West Seattle, Washington
22 Sunday
{Picketers at South Park bus yard – photo from Al)
5:57 AM: As announced Tuesday afternoon, drivers for First Student, which provides yellow-school-bus service for Seattle Public Schools, are out today on a one-day strike. That means no buses for about 12,000 students around the city. School IS in session, so those students’ families have to get them to their schools some other way. Teamsters Union Local 174, which represents the drivers, says the strike is a protest of “First Student’s unilateral change and implementation of an inferior medical plan for its employees,” adding, “Bus service should resume on Thursday, November 30; however, a longer strike can be called at any time if a deal is not reached.” The district says it expects to confirm the end of the strike with messages to families and the public later today.
12:08 PM UPDATE: The district says some buses did run this morning, though it doesn’t say where, and that those buses will run again this afternoon. (You might have seen video of one bus going through the picket line in South Park; we have a version of that – added above.) Affected families will be notified directly by phone, according to the district. Meantime, the district still says it’s expecting full service to resume tomorrow.
5:42 PM: If your child(ren) use yellow-bus service to get to Seattle Public Schools, you likely have already received a message with the district confirmation that First Student yellow-bus service is expected to be back to full strength tomorrow after today’s one-day strike.
(WSB photos)
Between a slow start and a close call toward the end, the Chief Sealth International High School varsity girls played some exciting basketball on their way to a season-opening home win Tuesday night, 39-30 over Kennedy Catholic HS. It was a promising debut for new head coach Cartiea French-Toney.
The first quarter had Sealth down 6-1 at one point – but the Seahawks fought back, and by its end, they were up 10-7.
#2, senior Jasmine Smith, was top scorer. But Sealth’s defense against the Lancers was vital too. A dramatic double-teaming moment with two minutes left in the first half forced Kennedy to turn the ball over, and that was extra momentum propelling Sealth to a 19-13 halftime lead.
The second half was barely 30 seconds old when #1, senior Aundra Tuchscherer, got the first basket.
The lead kept growing, with a three-pointer by Smith just about a minute later giving the Seahawks a double-digit lead.
Kennedy wasn’t giving up, though, and with less than two minutes left in the game, pulled to within three points. Sealth’s resolve toughened and they piled on a few points in the next minute, then a few more, and the final score was 38-30.
Next scheduled game for the Sealth girls: 6 pm Saturday at Rainier Beach.
(Photo by Joseph Peha)
Also taking office as soon as the election results were certified today – new City Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda, who was elected to at-large (citywide) Position 8. Like Mayor Jenny Durkan, Mosqueda takes office earlier than would be customary because of a domino effect going back to former Mayor Murray’s resignation. Since the previous P-8 officeholder, Tim Burgess, was appointed to serve as mayor until today – he didn’t run for re-election anyway – interim councilmember Kirsten Harris-Talley‘s term concluded today, and Mosqueda took office. Her final margin of victory over Jon Grant was 60 percent to 40 percent. West Seattle-residing Councilmember Lorena González was re-elected to the other citywide position (9) but there’s no rush for her re-swearing-in.
(WSB photos. WSHS #5 above, Abdullahi Mohamed)
High-school basketball season is on! At West Seattle High School tonight, the Wildcat boys faced visitors from Australia, the West Sydney Giants. The result: A 77-32 win for head coach Keffrey Fazio‘s varsity team.
(WSHS #15 above, Cass Elliott, and #3, Kendall Green)
Next on the schedule for the WSHS boys, a home game at 8:30 pm Friday against Nathan Hale HS, 0-1 after losing their season opener tonight to Puyallup..
A reader reports that two of their relatives were taken to the hospital after a robbery and hit-and-run incident at 25th SW and SW Myrtle about an hour ago. The reader says two people in a white Toyota “pulled a gun on one, stole everything, beat him, then fled the scene,” after hitting the other man with a car, and damaging his car too. We’re working to find out more. (Added: No new info, so we will follow up Wednesday. If you have any information, the case number is 17-439646.)
(WSB video of Youngstown event, replacing what was Seattle Channel live-stream window from earlier)
4:15 PM: We’re at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center in North Delridge, where newly inaugurated Mayor Jenny Durkan will be appearing soon. Though this was the initially announced time, it’s slid a bit, and is likely to be closer to 4:45. When she appears here, the Seattle Channel live feed will be accessible via the window embedded above, or by going here. She took the oath of office at the Ethiopian Community Center in Rainier Beach about half an hour ago, and declared it was time to “get to work.” We’ll update when she arrives.
