day : 17/06/2022 11 results

Seattle Parks‘ new regional crew chief and the Southwest Precinct‘s day-shift commander were guests at the Alki Community Council‘s June meeting, held in-person and online last night.

SEATTLE PARKS’ CREW CHIEF: Insights beyond Alki were shared by Kristy Darcy, recently promoted to crew chief for Seattle Parks’ southwest area, a position left open when Carol Baker retired from a 40+-year career. First – for everyone wondering about the tall grass at local parks – for one thing, it’s growing faster than usual everywhere because of the wet, cool weather. For two, even though they’ve just done a lot of hiring, they still don’t have all the staff they need to keep up with the 85 parks and 13 athletic fields for which they’re responsible. They’re trying their best to catch up, though.

They’re also catching up with gardening – two gardener positions have been filled and they have someone working in that role full-time for the first time in two years. This past week, the newly hired gardeners were working to get the grounds of Colman Pool ready for its opening tomorrow (Saturday, June 18th). Next week, they take on the flower beds near the Alki Bathhouse – Darcy, who used to be a Parks gardener, ordered 1,400 annuals, and they’re hoping for volunteers to show up and help plant them next Friday – just show up, noon-4 pm June 24th.

Darcy shared one odd anecdote from Alki (we also heard a bit about this from a reader) – that someone tried to pry the plaque off the Denny Party monument at 63rd/Alki early Thursday. A person driving by apparently scared off the would-be plaque thieves.

In all, the staff has gone from 14 to 30 people, Darcy said, and they have two extra people to help at closing time, particularly helpful now that the early closing time for summer (10 pm) is in effect.

SOUTHWEST PRECINCT: Lt. Michael Watson, second-watch (day shift) commander, was there to answer questions about Alki. He noted that the summertime “emphasis patrol” is back, and also that the 10 pm closure doesn’t just apply to the beach – Don Armeni Boat Ramp is also being closed at 10 pm too, to try to cut down on the racing and other vehicle-related problems. The motorcycle crash earlier in the week near Don Armeni was brought up, but no new information emerged. Lt. Watson did mention something that’s come up at other community meetings – if your security camera captures “criminal activity” and a suspect can be identified from it, that could be enough for “probable cause” for an arrest.

The Alki Community Council meets on third Thursdays at 7 pm most months – watch alkicommunitycouncil.org for updates.

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WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Street attack; stolen vehicle; charges filed in three cases

June 17, 2022 7:47 pm

| 7 COMMENTS

| Crime | West Seattle news

Four notes in West Seattle Crime Watch today:

STREET ATTACK: According to a brief summary from Seattle Police, a person was walking in the 5000 block of California SW, south of The Junction, around 6 am Thursday, when he was attacked. The report says a person described only as male approached him, demanded money, and hit him in the jaw, then striking him with a baseball bat, knocking him out. The victim regained consciousness and walked home, then notifying authorities. SFD responded to treat him, and then he was taken to the hospital via private ambulance. The victim told police nothing was stolen because he wasn’t carrying any cash.

(added 8:41 pm) STOLEN VEHICLE: From Michael:

My nephew’s car was stolen early this morning, 9000 block 18th SW. Toyota RAV4, black with front and back bumper damage, UW Huskies special “Purple” license plate #32334B. Please call 206.406.2147 if you see it anywhere.

Also tonight, we have documents from charges filed recently in three West Seattle cases:

SCHOOL BURGLARIES: Back at the start of the year, we reported on two potentially linked school burglaries, with the suspect arrested at South Seattle College (WSB sponsor) and found with a stolen vehicle containing instruments suspected to have been taken in a burglary at Pathfinder K-8. The suspect was released from jail after a day and a half and is finally now charged. The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has charged 28-year-old Jeremy S. Fredrickson with second-degree burglary, possession of a stolen vehicle, and possession of stolen property. The charging documents say the car, stolen in Renton a week earlier, contained “numerous band instruments having “Seattle Public Schools” stickers, power tools, axes, machetes, a bucket full of keys, and several burglary tools.” The inventory in the charging documents lists more than 20 instruments with a value totaling up to $24,000. Fredrickson, whose record included firearms convictions more than a decade ago, has been arrested twice – each time jailed for just a day – since the burglary arrest, but is not currently in custody.

HOME BURGLARY: The KCPAO charged 29-year-old Joshua I. Millar with one count of residential burglary for a break-in last week in the 5600 block of 25th SW. The charging documents say he was found in the house after tripping an alarm by entering through a window after removing its molding to gain access; neighbors held him until police arrived. Millar had two warrants at the time and has been in jail since the arrest on June 9th, with bail set at $10,000.

