is prone to flooding, please stay out of the basement until the risk of flooding has passed.

The public’s help is also requested in keeping Seattle’s 78,000 street drains – the city’s first line of defense against storms – free of debris. Cleaning a blocked street drain is simple: using a rake, just scrape the debris from the drain and place it in your yard waste cart.

The 5th annual WSB West Seattle Christmas tree price survey

treesgraphic.jpgWSB didn’t debut till Christmas Eve 2005, so it was too late for a Christmas tree price check that year, but we’ve done one every year since, dating back to 2006. So once again, by request, here’s the fifth annual edition – bigger and better than ever, thanks to the help of a Super Secret Tree Shopper who braved the downpours these past few days and sampled prices not only for trees but also for some of the other holiday trimmings. Disclaimer: You may find something different when you shop – we have no guarantee that prices and/or hours didn’t change the second our Super Secret Tree Shopper walked off the lot, or that they won’t change next week, or in the final days – this is just meant to be a guide, if you’re looking for help before figuring out where you’re going and how much you want to spend. North to South, here they are, after the jump:

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Chief Sealth Multicultural Night, baskets to pens to dancing

Story, photos, and video by Deanie Schwarz
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

27 groups and 85 students, including some Sealth alumni and a few students from other schools, were represented last night at Chief Sealth International High School‘s 4th annual Multicultural Night. The newly renovated school’s Galleria and Commons had throngs of students, families and neighbors milling through tables to learn more about the school’s clubs and programs, as well as classes offered at Chief Sealth.

The Chief Sealth PTSA held a raffle throughout the evening, with winners announced at the evenings stage performances. Community-donated prizes including certificates for Proletariat Pizza and Snap Fitness, as well as an iPod shuffle, back packs and the enormous food basket shown atop this story, filled with delectables:

Nan Johnson, woodshop-class instructor , explained that woodshop students sell their craftwork from their classes and even honor requests for customized engraving on items including, puzzles, pens and ornaments:

The pens shown above are made by the students on lathes, using imported woods such as zebra wood as well as colorful acrylics. The pens sell for $15/$20 each and, like other woodshop products, can be purchased through Ms. Johnson (ncjohnson@seattleschools.gov). Johnson says that her courses also use donated leftover construction materials which are then used to teach students construction and carpentry skills rather than going to the landfill. Inquiries for donations or pricing can be made to Ms. Johnson.

Also showcased last night: Global Visionaries, with students currently raising money for a two-week spring trip; the film festival we covered last week also was related to the program. Twelve Sealth students will be traveling in April and June with Sealth teacher Noah Zeichner to Guatemala,

In Guatemala, they will spend time on a coffee plantation among other experiences, learning about global environmental-justice issues. Meantime, a cheering crowd watched stage performances last night, including the Ukulele Club, Poetry Club, Filipino Club, Latino Dance Club, Hip Hop Club, and in this next clip, the Vietnamese/Cambo Club:

And dancing was very well-represented by talented students in the Polynesian Club and the Break Dance Club:

P.S. It’s school-tour season, and Sealth’s tours are listed on the school homepage.

West Seattle Friday: OLG tree, Lafayette auction, Bells…

December 10, 2010 9:40 am
|    Comments Off on West Seattle Friday: OLG tree, Lafayette auction, Bells…
 |   West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

What’s it like when your house is Ground Zero for school-auction preparations? Just ask Cosmo. His mom shared that photo as items for the Lafayette Elementary “Play It Forward” playground project auction filled the room last night – they’ll be moved today, since the auction is 6 pm tonight at The Hall at Fauntleroy. We’re told Cosmo’s holding “the item he covets most, a box of games and toys from Atomic Boys.” (That Admiral shop is part of the WSB West Seattle Holiday Shopping Guide, by the way.) Full auction list here. One more non-holiday event: Last info night for Get Fit West Seattle at West Seattle Runner, 7 pm. Also today/tonight:

OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE TREE LIGHTING: 7 pm, 35th/Myrtle (map), the highest-elevation Christmas tree in the city lights up! OLG asks you to bring a nonperishable food donation for the St. Vincent de Paul Society.

BELLS OF THE SOUND: Holiday concert at Tibbetts United Methodist Church (WSB sponsor), 3940 41st SW, 7:30 pm (full details here)

HOLIDAY STYLE NIGHT BENEFITING WESTSIDE BABY: Ola Salon throws a party for charity, 5-8 pm. Free services, drinks and food, raffles, donation of $20 or more at the door suggested, all proceeds benefit WestSide Baby – reservations not required but suggested.