The event here, by the way, is to be emceed by West Seattle-residing County Council Chair Joe McDermott, who has already arrived.
4:50 PM: The mayor is at the podium. We count 70+ people on the side of the room, including Police Chief Kathleen O’Toole and Fire Chief Harold Scoggins. County Executive Dow Constantine just administered a ceremonial 2nd oath:
The mayor said she realizes West Seattle used to be a city all its own but she’s glad it’s part of Seattle now.
5:03 PM: Mayor Durkan wrapped up her speech and signed an executive order about rent assistance (read it here), and shortly she will be off to her next stop, in the International District. Seattle Channel also planned to stream that, so we’ll leave the video window up for a while. We recorded our own video of this stop and will add it when it’s ready to upload. The mayor, by the way, promised she would be back in West Seattle often – so often we’ll “get sick of” her. In fact she is already planning a second visit tomorrow, at South Seattle College (WSB sponsor), to talk about her plan to expand college access. More later.
7:50 PM: Our video of the Youngstown event is now atop this story. We’ve added a few more photos, too. Among the people we talked to there was the police chief:
We asked her the question she said “everybody” has been asking her – is she staying on in the Durkan administration? She said she’ll be talking with the new mayor next week about the department’s future, but for today, she was planning to go to all five events, but staying on the sidelines because “it’s (Durkan’s) day.” Other top police brass were there, and County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Satterberg, too:
Not only is the new mayor coming back tomorrow as mentioned above, she also has a transition-team member coming to West Seattle tomorrow night to listen to community members’ concerns.
2:54 PM: You’ll want an umbrella as well as binoculars if you go look for them, but we’re told by both Kersti Muul and Jeff Hogan that orcas are headed southbound past Constellation Park right now, so they should be visible for a while off West Seattle.
3:16 PM: Jeff’s moving to Emma Schmitz Overlook [map] as the orcas continue heading south.
4:17 PM: See comments for updates – they’re still in view!
2:17 PM: Just in from Seattle Public Schools: No yellow-school-bus service tomorrow (Wednesday, November 29th) because school-bus drivers plan a one-day strike. (Thanks to those who just called and texted to make sure we had heard!) Here’s the announcement on the SPS website:
The First Student bus drivers have stated they are going on a one-day strike, effective Wed., Nov. 29.
This means there will be no yellow school bus service on Wed., Nov. 29. Families will need to make other transportation arrangements to get their child to and from school.
We anticipate the First Student bus service will resume Thurs., Nov. 30.
We recognize the inconvenience this will have on Seattle families and have gathered answers to questions families may have.
You can read those answers on this page. As noted here back on Sunday night, this has been a possibility for months – the drivers, represented by Teamsters Union Local 174, have not reached agreement with First Student (who is their employer, not the district) on health and retirement issues.
ADDED 2:27 PM: Here’s the union’s announcement about the strike, which also describes it as a one-day action, and says picketing is planned Wednesday at two locations, including the big First Student bus yard in South Park (8249 5th Ave S.).
From the West Seattle Transportation Coalition:
We survived #BlackFriday and #CyberMonday … but what about #TransportationThursday?
The West Seattle Transportation Coalition November meeting is this Thursday, November 30, 2017 at 6:30 p.m. at Neighborhood House High Point Center (6400 Sylvan Way SW).
We have a great program on tap. Washington State Ferries Senior Planning Manager Ray Deardorf will be there to talk about the ferry system’s future plans and Sound Transit will also be on hand with a high-level view of ST3. Please join us for what promises to be a very informative evening.
This will be our last meeting of the calendar year. Our next meeting will be on Thursday, January 25, 2018.
If you missed WSTC’s last meeting – a special forum about transportation alternatives, particularly for the mobility-challenged – here’s our coverage.
Two reader reports in West Seattle Crime Watch, plus crime-prevention advice:
STOLEN LAND CRUISER: That’s Ketsy‘s Toyota LandCruiser, “stolen from in front of our house near 47th and Erskine sometime between 10 pm and 6 am last night/this morning. Keep an eye out. She’s easy to spot and identify with a black hood and roof.” Call 911 if you see it. (added) Plate # ASL1277 – police report # 17-438713.
Meantime, from the found-and-apparently-stolen file:
WERE YOU AWAITING THAT STAR? From Grandma and GiGi:
This beautiful star was found in opened packaging, with no shipping information, discarded along a street in WS. We want the owner to have their star.
If it might be yours – let us know.
