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year : 2021 3739 results

CORONAVIRUS: Monday 1/4/21 roundup
January 4, 2021 10:12 pm
|    Comments Off on CORONAVIRUS: Monday 1/4/21 roundup
 |   Coronavirus | West Seattle news

Will the current restrictions really be lifted one week from today? We could find out as soon as tomorrow:

GOVERNOR PLANS TUESDAY BRIEFING: A new “reopening plan” announcement has been promised for this week, and that might be what we hear from Gov. Inslee at 2:30 pm tomorrow. The advisory:

Gov. Jay Inslee will address the media tomorrow via streaming video and telephone to give an update on the state’s response to the ongoing pandemic. The governor will be joined by:

Dr. Umair Shah, secretary, Department of Health
Lacy Fehrenbach, assistant secretary, prevention and community health, Department of Health
Dr. Scott Lindquist, state epidemiologist for communicable diseases, Department of Health
Nick Streuli, executive director of external affairs, Office of the Governor

We plan to carry the live feed here on WSB; you can also watch via TVW by going here.

NEWEST KING COUNTY NUMBERS: Here are the toplines of today’s daily summary from Seattle-King County Public Health – the cumulative countywide totals:

*64,912 people have tested positive, 334 more than yesterday’s total

*1,096 people have died, 5 more than yesterday’s total

*4,296 people have been hospitalized, 47 more than yesterday’s total

*759,558 people have been tested, 3,892 more than yesterday’s total

One week ago, the totals were 60,632/1,056/4,066/736,574.

STATEWIDE NUMBERS: See them here.

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

TESTING, HEALTH-INSURANCE ENROLLMENT, MORE … will be offered at a Highland Park Elementary event, outdoors, 10 am-2 pm Saturday. All welcome.

ENCAMPMENT STILL COVID-FREE: So reported the site coordinator for the Camp Second Chance tiny-house encampment at this month’s Community Advisory Committee meeting.

NOTIFICATION TOOL UPDATE: The WA Notify tool is now being used by 1.63 million people (up 60,000 from a week ago).

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

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WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: 4 notes
January 4, 2021 8:48 pm
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

In West Seattle Crime Watch tonight:

TIRES TAKEN: The photo and report are from Brenda: “New Year’s Eve, someone stole the two passenger-side tires from our car that was parked in front of our house on 46th Ave SW. Ugh 2020, so glad you’re over!!!

SPEAKING OF TIRES: We’re still hearing from people who were victims in the weekend tire-slashing rampage – among them, Barbara, who tells WSB that “two cars in our driveway on Fauntleroy were slashed, as well as two cars of our neighbor to the south, and two cars across the alley to the east. We heard that the total for this last couple of nights was 30 car-tire slashings, not including the six in our immediate area. She had heard a suspect was arrested; we’re still working to confirm that.

(added moments after original publication) ONE MORE TIRE TALE: Mark just emailed tonight to report finding this:

I was out walking our dog earlier this afternoon and came across a nice Schwinn bicycle wheel from a higher end road bike (appeared to have been a carbon frame, or at least a carbon front fork). It was on the ground by the West 206 apartments at California and SW College in North Admiral. I snapped the pic attached and leaned the wheel against the SW College side of the apartment building in between some bushes. It’s really odd – there are still remnants of the carbon fork attached to the hub, and I can’t imagine how it would have ended up like that without some serious force being applied. I was guessing a thief dumped it after somehow breaking it, but honestly no idea.

LETTER CARRIER HARASSED: This happened on December 26th in the 6300 block of 24th SW but just appeared in SPD’s Significant Incident Reports file today. Here’s the SPD summary:

On 12-26-2020 at 1520 hours, the reporting party, who was a male, called police because while conducting his mail delivery route, the roadway was blocked by a vehicle. He said the vehicle was preventing him from delivering mail to several homes. The caller waited a few minutes for the vehicle to move out of his way. When the vehicle did not move, the caller then decided to honk his horn. The vehicle continued to block the roadway, so the caller decided to approach the vehicle and make contact with the driver to ask her to move. The driver of the vehicle was described as a female, 5’11, medium build, long curly hair and all black clothing. The unknown female began screaming at the caller. She used a racial slur more than once and added that she did not like the way he wore his mask. The caller stated that no threat or assault was made towards him. The unknown female never prevented him from leaving. The caller stated it was unknown if he was targeted because of his race. Suspect not located at the time of this incident.

