Be on the lookout for the car at left – stolen, according to the first of threeWest Seattle Crime Watch reader reports we have tonight. Z says it’s a 1991 Nissan Sentra, red, 2-door, black trunk and spoiler, gray interior, license plate # 051UEJ, stolen near 41st and Admiral Way sometime over the holiday weekend while Z was out of town. If you spot it, please call 911.
Ahead – burglary and car-prowl reports, plus a bonus link!Read More
Can you help out with this – a chance to inspire local youth at Career Night for teens at Neighborhood House’s High Point Center next week? Here are all the details:
What: An opportunity for young people to connect to professionals in all sorts of careers and ask them questions about what they do and how they prepared for their careers.
Where: High Point Center Neighborhood House (6400 Sylvan Way SW)
When: Tuesday, Dec. 6th 4-6 pm
Why: Young people can benefit from talking to adults who are already doing the things they aspire to do about what it takes to get there! We want to give the youth a chance to ask questions and hear about what certain careers are like and for adults to see themselves as resources for youth.
Help us make our career night a success for our youth! We are looking for more professionals from areas of work in Media, Natural Science, Social Science, Medicine, Business, Architectural Studies and Engineering to briefly talk about the work that they do and answer career-specific questions from teens. If you work in a field that was not mentioned or are self employed and would like to share your experience, please also contact Khatsini, YELS (Youth Empowered With Leadership Strengths) program coordinator, at khatsinis@nhwa.org or 206 588 4900 x.627 for further steps.
(Photo by Darcy Edmunds: From left, Jessica Lynn, The CoHo Team; Lillian Dabney, InMotion Winner; Peter Wolf, The CoHo Team; Carol Cooper, King County Metro; Cara Mohammadian, The CoHo Team; Lisa Quinn, Feet First)
This summer and fall, WSB was proud to be a co-sponsor of West Seattle In Motion – encouraging people to try alternate ways of getting around now and then, such as walking, bicycling, or taking the bus. One incentive, besides a healthier environment and healthier you, was a chance to win the In Motion Staycation Prize Package, which has just been awarded, according to Lisa Quinn from Feet First:
Drumroll, please….We are delighted to announce the winner of the ULTIMATE West Seattle STAYCATION: Lillian Dabney. Lillian will enjoy two relaxing nights at the Wildwood B&B, a visit to Head to Toe Day Spa, an Alki Kayak Tours adventure, dinner at Spring Hill Restaurant, tickets to ArtsWest, and more! Thanks to The CoHo Team for generously donating this amazing grand prize valued at $1,000!
Lillian wasn’t the only winner. West Seattle, over the last four months 1,200 of you joined together to made a real difference to the community and the atmosphere.
While the official West Seattle In Motion program ended on October 31st and registration is now closed, we still need your help to find out what you liked about In Motion, or how we can improve the program. If you participated in the West Seattle In Motion Program, please take the wrap up survey ASAP by visiting www.surveymonkey.com/s/westseattle. … Want to stay engaged and keep earning rewards for traveling smarter? Check out the Seattle Walk Bike Ride Challenge!
From Lillian: “Riding the bus, I feel like I am a part of the world.” P.S. Along with WSB and The CoHo Team (which is also a WSB sponsor), WS In Motion was co-sponsored by Sustainable West Seattle.
Tomorrow is Shop Late Thursday in The Junction (till 9 pm) – and there’s a bonus reason to stop at Knows Perfume (4536 California SW): A fundraising silent auction of wreaths and birdhouses. From proprietor Christen Cottam:
Come check out the amazing wreaths and birdhouses on display at Knows Perfume. All are up for auction, and the proceeds will go to the West Seattle Food Bank. If you see one you like, come in and place a bid. On Sunday, the 11th of December, the auction will conclude. Knows Perfume will then notify you to pay and pick up your winning item. What an excellent way to find something lovely for your home and do something kind for a great organization like the West Seattle Food Bank. Please contact Christen at Knows if you have any questions. (206) 397-3141
We’re adding this to the BE A HOLIDAY HELPER list on the WSB West Seattle Holiday Events and Info page – we’ll keep adding as the season goes on (editor@westseattleblog.com if you have an event, donation drive, or something else holiday-related happening).
