West Seattle, Washington
27 Saturday
(WSB photo – from left, Shelly, Virginia, Cheryl, Chris, Maria, Jule F., Julie J., Karie)
Tired of staring out the window at the rain? Go wish SoundYoga (WSB sponsor) a happy 20th anniversary! Until 4 pm, the celebration is on at SoundYoga’s 5639 California SW [map] studio. Long before yoga became trendy, Chris Dormaier founded SoundYoga; she is also a Certified Teacher Trainer in the tradition of Krishnamacharya – the tradition in which all SoundYoga teachers are certified. They’re celebrating this afternoon with demonstrations, raffles, and free SoundYoga license-plate holders. Chris tells us that SoundYoga was West Seattle’s first yoga studio and that when she was getting started, they ended up buying the property because no one would rent to her – they thought a yoga business wouldn’t last! Not only has it lasted … there are new features, like the “total relaxation” setup:
You can see the current SoundYoga class schedule here.
Whether or not you made it to one of Thursday’s open houses for the new West Seattle Junction park (4700 block of 40th SW), you might be interested in the next step – the online survey you can use to see and choose which of the three designs you like best. Just got word from Seattle Parks‘ Karimah Edwards that the survey is now available online. The survey page also gives you a closeup of each design option, and has links to the “virtual tours” – Option 1 is here, Option 2 is here, Option 3 is here. The park will be on two-thirds of an acre that the city bought five years ago and “landbanked” until now; $1.9 million from Park District levy proceeds is budgeted to develop it, with construction expected next year.
(Lowman Beach driftwood, photographed Friday by WSB’s Patrick Sand)
Welcome to the weekend! Saturday highlights from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
OPEN HOUSE: Shorewood Christian School, preschool through 8th grade, invites you to stop by between 10 am and 2 pm. (10300 28th SW)
BASEBALL REGISTRATION: Southwest Little League is registering players 11 am-2 pm at Steve Cox Memorial Park. (1321 SW 102nd)
WINE & CHOCOLATE: Valentine’s Day is coming, and Viscon Cellars (WSB sponsor) is again pairing three of its award-winning wines with three chocolate truffles from Seattle’s own Intrigue Chocolate – this time with truffle bars, mini-truffle sets, and assorted chocolate bars. You can get in on this at the Viscon Cellars tasting room today and Friday/Saturday of next week too. The tasting room is open 5-9 pm Fridays and 2-7 pm Saturdays. (5910 California SW)
2ND MEMOIR-WRITING CLASS, VENUE CHANGE: The second of Martin Piccoli‘s memoir-writing classes has changed venues – 4 to 5:20 pm at Delridge Library. More info in our calendar listing. (5423 Delridge Way SW)
LOG HOUSE MUSEUM EXHIBIT OPENING RECEPTION: While the Southwest Seattle Historical Society‘s Log House Museum is usually open noon-4 pm, you have the chance to visit this evening during the opening reception for “Navigating to Alki,” the brand-new exhibit. 5-7 pm. All welcome. (61st SW/SW Stevens)
FUND THE FUTURE: Highland Park Elementary‘s first-ever auction fundraiser is tonight at Highland Park Improvement Club, 6 pm. Details in our calendar listing; 21+. (1116 SW Holden)
WEST SEATTLE MEANINGFUL MOVIES: Hate-Free Delridge joins WSMM this month to present “Harvest of Empire.” 6:30 mingling, 7 pm film that “reveals the direct connection between the long history of U.S. intervention in Latin America, and immigration today.” Discussion afterward, with Spanish interpretation; the film is subtitled. At Neighborhood House High Point. (6400 Sylvan Way SW)
ADMIRAL BIRD ANNIVERSARY PARTY: Celebrate 4 years of Admiral Bird – but don’t go to the coffee shop for the party – it’s happening at South Park Hall, the new venue operated by its co-proprietors. 7 pm-11 pm. Free! All ages. (1253 S. Cloverdale)
THE DEBUTONES: 7:30 pm at Kenyon Hall – “It’s a pleasure to welcome back The Debutones, and the light hidden gems of acoustic roots-based songs they perform so well.” Ticket info in our calendar listing. (7904 35th SW)
THERE’S MORE! See our complete calendar here.