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TRAFFIC ALERT: West Marginal Way SW work tomorrow
January 4, 2021 7:07 pm
|      13 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

If you travel on West Marginal Way SW, here’s an alert about work that will mean lane closures tomorrow. From SDOT:

Tomorrow, Seattle Parks and Recreation will be performing emergency tree removal work. Parks will be removing 5 trees on West Marginal Way SW that are at risk of being uprooted due to heavy rains and could fall into the roadway, causing safety issues and unplanned road closures.

Tree removal will start as early as 9 a.m. on January 5 and continue through the afternoon. The trees are being removed approximately 300 feet north of the intersection of West Marginal Way SW and Highland Park Way SW. West Marginal Way SW will be reduced to one lane each way near the work area. People using the corridor should follow posted signs in the area.

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After years of rising taxes, West Seattle Junction’s free-parking lots will soon be free no more
January 4, 2021 4:39 pm
|      176 COMMENTS
 |   Transportation | West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

(WSB photo: 44th/Oregon lot)

For years, we’ve been reporting on the West Seattle Junction Association‘s struggle to keep the “free parking” lots free, despite the ever-rising property-tax bills – the lots are assessed as potentially developable land. They’ve tried fundraisers and other tactics to hold off the inevitable – but now, the “free-parking lot” era is about to end. Here’s the WSJA announcement we received this afternoon:

For more than 30 years, the West Seattle Junction merchants have paid for the ‘free’ parking lots in the heart of West Seattle. A benefit that has been shared with the community will be turning a new chapter in the parking-lot book in 2021.

“We live in a world where the definition of transportation has changed since the 1970s. People have the power to get around West Seattle in different ways,” says Lora Radford, West Seattle Junction Association Executive Director.

In partnership with Diamond Parking, who has been working with the Junction since 1997, the merchant-funded parking spaces will be upgraded to pay parking on January 15th, 2021.

The change comes at a time where the Junction has been shouldering the full cost of rapidly increasing taxes that have become unsustainable. 100% of the Junction’s portion of the revenue from the paid parking will be applied to the tax burden, lessening the amount due, but by no means paying for the entire obligation.

The idea of maintaining free parking in an urban village like the Junction (the last in the City of Seattle), is no surprise for the residents. In early 2019 the Junction conducted a community survey (through a grant), that underscored the sentiment free parking was an anomaly in a rapidly growing city.

Especially in this time, the Junction has asked the community to include the support of small business in their daily lives. The request for West Seattleites to pay a modest $2 to $3 per hour (the cost of a greeting card, cup of coffee, or craft beer) to preserve the economic vibrancy of their downtown should be a simple request.

“For many, experiencing the downtown of West Seattle will become easier,” continues Radford. “The ability to find parking each time you visit the Junction will increase dramatically with the movement into paid parking. Gone will be the days of cars parked in the lots for hours at a time.”

The experiences of West Seattleites are a true reflection of who they are and what they care about, and visiting the Junction is one of the most vivid examples of normalcy in a far-from-normal world. For some, a trip to the West Seattle Junction is, in itself, the only and best destination. People can feel the heartbeat of some of the best small businesses through a perfectly scooped ice cream, to the bite of a tangy piece of pizza, or through quirky items found at local independent shops. They can reflect on collections of cultural significance through the murals or take a stroll under the flower baskets heavy with summer blooms.

Luckily for them, the Junction can continue to offer an avenue to attract those uniquely Northwest experiences in West Seattle.

