West Seattle, Washington
14 Wednesday
Three West Seattle Crime Watch notes tonight, two of them followups:
STOLEN PHONES: The mom of a West Seattle High School cross-country runner says he and some of his teammates were practicing at Hiawatha on Wednesday when someone stole their phones. She says, “If anyone encounters suspicious selling of cellphones in West Seattle, they are probably the ones belongings to the students.” If you have any info, report to police and refer to incident report #2016-288545.
Now, the followups:
STOLEN-BICYCLE REUNION: On Wednesday, we published Dave‘s report of a child’s bike, stolen from his dog-guarded yard in the 7300 block of 17th SW. He tells WSB that they got the bike back after a South Seattle College (WSB sponsor) employee found it abandoned alongside a campus parking lot. She took a photo and turned the bicycle in to security; she later checked WSB and found Dave’s description and contact information. They connected and Dave retrieved the bike from security.
STOLEN TRUCK FOUND – WITH SOMEBODY ELSE’S STUFF: On Monday, we published Mardi‘s report of a company-branded pickup truck stolen in Shorewood. Today, she reported that it was found “a few blocks” from where it was stolen. A suspect was arrested, too. But here’s the twist: “We picked the truck up this morning and there was a black backpack with rings and other jewelry” – belonging to somebody else. She’s planning to take it to the Southwest Precinct tomorrow, but if you’re missing a black backpack and/or jewelry, speak up.
Eastern West Seattle’s biggest festival of the summer is just hours away. The community volunteers of VIEWS (Visualizing Increased Engagement in West Seattle) are ready to bring you Delridge Day 2016, 11 am-3 pm at Delridge Community Center Park. Among the highlights:
*Music, performances, demonstrations on two stages (previewed here)
*Grand opening of new Fitness Zone exercise area by the playground
*Skatepark activities for skaters 12 and under, presented by Alki Bike & Board and Skate Like a Girl (as previewed here – clinics 10 am-noon, mini-contests noon-2 pm)
*Kids’ games/activities (including sack races), with prizes, presented by Trader Joe’s
*Free massages by Massage Envy
*Dozens of booths with organizations and businesses (and festival co-sponsors including WSB)
*2 food trucks and a tamale tent; shave ice from Have An Ice Day
*Neighborhood Tent – not too late to have your neighborhood council or organization featured there, VIEWS tells us
Before the festival, you can help raise money for programs at Delridge CC by running in the Run for Recreation ($25 entry) at 10 am. Big day ahead – see you there!
5:27 PM: Just checked out the aftermath of a crash that briefly brought out a big response in the South Delridge Triangle at Delridge/Roxbury. A driver hit the west side of Mac’s Triangle Pub; neither she nor anyone was else was seriously hurt, and the scene of the 4:30 pm crash was clear within half an hour, with no residual traffic effects. Proprietor “Mac” McElroy showed us the dent left in the building. (Photo above is ours; next one is theirs:)
7:02 PM: In case you’re wondering – Mac’s IS open post-crash, but says: “Still open but the damage will require some remodeling. We’re thankful nobody was injured. We’ll be ready for karaoke tonight and breakfast and football tomorrow!”
If your Friday night’s not already all booked up – or, if you might reconsider what you were going to do – here are half a dozen options!
HAGGIS BROTHERS @ THE MOUNT: 5:30 pm dinner/drinks available for purchase, 6 pm live country music (it’s free as are popcorn and snow cones!), on the south side of the Providence Mount St. Vincent campus. Bring your own chair/blanket. (4831 35th SW)
STATUS CROWES @ C & P: Acoustic pop-rock at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor), 7-9 pm. Beer/wine available for purchase as well as excellent coffee/tea/etc. (5612 California SW)
‘HAIRSPRAY’ @ WSHS THEATER: 7:30 pm at West Seattle High School, it’s opening night for the new Twelfth Night Productions show, the Tony-winning musical comedy “Hairspray.” Ticket info in our calendar listing. (3000 California SW)
MARLEY’S GHOST @ KENYON HALL: 7:30 pm at historic Kenyon Hall, this “virtuoso aggregation composed of singer/multi-instrumentalists” will entertain you. Ticket info in our calendar listing. (7904 35th SW)
‘MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG’ @ ARTSWEST: 7:30 pm, come see the results of musical-theater students’ hard work at ArtsWest in The Junction. Ticket info in our calendar listing. (4711 California SW)
OUTDOOR MOVIE @ DELRIDGE CC: It’s the night before the Delridge Day festival and you’re invited to a free outdoor movie in the Delridge Community Center Park, “The Peanuts Movie,” screening at 8:30 pm. (4501 Delridge Way SW)
BEYOND ENTERTAINMENT … other options (including a business open house and a talk about climate change) are on our full calendar.
Following up on our previous reports about SDOT‘s Lower Spokane Street repaving-and-more project just east of the low bridge, here’s an update detailing what’s ahead for the next two weeks:
This past week crews have started safety improvement work to repave, reconstruct sidewalks and curb ramps, and make other improvements along SW Spokane St from SW Klickitat Way to East Marginal Way S. Construction is expected to last approximately three months. Please note that work planned is subject to change. SDOT appreciates the public’s patience while this work is being completed.
The project will require the closure or restrictions in some traffic lanes during active construction over the next few weeks, but will not require any full street closures requiring detours. Temporary pedestrian/bike pathways will detour around the construction zone on the West Seattle Bridge Trail.
