day : 14/01/2015 11 results

(WSB photos by Patrick Sand)
8:36 PM: No one is said to be hurt, but somebody is reported to have shot at and into a house near Delridge Way/SW Findlay a short time ago, with police confirming bullet holes (as heard over the radio). We haven’t heard a suspect description yet. More as we get it.

8:55 PM UPDATE: Our crew at the scene has confirmed with police that multiple shots hit the house (which is on 23rd) and that no one is hurt. We’ve also just heard a potential vehicle description, blue or black SUV, unknown make/model, was “full” of people but no description of them, last seen southbound on Croft Place.

2:19 PM THURSDAY: We had requested the report on this – it’s since shown up summarized on SPD Blotter:

A teenage boy narrowly escaped injury during a drive-by shooting … Wednesday night.

The 17-year-old victim told police he was standing in front of a convenience store around 8 PM with an acquaintance, near Delridge Way Southwest and Southwest Findlay, when a black or dark blue SUV drove by and its occupants stared at them. When the car made a U-turn, both of them started running.

The victim ran into his nearby home and his acquaintance kept running. After dashing into his house, the victim heard several gunshots. Police found several bullet holes in the teen’s home, which was occupied by five other people including an 11-month old baby and a 12-year-old. Bullet fragments were found inside the home. No one was injured.

Gang Unit detectives are investigating.

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‘Take a step. Make a difference. Help us help others’: Straight Blast Gym’s food-drive challenge for you

January 14, 2015 8:16 pm

| 4 COMMENTS

| Delridge | How to help | West Seattle news

(Some of last year’s Straight Blast Gym food-drive donations)
North Delridge’s Straight Blast Gym of Seattle (WSB sponsor) isn’t just aiming to strengthen bodies. It’s aiming to strengthen community. And the latest way it’s working to do that, with your help, is via monthlong food drive. From SBG’s Sonia Sillan:

We are currently running a food drive throughout the month of January for the West Seattle Food Bank. Every ten items (ramen not included) earns one raffle ticket; at the end of the month we’ll hold a drawing for different prizes like an Xbox One, gift cards, etc. When discussing how to help others and the purpose of the food drive, one of my five-year-old students said “Well, when you help others it shows that you love them, even if they’re strangers. They don’t have the things that we have. That’s why we should always help everyone and love everyone” (clearly awesome parents!).

My focus with the drive this year is to really pull the community together. Everyone at SBG is excited to see what we can raise within our gym community, and outside of it as well. I really challenge people who don’t know us to stop by and drop some nonperishables off. Take a step. Make a difference. Help us help others. Last year, we raised 1700 pounds of food. This year, our goal is to raise at least 3000.

This quotation by Ralph Waldo Emerson really resonates with me: “The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.”

You can help Straight Blast Gym meet and pass that ton-and-a-half goal by dropping off food at the gym, 5050 Delridge Way SW.

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West Seattle Crime Watch: Arrest in incident that led to WSHS after-school ‘shelter in place’

January 14, 2015 5:03 pm

| 3 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | West Seattle police | West Seattle schools

5:03 PM: After two tips that West Seattle High School had a short-lived “shelter in place” situation for a while after school today – remember, this was an early-release day – we checked with Seattle PD. They say it started with a report that someone with a knife was threatening people in the park, north of WSHS. Police did make an arrest, according to SPD spokesperson Det. Patrick Michaud. No information yet on the suspect or where the arrest was made.

5:40 PM: Thanks to MD for sharing the note sent home to parents, signed by assistant principal Garth Reeves:

Today, January 14th, after school at approximately 2:20 pm, West Seattle High School was briefly placed in Shelter In Place as a result of reports of a suspect with a knife in the community. All perimeter doors were locked and a sweep of the school was conducted by West Seattle staff and the Seattle Police Department. After school activities continued and the Shelter In Place was lifted at 2:45 after the suspect was apprehended. All scheduled evening activities will take place as planned and our staff and students are to be commended for behaving in a safe and appropriate manner.

