West Seattle, Washington

16 Friday

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month : 05/2020 346 results

ROAD WORK, TRANSIT, TRAFFIC: Tuesday notes, 10th week of West Seattle Bridge closure
May 26, 2020 5:53 am
|      7 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

5:53 AM: Good morning – the 64th morning without the high-rise West Seattle Bridge. We start with a road-work reminder – SW Roxbury repaving between 16th and 18th is expected this week. Here’s our preview; here’s the detour map:

We’ll be checking later this morning to see if it’s begun. Meantime – the cameras for the 5-way intersection at West Marginal/Delridge/Spokane/Chelan, and the restricted-access low bridge (where SPD enforcement continues):

The main detour route across the Duwamish River is the 1st Avenue South Bridge (map) – here’s that camera:

The other major bridge across the river is the South Park Bridge (map) – this camera shows the SP-side approach:

Check the @SDOTBridges Twitter feed for info about any of those bridges opening for marine traffic.

You can see all local traffic cams, including the new ones in West Seattle, here; locally relevant cameras are also shown on this WSB page.

TRANSIT

Metro – Reduced schedule; reduced capacity; check here for next departure

Water Taxi – Reduced schedule continues

Sound Transit reminder – Link light rail and Sounder trains will start charging fares again June 1st

During the stay-home order, we’re not live-monitoring morning traffic, but we’ll update with word of incidents, so please let us know what you’re seeing – comment or text (but not if you’re drivingl!) 206-293-6302.

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Rescue call on Harbor Island
May 26, 2020 12:37 am
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | WS breaking news

In case you saw/heard the big Seattle Fire response on Harbor Island this past half-hour: SFD sent a “rope rescue” callout to help get a man in his 60s with “a medical issue” off a vessel. No other details.

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CORONAVIRUS: Monday 5/25 roundup
May 25, 2020 9:13 pm
|      4 COMMENTS
 |   Coronavirus | West Seattle news

Quiet holiday – but of course we still have a few notes for the nightly roundup:

NEWEST KING COUNTY NUMBERS: From the Public Health daily-summary dashboard:

*7,879 people have tested positive, up 60 from yesterday

*542 people have died, up 2 from yesterday

One week ago, those totals were 7,529 and 523.

STATEWIDE NUMBERS: Find them here.

WORLDWIDE NUMBERS: Find them here.

AWAITING UPDATES FROM OLYMPIA: Now 6 days are left until the stay-home order’s current expiration date, so we’ll be keeping close watch on any and all Olympia briefings this week. None have been announced yet.

GOT SEATTLE PUBLIC SCHOOLS-RELATED QUESTIONS? District superintendent Denise Juneau‘s next “town hall” meeting/Q&A opportunity is tomorrow, 4:30-5 pm – details here.

NEED FOOD? Next local distribution is in the parking lot at Holy Family Catholic Church (20th/Roxbury) on Saturday (May 30th), 10 am-2 pm, all welcome.

GUARANTEED SOCIAL DISTANCING: Thanks to SuzAnne for the photo, taken today in The Admiral District:

GOT INFO? PHOTOS? Email westseattleblog@gmail.com or text/voice 206-293-6302 – thank you!

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MEMORIAL DAY 2020: Heroes honored at West Seattle’s Vietnamese Cultural Center
May 25, 2020 8:07 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Delridge | Holidays | West Seattle news | WS culture/arts

Thanks to Vietnamese Cultural Center director Lee Bui for the photo: “Flowers and fruits to honor the heroes at Fallen Soldiers Memorial at Vietnamese Cultural Center today. Special for heroes of the Vietnam War.” (The center at 2234 SW Orchard is open to the public weekly during non-pandemic times.)

