West Seattle, Washington

06 Sunday

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month : 05/2015 318 results

West Seattle Crime Watch: Stolen car, stolen scooter found in Morgan Junction
May 27, 2015 5:50 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

Thanks for the tips about a heavy police presence in Morgan Junction.

When we arrived, we discovered it was actually related to two incidents – both involving stolen vehicles. One, a car stolen from Federal Way, was found in the southeast end of the West Seattle Thriftway (WSB sponsor) parking lot, off 42nd SW south of SW Morgan; police told us they were investigating the possibility it had been linked to mail-theft incidents.

Not even half a block south on 42nd, a stolen motor scooter was found, and one person was taken into custody. Both discoveries came from tips, we were told.

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UPDATE: 2 taken to hospital after crash at 35th/Juneau
May 27, 2015 4:47 pm
|      9 COMMENTS
 |   High Point | West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

4:47 PM: A crash at 35th and Juneau is reported to be blocking the northbound side of the road. No word yet on injuries; police and fire are arriving. We’re en route to check.

(Added: WSB photo)
5:19 PM: Two people have been taken to the hospital, neither with serious injuries. Another person is being cut out of his car because the door won’t open, but we are told he’s OK. 35th is open both ways but Juneau is blocked at 35th on the east side.

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West Seattle development: Tower crane removal; 4 project updates
May 27, 2015 4:46 pm
|      8 COMMENTS
 |   Development | West Seattle news

Five notes today:

CRANE COMING DOWN: Thanks to Eddie for the tip and an early photo – the crane at 135-apartment Broadstone Sky (40th/Edmunds) is coming down today, nine months after it went up. (That leaves two cranes in West Seattle – one at The Whittaker, one at the Trinsic project at 4435 35th SW.) Also coming down:

3829 CALIFORNIA SW DEMOLITION: Teardown started yesterday afternoon and continued this morning for this future site of a 29-unit, 29-offstreet-parking-space apartment building. While this project appeared to have stalled after Design Review approval in 2013, we reported back in March that it appeared to be back in play. It’s in the redevelopment-aplenty block of California, just steps south of the demolished-last-Friday Charlestown Court fourplex, and across the street from the much-vandalized, awaiting-demolition ex-Charlestown Café.

Also demolished this week for redevelopment:

(Photo courtesy Rob Jacobs)
4107 SW OREGON: On this site just east of the north end of the Oregon 42 apartment building, two buildings, each with two townhouses, will be built.

Also in The Junction:

PERMIT APPLICATION FOR 44TH SW MICROHOUSING: The 58-unit microhousing (aka Small Efficiency Dwelling Units) building at 4528 44th SW has officially applied for its master-use permit, and the notice will be in tomorrow’s Land Use Information Bulletin, according to the city website. The project passed Early Design Guidance in March (WSB coverage here).

5431 CALIFORNIA SW: New proposal for this mostly vacant lot between Alaska and Morgan Junctions: Three live-work units fronting California, a two-unit townhouse behind them, and two single-family houses behind that.

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West Seattle scene: Sunshine finally catches up with spraypark
May 27, 2015 4:09 pm
|    Comments Off on West Seattle scene: Sunshine finally catches up with spraypark
 |   Highland Park | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

Thanks to Alicia for the photo – finally, sunny, warm weather, on the sixth day of the 2015 season at Highland Park Spraypark, open 11 am-8 pm daily at 1100 SW Cloverdale until summer’s end.

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Shell @ Terminal 5: County says it can’t access the sewer system on-site for wastewater; city appeal-hearing date set
May 27, 2015 12:46 pm
|      36 COMMENTS
 |   Environment | Port of Seattle | West Seattle news

(UPDATED 2:16 PM with additional new information regarding appeal of city ‘interpretation’ re: Polar Pioneer mooring)

(May 15th photo of Polar Pioneer at T-5, by Long Bach Nguyen)

ORIGINAL 12:46 PM REPORT: Just in from the King County Wastewater Treatment Division:

King County’s Industrial Waste Program today denied a permit application for discharge of wastewater from the Alaska Venture Shell Facility at Terminal 5 into the County’s regional sewer system.

