West Seattle, Washington
31 Sunday
(SATURDAY NIGHT UPDATE: Proprietor Miranda reports via FB that she has signed the lease.)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
She’s not sure yet whether it’s a total move or an expansion.
But Miranda Krone, proprietor of Meander’s Kitchen in north Morgan Junction, tells WSB she is signing the lease tomorrow for a space in White Center (the former Papa’s Pub, closed since February, at 9635 16th SW).
If you follow Meander’s on Facebook, you know she’s been talking for the past week-plus about a potential new location – first, maybe Delridge, then, maybe White Center. And now, the decision is in – like Zippy’s Giant Burgers before her, she’s heading south to WC.
Big buzz for a new festival – the West Seattle Junction Association‘s Harvest Festival on Sunday, October 28th (10 am-2 pm), an expanded, streets-closed version of the megapopular annual trick-or-treat event – combined with a one-time-only California SW version of the West Seattle Farmers’ Market. Here’s our report about the festival, as published when it was announced last weekend; now, the Junction Association is putting out the call for kids’ activities to be included in the festival. Excerpted from the announcement:
West Seattle schools, non-profits, and businesses are invited to provide a Harvest Activity for kids in the neighborhood. This will help make a fun and healthy event and give families an alternative to candy! The applicant will provide the materials and hopefully their own tent.
It is free to participate and the Harvest Committee will choose the projects best suited for the event. Your Harvest Activity must be a fun kids activity and meet ALL of the guidelines…
• Activity must be FREE and suited to children. No sales.
• Must try to have a Harvest connection and be an activity or project
• Activity should not be an advertisement or promotion of the
applicant. Of course have your banner and some materials, but the emphasis is on giving kids a fun activity and families an alternative to candy.
Got something in mind? You have just over two weeks to send in your proposal; applications will be reviewed October 1st. You can e-mail WSJA’s Susan Melrose at susan@wsjunction.org. (Postal-mail, fax options are on this PDF with the full announcement.)
In West Seattle Crime Watch this evening, Timothy reports his home was broken into this afternoon:
I wanted to alert the neighborhood (we live in North Admiral on 46th between Hill and Walker) of our house burglary today 9/14/12, around 12:30 pm. My wife, our two kids, and my visiting mother-in-law came home to a loud noise in the upstairs bedroom. A side ground level window was jimmied open, with a small hammer left on the ground which was used to pry the window up thus breaking the lock. My wife went upstairs to find a shoebox on the bed, where she keeps her meds, that had been rifled through. Her jewelry box was emptied, which fortunately mostly had costume jewelry in it. Her iPhone is missing too. The upstairs window was open with the blinds hanging on the outside.
It seems that this burglary was interrupted at the very beginning, and the thief exited the house onto the roof while my kids and wife and MIL entered the house. Fortunately, no one was injured and only a few things were stolen. … There were several neighbors around at this time, and only one finding was a “tall lanky white guy with light hair” was walking down the street, likely a coincidence.
If you have neighborhood crime concerns, note that the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council resumes its monthly meetings next Tuesday (September 18th), 7 pm at the Southwest Precinct (Delridge and Webster).
3:42 PM: One Genesee Hill area resident says she heard a “boom” – then the power went out. The outage wasn’t on the City Light map when we got that note, but it is now: 157 homes affected, with restoration expected by early evening. The cause is listed as “bird/animal.”
5:13 PM NOTE: Back on, according to commenters AND the City Light map. (The image above is a screengrab of the map, before the power was restored.)