The Junction strongly believes in the continued community benefit provided to West Seattle residents. We believe the West Seattle Junction is the core of West Seattle where neighbors come together to meet which promotes community openness and sense of place. The wellbeing of West Seattle will continue through the ease of parking close to the very heart of our community through a new and modern version of history.

As explained in this WSB story almost three years ago, the Junction Association doesn’t own the lots, but its lease with the owners, West Seattle Trusteed Properties, leaves WSJA on the hook for the taxes, in addition to the rent. The lots include 228 spaces that have allowed customers up to 3 free hours.

ADDED 6:47 PM: To clarify a couple points raised in comment discussion – this involves only the four lots managed by WSJA – off 42nd south of Oregon, off the east side of 44th just south of Oregon, on the southeast corner of 44th/Alaska, and off the east side of 44th just north of Edmunds. Street parking is managed by the city, which has reviewed the Junction area twice in the past 12 years and concluded both times (2009 coverage here, 2018 coverage here) that metered/pay-station street parking was unnecessary, though an RPZ was added in 2019.

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SCHOOL PROJECTS: West Seattle Elementary addition hearing Wednesday; Schmitz Park Elementary portables comment time
January 4, 2021 3:05 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

Two notes today about related school projects – the West Seattle Elementary addition, and the Schmitz Park Elementary portables that will be required to house WSES students during construction:

WEST SEATTLE ELEMENTARY HEARING: At 10 am Wednesday (January 6th) online, the district opens an appeal hearing on the project’s State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA)-related checklist. (“Checklist” is the official term for this document, but it’s 228 pages long.- see it here.) The hearing is open to the public; this calendar listing includes information on attending by video or phone. The project is scheduled to start construction this summer and be complete in time for the start of the 2022-2023 school year.

SCHMITZ PARK ELEMENTARY PORTABLES COMMENT TIME: While the addition is built, WSE’s students are scheduled to spend the 2021-2022 school year at the former Schmitz Park Elementary campus. To facilitate that, the district plans to add 17 portables to the site, which held 20 before students were moved to the new Genesee Hill Elementary in 2016. 16 would be classrooms, while one would be restrooms. The two old portables left on the site would be demolished. After the year of housing WSE students, the district also plans for the site to be temporary home to Alki Elementary during its rebuild in 2023-2025. All this is detailed in the draft SEPA checklist for the project, on which the district is now accepting comments; you can see the 82-page document here. From the district website, here is how to comment, deadline January 11th:

Email: SEPAcomments@seattleschools.org

Mail:
Fred Podesta, Chief Operations Officer
Seattle Public Schools
PO Box 34165, MS 22-183
Seattle, WA 98124

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Outdoor health-services-and-more event Saturday in Highland Park
January 4, 2021 1:40 pm
|    Comments Off on Outdoor health-services-and-more event Saturday in Highland Park
 |   Health | Highland Park | West Seattle news

This event Saturday is happening in the parking lot at Highland Park Elementary (1012 SW Trenton), but everyone’s welcome, whether there’s a student in your family or not:

The announcement is from organizer Dominique Pie, who you can call with questions, 206-437-4068.

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Updates from Camp Second Chance, plus a look inside new tiny-house-building ‘Hope Factory’
January 4, 2021 11:43 am
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   Myers Way | West Seattle news

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Camp Second Chance, West Seattle’s only city-sanctioned tiny-house encampment, remains COVID-free.

That was one of the updates heard by the camp’s Community Advisory Committee in its monthly online meeting Sunday afternoon, which also featured a look inside the new tiny-house-building site in SODO that replaced the “big tent” at Camp Second Chance where volunteers built them previously.

CAMP UPDATE: Site coordinator Eric Pattin reported 53 people are now living at CSC (9701 Myers Way S.), 14 women, 39 men. Two people exited to affordable housing and two others left; all four were replaced by new arrivals.

