day : 17/10/2013 12 results

At 10:17 this morning, our state marked Disaster Preparedness Month with the Great Washington Shake-Out earthquake drill. Were you part of it, at work, home, or school? If you were, consider writing a comment below to share how it went and why you did it (required to? wanted to? curious? etc.). Now, on to the next installment of our ongoing “pack your ‘Go Bag’ one day at a time” series – here’s what West Seattle Be Prepared advises this time:

Specialty items this time to mark the special Great Shakeout drill: Put either baby food and diapers or pet food and litter in your kit, enough for 3 days. If you are helping pack for a senior member, think about something unique they must have if evacuated. Women, think about sanitary supplies to add. If nothing above applies to you, you get to skip this turn!

It’s never too late to start getting the “Go Bag” together as a VERY basic step in preparedness. Our previous installments are all archived in reverse-chronological order here.

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West Seattle development: City OKs Alki rowhouse project

October 17, 2013 7:56 pm

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| Development | West Seattle news

(WSB photo, April 2013)
Three months after dozens of Alki neighbors voiced their concerns about a rowhouse project, they have received word that the city has approved it. That’s the word from Marie McKinsey, who along with her neighbors on 55th SW sought and received a public meeting at which they spoke out. We first wrote in April about their petition for a hearing on the proposal for 11 units in three “rowhouse” buildings on the parcels currently known as 2414, 2418, and 2424 55th SW (map). In response, the city scheduled a July hearing at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center in North Delridge, and more than 25 people attended it, with about half of them speaking. They stressed that they weren’t opposed to development, but to the density of this particular proposal, and its potential effects on wildlife, stormwater runoff, traffic, and parking, all concerns voiced under the auspices of the State Environmental Policy Act review of the project. Here’s the decision (embedded below or read it here), dated October 10th, though the neighbors did not receive written notification until October 15th. As McKinsey points out, the approval includes a few conditions:

She hasn’t heard of any neighbor prepared to appeal the decision; the deadline for that would be October 24th. The city pages for the project are here.

8:17 PM: The project is getting some discussion at the Alki Community Council meeting that’s under way right now, including a mention of McKinsey’s website and its extensive documentation on the project, as well as a suggestion that ACC members might be able to assist with a possible challenge or a longer-term look at whether zoning could be re-examined in the general area.

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Video: Schmitz Park Elementary teachers get fox-y for Friday’s Move-A-Thon

October 17, 2013 6:12 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

On the eve of Schmitz Park Elementary‘s annual Move-A-Thon fitness celebration, the school staff shows their students what moving is all about – via a music video shared by principal Gerrit Kischner. The song, “What Does the Fox Say?”, is by Norway’s Ylvis – here’s the original video. The fox is the school mascot, and the principal adds:

… We are proud that we were able to capture the great community spirit that keeps Schmitz Park learning and moving. The Schmitz Park Foxes are excited about celebrating the great start we have had at our annual Move-a-thon!

By the way, I have seen questions posted on the WSB about where our beautiful fox logo came from. It is the great work of West Seattle graphic artist (and former Schmitz Park parent) Eric Bell, and we are looking forward to it transferring with us to the new building at Genesee Hill.

Here’s one of the WSB photos in which you can see the logo – taken in 2009, when astronaut Greg Johnson visited his elementary alma mater.

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Chili competition added to West Seattle Junction Harvest Festival: Restaurants invited to stir things up!

October 17, 2013 3:51 pm

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| West Seattle festivals | West Seattle news

(WSB photo from 2012 West Seattle Junction Harvest Festival)
Along with trick-or-treating, activities and games, and an in-the-street edition of the West Seattle Farmers’ Market, the second annual Junction Harvest Festival also will include a chili competition, as a fundraiser for the West Seattle Food Bank! And the announcement just shared by the WS Junction Association invites restaurants to join in – with the signup deadline less than a week away:

Our neighborhood restaurants will bring their best pot of chili and compete for bragging rights of Best Chili at Harvest Festival – 2013. It’s free for restaurants to enter. The West Seattle public will vote by buying a flight of chili and choosing their favorite! 100% of the donations collected will go to the West Seattle Food Bank to help our community.

