West Seattle, Washington
01 Tuesday
Shop/drink/dine local for Father’s Day! We’ve been asked about local food/beverage opportunities for the big day this Sunday (June 21st). So far, we have three from the WSB inbox:
OUNCES (3809 Delridge Way SW): Barbecue & Beer noon-5 pm on Father’s Day – “local NWTXBBQ will be at Ounces smoking up some tasty central-Texas-style bbq, featuring their specialty mesquite dry-rub smoked brisket and other goodies!” More info here.
Also, all weekend (Friday-Sunday) at Ounces, you can support the Lafayette Elementary PTA via any purchase made at the taproom (mention Lafayette) or online (click the Lafayette checkbpx when purchasing at www.ouncestogo.com.)
ROOT-BEER FLOAT KITS: As previously mentioned, the Alki Elementary PTA is “supporting Husky Deli, The Beer Junction, and Safeway on Admiral as we sell pre-orders of DIY ROOT BEER FLOAT KITS for drive-thru pick-up at Husky Deli (4721 California SW) on Father’s Day, June 21st. Info and ordering at alkipta.square.site.
JET CITY BEIGNET: “In addition to our regular Sunday pop-up on 6/21, we’ll be offering some fabulous and delicious Father’s Day beignet gift boxes that will include a maple bourbon sauce made by Green City Kitchens and add-on options of ice cream or sorbet from Seattle Sorbets and roca by Renee’s Roca. All of the items we are offering are made by small WS businesses. You can find the boxes and details here.”
Any other Father’s Day food/beverage specials? westseattleblog@gmail.com or text 206-293-6302 so we can add to the list – thank you!
On the day before Chief Sealth International High School‘s graduation, we have news of awards for two seniors. The announcement and photos – both honorees with principal Aida Fraser-Hammer – are from the school:
Della Floyd has been honored for her exemplary volunteer service with a President’s Volunteer Service Award. The award, which recognizes Americans of all ages who have volunteered significant amounts of their time to serve their communities and their country, was granted by the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards Program.
Lola Taylor has been honored for her exemplary volunteer service with a Certificate of Excellence from the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, and with a President’s Volunteer Service Award. Certificates of Excellence are granted to the top 10 percent of all Prudential Spirit of Community Award applicants in each state and the District of Columbia.
Chief Sealth International High School nominated Della and Lola for national honors this fall in recognition of their service.
P.S. If you missed our previous mention, here’s how to see the CSIHS ceremony tomorrow night.
(WSB photo, June 3rd)
Two weeks after leading two streetcorner demonstrations, Hate-Free Delridge plans another one – here’s the announcement:
Please join us for another peaceful protest in the neighborhood. Since the recent protests that our group organized on June 3rd and 5th, we have received a lot of positive feedback, and requests for more events like this, so we want to keep the momentum of our message going strong! See our message and the details below and bring your friends and family!
We mourn the murder of George Floyd and of so many other Black Americans at the hands of police in America. We sadly add to the list Rayshard Brooks, murdered in Atlanta this week. We want change in the systems of policy that are racist and oppressive. We want justice for Black Lives. Our goal is to keep our message alive and in the streets. Please join Hate-Free Delridge for another peaceful gathering in West Seattle and bring signs with your messages for justice! For everyone’s safety, masks are required and please maintain 6 feet of distance between each family group. Thank you for staying engaged and we will see you there!
WHO: Hate Free Delridge
WHAT: A gathering to support Justice for Rayshard Brooks, George Floyd, and all Black Lives
WHEN: Thursday, June 18th, 4-6 pm
WHERE: The intersection of Delridge Way SW and SW Orchard St.
The group was formed almost four years ago.
The Southwest Seattle Historical Society is offering you another opportunity to learn from an expert about preserving irreplaceable items of personal history – family photos. Here’s the announcement:
Join us on June 18th for a live workshop on caring for your family photos. Curator Tasia Williams will walk you through storage and display considerations for different types of pictures you might have in your family collection. In this workshop you will learn which kinds of album pages will discolor your photos, what to do if an older picture is falling apart, and more! There will also be a chance to ask any questions you have about photo preservation.
The workshop will be live on Zoom on June 18th (Thursday) at 5 pm PST. Registration is required and due by June 17th (tomorrow) – go here.
As you’ll see at that link, the cost is whatever you can afford to donate.
6:07 AM: Good morning – the 85th morning without the high-rise West Seattle Bridge.
ROAD WORK
The Delridge Way repaving-and-more project continues – here’s what’s happening this week.