PREVENTING HOLIDAY-SEASON CRIME: Just as we were getting ready to publish the two reports above – Southwest Precinct Crime Prevention Coordinator Jennifer Burbridge sent her latest newsletter, with seasonal advice – read it here (PDF) or as embedded below:
(Spotted towhee, photographed by Mark Wangerin)
From the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar and Holiday Guide:
GIVING TUESDAY: We’re continuing to add to our list here – see who would love a boost from you!
NEW MAYOR VISITS WEST SEATTLE: As previewed here on Sunday, Jenny Durkan takes the oath of office this afternoon and sets out on a five-stop tour of the city, with her second stop, at 4:15 pm, Youngstown Cultural Arts Center in North Delridge. All welcome. (4408 Delridge Way SW)
WEST SEATTLE LIGHTS: Giving Tuesday is a great chance to support the charitable causes that this light show gives a big boost to. The lights and music are on 5-9 tonight; you can bring nonperishable food for the West Seattle Food Bank and/or donate directly to its chosen causes online. (3908 SW Charlestown)
FAMILY STORY TIME: 7 pm at Delridge Library – stories, songs, and rhymes. Always free. (5423 Delridge Way SW)
LEARN TO DANCE! Beginning swing at 7 pm, beginning waltz at 8:15 pm, take one or both classes, four-week session starting tonight at Senior Center of West Seattle. (4217 SW Oregon)
CHIEF SEALTH IHS GIRLS’ BASKETBALL: 7:30 pm, first home game of the season, vs. Kennedy Catholic. (2600 SW Thistle)
WEST SEATTLE HS BOYS’ BASKETBALL: 7:30 pm, first home game of the season, vs. the West Sydney Giants from Australia. (3000 California SW)
PUNK-JAZZ BLEND: That’s what Parliament Tavern promises you’ll get with The Suffering F-Heads tonight, 8-11 pm. No cover. 21+. (4210 SW Admiral Way)
Something for our calendar and/or Holiday Guide? E-mail the info as early as you can to editor@westseattleblog.com – thank you!
(UPDATING THROUGH THE DAY/NIGHT as we hear of local additions)
9:09 AM: After Black Friday, Shop Small Saturday, Cyber Monday … now it’s Giving Tuesday. If you can chip in to your favorite nonprofit, this is the day to do it. So far we’ve heard directly from one local campaign – the Lafayette Elementary School PTA:
We are hoping to raise $4,005 during this campaign to support instrumental music, the purchase of basic school supplies, and the procurement of eight tablets for low-income students so they are able to do their digital math and reading assignments (Note: Lafayette has moved completely away from homework packets and uses RazKids and DreamBox platforms for student-variable learning).
They’re receiving contributions via this GoFundMe page. Anyone else in West Seattle/White Center with a Giving Tuesday campaign? Please post a comment, or e-mail us, and we’ll add it to the story! Also remember that we have holiday-season-specific giving/volunteering opportunities listed in the WSB West Seattle Holiday Guide.
10 AM: We’ve also heard from WestSide Baby, which would love to get a boost today for its work helping thousands of babies and kids – here’s where to donate.
ALSO ADDED:
Concord International Elementary – Grocery Gift Cards: “Concord International Elementary School is an incredible school with bright, hard-working kids, loving families, and passionate staff. Concord serves a high-poverty community — 75% of our kids qualify for Free and Reduced Lunch and many of our kids benefit from our weekly Backpack program, which sends home meals over the weekend. We would love to raise enough for a $50 grocery gift card for each child in the Backpack program for the 16 days away from the food programs.” (Donate here) … Concord also has a greening/safety project (learn/help here), and its general PTA PayPal donation link is here.
Fairmount Park Elementary PTA: “We are raising money to help support the budget gap for critical programs such as program support for the school’s library, physical education, visual arts, and music, grants and scholarships for families experiencing hardship, classroom support, educational field trips and assemblies and our student council leadership program.” PayPal donation link is here.
YMCA HELP FOR HOMELESS YOUTH: Donate here to help with this:
The YMCA is the largest provider of housing for homeless young adults in King County, housing 280 young people on any given night. It provides support services such as education, employment and mental health counseling to help young people reach their full potential. Every dollar raised through #GivingTuesday will go toward these crucial, life-saving services.
Just for today, Delta Air Lines will match all gifts. With added support from individuals who donate on Giving Tuesday, we can make a bigger impact on ending youth homelessness. Please step up and help the Y help our youth today. No donation is too small.
