West Seattle, Washington
27 Tuesday
(Photo by Machel Spence)
A beautiful day, from the frosty floor of Lincoln Park, to the frosty tip of the story pole at Rotary Viewpoint Park …
(Photo by Christopher Boffoli)
… to the mighty Olympics in the west …
(Photo by John Hinkey)
… and mightier Mount Rainier to the south …
(Photo by Myrtle)
this beautiful day is ending with tidepool exploration by flashlight at Constellation Park.
(Photo by Leslie Dierauf)
(Along with low-low nighttime low tides, including one more at 11:13 pm tomorrow – -2.4 feet – the morning “king” tides are arriving too, 12.8 feet at 5:47 am tomorrow.) Thanks to everyone who shared photos!
(UPDATED SATURDAY with more venues opening early)
It’s “Blue Friday” for Seahawks fans, looking ahead to the division-playoff game vs. Atlanta, less than 39 hours away (but who’s counting … well, maybe the fans in Steph‘s photo, above, are!). We’ve been collecting info on who’s open early if you’d like to watch the game with your fellow fans. Whenever you see this, check out the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar and scroll down to Sunday (look for the calendar-page icon) to see the latest listings – mouse over the right side of a line to reveal and click on the plus sign, then use “read more” to get the full scoop. As of this writing, earlybirds (various opening times – see the calendar) that we have heard from include, in chronological order, Pioneer Coffee, Christo’s On Alki, The Bridge, West Seattle Eagles, Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor), Beer Junction, Elliott Bay Brewing, Beveridge Place Pub, OutWest Bar, Zeeks Pizza (WSB sponsor), Mac’s Triangle Pub, Pegasus Pizza, Alki Tavern. Who else? Add a comment, or e-mail us at editor@westseattleblog.com (fan photos welcome too, before and/or during the game) – thanks, and of course: Go, Seahawks!
5:44 PM: Crews are out working on a water break at 24th and Trenton – which is in the Delridge repaving-detour zone. It’s a traffic challenge and may be a slip-sliding risk later with the temperatures expected to go below freezing again tonight.
7 PM: The problem is on the westbound side – the detour side – starting just east of 24th, and the water was still running – not gushing, but running – down the road as of a little while ago.
If you noticed the Potter Construction (WSB sponsor) sign in the window of the former West Seattle Motors/Bob Ochsner Cars site along Fauntleroy Way in The Triangle – here’s what’s up: The West Seattle Y (WSB sponsor) is taking over the space. It’s already being used for extra parking – 18 more spaces, as announced to Y members a few months back, says Josh Sutton at the Y, adding, “We’re on track to start using the space for fitness classes (quantity/type still to be determined) in the next month or so. Right now we’re cleaning it up and getting it ready – so stay posted. Big thanks goes to Potter Construction for donating a chunk of the renovation costs.” (Proprietor Gary Potter is on the Y’s board.)
Two West Seattle Crime Watch notes this afternoon – first, a followup to the photos from last month’s Admiral Way 7-11 robbery:
The SPD Blotter item including seven photos from the robbery – as noted in our Crime Watch report late last night – is updated with news that police arrested the suspected robber, 15, in Kent today after a tip. The other two are now said NOT to be suspects.
Second, two reports of what’s believed to be the same man exposing himself in an Alki neighborhood. First, a woman spotted a man – wearing only a light-colored tank top – on Lander near Teig (map) at mid-afternoon Wednesday. She said he stared right at her; she describes him as white, very dark hair and eyebrows, “receding hairline along the sides of the top of his head.” She was so startled, she shouted at him, and he subsequently jumped into the bushes. Talking with neighbors later, she discovered one had seen the same man on December 26th – at that time, wearing nothing at all, and also “jumping into and out of the bushes.” Our tipster says it’s all the more alarming considering that Alki Elementary is not far from this area. It’s been reported to police.
(Photo from witness on board Route 125 bus; man being treated blurred, except feet)
FIRST REPORT, 12:40 PM: Traffic alert too big to just add to the daily tracker – the bridge offramp to Northbound 99 is closed right now – and we’re just getting details: First we got a text from someone on board a bus who said they witnessed an incident involving a man who jumped onto a building roof. Here’s the transcript of the text:
Man involved in robbery took West Seattle Bridge and was transferring to the freeway downtown and hit a car, man proceeds to exit vehicle, jumped from bridge to building warehouse and then jumped to ground, injuring self in process, allowing police to capture, completely in view of everyone on my Route 125 bus headed downtown just now.
We called Seattle Police, whose Detective Renee Witt tells WSB: This started at Don Armeni Boat Ramp, where a woman said her ex-boyfriend had been following her and took her purse, then got into a vehicle and left. Officers were following him; he was speeding, wouldn’t yield, eventually stopped his vehicle on 99, took off running, jumped from the highway onto a building, then jumped to the railroad tracks. He has injuries including a suspected broken leg.
12:55 PM UPDATE: Northbound 99, and in turn the ramp from the WS Bridge, is reopening shortly, according to scanner traffic.
1:15 PM UPDATE: Talked to Seattle Fire spokesperson Kyle Moore, since SFD medics treated the suspect. He says the man, in his mid-30s, has multiple fractures – and wasn’t wearing a shirt. We’re adding a photo shared by our source from aboard the bus, but have blurred out the injured man, who was face-down on the ground – it was not a gory scene, though, and he was covered up.