After Mayor McGinn’s August 28th Town Hall meeting at Southwest Teen Life Center (WSB coverage here), we brought you followups on two of the issues citizens asked him about – computer access and a bike lane that was about to be built without neighborhood discussion. Now, a third – Alki Community Council president Tony Fragada called the mayor’s attention to the FAA’s public-comment process on the “Greener Skies” proposal, which would (among other things) bring the flight path a lot closer to Alki, Admiral, and the rest of north West Seattle. Today was scheduled to be the comment deadline – after public meetings last week, neither of which was in or near West Seattle (here’s our coverage of the closest one, which was in Ballard). We just got word from the mayor’s office that he has sent the FAA a letter asking for an extension, AND for a meeting on the south side of the city (Beacon Hill is concerned too). Read on for the full text of the letter:
Read More
An update on another Delridge Way road project – this time, transit-related work including the rechannelization of the north end, from Oregon to Andover, to add a bus lane. We first reported on this project back in April (there have been some changes since then – which we’ve added to the end of this story). Metro has just sent word that this work is scheduled to start soon:
A new bus lane will soon be under construction on Delridge Way Southwest to improve bus speed and reliability for Route 120 – one of Metro Transit’s Top 10 busiest routes.
During construction and restriping work, crews will maintain two open lanes of traffic by shifting lanes on Delridge Way Southwest. When weather-dependent construction starts later this month, work is planned during daytime hours outside of commute times, Tuesday through Saturday.
When complete, the half-mile-long northbound bus lane along a key stretch of Delridge Way Southwest will improve travel times approaching the West Seattle Bridge during the morning commute.
Wherever you are, the smoke that’s drifted over from fires to our east is hard to miss – for the reduced visibility and for the breathing difficulty it’s causing for some. Cliff Mass showed satellite views on his website Thursday, and that’s also when West Seattle pilot/photographer Long Bach Nguyen took the photo you see above. No rain in the forecast any time soon, by the way.
12:41 PM: If you’ve driven along Fauntleroy Way SW in recent days, you likely have noticed the missing fencing across the front of Fairmount Playfield. (One person even wondered if it might have been stolen.) It’s intentional – a replacement project is under way, says Seattle Parks spokesperson Karen O’Connor: “Seattle Parks and Recreation will be replacing the fence at Fairmount Playfield next week. To complete the project Parks will mark about 250′ of parking on the east side of Fauntleroy Way SW, south of Brandon Street, with ‘No Parking’ signs.” Find out more about the project here.
9 PM UPDATE: In case you’re wondering why the fenceposts have been there for some days with no work appearing to be done – Linda Hubert, Parks’ major-maintenance manager, explains what happened: “When the contractor removed the fence, he found an asphalt mow strip that we did not realize was there. Apparently, it had been covered over with turf for some years. The bid had been for replacement of fencing in the ground, and did not include paving. Our budget did not include paving. So, the contractor had to regroup, change his technique, order new materials, and will begin work again on Monday, September 17th. We are so sorry for the inconvenience to users. Fortunately, no games are scheduled until September 21st. The project should be complete by then.”
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
“Love The ‘Hood,” read the sticker worn by many of the three-dozen-plus neighbors who made Thursday night’s Southwest Design Review Board meeting the most-attended one in months.
Some even stood in the back of the room to listen, and to speak, as the board took up the 108-unit apartment project proposed for 3078 SW Avalon Way.
If you wonder, “what’s the big deal about another apartment building on Avalon?”, note that the neighbors, from 32nd SW behind the site and a few from adjacent sites on Avalon, were not there to protest or rage or weep. They said they had met four times since first word of the project exactly one month ago, and they came with clearly articulated requests and recommendations (as previewed here).
In the end, the project passed Early Design Guidance, and the architects went away with a list of recommendations to work on before the second, and possibly final, meeting.
(Photos by Nick Adams for WSB)
Dozens of businesses opened their doors again last night for the September edition of the West Seattle Art Walk, and we have a mini-photo tour of several stops this morning, from WSB contributing photojournalist Nick Adams. Twilight Artist Collective in The Junction opened its new “Cryogenic Nude America” exhibition – top photo is “The Last Cookout,” and it’s by The Collagemonauts, who are in the next photo – from left, Craig van den Bosch, Marty Gordon, and Tim Manthey:
Nick also visited Admiral and Alki venues – with sights including this:
Nine more Art Walk scenes ahead – and remember, most installations up through the month, so you still have a chance to see them even if you weren’t out last night!
Read More
(Photo by David Hutchinson, from low tide yesterday. Check tides on the WSB Weather page!)