(Photos courtesy Seattle Public Schools)
After the official swearing-in ceremony this afternoon – Puget Ridge resident and retired teacher Marty McLaren is now the District 6 (West Seattle and vicinity) representative on the Seattle Public Schools Board of Directors. That’s Diann Shope(left) administering the oath. Also sworn in for four-year terms today, new board member Sharon Peaslee and returnees Harium Martin-Morris and Sherry Carr. Here’s the full board afterward:
Some of the folks out looking for the reported orcas at noontime today saw this instead – one of the submarines visible from Alki (and vicinity) from time to time. Thanks to David Hutchinson for sharing his photo! The nearest sub base is Naval Base Kitsap, with operations in Bangor (where the subs are based) and Bremerton.
(Photo courtesy Westside School)
Field trips come in all sizes. This one for Westside School (WSB sponsor) was pretty big, providing students a chance to follow in explorers Lewis and Clark‘s foosteps:
Recently, twenty 5th-grade Westside School middle-school students went on an overnight field trip to Fort Clatsop, in Astoria Oregon, to enhance their understanding of Lewis and Clark’s Corps. of Discovery. Their social studies unit focused on the Louisiana Purchase and Thomas Jefferson’s desire to explore a water route to the Pacific.
After leaving school at 8 am on Thursday and arriving in Astoria by lunchtime, students visited the fort and completed a tour and research session. Later that evening, the group took a stroll on the beach and experienced the sun setting, over the Pacific Ocean. Teacher Glyn Jenkins observed two of his students sitting on a log with their eyes closed. He was curious and asked about their thoughts. “We are listening to the waves, wind, and bird sounds, just like Lewis & Clark must have,” they said, and closed their eyes again and smiled. Later the 5th graders conducted a group reflection activity, where they explained what they appreciated most about the Lewis and Clark expedition. On Friday morning, the trip continued to the Interpretive Center at Cape Disappointment, where the students completed a fact finding mission, which provided information for a play that they wrote, upon returning to school. The play will be performed at the end of the winter term.
Families interested in Westside are invited to an “Information Night” tomorrow (6-7:30 pm Thursday 12/1) for students entering 5th, 6th, and 7th grade next school year. Besides Q/A time, students will participate in an interactive activity to demonstrate Westside’s experiential curriculum. (7740 34th Ave SW); if you have questions, you’re welcome to contact Westside’s Director of Admission David Bergler at davidb@westsideschool.org or (206) 932-2511.
So how did we wind up inquiring about Seattle Marathon recycling practices? It all has to do with that photo, taken Sunday at the South Transfer Station in South Park, where WSB’er Shellie was disturbed by what she and her husband saw: “2 large Penske trucks showed up and dumped SEVERAL cases of bottled water, unopened with plastic still wrapped around cases, into the large waste hole instead of recycling them.” She said her husband was told they were from the marathon earlier in the day. After she sent us the photo and note on Monday, we inquired with marathon management, which replied yesterday, promising to look into it, and then forwarded this response from the course cleanup coordinator today:
I recycle every day at home and at work but with the marathon this year it was almost impossible to separate the recycling from the garbage. Your reader did see plastic bottles still in the plastic wrapper which is not recyclable but they were all empty. That is how the water stations open and leave the bottles. They definitely were all empty as I was the one at the transfer station.
For next year my recommendation will be to have all water stations separate recyclables and garbage. We would need clear plastic bags to know the difference. We use two trucks now so one could be garbage and one could be recycle. It definitely bothered me also to not recycle but once it was all mixed I just didn¹t have any choice but to dump everything so that we could get the trucks back to memorial stadium for equipment pick up.
Thank you for bringing this to the attention of the management to make this happen. I am confident we can do a better job next year without incurring a lot of extra costs with the separation of waste and recycling at each and every water station.
With our area as one of the local epicenters of the medical-marijuana business, this might be of interest:
Gov. Chris Gregoire today announced she filed a petition with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration asking the agency to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule 2 drug, which will allow its use for treatment – prescribed by doctors and filled by pharmacists. Gov. Lincoln Chafee (I-RI) also signed the petition.
The petition will require the Federal Drug Administration to conduct a new scientific review and analysis of recent advances in Cannabis research since the last time the FDA reviewed the matter in 2006.
“Poll after poll shows an overwhelming majority of Americans now see medical marijuana as legitimate,” Gregoire said.