(UPDATED SATURDAY NIGHT with playoff info)
(WSB photos by Patrick Sand)
Unlike the girls’ game that preceded it, last night’s Chief Sealth @ West Seattle boys-varsity game was relatively suspenseful – though the Wildcats won, 58-52, there were longer stretches in which you felt it could have gone either way. And the fans that filled both sides of the gym seemed to be hanging on every play like a dunking player who won’t let go of the rim.
Sealth #14 Sadique Calloway led scoring with 18 points. He and his teammates roared out to a 6-0 lead before West Seattle got on the scoreboard midway through the first quarter.
Despite a flurry of three-pointers, the first quarter ended with the relatively low score of 13-10, in the Seahawks’ favor. They kept the edge well into the second quarter, until an intense round of turnovers ended with a basket by #23 Anthony Giomi, who was West Seattle’s top scorer with 15.
Next for WSHS with 13 points was #1 Marcus Collins, followed by #5 Abdullahi Mohamed with 11, same tally as Sealth #22 Elijah Jackson. The Wildcats tied the Seahawks at 23-all with less than two minutes to go in the half – and the scoreboard went dark for a long moment. Shortly after it came back, West Seattle took the lead, and took it into the locker room at halftime, 26-24.
WSHS head coach Keffrey Fazio‘s team held the lead most of the way from there, though CSIHS head coach Colin Slingsby and team never let them run away with it. The Seahawks kept aggressively angling for steals and achieved some. The third quarter wrapped with WSHS ahead 42-36.
Then it was time to settle things. Here’s a short clip of fourth-quarter action:
Halftime at West Seattle HS: WSHS boys 26, Chief Sealth 24 pic.twitter.com/G6g0IjQmvR
— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) February 3, 2018
The fans stayed dug into the action, as Sealth kept trying to knock away at West Seattle’s lead, which was up to 8 with less than a minute and a half left, and starting to look permanent. But it got a little closer in the final minute, and Sealth seemed to have an outside chance – until the unavoidable fouling to pry away the ball resulted in foul shots and added points. And the buzzer sounded with WSHS six points ahead.
Senior Night acknowledgments preceded the boys-varsity game:
The varsity team is losing six seniors – #2 Elijah Nnanabu, #3 Kendall Green,, #11 Jackson Golgart, #15 Cass Elliott, #23 Anthony Giomi, and #24 Simon Harris. But first, the postseason awaits, and as with the girls, the boys will find out soon what’s next.
ADDED SATURDAY NIGHT: According to the Metro League website, the WSHS boys are scheduled to play O’Dea at 7 pm Monday (February 5th) at that school’s First Hill campus (802 Terry Ave.; map).
(UPDATED SATURDAY NIGHT with playoff info)
(WSB photos by Patrick Sand)
The high-school basketball regular season closed in raucous style Friday night at the jampacked West Seattle High School gym, as the Wildcats were visited by the crosstown competition, the Chief Sealth International High School Seahawks. The girls’ varsity game started unusually – West Seattle reserves played most of the first quarter, which began with each team getting a technical foul for what we’re told were numbering problems. By the time the first quarter ticked down to two minutes, the players on the floor were mostly varsity.
Sealth’s #3 Celia LaGuardia led all scorers with 24 points. For West Seattle, #20 Grace Sarver was tops with 20.
She came into the game with about three minutes to go in the first, and that’s when WSHS started chipping away at Sealth’s early lead. #32 Meghan Fiso tied it up at 11-11 with less than :20 to go in the quarter – she was the Wildcats’ second-leading scorer on the night with 14 points.
#2 Jasmine Smith had 13 for Sealth:
The Seahawks kept close for much of the second quarter. Baskets were answered, and they didn’t give West Seattle much of a chance to pull away – until the last few minutes of the half, when the Wildcats piled on 12 unanswered points, and went into the locker room with a 37-23 lead.
They held Sealth scoreless for the first three-plus minutes of the second half, until a foul shot that put the score at WSHS 46, Sealth 24. The gap continued to widen, with the third quarter ending WSHS 56, Sealth 30, and nothing much changed in the fourth quarter – though the big crowd, packed on both sides of the gym, kept the energy high, all the way to the final buzzer, with the Wildcats winning 76-51.
P.S. This was senior night for West Seattle – just one varsity player is graduating this year, #5 Rilcy Newsome:
The JV team has three seniors – Kathryn Anawalt, Hanan Yassin, and Rosa Grossi – we were a bit late to the pregame recognition and didn’t catch everyone on camera:
Senior cheerleaders Sophia Grupp and Kat Morigi were celebrated too!