For today’s preview, we point you to the WSB West Seattle Events Calendar, which includes the start of Holy Rosary School‘s WestFest (6-10 pm tonight), Rainbow Bingo at the Senior Center of West Seattle (doors open at 6 pm); high-school football (WSHS is at home, Sealth on the road, both games at 7); and the weekend-long closure of northbound 99 between the West Seattle Bridge and Royal Brougham, starting at 11 tonight. See EVERYTHING here – click on the right side of any line to expand the preview, then click “read more” for full details (including maps).
A major function of the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce is to bring local businesses together so they know about and can potentially work with each other. Toward that end, the Chamber sponsors a monthly “After Hours” event, held at a different local business every time. Thursday night, Swedish Automotive (WSB sponsor) in Gatewood hosted visiting Chamber members; in our photo, that’s Chamber board chair Dave Montoure of West 5 at left, with Chamber staffer Terry Ahern and Swedish proprietor Dave Winters. Next week will mark two years since Swedish Automotive moved into its spacious, sustainability-focused location at 35th and Kenyon.
The King County Sheriff‘s race is a countywide vote, so when your ballot arrives next month, in advance of the November 6th election, you’ll have to choose between current Sheriff Steve Strachan – appointed when Sue Rahr resigned for a new job – and challenger John Urquhart. Their first joint appearance in this area was tonight in White Center, during the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council‘s quarterly Public Safety Forum, and it was an energetic hour-plus faceoff – all on video above. (That’s NHUAC’s Richard Miller introducing them, with Sheriff Strachan speaking first.)
Two lovely sunset photos shared by WSB’ers tonight. Top, Lise‘s photo from High Point Pond. Next, Susan shares a Puget Sound view:
Aside from some morning low clouds on Saturday, looks like sunshine all the way through the weekend!
A memorial is planned on September 23rd for Joe Miller, who died a week ago, just a few weeks short of what would be his 57th birthday. We received this tribute to share with you:
Joseph Brian Miller
September 24, 1955~September 5, 2012
Joe was born September 24, 1955 at the West Seattle Hospital to August “Gus” and Kathleen Miller. He was the 4th of 6 children and easily the most charming from birth. He was considered by some to be a local celebrity, everyone knew and loved Joe Miller. Words fall short to describe the good feelings everyone had for Joe Miller.
He was a graduate of Chief Sealth High School. He worked in sales and marketing for more than 30 years and lived many places, but his heart always remained in West Seattle where he was raised. Joe spent the last 20 with Trendwest Resorts, now Wyndham Resorts, frequently earning awards for his top performance. It was a natural fit for a man who truly loved people.
(Bumpy section of Delridge near Kenyon)
For the “I won’t believe it till I see it” contingent – the city is officially calling for bids on its plan to resurface Delridge Way SW south of Orchard. (See here and here.) As had been noted in our original reports, it’s a three-part proposal – they’re guaranteeing the resurfacing from Orchard to Henderson, no matter what; then if there’s money, they’ll go from Henderson to Roxbury on Delridge and that same stretch on 16th. The estimated “base bid” for the guaranteed part is $5.9 million to $6.5 million; for the extra work on Delridge, $1 million to $1.2 million more; for the extra work on 16th, $900,000 to $1.1 million more. Bids are due to be opened October 2nd. This plan was first mentioned during Mayor McGinn‘s May town hall in West Seattle; then in June, the city revealed at a Delridge Neighborhoods District Council meeting that it intends to “rechannelize” that section too (see the plan here).
Quick update on the Firefly Café and Creperie, soon to take wing on the northeast corner of California and Genesee at the north edge of The Junction, as reported here in June: Proprietor Charell Estby says she is penciling in October 26th-October 28th as the grand-opening weekend. This week, she’s been busy with inspections; the plum-colored paint job you see in our photo went up a month ago. (She told Facebook fans it’s “caramel” inside.)
(Through the windshield, as WSDOT drove media onto the new bridge)
Nine months ahead of schedule and under budget, the elevated section of northbound Highway 99/Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement near the stadiums will be open by Monday (as announced last week). This morning, WSDOT executives led a quick news-media tour of the about-to-open section, and WSB was there.