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VIDEO: ‘Taps Across America’ in West Seattle and beyond
May 25, 2020 5:35 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Holidays | West Seattle news | WS culture/arts

Last night, we mentioned Taps Across America after a few readers told us about it. Here are some videos sent by participants:

The sender tells us that’s “Chris Svehaug playing Taps on Tillicum. He’s standing in front of his Norwegian immigrant grandfather’s 48-star flag. Ole was a proud American who served in the Navy in WWII.” … Below, West Seattle High School juniors Henry Parker on baritone sax and Jonah Elbaum on trumpet

A clip from Fauntleroy:

(added) One more West Seattleite – Kevin Freitas:

And through the quirks of the internet, our preview from last night led to a few people from other areas of the U.S. sending us their clips. This one from North Carolina has special merit – 95-year-old World War II veteran Henry W. Hoell Sr., his wife of 79 years Rosa, grandson William Gore playing the trumpet and his children, Lydia and Naomi.

The original announcement noted that CBS will share some of the videos on its national newscast tomorrow night.

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RESTAURANTS/BEVERAGE BUSINESSES: Matador reopening; Beveridge Place holiday hours; meet West Seattle Local Foods
May 25, 2020 2:25 pm
|    Comments Off on RESTAURANTS/BEVERAGE BUSINESSES: Matador reopening; Beveridge Place holiday hours; meet West Seattle Local Foods
 |   West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news | West Seattle restaurants | WS beverages

Three food/drink notes:

MATADOR REOPENING … for takeout and delivery, starting this Wednesday (May 27th). Hours will be Sunday – Thursday 4 pm – 10 pm, Friday 4 pm – 11 pm, Saturday 2 pm – 11 pm. Also: “Happy Hour will be available to call-in or walk-up guests only from 4 pm-6 pm and 9 pm – close, and only eligible with the purchase of a cocktail.” Matador will have Cocktails To Go along with new family-style menu items – find the menu online. You can call 206-932-9988 for pickup, or order online here for pickup or delivery. They’re also on Postmates. And you can read about their new safety procedures here.

BEVERIDGE PLACE HOLIDAY HOURS: Expanded hours today for Beveridge Place Pub (6413 California SW):

Memorial Day, Monday, May 25 – Expanded Hours 1-7 pm!
Today’s Feature: $10 Growler Fills available!

Our BPP Online store is open. You can order and pay for craft beer growlers, beer cans/bottles, wine bottles, cider bottles, mead bottles, specialty soft drink bottles, & snacks!
The online store is located here.

Pickup is at the front door or drive-thru back ramp. (Regular BPP hours are 3-7 pm weekdays, 1-7 pm weekends.)

WEST SEATTLE LOCAL FOODS: Looking for new options? The tenants at the commercial kitchen at 4611 36th SW have joined forces to sell their specialties under the banner West Seattle Local Foods. You can order online via this website – but note it’s a weekly event – order by noon Tuesdays for pickup on Thursdays. Meats, salads, desserts, pot pies, more.

We’re still updating our ongoing restaurants/beverage-businesses list – let us know if you have changes!

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MEMORIAL DAY 2020: Poppies @ Post 160
May 25, 2020 12:55 pm
|    Comments Off on MEMORIAL DAY 2020: Poppies @ Post 160
 |   Holidays | Triangle | West Seattle news

Usually right about now on Memorial Day, local veterans and other community members would be gathering at Forest Lawn (WSB sponsor) for the annual remembrance ceremony. It’s not happening this year, so instead, you’ll find American Legion Post 160 commander Keith Hughes, an Army veteran, at the post (3618 SW Alaska) with the traditional poppies. If you’re in the area, he’ll be there until about 5 pm.

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NEED FOOD? Seattle Public Schools’ meal distribution IS available today
May 25, 2020 11:48 am
|    Comments Off on NEED FOOD? Seattle Public Schools’ meal distribution IS available today
 |   Coronavirus | West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

Thanks to Paula for the reminder. Despite the holiday, meal distribution is happening as scheduled today at Seattle Public Schools’ ongoing sites – that includes Chief Sealth International High School (2600 SW Thistle), Denny International Middle School (2601 SW Kenyon), West Seattle HS (3000 California SW), and West Seattle Elementary (6760 34th SW), until 1 pm.