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Followup: ‘Book and release’ for some suspects delayed at least until June 1st

January 14, 2015 3:54 pm

| 9 COMMENTS

| Crime | West Seattle news

3:54 PM: You might recall last week’s uproar over a county budget change that was scheduled to kick in February 1st, changing how suspects in certain kinds of crimes are handled – booking and releasing them, rather than booking them into jail while they await a bail hearing (often the next day). Here’s our coverage from last Friday. Today, a change: County Executive Dow Constantine has sent a letter (read it here) to county officials including criminal-justice-system leaders, saying that they’ve found “resources” to hold off on “book and release” until at least June 1st, and maybe longer if certain changes can be implemented in the courts. There’s a news-media conference call about this in a few minutes and we’ll be on it – more info to come.

4:23 PM UPDATE: The conference call was relatively short. Constantine spokesperson Chad Lewis said part of the reason why the postponement is possible is that: “The jail population tends to naturally decline in the winter,” so this is not urgent.

We couldn’t help but note that the season hasn’t changed since last Friday, when we were all on the phone talking about this being implemented next month, so, what’s changed? Lewis acknowledged that “stakeholder” reaction played a role.

Meantime, looking ahead as to whether this ever will have to be implemented, the possible changes in court processes outlined in Constantine’s letter, to reduce jail population over the longer term, include “shortening the time between plea or verdict and sentencing.” Lewis says they’re also hopeful the Legislature will address the budgeting problems that have left King and other counties with a shortfall. We asked if there’s a new reason for that hope; he said, “The public safety issue gets more attention” but that’s not the only part of the budget affected by chronic revenue trouble. In response to another question, Lewis insists, “The executive never wanted to put (the book-and-release policy) forward” but didn’t feel he had a choice.

They don’t know yet what kind of a review or assessment will be done between now and June 1st to determine if the book-and-release policy will kick in then, or ever, said Lewis.

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Interim Fire Station 29’s sudden switch: Community meeting Saturday; utility work today; response-time difference explained

January 14, 2015 2:38 pm

| 18 COMMENTS

| Safety | West Seattle news

(WSB photo taken this morning)
One week after neighbors of the 44th/Ferry/Hill triangle in North Admiral learned it was about to become the suddenly switched site of Interim Fire Station 29, work on the parcel is already under way: A Seattle Public Utilities crew is working on the water-quality-testing installation that has to be moved.

Also: A community meeting is officially set for this Saturday morning. Councilmember Tom Rasmussen told neighbors at an informal gathering last Saturday (WSB coverage here) that he would try to set one up, at least to get answers to their questions, and SFD has announced the meeting will be held this Saturday (January 17th), 9 am, at Station 29 (2139 Ferry Avenue SW, a block from the new interim site), with the other two involved departments – Finance and Administrative Services and Transportation – also officially sponsoring it.

SFD also has sent information elaborating on the response-time concerns that it says led to the scrapping of the long-announced plan to put interim Station 29 at the same Harbor Avenue site that had housed interim Station 36 until its upgrades were finished last summer:

The Seattle Fire Department is concerned about emergency response times to the community served by Fire Station 29. The National Fire Protection Association or NFPA establishes national goals for fire emergency responses. The national standard is to have the first arriving engine at a fire or medical emergency to be within 4 minutes, 90% of the time.
The reason for the national standard is time matters in emergency responses. When it comes to fires or cardiac events, every second counts. Fires grow exponentially. Also, with patients who have life-threatening medical emergencies such as heart attacks, the quality of care that they receive in the first six minutes can mean the difference between life and death.

While searching for a temporary location of Fire Station 29, the Seattle Fire Department looked at response times from the 2500 Harbor Avenue site and from the SDOT triangle located on Ferry Avenue SW. The Department ran district-wide response models from both locations. The data revealed that the response time for a first arriving engine unit from Harbor Avenue would average 5 minutes and 35 seconds. A response time from the temporary location would average 4 minutes.

