COUNTDOWN: Community info @ West Seattle Summer Fest 2018
West Seattle Summer Fest is almost here – the streets in the heart of The Junction start closing at 4 pm Thursday for setup and Summer Fest Eve festivities, and then starting at 10 am Friday, it’s on! We’ve been previewing various features of the festival – and right now, we want to call your attention to the question mark on the map above, at California/Alaska. That’s the Information Tent, but as always, it will be more than “just” festival info. It’s also where WSB is headquartered during Summer Fest, for as-it-happens coverage – and it’s also where community organizations/public agencies have free space so you can get community info! Here’s who will have reps there this year and when you can stop by to talk with them:
Friday, 10 am-2 pm
Girl Scouts of Western Washington
Seattle Public Schools Head Start
Friday, 2 pm-6 pm
Neighborcare Health
Making Strides Against Breast Cancer with American Cancer Society Seattle
Saturday, 10 am-2 pm
Seal Sitters Marine Mammal Stranding Network
SR3 Sealife Response, Rehab and Research
Saturday, 2 pm-6 pm
West Seattle Be Prepared
Endolyne Children’s Choir
Sunday, 11 am-2 pm
Seattle Police Department
Seattle Subway
Sunday, 2 pm-5 pm
Southwest Youth and Family Services
West Seattle Rotary Service Foundation
You’ll also find some community orgs at GreenLife in Junction Plaza Park, too.
Later today (Wednesday) – more previews – including Summer Fest food! (And you can browse the festival website for tons of advance info, too.)
Festival hours are Friday 10 am-6 pm, Saturday 10 am-6 pm, Sunday 11 am-5 pm, with music and beer garden running later the first two nights. See you at Summer Fest!
Morgan Junction mural restoration complete – with Easter eggs!
(WSB photos)
After 176 hours spread across 22 days, the Morgan Junction mural restoration is complete! (See a “before” image here.) We stopped by this afternoon as restoration artist Bob Henry met with project masterminds Dan Austin – who first hatched the idea more than 2 1/2 years ago – and Lora Swift.
We also got a tour of the “Easter eggs” you can look for in the finished work (west wall of the building on the southwest corner of Fauntleroy/California) – like a license plate honoring a key figure in the West Seattle murals’ creation and restoration, Earl Cruzen:
And another one in honor of this particular mural’s co-creator:
The restorer added a self-portrait too:
Next up in the quest to restore the murals – the Mosquito Fleet mural on the east side of the Campbell Building in The Junction.
West Seattle power outage: 138 out in The Junction
Thanks to Megan for the tip via Twitter: She says a “crash” was heard at Oregon 42 and then the power went out. The City Light map – itself suffering an outage when we first checked, but working again now – says 138 customers are out, pretty much right on that corner, southeast side of 42nd/Oregon. Cause is listed as “bird/animal” and SCL hopes to fix it within a few hours.
AIRCRAFT ALERT: Disaster drill at Boeing Field on Thursday
(Air Force file photo of C-17 Globemaster III over Joint Base Lewis-McChord)
If you’re among the West Seattleites who are in the flight path and/or line of sight of Boeing Field – you might notice some unusual activity this Thursday. Here’s the announcement:
Two C-17 military aircraft will arrive at Boeing Field at about 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Thursday, July 12, as part of a drill involving the medical transport of people “injured” in a fictional national disaster. The flights will be met by emergency responders and medical personnel, who will transport the “patients” to area hospitals.
Nearly two dozen local, state, federal, and private organizations, led by Madigan Army Medical Center at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, have worked together since October to plan the exercise—which is required to maintain the airport’s status as a part of the National Disaster Medical System.
We asked airport spokesperson Brent Champaco if any other aircraft would be participating; he replied that you might see a military helicopter too.
COMMUNITY GIVING: Senior Center of West Seattle celebrates gift from Adah Cruzen
(Photo courtesy Senior Center of West Seattle)
From left, that’s Adah Cruzen with Senior Center of West Seattle executive director Lyle Evans and social worker Holly McNeil. The occasion: A celebration honoring a big gift for the center, which relies on donations for most of its budget. Evans tells the story:
Last month the Center was approached by a member of the community who asked what the Center needed in order to continue and enhance operations. I provided a wish list, not knowing the impact that list would have. About three weeks later, Adah Cruzen invited me to her home for lunch.