Some logistics and rules to enter. Participants must:

* Be a West Seattle business.
* Bring two gallons of hot chili made in commercial kitchen, and an electric warmer. Maintain chili’s temperature to meet health standards.
* Provide a chili server who has a current Food Handlers Card.
* Be ready to serve at 11am! With 2 gallons of chili, we’ll be able to serve about 100 flights and the competition will probably be done by 1pm.
* Space is limited to 8 competitors and a minimum of 4 competitors are needed.

We’ll provide everything else. To register, please email susan@wsjunction.org with your business name, contact person, and agreement that rules will be followed. October 23rd is the deadline!

The Harvest Festival happens 10 am-2 pm on Sunday, October 27th, with a costume parade at 11:30 am and trick-or-treating at noon. Lots of local businesses and organizations are offering free activities again this year (come bowl in the booth we’re sharing with WestSide Baby and West Seattle Bowl, aka “WSB x 3”). See you there!

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West Seattle traffic alert: 1st Ave. S. Bridge inspection Saturday

October 17, 2013 3:33 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

From the weekly SDOT road-work/closure “lookahead”:

The two right lanes of northbound SR99 over the 1st Ave. S. Bridge will be closed Saturday (October 19) 7:30 am-1 pm for bridge inspection.

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Roxhill Park/Westwood Village safety on WWRHAH’s next agenda

October 17, 2013 2:51 pm

| 4 COMMENTS

| Arbor Heights | West Seattle news | Westwood

(WSB photo from Monday night: Medic unit just outside Roxhill Park)
So you can plan early – the Westwood-Roxhill-Arbor Heights Community Council has just gone public with the agenda for its next meeting on November 5th, including safety at Roxhill Park and Westwood Village, following recent incidents such as the Monday night assault and ongoing concerns. Read on for the agenda:

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Tutors needed in West Seattle! Training today – and beyond

October 17, 2013 1:28 pm

| 1 COMMENT

| How to help | West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

Two notes about tutoring, a simple way to help kids:

First, the Sound Partners beginning-readers tutoring program is offering free training TODAY, 4-7 pm, in the library at K-5 STEM at Boren (5950 Delridge Way SW); this is training for tutoring at ALL schools that need help. If you can give as little as a half-hour a week, you are needed. If you have questions or can attend, contact school librarian Ms. Hare at 206-252-8474 or dlhare@seattleschools.org.

Separately, Invest in Youth needs a few more tutors at Roxhill Elementary – after school on Mondays:

For one hour, just once a week on your way home from work, you can go into a nearby Seattle grade school and tutor a child who needs a little extra help with his or her studies. Invest in Youth is looking for 6 more additional tutors to reach our goal of 20 tutors for the 2013 – 2014 school year. Participating in Invest in Youth requires a tutoring commitment of one hour per week (with several holidays) for the duration of the school year. Upon joining the program, you will be paired with an elementary school student in 3rd, 4th or 5th grade and work with that same student for the entire year, getting to know their strengths and weaknesses while tracking their progress from week to week. It is an extremely rewarding experience for both students and their tutors! To find more and to register, please visit www.investinyouth.org/become-a-tutor/ or contact Alison Allen, Program Director at 206-316-6356 or aallen@investinyouth.org

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West Seattle Crime Prevention Council: Drug Diversion Court spotlighted; holiday crimefighting plans

October 17, 2013 11:20 am

| 4 COMMENTS

| Southwest Precinct Crime Prevention Council | West Seattle news

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Seattle Police plan a crackdown on holiday crime, with the help of an extra overtime allotment.

So reported Southwest Precinct Operations Lt. Pierre Davis during his briefing at the start of this month’s West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting.

In addition to Q/A with Lt. Davis, the meeting included an SPD narcotics detective and King County Drug Diversion Court manager explaining how that program works to try to stop the cycle of crime by addicts who are in and out of court and jail as they just keep stealing to pay for their habit.

