day : 26/11/2017 8 results

Seattle Public Schools is continuing to remind families that there COULD be a school-bus-driver strike at any time, and one reader suggested we should publish an update.

First Student is the company that provides yellow-bus service for SPS students. It’s been two months since the Teamsters Union Local 174 members who work for First Student voted to authorize a (potential) strike, as explained on the union’s website. And that followed what the union says were “several months of negotiations” over health care and pensions.

The most-recent update on the union website is from November 15th, reporting that mediated talks had broken down.

Just before Thanksgiving break, the district published an update on its website, reminding families:

… First Student and the bus driver union have not resolved their labor dispute and continue to negotiate. All families who use yellow school bus service need to have alternative plans to get their student to school in the event of a strike.

Any potential strike affects yellow bus riders. If your student gets to school using other district-provided methods (e.g. taxi, American Logistics), those services will not be disrupted. …

No updates on the bus service’s website. The district promises notification as quickly as possible if it gets word of a walkout, and we would of course publish it here too. So far, though, no changes, so this is just a reminder that it’s still a possibility.

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WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Wreath thief; another bicycle found…

November 26, 2017 7:03 pm

| 3 COMMENTS

| Crime | West Seattle news

In West Seattle Crime Watch:

WREATH THIEF: David‘s security camera recorded a thief taking the wreath right off his front door early Saturday:

12:07 am at 48th Ave SW and SW Hudson, to be specific.

ANOTHER BICYCLE FOUND: Bill found this one near Lincoln Park:

I found a kid’s bike on Thanksgiving morning on the corner of Fauntleroy and Othello. I stuck it in my garage but then immediately left for Thanksgiving stuff. Now that I’m back home, I took a picture:

Look familiar? Let us know.

MORE PROPANE-TANK THEFTS: In comments following Saturday’s report on a propane-tank theft caught on video, two other readers report they too had tanks taken in the area.

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THE CHRISTMAS PEOPLE: Holiday dinner in West Seattle again this year – cookies and helpers needed!

November 26, 2017 4:00 pm

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| Holidays | How to help | West Seattle news

Now that Thanksgiving is over, let’s talk Christmas! For almost two decades, The Christmas People Foundation has been providing Christmas dinners to thousands of people around Seattle. Last year for the first time, the group also organized a festive free sit-down dinner in West Seattle, and promised they’d do it again this year, with an earlier announcement. So here’s the plan:

HELP NEEDED: If you can help, you can do it via something simple – bake homemade cookies (no store-bought) and drop them off at Alki Masonic Center (40th/Edmunds) 9 am-1 pm December 22nd/23rd/24th/25th – or something a little more complex: If you are a professional sous chef, line cook, or food handler, your volunteer help would be welcome! Call 206-719-4979 and talk with one of The Christmas People’s co-founders (Dr. Ruth Bishop and Fred Hutchinson).

ATTEND THE EVENT: Noon-4 pm at Alki Masonic Center on Christmas Day (Monday, December 25th), you’ll find a full-course dinner, including coffee/tea and dessert. Entertainment, too – trombonist/vocalist Marc Smason.

Again, this is free, and all are welcome, particularly, per the announcement, “elders, homeless, and those who would otherwise be alone” on the holiday. You can find out more via TheChristmasPeople.org.

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Jenny Durkan to visit West Seattle on Tuesday during 5-stop tour after becoming mayor

November 26, 2017 1:44 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle politics

The biggest story in the week ahead is likely to be the Seattle mayoral transition: Tuesday is the day that Jenny Durkan becomes Mayor. That afternoon, she will head out on a five-stop tour to “take City Hall directly into communities across Seattle … and share her vision for the City,” with the second stop scheduled to be in West Seattle. The advisory from her transition team says she will be at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way SW) at 4:15 pm Tuesday. Her other stops will be in the Rainier Valley, International District, Phinney Ridge, and Lake City. Tuesday is the day the election will be certified, and with only a handful of votes to be counted, Durkan’s victory over Cary Moon is 56% to 44%.

(P.S. Thanks to Diane for posting about the mayoral tour plan in the WSB Forum!)

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Seen at West Seattle Farmers’ Market: Wreaths, trees, tickets

November 26, 2017 12:15 pm

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| Holidays | West Seattle Farmers' Market | West Seattle news

Haven’t made it to the West Seattle Farmers’ Market yet today? Here are three reasons to go despite the intermittently blustery weather: Above, as mentioned in the WSB West Seattle Holiday Guide, the Pathfinder K-8 handmade wreaths are back for another year, technically just south of the market on the KeyBank corner at California/Alaska – they raise money for Pathfinder students’ outdoor education. (They’re scheduled to be back the next two Sundays, too.) Below – Christmas trees!