WEST SEATTLEITES’ NONPROFIT SUPPORTING CONSERVATION ON A NICARAGUAN ISLAND: Just got this Giving Tuesday addition from a West Seattleite who is co-director of the new nonprofit Guias Unidos:
My co-director/husband and I have been National Park Service rangers for the last few years, and just started GU. We are working with ecotourism guides and businesses in Nicaragua on Ometepe Island to support conservation and sustainable development so the new and booming tourism industry there doesn’t destroy the environment or communities of the island. Our website is www.guiasunidos.org, and our donation site is (here) – that runs through Earth Island Institute, our umbrella agency.
(SDOT MAP with travel times/video links; is the ‘low bridge’ closed? LOOK HERE)
7:02 AM: The rain’s back. But so far, no incidents are reported in West Seattle or on the major outbound routes.
9:02 AM: Still soggy but otherwise an unremarkable commute. Thanks in advance for letting us know if you see a trouble spot at any time, day or night – 206-293-6302, text or voice when you can use your phone safely/legally.
(Looking northwest across church’s ‘park’)
Though a Morgan Junction church’s request for an upzone to enable denser housing on open space next door has been in the city system for four years, it still should be subject to not-yet-finalized Mandatory Housing Affordability. So said the City Council’s Planning, Land Use, and Zoning Committee tonight. Three committee members voted unanimously to approve the West Seattle Church of the Nazarene‘s proposed upzone – but without waiving MHA, which only the council has the power to do. With MHA, the church will either have to pay the city an estimated $200,000 – almost a third of the revenue it expected to get from the project and hoped to spend on renovating their deteriorating church building – or set aside two of the townhouses for “affordable housing.” Project supporters could not make their case to the council at tonight’s committee meeting because the rezone is a “quasi-judicial” action; project architect David Neiman laid out the issues on his website last week:
The general idea behind MHA is that a re-zone is supposed to confer value to the property owner, and in exchange the city asks the owner to contribute that value back to the city. In the case of WSCN’s project, the proposed project includes a Property Use and Development agreement (PUDA) that will dedicate much of the land to a public open space, constraining the use of the site to such an extent that it will actually have less development potential after the re-zone than it does today. …
… What will the City Council do when faced with a project that voluntarily provides community benefits that prevent it from using the development potential conferred by a re-zone? Does the property owner have to pay anyway even though they receive no value in return? Is MHA really about a fair exchange of value creation and value capture, or is it just a fine levied on all new development?
Neiman’s post also shows site plans comparing the townhouse proposa to six units that could be built on the church’s site right now without a rezone – three houses and three “accessory dwelling units” that would take up most of what the church had proposed leaving as open space. Tonight’s vote by Councilmembers Lisa Herbold, Rob Johnson, and Mike O’Brien was not the final action – that’s up to the full Council, which will get the matter on December 11th.
DECEMBER 1ST CORRECTION: According to the agenda for next Monday’s council meeting, to which the final vote has been moved, those voting earlier this week were Johnson, O’Brien, Harris-Talley, and Juarez for, no one against, Herbold abstaining.
6:26 PM: Last Friday, we told you about a citywide coalition of neighborhood groups, including 3 from West Seattle, planning to challenge the city’s plan for HALA (Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda) upzoning, as released with its Final Environmental Impact Statement two weeks ago (this interactive map shows proposed zoning changes). Today, representatives of the more than 20 groups gathered in the City Hall lobby downtown to formally announce the appeal. Here’s our unedited video of the 20-plus-minute event:
The three West Seattle groups participating in the appeal are from three of West Seattle’s four urban villages: Morgan Community Association (Morgan Junction), Junction Neighborhood Organization (West Seattle Junction), and Westwood-Roxhill-Arbor Heights Community Coalition (Westwood-Highland Park). And we have just received the coalition’s official “notice of appeal” document – read it here, or embedded below:
We’ll be reading it in the hours ahead and adding notes; in addition, as mentioned today, several neighborhood groups are pursuing their own individual appeals – those include MoCA and JuNO, as well as some from elsewhere in the city; the city Hearing Examiner‘s files already show four appeals, from Beacon Hill, Wallingford, and Fremont groups, as well as an individual citizen from North Seattle.
From the city side, Councilmember Rob Johnson – whose office has a leadership role in the HALA process as he chairs the Planning, Land Use, and Zoning Committee – has published his reaction to news of the appeals, concluding:
Though Council is prohibited from taking final action during the appeal process, we will continue our planned 8-month outreach and deliberation process so that when the appeal is resolved, we can act quickly to implement a critical strategy that will result in more income and rent-restricted housing and more housing options across our city for people of all incomes.