If you haven’t had the pleasure of meeting Adah, she is a lovely, unassuming woman with a gigantic heart and a very sweet demeanor. Many in West Seattle know and love her. Many also knew her husband, Earl Cruzen, the “Father” of Murals of West Seattle and local community leader. Adah talked about how Earl cared so much about West Seattle and wanted to leave a legacy gift to ensure the Senior Center was taken care of.
Adah beamed when she talked about her love of the Ukulele group and how she loves eating in the Café. She asked me how she could best support the Center. “What’s at the top of your wish list?” she asked. We then discussed the importance of our Westside Friends outreach program that helps homebound elders, as well as the importance of good food to those who may have their single most nutritious meal of the day here at the Center. Additionally, we discussed support for our many health and wellness programs, infrastructure improvements, new computers for staff, as well as implementing a Point of Sale system to enhance existing services.
Our conversation included how vitally important it is to keep elders active in order for them to remain healthy, funding of the newsletter, and a commercial ice machine. We discussed how Hatten Hall needs improvement in order to bring more large groups into the Center, and how community is built one person at a time. This list was meant to be a partial list of items that the Center needs. I was overcome with emotion when Adah said she would fund everything we’d talked about with a legacy gift of $100,000!
We at the Center envisioned a day when we could expand physical space, programs, and outreach to welcome more of the people who need us the most. We want to become even more vibrant and more essential to those we serve, to do what we do better and grander. Earl and Adah Cruzen’s gift can help make that vision a reality. Thank you, Adah and Earl, for your most generous support! We appreciate it enormously!
Just two months ago, the mural-restoration project announced an identical gift from the Cruzens. Speaking of which, we’ll have an update on that a little later this evening!
First-ever West Seattle Beer & Music Festival set for next month
Before we get back to previews of imminent summer fun (and other news) – we want to be sure you know about the first-ever West Seattle Beer & Music Festival, which is sponsoring WSB right now to help get the word out. First thing you need to know – this is a 21+ event. It’s happening August 24th through 26th at the Masonic Center in The Junction, offering what organizers describe as “an amazing selection of unique beers, spirits, customized food pairings from local culinary heroes, and an event soundtrack of live music throughout the weekend.”
It’s a benefit, too, with ticket proceeds helping WestSide Baby serve thousands of families in need.
So far, 30 local and national brewers are participating in the West Seattle Beer & Music Festival, with 70 beers, both specialty and familiar. The spirits will be offered in handcrafted cocktails in a special lounge. And the food pairings will be featured in “Sips and Bites” popups “curated by local culinary stars working directly with festival brew masters.” Food on Sunday will include a pig roast, and that’s also Dog Day – when you’ll be able to bring your furry friend.
As for the music – showcased acts include Rippin’ Chicken, Funky 2 Death, Marmalades, and Unsinkable Heavies – plus others – as well as DJ Indica Jones.
“We are thrilled to bring this festival to our community. It’s a very exciting time to be on the Westside,” said West Seattle Beer & Music Festival Association chair Joe Jeannot. (Read more about organizers here.)
READY TO GET YOUR TICKET(S)? There’s a range of festival ticket options, starting at $25. All include a souvenir pint glass, available for pickup at the festival. Limited and VIP ticket offerings are available, with amenities listed by organizers as including “early access, preferred seating, special drinks, private restrooms, custom T-shirts, private pours, and epicurean creations.” Get your ticket(s) here!
IT’S BACK: Fauntleroy ‘stench’ returns; here’s how to deal with it
(WSB file photo of Fauntleroy Cove, looking toward Lincoln Park)
The infamous Fauntleroy “stench” is back, reports Judy Pickens from the Fauntleroy Community Association:
Since the early 1980s, rotting sea lettuce in Fauntleroy Cove has generated hydrogen sulfide gas (aka “the stench”) in the heat of summer. It inexplicably stopped about nine years ago and residents and visitors could breathe easy. Now, even after weeks of relatively cool weather, it’s back.
