West Seattle, Washington
24 Sunday
10:53 PM: Police including a K9 team are searching in the area of 35th and Raymond. The call started as a reported hit-run crash, with the driver and at least one passenger leaving the scene on foot; then police reported via radio to dispatch that a passenger left behind told them the incident included an “attempted drive-by shooting.” So now police are also looking for those possible suspects in what was described only as a white Buick.
11:01 PM: Via radio – the search is focused on that white Buick, as officers believe the people who left the scene were trying to escape danger. The white Buick is also now described as having dark-tinted windows and one burned-out headlight.
(WSB photos by Patrick Sand)
As announced a month and a half ago, Friday (March 8th) is the big night for The Best of Hands Brewery and Barrelhouse (7500 35th SW) – its grand opening! The proprietors took a break from intensive preparations to invite media in tonight, so we stopped by for photos.
Above are Chris Richardson, Gregory Marlor, and Nicholas Marianetti. They’ll have 17 beers on tap when they open – 12 ar theirs.
Best of Hands is focused on “farmhouse and sour ales inspired by those of Belgium and France but with an emphasis on Washington state ingredients, mixed-culture fermentation, and some spontaneous fermentation.”
Best of Hands is not a restaurant, but food trucks will be visiting – Falafel Salam this Friday, Buddha Bruddah on Saturday, Plum Bistro on Sunday. Best of Hands is a 21+ space; hours will be 3 to 10 pm, Thursdays through Mondays.
P.S. If you’re wondering about the rooftop cow, inherited from the space’s previous tenant John’s Corner Deli – it’s not back in place yet, but, the proprietors tell us, soon!
ADDED TUESDAY: The cow’s return turned out to be REALLY soon – hours later!
(WSB photos by Patrick Sand)
A lot of what was planned for February – then postponed by snow – is happening in the days and weeks ahead. Today at Louisa Boren STEM K-8, for example, a daylong schedule of guests and activities comprised the rescheduled celebration of National African American Parent Involvement Day. We stopped by to check on some of what was going on. Above, Marquis McNeil was part of the all-day career fair – he is president and owner of MMI-2 International Research, and some of what he brought along – technology used by his company – caught the STEM students’ attention, as you might expect:
Low-tech attractions, too, like the books brought by Hella Black Books bookseller Joy Sparks:
Delbert Richardson‘s “American History Traveling Museum” – which, as we showed you, stopped at Arbor Heights Elementary last week – was on display too:
And a visitor from SPD – “Detective Cookie” of Chess Club fame:
Organizers were Hayward Coleman, Anisha Noriega, and Edd Hampton:
The day also included a catered breakfast for parents and an assembly for students.
Thanks to parent Alicia for the tip! Got something cool at YOUR school? Let us know!
Know a young actor who might be interested in being part of a musical production in West Seattle? From the WSB inbox:
Calling all actors 4th – 8th grade! Seattle Lutheran High School’s drama program invites community members for an amazing opportunity to be included in the spring production of “Wizard of Oz.” The production calls for 12 actors to appear as Munchkins who may or may not have a speaking part. Ms. Zandi, the director, is excited to welcome all who are interested. Please contact her right away for an immediate need. Performance dates are April 26, April 27 and April 28. Please contact Ms. Zandi at mzandi@seattlelutheran.org.
Three PDF documents that you might want to see if you have a would-be Munchkin – the official flyer is here; an infosheet is here; the registration form is here.
(February 23, 2018 photo by Gary Jones)
Remember that heavy-lift ship and its four-crane cargo that caught so much attention passing West Seattle one year ago, on their way to Tacoma? Tomorrow, the encore – four more of the same type of cranes will pass on the same type of ship, headed for the same destination. Here’s the heads-up sent late today by the Northwest Seaport Alliance:
A huge ship carrying four super-post-Panamax container cranes is scheduled to travel through Puget Sound March 5 to Tacoma.
Among the largest on the West Coast, these cranes are identical to the four that arrived in the Pacific Northwest last year.
Puget Sound Pilots are scheduled to board the Zhen Hua 31, a 771-foot-long heavy-lift ship, Tuesday morning in Port Angeles and begin the journey to Tacoma. … The ship will sit at anchor in Commencement Bay for a day or two before delivering the cranes to Husky Terminal at the northwest end of the Blair Waterway.
The Northwest Seaport Alliance ordered eight new super-post-Panamax cranes from Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Co. Ltd (ZPMC) in China through a competitive bid process. No container cranes currently are manufactured in the U.S.
Learn more about the cranes in this short video.
ZPMC is the largest heavy-duty equipment manufacturer in the world and delivers more than 200 cranes every year around the world, including many seaports in the U.S.
