day : 30/06/2013 10 results

One of the West Seattle-related photos we received from today’s Seattle Pride Parade is a story all its own:

Nichole Casado e-mailed the photo and an explanation of why she marched in memory of Lois Baldwin:

I’m the former active living director of Merrill Gardens-Admiral Heights. While there, I had a resident Lois Baldwin; you ran her obituary after her passing.

Lois lived her life with her partner Beatrice as an out-and-proud lesbian, but after Beatrice died, Lois moved to Admiral Heights and went back in the closet. This is very common. Gay seniors often feel they will not be accepted in traditional assisted-living and skilled-nursing facilities. There is a documentary about this called “Gen Silent.”

Because of Lois, I felt inspired as a medical professional to find a way to make our senior health care facilities more welcoming. In this search I was connected to the local chapter of SAGE and the NW GBLTQ Providers Network, which strive to educate medical professionals about aging issues for the gay community. I have learned so much from them and was proud to march with them today.

It was so fitting to march in honor of the memory of Lois, the first patient/ resident I had who made me start to think about these issues, A big thank you to her nieces, local West Seattle women Judy and Vicki, who gave me their blessing to march in memory of Lois Baldwin and also share her story as a learning tool for other health professionals.

Thanks to Nichole for sharing the story! Our earlier Pride coverage is here.

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West Seattle traffic alert: Early-morning moving operation tomorrow

June 30, 2013 9:27 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

By the time we get to tomorrow’s daily traffic/transit tracker, this will probably be over, so we’re mentioning it now: Seattle Public Schools has announced the route for delivery of a double portable classroom early tomorrow (Monday) to Chief Sealth International High School. According to district spokesperson Tom Redman, the double portable is scheduled to be delivered between 5 and 6 am via the Kenyon St. entrance to the campus. To get there, it’s traveling this route set by transportation authorities: Highway 509 and 1st Avenue South to Olson Place SW and SW Roxbury, north on Delridge Way, to Holden, to 28th, and on to 2600 SW Kenyon, entering the campus from the Denny side. So if you’ll be traveling that area very early, or if live along it, be forewarned.

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Congratulations to Ventana Construction and Weitzel Construction: 2013 REX Award winners

June 30, 2013 8:26 pm

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| West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

With the changes in home values over the past several years, more homeowners than ever have chosen to remodel rather than sell/buy. And that’s been good news for many construction companies here in West Seattle. Two of them, in fact, were winners in the recently announced 2013 REX Awards (REX = Remodeling Excellence): Ventana Construction (longtime WSB sponsor) and Weitzel Construction.

Ventana’s REX Award was in the category “Major Remodel Excellence: Residential Partial House/Addition $100,000 to $200,000.” They turned their client’s 200-foot sauna/hot tub/shower space into a powder room, laundry room, sitting room, and desk area – see the project here – the top photo is a wide “after” shot; next is a closeup of the “desk area”:

(P.S. If you missed it on TV, Ventana was featured on Channel 4 News a few nights ago – a wider followup on something noted here last month, newspapers found in the walls of a project in Ballard – see the story here, and see Ventana’s online story that featured not only the newspaper, but other unusual finds at some of their project sites.)

Weitzel’s REX Award was in the category “Rebuild Excellence: Residential Whole House/Rebuild – less than $300,000.”

Owner Dave Weitzel says, “I am very proud of my crew that turns out great work year after year. This was a challenging site (150 steps, 100’ drop in elevation on a 400=foot path) where much of the material was handled by a tug and barge at the start of the job, but there was just the one trip with that. Everything else went up and down the hill:

Despite the challenges, the project was a lot of fun because our great clients. One of them is a former interior designer, and they did a wonderful job in their selections and personal touches.”

Congratulations to Ventana and Weitzel (both of whom provided the photos shown in this story)!