STOLEN CAR: The KCPAO has charged 25-year-old Jesus E. Rodriguez-Ramirez with possession of a stolen vehicle. Around 4:30 am on June 10th, police found him asleep in a stolen 2000 Ford Ranger, spray-painted black, parked along the 7100 block of Detroit SW, in what the charging documents describe as “an area well-known for the presence of stolen vehicles.” The truck had been stolen one week earlier from what prosecutors describe only as “an apartment complex south of Seattle.” They note that Rodriguez-Ramirez has a prior conviction for the same crime, and that damage to the truck’s ignition, as well as the hasty paint job, left the victim with a bill for at least $3,000. The defendant remains in jail, with bail set at $5,000.

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UPDATE: Crash at 40th/Morgan

June 17, 2022 6:10 pm

| 2 COMMENTS

| Crime | West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

6:10 PM: At least one person is hurt and headed to the hospital after a driver crashed into a tree at 40th and Morgan. Police have told dispatch the crash is blocking westbound Morgan.

6:26 PM: Just went to the scene. It’s actually a three-vehicle collision. First car. a Subaru reported stolen.

Police say they were following it when its driver hit a pickup truck, injuring that driver.

The Subaru then hit a tree. A parked vehicle was damaged in all this. Police are questioning the driver of the reportedly stolen Subaru.

7:21 PM: The scene is clear.

8:41 PM: SFD tells us the person taken to the hospital was a man in his early 30s, in serious condition when transported.

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PRIDE: West Seattle Junction flags will be up Saturday

June 17, 2022 4:59 pm

| 9 COMMENTS

| West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

(WSB file photo)

As Pride month continues, you might have wondered if the West Seattle Junction Association will display rainbow flags again this year. Answer: Yes – they’ll be up for one day, 9 am-6 pm tomorrow (Saturday, June 18th). If you’re interested in helping place them and/or take them down, a few volunteer spots remain. This is the fourth year for the Junction Pride flags. (For upcoming Pride events in West Seattle, see this section of our Event Calendar.)

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COUNTDOWN: 1 month until West Seattle Summer Fest! Here are the highlights, including changes and additions

June 17, 2022 3:09 pm

| 3 COMMENTS

| West Seattle festivals | West Seattle news

Our area’s biggest party of the year is now just a month away – West Seattle Summer Fest in The Junction, Friday-Sunday, July 15-17. The music lineup is already out, as we reported three weeks ago. But that’s just part of the fun, We talked this week with West Seattle Junction Association executive director Chris Mackay about what’s different this year – and what’s not.

SUMMER FEST EVE: This year, they’re planning to close the streets (California south of Genesee to Edmunds, Alaska between 44th and 42nd) earlier on pre-festival Thursday – noon, if final approval is obtained from the city – so that setup can be further along before visitors start arriving (in past years, the setup started at 6). It’ll be West Seattle Art Walk night, with an Art of Music performance by Naby Camera at KeyBank Plaza. You can also expect buskers, and a chalk-art area, too.

SUMMER FEST, DAY ONE: Big change – opening-day hours are shifting: The festival will start at 1 pm (it’s been 10 am in past years), and booths will be open until 8 pm; music will continue until 10 pm. Artist Stacey Sterling will coordinate a community-painted sea-life mural Friday and Saturday near the booths north of SW Oregon that also will offer free “big games” for kids on Friday and Saturday. All three days, there’ll also be a ticketed kid zone with bouncy houses, on the west side of SW Alaska, managed by National Event Pros, sponsored by the Seattle Kraken. And a bonus this year – Elliott Bay Brewing Co. is celebrating its 25th anniversary and will have bonus music outside the restaurant at 7 pm Friday and Saturday nights.

SUMMER FEST, DAY TWO: 10 am-8 pm, music until 10 pm. More of what started Friday. You’ll see some community-group performances at the festival too.

SUMMER FEST, DAY THREE: 10 am-5 pm. Big change this year – the West Seattle Farmers’ Market will be on California north of Oregon, not in the KeyBank lot. That means no stage or beer garden on Sunday – that area will be dismantled after Saturday night.

WSJA has just launched its Summer Fest website – you can see the music schedule here, the food lineup (with booths on SW Alaska east of California, plus year-round restaurants throughout The Junction) here, and more. See you at Summer Fest!

