West Seattle, Washington
03 Tuesday
The Metro League basketball playoffs are on! At O’Dea tonight, the West Seattle High School boys beat the home team, 73-54. That means – per the bracket – they’ll play Rainier Beach next, 5:45 pm Wednesday at Ingraham HS (1819 N. 135th). Tonight’s top scorer: Nate Pryor (24 points), one of the Wildcats announced for All-League honors earlier today.
ALSO AHEAD: Here’s our previous list of local teams’ first playoff games – next up, the Chief Sealth International High School boys and girls both have games at 7 pm tomorrow, the boys hosting Roosevelt, the girls at Eastside Catholic.
(WSB photo, looking north at the closed block, from the westbound detour at Fauntleroy/Edmunds)
If you’re headed out in the hours ahead – Fauntleroy Way is closed for a block between Edmunds and Alaska. It’s the continuation of street work alongside the mixed-use Whittaker development, primarily involving the new crossing at Fauntleroy/39th/Alaska. The project team had told us this phase of the nighttime work would last about a week; we’re checking but might not get the answer until tomorrow.
Toplines from tonight’s North Delridge Neighborhood Council meeting:
RV ‘SAFE LOT’ UPDATE: The last item discussed at the meeting was the one that yielded the biggest news. NDNC co-chair Michael Taylor-Judd, leading tonight’s meeting, said the current target date for the “safe lot” at West Marginal Way SW and Highland Park Way to open is February 19th. We had checked again with the city at the end of last week and were told only that they were still on track for the one-month time frame mentioned in the initial announcement, which was on January 19th, exactly one month before the date mentioned tonight. Discussions since that announcement have revealed that the city expects about 15 vehicles to use the lot; that they would be solicited from among those already living in vehicles in West Seattle and SODO; that the Low Income Housing Institute would operate it, with services offered by Compass Housing Alliance. It’s one of two such lots the city announced; the other one will be in Ballard.
Also discussed by NDNC – crime, preparedness, transportation, and more:
Saturday is Neighbor Appreciation Day in Seattle, and the city has some celebrations planned. We’ve already mentioned the open house at Fire Station 37 (11 am-1 pm, 35th SW/SW Holden). Here’s what else in West Seattle is on the list made public today:
Celebrate Neighbor Appreciation Day with The Nature Consortium
Join the Nature Consortium and Seattle City Councilmember Lisa Herbold in celebrating Neighbor Appreciation Day! We will be restoring important forest habitat in Seattle’s largest remaining green space, the West Duwamish Greenbelt. Visit naturec.org/volunteer to register. 10 am-2 pm. Pigeon Point Park @ Pathfinder K-8, 1901 SW Genesee.
West Seattle Timebank Neighbor Appreciation Day
Meet your neighbors and learn about the West Seattle Timebank. There will be refreshments and activities for kids. Noon-2 pm, High Point Library, 3411 SW Raymond.
Southwest Pool Neighbor Appreciation Day Swim
Join us for a free swim and refreshments to celebrate Neighbor Appreciation Day! 1-2 pm, Southwest Teen Life Center, 2801 SW Thistle
Here’s the full list of what’s happening for Neighbor Appreciation Day around the city.
$100,000 is the bail amount set today for the 22-year-old man arrested early Saturday for allegedly breaking into a Gatewood home and trying to get into bed with a woman asleep with her 5-year-old. We first reported the incident on Saturday morning after hearing from the victim.
From the narrative of the incident written by police, used to determine there’s probable cause to hold the suspect:
(The victim) was woken up by male touching her face and shoulders. She thought it was her husband and said, “Honey, what is it?” An unknown male said, “It’s OK. He’s asleep.” The male kept saying, “It’s OK.” She tried to turn on her nightstand light but the suspect grabbed her wrist, restraining it. He held her wrist for a bit, but then she was able to pull away and turn the light on and call for her husband. The suspect turned away and walked off. The suspect was a (black man), 20’s, about 5’6 with short hair, wearing a gray and green checkered shirt and jeans, apparently intoxicated. She did not know the suspect and he did not have permission to come into her home or to touch her. Her cell phone had been charging on her bedside table but it was now missing.
At 0332, Officer Gindhart saw the suspect walking in the alley just south of the location. Officers detained the suspect … At 0342, I transported (victim) to the location. She immediately recognized the suspect Officers were contacting, and positively identified (him) as the person who burglarized her home, touched and restrained her without permission. Officer Gindhart read (the suspect) his Miranda rights from his SPD resource booklet and asked if he understood. He said, “Yes.”
Officer Ginhart transported (the suspect) to SW Precinct. I spoke with (the suspect). He said he thought he was going to a house his brother rented for a big party all weekend. He said he was looking for his brother. He was affected by alcohol and/or drugs, with watery eyes, slurred speech, and an odor of intoxicants on his breath. He said he never touched anyone or took a cell phone. He was later booked into KCJ for Investigation of Burglary.
(A neighborhood party was mentioned in WSB comment discussion over the weekend.) Online records show a dozen cases for the suspect, all in Pierce County, but no felony charges/convictions. Prosecutors will decide later this week whether to file charges.
