day : 28/11/2016 9 results

As the city continues seeking feedback on its draft upzoning maps for the Mandatory Housing Affordability component of the Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda … two things to mention tonight:

First, one more reminder that TOMORROW is your chance to get briefed on everything from how to read these maps to how to effectively comment, via a community-organized workshop for all of West Seattle and South Park, 6:30 pm at Highland Park Improvement Club (12th SW/SW Holden). We previewed it here and here.

Second, the city has gone public with some of the feedback it’s received so far, from the “focus groups” whose members were recruited earlier this year. Rather than assemble the groups geographically, they were organized by types of “urban village” they lived in. The focus groups’ November meetings are being done online, and include slide decks with information including feedback from their previous meetings. Tonight, the group from “lower-density urban villages” including Morgan Junction, South Park, and Westwood-Highland Park met, including this slide deck with background information preceding the draft maps, each of which has short comment surveys on the side:

If the Scribd format doesn’t work for you, see the deck on the city website here.

Last week, the “hub urban village” focus group had its online meeting, and the slide deck from that one – including the West Seattle Junction map and preliminary group feedback – is below:

You can see that deck on the city website here.

The slide deck with feedback for the “medium-density urban village” group, including Admiral, isn’t available yet – that group has its online meeting Thursday.

While the focus has been on the urban villages, this also will affect multi-family zoning outside UVs, and you can take a look at this interactive map for a closer look at your neighborhood. (NOTE: That map ALSO will allow you to zoom in to street level, helpful if you’ve had trouble reading the draft maps so far.)

Again, tomorrow night’s workshop in Highland Park is an excellent chance to hear from, and talk with, local neighborhood leaders who have been immersed in this process. At any time, you can get feedback to the city via its special website for this – hala.consider.it – and/or via e-mail at halainfo@seattle.gov. And then there’s a city “open house” meeting about the rezoning maps, with other topics promised, next week – 5:30-7:30 pm December 7th at Shelby’s Bistro and Ice Creamery in The Junction (4752 California SW).

WHAT HAPPENS AFTER ALL THAT? A final set of maps will go to the City Council next year (June is the latest estimated timeframe) – councilmembers’ approval is needed before zoning can be changed. And the city also is working on an Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed zoning changes – environmental impacts aren’t just what you would traditionally think of as “environmental” but also aspects such as traffic and noise. The draft EIS is due in February-March, according to a timeline shown during tonight’s online meeting.

Share This

8th grader in the house? West Seattle High School information night Thursday

November 28, 2016 7:01 pm

| Comments Off on 8th grader in the house? West Seattle High School information night Thursday

| West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

If you haven’t seen this on the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar already – here’s an invitation for families of students who are headed to high school next year:

Parents of current 8th graders: Are you interested in learning about West Seattle High School and what we can offer your student? You are invited to attend our 8th Grade Information Night on Thursday, December 1st, from 6:30-8:30 pm. The evening will begin in the WSHS theater, where you will hear about course offerings, extracurricular activities and athletics at West Seattle. We will then break for school tours and open Q&A in the Commons. Teachers, administrators, counselors, and coaches will be available to meet with families and answer questions. Light refreshments will be served. We look forward to seeing you on the 1st!

Share This

HOMETOWN HOLIDAYS: West Seattle Junction festivities begin with Tree Lighting & Night Market on Saturday

November 28, 2016 4:24 pm

| 2 COMMENTS

| Holidays | West Seattle news

The wreaths went up today; the garlands, over the Thanksgiving weekend. The holiday season has officially arrived in the West Seattle Junction. This week’s biggest Hometown Holidays (co-sponsored by WSB) event: The Tree Lighting and Night Market, coming up Saturday (December 3rd) in and next to Junction Plaza Park (42nd SW/SW Alaska). The Night Market, to be set up on SW Alaska (closed to traffic), starts at 4 pm Saturday and continues until 8; the Tree Lighting, with “a full music/comedy lineup” promised, is scheduled for 4:30-5:30 pm. See the full Hometown Holidays lineup here.

Share This

West Seattle Realty: Welcome, new WSB sponsor

November 28, 2016 2:52 pm

| 2 COMMENTS

| West Seattle businesses | West Seattle housing | West Seattle news

We’re welcoming West Seattle Realty to the WSB sponsor team today. Here’s what they want you to know about their business:

(From left: Christine Mayes, Tracy Kipp, Shelby White, Karen Whorton, Hayley Martin Hampton)

You belong in our neighborhood. West Seattle Realty welcomes you to the warmth and comfort of community here. We’re a homegrown agency with highly engaged local leadership. Shelby White, owner and founding broker, started the business in 2006 based on his affinity for the culture and values of this stunningly beautiful, down-to-earth place. In fact, the whole team of brokers and staff at the agency are devoted, long-term residents.

Whether you are looking for a new home or getting ready to sell the one you live in now, West Seattle Realty is ready to help. We take pleasure in making the process easier. Our knowledge base and professional network span the whole peninsula of West Seattle as well as White Center, Burien, Georgetown, South Park, and Beacon Hill. We know the terrain and character of each area on a block-by-block basis.

Give us a call – 206-935-0503 – or come by for a cup of coffee at our office in The Admiral District, 2641 42nd Ave SW.

We thank West Seattle Realty for sponsoring independent, community-collaborative neighborhood news via WSB; find our current sponsor team listed in directory format here, and find info on joining the team by going here.

Share This

NEW WEST SEATTLE BUSINESS: Community General Store

November 28, 2016 1:24 pm

| 4 COMMENTS

| Delridge | West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

Meet Nancy and Kristin. They e-mailed to let us know they have opened a new business at 5214 Delridge Way SW, the Community General Store, starting part time, expecting to go full time in February or March. No, it’s not a retail shop:

We are a community center and library of things to support members in living life with more joy and less waste. Membership allows you access to a collection of useful and beautiful things that are wonderful to use but hard to store: outdoor gear, things for raising young children, food dehydrators, mending kits, boot polish and simple repair, and also a collection of local, handmade art.