We’ll find out within a few days who’s playing where in the postseason.
ADDED SATURDAY NIGHT: According to the Metro League website, the WSHS girls will play their first Metro League tournament game at 7 pm Wednesday (February 7th) at Seattle Pacific University (3307 3rd Ave. W.; map), vs. Cleveland or Ballard (whichever wins their Monday night game).
Seattle Public Schools confirms this letter – shared with us by a Denny International Middle School parent – was sent to the school’s families tonight:
Dear Denny Middle School families:
This letter is being sent home to our families to share important information about a serious allegation and our commitment to student safety.
You are receiving this letter because the allegation is against an employee who worked or substituted at your child’s school between 2014-15 and 2017-18 school years. We have no information that anything happened in our school, but we want you to be aware.
This week, we were notified that a student at John Muir Elementary had allegedly been sexually assaulted last year by an instructional assistant. While the alleged assaults took place at John Muir Elementary, where the instructional assistant worked full time last year, the student did not tell their parents about it until last Friday. Thankfully, the family immediately contacted law enforcement.
The Seattle Police Department (SPD) began its investigation over the weekend. When the District received the information on Monday, it took swift action against the alleged perpetrator, Mr. Albert Virachismith, to prevent him from being in contact with students and restricted his access to any district property until the SPD criminal investigation is complete. He is not currently working in any Seattle schools. The District also started its own administrative investigation and is coordinating its efforts with the SPD. Last night, the SPD notified us that Mr. Albert Virachismith was placed under arrest and is in custody.
The SPD advised the District that detectives may need to talk to students as they continue to investigate. SPD Detective Anthony Belgarde has been assigned to this case, and I understand he will contact families directly before interviewing any students.
This is difficult news, and we understand you will want to talk to your child about this case. We want to do everything possible to help the police conduct a thorough investigation. The SPD asks parents to avoid asking leading questions that could interfere with the police investigation. If your student indicates on their own that he or she may have been touched inappropriately, contact Detective Belgarde at anthony.belgarde@seattle.gov.
The district is preparing additional information for our school for how to talk with your children about personal safety. Other resources you can access are the King County Sexual Assault Resource Center at 888-998-6423 and Harborview Center for Sexual Assault and Traumatic Stress for information and help at 206-744-1600. If you have questions or concerns, please share your contact information with our school’s front office.
According to the King County Jail Register, Albert Virachismith, who is 40 years old, was booked earlier today and is being held in lieu of $100,000 bail, set at a probable-cause hearing earlier today, for investigation of child rape. We don’t have court documents from the hearing so we don’t yet know anything more about the case, aside from this district statement provided by spokesperson Kim Schmanke when we asked her about this tonight:
“Right now, our families are our priority. We are working to notify the families and staff where this individual has worked. These are disturbing allegations, and we are working closely with the Seattle Police Department. As soon as we were notified about the allegations, we barred Mr. Virachismith from taking any district jobs or being on school grounds. We are doing all we can to support a thorough SPD investigation.”
The suspect is due back in court next Tuesday, by which time a decision on charges will likely have been made.
Big day for high-school swimmers/divers tomorrow. Tonight we have an update from Brent Lindblom about Kennedy High School swimmers, including West Seattleites, headed into the district championships:
West Central District III Swim and Dive Champs
Though Kennedy Catholic High School is technically located in Burien, West Seattle has a growing number of students attending the school.
The Kennedy Boys swim and dive team is headed to WCD III 4A Swimming and Diving Championships being held at Curtis Aquatic Center (8805 40th St W, University Place). Congratulations to the Lancer boys moving on to Division championships:
Jack Fenster (50 Free)
Ty Lindblom (100 Back)
Ben Kinerk (50 Free & 100 Free)
Luke Dorsett (200 Free & 100 Free)
Brendan Stoll (50 Free)Alternates:
Trey Hunt (Alt) – Lucas Richardson (Alt) – JJ Hartog (Alt) – Riley Duvall (Alt) – Ryan Klem (Swim Alt)Date and Times for Swim Finals:
Saturday, February 3: Swimming Finals (Top 16 from Friday) – 3:30 Warmup – 4:30 StartExcept for participating athletes, all other students and parents must pay. Athletes will sit on the pool deck and spectators will sit upstairs. Admission is cash only – Adults: $8, Students w/ASB $5, Students without ASB $5, Under 12 $4, Senior Citizens $5
Above (or here in PDF) you can read the city’s contract with LIHI for its first four months of operating Camp Second Chance, the city-sanctioned encampment at 9701 Myers Way S., on the southeast edge of West Seattle. We obtained the contract from the city Human Services Department while looking ahead to Sunday’s monthly meeting of the Community Advisory Committee for the encampment (2 pm, Arrowhead Gardens, 9200 2nd SW).