(WSDOT executive Matt Preedy talking with notebook-holding Mike Lindblom of The Seattle Times [WSB partner])
They also have gone public with this time-lapse video of what’s transpired since that section of the AWV started coming down less than a year ago:
More photos ahead – plus a WSDOT graphic of how you’ll get through the area:
(WSB photo from June 30th, scooters outside Skylark)
Even if your scooter isn’t “vintage” enough to show in the West Seattle Junction Car Show this Sunday (8 am-4 pm, with cars and motorcycles too; register here), you’re invited to join a scooter rally afterward. The West is co-sponsoring. The official announcement:
After the car show, The West is sponsoring a scooter rally which will meander through West Seattle stopping at landmarks, going along Alki Beach and other cool spots. It’s going to be hosted by two WS business owners, Lora Swift of Hotwire Coffee and Jessie Russo of Skylark Café and Club. The rally will start at Hotwire Coffee and end at Skylark Café. You can register (FREE!) for the rally now until 4 pm on Sunday, either via email with your name or at Hotwire.
Here’s a map:
Then 5-7 pm, live music and food/drink specials at Skylark ($5 cover), followed by, at 8 pm, the “Quadrophenia” screening at Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor), free.
(Painting by Ann Duffy, featured at Click! Design That Fits during WS Art Walk tonight)
Much going on tonight – with the monthly West Seattle Art Walk at the top of the list. From the WSB West Seattle Events Calendar (thank you to everyone who shares announcements!):
TRAFFIC ALERTS: If you’re downtown, remember the Microsoft meeting today (noted here on Wednesday); tonight, from our day-by-day/night-by-night list, two overnight road closures, same as last night: Southbound 99/Alaskan Way Viaduct 9 pm-5 am, and eastbound Spokane Street Viaduct 10 pm-5 am – so if you get on the eastbound high bridge during the closure, you’ll have to exit to northbound 99.
SCHOLARSHIP FUND BENEFIT: 5 pm at Salty’s on Alki (WSB sponsor) – details here.
ALKI ELEMENTARY BACK-TO-SCHOOL BARBECUE AND PTA MEETING: The school’s families are invited to a barbecue at 5:30 pm, followed by the first PTA meeting of the year at 7 pm. Details via Facebook.
OPEN HOUSE AT ALKI COMMUNITY CENTER: Come find out about classes, facilities, and everything you might not already know about Alki CC, 5:30-7 pm (more info here), 5817 SW Stevens.
LAST COMMUNITY KAYAK TOUR OF THE DUWAMISH THIS SEASON: Join the Duwamish River Cleanup Coalition and Alki Kayak Tours for a kayak tour of the Duwamish, 6 pm, leaving from T-107 Park in West Seattle. Details via Facebook.
WEST SEATTLE ART WALK: Dozens of venues around the peninsula, from Alki to Admiral to The Junction (and beyond), 6-9 pm tonight – meet artists, admire their work, and in many cases, enjoy a bite or sip compliments of the hosting venues. Here’s the walking map/list; here’s the official website with previews. (And a few specific previews shared with us follow …)
ART WALK AT CLICK! DESIGN THAT FITS: Ann Duffy will be on hand at WSB sponsor Click! in The Junction with paintings, including the one at the top of this report. Here’s the info from Click!’s own website.
WINE TASTING AT C & P COFFEE:
It’s our monthly neighborhood party! Bring a friend, bring an appetizer and listen to Brazilian music with Choro Tocando. $5.00 tasting fee or wines by the glass or bottle. (21 and older please.)
C & P, a WSB sponsor, is at 5612 California SW.
MORGAN JUNCTION COMMERCIAL PROPERTY TO BECOME PARKLAND? Join the community conversation tonight; meet at 6 pm at Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor), 6451 California SW. Details are in our previous report.
ASK AN EXPERT AT WEST SEATTLE TOOL LIBRARY: Second Thursday is also a chance to visit the West Seattle Tool Library at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way SW), 6-8 pm, and talk with experts about home-improvement/construction/sustainability projects – this month’s lineup is here.