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West Seattle home gets a visit from ‘Ask This Old House’

June 30, 2013 6:20 pm

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| Gatewood | West Seattle news | West Seattle people

“I did my best to represent West Seattle,” Patrick King says, after a visit to his Gatewood home this past week by the show “Ask This Old House.” Patrick and wife Chelsea – in the photo above with the show’s crew and a local subcontractor and lighting tech – bought the mid-20th-century-built house on SW Elmgrove in 2011. He says they contacted “Ask This Old House” to seek help with their kitchen floor last November. Then, two months ago, they were contacted when the show started looking for projects in this area. For the show, they learned how to install crown molding, which Patrick says “really looks great.” Contractor Tom Silva hosted the show filmed here, he says, flying in from Boston this past Tuesday with associate producer Heath Racela; Patrick took them to lunch at Cactus on Alki, and he says they “used the Seattle founding monument on Alki as the opening scene for their show” – here’s a photo he took of Silva and the crew by the water:

Racela tweeted this photo of the project in progress at the Kings’ home:

The crown molding project in Seattle is moving along nicely. pic.twitter.com/SHFGCOmr0J

— Heath Racela (@HeathRacela) June 26, 2013

The episode will stream online first, possibly as soon as this September, in a Seattle episode that also included two homes from Issaquah: “I’m proud I was able to influence the show with a little West Seattle flavor,” Patrick told WSB. “It was an exhausting couple of days but it was really fun.”

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West Seattle Weather Watch update: ‘Excessive heat warning’

June 30, 2013 5:04 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle weather

5:04 PM: The ongoing “it’s hot” alert from the National Weather Service is now a “heat advisory” in effect through 11 pm Monday. Right now, the temperature has just registered 91 degrees at Sea-Tac and Boeing Field – hottest temp we’ve noticed in the area all day. And a reader asked us to remind you again – don’t leave your pet in your vehicle, even for “just a moment.”

6:02 PM: Sea-Tac’s 6 pm temp is 92. We’re considering a ferry ride (always cooler on the water!).

11:52 PM: Today’s high was 93 at Sea-Tac. Meantime, the alert has now become an “excessive heat warning” in effect through 11 pm Monday, with the high temperature maybe even in the mid-90s.

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Update: House-fire callout in Highland Park, most units canceled

June 30, 2013 2:34 pm

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| Highland Park | West Seattle fires | West Seattle news

2:34 PM: If you saw all the Seattle Fire crews, they were responding to a possible house fire in the 7700 block of Highland Park Way SW – but most have just been canceled. We’re en route and will check at the scene to see what happened.

3:22 PM UPDATE: Couldn’t get anything definitive at the scene – just one engine left (photo) and not easy to pull over on the busy street – but whatever it was, it was being extinguished with a garden hose in the front yard.

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West Seattleites celebrate Pride: Space Needle flag-raising; parade grand marshals

June 30, 2013 12:38 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle people

As Seattle’s annual Pride celebration crescendoes today, with the downtown parade under way right now, the marriage-equality flag is flying on the Space Needle, and West Seattleites were up there helping make it happen. The first two photos were shared by King County Councilmember Joe McDermott, who’s at center in the top photo, with four other West Seattleites – from left, County Executive Dow Constantine, Anne Levinson, Jane Abbott Lighty, and Pete-e Petersen. Yes, that photo is from atop the Needle – as is this one:

Meantime, as noted in our morning preview, Pete-e and Jane are among the grand marshals of today’s Pride Parade, as is West Seattleite Sarah Toce, who shares this photo of herself with the renowned couple:

Sarah founded the daily online news magazine The Seattle Lesbian just two years ago and has already grown a strong readership that stretches well beyond the city limits.

P.S. If you have photos of West Seattleites in today’s parade, please share! editor@westseattleblog.com or post to the WSB Facebook page and/or the WSB Flickr group – thank you!

ADDED: Thanks to Karen for this photo of OutWest Bar in the parade:

They were one of at least two West Seattle businesses participating, along with Stuffed Cakes, debuting its new truck.

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Election 2013: Not registered to vote? Deadline’s a week away

June 30, 2013 11:55 am

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle politics

If you have just moved to this state, or have just reached voting age, July 8th (one week from tomorrow) is the registration deadline if you want to vote in the August 6th primary, headlined by the vote that will winnow the field of Seattle mayoral candidates down to 2. If you’re ready to register, you can sign up right here, right now, via this link. If you need to register another way – or if you need to take some other action, such as changing your address – there’s lots of helpful info on this page of the King County Elections website.