The maps (above) show the difference in responses from both locations. The dark green represents when the first arriving unit meets the national standard of 90%. The dark red indicates when the first arriving unit would meet the national standard less than 50% of the time. As the data map indicates, the Harbor Avenue location would have much slower responses to the community served by Fire Station 29. For this reason, the Seattle Fire Department wanted to keep Station 29 in the neighborhood it serves to ensure a consistent level of fire and medical protection for the citizens of West Seattle.

When determining the location of the temporary fire station, the City did look at a few other sites in the neighborhood, including the Charlestown Café and Life Care Center sites. Neither were viable options, the former due to it being in the permitting process for a residential project that is due to break ground this spring, and the latter because it would have required a zoning change, and having the fire engine pull out onto Admiral Way, then backing into the site from Admiral Way, is not ideal.

Not mentioned is an alternative city-owned site that has been mentioned in the discussion that’s erupted since last Wednesday’s announcement of the change in sites, SPU property in front of the current Station 29. We’re still checking on why that apparently was ruled out or not considered.

Previous WSB coverage:
1/11/15: Followup – Neighbors mobilize after site switch
1/7/15: New interim FS 29 location: Triangle by church
March 2014: Report mentioning Harbor Ave. site designated for interim FS 29

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West Seattle traffic alerts: Delridge/Orchard light; trucks on bridge

January 14, 2015 2:02 pm

| 6 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

Two ongoing traffic alerts that we should mention here as the afternoon commute approaches:

*Delridge/Orchard intersection lights are out. “It’s a 4-way stop,” Sage reports via Twitter.

*Port-bound truck traffic has been backed up for hours, according to reader reports, on upper and lower bridges. We note that the low bridge has opened multiple times today, so that might have something to do with it. You can see the approach to the low bridge “live” here.

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Alki burglary/package-theft suspect, caught in a treehouse, now charged with 3 felonies

January 14, 2015 11:53 am

| 27 COMMENTS

| Crime | West Seattle news

(Surveillance-video screengrab)
Following up on last Thursday’s Alki arrest – in which, as reported in our first followup, the suspect was found in a treehouse: 32-year-old Emanuel Kozma is now charged with three felonies, 2nd degree burglary, 1st degree criminal trespass, and 3rd-degree theft. Our first report included a reader report that Kozma was also suspected in a package theft earlier in the day, before the Alki search and arrest resulting from a package theft inside a secure building, and the charging documents include the earlier incident. An excerpt:

… The defendant entered a secure apartment building lobby and stole a package delivered for a tenant. When confronted by a witness, the defendant dropped the items he had taken out of the stolen package and ran away.

When police found the defendant and inventoried his bag, they discovered items stolen from the front porches of a nearby duplex as well as assorted checks not written to the defendant. The residents of the duplex had surveillance video of the defendant stealing delivered packages.

The defendant has had 23 warrants since 2001, based on 30 bookings at King County Jail. At the time of his arrest, the defendant had an outstanding DOC Escape warrant related to his Assault 3 conviction and community custody. The defendant fled when confronted by a witness and hid from police in a tree; he finally came down when a police K9 officer indicated he was in the tree. Also, the defendant has two convictions for Attempting to Elude. Additionally, the defendant’s references were not available to verify his address, employment, or ties to the community. The defendant is facing a significant prison sentence if convicted as charged – his standard range for Burglary 2º is 51 to 68 months. For all of these reasons, the State believes the defendant is a flight risk if released.

The apartment-building theft happened in the 6000 block of SW Stevens; the earlier thefts, in the 2400 block of 55th SW. Meantime, the King County Jail Register indicates Kozma remains in jail, with no bail amount set so far, as stipulated in the aforementioned warrant for escape. We’re checking with the state Corrections Department to see if a photo of him is available to add to this story. (Added 12:04 pm: Thanks to DOC for the fast response – we’ve received a photo and have added it above.)

