Two community-proposed projects are seeking Southwest District Council support for their applications to get Neighborhood Park and Street Fund money – one on Beach Drive, one on Harbor Avenue. Both were presented at this month’s SWDC meeting, which also included a briefing on the upcoming work to re-replace earthquake-safety cushions on the Fauntleroy Expressway (west/southwest end of the West Seattle Bridge).
SWDC is one of West Seattle’s two groups of representatives from community groups and organizations in what the city defines as this area’s two neighborhood “districts” – Southwest, primarily western WS, and Delridge, eastern WS (see the map here). When it’s time for NPSF applications, the councils review proposals and make recommendations to the city. The criteria include “Projects must cost less than $90,000 as determined by SDOT and Parks” and “The project has widespread positive impact on the neighborhood as a whole.”
The photo atop this story is part of the area involved in the proposal from the Beach Drive SW Neighborhood Committee, formed for the application:
The committee proposes three to four speed humps for Beach Drive along Constellation Park, between Alki Avenue and 63rd Avenue SW, because of what the application describes as “excessive speed, burnouts, gang activity, illegal drug and alcohol use” and other “disruptive behavior.” The committee says it consulted local police before coming up with that recommendation. They quoted SDOT as estimating the cost of speed humps there would be “in the mid-five figures.” Some wondered about that figure, but Deb Barker from the Morgan Community Association said the speed humps on 48th SW in Seaview did cost around that much, and she also noted that they hadn’t done as much good as expected to relieve speeding and other problems on that stretch.
Second, the proposal for Harbor/Avalon/Spokane, described as “routine maintenance with priority given to cleanup and natural-habitat restoration and beautification” of the area surrounding the intersection under the bridge, including what you see in our photo:
Neighbors and Luna Park merchants are supporting this one. Drainage issues and overgrowth abound, as noted in the presentation, and new, native plantings could improve that, resulting in making the area safer for pedestrians and bicycle riders. They’re also looking for “more durable” signage on Manning, the “winding road” that goes under the bridge between Avalon and Admiral just north of the Luna Park commercial district, noting that the existing signs have been knocked down more than once.
SWDC members will review the projects and decide whether to recommend them for advancing in the process.
FAUNTLEROY EXPRESSWAY: Paul Elliott from SDOT came to the meeting with an update. As reported here in January and in February, dozens of closures are ahead when this work gets under way, but as with the original round of replacements, they’re expected to be mostly late at night, without much effect on traffic, as was the case with the closures during the original round of work. The work is most likely to start around mid-April, Elliott said, continuing for about three months. Backstory: It’s been more than a year and a half since it was revealed the cushions would have to be re-replaced (here’s our 2014 report explaining what went wrong)..
The Southwest District Council meets first Wednesdays, 6:30 pm at the Sisson Building/Senior Center in The Junction.
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