“Everyone has to follow the rules, even multinational corporations,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine.

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METRO: How West Seattle service will change starting June 6th
May 27, 2015 12:19 pm
|      51 COMMENTS
 |   Transportation | West Seattle news

With a week and a half until Metro‘s next “service change” – June 6th – a news release just circulated brings the reminder that service changes funded by voter-approved Seattle Prop 1 are starting to kick in. We went into the webpage listing the changes to pull out the following descriptions of what’s in store for West Seattle routes:

Service added, restored, or revised

RapidRide C Line
On weekdays, service frequency will improve in both directions to about every 8 minutes during the morning and afternoon peak periods. Midday service frequency will also improve to about every 12 minutes, and evening 15-minute service frequency will be extended until about 11:30 pm seven days per week. All Night Owl service will be maintained and scheduled so the times are the same every day.

On Saturday, service frequency will improve to about every 12 minutes in both directions.

Route 21
On Saturday evening, three northbound trips to downtown Seattle leaving Westwood Village at 6:07, 8:09 and 8:39 pm will be added.

Route 55
Three morning peak-period trips to downtown Seattle and three afternoon peak-period trips to the Admiral District will be added.

Route 60
On weekdays, four morning peak-period trips to Broadway and four southbound peak-period trips to Westwood Village will be added.

On Saturday and Sunday, one morning and eight evening northbound trips, and 10 evening southbound trips will be added.

Service frequency will improve to every 30-minutes and the span of service will be extended.

Route 120
On weekdays, three morning peak-period trips leaving from 15th Ave SW & SW Roxbury St in White Center to downtown Seattle will be added.

Route 125
On weekends, service frequency will improve to every 30 minutes between about 6:30 am and 6:30 pm.

City of Seattle funding will also help improve on-time reliability for the following routes (including, West Seattle-related): 21E, 37, 55, 56, 57, and the RapidRide C & D lines

Citywide, 110,000 hours of additional bus service are starting June 6th, while 113,000 more hours are scheduled to take effect at Metro’s next “service change” in September. As for the funding specified by Prop 1, the one-tenth-of-one-percent sales-tax increase is already in effect, and the $60 car-license fees take effect with registrations/renewals starting next month.

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HELICOPTERS: Why Guardian One was (briefly) over Gatewood/Sunrise Heights; why a TV helicopter is over Admiral
May 27, 2015 11:46 am
|      4 COMMENTS
 |   Helicopter | West Seattle news | West Seattle police

helicopterwatch.png11:46 AM: Our area’s only law-enforcement helicopter unit, King County Air Support (Guardian One), spent a few minutes over Gatewood/Sunrise Heights a short time ago, and now we know why. They tweeted that they happened to be in the area, so jumped in to help Seattle Police with a response to a situation described as a “fight” in the 3700 block of SW Webster. According to a neighbor, also via Twitter, police are still there, but they’ve said the situation is under control. When a Guardian One pilot/tactical flight officer spoke to the West Seattle Block Watch Captains’ Network last month (WSB coverage here), they mentioned that they do monitor emergency radio while they’re in flight, and if they happen to be in the area of an emergency call, they might turn up even without having been requested, so that’s what happened here.

11:51 AM: Unrelated but also involving a helicopter over West Seattle, and also bringing in texted questions – the KING/KOMO-shared TV helicopter is in the Admiral area right now because the governor of Alaska is visiting the Polar Pioneer oil rig at Terminal 5.

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Four possibilities for the rest of your West Seattle Wednesday
May 27, 2015 10:39 am
|    Comments Off on Four possibilities for the rest of your West Seattle Wednesday
 |   West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

(Lincoln’s sparrow, photographed by Mark Wangerin)

From the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:

TAKE A LUNCH BREAK … from the home/coffee-shop office, and meet others working nontraditionally in West Seattle, noon-1 pm, during the free weekly meetup at West Seattle Office Junction (WSB sponsor), our area’s only coworking center. (6040 California SW)

CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT 1 CANDIDATES’ FORUM: This is the first one in South Park, and will feature 7 candidates, according to organizer Jeff Hayes: In first-name alphabetical order, those expected to participate are Brianna Thomas, Chas Redmond, Jody Rushmer, Karl Wirsing, Lisa Herbold, Phillip Tavel, Shannon Braddock. Also: Free food and kids’ activities. 7 pm, South Park Neighborhood Center. (8201 10th Ave. S.)