With the Metro League high-school basketball playoffs starting tonight, the league has announced its honors for the season.
(Coach Darnell Taylor – WSB photo from last month)
West Seattle High School‘s undefeated girls-basketball team has both the league MVP – Lydia Giomi, who also won Defensive Player of the Year – and Coach of the Year – Darnell Taylor.
Giomi, a senior, was MVP last year too (not just in basketball, but also in volleyball), and WSHS also had the Coach of the Year last year (Taylor’s predecessor Sonya Elliott). The girls team also has Lexi Ioane on the first all-league team, Grace Sarver on the third all-league team, and honorable mentions for Gabby Sarver and Izzy Turk.
The WSHS boys’ team has three players with all-league honors – Nate Pryor on the first team, Carter Golgart and Yusuf Mohamed with honorable mentions.
Chief Sealth International High School placed two players on each honorable-mention basketball lineup – from the girls’ team, Allison Hadaway and Kali Schroyer; from the boys’ team, Isiah Hart and Evan Moe.
P.S. We published a list of the first-scheduled playoff games last night, here.
Four West Seattle food notes this afternoon:
OPEN HOUSE AT DREAM DINNERS: Longtime WSB sponsor Dream Dinners in The Junction is having an open house for new customers tomorrow (Tuesday, February 9th), with a deal: Sign up to make three dinners (which you take home for later cooking) for $24.99. You just have to sign up online for one of three spots – 4:30 pm, go here; 5:45 pm, go here; 7 pm, go here. For any of those sessions, the password is: dinner. Dream Dinners West Seattle is at 4701 41st SW, #110 (outer street-facing Jefferson Square). More info? Call 206-938-5999 or e-mail westseattlewa@dreamdinners.com.
CRAWFISH FOR FAT TUESDAY: Tomorrow also happens to be Fat Tuesday, and that’s a chance for the new proprietors of Circa (2605 California SW; featured here last week) to show off their New Orleans chops. While their regular lunch menu goes only until 2:30 pm, from noon-5 pm they’ll be boiling crawfish out back, and co-proprietor Gretchen says, “We will also have red beans and rice, gumbo ya-ya and special New Orleans desserts for the remainder of the evening. We have Abita beer in the bottle too!”
ENDOLYNE JOE’S NEW FESTIVAL MENU: Endolyne Joe’s (9261 45th SW; WSB sponsor) is now taking your tastebuds to Puebla, Mexico, in its new “festival menu” – see it here.
CHACO CANYON’S BRUNCH CHANGES: And Chaco Canyon Organic Café in The Triangle (3770 SW Alaska) sends word it’s recently overhauled its weekend-brunch menu: “Some of our featured items are gluten-free sweet potato biscuits and mushroom/white bean gravy, an eggless frittata accompanied by a spicy house-made harissa sauce, and a cultured coconut cream yogurt parfait (served with a fruit compote and buckwheat granola!).” That’s 9 am-3 pm Saturdays and Sundays.
This Thursday, a statewide issue will be discussed in West Seattle – improving education for English-language learners, who comprise 10 percent of our state’s public school students. The announcement is from this week’s Denny International Middle School bulletin, but the announcement isn’t just for Denny families:
Washington State Family Bilingual Input Meeting
At Denny on Feb. 11: Come to share your experiences, ideas, and input about bilingual education, including ELL programs, with the BEAC, a committee that gives input to educational leaders in Olympia that support programs across the state.
Who: Parents and guardians of students in Bilingual and ELL programs
What: A two-hour meeting to discuss bilingual education
Why: Parents and guardians bring a very important perspective — leaders need to hear them to make good decisions
When: February 11, 6:00- 8:00 pm
Denny is at 2601 SW Kenyon. Read more about the BEAC and its work here.
We’ve been checking daily with Seattle Police regarding fraud allegations against Tracy Dart, the West Seattleite who is alleged to have lied about her reported three-time cancer fight. (Here’s our report from last week.) Back on Friday, a WSB commenter claimed to have filed a case (read the comment here); we tried to confirm with SPD, but they said the fraud unit was already closed for the day and they had no information about any possible case, yet. We checked again two hours ago, and while no information had arrived yet, we just got this followup from Det. Patrick Michaud:
… We now have an open case on this matter. Detectives have received several tips from community members that we are reviewing as a part of an ongoing case. I can’t go into detail about where the case stands at this point, but we are asking anyone with information to please call 206-625-5011 and speak with an officer.
Neither Dart nor her family has spoken publicly yet; we have reached out with repeated requests for comment. More to come …
(Horned grebe, photographed near Fauntleroy ferry dock by Mark Wangerin)
Good morning and happy Lunar New Year! From the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar for the rest of today/tonight:
BALLOT DROP VANS BACK: Second-to-last day to turn in your ballots for the Seattle Public Schools levies. The King County Elections ballot vans are back at West Seattle Stadium (4432 35th SW) and Greenbridge Library (9720 8th SW), until 5 pm today (and again 10 am-8 pm tomorrow). Info on the vans, the ballot measures, and more in our Saturday report.