Additionally, any time our doors are open, we’re hosting events. Right now we’re really enjoying Make and Mend, where we share basic sewing tools and encourage each other’s various projects. When our kitchen opens up later this winter, we’re excited for Cook and Play, an event where you learn kitchen skills (we’ll explore fermentation, bread and snack making, local food, various low-impact eating plans and more!) while your kids hang out and play.

For starters, they are offering “family-friendly neighborhood events” on Tuesdays: “Make and mend, cook and play, walk and gather: 9 am-12:30 pm Tuesday mornings, 3 pm-4:35 pm Tuesday afternoons in November and December,” plus a Family Movie Night at 5:30 pm (updated) December 16th. Find out more about their plans and programs at thecommunitygeneralstore.com.

Share This

WEST SEATTLE TO STANDING ROCK: Here’s what happened when donation-drive organizers got there

November 28, 2016 11:07 am

| 11 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | West Seattle people

One month after two West Seattleites announced a donation drive for the Water Protectors led by the Standing Rock Sioux, Giles Stanton and Cathy Morgan are back from their Thanksgiving-week run to North Dakota, and just sent a wrapup report and photos:

The two days and nights we were at the Oceti Sakowin Camp (connected to both Rosebud and Sacred Stone Camps) saw their first snowfall of the season — it was numbingly cold though nothing compared with the weather yet to come. But, thanks to all of you, they now have a better chance at comfortably enduring the coming prairie winter. Giles helped construct an expansion to their main Donation / Supply Tent and Cathy applied her newfound donation-sorting skills to the profusion of items pouring in daily.

The packed cargo van of West Seattle donations was gratefully swallowed up into the organized ocean of useful winter goods and flowed right back out into the hands of long-term supporters fortifying themselves against the cold.

The Go Fund Me campaign has already been very successful — thank you! Once we have the cargo van’s gas totals collected and reimbursed, we’ll send all the unspent dollars back to the camp to buy whatever they need by then.

The trip, and this entire experience, has been immensely powerful and eye-opening. A truly international network is engaged in alliance at Standing Rock; the sign post and a tour of license plates and handmade banners reveals the scope of the community on the ground. We are humbled by your generosity and inspired by the unflagging energy and commitment on active display all over the camp.

Cathy & Giles

Previous reports:
Ready to leave (last Tuesday)
Donation drive, 2 weeks in (November 13th)
First update (November 6th)
Donation drive announced (October 29th)

Share This

WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Bike theft on video

November 28, 2016 9:20 am

| 45 COMMENTS

| Crime | West Seattle news

That video is from Doug, showing the theft of his bicycle in North Delridge this morning:

I put the bike on the roof in my driveway at 25th and Brandon [map], then went inside for about 15 minutes. Not smart, obviously! When I came out to load my son into his car seat, I realized it was gone. The thief was visible on the edge of the security video frame for about a minute and a half shortly after I went inside the house, then approached the car with a pen light in his mouth. It took him about 3 minutes to get the bike off of the roof.

I carpool with my wife in the morning, but this is my main mode of transportation home in the evenings. It’s worth a lot financially and sentimentally as I put it together over many months this spring, picking out each part one at a time.

It’s an orange Soma Wolverine, size large steel frame. Drop handlebars, disc brakes, brown leather saddle (Fizik brand, but no logo – I glued the leather cover on myself), dynamo front hub with dynamo lights front and rear, 8 speed internally geared rear hub, extra wide tires and full black fenders, plus a rear rack. It’s a very distinctive bike. I’d appreciate it if everyone could keep an eye out.

Police incident number is 16-428111. And I should note that two officers arrived within 10 minutes and took this very seriously. A huge thanks to SPD!

Share This

TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Back to work/school Monday

November 28, 2016 6:30 am

| Comments Off on TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Back to work/school Monday

| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

(SDOT MAP with travel times/video links; is the ‘low bridge’ closed? LOOK HERE)

(Click any view for a close-up; more cameras on the WSB Traffic page)

6:30 AM: Good morning. Back to work, school, and regular transit schedules as we start the post-Thanksgiving week.

SPOKANE ST. PROJECT: The work on and around surface Spokane St. east of the low bridge continues this week – here’s the official flyer with the newest details.

LOOKING AHEAD: There’s talk the weather might get wintrier next week. MIGHT – but still, you might consider taking a look at SDOT‘s winter-weather info THIS week, just so you’re up to speed.

Share This

FREE: Muay Thai fundamentals for ages 10+ @ Elite Brazilian Jiu-jitsu of Seattle

November 28, 2016 12:29 am

| Comments Off on FREE: Muay Thai fundamentals for ages 10+ @ Elite Brazilian Jiu-jitsu of Seattle

| Delridge | Health | West Seattle news

Just got word of this free seminar next Sunday at Elite Brazilian Jiu-jitsu of Seattle (WSB sponsor):

Join us for a free seminar introducing you to the fundamentals of Muay Thai, a martial art developed hundreds of years ago as a form of close-combat that utilizes the entire body as a weapon. It’s also known as the deadly art of 8 limbs (hands, elbows, knees, and feet).

This seminar is free to the public. Come get a great workout, and learn some basic techniques, while having fun.

Ages 10+ (under 18 must be accompanied by parent/guardian)

Space is limited so go here to register ASAP!

Although the seminar is free, we do suggest a donation to the following crowdfunding campaign: crowdrise.com/michelles-battle-with-lung-cancer

Elite BJJ is at 5050 Delridge Way SW.

Share This