At the past few meetings, someone has asked about getting a copy of the contract, and it’s been promised, but it hasn’t turned up on the city’s website, so we decided to ask in advance this time. It was for $75,000 to cover LIHI’s costs through the end of last year; HSD tells WSB that the contract for this year has not been finalized yet, but that’s expected to happen this month. Besides specifying the dollar amount, the 2017 contract – signed on November 21st – says that LIHI agrees to operate and provide case-management services for the encampment. It also spells out expectations on the duration of stay, and includes the explanation that the camp is self-managed, though campers do not have veto power over LIHI decisions. It also notes that campers provide security services, with at least one on duty at the gate at all times, and it notes that no one under 18 is allowed to stay at the camp.
One other issue that’s come up at Community Advisory Committee meetings – renewing the camp at the Myers Way Parcels site for a second year. Technically the camp’s already been there for a year and a half, but it didn’t become city-sanctioned until February of last year. We asked HSD spokesperson Meg Olberding about the status of a second year. Her reply in full:
Since opening the first city-funded managed encampment in November 2015, we’ve seen that they are an important part of the continuum to address unsheltered homelessness. Every night, nearly 300 people have a safer place to stay because of our six managed encampments. HSD received direction from the City Council during the budget season to expand the program to all districts in Seattle. We are balancing that policy direction with the commitment we’ve made to both encampment residents and housed neighbors to provide healthy and safe living conditions. As discussed in the Camp Second Chance CAC meeting in early January, HSD is working on a re-permitting process for the City’s managed encampments that acknowledges the commitment made to community members and the importance of these safer spaces for unsheltered people.
(Friday morning photo courtesy of Al)
Monday is expected to be the third day of the First Student school-bus drivers’ strike in Seattle, according to their union, Teamsters Local 174, which posted this afternoon that “Since First Student still has not reached out to return to the negotiating table, the strike will be continuing on Monday.” The post also mentioned that West Seattle/South Park City Councilmember Lisa Herbold visited picketers this afternoon (they have lines up outside First Student bus yards in South Park and Lake City). The district said yesterday that the company expected to provide some service during the strike but did not publicly announce where, saying that affected families would be notified directly. The union says health-care benefits for workers’ families are a major point of contention.
Three weeks ago, we reported that the new MOD Pizza in The Whittaker (4755 Fauntleroy Way SW; WSB sponsor) planned to open in “early February.” The official grand opening is now set for one week from today – noon on Friday, February 9th. The Seattle-based chain also has picked the nonprofit to which it’ll donate opening day’s pizza proceeds: FareStart. If you haven’t been to MOD, its angle on pizza is that you get to choose your toppings, none or one or many, same price.
Another case in which a West Seattle Crime Watch reader report led to a theft victim being reunited with at least some of their stolen property. You might recall the car-break-in report from Emily, who was hopeful someone might spot her stolen ski boots. And someone did – we got a message yesterday from a reader who found them, and some of the other stolen items, less than a mile away, in the underground parking garage by Bartell Drugs in Admiral. Emily now has them back and adds, “I really appreciate the effort made by the person who found the items to reunite them with me.” We hope you don’t ever have a crime to report, but if you do, once you’ve filed a police report, let us know so we can include it here – at least as a warning to your neighbors peninsula-wide, and if it was a theft, a WSB reader just might spot some or all of your stuff.
… as soon as we saw a hint of sun and a glimpse of the Olympics’ famous peaks The Brothers, we ran out with the camera. The enthusiasm is justified by these stats:
Seattle had a total of 30 days in January that were either cloudy (22) or partly cloudy (8). Good news! It's February…so the most we can rack up this month is 28. #wawx
— NWS Seattle (@NWSSeattle) February 1, 2018
But if you’re no big fan of cold weather, you might have enjoyed January – the NWS also tweeted that only one day had a low temperature below freezing.