More later.
ADDED 11:20 PM: We’ve read through the coalition’s 17-page appeal document, and also received the notices of appeal by the two local groups that have also filed their own, JuNO and MoCA. Those documents are after the jump, along with toplines from the coalition appeal if you don’t have the time or inclination to read through the full document:
Three reports in West Seattle Crime Watch – first, from SPD Blotter:
3 ARRESTED IN CONSTRUCTION-SITE BURGLARY: A 911 caller reported seeing two intruders at the construction site at the southwest corner of Fauntleroy and Edmunds around 2 am, putting items into a box and taking it to a waiting car. Here’s what SPD says happened from there:
Officers responded and saw the car traveling along Fauntleroy Way SW. The officers ran the plate of the vehicle and discovered it had been reported stolen from a Renton address. Officers stopped the stolen car and found three people inside. Officers spoke with the witness who said the passengers, a 25-year-old man, and a 36-year-old man, were the same people they had seen in the construction area earlier. Officers placed the two under arrest for burglary and booked them into King County Jail. Officers also arrested the 28-year-old driver for possession of a stolen vehicle and will work with prosecutors as that case moves ahead.
The two burglary suspects remain in jail this evening, according to the online register.
Also – two reader reports:
HOME BURGLARIZED: Just in from Tyler:
I got home from work today and my house has been broken into. This happened between 8:30 am-2:30 p today.
Back window shattered (very small window that would be tough to enter through, the police and I believe it was a kid).
Glass shattered in my kitchen and doors and dressers all opened and rummaged through in every room. Back sliding door left wide open, lucky our indoor cat didn’t leave.
Tablet, laptop, Xbox one, and about 15 newly wrapped Christmas gifts under the tree have all been stolen.
I am on the 8100 block of 17th Ave in Highland Park.
CHRISTMAS LIGHTS STOLEN: Erica near 51st/Edmunds reports that “our holiday lights (projection dots on our house) were stolen from our front yard last night between 8 pm and 5 am … We put them up yesterday with our kids; they were so sad this morning to find they had been taken!”
Thanks to the person who texted with a report of brown water in their neighborhood southwest of The Junction, near 51st and Edmunds – Seattle Public Utilities told them there’s hydrant testing in the area. Any time you experience discolored water, here’s the number to use to let SPU know: 206-386-1800. (They have some additional advice on this page.)
In the wake of last August’s Atlantic salmon farm collapse in north Puget Sound, King County Executive Dow Constantine wants to ensure no new pens are built in waters over which the county has jurisdiction. The announcement:
Citing the threat to native salmon populations, King County Executive Dow Constantine today called for a six-month moratorium on allowing any new Atlantic fish farming facilities along marine shoreline in unincorporated King County.
“The hundreds of thousands of farmed, invasive Atlantic salmon that spilled into the Salish Sea in August threaten our native fish populations and our way of life,” said Executive Constantine. “Atlantic salmon don’t belong here. Beyond a six month moratorium, we need to ensure these operations can never again pose a threat to indigenous salmon already struggling to survive.”
Legislation enacting the moratorium will be transmitted to the King County Council (today). Indian tribes including the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe and Suquamish Tribe reviewed and approved the proposed moratorium to ensure it did not interfere with their local fisheries and treaty rights.
In the State of Washington, commercial net pens are required to obtain federal and state permits. Local governments like King County can also require permits as part of implementing shoreline master plans.
While the state has issued a moratorium on permits they administer for net pens, an applicant could still apply for and receive a county shorelines permit.
The moratorium announced by Executive Constantine will enable King County to review and strengthen its shoreline regulations to eliminate the risk of harm from non-native salmon farming to native salmon runs and sensitive shorelines.
King County rivers are home to seven native salmon species, including chinook, steelhead, and bull trout populations that are protected by the Endangered Species Act. Puget Sound is where these and other salmon species spend much of their lives, feeding for a year or more, before returning to their home streams to spawn.
King County and a host of partners, including treaty Indian tribes, cities, counties, and state and federal agencies have invested heavily in salmon-habitat preservation and restoration efforts.
Executive Constantine’s proposed moratorium coincides with a state-mandated review and update of King County’s Shoreline Master Program. The program includes policies, regulations and plans that manage the shorelines within King County’s jurisdiction, and is incorporated into the County’s comprehensive plan.
