West Seattle, Washington
14 Thursday
(Above, Hamm Building in 1956; below, sixty years later)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
A hearing February 15th is the next major step in determining whether the 91-year-old Hamm Building in the heart of The Junction gets city-landmark status.
The proposal to confer that status reached one milestone this past week, after an hour-and-a-half city Landmarks Preservation Board hearing that included both a strong show of community support and a declaration from a member of the family that owns the building saying the nomination “blindsided” them. The Southwest Seattle Historical Society, leading the campaign for landmark status for this building and the Campbell Building across the street, explained the notification process afterward, saying it had been talking with the family’s lawyer for months.
We reported briefly on Wednesday’s hearing shortly after its conclusion. Ahead in this report are details of how the hearing unfolded, and what happens next: Read More
Congratulations to nine local students for their success so far in a national arts competition! Thanks to Lindsay Yost for sharing the news tonight, on the eve of districtwide recognition for them:
Students from three schools in West Seattle have qualified to advance to the state level of the National PTA Reflections arts program! These students will be competing against students from all over Washington State. The Seattle Council PTSA is hosting a recognition ceremony, with special guest, Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Larry Nyland, tomorrow (Sunday, Jan. 8th) at the Seattle Armory from 2-3pm. The schools are:
Alki Elementary
Literature – Collin Temme, Where I’m FromDenny International Middle School
Visual Art – Kai Jackson, Girl in the Galaxy (above)
Visual Art – Daniel Crawford, My Weirdness (above)
Literature – Richard Garcia, The Meadow of Death
Literature – Kendall Sementelli, The one with scars
Photography – Veronica Dempster, Headshot (above)
Dance – Ruby Martin, Ruby’s Dance Choreography
Chief Sealth International High School
Literature – Audriana Slye, Four
Literature – Olivia Palmer, ON WRITING
Yost is Reflections chair at Alki Elementary and co-chair of the districtwide event (with Liza Rankin); Manuela Slye is Reflections chair for Denny and Sealth. Good luck to the young artists at the next level of competition! (You can see all their work on the Seattle website for Reflections – browse school-by-school.)
If you’re renting, or planning to, and not sure about your rights – you might be interested in the “Rent Smart” workshop announced by Solid Ground for later this month:
Monday, January 23rd from 6:30 to 8 pm
Youngstown Cultural Arts Center
4408 Delridge Way SWIn this FREE workshop for current and future renters and tenant advocates, Solid Ground Tenant Counselors will cover information to help consumers:
– Know and assert their rights as tenants
– Navigate the housing search and landlord screening process
– Protect themselves from eviction and housing loss
– Learn how to get deposits back and repairs madePlease note that while Solid Ground’s Tenant Counselors are not attorneys and cannot provide legal advice, they are recognized leaders in tenant education and advocacy.
QUESTIONS? Contact our Tenant Services Workshops & Advocacy Line at 206.694.6748 or tenantwa@solid-ground.org.
P.S. Yes, there are landlord workshops, too. Seattle Neighborhood Group offers those. You can contact them to find out when they’re planning the next one – doesn’t seem to be online yet.
https://www.facebook.com/events/581281532071094/
Inquilinos Inteligentes (“Rent Smart” en Español) – Beacon Hill
2:24 PM: Thanks to Mark Dale (above) and Chris Frankovich (below) for the views of sailboats off West Seattle today, part of the Three Tree Point Yacht Club‘s Duwamish Head Race.
ADDED 3:10 PM: Thanks to Lynn Hall for one more view – this one, from Duwamish Head itself:
More info on today’s race is here.
11:07 AM: Some areas of West Seattle still have snow on the ground from last weekend – and we could see more tonight. The National Weather Service has a Winter Weather Advisory alert up for our area, officially starting t 4 pm and continuing through 6 am Sunday. From that alert:
SNOW ACCUMULATIONS…UP TO ONE INCH OF SNOW…MAINLY SOUTH OF DOWNTOWN SEATTLE BUT INCLUDING THE BELLEVUE AND BREMERTON VICINITIES.
* ICE ACCUMULATION…SNOW WILL TRANSITION OVER TO RAIN OR FREEZING RAIN AFTER MIDNIGHT. AREAS SOUTH OF DOWNTOWN SEATTLE AND AWAY FROM THE WATER…COULD GET UP TO A TENTH OF ONE INCH OF ICE.
So far, precipitation is running below normal – .43 of an inch at Sea-Tac Airport so far, less than half the normal 1.11.
7:56 AM SUNDAY: The alert has expired without snow materializing here.
Thanks to Robert Spears for the photos of the Russell Investments building displaying its 12, as seen from West Seattle.