The members of the new city-convened Small Business Advisory Council have just been announced, and we recognize two West Seattle businesses on the list. As explained in the news release from Mayor Jenny Durkan‘s office, the SBAC is “a group tasked with ensuring small businesses have a role in informing policies and programs, and have the access to resources they need to thrive and be part of the solutions to the challenges of growth and Seattle’s affordability crisis” and “will provide input on the impact of City decisions, make policy recommendations, and help increase access to tools and resources available to small businesses including arts and culture organizations.” The announcement notes that small businesses “account for more than half of all jobs in Washington State and employ nearly 200,000 people in Seattle.”
Here are the members announced by the mayor – we’ve highlighted those we know have local ties (please let us know if we missed someone!):
Co-Chair Joe Fugere, Tutta Bella Neapolitan Pizzeria
Co-Chair Taylor Hoang, Cyclo Corp., Ethnic Business Coalition
Co-Chair Donna Moodie, Marjorie Restaurant, Mint Holding
Co-Chair Tracy Taylor, Elliott Bay Book Company
Maryan Abdulle, Nasib Family Child Care
Zewditu Aschenaki, Salon Adidez
Joey Burgess, Queer/Bar, Grim’s Provisions and Spirits
Shaiza Damji, Hotel Nexus
Solomon Dubie, Café Avole
Annette Heide-Jessen, Kaffeeklatsch
Edouardo Jordan, Salare Restaurant, JuneBaby
Lacey Leavitt, Electric Dream Factory
Elise Lindborg, ZippyDogs LLC
Rachel Marshall, Rachel’s Ginger Beer
Michael Megalli, indie.biz
Debbie Millard, Ballard Oil Company
Molly Moon, Molly Moon’s Homemade Ice Cream
Linda Morton, Terra Plata
Gayle Nowicki, Gargoyles Statuary
Kamala Saxton, Marination
Lei Ann Shiramizu, Momo
Leigh Stone, Crybaby Studios
Gail Stringer, Hawaii General Store
Chuck Wang, Stage
Edwin Wanji, Sphere Solar Energy
Beto Yarce, Ventures
Lara Zahaba, Stoup Brewing
The SBAC also will have two city councilmembers serving “ex officio”: West Seattle/South Park’s Lisa Herbold and, newly elected to citywide Position 8, Teresa Mosqueda. The group’s expected to meet quarterly, starting with its first meeting on February 21st.
(Gulls, photographed by Robin Sinner, shared via the WSB Flickr group)
From the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar, as we head into February’s first weekend:
SSC FRIENDS & FAMILY DAY @ EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY CENTER: Thinking about studying at South Seattle College (WSB sponsor)? Stop by the TRIO Educational Opportunity Center between 11 am and 3 pm. Friends/family invited too! (6000 16th SW)
WINE AND CHOCOLATE: In advance of Valentine’s Day, Viscon Cellars (WSB sponsor) is again pairing three of its award-winning wines with three chocolate truffles from Pioneer Square-based Intrigue Chocolate. Last year’s edition of this “was such a sumptuous success, we had to repeat it,” explains winemaker Ben Viscon – this time with truffle bars, mini-truffle sets, and assorted chocolate bars. You can get in on this at the Viscon Cellars tasting room tonight, tomorrow, and Friday/Saturday of next week too. The tasting room is open 5-9 pm Fridays and 2-7 pm Saturdays. (5910 California SW)
CORNER BAR IN HIGHLAND PARK: The monthly neighborhood pop-up bar at Highland Park Improvement Club happens tonight, starting at 6 pm. Music with The Jesus Chords begins around 8. (1116 SW Holden)
BASKETBALL: The high-school regular season ends with a big cross-town showdown at West Seattle High School, as the Wildcats host the Chief Sealth International High School Seahawks. Girls JV at 4 pm, boys JV at 5:30 pm, girls varsity at 7 pm, boys varsity at 8:30 pm. (3000 California SW)
POON + GNARLENE AND THE FRISKY PIGS: 8 pm at The Skylark. $8 cover. 21+. (3803 Delridge Way SW)
CAVEMAN EGO ALBUM RELEASE: 8 pm at Parliament Tavern. Caveman Ego, with Palatine Trio. 21+. (4210 SW Admiral Way)
PREVIEW THE WEEKEND … by going to our complete-calendar page.