The Shoreline Master Program must be reviewed, updated and delivered to the Washington Department of Ecology by June 30, 2019.
The nearest Atlantic-salmon-farming facilities right now, according to what we’ve found out via research so far, are off Bainbridge Island, which is part of Kitsap County.
Two notes today about Seattle Parks play-area-renovation projects in West Seattle:
HIGH POINT ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: Today’s city-circulated Land Use Information Bulletin includes a notice that the High Point Play Area renovation project outside the HP Community Center has been determined to be environmentally non-significant. That opens a comment period if you have something to say – as long as you get your comment in by December 11th (today’s notice explains how). The full document can be seen here. Also noted on the project website – the project is now expected to start in fall 2018, because of “permitting delays.”
MEETING REMINDER FOR LINCOLN PARK SOUTH: This Wednesday is the first of two meetings for the Lincoln Park South Play Area project – 6-7:30 pm November 29th at The Kenney (7125 Fauntleroy Way SW). This is to replace the equipment that was abruptly closed and removed this past summer because of safety concerns. The meeting will give you a chance to “learn about the project and provide input on play equipment and the overall design for the play area.” Whether you can or can’t be there, the city invites you to answer this survey, too.
(WSB photo)
Another sign of the season in the West Seattle Junction – the wreaths went up on the lampposts this morning, and evergreen garlands will follow shortly.
(Photo by Brian Presser)
This is another reason for us to remind you that the biggest night for this year’s West Seattle Junction Hometown Holidays is this Saturday (December 2nd) – first, starting at 3 pm, SW Alaska will be closed between California and 42nd for a Night Market, not only a chance to shop local vendors but also for seasonal fun including Santa photos and for kids to decorate wooden snowflakes that they’ll be able to hang on the tree in Junction Plaza Park – the same tree that will be lit in a 5 pm program hosted this year by Sundae + Mr. Goessl. See the full Hometown Holidays (co-sponsored by WSB) event lineup here.
(Killdeer, photographed by Mark Wangerin)
Here’s what’s happening for the rest of this back-to-work-and-school Monday include, from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar and Holiday Guide:
COOKING CLASSES: “Meatless Mondays” at the West Seattle YMCA (WSB sponsor) with Chef Kim O’Donnel, today focusing on lentil shepherd’s pie, 10 am and 4 pm classes – contact the Y to sign up in advance. (36th SW/SW Snoqualmie)
HALA UPZONING APPEAL: As previewed on Friday, a coalition of neighborhood groups including three from West Seattle (Morgan Community Association, Junction Neighborhood Organization, Westwood-Roxhill-Arbor Heights Community Coalition) will gather at City Hall at 12:15 pm to announce their plan to appeal the city’s proposal for upzoning in urban villages and other commercal/multifamily-zoned areas as part of the Housing Affordability and Livability Act. (600 4th Ave.)
TINKERLAB AT DELRIDGE LIBRARY: Fun all-ages STEM-based craft program, 4-5:30 pm, today focusing on iMovie/stop-motion animation. Free. (5423 Delridge Way SW)
WEST SEATTLE LIGHTS: Music-synched light show, running 5-9 pm tonight (see the full-season schedule here) – bring nonperishable food for the West Seattle Food Bank. (3908 SW Charlestown)
COUNCIL COMMITTEE CONSIDERS CHURCH’S UPZONE PROPOSAL: Not related to the HALA upzoning but – as reported here last week – potentially affected by the fees for it, the West Seattle Church of the Nazarene‘s request for a site-specific upzone to allow 6 townhouses on its “park” site (zoned for 3 single-family houses) goes before the City Council’s Planning, Land Use, and Zoning Committee at 5 pm tonight. (600 4th Ave.)
MONDAY QUIZ: 7:30 pm at The Skylark, six rounds of 10 questions each (as explained here), all ages. (3803 Delridge Way SW)
Something for our calendar or Holiday Guide? E-mail info, soon as you have it, to editor@westseattleblog.com – thank you!
(SDOT MAP with travel times/video links; is the ‘low bridge’ closed? LOOK HERE)
6:59 AM: Good morning! Back to work, back to school after the holiday weekend. No incidents reported so far in or from West Seattle.
7:29 PM: Caller reports a bus is broken down in the transit lane on the bridge.
7:51 AM: Eastbound lanes on the low bridge are blocked by a crash towsrd its west end. (Thsnks for the text!)
8:06 AM: SDOT says the low-bridge crash is cleared.
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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