HIGHLAND PARK ACTION COMMITTEE: 6:30 pm potluck, 7 pm meeting with an unusual format, for HPAC‘s last meeting before September:

Seattle University graduate research assistants will be holding a focus group for tonight’s meeting. This focus group will be centered around Highland Park’s crime concerns, our perceptions of our Micro-Community Policing Plan developed by the SW precinct of the Seattle Police Department and our perceptions of how the police are doing at addressing our specific crime concerns. This will be a time to be honest and have a great discussion about Highland Park’s Micro-Community Policing Plan including its development, progress, and evolution. Your attendance, concerns and feelings would be much appreciated- while this is being run by Seattle University and not the Seattle Police, the results/concerns can be shared with the police if the community wants that to happen – please join the discussion! It should only last about an hour.

Meeting’s at Highland Park Improvement Club. (12th/Holden)

POEMS AND STORIES: Monthly poets/storytellers’ gathering with Poetrybridge at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor), 7 pm, featuring Dobbie Reese Norris and Christopher J. Jarmick. (5612 California SW)

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‘If These Walls Could Talk’: Southwest Seattle Historical Society invites you to tour home built by Ye Olde Curiosity Shop’s founder
May 27, 2015 9:22 am
|      1 COMMENT
 |   West Seattle history | West Seattle news

Once again this summer, the Southwest Seattle Historical Society offers you a chance to look inside a local home with history. This time, you’re invited to a June 28th tour of the North Admiral home built by the founder of Ye Olde Curiosity Shop, the legendary shop that reopens on the downtown waterfront a few days later after the latest round of seawall work. From SWSHS:

A century ago, the home at 1750 Palm Avenue SW probably was the most gawked-at, talked-about residence in West Seattle.

“Everybody wanted to see it,” says 90-year-old Joe James (in the short invitation clip below), whose grandfather – Ye Olde Curiosity Shop founder Joseph Edward “Daddy” Standley – built the house in 1906.

“Sightseeing buses used to stop there on their tours and let people out to look at the yard. He had everything in there you could think of, from whale jawbones to whale vertebrae to totem poles to shell mounds.”

Often, visitors were allowed to venture inside.

“He had a lot of curios in the house, things that he had collected,” James says. “He had a miniature collection and an ivory collection and all of that. People would come up to the fence, and he’d invite them into the house and show them what else he had. My mother never knew who was going to come into the house. He was very friendly to these people and very proud to show them his collection.”

On Sunday, June 28, 2015, the home will be the site of the Southwest Seattle Historical Society’s third annual “If These Walls Could Talk” home tour, to run from 3 to 5 p.m. Tickets, available at the door, are $10 for members, $15 for non-members.

Attendees will have an opportunity to tour the residence (now owned by Katy and Erik Walum), view historical photographs of the house and property and learn about the remarkable life of Standley.

In addition, they will see a selection of curios and family keepsakes on loan from the Ye Olde Curiosity Shop, including a variety of Indian baskets, a 3-foot totem that greeted shop visitors in the early 1900s, and an antique cradle that has rocked five generations of Standley children.

They also will be able to meet Joe James, his son Andy and other members of the Standley clan, who for 116 years have welcomed curiosity-seekers at their iconic Seattle waterfront store.

Those who would like an invitation-only VIP experience earlier in the day, including presentations by Joe James and King County Archives’ Greg Lange, plus hors d’oeuvres and wine, please call 206-938-5293 or e-mail clay.eals@loghousemuseum.info.

Find out even more at loghousemuseum.info.

