day : 23/01/2012 8 results

8:38 PM: This was scheduled long before the snow days, and the district has said it could not be canceled to make up part of that time, so just a reminder for Seattle Public Schools families – tomorrow is a “partial furlough day” with students to be dismissed three hours early. (And if you missed it, Friday is no longer a “between the semesters” offday, it’s a school day to make up for one of the three days lost to snow.)

11:43 PM: We’re finding out late tonight that some of the furloughed teachers will be rallying in The Junction tomorrow afternoon.

Marriage equality: West Seattle leaders on State Legislature majority

January 23, 2012 4:20 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle people

You may have heard the news from Olympia – the State Legislature now has the votes to pass legislation that would make Washington the seventh state to legalize same-sex marriage. (Here are details from our partners at the Seattle Times.) West Seattle’s legislators support it, and so do other local political leaders. Read on for what they have to say:Read More

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Update: Morgan Junction shooting suspect in court, bail set at $1 million

January 23, 2012 2:49 pm

| 132 COMMENTS

| Crime | West Seattle news

2:49 PM: The 67-year-old Gatewood man suspected in Saturday night’s deadly shooting in Morgan Junction has just appeared in a King County Jail courtroom for a bail hearing. The judge set his bail at $1 million, the amount requested by the prosecution, though the defense had asked for $50,000. Prosecutors say that he has a criminal history including armed robbery; the defense says that his record was in the ’80s, and his wife, who described him as disabled, told the court that he hasn’t had anything worse than a traffic ticket in the nearly 20 years they have been married. WSB and Channel 7 were the only media crews to cover the hearing; the judge ordered us not to show the suspect’s face (which would be against WSB policy until he is charged, anyway). No further details of the case were described in the hearing, but we expect probable-cause documents to be provided by the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office shortly.

4:32 PM UPDATE: The “probable cause” documents are in. A transcription, ahead:Read More

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West Seattle ice/snow aftermath: How do you think the city did?

January 23, 2012 1:30 pm

| 52 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | West Seattle weather

(Photo by JayDee, taken near The Junction last Wednesday)
Tomorrow morning, the City Council’s Transportation Committee, chaired by West Seattle-residing Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, is scheduled for a preliminary discussion of how the city handled last week’s snow and ice. How do YOU think it went? You are of course welcome to discuss it here, but most importantly, there’s a simple way to share your opinion with the city – just go here. P.S. While Councilmember Rasmussen’s focus is on issues such as keeping major streets passable, there are other city services you might want to discuss: For example, the city’s Chief Technology Officer Bill Schrier (also a West Seattleite) has written about “Tech Lessons from the Seattle Snowstorm.” This was the first tryout, for example, for the “which streets have been plowed/de-iced” map. Back to tomorrow’s discussion – the committee meets at 9:30 am (agenda here).

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West Seattle traffic alert: EASTBOUND bridge closure tonight

January 23, 2012 12:27 pm

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| Spokane St. Viaduct project | West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

Some of the big SDOT projects had to change schedule because of the snow/ice – and the first rescheduling news is in:

The overnight closure of the eastbound lanes of the Spokane Street Viaduct, previously scheduled for January 19, has been rescheduled for tonight, Monday, January 23. The travel lanes will be closed from 9 p.m. tonight until 5 a.m. Tuesday morning, and will be closed from just east of the First Avenue S off-ramp to I-5. The First Avenue S off-ramp will remain open during the closure, with motorists able to use the eastbound S Spokane Street lower roadway as a detour to access I-5 or onto Columbian Way S.

The eastbound lanes of the Spokane Street Viaduct will also be closed on Thursday evening, January 26, from 9 p.m. until 5 a.m. Friday morning. Again, the First Avenue S off-ramp will remain open during this closure. Also on Thursday night from 9 p.m. until 5 a.m. Friday morning, Sixth Avenue S will be closed at the north side of the intersection with S Spokane St. Traffic traveling east on S Spokane St or north on Sixth Avenue S will still be able to access the I-5 on-ramps or Columbian Way S.