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West Seattle Thursday: Alki Community Council; LGBT 50+ piano-bar social; college-application help; more…

October 17, 2013 10:03 am

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| West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

Thanks to Machel Spence, who reports that mushroom season is in full bloom at Lincoln Park, sharing her photo of a beautiful Amanita, while noting that it should be left “in the forest to do its job.” (And not just because most Amanitas are poisonous!) On to our Thursday calendar highlights:

TODDLER STORY TIME: 11:30 am at High Point Branch Library, bring the 1- and 2-year-olds for story time! Free. (35th/Raymond)

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, LAVIDA MASSAGE: Today marks the second anniversary for LaVida Massage (WSB sponsor) at Jefferson Square in The Junction. And as so many businesses do on their anniversaries, this one is giving the gift – along with the $39.95 one-hour special for new clients, they’re offering free aromatherapy to new and ongoing clients – just ask about the anniversary aromatherapy special, valid through Halloween. (42nd/Alaska)

HEALTH-CARE CONFUSION? Experts help you untangle it, from a businessperson’s perspective, at the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce lunch meeting, 11:30 am at The Kenney (WSB sponsor). Reservations preferred but you can also pay at the door. (7125 Fauntleroy Way SW)

COLLEGE APPLICATION EVENT: It’s at West Seattle High School but open to ALL twelfth-graders. After school, starting at 2:30 pm, come get help with college applications – details in our calendar listing. (3000 California SW)

PIANO BAR/CAFE! LGBT SOCIAL FOR 50+: Fun, informal get-together for LGBT adults 50+ at the Senior Center of West Seattle at 6 pm, with live piano music, food, and no-host beer and wine. Questions? Call Dave at 206-243-3053. (California/Oregon)

ALKI COMMUNITY COUNCIL: Monthly meeting at 7 pm, parlor at Alki UCC. Agenda items include the West Seattle Water Taxi, WS Transportation Coalition, development, and the new site for the Luna Girls on Alki sculpture. (6115 SW Hinds)

‘THE TAMING’: Onstage at ArtsWest in The Junction, the first production of the new season continues, with a 7:30 pm performance of Lauren Gunderson‘s “The Taming.” (4711 California SW)

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Friday jazz concert with Denny, Sealth bands, and visiting musician/educator Ron Carter

October 17, 2013 9:13 am

| 1 COMMENT

| West Seattle news | West Seattle schools | WS culture/arts

Visiting jazz musician and educator Ron Carter, spotlighted in that video clip, will be on stage in West Seattle tomorrow night (Friday, October 18th), for a special concert with student musicians – and you’re invited! Here’s the announcement:

Denny International Middle School and Chief Sealth International High School are delighted to welcome jazz artist, clinician and educator Ron Carter (right) for a special evening in the Sealth Auditorium Friday night at 7:30 pm. Ron Carter is a professor of jazz studies at Northern Illinois University, faculty member with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Essentially Ellington Band Director Academy and will be performing with the Denny and Sealth Jazz Bands, under the direction of Marcus Pimpleton. The concert is free; donations will be accepted to support the Denny and Sealth performing arts programs.

The auditorium is on the west side of the Sealth/Denny campus, at 2600 SW Thistle.

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Memorial Friday for longtime West Seattleite Marie Carlson, 93

October 17, 2013 9:00 am

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| Obituaries | West Seattle news

Family and friends will gather tomorrow at Forest Lawn (WSB sponsor) in memory of 93-year-old Marie Carlson. Here’s the remembrance they are sharing with the community:

Marie L Carlson passed away peacefully on October 9th, 2013, surrounded by her loving family.

Marie was born in Raymond, WA, on February 1, 1920 to Milton and Sebilla Hilliard. She was raised on a farm in Napavine, WA and attended Western Washington University. She married Harry Carlson on June 12, 1942, and settled in West Seattle to raise their family. Marie retired from the JC Penney Company in 1983 after 20 years of service. After her retirement, she loved to garden, and took great pride in flower arranging and tending to her beautiful yard.

Marie was a devoted and loving wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother and friend and will be greatly missed by all who knew her. Her family was the most important thing in her life.

She was preceded in death by Harry in 2006 after 64 years of marriage and is survived by her three daughters
Janet, June, and Joanne, seven grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren.

Funeral Services and celebration of her life will be held at Forest Lawn Chapel, 6701 30th Ave SW, on Friday (October 18th) at 1 pm. A reception and graveside service will follow.

(WSB publishes obituaries by request, free of charge, all archived here. Please e-mail the text, and a photo if available, to editor@westseattleblog.com)

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TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Thursday updates

October 17, 2013 7:53 am

| 1 COMMENT

| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

(East-facing camera on the West Seattle Bridge; see other cams on the WSB Traffic page)
Nothing out of the ordinary reported so far as the morning commute heads for its peak. Remember that during the day and into the afternoon, we do add updates to this daily report if non-major-but-affecting-traffic incidents happen.

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