That of course is for tonight’s playoff game at the CLink, with the Seahawks vs. the Lions at 5:15 pm. Here on the peninsula, here’s what’s happening:
GET FIT WEST SEATTLE: First group run at 8 am today – meet at West Seattle Runner (WSB sponsor); details of the free training program are in our calendar listing. (2743 California SW)
CHRISTMAS TREE RECYCLING: The Rainbow Girls‘ annual fundraising Christmas tree recycling dropoff event is 9 am-1 pm in the parking lot at the Masonic Center in The Junction. By donation. (40th SW/SW Edmunds)
FREE CLASSES: Open House at Innate Vitality in Fauntleroy, with free classes noon-3 pm. (4509 Wildwood Place)
TWEEN TAKEOVER AT THE Y: 6:30-9 pm, free to nonmembers and members alike, part of the West Seattle YMCA (WSB sponsor) expansion grand opening celebration – details here. (36th SW/SW Snoqualmie)
WEST SEATTLE MEANINGFUL MOVIE: See and talk about “Promised Land,” a new documentary about the Duwamish and Chinook Tribes’ quests for restoration of treaty rights.
Doors open at 6:30, film at 7, optional facilitated discussion afterward. At Neighborhood House’s High Point Center. Free; donations accepted. (6400 Sylvan Way)
GIBBOUS MOON WALK WITH THE STARS, OWLS, AND OTHERS: 7 pm at Lincoln Park, nature walk with naturalist Stewart Wechsler. Details on his website. (8011 Fauntleroy Way SW)
PATRON APPRECIATION NIGHT: Free fun at Kenyon Hall – but you do need a reservation. 7:30 pm – more info in our calendar listing. (7904 35th SW)
THE ESOTERICS IN CONCERT: 8 pm at Holy Rosary Church. “For the first concert of its 24th season, The Esoterics will celebrate the centennial of African-American composer, conductor, and professor, Ulysses Kay.” Advance tickets available online. (42nd SW/SW Genesee)
SOULFUL SONGWRITING … is the theme for tonight’s 8:30 pm bill at Parliament Tavern. $5 cover. 21+. (4210 SW Admiral Way)
WEST SIDE GLORY: 9 pm at The Skylark, “West Seattle’s Quarterly Somewhat Queer Variety Show returns in 2017 with a THEME show – and that theme will be the late, great David Bowie!” More info in our calendar listing. 21+. (3803 Delridge Way SW)
AND EVEN MORE … for tonight, tomorrow, and beyond, on our complete calendar page!
12:27 AM: Just reminding you that the northbound lanes of Highway 99 between the West Seattle Bridge and Royal Brougham (stadium zone) are scheduled to remain closed until 8 am for pavement repair, so if you need to head from here to downtown, 1st, 4th, or I-5 are your main options. Another closure is scheduled for 10:30 pm Saturday night to 8 am Sunday.
7:08 AM: SDOT says WSDOT crews have cleared out and reopened NB 99.
11:22 AM: WSDOT says its crews finished the entire repair project last night/early today and so the closure scheduled for tonight/early Sunday is canceled.
The pink dots are where the city has off-leash dog parks now – in West Seattle, for example, Westcrest Park is the only one. Will more be added – and if so, where? A key step toward deciding that could come next Thursday night, when the Seattle Parks Board discusses, and might vote on, the draft People, Dogs, and Parks Strategic Plan.
You can see documents for the meeting here – including the points that board members are being asked to decide on Thursday night, spelled out in this “decision agenda” memo. It includes proposed changes to the draft plan, and also asks the board to affirm whether new off-leash areas would only be fenced sites – ruling out “leash-optional trails.” And the board will be asked to affirm the plan’s proposed policies for regulating professional dog walkers if they use off-leash areas – with a $100 annual license and requirements for certification if they seek to bring more than three dogs to an OLA after the first two years following passage of the plan.
Ahead of next Thursday’s meeting, the group Citizens for Off-Leash Areas has been circulating a survey asking for more suggestions for “pilot” off-leash spots – find it here. The survey’s introduction says Seattle Parks asked the group to come up with more possible locations. We asked Parks if that was indeed how they were soliciting site suggestions, rather than putting out a call to the public. Spokesperson Christina Hirsch replied:
When the final People, Dogs and Parks Plan is released in March, it will outline a process for the public to submit applications for off-leash locations. This process will be open to all, including groups and individual residents. Seattle Parks and Recreation will form a committee to review the applications and the Superintendent will make the final decision. This process will go through a public involvement process and community outreach.
COLA has worked in collaboration with SPR during the Off-Leash Area Master Plan process. COLA came to SPR with a list of off-leash location recommendations and we suggested that they develop a more comprehensive and geographically balanced list. It appears they are developing that revised list by soliciting community feedback.
COLA’s recommendations will go along with submissions from the community application process.
In the meantime, Thursday night’s board meeting considering the strategic plan is open to the public – 6:30 pm January 12th, at Parks HQ downtown (100 Dexter Ave. N.).
Thinking twice about leaving, or putting, your tree out, with a little more snow possibly on the way? Tomorrow you can drop it off for recycling with the Rainbow Girls, during their annual tree-recycling event at the Masonic Center in The Junction. Take it to the lot on the northeast corner of 40th and Edmunds in The Junction between 9 am and 1 pm Saturday. It’s a service the youth group is providing as a fundraiser, by donation, no set amount – give what you can.