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Video: SPD sex offender/kidnap detectives’ briefing @ West Seattle Block Watch Captains’ Network

June 30, 2013 11:36 am

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle police

The myths and truths about sex offenders and how police deal with them were at the heart of a briefing this past week at the West Seattle Block Watch Captains’ Network meeting. With the detectives hailing from the SPD Sex Offender and Kidnap Detail, the discussion ranged far and wide, including concerns about the recent White Center kidnap attempt, though that was outside SPD’s jurisdiction (the King County Sheriff’s Office is responsible for the unincorporated area south of the city limits). Our video includes the entirety of the meeting, led primarily by SPD Detective Tim Fields, with information about everything from the law to what you tell your children if a sex offender is living nearby; the detectives advised showing your children the photo and telling them to stay away from the offender.

P.S. Though we do receive occasional notifications from police about offenders moving into the area, and we publish them when we get them – such as this recent one – such notifications are NOT sent for everyone who moves into the area, and the best way for you to find out if one or more are living nearby is to use this lookup. That link is also reachable via a page on the SPD website that includes some context on the notification laws, including a reminder that most convicted criminals classified as sex offenders are “Level 1” – the lowest-severity level – and NOT covered by the notification rules.

SIDE NOTE FOR THOSE OUTSIDE THE CITY LIMITS: Toward the end, the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council was mentioned; it’s had a strong focus on public-safety information for the communities it serves. Its meeting schedule currently varies, rather than being on a fixed date each and every month, but in addition to watching for notices on our partner site White Center Now (we’ve been mentioning their public-safety forums here too), you can also check its website at northhighlineuac.org.

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Staying cool, and other options for your West Seattle Sunday

June 30, 2013 6:16 am

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| West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

(Young belted kingfisher emerging from burrow to be fed; photo by Mark Wangerin)
Yes, yes, we know the 80s aren’t THAT broiling, but even those of us who spent many years in way hotter climes have a lower tolerance level … so again today, we’ll start with the “keeping cool” info.

KEEPING COOL

HIGHLAND PARK SPRAYPARK: Day three! Hours 11 am-8 pm. (11th SW/SW Cloverdale)

TODAY’S WADING POOL SCHEDULE: Delridge and Lincoln Park wading pools are open – see the hours here.

COLMAN POOL OPEN: See the schedule here. (On the Lincoln Park waterfront – reachable via walking or biking)

SOUTHWEST POOL OPEN: See the schedule here. (2801 SW Thistle)

AIR-CONDITIONED LIBRARIES: Delridge, High Point, and South Park Libraries all have A/C, and all are open 1-5 pm today. For location and other info, check the Seattle Public Library website.

WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

In addition to some every-Sunday events you’ll find on our calendar, here are a few more highlights:

LITTLE LEAGUE TOURNAMENT CONTINUES: District 7 9-10 and 11-12 All-Star teams are in tournament play at Alki’s Bar-S Playfield all week, hosted by West Seattle Little League, and our tipster Teresa tells us the local teams are playing at 10 am and 4 pm again today. Details and links in our Saturday update. (6425 SW Admiral Way)

WEST SEATTLEITES IN PRIDE PARADE: The parade runs through downtown, starting at 4th and Union at 11 am and heading north, but it will have even more West Seattle flavor than ever, with its grand marshals including history-making couple Jane Abbott Lighty and Pete-e Petersen as well as The Seattle Lesbian founder Sarah Toce; the list of participants also includes OutWest Bar.

GRETCHEN’S GRAINS DEMO: Cooking demo today, 11 am-2 pm at Metropolitan Market (WSB sponsor), for a West Seattleite’s line of frozen fully cooked grains. (42nd/Admiral)

SPUD/NEUTER FUNDRAISER FOR KITTY HARBOR: 5-8 pm at Ola Salon, a special event with live music, auction items, and a gourmet potato bar will raise money for Kitty Harbor, the West Seattle facility that finds homes for hundreds of cats and kittens every year. Details in our calendar listing. (2942 SW Avalon Way)

FEEDBACK GOES ACOUSTIC: A new series of charity-benefiting acoustic performances starts tonight at Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor), where by the way, they have “state-of-the-art” air conditioning. Details in our calendar listing; starts at 6 pm. (6451 California SW)

WOMEN’S SOCCER – LAST CHANCE TO SEE AC SEATTLE! According to the schedule, it’s the last West Seattle home game for AC Seattle, playing Issaquah Soccer Club at Southwest Athletic Complex tonight at 6 pm. (2801 SW Thistle)

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