And tonight begins the second-and-final weekend for the Twelfth Night Productions (WSB sponsor) holiday show:

“It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play” is based on the classic 1946 Frank Capra film and being performed at historic Kenyon Hall, tonight and tomorrow at 7:30 pm, Sunday at 3 pm.

West Seattle Crime Watch: Police search, after car break-in

Received early this morning from Thomas:

A silver Mazda Tribute was broken into in my neighborhood … around 10:45 pm. Our neighbors called the police, who were there
investigating around 11:15 pm.

The break-in occurred in the small group of houses directly behind the Home Depot … about 2 blocks up the hill on Webster (near the police department)

P.S. Like other crime reports we receive – as well as incidents covered by a WSB crew – this one is also linked from the WSB West Seattle Crime Watch page, where you’ll find other resources, including the most recent addition to the page – the latest Seattle Police tweets with stolen-car information from around the city.

West Seattle Art Walk report #2: More holiday cheer, & a farewell

December 10, 2010 6:52 am
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 |   West Seattle Art Walk | West Seattle news

(WSB photos by Ellen Cedergreen)
More holiday cheer in our second and final report from Thursday night’s West Seattle Art Walk (our first one is here) – these are the venues visited by WSB contributor Ellen Cedergreen. Above, we hear a certain CEO stood in for Santa Claus at The Kenney. At Seattle Yarn (5633 California SW), Mrs. Claus held court:

That’s Seattle Yarn’s Ruth Bowen with Mrs. Claus – also in the photo, Snooter-doots, which Mrs. Claus says each come with a name and a birthdate and are available for “adoption.” Meantime, holiday photos were the order of the night at West Side Yoga/Doga (6417 Fauntleroy Way) in Morgan Junction – but look closely at who’s under the lights:

WSYD was the site of the Yappy Howlidays Muttmixer for dogs and their people; photo proceeds benefited Dogs Deserve Better. The party was sponsored by West Seattle-headquartered CityDog Magazine, whose founder Brandie Ahlgren was there too:

Brandie’s sitting next to a computer because she was showing off the new look that you’ll see within a week or so on the CityDog website, with more ways for dog owners to connect with each other. Heading north, while most of our Junction photos are in Art Walk report #1, Ellen dropped by the Neo-Kitsch show reception at ArtsWest (WSB sponsor), a juried show with more than 50 participating artists:

That’s West Seattle artist Kelly Lyles showing off her “Black Velvet” (painted on velvet, of course). Kelly said her idea inspirations included Google. Last but not least, on the northernmost end of the current Art Walk map, the last WSAW (for now) at the Alki Bathhouse, because of city budget cuts (whose other effects on Alki Community Center/Bathhouse operations are explained here).

College student Logan Mohr, shown talking with a potential customer, showed a variety of work at the Bathhouse show; in addition to etchings and work in other media, he also designs and sells skateboards. One of the other artists showing at Alki Bathhouse was Su Harrington:

She told Ellen she’ll miss showing at Alki Bathhouse, since she lives nearby; this was her second show there. Next West Seattle Art Walk is the second Thursday in January (the 14th). As noted in our first report from last night, many Art Walk-highlighted works will be up at the venues (mapped here) throughout the month, and right now, that also means lots of art available for holiday shopping, even if you didn’t make it out last night.

In case you heard the sirens overnight: Small Admiral District fire

In case you heard the sirens overnight, just after 3 am: What firefighters describe as a small fire at a house in the 2600 block of 49th SW (map) was put out quickly, but crews are still on the scene, cleaning up. They tell us the person home when it broke out got out OK; there’s some smoke damage and debris (like the pile you see in the foreground of our photo). They believe it was accidental.

‘Tis the season for creativity: West Seattle Art Walk, report #1

Winning the Holiday Spirit Award tonight in The Junction during West Seattle Art Walk/Shop Late Thursday – the gleefully goofy Tacky Sweater Party at Twilight Artist Collective. (Compare to last year’s “tacky sweaters” here.) Even if you missed the party, you can stop in (4306 SW Alaska) and see the “12 Days of Christmas,” by 12 artists including members of the Twilight owner team. Smiles abounded along tonight’s Art Walk route for many reasons:

Posing with a few of her “Backyard Beauty and Beyond” photos at the Senior Center of West Seattle, that’s Trileigh, whose scenes of wild West Seattle have appeared many a time here on WSB – tonight was her first public (offline) exhibition! Kitty corner at Clementine (4447 California SW), West Seattle entrepreneur Cari Jones showed her new paintings:

We have to admit, though WSB is among her client firms, we didn’t know Cari was an artist too, along with everything else she’s up to (as detailed on the Clementine website)! Around the corner at Brunette Mix (4306 SW Oregon), tonight was a two-part event:

Brunette Mix proprietor BJ Prokopof is celebrating her third anniversary in The Junction – and hosting the art of Tony Taj. From there, scooting over to Ginomai artist studios on the north edge of The Junction, we peeked in on the silent auction we told you about this morning, raising money for the next Central America well-building trip on the West Seattle Christian Church schedule:

That gorgeous purse was donated by Funky Jane’s Consignment; we’ll be checking with WSCC to see how the auction went. Last but by no means least, over to Wallflower Custom Framing and Shooting Gallery:

Mark Morgan is one of 16 artists whose work is included in the “Puny Picture Show,” 2nd year in a row for Wallflower to feature small-size work by big-size talent. Remember, much of what is on display Art Walk night also remains on display for all or part of the following month at the participating venues, so every day/night can be an Art Walk day/night. We had a second crew out tonight, meantime, and that second round of December Art Walk scenes are coming up in a separate report! (Disclosure: Brunette Mix and Wallflower are WSB sponsors; Clementine, Twilight, and Funky Jane’s are featured advertisers in the WSB West Seattle Holiday Shopping Guide.)

Yet more national TV for West Seattle: ‘BizKid$’ at SW Pool

December 9, 2010 8:43 pm
|    Comments Off on Yet more national TV for West Seattle: ‘BizKid$’ at SW Pool
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle people

Swimming on a rainy night? Sure! And tonight, West Seattle’s Southwest Pool had special guests at poolside, as you can see in the photo shared by Val, who reports:

Tonight the show BizKid$, shown nationally on PBS, was taping some segments with two of the lifeguards/swim instructors at Southwest Pool. Last week we all had to sign a consent form in case our kid got on TV while they were taping inside the actual pool area. The show will air sometime in April, locally on KCTS-9.

The BizKid$ production team is based in the Seattle area.

How would West Seattle survive a disaster with no hospital?

By Jack Mayne
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

West Seattle residents and civic leaders met Wednesday to discuss what would happen if an earthquake or other disaster cut off the community from the rest of Seattle and its hospitals and other emergency facilities – considering there’s been no hospital here for some 20 years.

The “Hospital Without Walls” meeting at Delridge Community Center was sponsored by Senior Services of Seattle/King County, the non-profit that runs several area senior centers and other senior services.

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1 more preview: West Seattle Art Walk, Shop Late Thursday, MORE

December 9, 2010 4:46 pm
|    Comments Off on 1 more preview: West Seattle Art Walk, Shop Late Thursday, MORE
 |   West Seattle Art Walk | West Seattle news

(Photo added 7:37 pm, courtesy Tim – crowd at Wallflower Custom Framing‘s ‘Puny Pictures’ show)
Less than two hours till West Seattle Art Walk – all over the peninsula – and Shop Late Thursday in The Junction. In addition to our previous Art Walk previews here (several other interesting stops) and here (Ginomai auction for well-building), plus all the artist spotlights you can find on the official WSAW website, here are a few more mentions:

ARTSWEST (WSB sponsor): In addition to continuing “A Tuna Christmas” in the theater tonight, the gallery features “Neo-Kitsch,” a juried exhibition, and you’ll recognize some local artists – including Highland Park’s Dina Lydia Johnson and Kelly Lyles of art-car (among other things) fame.

LIBERTY BELL PRINTING: Days after announcing its imminent departure from The Junction, Liberty Bell has an open house tonight AND charity gift-wrapping by Furry Faces Foundation – 6-9 pm. Details in this WSB Forums post.

BRUNETTE MIX (WSB sponsor): Celebrating its third anniversary during tonight’s Art Walk!

BIN 41 WINE (WSB sponsor): Music, wine, and art!

NOT in The Junction —

CLICK! DESIGN THAT FITS – Offering special discount on locally originated merchandise, like what’s spotlighted here.

SEATTLE YARN COMPANY: We’re told their open house tonight will include a visit from Mrs. Claus.