Three Tree Farms from Mossyrock is on the east side of the market with fresh trees. And on the south end of the market, the Kiwanis Club of West Seattle has tickets for next Saturday’s pancake breakfast:

The 7-11 am drop-in event (with community sponsors including WSB) at Alki Masonic Center (40th/Edmunds in The Junction) on December 2nd is a festive way to start the biggest Saturday of the season – and it’s a great family deal because kids under 10 eat free with a paying adult, and Santa’s there for photos. If you don’t get your ticket from the Kiwanis today, you can also buy online – or, for a bit more, at the door next Saturday.

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WEST SEATTLE WHALE WATCHING: Orcas seen from Alki

November 26, 2017 9:56 am

| 2 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news

(WSB photo added: Whale-watchers at Alki)

9:56 AM: Thanks to Jeff Hogan from Killer Whale Tales for calling to share the news that orcas are visible off Alki Point right now. No particular direction at the moment. Updates to come, and please let us know (comment, or text/call 206-293-6302) if you see them!

10:06 AM: Jeff says they’re now moving northbound – but slowly.

10:50 AM: Texter says they are off Wing Point, which is just north of Eagle Harbor (where ferries dock) on Bainbridge. Meantime we have found Jeff and some whalewatchers toward the west end of the Alki promenade – he says they’re almost out of viewing range from here.

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WEST SEATTLE POWER OUTAGE: 49 customers in Gatewood

November 26, 2017 8:36 am

| 3 COMMENTS

| Gatewood | Utilities | West Seattle news

8:36 AM: Thanks for the tips – first we got a text about a “boom” in Gatewood, then Matt e-mailed about a transformer/fuse blowing near California/Myrtle, and now the Seattle City Light outage map shows 49 customers out in that area. Estimated restoration is after noon, but remember that those are just “guesstimates” and it could be sooner (as was the case with the most recent West Seattle outage of note) or later.

1:26 PM: The original estimated restoration time has now come and gone, and there’s a new one, 3:43 pm. The map also now attributes the outage to “tree.”

2:28 PM: And the outage has ended, sometime in the past hour, after 5+ hours.

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What’s up for your West Seattle Sunday

November 26, 2017 7:33 am

| 1 COMMENT

| West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

(Harlequin ducks, photographed by Mark Ahlness, shared via the WSB Flickr group)

Here’s what’s happening as the long holiday weekend concludes, starting with highlights from the WSB West Seattle Holiday Guide:

DUWAMISH NATIVE HOLIDAY GIFT FAIR, 10 am-5 pm one last day, at the Duwamish Tribe Longhouse and Cultural Center in West Seattle. Buy directly from Native artists and craftspersons. Details in our calendar listing. (4705 W. Marginal Way SW)

KIWANIS PANCAKE BREAKFAST TICKETS: Going to the Farmers’ Market? Stop by the Kiwanis Club of West Seattle tent at the south end and buy your ticket(s) for next Saturday’s Pancake Breakfast. They’ll be there 10 am-2 pm today. (California/Alaska)

WREATH SALES: Pathfinder K-8 makes handmade wreaths and sells them in The Junction during the season – today’s the first day the PTSA tells us they’ll be sold in The Junction during the Farmers Market, 10 am-2 pm. All proceeds go to supporting our outdoor education. (California/Alaska)

SANTA PHOTOS: Santa is at Westwood Village 11 am-6 pm on Sundays. (2600 SW Barton)

WEST SEATTLE LIGHTS: The music-synched show at West Seattle Lights continues nightly. See the schedule by going here – 5 to 9 pm on Sundays – and bring nonperishable food for the West Seattle Food Bank bin out front (3908 SW Charlestown)

And from the year-round WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:

WEST SEATTLE FARMERS’ MARKET: 10 am-2 pm, year-round – locally grown and crafted food and beverages. (California SW between SW Oregon and SW Alaska)

OPEN MIC: Mode Music Studios (WSB sponsor) presents its monthly Get Onstage/Get Involved open mic at The Skylark – sign up at 3, music around 4 (after the Seahawks game), more info here. (3803 Delridge Way SW)

MUSIC AND SPOKEN WORD: Tim Scallon and Grace Dager at Parliament Tavern, 7 pm. No cover. 21+. (4210 SW Admiral Way)

Something for our calendar or holiday guide? E-mail the info to editor@westseattleblog.com – thank you!

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