West Seattle, Washington
31 Thursday
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
A decade after a bitter battle over Seattle Public Schools start times, changes are back on the table.
This was the major – though not the only – issue discussed when three school-board members met online with West Seattle school-community members Saturday afternoon. The meeting was organized and facilitated by Manuela Slye, a West Seattleite who is co-vice president of the Seattle Council (citywide) PTSA.
The problem is, again, school buses. A decade ago, the district sought to go to a three-tier start-time plan so it could save some money on transportation costs; there were changes in 2015, too. This time, the district says, the issue is a “nationwide driver shortage.” If it ran on a three-tier schedule instead of two tiers, more routes could be handled by fewer drivers. So the proposal – which just went public late this past week, just in time for the board to get its first look at Thursday’s Operations Committee meeting – is for some schools to start as early as 7:30 am and some to start as late as 9:30 am, while others would start at 8:30 am. Here’s what’s proposed for schools in our area:
8:50 PM SUNDAY: As each weekend ends, we look at the local COVID trends. Cases are up for a fifth week, hospitalizations are up, and deaths are down. All three categories remain far lower than the winter peaks you can see on the graphs that are shown on the Public Health – Seattle/King County dashboard:
*19 percent more cases countywide in the past week than the week before
*Currently averaging 644 new daily cases countywide (up from 635 when we checked a week ago)
*16 percent more hospitalizations countywide in the past week than the week before
*Currently averaging 5 new hospitalizations daily (up from 4 a week ago)
*11 percent fewer deaths countywide in the past two weeks than the two weeks before (the dashboard doesn’t offer a one-week increment)
*Currently averaging 1 death daily (same as the two-week average last week)
For West Seattle, we have two-week comparisons (these are the combined totals from two “health reporting areas,” labeled West Seattle and Delridge):
*489 cases between 4/4 and 4/18, up from 202 between 3/20 and 4/3
*5 hospitalizations between 4/4 and 4/18, up from 2 between 3/20 and 4/3
*No deaths between 4/4 and 4/18, unchanged from between 3/20 and 4/3
And checking vaccination rates:
*80.8 percent of all King County residents have completed the initial series (up .1% from a week ago)
*85.5 percent of all King County residents ages 5 and up have completed the initial series (up .1% from a week ago)
*48.5 percent of all King County residents have had the initial series plus a booster (up .4% from a week ago)
*In West Seattle, here are the zip-code vaccination rates for ages 5 and up (reminder, 98106 and 98146 are not entirely within WS):
98106 – 87.8% completed initial series (up .1% from a week earlier), 52.6% have had a booster
98116 – 92.6% completed initial series (up .2% from a week earlier), 64.4% have had a booster
98126 – 83.4% completed initial series (up .1% from a week earlier), 54.3% have had a booster
98136 – 93.4% completed initial series (up .1% from a week earlier), 67.3% have had a booster
98146 – 82.9% completed initial series (up .2% from a week earlier), 47.4% have had a booster
VACCINATION AND TESTING, UPDATED HOURS: No pop-up clinics on the near-future schedule, so you can look for vaccination locations via this statewide lookup. If you want to get tested and don’t have a kit at home, public testing sites include the city-supported site at Nino Cantu Southwest Athletic Complex (2801 SW Thistle, 9 am-5:30 pm Mondays-Saturdays), the Curative kiosk at Don Armeni Boat Ramp (1220 Harbor SW, 9 am-3 pm Monday-Friday), and the Curative van at Summit Atlas (35th/Roxbury, 8 am-noon Tuesday-Friday this week). … Last week a commenter asked about reporting self-test results. That’s explained on this page.
ADDED 10:39 AM MONDAY: Public Health Seattle-King County announced this morning that the county has now crossed the threshold to “medium” COVID level as defined by the CDC. A briefing is planned at noon – you can watch live here.
(Image from SDOT camera)
7:35 PM: If you’re heading off-peninsula any time soon, here’s a traffic alert: A crash response is blocking all northbound lanes just north of the 1st Avenue South Bridge, at East Marginal/1st.
8:14 PM: SFD has cleared the scene but SPD still has the northbound lanes of Marginal blocked.
9 PM: Scene is clear, street fully open again.
Thanks for more awesome views of West Seattle birds! We start with birds you can see on the water – above, Harlequin Ducks photographed by Dan Ciske; below, Killdeer by Jerry Simmons:
A Wood Duck from Mark Dale:
Stewart L. photographed this Cormorant:
On to birds of prey – from James Tilley:
An Osprey from Danny McMillin:
From Laura Pavola, a Cooper’s Hawk:
An anonymously texted view of a Barred Owl:
Also hanging out with cherry blossoms, a Black-capped Chickadee, photographed by Finn Litton:
And Hummingbirds! A Rufous visited Trileigh Tucker:
And an Anna’s, from Matthew Olson:
One last bird for this gallery … a Golden-crowned Kinglet, photographed by Alex Gutierrez:
Thanks again to everyone who shares photos – from birds to breaking news! westseattleblog@gmail.com, unless it’s breaking – you can send that to our hotline, 206-293-6302.
(Photos by Jon McAllister)
The photos show Terri McAllister‘s surprise discovery at Alki. You have to look very closely to see what they really are! Terri emailed us to report:
Just a tip to wear shoes at the beach in spring. At Alki beach this morning, by the bathhouse, we came across some crab zoea. Tiny little spiny buggers managed to get our bare feet and hands whenever we touched the sand. It feels like glass or an itchy pinch. A bunch stuck to our beach blanket and we got some rad photos with a magnifying glass.
No wildlife authorities are available for us to consult today for further enlightenment on this sighting – but it’s an extra reminder to tread lightly on the shore!