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SATURDAY: What you’ll see at two-hour Morgan Junction Community Festival

June 17, 2022 1:37 pm

| 1 COMMENT

| West Seattle festivals | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

(WSB photo from Morgan Junction Community Festival 2019)

for the return of its volunteer-powered Morgan Junction Community Festival tomorrow (Saturday, June 18th), the Morgan Community Association decided to keep things short and sweet. So it’s a two-hour event, 11 am to 1 pm, at Morgan Junction Park (6413 California SW), starting with the ever-effervescent Bubbleman at 11 am, followed by acoustic music by Gary Benson, with community tabling throughout. So far seven organizations are tabling – including us – so you’ll have a chance to talk with:

The Whale Trail
Southwest Seattle Historical Society
CleanupSEA/Poogooder
34th District Democrats
Westside HEY (Healthy Empowered Youth)
Board & Vellum (designers of the future Morgan Junction Park Addition, so you can learn about what’s up with that)

No shopping/food booths this year, but Morgan Junction has plenty of cool places to explore within a few blocks – come to the festival and then go have lunch and/or a beverage! See you there, rain or shine.

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HELPING: ‘Fundshifting’ focus is just the beginning for West Seattle Public School Equity Fund

June 17, 2022 11:57 am

| 12 COMMENTS

| How to help | West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

You can’t change the past. But you can certainly try to right its wrongs, to work for a better future.

That’s the idea behind the West Seattle Public School Equity Fund, founded by (L-R above) Andrea Dimond, Kristen Corning Bedford, and Shannon Woodard. We talked with them last night at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, during a celebration of the WSPSEF’s first year.

For starters, it’s about “fundshifting” – equitably distributing community contributions so that the richer schools don’t keep getting richer while the not-so-well-off schools keep scraping.

Where the past comes in is what the founders discovered when they examined the area’s “redlining” map from the 1930s (see it here) – what are now Title I schools, with the highest percentage of students from low-income families, are in the “redlined” areas. So the historical inequities continue self-perpetuating. The WSPSEF founders hope to disrupt that, in the interest of weaving together all of West Seattle’s neighborhoods and school communities, to support the entire peninsula as one community.

During this school year – with classes ending today – they’ve already raised $20,000, and will be “fundshifting” that to five elementary schools – Concord International, Highland Park, Roxhill, Sanislo, and West Seattle.

For year two and beyond, they hope to get more participation, and also to broaden the scope beyond money. The initial collaborations, they say, have already started to break down the silos of individual schools’ support communities, to discover synergies and shared challenges. In all, they want to “advocate for all students” in West Seattle.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED: If you’re a member of a West Seattle elementary or K-8 school community that’s not already involved with the WSPSEF, email hello@wspsef.org, or talk with your school PTA/PTSA. If you would simply like to donate, you can send a check to the West Seattle Public School Equity Fund via its fiscal sponsor, DNDA (4408 Delridge Way SW, Seattle 98106).

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From low tide to new theater, a quick look at the rest of your West Seattle Friday

June 17, 2022 10:22 am

| Comments Off on From low tide to new theater, a quick look at the rest of your West Seattle Friday

| West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

Here are the highlights for the rest of this mid-June Friday:

LAST DAY OF SCHOOL: As we’ve been mentioning in the traffic-watch notes all week, this is the last day of school for most Seattle Public Schools students. (Chief Sealth International High School has a makeup day on Tuesday.) Dismissal is one hour earlier than usual.

(Stars under Fauntleroy ferry dock, photographed by John Skerratt)

LOW-LOW TIDE: One more low-low tide – today’s tide is out to -3.5 feet at 1:48 pm. Seattle Aquarium volunteer beach naturalists are at Constellation and Lincoln Parks from 11:45 am to 3:15 pm.

LIVE MUSIC AT C & P: Fairground performs Americana-style music, 7-9 pm at C & P Coffee Company (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor). All ages, no cover.

LIVE MUSIC AT THE SKYLARK: Rhythm & Rhymes Summer Performance Series presents Jay FIddy and Gifted Youngstaz, Amante Cruz, Eway, Lobes, Progress Supreme, Jonah The Kid, Entendres & Wffls, with special guests Tomi Jo & Eric Zazueta. 7 pm doors, 8 pm show, $10, 21+. (3803 Delridge Way SW)

MIKU, AND THE GODS. 7:30 pm, it’s the second performance of this world-premiere play at ArtsWest (4711 California SW; WSB sponsor), tickets available here. (Read our story about playwright Julia Izumi here.)

Have something to add to our calendar? Email info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!

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Remembering Donald O. Charles, 1938-2022

June 17, 2022 9:40 am

| 1 COMMENT

| Obituaries | West Seattle news

Family and friends are remembering Don Charles, and sharing this remembrance with the community:

Donald Oliver Charles – a husband, father, grandfather, great- grandfather, brother, son, uncle, and a loyal friend – passed away May 14, 2022, with his wife by his side, and the love of family and friends seeded in his heart.