Read More

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WEST SEATTLE SCENE: High tide exceeds expectations
January 4, 2021 10:17 am
|      5 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle beaches | West Seattle news | West Seattle weather

10:17 AM: Thanks to @i8ipod for tweeting that photo from Alki about an hour ago, as high tide topped the seawall on the promenade. We noted back on Friday that today would bring one of the month’s highest tides, 12.6 feet, but as a texter points out with the screengrab below, atmospheric conditions pushed the actual peak even higher, close to 14 feet:

The highest predicted tides of the month are pre-dawn January 13 and 14, in the 6 am hour, at 12.8 feet.

10:35 AM: Just received Don Armeni Boat Ramp photos from Stewart L.

Note how high the floating dock rose, almost swamping the signage:

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WEST SEATTLE MONDAY: What’s up today
January 4, 2021 9:12 am
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

(Photo by Machel Spence)

Notes for the first post-holiday weekday of the new year:

TEST SITE REOPENS: West Seattle’s public COVID-19 testing site is open again for Monday-Saturday operation. Go here to start the appointment process. (2801 SW Thistle)

YOUTH WRITING COMPETITION BEGINS: Today’s the first day the Southwest Seattle Historical Society will accept entries in its youth writing competition on “Women History Makers of the Duwamish Peninsula.” Background info is here; winners’ essays will be published here on WSB, in addition to other prizes/honors.

CITY COUNCIL RETURNS: Meetings resume today after the holiday break. The 9:30 am agenda is here, 2 pm agenda is here (including info on how to participate in that meeting’s public-comment period). Both will be streamed live via Seattle Channel (cable 21).

SCHOOL MEALS: 11:15 am-1:15 pm, Seattle Public Schools meal sites resume full operation post-winter break.

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ROAD WORK, TRAFFIC, TRANSIT: First Monday of 2021
January 4, 2021 6:16 am
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

6:16 AM: It’s Monday, January 4th, the 287th morning without the West Seattle Bridge.

ROAD (ETC.) WORK

Delridge project: Here’s what’s planned this week, including the postponed SW Thistle closure east of Delridge starting as soon as today.

TRANSIT

Metro – Back to regular schedule

Water Taxi – Back to regular schedule

CHECK TRAFFIC BEFORE YOU GO

West Marginal Way (substitute camera since the one at Highland Park Way has been out of alignment):

Highland Park Way/Holden:

The 5-way intersection (Spokane/West Marginal/Delridge/Chelan):

Restricted-daytime-access (open to all 9 pm-5 am, with camera enforcement starting 1/11/21) low bridge:

The main detour route across the Duwamish River, the 1st Avenue South Bridge (map) . Here are two cameras:

The other major bridge across the river – the South Park Bridge (map). Here’s the nearest camera:

Going through South Park? Don’t speed. (Same goes for the other detour-route neighborhoods, like Highland Park, Riverview, and South Delridge.)

To check for bridges’ marine-traffic openings, see the @SDOTBridges Twitter feed.

You can view all local traffic cams here; locally relevant cameras are also shown on this WSB page.

Trouble on the roads/paths/water? Let us know – text (but not if you’re driving!) 206-293-6302.

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CORONAVIRUS: Sunday 1/3/21 roundup
January 3, 2021 9:13 pm
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   Coronavirus | West Seattle news

Here’s what’s new as the holiday season ends :

KING COUNTY’S NEWEST NUMBERS: Here are the cumulative totals from the Public Health daily-summary dashboard – again, remember that testing availability is limited during holidays, so we won’t get a full picture of the current situation for at least a few more days:

*64,578 people have tested positive, up 469 from yesterday’s total

*1,091 people have died, unchanged since Friday

*4,249 people have been hospitalized, up 4 from yesterday’s total

*755,666 people have been tested, up 497 from yesterday’s total

One week ago, the King County totals were 60,182/1,043/4,042/732,257.

STATEWIDE NUMBERS: See them here.

WORLDWIDE NUMBERS: 85 million cases and 1,842,000+ deaths, 351,000 of them in the U.S. – see the nation-by-nation breakdown here.