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Celebration of life Saturday for Peggy McCormack, 1930-2015
May 27, 2015 9:00 am
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   Obituaries | West Seattle news | West Seattle people

A celebration-of-life memorial service is planned this Saturday (May 30th) for Peggy McCormack, who you might have known as a preschool teacher, or a church organist – just two of the many aspects of her life, detailed by her family in this remembrance:

Margaret Anne (“Peggy”) Kemp McCormack, 84, passed away peacefully at home on April 11, 2015. Peggy was the elder of two girls born to Charles William & Irene Carrick Kemp. Her early years were spent in both Spirit Lake, ID, and in Clarkston, and her adolescence on the west coast in Washington. After college graduation, she married Clarence (“Larry”) McCormack in 1952 and spent a happy life with him in West Seattle, where he taught science at Madison Junior High School and ultimately predeceased her in 2007.

Peggy was a gifted musician. She and her sister were singing on their grandfather’s radio show in Lewiston, Idaho, by the time they were not quite two and three years old. At that age, they had no idea that they were “performing”, but soon they had mastered a number of instruments, and continued to perform throughout their school years whenever and wherever they were asked. Peggy played piano, French horn and clarinet, but usually accompanied her sister, a flautist. Both girls entered and won contests regularly throughout the Pacific Northwest. They came from a very musical family, and Peggy always shrugged and said, ‘That’s just how it was. We didn’t think anything about it.’

However, by the time she went to college, Peggy was studying the organ. She had played her first church service at the age of 8 when her mother, the regular church pianist, was too ill to get to church, and apparently Peggy had a grand time that day. By the time she graduated from college, she was playing concerts or recitals almost every week. As soon as she and Larry settled in Seattle, she began playing for a number of different churches.

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TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Wednesday watch
May 27, 2015 6:52 am
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
6:52 AM: Good morning! Quiet so far in/from West Seattle and vicinity.

6:58 AM: From the scanner: ‘Large piece of wood in middle lane’ somewhere on the westbound West Seattle Bridge. Police will be looking for it.

7:06 AM: They found and removed it.

7:55 AM: Texter says an SPD motorcycle officer is busting bus-lane violators this morning. (We appreciate tips, so long as you can text/call safely & legally – while a passenger, or after you get where you’re going – 206-293-6302 is our 24/7 hotline!)

8:03 AM: After we mentioned that on Twitter, Amy replied that she saw a traffic-enforcement officer on West Marginal this morning, too.

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You can help! Volunteer @ Morgan Junction Community Festival
May 26, 2015 10:30 pm
|    Comments Off on You can help! Volunteer @ Morgan Junction Community Festival
 |   West Seattle festivals | West Seattle news

Summer festival season is about to get into high gear. But community-powered events need community – even just a few hours, as per this request:

The Morgan Junction Community Festival, celebrating its 10th year anniversary on Saturday, June 20, 2015, is looking for volunteers to help out the day of the event. Setup help is needed at 7:30 am; teardown/cleanup tasks start at 6:00 pm when the festival ends. We also need people to work two-hour shifts from 10:30 am to 6:00 pm during the day for traffic/parking control, Bite of Morgan coordination, and information booth staffing. Contact Tod Rodman, volunteer coordinator, for more information and to sign up for a specific job. Tod can be reached at 425-445-1213, or todrodman@gmail.com.

The festival is presented by the Morgan Community Association, with sponsors including WSB.

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West Seattle Crime Watch update: Police search at Lincoln Park after woman reports man grabbed her
May 26, 2015 8:15 pm
|      58 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

(UPDATED WEDNESDAY MORNING with police report details)

8:15 PM: If you’re noticing Seattle Police heading toward/into Lincoln Park, here’s what’s happening, according to what we’ve heard via scanner so far: Someone called 911 to report a man tried to grab her in the park. The description made public so far is a “Hispanic male, about 18 … white T-shirt, blue gym shorts.” (added) Also: “Thin, about 5’6″, no facial hair.” If you saw anything or have any information, call 911.

8:59 PM: A parkgoer says in comments that the victim told her it happened “on the trail going up from the beach near the pool.”