LOG HOUSE MUSEUM OPEN HOUSE: Want a copy of the new “Images of West Seattle” as a stocking stuffer? The Log House Museum is selling it at its holiday open house under way right now, till 8 pm. (61st/Stevens)

SANISLO ELEMENTARY BOOK FAIR AT BARNES AND NOBLE: Need to buy books for somebody? Sanislo Elementary benefits if you buy tonight at Barnes & Noble, Westwood Village, where their Bookfair is under way, 6:30-8:30 pm.

In The Junction AND elsewhere:

WSB WEST SEATTLE HOLIDAY SHOPPING/BUSINESS GUIDE: 20 businesses offering deals and special holiday-shopping info. We’ve also upgraded it so you can e-mail/FB/tweet each individual business’s listing, if you want a reminder, or to share. Find it here (with more additions later tonight, in time for weekend shopping).

West Seattle High School football coach Davis Lura leaving

Thanks to Curtis for the tip from last night’s West Seattle High School 2010 football banquet: Head football coach Davis Lura announced he’s leaving after four seasons. Having listened to what he described as an emotional speech, Curtis said, “Despite what was a very difficult season, it is very clear that Coach Lura cares about the young men on his team very much.” We checked today with WSHS athletic director George Foster, who confirmed Coach Lura’s departure, saying he is pursuing coaching opportunities in Ballard, where he teaches. No replacement for the Wildcats yet – the interview process may take a while.

How Alki Community Center/Bathhouse will operate, post-cuts

December 9, 2010 3:17 pm
|    Comments Off on How Alki Community Center/Bathhouse will operate, post-cuts
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

Two weeks after the Seattle City Council finalized a budget for next year – which among other things changes Alki Community Center into a “limited-use” facility – the details of what that means for people who use the center are finally worked out, while those involved acknowledge it’s a work in progress.

We sat in last night on the meeting of the all-volunteer Alki Community Center Advisory Council, whose members will be more responsible than ever for what happens at Alki CC – most of its programs are funded through the council, including preschool and child care. Among the toplines of what’s ahead: We know the new hours; we know that (as first reported here in October) the popular Alki Art Fair won’t happen next year unless someone else is found to present it; and we know that tonight will be the last time the West Seattle Art Walk includes an Alki Bathhouse stop.

Read on for details:Read More

Highway 99 tunnel bids opened: ‘Winner’ says they’ll finish sooner

(Most recent WSDOT video simulation of the tunnel – from October 2010)
The apparent winning bid has been chosen from the two submitted for the tunnel that the state wants to build to replace the central section of the Alaskan Way Viaduct. According to transportation reporter Mike Lindblom‘s story at SeattleTimes.com (WSB partner), the bidder, Seattle Tunnel Partners, says they could finish sooner than the state asked – and can build the tunnel a bit wider. The state has just sent its official news release – it’s not online yet so far as we can tell, but we’ve got it after the jump:Read More

West Seattle Crime Watch: Burglary-attempt alert

This happened within the past hour in Highland Park, according to BigRed:

I just wanted to put the word out on an attempted break-in on our house around 12pm today; we live on 17th and Trenton [map]. I was home sick and my husband works from home and we have a rather large dog, so I am not quite sure why they picked our house but it worked out well! My husband was working in his office with his curtains closed and heard something on his window. He opened his curtain and found a younger African-American male, age 15-16 trying to pry our window open. This scared the robber off and he escaped down our alley. My husband also saw a younger female with the suspect, he didn’t get a good look at her but she seemed around the same age, possibly Hispanic. A section of our fence along the side was removed so they could get into our yard. Cops responded quickly and are canvassing the neighborhood for suspects. Our 95lb “guard dog” slept peacefully through it all.

Streetlight safety: More City Light inspections after Queen Anne dog death, High Point problem

We’re at the Seattle Municipal Tower downtown, where Seattle City Light superintendent Jorge Carrasco is leading a media briefing about streetlight safety, in the wake of both the Thanksgiving Day electrocution of a dog who walked onto an electrified plate by a Queen Anne light, and a High Point incident revealed last night. Though City Light’s account did not mention names, HP resident Wendy Hughes-Jelen identified herself in WSB comments as the person who called to report a streetlight that appeared to be having problems, after her Italian greyhound Sophia acted oddly around it. Carrasco says the pole she reported (on SW Raymond, near the one in our photo) was indeed found to have “voltage” on the pole – no one was injured, however. That has been repaired, and he says after immediate testing of a half-dozen poles nearby, crews also went out yesterday and tested all 170 streetlights in the High Point area to be sure there were no other problems; there weren’t, but the grounding system there will be evaluated, in case a “more robust” grounding system is needed, according to Carrasco. Other “similar” developments will be checked ASAP, he said – listing them later as Greenbridge in White Center, as well as two Seattle developments, Rainier Vista and New Holly. The problem that caused the voltage in the High Point pole, according to the superintendent, was a frayed wire. The pole carried 50 volts, said City Light staffers at the briefing, which Carrasco confirmed could have been a problem if a pet or child had touched it before it was fixed. The voltage involved in the Queen Anne dog’s death, they said, was 90.