Finally, the same eastbound lanes of the Spokane Street Viaduct will also be closed this coming weekend, Friday, January 27 from 9 p.m. until Monday morning, January 30, at 5 a.m. During the weekend closure, either the First Avenue S off-ramp or the Fourth Avenue Loop ramp will remain open, permitting motorists to use the eastbound S Spokane Street lower roadway to reach either the I-5 ramps or Columbian Way S.

These eastbound lane closures will enable the contractor working for the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) to remove the zipper barrier that has separated east and westbound traffic on the old structure and to shift the eastbound travel lanes from the south side of the existing structure to the north side, the first of a number of traffic shifts occurring over the next few months. The lane shift is needed in order to begin the repair and repaving of the old structure.

Remember, the Spokane Street Viaduct is the official name for the section of West Seattle Bridge between 99 and I-5.

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West Seattle history: Riverside Plaza to be dedicated

January 23, 2012 10:24 am

| 9 COMMENTS

| West Seattle history | West Seattle news

(Jerry Vandenberg and friend. Photos courtesy Nicole Vandenberg, via SWSHS)
This morning, the Southwest Seattle Historical Society is providing more information on a big event this Saturday (you might have seen the Seattle Times [WSB partner] preview this weekend): “Come Home to Riverside,” noon Saturday at 17th SW/West Marginal Place (map). Riverside is a historic neighborhood by the bridge, an early West Seattle fishing community dating back more than a century. With descendants of those original families (many of them Croatian immigrants), SWSHS has created the Riverside Memorial Plaza, which will be dedicated at the event. From the announcement:

The project is the idea of Frank Zuvela, Joe Popich, and Mike Budinich, all sons of first-generation Riverside residents.

The property was donated by businessman Mike Budinich. The design and labor was contributed by Jerry and Ron Vandenberg, who grew up in Riverside in the 1940s.

Zuvela and Budinich both were born in Riverside; the Vandenbergs moved there in childhood. Here’s a photo of the Budinich store in Riverside, one of two grocery stores in the area, which extended credit, vital at the time because fishermen did not have year-round income and needed to borrow during the inbetween times.

Ahead, the full text on the memorial plaque, as provided by SWSHS:Read More

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West Seattle Crime Watch followup: Shooting victim has died

January 23, 2012 9:22 am

| 39 COMMENTS

| Crime | West Seattle news

(Saturday night photo by WSB’s Patrick Sand)
9:22 AM: We finally have official confirmation this morning that the man shot Saturday night by Morgan Junction Park did not survive. Harborview Medical Center and Seattle Police have both confirmed the death of the man identified by friends and family as 35-year-old Travis Hood. Friends say he had moved here just four months ago from Jacksonville, Florida, looking to live somewhere safer. His accused killer, a 67-year-old Gatewood man, is in the King County Jail; we’re awaiting word on whether he will be scheduled for a bail hearing today, at which time we should find out more about what investigators believe led to the shooting. Police have not commented yet on the circumstances, but as reported in our previous coverage, a friend of the victim, Jamie, told WSB on Sunday that he was with him when a man they didn’t know opened fire as they prepared to drive away after leaving a nearby bar; he says he drove his friend to Providence Mount St. Vincent, where police and medics found him, because he thought it was a hospital.

10:16 AM: The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office confirms the suspect is scheduled for a bail hearing this afternoon.

11:29 AM NOTE: In case you wondered: This is the first homicide this year in West Seattle. The peninsula had two last year – the February 2011 murder of entertainer Hokum W. Jeebs in Fauntleroy (accused killer Angelo Felice is currently set to go to trial in March), and the murder-suicide of an Admiral couple in October.

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West Seattle traffic alert: Roads, sidewalks slippery in spots

January 23, 2012 7:39 am

| 16 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

7:39 AM: David DeSiga e-mailed us to sound the alert for East Marginal Way – but we discovered firsthand it’s not an isolated spot; you may encounter a little residual iciness here and there. (P.S. Sidewalks and parking lots too.)

9:01 AM UPDATE: Delridge/Sylvan/Orchard is one spot that folks have warned about. Can’t say for sure if it’s ice-related, but emergency crews are responding to word of a crash there right now.

9:54 AM UPDATE: Short note from SDOT: “This morning between 5 am and sunrise, a sort of ‘flash freeze’ occurred across south Seattle. SDOT used granular salt and salt brine on slick spots.”

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