9:57 PM: SPD Blotter published its version of the story tonight. Read it for yourself here; besides a few additional details about how it unfolded, the suspect’s background is of note – he is on our state’s version of probation:
The suspect is currently under active Department of Corrections supervision for Manslaughter, Robbery, and felony drug violations. A search warrant will be served on the suspect’s vehicle to recover additional evidence.
(King County Assessor’s Office photo of 3650 55th SW in 1953, shortly after it was built)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
While our coverage of – and your comments about – West Seattle development tends to focus on multi-family projects (with more than 2,000 apartments in the works), single-family-home development is intensifying too.
And because much of it is “infill,” since a city neighborhood like this tends not to have wide stretches of undeveloped land – it often touches the nerve related to the same issue that swirls around apartments: Density, which means taller structures with smaller footprints.
Citywide, the One Home Per Lot movement has gained attention – residents in various single-family-home neighborhoods opposed to new homes being built on smaller lots that were originally used as side yards or backyards.
Much of their scrutiny (as detailed in this Seattle Weekly story last summer) has focused on West Seattle developer Dan Duffus, who is a prolific “infill” developer, houses as well as townhomes and live-work units, here and around the city.
Duffus is co-founder of the Blueprint Capital funding group, which declares itself the leading residential-housing lender in the area, and which has a membership list including two companies who have just bought and are seeking to subdivide a corner site in a northwest West Seattle neighborhood where neighbors rallied this week as part of their attempt to stop the plan.
A break in the rain provides a chance for those interested in helping the encampment on West Seattle’s southeastern edge that calls itself Nickelsville. They’ve just issued an invitation for a volunteer cleanup this weekend:
NICKELSVILLE – EVENT – Nickelsville Clean-up Day!
Saturday AND Sunday 1/12 & 1/13 – from 9 am to 3 pmHelp clean-up our Eco Friendly Camp – Free Hot Meal for helping, Friendly Folks, Beautiful Weather, 2 very cute Goats!
*bring your work gloves, boots ‘n tools and come lend a hand*
Nickelsville is located at 7116 W. Marginal Way SW, between 2nd Ave SW and Highland Park Way SW
ADDED FRIDAY NIGHT: For those considering joining in, WSB Forums member and longtime Nickelsville volunteer JoB has elaborated on what needs to be done there – more than what you might assume a “cleanup” to be. Here’s her Forums post.
That’s one of the temporary stop signs on Barton by Westwood Village – related to the detours that are now in place for southbound Delridge traffic between Henderson and Trenton, because of the Delridge repaving project. As a note we received this morning reminds us, it might catch you by surprise if you don’t live or routinely drive along that section of Delridge and so haven’t been paying attention to our ongoing coverage. This is day two of what will be a yearlong project in five phases – Phase 1 will take about two months. Our daily highlights include another traffic alert:
I-5/SPOKANE INTERCHANGE BRIDGE REPAIR, WEEKEND 2: This is a state project, and includes different closures on ramps around the interchange for most weekends over the next few months. This weekend, you will NOT be affected unless you are trying to get to the West Seattle Bridge from Beacon Hill – the Columbian Way ramps to the bridge and to 6th Avenue will be closed, 10 tonight till 5 am Monday. Our update from earlier this week includes a link to this weekend’s revised detour map.
BEEDA AT C & P: Guitarist Beeda, from L.A., performs tonight at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor), 6-8 pm.
ROVING REPTILE MAN: He’s at Alki Community Center tonight at 6:30 pm – details here.
DUETS AT KENYON HALL: Anne Jones and Paul Klein at 7:30 pm, in the historic hall at 7904 35th SW. Details in our calendar listing.
THREE BANDS AT SKYLARK CAFE AND CLUB: Tonight at 8 pm, Skylark Café and Club (3803 Delridge Way SW) presents Static Producer, Sterling Witt, and Dead Language.
LIVE MUSIC AT THE CASK: Tonight at The Cask in The Admiral District, it’s Katie Voss, live at 8 pm.
NIGHTTIME LOW-TIDE WALK: The weather will be cold but should be dry for this – low tide is almost -3 late tonight, and that’s low enough for great exploring. Join Seattle Aquarium beach naturalists at 8:30 pm, Constellation Park – details in our calendar listing.
JONNY SMOKES AT FEEDBACK LOUNGE: 9:30 pm, check out his one-man show at Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor; 6451 California SW).
Even more of what’s up tonight can be found on the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar!
(Live view from the east-facing WS Bridge camera; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
Cold morning – below freezing – no major problems, but the roads might be slick in spots, and the day is off to a foggy start on the bridge, as the camera shows. Also remember: It’s day two of the Delridge repaving project, which is starting between Henderson and Trenton, where northbound travel continues, but southbound is detoured.
Speaking of detours: This weekend’s closure for the I-5/Spokane St. Interchange Bridge Repair project involves ONLY Columbian Way to the West Seattle Bridge – no I-5 ramps involved. Here’s the map for the detour, 10 pm tonight till 5 am Monday.
7:11 AM UPDATE: If you head north of downtown on I-5, note that there is a big bus fire in the southbound express lanes around 85th right now – KING 5 reports a Sound Transit bus is on fire – and that’s causing a rubbernecking slowdown all around.
5:47 PM NOTE: 24th and Trenton, in the Delridge repaving detour zone, there’s a water break – beware.
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