Here’s what he mentioned regarding safety “going forward”: As of New Year’s Day, there’s a new grounding standard for all metal poles, and City Light will be accountable for all inspections from thereon out. “We operate the streetlight system – we need to be the ones making sure the streetlights are safe,” Carrasco said. (It was revealed in coverage of the Queen Anne dog incident that SDOT had some accountability for checking the lights.) He also discussed the decorative streetlights that are in place in some neighborhoods – saying it’s difficult for crews to keep track of the different grounding configurations. “We are going to reduce the number of options going forward,” Carrasco said, regarding those types of streetlamps, in order to reduce the chances of safety hazards. He also announced a plan to test all 20,000 existing metal-poled streetlights (the rest of the city’s system has wooden poles) for voltage between now and next May 1st, while noting that a just-completed inventory of streetlights has had crews visiting all of those poles fairly recently, with no problems detected at the time. “We had a human being in the past year touching every one of those poles, metal or wood, and no problems were reported,” he reiterated. (As part of the inventory process, a metal plate was attached to metal poles.)

If you see anything of concern with a streetlight or pole, Carrasco stressed, call City Light at 206-684-7056 (the number we mentioned last night); he says staff has been trained so that they will recognize signs of a problem requiring an immediate inspection. We are checking to see what hours that number is answered, and what to do if you see a potential problem after-hours. Bottom line, though, SCL says these problems are extremely rare, so – Carrasco insists – you do NOT need to be worried that every streetlight pole you see is a potential hazard.

USS Nimitz passes West Seattle shores en route to Bremerton

(Photos by Gary Jones)
Not sure if it’s still visible but we just received a few e-mails (thanks, Diane, Bryan, and Ed!) pointing out that the USS Nimitz has been passing West Seattle shores while on its way to Bremerton, where its crew of nearly 3,000 will be based while maintenance work is done on the carrier. It was homeported in Bremerton for a decade from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, and has spent most of this decade based in San Diego.

ADDED 9:31 AM: Thanks so much to Gary Jones, who has shared photos of the Nimitz passing our shores – in the top photo, that’s the Vashon Water Taxi heading downtown as the Nimitz continues its Bremerton-bound path; in the 2nd photo, that’s the top of the Alki Lighthouse in the foreground. Also thanks to Jennifer for noting in a Twitter discussion that the Nimitz is on Facebook (with updates about the arrival).

4:23 PM NOTE: The Navy has announced that after the work in Bremerton, the Nimitz will be homeported in Everett.

Also today/tonight: College, culture, cleanup, crimefighting…

(‘Slip 4’ Duwamish cleanup area, photographed for WSB by Christopher Boffoli)
Here are highlights of what’s notable tonight BESIDES the West Seattle Art Walk, The Junction’s Shop Late Thursday, and West Seattle holiday events: 2 more chances to learn more about the proposed alternatives for cleaning up Duwamish River pollution, 3:30 and 5:30 pm at South Seattle Community College‘s Georgetown campus (directions here) … Two major high-school events tonight: At West Seattle High School, find out about financial, with a rep from the National Education Loan Association on hand, 6:30 pm in the WSHS theater … It’s Multicultural Night at Chief Sealth International High School, featuring student performances and appetizers, 6:30 pm … And the South Delridge/White Center Community Safety Coalition meets tonight at the WC DSHS offices (9650 15th SW), 6 pm. … More (mostly) non-holiday events on the WSB West Seattle Events calendar page!

ADDED 9:09 AM: From the comments, one more meeting tonight of note for anyone interested in local Seattle Public Schools.

ADDED 12:41 PM: Couple more additions: Youngstown Arts Center’s All-Access Showcase tonight, with amazing performances by the youth who are part of the afterschool (etc.) program there, 6 pm; Sanislo Elementary has a fundraising book fair tonight at Barnes and Noble/Westwood Village – 6:30 to 8:30 pm – if you buy a book, be sure to tell the clerk it’s to benefit Sanislo!