With hot days ahead, the following advice is offered to newcomers and long-term residents wanting to enjoy summer despite the stench:
– Keep a tide table handy or bookmark a table online so you can anticipate when low tide will be; sea lettuce emits the gas when low tide leaves it stranded on the beach.
– Close all windows and skylights when you first notice the acrid smell.
– Stay indoors until the air seems fresh again.
– Use a fan to blow out your bedroom before sleeping; the invisible gas is heavy and needs a push.
– Leave home for awhile if the smell is especially strong.
Remember: It’s not simply the smell of saltwater. It’s a noxious gas that can cause itchy eyes, headache, and nausea.
And the midday low tide is low indeed these next six days – here’s our favorite chart. P.S. Here’s a little more backstory.
WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Stolen silver Honda (found)
12:48 PM: From Katie – yet another stolen car to watch for: A silver 1996 Honda Civic sedan, taken near 31st/Roxbury early this morning. Plate AWC3683. Katie adds, “There is an ‘island girl’ decal on the back window of the car that should make it recognizable.” If you see it, call 911.
WEDNESDAY UPDATE: It’s been found, as noted in a comment. We’ll include the followup in our next Crime Watch roundup.
FOLLOWUP: $2.2 million bail for suspect in South Park teen murder
(WSB photo from February)
The suspect in February’s South Park murder of a 16-year-old boy was arrested in the area where it happened. That’s part of what we’ve learned from the probable-cause documents made public this morning in connection with 27-year-old Juan J. Macias‘s bail hearing. As we noted in the report on his arrest, he was already wanted on a $250,000 warrant after being charged in June with assaulting his girlfriend. The new documents say officers saw him Saturday evening at the Chevron station on 14th Avenue S. in South Park – same one in our photo, above, from the night of the shooting – and recognized him from a bulletin about that warrant. He was in the driver’s seat of a red Impala that they discovered had been stolen in Kent; the report says its engine was running and that officers found two “large fixed-blade knives” and two hatchets in the car. It does not say what led police to identify Macias as a suspect in the murder, but attributes that description to detectives. He is due back in court tomorrow afternoon, by which time there may be a charging decision in the case. Meantime, he’s being held in lieu of $2,250,000 bail.
See what’s up for your West Seattle Tuesday!
(Pacific-slope Flycatcher, photographed by Mark Ahlness)
Just some of the highlights for today/tonight on the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
WADING POOLS: Open today! In West Seattle, that means Lincoln Park (8011 Fauntleroy Way SW), 11 am-8 pm, and Delridge (Genesee/Delridge), noon-6:30 pm.
SOUTH SEATTLE FIBER ARTS CLUB: 11 am-1 pm, bring your project to Highland Park Improvement Club and be social while you create! (1116 SW Holden)
MOBILE BIKE REPAIRS: First BikeWorks session of the summer – free or reduced-price bicycle repairs on the driveway behind Neighborhood House High Point, 2-4:30 pm. (6400 Sylvan Way SW)
DELRIDGE GROCERY FARMSTAND: Fresh produce 3-7 pm at the farmstand at the Shell across from Delridge Grocery Coop‘s future store. (5441 Delridge Way SW)
LITTLE LEAGUE TOURNAMENT: West Seattle Little League‘s 11-12 All-Stars play Renton in a 6 pm semifinal game of the District 7 tournament at Bar-S Playfield on Alki Point. (64th SW/SW Admiral Way)
WEST SEATTLE BIKE CONNECTIONS: Rescheduled July get-together is tonight – more social than business – all welcome, 6:30 pm at Beer Star in White Center. (SW 98th/16th SW)
SOUTH DELRIDGE COMMUNITY GROUP: All welcome at SDCG’s monthly meeting, 7 pm at 2 Fingers Social. (9211 Delridge Way SW)
FAUNTLEROY COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION: 7 pm board meeting at Fauntleroy Schoolhouse, all welcome. (9131 California SW)
NO ADMIRAL NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION MEETING: The ANA meeting planned for tonight has been postponed – new date TBD.