Three utility updates today:
ARBOR HEIGHTS WATER-MAIN BREAK: Late last night, a reader mentioned a water-main break at 35th/107th in Arbor Heights. The crew was already gone when we got a chance to go take a look. Seattle Public Utilities spokesperson Ingrid Goodwin tells WSB it was a four-inch water-main break around 8 pm and crews had it fixed within a few hours.
The next two involve bucket-truck work for Seattle City Light:
TREE REMOVAL: Alan sent this photo and wondered about tree-removal work visible in the right-of-way near SW Holly and 14th SW:
SCL’s Scott Thomsen tells WSB:
When the trees in this area were last trimmed four years ago, the contractor doing the work did not follow best practices. This compromised the health of some trees with rot and multiple new starts. We stopped using that contractor.
In this cycle of trimming, we are resolving some of the problems that were created. Some of the trees that were damaged are indeed being removed based on their deteriorated condition.
STREETLIGHT SWITCHOVER: As mentioned here toward summer’s end, SCL is continuing to switch arterial streetlights to LEDs. Last night in The Junction, Paul Weatherman took these photos of crews working on SW Alaska just east of California SW:
The arterial work follows the completion of the switchover on residential streets. Here’s the wider view from last night:
SCL told us in August that the arterial conversions should be completed this year.
We’ve been following the case of a hit-run crash in Highland Park on December 14th that left a West Seattle man seriously injured, 24-year-old Levi Gryniewski.
Five days after the crash, we published a followup with his family asking for help finding the driver who left the scene at 16th/Thistle.
Now, they report a major development:
His father Bruce Gryniewski tells WSB that “SPD identified, arrested, booked, and released the driver of the vehicle and the driver of the vehicle that picked him up to flee the scene.” He says the 19-year-old suspect was arrested on December 21st, but he hasn’t been able to get much information (nor have we), aside that the investigation is continuing, and “according to the detective, both face serious charges for leaving the scene of an accident involving serious injury.”
Police told us last month that while the driver who hit Levi left his vehicle at the scene, its ownership was in question; Bruce Gryniewski says, “Apparently, the vehicle involved has changed hands twice during the past 6 months with no transfer of title to follow.” Nor, he says, was it insured. 
The car that Levi was driving (WSB photo at right), from which firefighters had to extricate him, belonged to a friend.
As for his son, who has run his own landscaping business since he was a teenager: “Levi’s condition has continued to improve but he has a long road ahead. Prayers and support from the West Seattle community has been incredible and moving and I want to thank everyone for keeping Levi in their thoughts and prayers. Of course there will be significant medical and rehabilitation bills ahead and we continue to look to the West Seattle community for support for his recovery.” Help continues to be accepted via this GoFundMe account to support Levi’s recovery expenses.
We will continue to follow the case.
(Sanderlings, photographed by Mark Wangerin)
First full weekend of 2017 is almost here. We start with a road-closure reminder:
NORTHBOUND 99 CLOSURE TONIGHT: From 8 pm tonight until 8 am Saturday, WSDOT crews will close northbound Highway 99 between the West Seattle Bridge and the stadium zone to repair damaged pavement. They’re scheduled to do it again 10:30 pm Saturday through 8 am Sunday.
Now, highlights from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
GIVE THE GIFT OF LIFE: If you can donate blood, consider participating in today’s donation drive – look for it at Admiral Safeway, 1 pm-7 pm, closed 3-4 pm for a break. (2622 California SW)
WORDS, WRITERS, WEST SEATTLE: The monthly Southwest Seattle Historical Society-presented author series at Barnes & Noble/Westwood Village is 5-7 pm tonight, this time featuring photographer/writer David Barnes and his book “Seattle Illuminated” – here’s his video invitation, courtesy of SWSHS:
(2600 SW Barton)
WEST SEATTLE YMCA EXPANSION CELEBRATION – FREE ‘FAMILY NIGHT’: 6:30 pm at the newly reopened/expanded West Seattle YMCA (WSB sponsor) in The Triangle, nonmembers and members alike are welcome for free fun including Family Zumba, Family Swim, and an obstacle course. (36th SW/SW Snoqualmie)
HIGH-SCHOOL BASKETBALL: All three local high schools play home games tonight – West Seattle High School girls vs. Garfield, 7 pm, and boys vs. Garfield, 8:30 pm (3000 California SW) … Chief Sealth International High School girls vs. Bishop Blanchet, 7 pm, and boys vs. Blanchet, 8:30 pm (2600 SW Thistle) … Seattle Lutheran High School girls (6 pm) and boys (7:30 pm) vs. Crosspoint (4100 SW Genesee).
TX TRUMBO: Performing at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor), 7-9 pm. (5612 California SW)
MORE LIVE MUSIC: See tonight’s other listings on our complete calendar!
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
The apartment project planned for 3039 SW Avalon Way has gone before the Southwest Design Review Board for the second and final time.
As with the first review of the evening (4220 SW 100th – our report is here), board members were chair Matt Zinski, Alexandra Moravec, and an ex-member filling in, Robin Murphy. From city staff, Lisa Rutzick was sitting in for the project’s assigned city planner Bruce Rips.
The biggest contrast from the night’s first review – only a few members of the public in attendance, and only one offered comment. But first: Read More
From Olga:
| 14 COMMENTS