Second day in a row, the orcas are out there somewhere! Just like yesterday, a Bainbridge-Seattle state ferry spotted them – and Donna Sandstrom from The Whale Trail shared the news with us; they were headed southbound. So if you’re near the west-facing West Seattle shore, be on the lookout. We’ll add any updates we get.
‘DESIGN REVIEW 101’ TOMORROW: The next major public-input milepost regarding this project is its first Design Review Board meeting next Thursday (6:30 pm December 8, Youngstown Cultural Arts Center). Anyone interested in finding out more about how that process works, whether you want to comment at next week’s meeting or not, is welcome in Youngstown Room 111 at 6:30 pm tomorrow (December 1), where, according to the announcement, “A Land Use Supervisor from the City of Seattle’s Dept. of Planning will spend an hour talking with neighbors about the Design Review process, followed by an informal discussion regarding neighbor’s design concerns.” (You can preview the architect-prepared “packet” for the Dec. 8th meeting here. And there’s more about this meeting, plus the comment process for next week, here.)
NDNC CLARIFIES ROLE: As reported in previous WSB coverage (all archived here), the North Delridge Neighborhood Council has been trying to decide what its role is in the process, as it has not taken a position, and apparently historically has not taken positions on projects. A decision has been made, according to this statement:
A new Executive Council has taken positions for the North Delridge Neighborhood Council. Nine neighbors have filled every position on the Council, this being the first year for the new Council-Committee format to be filled. They have held an Executive meeting and voted to take an active role regarding the DESC project slated for 5444 Delridge Way SW. Moving forward, the North Delridge Neighborhood Council’s role will be to inform neighbors on the process, how and when to engage in effective participation..
DESC’s timeline, as shared at the recent unofficial meeting we wrote about here, would have the building opening in about 2 years. In addition to the Design Review/permit process, it has one more round of funding to obtain.
(This is now the archived video of today’s meeting, time-coded to start when this agenda item began) 10:40 AM: Click the “play” button and you’ll see the Seattle City Council’s Committee on the Built Environment, talking about the West Seattle Triangle rezoning proposal for the second time this month. (The agenda includes links to the documents and maps they’re discussing.) They may or may not vote today; they need to vote on it before it can go to the full council. Whatever decision is made by the city will affect the face of that section of West Seattle for decades to come – part of the area, including some lots around the Triangle edges, including the west side of Fauntleroy for a stretch south of SW Alaska, is proposed for upzoning to 85 feet. We’ll note highlights and the meeting results, as this goes along. (The meeting started at 9 am, but the committee had another weighty item to get through first – a zoning change in the Roosevelt area of North Seattle – so they didnt get to the Triangle till 10:40 am.)
10:45 AM: They’ve just voted to amend the proposal to include 85-foot zoning on both sides of Fauntleroy for the stretch between Alaska and Edmunds. (See this “map amendment” here.)
10:56 AM: They’ve just approved some amendments, including extending the “pedestrian” zone to 35th, whereas previously it ended at 36th SW. As they get ready to vote on the entire bill, Councilmember Sally Bagshaw says not everyone is happy with everything, but it’s a “give and take” process. Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, who’s been involved in Triangle planning for more than three years, says he’s excited, “while there are still some outstanding issues … and I don’t think we’re going to get back to that … the community was heard (relating to height issues, in that some areas will stay at 65-foot zoning).” He thanks the community for spending “a lot of time on this.”
10:59 AM: The rezoning proposal passes the committee with a unanimous vote. The committee also has approved a resolution calling for SDOT to do a parking study in The Triangle as the result of issues that came up during the last leg of the planning process. Next step: This all goes to the full Council next month.
Will the orcas return? Thanks to Trileigh Tucker for the shot from yesterday (and some of the day’s orca updates). While we’re waiting to see if they do, here’s what’s on the schedule, from the WSB West Seattle Events calendar and West Seattle Holidays page:
TRIANGLE REZONING? Seattle City Council Committee on the Built Environment looks again at West Seattle Triangle rezoning, 9 am, City Hall. Watch live via the Seattle Channel, cable 21 or seattlechannel.org – we’re planning to put the video window up on the home page when the meeting gets to this item (there’s at least one complicated, unrelated item beforehand).