The cranes will be installed at Husky Terminal, which underwent about $250 million in terminal improvements on Tacoma’s General Central Peninsula.
Upgrades included strengthening and realigning a berth and adding eight new super-post-Panamax cranes capable of serving two 18,000-TEU container ships at the same time. Learn more about the project.
The new cranes will have an outreach of 24 containers and a lift height of 165 feet above the pier deck.
Checking MarineTraffic.com right now, the Zhen Hua 31 is about to enter the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Before deciding on whether to extend Camp Second Chance‘s stay on the Myers Way Parcels, the city has been waiting to see what position the Highland Park Action Committee takes. That’s what Lisa Gustaveson of the Human Services Department told the C2C Community Advisory Committee on Sunday.
24 hours later, HPAC has just announced where it stands. The group says 2 years and 7 months – the time that’s elapsed since C2C set up on the city-owned greenspace, initially without authorization – is long enough. “(W)e look forward to seeing a swift plan for Camp Second Chance’s relocation by the end of the month,” concludes the letter just made public by HPAC.
The letter (which you can read in its entirety here) recaps not only the community-engagement process that the group went through – including this “listening session” in January – but also Highland Park’s history, going back more than a decade, of “hosting” encampments, dating to the original “Nickelsville” camp in 2008. HPAC’s letter notes, “There is a long documented history of the City either being unable or unwilling to address the safety concerns” raised by encampments in the area. The group also underscores, “We did not come to this decision easily. We know that homelessness is an urgent issue that affects our neighbors and our communities.”
Now that HPAC has taken its stand, we’re checking with the city regarding its next step on a decision regarding C2C’s location. City rules currently say authorized encampments have to move after two years maximum at a site.
COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING: Our notes from this short Sunday afternoon meeting are after the jump:
Big news from Fauntleroy Creek steward Judy Pickens: “(Volunteer) Dennis (Hinton) just spotted six fry zipping around in the lower creek – our first sighting of home hatch from the fall spawning!” That’s two days after volunteers’ “snow-postponed planting party” – here’s Judy’s report:
(Photos by Kersti Muul)
A dozen volunteers came out over the weekend to install 200 native plants on city-owned property in lower Fauntleroy Creek.
The work party was part of a multi-year Green Seattle Partnership project to improve water quality, eliminate invasive species, and benefit wildlife. A contractor has been weeding the 12,550 sf open-space site adjacent to the fish ladder and planting the steep slope.
Forest steward Peggy Cummings organized the planting party for the Fauntleroy Watershed Council.
Back to the salmon: Volunteer creek-watchers counted 18 last fall.
Two reader reports in West Seattle Crime Watch:
‘HATEFUL GRAFFITI’: That’s how Lindsay described what she found by Seola Pond over the weekend:
We cropped the photo; the post/box is defaced with a swastika and a word/name that contains “white.” That area is on the city/county line so Lindsay was looking into reporting it to both jurisdictions: “Very disturbing in our family-friendly little neighborhood.”
CAR/CARPORT PROWLS: Also in Arbor Heights, as reported by James:
We had thefts from our cars and our carports, as did our neighbors who live right behind us. Our cars are parked off the street but were not locked (I know, we learned our lesson).
The contents taken: several jackets (north face, etc), boots, a bike from our neighbors, a few other items (and we’re still trying to figure out if there’s more). Just a good reminder for people in our area. … It could have been worse – they were nice thieves – they left all of the jackets/gloves of our 2-year-old son. So there’s that positive to take from this.
Something to share via West Seattle Crime Watch? Once it’s reported to police, email us at westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
With voters passing both Seattle Public Schools levies last month – 69% approval for the operations levy, 73% approval for the capital levy (aka BEX V) – we were asked when the biggest West Seattle projects will be built. The proposed timeline is in the agenda packet for a School Board work session this Wednesday. First, the $66 million Alki Elementary rebuild isn’t expected to open until fall 2025 – it’s on a timeline with some othr district projects:
During the two years of construction – the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 school years – Alki students would use the Schmitz Park Elementary campus. The other big local project is an addition at West Seattle Elementary in High Point, expected to open in fall 2022:
Since this is an expansion rather than a replacement, the current school will remain open through the year of construction of work.
Also in the agenda for Wednesday’s meeting, an update on the smaller projects that the levies will fund. In West Seattle, those include HVAC at Gatewood and Lafayette Elementaries and at Louisa Boren STEM K-8, and field projects at Madison Middle School and West Seattle High School, among others. (See pages 63-64 in the packet.)The board work session is open to the public, 4:30-7:30 pm Wednesday (March 6th) in the commons at Garfield High School (400 23rd Ave.).