TRAFFIC
Heading off-peninsula? First, the cameras for the 5-way intersection, and the restricted-access low bridge just east of it:
The main detour route across the Duwamish River is the 1st Avenue South Bridge (map) – which has up to 14 overnight closures planned next month. Meanwhile, 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 here; locally relevant cameras are also shown on this WSB page.
TRANSIT
Metro – Check the Twitter feed for any breaking service changes. Otherwise – still on the reduced schedule and reduced capacity; check here for next departure. Note that Metro service will increase next Monday, June 22nd.
Water Taxi – Reduced schedule continues until next Monday.
Trouble on the roads/paths? Let us know – text (but not if you’re driving!) 206-293-6302.
Ready for Phase 2? King County leaders say we are, and that tops tonight’s virus-crisis local roundup:
SEEKING PHASE 2 PERMISSION: King County leaders announced this evening that they’ve asked the state for approval to move from “modified Phase 1” to Phase 2. That would mean more sit-down dining, among other things – see pages 20, 21, and 22 in the application for more details on what Phase 2 would mean. (It contains lots of information about the state of the outbreak, too, if you haven’t been sifting through the county dashboards in search of that already.) How soon could the state decide? Likely sometime this week.
NEWEST KING COUNTY NUMBERS: Here’s today’s daily summary – the cumulative totals:
*8,797 people have tested positive, 46 more than yesterday
*574 people have died, unchanged for a second day
*1,521 people have been hospitalized, 1 more than yesterday
*125,323 people have been tested, 1,815 more than yesterday
One week ago, the cases/deaths totals were 8,507/567.
STATEWIDE NUMBERS: See them here.
WORLDWIDE NUMBERS: See them – nation by nation – here.
MASKS MATTER: State health authorities held a “telebriefing” focusing on the importance of face coverings, especially for workers. You can hear what they had to say by going here.
PREMIUM PAY FOR FOOD DELIVERY: A bill co-sponsored by West Seattle/South Park City Councilmember Lisa Herbold passed the council unanimously today, mandating premium pay for food-delivery “gig workers,” while the pandemic continues.
BACK TO REGULAR HOURS: Transfer stations.
GOT SOMETHING TO REPORT? westseattleblog@gmail.com or 206-293-6302, text/voice – thank you!
Three more business updates:
CHERRY CONSIGNMENT: Reopening tomorrow, hours noon-5 pm to start with, open Tuesday-Wedneday and Friday-Saturday-Sunday this week for starters, closed Thursday. (4142 California SW).
VAIN: The salon/boutique in The Junction reopened today. Check here for their policies in this phase of reopening. (4513 California SW)
LA RUSTICA: This update came in today:
La Rustica will be open for Dine-in service starting tomorrow with our patio at 50% capacity and dining room at 25%. We also have a private dining room for up to 5 which can be reserved for parties of 5.
Hours will be Tuesday-Thursday and Sunday 4-9 – Friday & Sat 4-Close
We will also still be offering minimal contact take out service with online ordering only at larusticawestseattle.com
(4100 Beach Drive SW)
Just in from King County:
King County Executive Dow Constantine and King County Council Chair Claudia Balducci submitted an application to the state Department of Health to move King County to Phase 2 of the Safe Start recovery plan following approval of the plan by the King County Board of Health.
“After two weeks in what has been called Phase 1.5, our case counts, health care system capacity and other metrics are holding steady, and we are ready to move to Phase 2,” said Executive Constantine. “But make no mistake – successful economic recovery will depend on everyone in King County carefully following the recommendations of our Public Health experts, including wearing face coverings and avoiding unnecessary contacts, so together we can keep re-opening our community while holding the line on the pandemic.”
Under Phase 2, businesses can operate at twice the indoor capacity permitted in the modified Phase 1, provided they meet all re-opening requirements set out by the state’s guidance. Businesses with questions about their operation can also call the Public Health Business Compliance Line at 206-296-1608.
P.S. For more specifics, here’s the application.
Sorry that took a while to sleuth – we had to drive over and look around for an officer on the ground to find out why the Guardian One helicopter was over Arbor Heights. They were looking for a domestic-violence suspect in connection with a protection-order violation.
(WSB file photo)
This Wednesday, the West Seattle Bridge Community Task Force meets for the second time. With the get-to-know-each-other session last week (WSB coverage here) out of the way, this time around, the advisory group’s focus is expected to include (according to a preview on last week’s agenda):
– Engineering update
– Repair/replace bridge decision
– Recommendations for traffic mitigation/traffic plans
– Low bridge policy
Readers interested in watching live asked for an earlier heads-up on the link this time, so we’ve just obtained it from SDOT – you’ll be able to watch here, 1-2:30 pm Wednesday (June 17th). A link to an online comment form will be part of the meeting.