NOVEMBER 30: HEARING LOSS SUPPORT GROUP at Senior Center of West Seattle (California/Oregon), 1-2 pm last Wednesday of the month, starting today.
TAKING OFFICE: Puget Ridge resident Marty McLaren will be sworn in as the new West Seattle school-board rep, 4 pm at district HQ in SODO. (Election results were certified yesterday.)
OPENING NIGHT: Starting tonight, ArtsWest presents the seasonal premiere of “Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some!)” by Michael Carleton, James FitzGerald and John K. Alvarez. 7:30 pm; ticket info here.
7:48 AM: Thanks to those who’ve sent word of this via Facebook/Twitter – a garbage truck has broken down on northbound 99, at Atlantic per Kim (where there’s no shoulder), and that’s not only backing up 99, it’s affecting the bridge and its approaches. If you haven’t left yet, consider alternate routes, or waiting a while. (You can see the backups on the WSB Traffic page – the 1st Avenue South Bridge looks pretty busy too, though.)
8:08 AM: Via Twitter, @mental404 also warns of “a broken-down town car on the bridge just before the Delridge onramp.” Metro is rerouting some buses.
8:20 AM: Tow truck has arrived, per KING 5’s Tracy Taylor. But with the backup stretching all the way back across the 1st Avenue S. Bridge (and apparently then some) as well as the West Seattle Bridge, that won’t be an instant fix.
8:41 AM: As Lou reports in the comment section, the stuck truck has been towed. The stalled car on the bridge is apparently gone, too. Metro just sent word the buses are back to regular routing.
11:40 AM: We’re trying to sleuth why the trash-truck tow apparently took two hours. Will update this story whenever we get the info!
South Seattle Community College is known for an ever-longer list of specialties … food, wine, horticulture, automotive technology, to name a few. The latter was in the spotlight today at a ceremony unveiling a sign in honor of its forthcoming Steve and Sharon Huling Automotive Center. This was a followup to the announcement last year that the Hulings would be the namesakes of the center, which is about to undergo an $18 million renovation, increasing to 45,590 square feet with 27 shop bays (up from the current 18), enabling an enrollment expansion. Dozens of dignitaries and students, from the Hulings and SSCC president Gary Oertli to a large contingent of the program’s faculty and students, participated in the ceremony. Here’s our video:
The Hulings have long been strong supporters of SSCC, with Steve Huling currently on its President’s Advisory Council. The couple shared a champagne toast with the president after the sign unveiling:
Given the family history in the automotive business (until 2007), the center is perfect synergy, especially since it will offer a “dealership environment” for students to work on vehicles. A few datapoints about the program at SSCC, as mentioned during today’s ceremony: Its faculty includes three full-time in automotive technology and one in collision repair, with more than 80 students; a six-quarter Associate of Applied Science degree is available in Auto Tech, as well as training certificates in various areas. It’s won a “Top 4 Automotive Schools” award, and they expect to be offering classes soon in alternative fuels. The future Steve and Sharon Huling-named center is on the north side of the main campus.
So far, one of the biggest West Seattle trends this holiday season is … Santa-mania! It’s Santa everywhere. And just added to the WSB West Seattle Holidays page tonight, the return of Santa Paws, 11 am-1 pm December 10th at Windermere West Seattle HQ in The Junction … the guy in the fur-trimmed hat is there for photos with your furry friend(s). That’s our newest listing in the “Santa Photos” section. We also have a link now to the schedule at CAPERS for the bearded St. Nick we’ll call “Ex-Westwood Santa” … plus you can get a Santa photo at the Community Pancake Breakfast with the Kiwanis Club of West Seattle at the Masonic Hall (40th/Edmunds) this Saturday, 7 am-11 am (remember to bring your unwrapped Toys for Tots donation) … and the Santa listings we’ve had since the start of the season, daily at Westwood Village and the next three Sundays during Hometown Holidays in The Junction, are there too. And did you see Santa and Mrs. Claus wandering The Junction last Sunday?
(Photo courtesy David E. Perry)
They may be in the vicinity again this Sunday, we hear, perhaps even in the crowd during Saturday’s Junction Tree Lighting (5 pm, Junction Plaza Park). Then again, Santa is everywhere, anyway … has to be, to get all those presents delivered … More holiday events, info, everything, updated frequently, here (and if we’re missing YOUR holiday event, please share the news!).