ART WALK AT ALKI ARTS: Pop art by Daniel Rey and live guitar music by Jeff Krause, 6-9 pm, 2820 Alki Avenue SW. Here’s the Facebook event page.
DESIGN REVIEW MEETING: 3078 SW Avalon Way, proposed for 114 apartments, is on the agenda tonight 6:30 pm, Senior Center of West Seattle (California/Oregon, upstairs). The format includes a chance for public comment. Here’s our preview from last night, including links with more information on the project and on a neighborhood group’s concerns.
SHERIFF CANDIDATES’ FORUM (AND PUBLIC SAFETY UPDATES): No West Seattle forums in this race scheduled that we know of, so to hear from the two candidates for King County Sheriff, be at tonight’s quarterly Public Safety Forum presented by the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council. It’s at 7 pm in the meeting room in the NH Fire District headquarters, 1243 SW 112th.
The city has just sent the official notice for the first Design Review meeting for the 4755 Fauntleroy Way SW development proposal – which will span three properties on SW Alaska west of Fauntleroy, as well as stretching to SW Edmunds along the west side of Fauntleroy. As reported here last Friday (along with new information on the proposed 350-plus-apartments, 55,000-sf-retail project itself), it’ll be at 6:30 pm September 27th (two weeks from tonight), Senior Center of West Seattle.
P.S. In case you saw it and wondered – newly added text on the DPD page for the project includes some erroneous details, according to our followup conversation with the project team after we noticed it. The current apartment count remains at “more than 350 units,” and the retail remains “around 55,000 square feet” (with the caveat “possibly more, possibly less”), with parking projection remaining around 530. The packet for the Design Review meeting should be out at least a week in advance – by next Thursday – and the numbers will be refined by then.
The West Seattle Community Orchestras‘ season is about to start – and along with some changes and additions, they are once again ready to welcome you to join their ranks! Here’s the official announcement:
WSCO welcomes Rachel Nevis as she takes over the conducting duties for the Debut Orchestra. This group will expand to include woodwinds and brass, providing a full orchestra experience for those musicians new to playing.
Leading the Intermediate Orchestra is WSCO’s founding conductor Toni Reineke, Ph.D. The Intermediate Orchestra provides musical opportunities for midrange musicians, whether students moving up in their skills, or adults who are coming back to music after time away; mentoring is a key aspect of this group along with additional learning opportunities from SYSO coaches.
Kim Roy, who led the group in a rousing rendition of Aaron Copland’s “Hoedown,” will be conducting the Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Roy is a well-known Seattle musician who also conducts the Seattle Rock Orchestra. She will lead the Symphony Orchestras in tackling the most challenging works of our three groups, providing members with a chance to stretch themselves and provide audiences with great performances right here in West Seattle. The schedule for the Symphony Orchestra has been expanded this season to include three ten-week sessions.
A brand new addition to WSCO this fall is an Adult Beginning Winds and Percussion Class, taught by Toni Reineke. And due to the popularity of the Adult Beginning Strings Class last spring, a new Adult Beginning Strings Class is offered this fall, taught by Kriszti Bunica, candidate for Masters in Teaching. Both classes will meet at 7:00 to 8:00 PM on Tuesday evenings, at Chief Sealth International High School. Class sizes will be limited. Information and registration information is available on the website.
Registration is now open; rehearsals begin September 25, at Chief Sealth (2600 SW Thistle). For more information please visit our website, www.wscorchestras.org.
Thanks to Brenda Donner for sharing the news that Fauntleroy’s legendary Capt. (ret.) Morey Skaret, 99 years young, was among the honorees at last night’s Seattle Police Relief and Retired Seattle Police Officers Association banquet. Capt. Skaret also served in the Seattle Police Department, and Brenda says, “The banquet honored SPD officers who have retired since last year’s banquet. Then they honored those previously retired who were in attendance; thus Morey’s honor … He was the ‘lowest serial number’ of all retired Seattle Police Officers in attendance; his SPD serial number was 406!”
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