Back on May 21-22, an underground-cable failure left hundreds of people south of Fauntleroy, mostly in the Brace Point area, without electricity for a day and a half. It wasn’t the first failure in the area. But it led to the question of whatever happened to a planned Seattle City Light project to fix the ongoing problems. We found some online documentation – such as the draft below, from early last year – which said the project was originally expected to start early this year.
Obviously, it didn’t. So we asked SCL about the project’s status. We got the reply today from spokesperson Julie Moore:
The Brace Point Cable Replacement Project is still active. It is in the project manual/specification preparation process for public work advertisement. The project was delayed during the project design development/SDOT permitting stage; that process took longer than originally expected. Construction is tentatively scheduled to start Q1 2021 and could last two years.
Brace Point property owners paid for the original underground project completed in the early 1970s (ordinance attached). As with such voluntary underground projects, the property owners pay for the initial installation and City Light is responsible for all maintenance, and in this case, the rebuild that should start next year.
A similar project in The Arroyos/south Arbor Heights has been under way for about two years.
Again this week, Food Lifeline is offering free emergency food boxes to anyone who shows up. From the announcement:
The standard emergency food boxes each contain 22-25 lbs of shelf-stable food items like canned fruits and vegetables, canned meats, non-meat protein items, and bread and grains. There will also be fresh produce and select dairy items for those attending the distributions. (While supplies last)
Those wishing to take home boxes can receive a drive-up no-touch distribution, and there will also be walk-up distribution …
Food Lifeline – 815 South 96th Street (2 this week)
Wednesday, June 17, at 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Friday, June 19, 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.FULL SCHEDULE: foodlifeline.org
ANYONE can have access to this food. This is a confidential distribution, so there will be no paperwork or qualification. Food Lifeline is only asking for zip codes to track its efforts.
Food Lifeline encourages everyone to take home this nutritious food. We are all struggling during this crisis, and no one should hesitate to accept this help.
1:03 PM: Heads-up for whale lovers – Kersti Muul shares the news that southbound orcas were reported mid-channel off Shilshole about half an hour ago, so unless they change their direction, they could be in view now, or soon, off West Seattle. Let us know if you see them!
1:57 PM: Kersti says they’re “Visible with binocs from Alki and Sunset overlook.”
Announced today by Seattle Public Utilities – the reduced schedule at transfer stations is over:
Seattle Public Utilities’ North and South Transfer Stations are open (as of June 15, 2020) normal operating hours, seven days a week from 8:00 am to 5:30 pm. We want to thank our customers for understanding that while the stations are operating at their normal schedule, that visits to the stations should be for essential trips only (urgent and perishable waste) in an effort to reduce potential spread of COVID-19.
For more on that, here’s the full SPU announcement. The South Transfer Station is just east of West Seattle, at 130 S. Kenyon.
Three notes for the hours ahead:
(Photo courtesy Sunny Up)
NEW FOOD-TRUCK SITE: Food trucks are visiting the Alki Masonic Lodge parking lot in The Junction at 40th/Edmunds this week, according to an announcement from Broadstone Sky across the street. Above is Sunny Up, there until 2 pm today; then, 2-4 pm, it’s Delfino’s Pizza. Here’s the schedule for the rest of the week (daily through Saturday, different trucks each day). UPDATE: A commenter says today’s time for Delfino’s Pizza has changed to 4-8 pm.
Also happening on this damp Monday:
‘TAKE A KNEE FOR JUSTICE’: As noted previously, Admiral UCC Church is continuing this weekly in-person – but distanced – event on Mondays:
Admiral Church will be sponsoring weekly “Take a Knee for Justice” events on the church lawn at 8 pm on Monday evenings through the end of June (June 15, 22 and 29). We will kneel in silence for 8 minutes to grieve together the deaths of all those persons of color who have been murdered by white supremacy, and to protest racial injustice. Then we will sing a song together; no speech-ing, no preaching, just coming together as a community. Bring masks and protest signs if you have them; we will also have some available.
The church is at 4320 SW Hill.
LIVESTREAMED MEDITATION: From the Puget Sound Zen Center:
Puget Sound Zen Center holds a West Seattle meditation and service each Monday, which, when it begins in person again, will be held at St. John the Baptist Church at 3050 California Ave SW. For the moment, however, it is held on Zoom from 7 – 8:30 PM each Monday. The website is pszc.org – and it provides the Zoom link (as well as the password) for the livestream.