ART CLUB FOR TEENS: 4 pm today at Southwest Library – new! “Unleash your creativity with other local teens in this six-week art club designed and run by local Teen Service Learning volunteers!” Details in our calendar listing. (35th SW/SW Henderson)
PHYSICAL-THERAPY NIGHT: At West Seattle Runner (WSB sponsor), drop in between 5:30 and 7 pm for a free “one-on-one injury assessement to address any pain that is keeping you from your fitness routine.” Details in our calendar listing. (2743 California SW)
HIGHLAND PARK ELEMENTARY PTA: 6 pm in the Highland Park Elementary School cafeteria. PTA president Holly Briscoe says, “We will be discussing the vision, mission, and core values of the PTA, as well as upcoming events. Snacks will be served, child care is available, and a Spanish interpreter will be in attendance. All are welcome.” (1012 SW Trenton)
NORTH DELRIDGE NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL: Live and/or work and/or visit North Delridge? Everybody’s welcome at the NDNC‘s monthly meeting, 6:30 pm at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center in Room 103 (last room on north end of first-floor hall): “Please join us. Let us know what’s on your mind.”
So far, the agenda includes:
– Emergency Management HUB with Cindi Barker.
– Theft and vandalism in the neighborhood.
– Sound Transit light rail proposals for West Seattle
(4408 Delridge Way SW)
DENNY PTSA MEETING: 7 pm at Denny International Middle School: “Come and learn about STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Math) at Denny. (2601 SW Kenyon)
SHELTERBOX NIGHT AT MEEPLES GAMES: 6:15 pm at Meeples Games (WSB sponsor), play games and find out about ShelterBox, which helps out in crisis and disaster zones around the world. Details in our calendar listing. (3727 California SW)
EVENING BOOK CLUB: 6:45 pm at West Seattle (Admiral) Library – this month’s book is “The End of Your Life Book Club” by Will Schwalbe. All welcome. (2306 42nd SW)
MONDAY MUSIC: Get funky/bluesy with Rippin Chicken at Parliament Tavern, 8-10 pm. (4210 SW Admiral Way)
The photo’s from Adam at 50th and Charlestown. He reports:
Writing to let you know that someone smashed my wife’s car with a huge rock sometime between last night and this morning. We woke up to find the pictured damage. We have no idea who would do this. No attempt to steal anything as far as we can tell — just pure vandalism.
We’ve filed a police report and called insurance, but given the rash of vandalism in WS lately, it would be nice to catch the people doing this.
The “rash of vandalism” has included other incidents on their block, Adam adds. We’ve had multiple reports in the past eight days, starting a week ago with car- and house-window-shooting/breaking incidents in multiple West Seattle neighborhoods. Our first reports were a week ago Sunday, followed by more last Monday.
(Click any view for a close-up; more cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
6:12 AM: Good morning – no incidents in/from West Seattle so far. Two reminders:
FAUNTLEROY WAY SPEED LIMIT: The stretch between SW Alaska and California SW is now 30 mph, with signage installed on Saturday as SDOT said it would be.
FERRY SUBSTITUTION: M/V Tillikum is taking the place of M/V Sealth on the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth state-ferry run today; its capacity is 87 vehicles, while Sealth’s is 90.
7:06 AM: Crash partly blocking the right lane in NB 1st Ave. So. Bridge.
7:35 AM: WSDOT says that has cleared.
8:35 AM: If you’re headed southbound on 35th from the Triangle or anyplace northbound, you will be diverted at Alaska. A power pole is about to fall over – apparently just rotted through its base, according to SPD, which has the road blocked for about half a block at Alaska until City Light can take care of it. Thanks to the person who texted us about the closure (206-293-6302, any time)!
8:43 AM: Added the photo above. Talked to another officer who said the pole rot was part of the problem – the pole getting backed into by a delivery truck was the other part. No ETA on how long for a fix; we’ll check back. The southbound 21 is affected, Metro has tweeted:
Transit Alert – Rt 21 is rerouted at 35 Av SW/Alaska St. Use the stops SB on 35 Av SW/NS SW Snoqualmie St or EB on SW Morgan St/FS 35 Av SW.
— King County Metro (@kcmetrobus) February 8, 2016
9:28 AM: Thanks to Joe and a text tipster for noting that the NB 21 is also being diverted right now – Joe says the City Light crane is on site so the road is blocked both ways at the scene just south of Alaska.
10:01 AM: Metro says northbound is back to normal, southbound remains blocked.
ADDED LATER, SIDE NOTE: For the record – we checked with City Light regarding the ongoing replacement of poles before something like this takes them out. From Scott Thomsen of SCL:
We do have an effort underway to steadily replace old poles that have deteriorated over time.
We have identified about 5,500 poles that currently need to be replaced. This is a backlog that built up as the result of deferred maintenance following the 2000-01 West Coast energy crisis and, more recently, other work associated with new service installations in one of the nation’s fastest growing cities filling the schedules of our crews.
We identify 500 to 600 more poles each year that add to the list of those needing to be replaced. We expect to replace about 1,400 poles a year to steadily eliminate that backlog over several years.
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