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UTILITIES: About the pile of poles @ Hiawatha
May 25, 2020 11:25 am
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   Utilities | West Seattle news

Utility-pole replacements are of a bit more interest than usual ever since an old pole came down withuut warning in Morgan Junction two weeks ago. So we asked Seattle City Light about that delivery of poles on the east side of Hiawatha Community Center on Friday, after Rob Braby sent the photo. SCL’s Julie Moore just sent the info:

The poles are not for one job. The contractor will be replacing poles at multiple locations scattered around the vicinity. As a matter of efficiency, they simply delivered all the poles (actually, eight poles, I believe) at one time and left them on a public right-of-way in advance of work that will begin this week. Our pause in planned outages remains in place, so there will be no outages with this replacement work. The old poles will be tied to the new poles and we’ll return at a later time when we will take a temporary outage to transfer the equipment and remove the old pole.

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MEMORIAL DAY 2020: West Seattle notes
May 25, 2020 6:34 am
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Holidays | Transportation | West Seattle news

(Bald Eagle, photographed by Mark Wangerin)

Good morning. Notes for the holiday:

TRANSIT

Metro: Sunday schedule

Water Taxi: Not running

Sound Transit: Sunday schedule

TRAFFIC CAMERAS

Our page highlighting local cameras is here

SDOT’s map with cameras and alerts from around the city is here

(Bald Eagles, photographed by Dan Ciske)

POPPIES

Stop by American Legion Post 160 (3618 SW Alaska) if you are out – details in our preview, including BBQ food – with a discount for veterans – next door!

TAPS ACROSS AMERICA

3 pm – play if you can!

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What’s the long-term solution for waterfront driver gatherings? Residents, police discuss @ Alki Community Council
May 25, 2020 12:02 am
|      77 COMMENTS
 |   Neighborhoods | Safety | West Seattle beaches | West Seattle news

(WSB photo: Quiet moment on Beach Drive by Constellation Park, May 13)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Would removing parking solve the problem of drivers gathering along West Seattle’s public waterfront?

That was one of the suggestions as residents of three Alki-area neighborhoods dominated the discussion at the Alki Community Council‘s online meeting last Thursday night.

The meeting began with an update from Southwest Precinct operations commander Lt. Steve Strand. While police have launched their seasonal emphasis at Alki, he warned that the city’s COVID-19-related budget crunch is reducing the amount of money available for overtime to staff those extra assignments (and others). Nonetheless, extra officers were planned for two of the three days on Memorial Day weekend.

Addressing the driver-gathering concerns, he said the “Stay Healthy Streets” designation for Beach Drive by Constellation Park (and then Alki Avenue west of 63rd) was inspired by the ongoing problems there. The situation worsened after the Don Armeni Boat Ramp parking lot was closed, he noted, displacing the “car clubs” who liked to gather there. He acknowledged that the problem keeps shifting, and noted that they’re “looking at long-term solutions” if, as has been suggested by SDOT, the Constellation Park-side change is temporary.

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CORONAVIRUS: Sunday 5/24 roundup
May 24, 2020 9:00 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Coronavirus | West Seattle news

With one week left until the current expiration date for the stay-home order, here’s our nightly roundup:

NEWEST KING COUNTY NUMBERS: From the Public Health daily-summary dashboard:

*7,819 people have tested positive, up 55 from yesterday

*540 people have died, up 2 from yesterday

One week ago, those totals were 7,480 and 522.

STATEWIDE NUMBERS: See them here.

WORLDWIDE NUMBERS: See them – nation by nation – here.

WHAT’S OPEN/WHAT’S CLOSED? Not that tomorrow’s forecast sounds much like park weather, but if you need a refresher on Seattle Parks closures, here you go.

CEREMONY NO, POPPIES YES: Despite the pandemic, one Memorial Day tradition will carry on tomorrow.

INSPIRATION: Lisa sent this photo of inspiring words in the window at Barre3:

(That’s the same place this window mural turned up last month.)

GOT SOMETHING TO REPORT? westseattleblog@gmail.com or 206-293-6302, text/voice – thank you!