Got something coming up, online or in-person? westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
It’s become a tradition by which many will remember this pandemic spring – the car “parade” for school staffers and students to see each other even though the campuses have been closed since March. Next West Seattle school planning one, Genesee Hill Elementary, which just sent the map (full-size version is here in PDF) for its Thursday plan:
Thursday, June 18th, at 11 am: Virtual Field Day and Teacher Parade
While students are completing their Field Day activities, the Genesee Hill staff will be having an end-of-the-year parade. Wear your GHES shirt or tie-dye and get ready to make some noise, play, and celebrate all of the hard work put into this school year! The parade will weave through our service area and we encourage families who are outside our service area to join us on GHES’s surrounding sidewalk, using appropriate social-distancing measures. For safety reasons, please remain on sidewalks and yards. We will end the parade with a final victory lap around the surrounding GHES block!
Neighbors are welcome to join us in celebrating our students.
Friday (June 19th) is the last day of the school year, and the day Seattle Public Schools plans to announce its plan for next year.
6:05 AM: Good morning – the 84th morning without the high-rise West Seattle Bridge.
ROAD WORK
The Delridge Way repaving-and-more project has begun – here’s our latest update – and if you’re parked by a NO-PARKING sign, you might need to move your vehicle ASAP!
TRAFFIC
On to the cameras for the 5-way intersection, and the restricted-access low bridge just east of it:
The main detour route across the Duwamish River is the 1st Avenue South Bridge (map) – which has up to 14 overnight closures planned next month, as announced Tuesday. Meanwhile, 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 here; locally relevant cameras are also shown on this WSB page.
TRANSIT
Metro – Check the Twitter feed for any breaking service changes. Otherwise – still on the reduced schedule and reduced capacity; check here for next departure. Note that Metro service will increase next Monday, June 22nd.
Water Taxi – Reduced schedule continues until next Monday
Trouble on the roads/paths? Let us know – text (but not if you’re driving!) 206-293-6302.
Midway through the fourth month of the local COVID-19 outbreak, here’s our nightly roundup:
KING COUNTY’S NEWEST NUMBERS: From the Public Health daily-summary dashboard:
*8,751 people have tested positive, 51 more than yesterday
*574 people have died, unchanged from yesterday
*1,520 people have been hospitalized, 2 more than yesterday
*123,508 people have been tested, 6,411 more than yesterday
One week ago, the cases/deaths totals were 8,465/566.
STATEWIDE NUMBERS: See them here.
WORLDWIDE NUMBERS: See them – nation by nation – here.
DECISION AHEAD: Next Friday is the official last day of the school year for Seattle Public Schools, and that’s also the day the district will announce its recommended “scenario” for next school year.
SUPPORTING SMALL BUSINESSES: Even though many are now allowed to restore reduced-capacity in-person service, it’s by no means an instant remedy for the revenue losses that so many have suffered over the past three months. So fundraising efforts continue as a supplement the Small Business Relief Fund set up by the West Seattle Junction Association is one; also, a post in the WSB Community Forums links to a crowdfunding campaign for Seattle Yarn.
GOT SOMETHING TO REPORT? westseattleblog@gmail.com or 206-293-6302, text/voice – thank you!
This morning, Brian sent that photo, showing a juvenile Peregrine Falcon that seemed to have encountered trouble on the low-bridge bicycle/pedestrian path. Then, tonight, an update from Joel, including more photos:
To all the concerned cyclists and walkers that saw the disoriented juvenile Peregrine on the bridge yesterday, good news, he was picked up today and transferred to PAWS for rehabilitation:
We don’t know for sure if it’s from the same nest, but another reader had recently called our attention to the Urban Raptor Conservancy mentioning briefly in this online update that three peregrines had hatched in a nest on the now-closed high bridge. We asked SDOT for more information, and they reminded us it’s not the first time:
We have a long history of working with the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Urban Raptor Conservancy’s Seattle Peregrine Project to support wildlife preservation efforts including protecting peregrine falcon nests on West Seattle High-Rise Bridge and the University Bridge. In the late 1990s, we assisted with the nest box’s placement on the bridge, and the site has produced young most years since 2005. In some years, we have also assisted the Urban Raptor Conservancy to band new falcon chicks in order to learn valuable information about the birds’ movement and migration habits. For example, in 2011 an SDOT bridge inspector discovered four young falcon chicks roosting beneath the West Seattle High-Rise Bridge, which were the offspring of a female peregrine who had travelled from a nest on a crane at the Port of Olympia.
We take extreme care not to disturb the current resident of the nest, who the Urban Raptor Conservancy informs us is a peregrine falcon born in downtown Tacoma. We are in frequent communication with Department of Fish and Wildlife and Urban Raptor Conservancy about the status of the bridge and plan to work closely with both agencies regarding the future of the bridge and nest.