WHAT TO EXPECT THIS WEEK: No date announced for a briefing, but Gov. Inslee‘s office promised that, “An updated reopening plan is currently being developed to provide a pathway for businesses and workers impacted by this order to reopen safely” and that it will be released this coming week.

FOOD FOR STUDENTS: The winter break for Seattle Public Schools is ending, so all meal sites return to operation tomorrow – here’s the list/map of where and when.

GROCERY HOURS: We revisited local standalone stores’ hours, including special senior/at-risk shopping times, here.

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

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GROCERY SHOPPING: Checking in on West Seattle stores’ hours, with one about to make changes
January 3, 2021 7:52 pm
|      23 COMMENTS
 |   Coronavirus | West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

Periodically during the pandemic, we’ve been checking on local grocery stores’ hours, including the hours they set aside for higher-risk shoppers, particularly people 60 and older. But it’s been a while since last check-in, so when we got word that one store is making changes starting tomorrow, we decided to check in on all of West Seattle’s standalone stores:

PCC (2749 California SW): Starting Monday (January 4th), PCC is expanding its hours to 6 am-11 pm and its seniors/at-risk shopping hours to 6-8 am Wednesdays and Saturdays

WEST SEATTLE THRIFTWAY (California/Fauntleroy; WSB sponsor): 5 am-midnight daily, 7 am-9 am Tuesdays and Thursdays for seniors

METROPOLITAN MARKET (Admiral/41st): Open 6 am-11 pm daily, no senior/high-risk shopping hours

QFC (4550 42nd SW, Westwood Village): 6 am-11 pm daily, 7-8 am Mondays and Wednesdays for seniors/high-risk

SAFEWAY (28th/Roxbury, Jefferson Square, 2622 California SW): 5 am-1 am daily, 6-9 am Tuesdays and Thursdays for seniors/high-risk

TRADER JOE’S (4545 Fauntleroy Way SW): 8 am-9 pm daily, first hour Wednesday and Sunday (8 am-9 am) set aside for seniors/disabled

WHOLE FOODS MARKET (4755 Fauntleroy Way SW): 8 am-9 pm daily, seniors/high-risk/disabled 7-8 am Friday

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WSB FYI: West Seattle Event Calendar
January 3, 2021 6:54 pm
|    Comments Off on WSB FYI: West Seattle Event Calendar
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle online

We’re continuing our start-of-the-year series of reminders about what WSB offers in addition to comprehensive local-news coverage. Friday, we revisited Lost & Found, pets and otherwise; last night, free obituaries; tonight, how to get something listed on the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar. Pre-pandemic, the calendar overflowed with daily listings; then, by mid-March, most in-person events were canceled or went virtual. We had so many standing listings, it took a long time to undo them. But finally this past fall, the event calendar found renewed use with online events and the occasional in-person happenings, and we want to remind you it’s available as a resource. This too is a free service – just send us the information, including the what/who/when/where basics. If “where” is online, please send the connection and/or call-in information, or a link to your webpage where that information can be accessed. Please send information as text in your e-mail; images are welcome as supplementary components, especially photos, but if you only send the info as an image, it requires laborious transcription. Many types of events are welcome as listings – community and organization meetings, presentations, classes, donation drives, workshops, business events, and more (and when in-person events resume in full force, we’ll be happy to list the full range of those too). westseattleblog@gmail.com is our main address for this and other types of info.

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TUESDAY: West Seattle fuel-station lease on Northwest Seaport Alliance agenda
January 3, 2021 5:29 pm
|      4 COMMENTS
 |   Port of Seattle | West Seattle news

(Image: Google Maps)

As we continue looking ahead to the first meetings of the new year – a West Seattle item of note is on the Tuesday agenda for the Northwest Seaport Alliance‘s managing members, aka the port commissioners from Seattle and Tacoma – a vote to authorize a new lease for the automated fuel station at Terminal 115, north of the West Marginal Way SW/Highland Park Way intersection. The agenda document says the original 5-year lease ended in 2019 but various factors delayed renegotiation of a new one, so the Associated Petroleum Products station’s been there on “holdover status” for almost two years. The agenda document says the two sides agreed to lease terms a year ago but:

“In March 2020, just prior to the Lease being brought to the April 2020 Managing Members meeting, APP requested a rental rate reduction due to their business being negatively impacted by the COVID 19 pandemic and WA State’s Stay at Home policy. NWSA Real Estate declined a rental rate reduction but did offer to delay moving forward with the new lease and new rental rate as we interpreted APP’s request as potentially falling within Governor Inslee’s April 16, 2020 Proclamation 20-19.1 as prohibiting rent increases for commercial tenants when tenants were ‘materially impacted by the COVID-19, . . . whether the business itself was not deemed essential pursuant to Proclamation 20-25 or otherwise lost staff or customers due to the COVID-19 outbreak.’ APP agreed to recommence negotiations in September 2020. Lease drafts were exchanged, and the parties agreed to a final Lease on December 11, 2020. …”

The document says that following an appraisal, the rent is going up from $8,307 a month to $12,065. APP also has the right to keep subleasing space on the site to Portside Coffee and Subway. The vote is part of Tuesday’s 11:30 am meeting; you can listen by calling 253-617-4257 (Id: 467 507 334#), or you can watch the videostream here.

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ROAD WORK: Delridge project’s plan for the week ahead
January 3, 2021 4:05 pm
|      4 COMMENTS
 |   Delridge | West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

Major work resumes tomorrow on the Delridge repaving-and-utilities project preparing for the RapidRide H Line. Here are the key points in SDOT‘s weekly preview:

*Vehicle detection loop installation and concrete work at the intersection of SW Oregon St and Delridge Way SW scheduled to begin as early as January 4. Traffic will be split around the planned roadway median during this work. The following week, traffic will be shifted to the east side.

*SW Brandon St on the east side is scheduled to reopen by (this) week. The west side of SW Brandon St will remain closed for staging.

*SW Thistle St between Delridge Way SW and 20th Ave SW closed as early as January 4th to complete temporary signal work and to demolish and rebuild the sidewalk during duct bank installation. SW Thistle will be local access only.

*Roadway demolition and paving to resume on the west side of Delridge Way SW in Zone A and on the east side of Delridge Way SW in Zone B.

The full update is here.

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WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Man stabbed; tires vandalized; mail stolen; car prowled
January 3, 2021 1:55 pm
|      23 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

1:55 PM: Three West Seattle Crime Watch reports so far today:

MAN STABBED: A man in his early 60s was taken to the hospital in stable condition with an abdominal wound after what was reported as a stabbing in the Transitional Resources lobby at 2970 SW Avalon Way just before 9:30 am today. We don’t have details on the circumstances but a suspect was reported to be in custody and the scene cleared within an hour.

TIRES VANDALIZED: We’ve received two reports of multiple tire slashings this weekend – near Lowman Beach, and along California SW north of Morgan Junction. (Added – One victim’s security video from just before 5:30 pm Saturday:)

(Also added – one more report received since publishing this: “Three cars had their tires slashed along Fauntleroy Place SW. All of them were along the road and not tucked up in driveways.”)

MAIL STOLEN: Jennifer in Arbor Heights reported that on Saturday afternoon, “I just had a surprise visit from a neighbor a couple blocks away who was out delivering all the stolen mail that was stuffed into his neighbor’s mailbox. He said there was mail from all over the neighborhood.”

2:56 PM: One more report just in:

CAR PROWLED: From Taylor: “Just wanted to alert the neighbors that our car was prowled in our alley driveway at some point in the last 48 hours. We’re on 41st Ave SW near the dead end at Genesee. Nothing was taken but compartments were open and things from the console were on the driver’s seat. They must have been looking for cash because they didn’t take my binoculars or my son’s bike. Won’t ever forget to make sure it’s locked again.”