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West Seattle Wednesday: 7 possibilities for today/tonight

January 14, 2015 10:30 am

| Comments Off on West Seattle Wednesday: 7 possibilities for today/tonight

| West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

(Tuesday morning photo by Chris Frankovich)
From the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar for today/tonight:

PLAY AND LEARN FOR TODDLERS/PRESCHOOLERS: 11 am-12:30 pm every Wednesday, drop in at Neighborhood House’s High Point Center! (6400 Sylvan Way)

BABY STORY TIME: 11:30 am at High Point Branch Library, for babies 4 months to one year. (35th/Raymond)

SERVED? SERVING? American Legion Post 160‘s monthly meetings are open to those who have served or are serving in the armed forces. 6 pm; details in our calendar listing. (3618 SW Alaska)

LAFAYETTE KINDERGARTEN PARENT ORIENTATION: Parent of a future kindergartener at Lafayette Elementary? At 6:30 pm, you’re invited to an orientation meeting tonight. (California/Lander)

WEST SEATTLE HACK NIGHT #2: 6:30-9 pm, West Seattle Office Junction (WSB sponsor) hosts another free “hack night” – as previewed here, which is where to find the RSVP link too. (6040 California SW)

34TH DISTRICT DEMOCRATS’ REORGANIZATION MEETING: That means it’s time to elect leadership; here’s who’s running and will be voted on during tonight’s 7 pm meeting of the 34th District Democrats at The Hall at Fauntleroy. (9131 California SW)

HIGH-SCHOOL BASKETBALL: 7:30 pm for both of these games: Chief Sealth IHS varsity girls host Franklin (2600 SW Thistle); West Seattle HS varsity girls host Cleveland (3000 California SW)

CHECK THE CALENDAR TOO … for even more of what’s happening today/tonight (and beyond) in West Seattle.

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West Seattle HS girls’ basketball team back home tonight

January 14, 2015 9:45 am

| Comments Off on West Seattle HS girls’ basketball team back home tonight

| West Seattle news | West Seattle schools | WS & Sports

(Photo courtesy Sonya Elliott)
As chronicled here and elsewhere, it’s been a dream season so far for the West Seattle High School girls-varsity basketball team, and you have two chances in the next three nights to cheer them on at home. First – they’ve been busy between games; head coach Sonya Elliott shares the team photo above and reports that the program “had a special visit from self-defense instructor Sheri Hashemi (International Krav Maga Seattle), teaching them about Krav Maga and self-defense skills.” Now, to their two home games before week’s end: Tonight, Cleveland visits WSHS, 7:30 pm varsity/5:45 pm JV; on Friday, Bainbridge comes to town, 6:30 pm varsity/3:30 pm JV (as part of a four-game bill with the WSHS/Bainbridge boys). The WSHS gym is on the south side of campus at 3000 California SW.

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Fauntleroy Community Association: Transportation tour; surplus-substation status; Cove Park restoration; more

January 14, 2015 8:59 am

| 2 COMMENTS

| Fauntleroy | West Seattle news

(WSB photo from FCA transportation summit, November 2014)
Two months after the Fauntleroy Community Association‘s transportation summit, a promise made during the summit is about to be fulfilled: A walking tour of Fauntleroy’s traffic/safety hotspots.

That’s just part of what FCA’s board talked about at its first 2015 meeting last night.

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TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Wednesday updates & alerts

January 14, 2015 7:04 am

| 6 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

(WS high/low bridges and Highway 99 views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
7:04 AM: Nothing out of the ordinary reported as of 7 am for the commute through/from West Seattle. So here are today’s alerts:

TRUCK TRAFFIC: As announced last night, today is the third and final day of the latest round of major concrete pours at the Murray CSO project across from Lowman Beach. Starting right about now, the site is expecting up to 10 trucks an hour until the work’s done.

SCHOOL OUT EARLY: Seattle Public Schools students will be out two hours early today.

8:08 AM: Just in case you’re wondering, yes, still nothing out of the ordinary outbound from here, but Southbound I-5 through downtown has been the trouble spot of the day, so if you know anyone headed this way from north of downtown – avoid SB I-5 TFN.

9:09 AM: Per comment below, avoid the low bridge.

2:08 PM: Just published a separate traffic alert – first, Delridge/Orchard lights are still out; second, the truck backup on the low and high bridges apparently is continuing. No word so far on a reason for it.

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