ADDED 9:34 AM WEDNESDAY: Just obtained from SPD, the narrative from the report, with the victim’s name redacted by SPD (replaced by us with “she” or “her” or “the victim”):

At 2017 hours I responded to a report of an assault with a sexual motive at … Lincoln Park. (The victim) had called 911 to report that an unknown male had grabbed her “butt” while she was walking through the park.

I made contact with (her) on the western side of the park which runs along the Puget Sound. The park has two levels. The lower western side of the park runs along the Puget Sound; the higher eastern side of the park is accessible through several sets of trails and staircases along the interior of the park.

(She) said that she comes to the park every other day to exercise. Tonight,(she) entered the park near the southernmost parking lot. She began running and walking along the trails on the higher, eastern side of the park. (She) said that she had been alternating between running and walking along the trail near the ridge that separates the lower half of the park from the upper.

While (she) was walking along the trail an unknown male approached her from behind and grabbed her “butt” with his right hand. (She) said that she had never seen the male before today. She described the male as approximately 18 years old, Hispanic or possibly Pacific Islander. She said that he was wearing a white t-shirt and dark gym shorts. (She) said the suspect was thin, around 5’6″ in height. He did not have any facial hair that she could recall.

After the suspect grabbed her butt, (she) recoiled away from him. (She) said the suspect then apologized, saying something like, “Sorry, I’ve only got a month to live, I just had to do that”. (She) felt that the suspect did not understand what he did was wrong. She said that the suspect did not leave the area when she asked him what he was doing. After (she) told the suspect that she was going to call the police, he reiterated his apology.

(She) then tried to get a passerby to lend her a cell phone. She stopped a couple who was walking through the area and asked to borrow their phone to call 911. The couple refused and told (her) that she should just leave the area, and that she should not travel alone. (She) said that during this time the suspect left the area but she did not see which direction he went. (She) then walked down the hill into the lower section of the park. She was able to find someone who let her use her cell phone to call 911.

(She) was not certain but said that she might have seen the suspect in the park before he assaulted her. (The victim) believed that he might have been sitting on a bench along the path. (She) believed that he may have been following her through the park but she was not certain.

Multiple units responded to the park and searched the area in vehicles and on foot. King County Metro was notified with a description of the suspect but no one was located. Because (she) did not see the suspect enter or exit the park, his mode of transportation was not known. I provided (her) with an SPD business card with my name, serial number, and this incident number. I asked her to contact the department if she recalled any other details about the incident. I also provided (her) with a victim’s brochure and talked with her about counseling services available.

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UPDATE: Missing 81-year-old woman found safe in West Seattle
May 26, 2015 7:30 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   High Point | West Seattle news | West Seattle police

7:30 PM: Have you seen 81-year-old Thus Nguyen? Since SPD sent that tweet, we have learned that she is missing from her home in High Point and has a serious medical condition; she might be in West Seattle or the International District. Please call 911 if you see her or know where she might be.

9:27 PM: Via scanner, we’ve learned that she turned up safe at Fire Station 37 and police confirmed it’s her.

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Call it ‘Radio Friday’: KUOW in West Seattle as well as KEXP
May 26, 2015 5:16 pm
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

(From the WSB semi-vintage radio collection; we know, KEXP is actually 90.3 FM and KUOW is 94.9 FM)
Thanks to Liesbet for the tip on this: Not only is KEXP broadcasting live from West Seattle on Friday, so is KUOW. In KEXP’s case, the Hood-To-Hood Day event will last most of the day and into the night, while KUOW’s just visiting for an hour, but it’s still a live broadcast, so in case you’re interested: The station is touring all seven of the new City Council districts, and the first stop is District 1. 10-11 am Friday, KUOW’s “Week in Review” will broadcast live from Youngstown Cultural Arts Center. The lone announced West Seattle guest: Former Mayor Greg Nickels. (The show is hosted by Bill Radke, with panelists Joni Balter and C.R. Douglas.)