Got something for the calendar? Please send info via e-mail – westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Tuesday watch
(SDOT MAP with travel times/video links; is the ‘low bridge’ closed? LOOK HERE)
7:03 AM: Good morning! No incidents currently reported in/from West Seattle.
LOOKING AHEAD: Thursday night, California closes to vehicle traffic between Edmunds and Genesee, and SW Alaska closes between 44th and 42nd, as West Seattle Summer Fest setup begins … Friday night, the next major northbound I-5 closure begins, but you can still get to/from West Seattle, as explained here.
CONGRATULATIONS! Lora Swift chosen as Grand Marshal of 2018 West Seattle Grand Parade
What a year for Lora Swift! Just a little past halfway into 2018, she’s already scored two major local honors – first, Westsider of the Year, as awarded by the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce, and now, we’ve learned she’s been chosen as Grand Marshal of the West Seattle Grand Parade (coming up July 21st)! You might know her best as executive director of the West Seattle Junction Association, but that’s just one of the many hats (and tiaras!) Lora has worn in the community. For more than a decade, she was proprietor of Hotwire Online Coffeehouse at the north end of The Junction; there, she founded what’s now the West Seattle Outdoor Movies series, which brings hundreds of people together on summer Saturday nights, and she’s also masterminded the West Seattle Art Walk among other fab community events. Right now, as news of her parade honor is announced, she’s coordinating the peninsula’s biggest party, West Seattle Summer Fest, Friday-Sunday (July 13th-15th) in the heart of The Junction. And then – maybe she can at least take a quick break to bask in the cheers along the parade route when she rides as Grand Marshal, starting at 11 am Saturday, July 21st, southbound on California SW from Lander to Edmunds. (WSB photo from May, as Lora volunteered at West Seattle Food Bank gala)
VIDEO: Music Under The Stars at Delridge CC Park, rain or shine!
7:36 PM: A raindrop here and there isn’t getting in the way of the second of four Music Under The Stars events, presented by the Seattle Chamber Music Society at Delridge Community Center Park (Genesee/26th) – live music by a student ensemble until 8, then live audio streamed in from the SCMS Summer Festival concert at Benaroya Hall. (Added – two longer clips from the live-at-Delridge mini-concert:)
Free – and North Delridge’s own Mode Music Studios (WSB sponsor) is here too with a kids’ activity booth.
7:59 PM: The live concert has ended – but the UW student musicians (who are awesome – we’ll add a clip or two when back at HQ) will be back during intermission, the SCMS rep has announced. Also: A prize drawing for everybody here – concert tickets. We’re headed in but the live audio from downtown is just about to start and there’s a lot of fun to be had at the park. (The drizzle, by the way, has long since stopped.)
COUNTDOWN: Preview the West Seattle Summer Fest visiting-vendor list!
West Seattle Summer Fest 2018 is just a few days away! The streets in the heart of The Junction close at 4 pm Thursday for setup and Summer Fest Eve fun – then West Seattle’s biggest party of the year starts at 10 am Friday. While the year-round Junction merchants, restaurants, and bars are the stars of the show – most with something extra during the festival (outdoor sales, sidewalk cafés, etc.) – 110+ visiting vendors (and organizations) will have booths too, and tonight, while the list is in the process of being added to the official Summer Fest website, we have the names (after the jump if you’re reading from the WSB home page):
Read More
FOLLOWUP: Bail set at $100,000 for West Seattle apartment-arson suspect
(WSB photo, Sunday)
A judge has set bail at $100,000 for the 31-year-old man arrested Sunday for allegedly setting his West Seattle Junction apartment on fire. We covered the fire at the Elan 41 complex at Jefferson Square early yesterday morning; later in the day, police announced they had arrested the resident of the apartment where the fire started. According to probable-cause documents used at this afternoon’s bail hearing, the man first told firefighters that he started the fire because, the report says, “there had been snipers in his apartment and they were shooting at him; to defend himself, he grabbed a bottle of acetone, threw it at them, and lit it on fire.” He then ran out, he is reported to have explained, but came back for his dog. After police arrested him, the report says, officers asked him why he started the fire; they say, “He changed the subject and wanted to know who the person was in the back of the patrol car.” The officer wrote that he advised the suspect he couldn’t see that person; “this made him upset.” The suspect then repeated what he had told SFD, adding, according to the police report, “he had saved people because the snipers would have killed them all.” The only prior arrest we can find for him was a misdemeanor assault case a year and a half ago, dismissed because there was “no prosecuting witness.” Not much information is available about that case but we do note his address was listed as the same apartment. One person was hurt in the fire, an SFD lieutenant who suffered minor injuries.
WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Stolen black Honda mini-van, ‘desperately needed for doctor appointments and therapies’
Another stolen vehicle to watch for – Ayn and her family really need it:
It was stolen the morning of the 8th between 2:30 am and 8:00 am. From in front of our house near the corner of 18th Ave SW & Elmgrove.
It is a Black 2018 Honda Odyssey, license plate# BJX 7919. Has a license plate holder that says SODO Honda of Seattle.
I’m disabled and have three children with Autism. We desperately need our vehicle for doctor appointments and therapies.
My disability placards and walker with wheels and seat were also in the Van.
Call 911 if you see the van – and/or an abandoned walker, too.
FOLLOWUP: Arrest in South Park teen murder
(WSB photo, February rally/march)
12:46 PM: Seattle Police have announced an arrest in the February murder of a 16-year-old boy in South Park. This was the deadly shooting that brought more than 100 people to a rally/march for peace days later. While the suspect is not yet charged in the murder, he is also jailed in connection with a $250,000 warrant in a case where charges have been filed, so we are publishing his name: 27-year-old Juan J. Macias. In the other case, he was charged in June with choking his girlfriend unconscious. We are checking with the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office to see if he is due for a bail hearing today; police say they arrested him in South Park on Saturday.
6:30 PM: Macias did have a bail hearing this afternoon. We don’t have documents yet but the jail register shows his bail now upped to $2,250,000.
More West Seattle outdoor music! 2018 lineup for Summer Concerts at The Mount
(WSB photo from 2017 Summer Concerts at The Mount)
In a summer full of outdoor music – West Seattle Summer Fest, Summer Concerts at Hiawatha, the Alki Art Fair, SPF 30, and more – here’s the newest lineup: Summer Concerts at The Mount! Four free Friday night shows on the south side of the Providence Mount St. Vincent campus (4831 35th SW). We just checked in with The Mount after a reader question, and found out this is the plan:
Aug. 3rd: The Abbagraphs
Playing the pop hits of ABBA and the disco era
Aug. 10th: The Illusion of Elvis by Danny Vernon
The King is back by popular demand!
Aug. 17th: Maia Santell and House Blend
Jazz, Big Band, Contemporary Favorites and Classic Hits
Aug. 24th: The 85th Street Big Band
Featuring swing favorites from the 30s, 40s & 50s
Dinner: 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm
Live music: 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Dinner is optional and available for purchase at all Mount concerts.
4 for your West Seattle Monday
(California sea lion, photographed by Mark Wangerin)
From the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
CREATE YOUR OWN COMIC: Southwest Library series starts for 4th through 7th graders, 2:30 pm. Free but registration is required – check to see if there’s room! (9010 35th SW)
EVENING BOOK GROUPS: Two meet tonight at local libraries at 6:45 pm – Southwest Library (9010 35th SW) is discussing “Orange is the New Black” by Piper Kerman; West Seattle (Admiral) Library (2306 42nd SW) is discussing “Run” by Ann Patchett.
MUSIC UNDER THE STARS, WEEK 2: Second of four Monday nights for the Seattle Chamber Music Society‘s free series at Delridge Community Center Park – at 7:30 pm, an ensemble plays live, and then at 8 pm the sound system carries live audio from the SCMS Summer Festival concert at Benaroya Hall. Bring your own blanket/chair, bring a picnic, bring the family, bring your neighbors! Here’s what last week was like. (Genesee/26th SW)
MONDAY QUIZ: 7:30 pm, all ages, prizes – longrunning quiz night at The Skylark. (3803 Delridge Way SW)
“Why Yoga Works and How It Can Work for You” is the title of a new book by someone who knows firsthand – Chris Dormaier, founder of 
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