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SPORTS: West Seattle Little League registration now open
January 3, 2021 11:27 am
|    Comments Off on SPORTS: West Seattle Little League registration now open
 |   West Seattle news | WS & Sports

Another local Little League has opened registration for spring – this time, it’s West Seattle Little League. Here’s the announcement;

Think Spring 2021 and register today for West Seattle Little League. West Seattle Little League registration for spring 2021 is now open for all youth ages 4-14. We have added two new divisions – an Intermediate 50/70 team for our league 13-years that missed out on their final Majors season, and a Junior team age 14. Visit our website to learn more about each of our divisions of play.

WSLL is committed to making baseball available to ALL players. Scholarship opportunities are available here. Check out westseattlelittleleague.com for more information.

On Saturday, we published the registration information for Southwest Little League. You can determine league eligibility by using this lookup.

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WEST SEATTLE SUNDAY: 2021’s first weekend continues
January 3, 2021 6:39 am
|      1 COMMENT
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle religion | WS miscellaneous

(Blustery Saturday night @ Constellation Park – photo by Theresa Arbow-O’Connor)

On this third day of the new year, here’s what’s up:

TODAY’S ONLINE CHURCH SERVICES: Our list of more than 20 local churches’ Sunday online services (with a few also offering in-person options), with the latest links, is here.

SCOUTS RECYCLING TREES: Happening in Burien, but the troop contacted us so they could invite West Seattleites too – you can drop off your Christmas tree (not flocked) with Scouts for a suggested $5 donation, 9 am-4 pm. (920 SW 150th)

WEST SEATTLE FARMERS’ MARKET: 10 am-2 pm in The Junction, the market returns after a one-week break. Scroll down the page at this link to find the vendor list and map for this week. (Enter at California/Alaska; pickups for online orders are at California/Oregon)

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

CAMP SECOND CHANCE COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE: 2 pm online, the monthly meeting for updates on, and discussion of, West Seattle’s only city-sanctioned tiny-house encampment. All welcome. Videoconferencing access here, or call 253-215-8782 – for both, meeting ID 858 5523 4269, password 9701.

FREE TO-GO DINNER: White Center Community Dinner Church will serve to-go meals at 5 pm, outside, near the Bartell Drugs parking lot in White Center. (9600 15th Ave SW)

Got something for our calendar? westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!

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CORONAVIRUS: Saturday 1/2/21 roundup, including our weekly West Seattle trend check
January 2, 2021 10:02 pm
|    Comments Off on CORONAVIRUS: Saturday 1/2/21 roundup, including our weekly West Seattle trend check
 |   Coronavirus | West Seattle news

Midway through the first weekend of 2021, here are our pandemic toplines:

NEWEST KING COUNTY NUMBERS: First, the cumulative totals from Public Health‘s daily-summary dashboard – keep in mind that testing availability’s been low the past few days because of the holiday:

*64,109 people have tested positive, 810 more than yesterday’s total

*1,091 people have died, unchanged from yesterday’s total

*4,245 people have been hospitalized, 51 more than yesterday’s total

*755,169 people have been tested, 4,975 more than yesterday’s total

One week ago, those totals were 60,000/1,043/4,019/730,769.

WEST SEATTLE TRENDS: Here’s our weekly check of this stat, with numbers shown in two-week increments via the “geography over time” tab on the daily-summary dashboard, combining the totals from the West Seattle and Delridge “health reporting areas” (HRAs). For the past two weeks, 207 positive test results; 417 in the 2 weeks before that; 398 in the two weeks before that. … We also are going to start noting WS death totals each week, as the HRAs are a more precise way of counting those than the zip codes we used briefly, since two of West Seattle’s five ZIP codes also stretch outside the area. The total deaths for the entire pandemic in the two HRAs comprising West Seattle: 49. The dashboard says 6 of those were in the past two weeks.

STATEWIDE NUMBERS: See them here.

WORLDWIDE NUMBERS: 84.5 million people have tested positive, and more than 1,835,000 million people have died; U.S. deaths have passed 350,000. Most cases: U.S., India, Brazil, Russia, France (fifth week with no change). See the breakdown, nation by nation, here.