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MEMORIAL DAY 2020: ‘Taps Across America’
May 24, 2020 8:14 pm
|      12 COMMENTS
 |   Holidays | West Seattle news

(WSB photo: Flags on graves at Forest Lawn)

Though Memorial Day will happen without the traditional ceremonies this year, here’s a way to pay tribute, if you play brass – “Taps Across America.’ We hadn’t heard about this until mentions in email and via Twitter tonight. Steve Hartman of CBS News came up with the idea – inviting people to play “Taps” at 3 pm local time tomorrow, wherever they are. If you can record it, you’re invited to send it to him (see the end of this story) – and we’d be happy to feature you here too (westseattleblog@gmail.com or 206-293-6302)!

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LOST OR DUMPED? Roadside suitcase
May 24, 2020 6:42 pm
|    Comments Off on LOST OR DUMPED? Roadside suitcase
 |   Seen around town | West Seattle news

Barbara spotted that open suitcase by the road on the east side of the 6500 block of Beach Drive SW. She didn’t have a pic so we went by for one. Due to traffic, we couldn’t take a closer look, but she saw a tag with an address in the 12300 block of Marine View Drive (which is n Burien), so if you know anyone in that area, you might ask if they’ve heard of someone missing a suitcase…

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FRIDAY: Next chance to talk with your city councilmember
May 24, 2020 4:35 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle online | West Seattle politics

Got a question or comment for City Councilmember Lisa Herbold? She’s still keeping monthly “office hours” – right now, online/by phone, because of the stay-home order. Lots of hot topics, too – the bridge, the pandemic response, public safety (since that’s the committee she chairs), more. Her next “office hours” are 3 pm-6 pm this Friday (May 29th); since “walk-in” doesn’t work online, you need to set an appointment via her staffer Alex Clardy – email alex.clardy@seattle.gov. Future dates are listed at the end of her latest weekly newsletter. (WSB photo: CM Herbold photographing bridge during April 14th tour)

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WEST SEATTLE LIGHT RAIL: ‘Guiding principles’ survey; new line name
May 24, 2020 2:09 pm
|      10 COMMENTS
 |   Sound Transit | West Seattle news | West Seattle online

(Sound Transit map of what’s being studied – see full-size version here in PDF)

The planning for West Seattle’s light-rail line, due to launch in 2030, continues. Two notes:

‘GUIDING PRINCIPLES” SURVEY: The city Department of Neighborhoods has been helping Sound Transit with “outreach” related to parts of the planning process. We just discovered (while scanning the Cascade Bicycle Club‘s email newsletter) that the city has a survey open, to find out if you agree with the “guiding principles” it’s developed. Go here to participate.

LINE NAMES: In case you missed the announcement in April (we did), ST is renaming its lines with numbers, including yet-to-be-built lines like West Seattle to Ballard, which will become “the 3-Line.”

P.S. Sound Transit’s board continues its regular meetings, online – next one is Thursday (May 28th) afternoon; here’s the agenda.

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BIZNOTES: Click! Design That Fits ‘window shopping’; Glow Medispa reopening
May 24, 2020 11:27 am
|    Comments Off on BIZNOTES: Click! Design That Fits ‘window shopping’; Glow Medispa reopening
 |   West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

Two business updates todayL

CLICK! DESIGN THAT FITS: The longtime WSB sponsor at 4540 California SW has curbside shopping, so here are a few updates you might want to know:

WINDOW SHOPPING

We’ve got a brand new window display for the first time in a long time and boy does it feel good.

Both window installations are 100% shop-able. If you see something you love while walking by, scan the QR codes or visit the “Main Window” and “South Window” collections from our homepage.

(They’re not exactly in the window but you should know we just received a new skincare line, including spray sanitizers.)

SALE

Check out our brand spankin’ new Sale section online and score some serious savings. Sale is for online, phone, email and DM orders (we do not have in-store shopping at this time). We are definitely available to answer questions and if we’re at the shop, can even show items through the window while on the phone, 206-328-9252.

CURBSIDE SHOPPING

While we’re not “open” in the traditional sense just yet, we’re glad to have our crew back in place, working regular hours for deep cleaning, curbside pickups and local deliveries.