If you have unused, unneeded diapers in a size from newborn to 5T – maybe your baby/toddler just moved to another size, for example – you can donate them to WestSide Baby in a unique door-to-door donation drive tomorrow, but you have to sign up by tonight. WS Baby has partnered with Owen’s List – a Seattle family’s waste-reduction campaign – to collect diapers. Here’s what you have to do: No later than 8 tonight, sign up for Owen’s List via the button on the center of this page. You’ll get e-mail with details of the diaper drive (we tested the signup and the e-mail arrived immediately) – then put your donation(s) out tonight for pickup tomorrow. You can of course donate a box or bag of diapers as well as an unused partial pack.
P.S. If you want to help WestSide Baby but can’t be part of this drive – go here.
(SDOT MAP with travel times/video links; is the ‘low bridge’ closed? LOOK HERE)
7:02 AM: Good morning. No incidents reported in/from West Seattle so far.
SCHOOL-BUS STRIKE: Day two, although Seattle Public Schools said First Student might provide some service, and that affected families would be notified directly.
MONDAY REMINDER: The Fauntleroy/Wildwood intersection closure, including rerouting of the C Line and 116 buses, is scheduled to start Monday and last up to two weeks.
7:08 AM: Transit alert just in from Metro:
Transit Alert – The first Route 57 to downtown Seattle due to leave the Alaska Junction at 6:41 AM is operating more than 30 minutes late this morning.
— King County Metro🚌 (@kcmetrobus) February 2, 2018
12:58 AM: Police are looking for a driver who they wound up following across the West Seattle Bridge – going the wrong way. We heard it all start on the scanner on I-5, and then police reported the driver was going westbound in the eastbound lanes of the bridge. The driver hit a barrier, according to police, and kept going. We recorded part of this via an SDOT camera and will add it when we can. The driver reportedly got off the bridge and then was seen on California by Charlestown “all over the road” but we haven’t heard any updates since. The vehicle is described so far as an older white Tahoe, and it’s reported to have left a trailer behind somewhere along the way. If you see this – or any other – erratic driver, call 911.
1:33 AM: Added our phone video of the SDOT camera that showed the wrong-way driver and police. Watch the left side of the screen for a vehicle trailing sparks. Still haven’t heard any word of police finding him (the description that was broadcast mentioned a beard as well as a gray beanie, so we’re fairly sure the driver was male).
10:44 AM: We confirmed with SPD that the vehicle/driver never was found. We also found out that officers in the South Precinct initially believed there was some association with a burglary case, but now they don’t think so, and believe it was more likely a case of driving under the influence.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
When a meeting room at the Sisson Building/Senior Center filled to overflowing last night for the Junction Neighborhood Organization‘s quarterly meeting, the biggest news was already a couple hours old – SDOT‘s announcement that the Fauntleroy Boulevard project is on hold.
For those who hadn’t already heard, JuNO director Amanda Sawyer recapped it at the start of the meeting. (SDOT did not send reps to talk about it, as had been the original plan before the suspension was announced.) She and West Seattle Junction Association executive director Lora Swift both stressed that since SDOT is saying it will reallocate the project funds – last described as $15 million to $18 million – to other WS projects, feedback to Councilmember Lisa Herbold is important. (Send yours to lisa.herbold@seattle.gov.)
So that left the meeting devoted to two other big topics affecting The Junction – the HALA Mandatory Housing Affordability upzoning proposal that has just gone into City Council review, and Sound Transit planning for West Seattle light rail, which is just starting its formal community-outreach process.
In our development-notes roundup last weekend, we mentioned the Streamlined Design Review comment period was about to start for the microapartment project planned at 4807 41st SW – three stories, 22 units, no offstreet parking. Tonight, the official notice is out, setting the comment deadline as February 14th, and the “design packet” is now posted on the city website for public review. It’s embedded above, and also visible in PDF here. If you have comments on the plan, the notice explains how to send them to the city (and notes that this is the only opportunity for public comment; the Streamlined Design Review process does not include public meetings).
A new addition to the RainWise-enhanced grounds of Peace Lutheran Church in Gatewood – a new permanent sign explaining the stormwater-diverting program and the congregation’s commitment to it. In the photo sent by Pastor Erik Kindem is congregation president Michael Truog, who is also chair of the church’s Green Team. So next time you walk or ride by 39th SW/SW Thistle, take a look! You can also take a look at this PDF showing what’s on the sign. (The church celebrated its RainWise improvements at an event we covered last year.)