WORK PLANNED FOR THE WEEK OF AUGUST 15, 2016
• SW Spokane St and 11th Ave SW Intersection
o Signal installation; including new conduit, and pedestrian signal activation poles
• SW Klickitat Way and Manning Street
o Removing damaged portions of existing curb and gutter along edges of roadway
o Forming and pouring replacement curb and gutter along edges of roadway
o Demolishing existing sidewalks
o Forming and pouring new curb ramps and replacement portions of sidewalk
o Roadway asphalt patchingWHAT TO EXPECT DURING CONSTRUCTION FOR THE WEEK OF AUGUST 15, 2016
• Weekday work hours from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Single lane closures and/or lane width reductions during work hours
• Noise, dust and vibration typical of construction
• Access to businesses will be maintained
• Temporary pedestrian/bike pathway around work zones
WORK PLANNED FOR THE WEEK OF AUGUST 22, 2016
• SW Spokane St and 11th Ave SW Intersection
o Continued signal installation
• Manning St at entrance to Harbor Marina Corporate Center
o Demolishing existing curb, gutter, and sidewalk
o Forming and pouring new curb and gutter
Tomorrow morning, take a walk and learn about West Seattle’s historic Riverside neighborhood! Your guide for the tour presented by the Southwest Seattle Historical Society will be Frank Zuvela, at right in the SWSHS-provided photo above with grandson Nick Santa (who recently accumulated 100+ community-service hours cleaning up the Riverside Memorial, where the tour begins). Full details are here; tour admission is by donation ($5 suggested) – meet at W. Marginal Way SW/SW Marginal Place [map] in time for the 10 am start of Saturday’s two-hour tour.
10:57 AM: For the third time in a week, we’re hearing from multiple West Seattle CenturyLink customers – via e-mail, Twitter, and comments – that their fiber Internet service has gone out again this morning. Locations mentioned in the messages we’ve received this morning include Admiral, Genesee Hill, North Delridge, and Beach Drive – sharing your general location in a comment, or message to us, helps, since otherwise there’s no mapping available along the lines of, say, a power outage. Some customers say CL has told them to expect service to return “sometime over the weekend.” Our previous reports are here (some were out all of last weekend) and here (an outage on Wednesday). We have a message out to CL’s media department again and will update when we hear back.
11:54 AM: Some customers are reporting they’re back up.
12:02 PM: A CenturyLink spokesperson replied to our inquiry:
CenturyLink has isolated the outage in West Seattle and continues to monitor the system to assure service availability. If customers are continuing to experience interruption to their high-speed internet or Prism TV services they should contact customer service 877-837-5738 and submit a trouble ticket.
They didn’t answer our question about what’s causing the outages, so we’ve asked it again.
5:36 PM: CL says “a hardware failure” is to blame.
(Photos courtesy Elite BJJ of Seattle)
Congratulations to Coach Sonia Sillan of Elite Brazilian Jiu-jitsu of Seattle (5050 Delridge Way SW; WSB sponsor) for her achievement in her first competition as a purple belt. At the recent IBJJF Seattle Open, she took third place in her division (at right in the top photo). From sister school Elite BJJ of Redmond, black belt Professor Jessica Dos Santos took second place in her division and first in open weight class – she’s in the next photo along with Elite BJJ founder/head Professor Miriam Cardoso:
Elite BJJ of Seattle is one of the local organizations and businesses you’ll see at tomorrow’s Delridge Day festival (11 am-3 pm at Delridge Community Center park) – look for their booth! (And look for one more big Delridge Day preview here on WSB – a festival co-sponsor – this afternoon.)
Less than four weeks until the first day of the 2016-2017 school year, and there’s lots to do to get ready. Some local students could use your help. From Nicole Sipila with the Chief Sealth International High School PTSA:
It’s almost back to school time and Chief Sealth International High School can use your help. We’re looking for donations of new or gently used clothing for our Clothing Closet, which provides clothing, toiletries and school supplies for students with low incomes.
We need:
* Plain white t-shirts (part of the Physical Ed uniform)
* Athletic shorts (also for PE)
* Athletic pants — soccer, sweat, running
* Men’s boxer brief underwear
* Men’s dark suits and jackets
* Socks – athletic, men’s dress and women’s styles tooDonations can be dropped off at the school during the weekday. Or please send an email to chiefsealthptsa@gmail.com for other arrangements.
Thanks to our great West Seattle community that has provided us with so much good stuff and cash donations! Students appreciate and are greatly touched by your generosity. Sometimes knowing that there are people out there that care about them is as valuable to our students as the things they get from the Clothing Closet.
CSIHS is at 2600 SW Thistle [map].
(WSB photos)
FIRST REPORT, 2:38 AM: Big Seattle Fire response to a commercial building in the 6900 block of West Marginal Way SW [map]. What we’ve heard via scanner so far is that it “came in as an automatic fire alarm” and then some kind of heat/fire was found inside. We’re on our way.
2:45 AM: Still en route, but hearing via scanner that what firefighters are describing as a “small fire” is “under control.”
2:52 AM: We’ve just arrived in the area. West Marginal is completely blocked by fire equipment and police just south of the bottom of the Highland Park Way hill. We’ve parked as close as we can get and our photographer is heading to the scene on foot from here.
3:08 AM: Some of the units are being dismissed; SFD’s investigator is on the way. Some of the discussion has mentioned marijuana growing inside the building, and city and state records indicate that it was remodeled earlier this year to be a licensed “urban farm.”
(The building is the former HQ of United States Seafoods, which moved to Lake Union more than a year ago, though its signage is still on this building, as you can see in the photo above.)
3:33 AM: We’ve talked with the SFD public-information officer battalion chief on scene. (Added: video of the quick briefing.)
The fire was in a small room, contained, and extinguished.
SFD crews will stay here for a while on fire watch; the cause remains under investigation. No injuries.
4:06 AM: West Marginal is reopening both ways.
1:33 PM: SFD says an “overheated electrical installation” was to blame for the fire.
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