Having our team back means that our turnaround times have gotten quicker — in most cases, orders will be ready same day (or very early the next!).

Through next Sunday (May 31st), hours for Click! at curbside are noon-2 pm and 5-7 pm weekdays (except Memorial Day, which will be noon-2 pm only), noon-2 pm weekends. They deliver in West Seattle two to three times weekly, usually Mondays/Wednesdays/Fridays in the early afternoon. For updates on hours beyond that, check here.

GLOW MEDISPA REOPENING: With medical and dental practices cleared to reopen for non-urgent services, Dr. Kate Dee is reopening her offices in The Junction (4409 California SW, starting tomorrow) and Kirkland. Glow has resumed online appointment-booking. In line with state rules for reopening, they have a variety of safety protocols in place, from staggered appointment times to mask-wearing for patients and providers. Dr. Dee adds in a message to clients, “Though it will be a long time before anything feels truly normal, we hope that we can inch toward that goal. I sincerely hope you all have stayed healthy. And just know we really want to give you a big hug, as we greet you with a bow.”

Got business news? Email is the best way to reach us, westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!

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WEST SEATTLE SUNDAY: 24 churches’ online services; Farmers’ Market; more…
May 24, 2020 6:45 am
|      9 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle religion

(American Goldfinch, photographed by Mark Wangerin)

Welcome to Sunday, as Memorial Day weekend continues. We begin our list of what’s happening with the updated list of West Seattle churches’ online services:

ADMIRAL UCC: The video service is here. Also – follow that link for 11:15 am sermon talkback and 11:45 am coffee hour.

ALKI UCC: 10 am online service, via Zoom – info and link on church’s home page.

ALL SOULS SEATTLE (WSB sponsor): Online worship will be linked here at 10 am.

ARBOR HEIGHTS COMMUNITY CHURCH: Livestreaming here at 10 am.

BETHANY COMMUNITY CHURCH: Livestreaming here, 8 am, 9:30 am, 11 am, 7 pm.

CALVARY CHAPEL: Service will be viewable here, plus 11 am fellowship via Zoom, 6 pm all-church prayer and 7 pm evening worship (info on home page).

EASTRIDGE CHURCH: Livestreaming here at 9 am and 11 am.

FAUNTLEROY UCC: Livestreaming on the church’s YouTube channel at 10 am.

FIRST LUTHERAN CHURCH OF WEST SEATTLE: Today’s online liturgy is here.

GRACE CHURCH: Livestreaming here, 10:30 am.

HALLOWS CHURCH: Streaming at 10 am via the church’s YouTube channel.

HOLY FAMILY CATHOLIC CHURCH: Livestreaming in English at 8:30 am, en Español at 10 am, all here.

HOLY ROSARY CATHOLIC CHURCH: Livestreaming at 9:30 am here.

HOPE LUTHERAN: Today’s worship service and children’s story are viewable here.

OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE CATHOLIC CHURCH: Livestreaming at 10 am, both here.

PEACE LUTHERAN: Livestreaming at 10:30 am on YouTube.

ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH: Viewable on YouTube: All Ages Sunday School at 10 am, Morning Prayer at 10:15 am (here’s today’s bulletin), Kids’ Club at 11:30 am.

TIBBETTS UNITED METHODIST CHURCH (WSB sponsor): The video service for today is viewable here (and today’s bulletin/order of worship is here).

TRINITY CHURCH: Livestreaming here, 10 am.

WEST SEATTLE CHRISTIAN CHURCH: The video service is viewable here.

WEST SEATTLE CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE: Livestreaming here, 11 am.

WEST SIDE PRESBYTERIAN Livestreaming at 10 am on the church’s YouTube channel.

WESTSIDE UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST CONGREGATION: Livestreaming via Zoom, 10:30 am.

WESTWOOD CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY: Online worship at 11 am; info here.

Any other churches to add? Please email us – westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!

Also today:

WEST SEATTLE FARMERS’ MARKET: 10 am-2 pm, the fourth market after almost two months without one. Enter at California/Alaska; the line goes east on Alaska, then north on 42nd. Here’s the info on policies and procedures; here’s the vendor/product list for this week.