SDOT also told us they and partner agencies have considered installing a streaming camera but not soon, as they “determined that it is too risky to the birds to install during nesting season (and also risky for our engineers, since the falcons are highly likely to attack anyone who comes near the nest). This is a seasonal nest, so we are considering installing a camera later this year after the fledgling season when birds have all learned to fly and left the nest.”
Minus the traditional ceremonies, graduation season continues. Chief Sealth International High School‘s Class of 2020 graduates on Wednesday (June 17th). Sealth activities coordinator Sarah Starr Martin sent details about the online ceremony:
Live on SPS TV at 8:30 pm Wednesday
Watch on YouTube here (note: updated link)
On cable:
Comcast 26 (standard-def) 319 (hi-def)
Wave 26 (standard-def) 695 (hi-def)
Century Link 8008 (standard-def) 8508 (hi-def)
Sarah adds, “If students and families cannot view the live broadcast, beginning June 20, SPSTV will rebroadcast the graduations through July 4. The full list of graduation-ceremony schedules can be found here.”
P.S. Sealth teacher Breanna Whited made a video tribute to the Class of 2020 and shares it – via PTSA co-president Bonnie Gilbert – with school permission:
2:06 PM: We are at Walt Hundley Playfield, where West Seattle’s next protest march is about to start. Organizers just told us they plan to go west on Myrtle, north on 35th, east on Morgan/Sylvan, then on Delridge to Boren STEM K-8. Updates to come.
3:05 PM: After several speeches (added: some video above, including Karen Taylor singing the Black National Anthem), the march is about to leave the playfield.
3:17 PM: Headed out, NB on 35th.
3:47 PM: Approaching Delridge.
3:54 PM: Now on Delridge, stopping just north of the precinct, chanting “no justice, no peace, no racist police” and “Black rights are equal rights.” Also, “Say his name/George Floyd.”
(added) And an invitation for the police whose building was yards away:
4:07 PM: The hundreds of marchers have now headed northbound for the endpoint, Louisa Boren STEM K-8. The organizers were a group of 5friends who say they just came up with the idea less than a week ago because they thought there should be more marches “in more urban communities.’
4:37 PM: The march is over; some participants are still rallying in the Boren parking lot.
(Photo courtesy Alex)
More photos later.
6:01 PM: We’ve added some photos above. Still to come: Video from just before the march. The speakers had many messages, including this one that was repeated by multiple speakers: Marching is not enough. “You have to put in the work,” said Amanda Scott. “There’s so much work to be done.”
It’s a bridge that tens of thousands previously drove or rode under every day, but unless you’ve walked, run, rolled, or bicycled over it, or live near it, you probably haven’t seen the SW Andover overpass in almost three months. It’s not out of sight/out of mind for the city, though. A long-planned project to retrofit the overpass for earthquake resistance is getting closer, according to this update emailed by SDOT this week:
Earthquakes could have a significant detrimental effect on Seattle’s infrastructure. To address seismic risks to city infrastructure, the City of Seattle established the bridge seismic retrofit (BSR) program.
As part of the BSR program, we’ll seismically retrofit the SW Andover St Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridge, a vital pedestrian connection between the Youngstown and Genesee neighborhoods. The bridge was built in 1961, prior to the modernization of the seismic design code.
The planned retrofits to the SW Andover St Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridge will strengthen key bridge components to better withstand seismic events.
What’s happening now?
We are currently in the final stages of design and expect to complete design this summer. Construction is anticipated to begin in late 2020 and last approximately 2-3 months.
What to expect during construction
To complete this work safely and efficiently, the bridge will be fully closed for the duration of construction. Detours will be in place for those walking and biking. The detour route will be confirmed closer to the start of construction.
We’ll inform residents, nearby businesses, and people traveling through the area of the closure schedule and timing of construction throughout the project. This project will not interfere with, nor be impacted by, the West Seattle Bridge closure.
This will be funded by the Move Seattle levy and was on its original project list, which included both Admiral Way bridges as well as the Delridge pedestrian/bicycle overpass (as well as some non-bridge projects that were later delayed indefinitely). The project website is here.
(WSB photos)
Just south of the now-empty West Seattle high bridge sits Pigeon Point. That’s where, this morning, dozens of Pigeon Pointers of all ages showed up for a neighborhood march to affirm that Black Lives Matter.
As reported here on Friday, this is also a response to the defacing and removal of a support banner that had been hung in the neighborhood.
P.S. This was the first of two West Seattle events announced for today – the next is at 2 pm at High Point Community Center, with an announced plan to march to Delridge Community Center.
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