Don was born May 22, 1938 at Georgetown Hospital in Seattle. He grew up on Beacon Hill and went to Maple grade school and then on to Cleveland High School, class of ’57’. He played football for the “EAGLES.” At a dance after the game, he met his wife; they have been married 65 years.

Don worked at Boeing for 40 years, traveling all over the world. Don and Marilyn moved to Tehran, Iran and were there for 3 years, working for the Shah of Iran until the government was overthrown. They traveled all over the Mideast and saw a different world.

Don was a Mason and very active with the Nile Shrine. He was Sultan of the oriental band, and proud member of the drum section. Don also was Director of Nile Temple Guard; he also was a member of the Nile Yacht Club, while he was owner of a boat. Don was president of West Seattle Shrine Club. He hosted their annual picnic every year. Don was a true Shriner.

Don was preceded in death by his parents Claude and Henrietta Charles and son Donald Edward Charles. Don is survived by wife Marilyn Charles, his daughters Debra (Mike) Parsinen, Diana (Gary) Abels, and daughter-in-law Lisa Charles, and 5 grandchildren, brother Robert (Susan) Charles, and countless friends and extended family

A Masonic Service was held May 28, 2022 at Alki Masonic Temple. Donation to: Memorial to Shriner Hospital for Children.

(WSB publishes West Seattle obituaries and memorial announcements by request, free of charge. Please email the text, and a photo if available, to westseattleblog@gmail.com)

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UPDATE: Car-on-side crash in Admiral

June 17, 2022 8:48 am

| 11 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | WS breaking news

8:48 AM: Thanks to Bill Schrier for the photo, and to others for the tips. That car-on-side crash happened on California at Stevens, by West Seattle High School. We’re told no one is seriously hurt. SFD initially dispatched a large response; all but one unit was canceled literally one minute later, according to the incident log, and that one left the scene after 14 minutes.

9:30 AM: Scene is clear.

10:44 AM: SFD tells us the driver was a 36-year-old woman who was treated at the scene and declined to be transported to a hospital.

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TRAFFIC, TRANSIT, ROAD WORK, WEATHER: Friday notes + weekend alerts

June 17, 2022 6:03 am

| 6 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

6:03 AM: Good morning; welcome to Friday, June 17th.

WEATHER

Rain’s back in the forecast, and the high might not even get into the 60s (Thursday’s high was 67, only four degrees below normal).

ROAD WORK/TRAFFIC NOTES, TODAY AND THE WEEKEND

-Today: Seattle Public Utilities‘ pavement-restoration work at California/Myrtle continues – flaggers are there to alternate traffic through one lane at times.

-Weekend: The eastbound Spokane Street Viaduct will be closed tonight through early Monday, as previewed here. SDOT has other weekend projects scheduled:

We’re planning to complete several projects this Saturday (June 18). For all planned construction, we expect to begin work as early as 3 AM and conclude by 5 PM. Please anticipate delays, drive safely in work zones, and follow directions from signs and flaggers.

 Pavement updates on southbound SR 99 in the vicinity of S Lander St. During this work, we’ll need to reduce the two travel lanes to a single lane and there may be delays for people driving.

 Pavement updates at 16th Ave SW and SW Elmgrove St (constructing median islands at the intersection). Parking will be restricted in the area however traffic will still be maintained throughout the work zone. (this has been postponed)

 Signs and Marking crews will be marking and repainting speed humps on 45th Ave SW and SW Trenton St. Contingent on scheduling availability they will also be working on SW Webster St and 12th Ave SW. We anticipate minimal impact to traffic as these are low volume, non-arterial streets.

LAST DAY OF SCHOOL

Today’s the last day for Holy Family and most Seattle Public Schools (for Chief Sealth IHS, it’s next Tuesday).

BUSES, WATER TAXI, FERRIES

Metro is on its regular weekday schedule; watch @kcmetroalerts for word of reroutes/trip cancellations.

The West Seattle Water Taxi is on its regular schedule. (There’s a reduced schedule next Monday for the Juneteenth observance.)

Ferries: WSF continues on the two-boat schedule for Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth. Check here for alerts/updates.

BRIDGES AND DETOUR ROUTES

817th morning without the West Seattle Bridge.

Low Bridge: Automated enforcement cameras remain in use; restrictions are in effect 5 am-9 pm daily – except weekends; the bridge is open to all until 8 am Saturday and Sunday mornings. (Access applications are available here for some categories of drivers.)