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Congratulations, WSHS softball team! Trevor Leopold is Metro League ‘Coach of the Year’; 9 players honored
May 26, 2015 3:16 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle schools | WS & Sports

(WSB photo: Coach Leopold and some of his players at SWAC last week)
As the West Seattle High School softball team looks ahead to its first state-tournament game on Friday, it’s celebrating a stack of Metro League honors! Just in from WSHS:

Metro Coach of the Year
Trevor Leopold

1st Team All-Metro
Gabby Wenn – Pitcher
Annalisa Ursino – Outfield

1st Team All-Division (Mountain)
Sam Hemmert – Catcher
Emma Atkinson – 1st Base
Lucy Mead – 2nd Base
Charli Elliott – Shortstop
Spritle Hirano – Outfield

Honorable Mention
Bryn Snodgrass – Outfield
Rachel DeVore – 3rd Base

Congratulations to all!

WEST SEATTLE BOOSTER CLUB FUNDRAISER FOR SOFTBALL TEAM: As was the case when the WSHS girls’ basketball team went to state, the softball team’s trip is expensive as well as exciting. The nonprofit West Seattle Booster Club is collecting donations to help them cover costs. From the letter they’re circulating in the community:

After taking second place in the Metro League Championship and making it through both Districts and Regionals, the team plays their first State Tournament game on Friday, May 29th at 9:00 am in Lacey, at the Regional Sports Complex.

They would love your support and to hear West Seattle fans loud and proud cheering them on. Additionally, since the team will be in Olympia May 28-30th for the tournament, they are seeking donations of any amount to assist with meals and lodging.

Donations are being accepted by us, the West Seattle Booster Club (WSBC). We are a nonprofit organization devoted to supporting ALL athletic programs at WSHS. Our goal is to further athletic programs and activities at the high school that the school budget cannot cover. We would love to have you join us in this particular case to help our girls with their amazing season.

Your tax-deductible donation, no matter the size, would be of great benefit to ease the financial burden on the school ,and on the girls and their families.

Easiest way to donate is online: westseattleboosterclub.org/donate

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FOLLOWUP: Madison Development buys PCC West Seattle site, ‘exploring possible ideas’
May 26, 2015 1:22 pm
|      62 COMMENTS
 |   Development | West Seattle news

1:22 PM: Exactly two months after we reported on the potential sale of the Admiral District site where PCC Natural Markets-West Seattle (WSB sponsor) has long been located, the sale has closed.

(WSB photo from March)
The buyer, as suggested by the documents we found in city files in March, is Madison Development Group, whose project Spruce (apartments and gym) just opened on the east edge of The Junction, three years after they completed Element 42 (also mixed-use) in The Admiral District. The purchase completion was confirmed today in this statement from a spokesperson for Madison:

Madison Development Group purchased the property located at 2741 California Ave SW on May 21, 2015 from its previous ownership, Development Services of America – a wholly-owned subsidiary of Services Group of America. We’re excited about this opportunity to expand our presence in West Seattle … We’ll begin exploring possible ideas for the site and don’t have immediate plans for any redevelopment.

The statement didn’t mention the price, but it’s shown on the county website as $5,750,000. The spokesperson confirmed that the purchase includes the parking lot, which is shown in county records as covering 29,000 square feet, while the store is 17,000 sf.

We have a request out to PCC for comment; no reply yet, but PCC CEO Cate Hardy (a West Seattle resident) had told us at the time of our March report that the store’s lease runs “through most of this decade” and that they had expected at the time to be introduced to and start talking with the site’s new ownership. It’s zoned NC2-40, which allows for mixed-use (residential/commercial) development with a four-story height maximum.

3:22 PM: A spokesperson for PCC says they have nothing more to say right now beyond what they told us in March.

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West Seattle lacks an ‘inclusive’ playground, but Explorer West students’ ‘Change the World Project’ could help change that
May 26, 2015 10:30 am
|      12 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle people

(WSB photo: From left, Cyrus, Tessa, Makenzie, Ellen)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Not counting schools, West Seattle has more than a dozen public playgrounds.

None, however, is an “inclusive” playground.

Though years past playground age themselves, a group of 8th graders at Explorer West Middle School (WSB sponsor) is hoping their work will change that.

And they hope someone reading this – maybe you? – can and will help make it happen.

