Police are still trying to sort out the incident that left a woman injured earlier tonight outside the Super 24 at Delridge/Findlay and blocked the southbound lanes for a while. The victim, in her late 20s, has been taken to Harborview Medical Center. Here’s what Southwest Precinct Lt. Alan Williams says investigators know so far: A witness says the woman was involved in some kind of a disturbance at the store with a male she apparently didn’t know. He drove off and she chased after him, police were told, grabbing onto his vehicle and holding on for a short distance before losing that grip, falling, and apparently hitting her head on the ground, which left her unconscious for a while; police also believe she was intoxicated. Lt. Williams says the driver didn’t stop, but the witness wasn’t certain the driver even knew the woman had run after him and been holding onto the car. Police are still investigating.
Two Alaskan Way Viaduct notes tonight: First, the man who oversees the entire project – including the controversial tunnel plan – will be the next guest speaker for the Rotary Club of West Seattle; Ron Paananen is scheduled to speak at noon Tuesday at Salty’s on Alki. (Guests are welcome at the lunch meetings; call the club at 206-718-9401 for info, or e-mail with the form on this page.) Second, next weekend is the semiannual maintenance shutdown for The Viaduct – 6 am-6 pm each day, Saturday and Sunday, March 19-20.
If you live in Fauntleroy, Tuesday’s the big night to support your local neighborhood council, the Fauntleroy Community Association. During the monthly FCA board meeting this past week, final preparations were made for the annual membership meeting/membership drive event coming up at 6 pm Tuesday night at The Hall at Fauntleroy, described by FCA as “… sample food from six local eateries, learn about local issues and programs, chat with neighbors, and pay to start or renew FCA membership. Election of FCA officers and directors will happen toward the end of the evening.”
Also at their meeting, the FCA board also heard a presentation about The Whale Trail:
From left in our photo, that’s FCA president Bruce Butterfield, Evangeline Simmons and Donna Sandstrom from The Whale Trail, and FCA’s Kathleen Dellplain. Donna, who lives in West Seattle, talked about tracing her whale advocacy back 20 years, with one highlight being the drive to save Springer the orphan orca. She brought examples of signs similar to the ones that are going up soon in West Seattle as part of The Whale Trail – thanks to a City of Seattle grant – where you can watch for marine mammals:
The West Seattle signs will be at Alki Bathhouse, Charles Richey Sr. Viewpoint, Me Kwa Mooks, and Point Williams in Lincoln Park (site of Colman Pool). Donna says the signs include bar codes that you can “read” with smartphones, to go directly to The Whale Trail’s website. (The Whale Trail recently sponsored the Duwamish Longhouse presentation about orca research involving special dogs – you can see our coverage here.)
The Fauntleroy Community Association board meets the second Tuesday of each month, 7 pm, at the Fauntleroy Schoolhouse – but again, the annual membership meeting/drive is NEXT Tuesday [March 15], 6 pm, at The Hall at Fauntleroy inside the old schoolhouse.
(WSCO’s Toni Reineke and Rob Duisberg – photos by Patrick Sand for WSB)
What a season for the West Seattle Community Orchestras. The name alone is a big development – the organization was founded as, and known for a long time as, Westside Symphonette, but to recognize what it’s become, multiple intergenerational groups, it’s now known as West Seattle Community Orchestras. The youth programs are a particular point of pride – so to ensure funding to make sure all kids can play, WSCO organized its first-ever fundraising gala. And that historic event last night atKenyon Hall was a wall-to-wall success, with more than 100 people filling the hall for buffet dinner, drinks, music and dancing:
Dozens of performers of all ages and talents were part of the program. We recorded video of some of them – here are five minutes of highlights, starting with Kenyon Hall maestro Lou Magor playing the hall’s centerpiece, “The Mighty Wurlitzer” and featuring excerpts from five other performances (we wish we had recorded them all!):
The evening, emceed by Adam DeBruler, also included a wide array of silent-auction items, including many donated by other West Seattle (and environs) arts organizations in support of WSCO. We checked with WSCO founder Toni Reineke to see if they have any totals; she says their preliminary tallying indicates the event definitely came out “in the black,” and she adds, “We thank everyone who attended and those who contributed in so many ways — food, labor, energy, smiles, music—and their lusty singing! A special thanks, of course, to Lou Magor!” As she announced last night, the next WSCO performances are May 3 and 10 – more on those soon; meantime, they practice at Chief Sealth International High School every Tuesday night, and are always open to new musicians – check www.wscorchestras.org for contact and schedule info.
Families grow and change no matter how much you wish sometimes things would just stand still for a bit – but your house, maybe that nice little bungalow you bought when there were just two of you (or just you!), isn’t going to adapt unless you take action. West Seattle NestFest next Saturday aims to help. It’s a free workshop presented by West Seattle Family Zone, with participants including WSB sponsors Ventana Construction and WEdesign. As Anne Higuera from Ventana puts it, “Often, the arrival of a new family member is the impetus for starting a remodeling project. And more often than not, there’s a bit of urgency involved (i.e.– there’s a baby on the way and we want to finish the project before the baby arrives). Whether it’s an addition onto the house, converting a basement, or creating new space in or above a garage, there’s a lot to keep in mind as you plan. We’ll be talking specifically about how to plan for remodels that involve kids and kids’ spaces, and how to make sure those spaces are functional for the long term, as the kids grow up.” NestFest is next Saturday morning, 10 am, at the Senior Center of West Seattle (California/Oregon); though it’s free, registration is required – here’s how to sign up.
Our coverage of Saturday’s Town Hall in West Seattle, featuring our area’s three state legislators, includes Rep. Eileen Cody‘s observation that she is somewhat surprised our state’s budget crisis isn’t drawing more demonstrations of concern. Are protests passé? Not necessarily – in fact, one small demonstration had happened in West Seattle hours earlier, in support of another hot issue – and the demonstrators (photo above) were middle schoolers. The story, with video including the young protesters’ explanations, after the jump:Read More
(Squirrel photographed in Lincoln Park by Machel Spence)
To assist you in feeling bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, despite the hour of sleep lost to Daylight Saving Time’s arrival, we start with a photo of a critter who actually is (or was at the time of the photo) bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Now on to the highlights:
TRAFFIC NOTE: If you are headed north of downtown, note that a section of Highway 99 north of The Viaduct/Tunnel is closed until about 11 am for the St. Patrick’s Day Dash.
NATURE CONSORTIUM BRUNCH: The weekend full of fun fundraisers continues with the West Seattle-based Nature Consortium‘s annual fundraising brunch, noon at The Hall at Fauntleroy.
‘DISTRACTED’ MATINEE: At 3 pm, you can catch an afternoon performance of “Distracted” at ArtsWest in The Junction – full details here (P.S. Everyone’s invited to see ArtsWest announce its next season lineup, tomorrow night at 7:30 pm.)
DONATION-DRIVE REMINDER: Today’s a great day to shop for something to give to the donation drive for foster kids reported here last Thursday, organized by West Seattle High School senior Kellen Gearon – details and dropoff sites here.
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