Just in from SDOT, heads-up if you travel anywhere near the stadiums (including the Alaskan Way Viaduct) during your commute home – Thursday night might be dicey:
The Seahawks will play the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday evening, starting at 5:20 p.m. with an estimated attendance of 67,000 fans. Drivers can expect heavy congestion in the areas around the stadium, in the downtown area, and on major routes to the stadium (I-5 and I-90). Seahawks fans are advised to arrive early. Commuters leaving the downtown area may also want to leave early, or wait to leave downtown until after kickoff.
Rezoning for the West Seattle Triangle and part of the adjacent area – including increasing some parcels to a maximum of 85-foot-high development – is back on the agenda tomorrow morning for the City Council’s Committee on the Built Environment (9 am, CIty Hall downtown). They are scheduled to discuss potential changes to the plan presented two weeks ago, and they may vote on whether to send the plan to the full council for final action. The information package, including proposed map and text amendments – with an area of Fauntleroy between Alaska and Edmunds proposed for 85-foot zoning on the east side as well as the west side – is linked from the meeting agenda, which begins with a public-comment period for anyone interested in speaking to the members about this.
Note the missing bulbs, off to the right of the photo, which is from Dan, who explains:
Yesterday we saw a squirrel run off the deck with a bright yellow object in his mouth..and came out to see he had chewed through the wires (and they were turned ON) and grabbed a yellow LED light from the deck railing.
Then today he (or someone he told about it) was back and grabbed another yellow…this time with them unplugged…and later we spotted him with a green one in his mouth running across the deck.
We had no idea that they were nutritious …!
Thought this was very strange, til we found online that this is somewhat common… and most report that the red ones are not ever taken.
12:38 PM: Traffic is blocked by fire units in the northbound lanes of Delridge near Hudson. It’s because of a fire call that started big but reportedly has turned out to be “food on the stove” – we’re still en route to the area to make sure.
1:18 PM: Still haven’t confirmed the cause of the problem – there was smoke visible in the area when we got there – but Delridge is now reopened both ways.
(No orcas in this pic but they’re out there somewhere – shot around 1 pm, light on the Olympics) 11:48 AM: We’re getting reports of orcas in the area – they were first spotted from the Bainbridge ferry about an hour ago; Donna Sandstrom from The Whale Trail called to say they appeared to be heading this way; and now we’ve just gotten a phone call from someone who saw them from a ferry “between Alki and Blake Island.” We’re out looking – let us know if you spot ’em!
11:55 AM: Just talked to Donna south of Alki Point – the whales are much closer to the Bainbridge side right now, so you’ll need really good binoculars/camera at this point – updates to come if that changes.
1:24 PM: They’re now visible from Lincoln Park, according to wildlife watcher/photographer/writer Trileigh Tucker. Donna also has checked back to say they’re between here and Vashon. Please share photos if you get ’em! Thank you!
Under the direction of Rob Duisberg, that’s the West Seattle Community Orchestras‘ Symphony Orchestra, rehearsing Bartok’s “Rumanian Folk Dances” last night in the auditorium at Chief Sealth International High School. Tonight, that’s where you will find them and the WSCO’s Flute Ensemble in concert, 7 pm. The program also includes works by Dukas, Grieg, Elgar, Tchaikovsky, Saint-Saens, Liszt, and “A Christmas Festival” by Leroy Anderson. The concert is free; a $5 donation is suggested (WSCO is a nonprofit all-volunteer community organization).
Every chair in the library was filled by the time the meeting began … and people just kept coming, requiring extras to be brought in, until the room was full, wall to wall.
Six elementary schools in West Seattle are perceived to have a “capacity-management” – overcrowding – problem so serious that something must be done before next year. A seventh school in the area – Chief Sealth International High School – is stuffed too, but while the district is only putting it on a “watch list” for now, its teachers are circulating a petition to get portables, which happen to be among the options proposed for the brimming elementary schools.
If you would like to see and hear the meeting for yourself, here’s our unedited hour-and-a-half video:
Be on the lookout for the car at left – stolen, according to the first of three 
Will the orcas return? Thanks to Trileigh Tucker for the shot from yesterday (and some of the day’s orca updates). While we’re waiting to see if they do, here’s what’s on the schedule, from the 
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