Wednesday night (April 27th) online, the West Seattle High School PTSA welcomes community members to its next meeting, featuring a special parent-education presentation. Advance registration is required. Here’s the announcement:
West Seattle High School PTSA Presents a Parent Ed Event – “LGBT Q&A with Jo Langford” April 27th, 7-8:30 pm via Zoom
Language exists to clarify, but how familiar is the average American with LGBTQ+ terminology? How does the understanding of LGBTQ+ language like pansexuality, heteronormativity, and gender-neutral pronouns differ by generation, sexual orientation, or gender identity?
Jo Langford (author of “The Pride Guide”) will help us better understand the current sex, gender, identity, and expression vocabulary, concepts, and etiquette. This talk is for everyone that knows anyone and will offer a safe-space to start where you’re at.
(WSB photo, earlier this month: The tree & the sidewalk, NE corner of Fauntleroy/Fontanelle)
We’ve been reporting on the possibility that a curb-ramp project just north of Solstice Park could lead to the removal of a big old chestnut tree. It’s on private property, but close enough to the sidewalk that its roots have spread out over time. As noted here last week, the city promises to assess it and try to save it, but Sara, who lives on the property that’s home to the tree, wants witnesses, and is organizing a rally:
The city is breaking ground at the foot of our ancient Horse Chestnut Tree in the morning of Monday, April 25th. We want to create a presence for the arborist, onsite workers, and city officials in order to show the community’s outcry for the tree’s preservation of life.
Sara adds:
We are gathering to advocate for the health of our environment! The removal of legacy trees such as this is severely reducing our city’s canopy tree cover, creating what are called “heat islands.” These heat islands are devastating to native plants and wildlife. Last summer, Seattle experienced a mass bird death in result of record-breaking temperature spikes due to climate change. One of the best actions we can take to help our habitat is preserve the lives of our ancient trees that provide shade, food, and refuge as our world grows hotter.
We are also here to express our support of the ramp! We want our friends on wheels to have ease of access to our lovely parks, and of course our lovely tree. We are here to emphasize that accessibility and sustainability are NOT mutually exclusive! Both accessibility and the preservation of wildlife and plant life are vital to our community’s health! Come join us!
Seating will be provided for those who cannot stand for long periods of time. [We have approximately 6 or 7 chairs.]
The gathering is planned to start at 10 am Monday on the lawn on the SW Fontanelle side of the Solstice Park tennis courts.
(WSB photo)
Electronics are just part of what they’re taking this time around at Fauntleroy Church‘s Recycle Roundup, continuing until 3 this afternoon. We stopped by in the first hour, and the crews from 1 Green Planet were already busy. Here’s one more reminder of the will/won’t-take list:
It’s a free dropoff service in partnership with 1 Green Planet, but if you can make a monetary donation, the church’s Green Committee will accept it to help cover expenses. Again, this continues at 9140 California SW [map] until 3 pm – lots of time, so unless you truly can’t get there until the last minute, they ask that you go sooner rather than later.
Be on the lookout for Jane‘s stolen travel trailer:
A 2016 NuCamp T@B travel trailer was taken during the night on Friday, April 22nd near 45th and Findlay. It has been reported to the police. Plate # 38896AE.
ADDED MONDAY: Police incident # is 22-103099.
(Saturday night sunset, photographed by HD)
Here’s what’s happening during the second half of the weekend, mostly from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
RIDE FOR MAJOR TAYLOR: Cascade Bicycle Club‘s big ride to help youth programming starts and finishes at the White Center Bicycle Playground (11050 10th SW), with 26- and 63-mile routes; riders for the long route start leaving at 7 am, while the shorter-route riders start at 8:30 am. 26-mile riders have a rest stop at Alki Beach.
RECYCLE ROUNDUP: 9 am-3 pm, bring your recyclables to the Fauntleroy Church lot (9140 California SW) lot for free dropoff recycling – here’s the list of what they’re taking this time.
DONATION-ONLY YOGA CLASS: 9 am at Jet City Labs (4546 California SW) – details in our calendar listing.
CHURCHES WITH ONLINE SERVICES: We’re still listing these – see today’s list here.
WEST SEATTLE FARMERS’ MARKET: 10 am-2 pm, find fresh food – produce, meat, fish, cheese, beverages, baked goods, and prepared food – at the weekly WSFM. (California SW between SW Oregon and SW Alaska)
QUEER PERSPECTIVE ON DOUBTING THOMAS: 10 am at Tibbetts United Methodist Church (3940 41st SW), all welcome (online or in-person) for this special service explained in our calendar listing.
SHOW SUPPORT FOR UKRAINE: Noon at Alki UCC (6115 SW Hinds), make batik hearts to show support for Ukraine – details here.
BYSTANDER INTERVENTION TRAINING: 1-4 pm, learn how to do more to fight hate. Free workshop at Admiral Church (4320 SW Hill), pre-registration not required.
‘THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE’: Third show for Twelfth Night Production’s new musical, 3 pm at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way SW). Get tickets here.
CLASSIC NOVELS (AND MOVIES) BOOK CLUB: 3 pm monthly meeting at C & P Coffee Company (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor), talking this time about Edith Wharton‘s “The Age of Innocence.”
NEED FOOD? White Center Community Dinner Church serves a free meal (take-away available) at 5 pm Sundays at the Salvation Army Center in South Delridge (9050 16th SW).
KUNDALINI YOGA & MEDITATION: 7 pm at Inner Alchemy Studio (7356 35th SW) – details here.
SUNDAY NIGHT JAZZ: Triangular Jazztet at The Alley (4509 California SW), 8 pm and 9 pm sets.
SUNDAY NIGHT KARAOKE: 9 pm to 1:30 am at Admiral Pub (2306 California SW).
Have an event to list on our calendar? We’re adding more daily – email westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
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