Read More

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West Seattle Tuesday: Neighborhood safety with WSBWCN, & more
May 26, 2015 9:04 am
|    Comments Off on West Seattle Tuesday: Neighborhood safety with WSBWCN, & more
 |   West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

(WSB photo: ‘Retired’ but not off the job yet, the M/V Evergreen State @ Fauntleroy dock)

Happy Tuesday! From the calendar:

HIGHLAND PARK SPRAYPARK: In case you’ve been gone all weekend … the season started Saturday and West Seattle’s only spraypark is open daily, whatever the weather, 11 am-8 pm. (1100 SW Cloverdale)

DROP-IN CHESS: 4-5:30 pm at the High Point Library, kids/teens are invited to stop in for informal chess play. (35th SW & SW Raymond)

BLOCK WATCH CAPTAINS’ NETWORK: 6:30 pm at the Southwest Precinct, it’s an “open discussion” edition of the monthly WSBWCN meeting. Come share your stories/concerns/ideas/questions about neighborhood safety and crime prevention! (Webster/Delridge)

FAMILY STORY TIME: 7 pm, bring the family for stories, songs, and rhymes with Miss Bea at the Delridge Library. (5423 Delridge Way SW)

BABY KETTEN KARAOKE: 9 pm, 21+, no cover, at The Skylark. (3803 Delridge Way SW)

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TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Post-holiday Tuesday updates
May 26, 2015 6:31 am
|    Comments Off on TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Post-holiday Tuesday updates
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
6:31 AM: Back to work and school for most today; so far here in the early going, nothing unusual in, or outbound from, West Seattle.

ROAD WORK ALERTS: Seattle Public Utilities says the Monday-Saturday lane closure at Orchard/Delridge will continue into mid-June … Tomorrow (Wednesday), SDOT plans to inspect the Schmitz Park Bridge 9 am-3 pm.

9:09 AM – MORNING COMMUTE SUMMARY: Quiet. No “motor-vehicle incident” responses in or near WS. But we continue tracking it all around the clock, with your help … if you see or hear about something (and it’s safe/legal for you to call/text), please let us know, 206-293-6302. Thank you!

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Election 2015: Your next 2 chances to see/hear City Council District 1 candidates
May 25, 2015 9:19 pm
|    Comments Off on Election 2015: Your next 2 chances to see/hear City Council District 1 candidates
 |   Pigeon Point | South Park | West Seattle news | West Seattle politics

Made a decision yet on who you’re voting for in the first-ever City Council District 1 race? Still lots of time to decide, with primary ballots due August 4th, and your next two chances to see and hear the candidates are coming up within the next two weeks:

MAY 27 (THIS WEDNESDAY): “South Park Shows Up!” is not your standard candidate forum, South Park community members promise. They are planning a pop quiz on South Park facts, in fact. But West Seattleites are invited too – and kids’ activities are promised as well as food. 7 pm Wednesday at the SP Neighborhood Center, 8201 10th Avenue S.

JUNE 8 (2 WEEKS FROM TONIGHT): Most local neighborhood councils have had visits from several City Council candidates. The Pigeon Point Neighborhood Council is planning a full-fledged forum, 7 pm June 8th at Pathfinder K-8 (1901 SW Genesee), all welcome.

Any other D-1 forum dates locked in? Please let us know – editor@ westseattleblog.com – thanks!

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VIDEO: West Seattle Memorial Day ceremony commemorates ‘day of conflicting emotions’
May 25, 2015 4:32 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   Holidays | West Seattle news

(WSB video of speeches, closing poem, and song)

By Tracy Record and Patrick Sand
West Seattle Blog co-publishers

“Let us never lose focus on what Memorial Day really means.”

So said John Phillips from American Legion Post 160 during this afternoon’s short, moving ceremony at Forest Lawn Cemetery (WSB sponsor) east of High Point.

Standing-room-only attendance looked to us to be the biggest we’d seen in years of covering this event, people of all ages there to honor the heroes who had fought for the USA – the heroes who, as Phillips also said, “are not just statistics, but real people.”