FOOD-DONATION DRIVE: 10 am-4 pm outside Alki UCC – here’s what they need. (6115 SW Hinds)

WEST SEATTLE TOOL LIBRARY: Open 11 am-4 pm – need a tool to fix or improve something? (4408 Delridge Way SW)

FREE TO-GO DINNER: High Point Community Dinner Church will serve to-go meals at 5 pm, outside, near High Point Community Center. (6920 34th SW)

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WEST SEATTLE BRIDGE CLOSURE: What’s up, 2 months later
May 23, 2020 11:20 pm
|      60 COMMENTS
 |   Transportation | West Seattle Bridge Safety Project | West Seattle news

=(Photo courtesy Kevin Freitas, originally published on Twitter)

Two months ago tonight, on March 23rd, the West Seattle Bridge was closed because of collapse concerns, with only a few hours’ warning to the public. Will it ever reopen? The city has yet to announce whether it considers the bridge fixable. Here’s a quick look at some of what’s been happening in the meantime:

MAYOR ASSEMBLING COMMUNITY TASK FORCE: Earlier this month, as reported here, the District 1 Community Network suggested a stakeholders’ group of some sort was needed, to be sure the community has a voice in key decisions. Multiple sources have confirmed to WSB that Mayor Durkan is doing exactly that. Who’s on it, and what it’ll be charged with, we don’t know yet; we asked the mayor’s office for comment when we got first word of this, but no answers yet.

OTHER GROUPS: The West Seattle Chamber of Commerce also has a committee focused on the bridge closure, and the new community coalition West Seattle Bridge Now continues ramping up.

BUT WHAT’S HAPPENING *ON* THE BRIDGE? Monitoring instrumentation has been installed, and a three-scenario emergency-response plan spells out what happens if those instruments – or the daily inspections – show it’s on the verge of collapse. To try to avoid that, stabilization work is planned; SDOT announced the contractor for that three weeks ago.

GETTING AROUND WITHOUT THE BRIDGE: SDOT is working on neighborhood-specific traffic plans, which director Sam Zimbabwe says will be ready – at least in draft version – in early June.

WHERE TO GET UPDATES: SDOT has a catch-all page for its bridge updates and background info, here; all our 50+ bridge-related reports dating back to the closure announcement is archived here.

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CORONAVIRUS: Saturday 5/23 roundup
May 23, 2020 9:22 pm
|    Comments Off on CORONAVIRUS: Saturday 5/23 roundup
 |   Coronavirus | West Seattle news

Here are the toplines in our daily roundup:

NEWEST KING COUNTY NUMBERS: From the Public Health daily-summary data dashboard:

*7,764 people have tested positive, up 67 from yesterday

*538 people have died, up 1 from yesterday

One week ago, those totals were 7,440 and 520.

STATEWIDE NUMBERS: See them here.

WORLDWIDE NUMBERS: More than 5.3 million people have tested positive. Most cases: U.S., Brazil, Russia, United Kingdom, Spain. See the breakdown, nation by nation, here.

MORE COUNTIES MOVE TO PHASE 2: Seven more counties got state approval today to move to Phase 2 of the reopening plan – that’s 21 in all, with 3 others eligible to apply.

WHAT ABOUT KING COUNTY? It wouldn’t qualify any time soon under current criteria, The Seattle Times reports – but stay tuned for updates next week.

HELPING: Big response today to Admiral Church‘s first Saturday food drive – David Pelton sent a pic, with words of thanks:

I loved what Marylou Santee our food drive coordinator said today—“We live in a generous community of kind people.”

And as noted this morning, the next every-other-Sunday food drive outside Alki UCC is tomorrow.

WEST SEATTLE FARMERS’ MARKET: It’s back tomorrow, 10 am-2 pm, same configuration as the past three Sundays. Here’s the list of vendors and what they’re selling.

CELEBRATORY PARADE ON WHEELS: They’ve been happening for a variety of occasions. In Fauntleroy today, first one we’ve heard of that honored a West Seattleite receiving a national award!