The strike by drivers for First Student, which has the contract for Seattle Public Schools yellow-bus service, is expected to continue tomorrow. The district has just posted this update – note the second and third paragraphs:
First Student bus drivers are on strike, and we do not know how long it will last. This means there will be no yellow school bus service until further notice. You will need to use your family’s plan to get your student to and from school. We will remind families of bus-riding students by phone and email each evening until the strike is over.
Some bus routes may be provided during strike. First Student anticipates they will be able to serve some bus routes during the strike. First Student will prioritize special education routes whenever possible. Not all drivers are qualified to drive these specialized routes, so it will depend on availability.
If a driver is available for your student’s route, the district’s transportation office will call you the night before.
The update continues, with the district’s strike FAQ, here. The drivers’ union says the issues are health-care and retirement benefits; no word yet on new negotiations/offers.
Today we’re welcoming a new WSB sponsor, Trendy Crafts. New local sponsors get the chance to tell you about their business, and here’s what Trendy Crafts would like you to know:
It all started in 2004, when two friends discovered a shared passion for crafting. As new mothers, the hours for creating were limited. Eventually, with children in school, Julie Rasmussen and Elizabeth Chapman decided to share their love of crafting as an afterschool class at their children’s school. It wasn’t long before requests came in from other schools to teach Trendy Crafts, and a business was born. Over the last five years, Trendy Crafts has continued to expand to many of the elementary schools in West Seattle.
Trendy Crafts inspires children to think creatively, to believe in their artistic vision and to support and encourage each other. We also love to share the joy of crafting in our community and are always looking for opportunities to bring people together to create! We are very excited to bring 5 sessions of summer camp to West Seattle families this summer.
If you have a child that loves to create and craft, a Trendy Crafts afterschool class or summer camp is the place to be. We focus on crafting in a social environment, and the results are projects both kids and parents want to keep! We often have parents tell us that their child loves to craft and they just don’t have time to do it at home (or don’t want the mess). We are passionate about keeping the American Arts and Crafts movement alive and thriving in the next generation.
We see so many transformations through crafting – children boost their self-confidence, and we work hard to foster an environment that is socially supportive for all kids. Adults who craft with us are looking for a social and creative outlet, and we often hear about how they were looking for a way to add more creativity into their lives. A night out with friends that ends with a creation you love is a positive experience.
In the five years that Trendy Crafts has been part of the West Seattle community, we have built relationships with so many families through craft projects. Adults and children alike are looking for creative outlets and we love to provide options. We host birthday parties, adult evening crafting events, and of course our afterschool enrichment classes and summer camps. In the past we have partnered with other West Seattle businesses to host adult craft parties.
Trendy Crafts‘ founders are active in the community, with organizations including CARE.org – to support and empower children around the world – and Girl Scouts of Western Washington, to encourage and inspire girls in our community (you might remember this WSB story). In addition to the very crafty Girl Scout troop that Elizabeth leads, they also volunteer as Cabin Leaders at Camp Chinook every summer.
Interested in Trendy Crafts summer camp? Here’s the registration page. Links about everything Trendy Crafts offers can be found on their home page. Questions? Contact info is here.
We thank Trendy Crafts 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.
That’s Karimah Edwards from Seattle Parks, holding a tablet to show us the “fly-through” renderings of the three design concepts for the future West Seattle Junction park in the 4700 block of 40th SW [map]. We checked them out at the first of today/tonight’s two “open house” sessions, to show you what you’ll find if you stop by the site tonight for the second drop-in event, 5:30-7 pm. You’ll see the three concepts on easels, too:
GGLO worked with Seattle Parks to create the concepts, using the 10 features that were most popular in last year’s feedback (hundreds of people took the online survey and/or visited the drop-in Farmers’ Market meeting). All three concepts have some things in common – like lots of seating, and garden-style plantings – but otherwise, some dramatically different central features, like a boardwalk in Option 2 and a 6-foot climbing wall in Option 3. The open-house location, by the way, is at the site but fully covered, inside the big tent that was used as a temporary fire station there for more than a year, so don’t worry about the weather:
Refreshments are from the indie coffee and wine bar that’s literally next door to the park, Sound and Fog:
If you just can’t stop by tonight either, a survey will be available online soon – watch the official project website for that. The city bought the 2/3-acre park site five years ago for $1.4 million and has had it “landbanked” until money ($1.9 million) was available for developing it; that’s coming from the Seattle Park District levy.
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