(Post 160 adjutant Kyle Geraghty, a Marine Corps veteran, presenting the colors)
The ceremony was co-presented by Post 160 and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2713, whose commander Nate Hemphill, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and U.S. Coast Guard reservist, called the holiday “a day of conflicting emotions for each of us,” a day to “look hard at who we are … and aspire to be the best we can be.”

He exhorted everyone present to care for America’s veterans, rather than forgetting about them “when the last troops come home.” The country’s determination and resilience were also in his exhortation: “Our destiny as free people is entirely up to us.”

Phillips (above), a Marine Corps veteran and U.S. Army reservist who works as a veterans-transition specialist at South Seattle College (WSB sponsor), followed him, telling the story of two fallen heroes – U.S. Marine Corps Private Dale M. Hansen, whose actions in World War II led to a Medal of Honor, and U.S. Army intelligence officer Brittany Gordon, killed by a bomb in Afghanistan in 2012.

Also part of the ceremony, Pete Kirkman and Al Keith with echoing “Taps”:

Also, singer Ross Hauck with the national anthem and “God Bless America” (plus a reading of “In Flanders Fields“), and pre- and post-ceremony music from the Duwamish Jazz Band:

For the first time, the ceremony was followed by a reception at the West Seattle Veterans’ Center, co-housed with Post 160 in The Triangle. We went over with no idea of the presentation we would happen onto:

With Post 160’s Geraghty is Paul Chiarello, 92 years old, a paratrooper who landed
at Sainte-Mère-Église on D-Day. He came to present Post 160 with a photo from a memorial ceremony on the 55th anniversary of D-Day in 1999:

As Post 160’s Phillips had said earlier – “remembering once a year is not enough.”

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FOLLOWUP: Plan for West Seattle’s first proposed charter school proceeding on multiple fronts
May 25, 2015 1:46 pm
|      53 COMMENTS
 |   Arbor Heights | West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

Less than five months after we discovered the plan for what would be West Seattle’s first charter school, its prospective operator has officially submitted its application to the state.

California-based Summit Public Schools is asking the Washington State Charter School Commission for authorization to open what would eventually be a 6th-through-12th-grade campus at what’s now the Freedom Church/Jesus Center, a former supermarket site on the southwest corner of 35th SW and SW Roxbury. Summit says it would phase in the seven grade levels, starting in fall 2016 with 6th and 9th grades. (Charter schools are publicly funded but privately operated, as explained here.)

Summit has approval to open its first two schools in our state this fall, both high schools – one in the International District and one in Tacoma. Last week, when Seattle Public Schools were closed on May 19th, Summit brought members of the future first Seattle class over to the Roxbury/35th site to paint murals for the school opening in the ID this fall, which is still being remodeled.

They were advised by Native American artist Andrew Morrison, who also worked with young artists on the signal-box mini-murals along Delridge two summers ago:

But back to the Roxbury/35th plan. It’s making its way through the city system, with a site plan now on file showing more details than the one we first reported on at the start of the year:

In addition to renovating the main building – the former grocery store – two 2-story additions are planned along the Roxbury side of the property (shaded in the “site plan” sketch above), and a one-story addition to connect the one at the Roxbury/35th corner to the main building. The site-plan document says the additions will total more square footage – more than 27,000 – than the existing building (23,000+).

For parking, 65 motor-vehicle spaces and 52 bicycle spaces are proposeed. Though the document says the school could eventually bring 125 cars, the prospective school operators say they only will be required to have spaces for half that many because the site is close to frequent transit – the RapidRide line stops right across the street. The bicycle-space count is 22 more than the city requires.

HOW TO HAVE A SAY: The land-use-permit application is in the system as #3019454, if you’re interested in commenting. No public meeting is required, as this is not going through Design Review. Meantime, the process for approval of the charter school itself is outlined here; the Charter School Commission must set a date for a public forum on Summit’s application to open the school, but as far as we can tell from the commission’s calendar, it has yet to be announced. We don’t yet have the official application document for the proposed school, but hope to procure it later this week, and will publish another followup when we do.

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