Thanks to JayDee for the photo. Coincidentally, another reader had emailed, wondering about the name of the area toward the left of the photo, which looks like a foothill-level peak amid a field of snow. Cross-referencing with some maps hasn’t resulted in an ID yet. Do you know? Thanks! Meantime, on with the highlights for today/tonight:
GIVE THE GIFT OF LIFE: 1-7 pm, Peace Lutheran Church in Gatewood is hosting a blood drive – walk-ups are welcome, but note that it’ll be closed for a break 3-4 pm. (39th/Thistle)
DROP-IN TAX HELP: It’s free, and it’s available at Delridge Library 2-6:30 pm. Our calendar listing explains what to bring. (5423 Delridge Way SW)
GIRL SCOUT COOKIES, DAY 4: After school, you’ll find them on sale around the peninsula and elsewhere, as the 2-week cookie-sales season continues. Check locations and times here.
FAMILY STORY TIME: 6:30 pm at High Point Library – for kids of all ages. (3411 SW Raymond)
PUGET RIDGE NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL: 7 pm at Puget Ridge Cohousing. A note for attendees: “If you are driving, please park on 18th and enter through the pathway entrance by the resident parking lot (by the mailbox). There will be signs directing you to the common house.” (7020 18th SW )
WEST SEATTLE QUILTERS: 7 pm at the Senior Center/Sisson Building. All quilters welcome! (4217 SW Oregon)
QUIZFIX TRIVIA: 7:30 pm at The Skylark, all ages, free trivia with prizes. (3803 Delridge Way SW)
SEE THE FUTURE … by browsing our complete calendar!
Family and friends are remembering Catherine Carfrae Rhodes. Here’s the remembrance being shared with the community:
Catherine Carfrae Rhodes, age 92, of Seattle, passed away on February 24, 2019 at Providence Mount St. Vincent West Seattle.
Catherine was born June 22, 1926 in Seattle to William Watt Carfrae and Catherine Grant Carfrae (born: Barnet), originally of Fife and Edinburgh, Scotland. Catherine was the last remaining Carfrae of her generation.
She is survived by her 5 children: Lorren Gregory Fladseth; William Christopher Fladseth, John Scott Fladseth, Alexandra Grant Bazemore (born: Fladseth), and Leslie Catherine Markey (born: Rhodes); 6 grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren.
Catherine was a lifetime resident of West Seattle and loved Alki Beach, living there for many years of her life. Other than a short time in San Diego, Catherine was a devoted resident of West Seattle, attending Lafayette Elementary, James Madison Middle School, and West Seattle High School, graduating in 1944. In the late 1950s, after working at Darigold, Catherine worked at KING TV as a Secretary to the VP of Sales.
Catherine was closest to her children, enjoyed music, reading and a “good cup of tea.” Even on a limited income, she donated to several charities for 30+ years; ASPCA, Humane Society of King County, Paralyzed Vets, and Disabled Artists (mouth and foot painters).
In the words of her favorite song, her children lovingly release Catherine on her final Sentimental Journey and pray that there is comfort and relief for her: “Gonna take a sentimental journey, gonna set my heart at ease; gonna make a sentimental journey, to renew old memories. Sentimental journey home.” May you rest in peace, mom.
Per Catherine’s wishes, there will be no memorial service. She will be laid to rest on March 11, 2019 at the Forest Lawn Mausoleum.
In lieu of flowers, please make in-memoriam donations to Providence Mount St. Vincent/WEST SEATTLE.
(WSB publishes West Seattle obituaries by request, free of charge. Please e-mail the text, and a photo if available, to editor@westseattleblog.com)
(SDOT MAP with travel times/ Is the ‘low bridge’ closed? LOOK HERE/ West Seattle-relevant traffic cams HERE)
6:58 AM: Good morning! No incidents to report.
FERRY REMINDER: The Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth route is on a two-boat schedule as announced yesterday.
8:27 AM: Still no incidents on this sunny, cold morning. One of our standard requests/reminders – if you see something we’re not reporting and can contact us safely/legally (not behind the wheel!), our 24/7 hotline is 206-293-6302 – thank you!
8:41 AM: Police were just dispatched to this:
Collision on Fauntleroy Way SW at SW Oregon St blocking two SB lanes. Use caution. pic.twitter.com/71PCt48LbX
— SDOT Traffic (@SDOTtraffic) March 4, 2019
No SFD dispatch, though, so apparently no major injuries.
9:50 AM: Belated note to say that cleared. Meantime, there’s another comment discussion today about the Alaskan Way/Dearborn 99 exit and buses … checking into how that’s being monitored.
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