PARK PROGRAMS: Now that January’s here, Seattle Parks is about to start another month of virtual programming, for all ages. If you haven’t seen the brochure yet, find it here.

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

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WEST SEATTLE WEATHER: Reminder for this rainy night
January 2, 2021 7:50 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle weather

(Framegrab from SDOT’s 5-way-intersection camera)

So far, no reports of flooding – but it’s forecast to be a very rainy night, and the Flood Watch alert remains in effect, so this reminder from Seattle Public Utilities might be of value:

With heavy rain in the forecast tonight through tomorrow, Seattle Public Utilities has extra staff on standby and is ready to respond to any drainage-related issues.

If customers need to report sewer backups or flooding, they should call the 24/7 Operations Response Center at 206-386-1800.

Customers can help prevent flooding and ponding in their area by keeping storm drains in their area clear of debris.

For more information on SPU flooding response, please (go here).

Drainage trouble was blamed for a lot of what we saw in the intense downpour 12 days ago.

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WSB FYI: Free obituaries
January 2, 2021 6:19 pm
|      9 COMMENTS
 |   Obituaries | West Seattle news

Continuing our start-of-a-new-year series of reminders about what WSB offers besides news coverage: Tonight – one of those services we hope you don’t need, but if you do – we publish obituaries for free. We’re told that other publications can charge up to hundreds of dollars to publish one, and we think that’s wrong – grieving families have enough else to worry about – so in the past decade, we’ve published almost 500 obituaries, all at no charge. We consider them to be news – and while some are very basic, others tell stories of interest even to those who never knew the person who’s passed on. If this is a service you find yourself in need of, all you have to do is send us the text and photo, as part of your email, not as a Word or PDF type attachment. If you’re including time-sensitive information such as the date for a memorial or celebration of life (we’ve had some Zoom links in recent obituaries), please keep in mind that several days’ lead time is best as it might take us a few days to publish it. You can scroll through our archive for examples of what we’ve published.

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STAY HEALTHY STREETS: Next briefing this Wednesday
January 2, 2021 4:21 pm
|      48 COMMENTS
 |   Transportation | West Seattle news

(WSB photo, December)

The creation of no-through-traffic “Stay Healthy Streets“ was a hot topic here on WSB in 2020, taking two spots on our list of the year’s 10 most-commented stories. West Seattle has three stretches – one in High Point/Sunrise Heights (map), one in Highland Park/Puget Ridge (map), and one around Alki Point (map), technically a “Keep Moving Street” because much of it is adjacent to a park. That stretch’s future is to be determined this year; if you’re interested, the next major city briefing is coming up Wednesday (January 6th). It’s a joint meeting of the city Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Boards, online at 6 pm; the “Stay Healthy Streets” briefing is expected to start around 6:30 pm. The meeting includes public-comment periods at the beginning and end, as you can see on the agenda, which includes information on how to attend via videoconferencing or phone.

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GRATITUDE: What you gave The Christmas People, and what they delivered
January 2, 2021 1:35 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   Holidays | West Seattle news

Among the many opportunities for holiday help that we showcased this season was The Christmas People‘s request for cookies and volunteers. The group’s president/co-founder Fred Hutchinson sent this community thank-you note with an update on the results:

From December 24 through December 27, The Christmas People delivered 2,917 meals to homeless shelters and tiny-house settlements. This is about 60% more meals that other years due to demand. Generous neighbors in West Seattle dropped off in excess of 7,200 cookies — twice what we normally receive. Many cookies were nicer than a bake shop; often these cookies are the only gift a homeless person receives. We also had the generous support of 65 volunteers over the six-day period of prep and delivery. Thank you to West Seattle Blog and our neighbors for a genuine outpouring of goodwill and love this holiday season.

Along with announcements here in the news stream, we also list giving opportunities in our West Seattle Holiday Guide every year; our thanks, too, to everyone who organizes, and responds to, them!

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