GOT SOMETHING TO REPORT? westseattleblog@gmail.com or 206-293-6302, text/voice – thank you!

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WHALE-WATCHING: Humpback northbound off West Seattle
May 23, 2020 7:19 pm
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | Whales | Wildlife

7:19 PM: Two tips in the past ~20 minutes report a whale northbound off west-facing West Seattle, toward Fauntleroy at last report. No report yet what species. Let us know if you see it!

7:45 PM: Humpback, says tipster Scott.

7:51 PM: Just got a call from Donna Sandstrom of The Whale Trail, who says it’s a juvenile humpback, moving quickly, should be off Alki Point soon.

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VIDEO: Surprise celebration for Dr. Stephen Plymate’s national award
May 23, 2020 4:58 pm
|      21 COMMENTS
 |   Coronavirus | Fauntleroy | West Seattle news | West Seattle people

Huge surprise this afternoon for physician and researcher Stephen Plymate, MD, as he returned to his home near Lincoln Park after a walk. Family and friends surprised him with a classic coronavirus-era celebration – a drive-by parade in honor of a national award he’s just won.

Dr. Plymate, who has worked at the UW and the Puget Sound VA for about 20 years, is the 2020 recipient of the Middleton Award, granted annually to a VA scientist for “outstanding scientific contributions and achievements in the areas of biomedical and bio-behavioral research relevant to the health care of Veterans.” As his wife Dr. Lisa Plymate explains, he “is the 4th physician to be granted this award from the Puget Sound VA in the 58 years it has been given out. He’s the first, however, to have his awards ceremony, usually held in D.C. with great fanfare, thwarted by a virus.” But family and friends weren’t going to let the virus preclude a parade, which we recorded on video:

The pandemic has kept Lisa Plymate on the east coast, so, she explains, “Steve’s Tacoma daughter Corinne worked hard to organize this surprise. She contacted his lab and colleagues plus family and friends.”

Along with his work for the Veterans Administration, Stephen Plymate is also a veteran himself, a retired U.S. Army Colonel. A local veterans’ advocate, Seattle Police Lt. Steve Strand, led today’s parade, in his dress uniform:

Pre-parade, as he walked unsuspectingly up the street, Dr. Plymate was serenaded by one of his neighbors, tenor José Iñiguez from Encanto Arts – we caught a bit of that on video too:

More about Dr. Plymate’s accomplishments, from his wife: He “is professor of endocrinology in the Department of Medicine and director of Prostate Cancer Endocrinology as well as a founding member of the Institute for Prostate Cancer Research at the UW and Fred Hutchison. His work has focused on prostate cancer and its treatment for over 25 years. He has over 300 publications in peer-reviewed journals and is internationally known for his work,” which she says he continues to do about “80 hours per week” in addition to remaining “an avid skier and bicyclist.”

Lisa Plymate adds, “Steve’s 12-year-old granddaughter Liora compiled a montage of congratulatory videos sent by family members and colleagues from around the world. This is also a surprise he will be able to watch after the parade. The entire Plymate clan thanks all the scientists, friends, and neighbors who have helped us put this together in his honor. And they’re grateful for this bit of excitement during our stay-at-home era!”

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ALKI POINT LIGHTHOUSE: Tours suspended indefinitely
May 23, 2020 3:12 pm
|    Comments Off on ALKI POINT LIGHTHOUSE: Tours suspended indefinitely
 |   Coronavirus | West Seattle history | West Seattle news

(2015 photo by Long Bach Nguyen)

Usually, Memorial Day weekend would mark the start of tour season at historic Alki Point Lighthouse. Not this year. Just received from Debra Alderman of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary:

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Coast Guard Auxiliary has not been given permission to offer public access and tours at the Alki Point Lighthouse during summer 2020 until further notice. Check www.cgauxseattle.org or the lighthouse’s Facebook page for updates, Questions can be sent via email: alkilighthouse@cgauxseattle.org

Meantime, you can learn about the lighthouse’s history here.

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