day : 09/11/2022 12 results

ALKI POINT HEALTHY STREET: See ‘early design’ shown by SDOT at open house

(WSB photos)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Sizable turnout tonight at Alki Bathhouse for SDOT‘s open house to show its “early design” for turning the west ends of Beach Drive and Alki Avenue into a permanent “Healthy Street and Neighborhood Greenway. The stretch around Alki Point has had “Stay Healthy Street”/”Keep Moving Street” status since early in the pandemic, declaring the street closed to vehicle through-traffic, but aside from the “Street Closed” signs at either end, it’s been largely unchanged. Now that the city has decided to permanently change the street, the question is how. What they showed at tonight’s open house included added traffic-calming features to narrow the street, such as paint-and-post curb bulbs and a traffic circle. One display tonight showed this array of possibilities:

(See above as PDF)

The other three showed these actual early-design concepts (in the first one, the “cul-de-sac” effect would involve moving the Alki Avenue street-closed sign a bit further west, to where the bike lane ends now, and narrowing the road entrance to one lane):

(see above as PDF)

(see above as PDF)

(see above as PDF)

On the displays as well as on a long paper rendering of the street, attendees were invited to leave post-it-note comments:

Some of the suggestions we read included “more speed bumps” and residential parking permits.

Sheets of paper for longer comments were available too, and periodic reminders to fill them out were shouted over the din. We listened in on some of the conversations; many attendees identified themselves as residents in the Healthy Street area. One attendee talking with SDOT’s Healthy Streets program manager Summer Jawson expressed concern about equitable access to the area; Jawson stressed that they planned to include additional accessible parking spaces, and that none of the current parking would be removed.

ADDED THURSDAY AFTERNOON: SDOT spokesperson Ethan Bergerson sent us a clarification on Jawson’s parking comment, saying she was speaking “in reference to specific areas near intersections where we planned to install painted curb extensions … clarifying that this would not remove legal parking spaces because it is already illegal to park within 30 feet of these intersections (or in the intersection itself). We do anticipate removing parking in a few specific locations to make room for drivers to turn around at the cul-de-sac and to support some of the traffic calming and public space enhancements along the waterfront. One of our next steps on the project will be to complete a parking analysis to map out specific parking changes.”

WHAT’S NEXT? An online open house is planned at noon next Tuesday (November 15); the link is supposed to be posted any day now on the project website. Now that the “early design” has gone public, you also are invited to send comments to AlkiKeepMovingStreet@seattle.gov by December 9.

WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Search for armed robbers

8:01 PM: Police are searching in Highland Park for three people who are suspects in an armed robbery. K-9 is already involved in the search, and the Guardian One helicopter is expected to join the search, so you might hear it soon over eastern West Seattle. The suspects were last seen in an alley north of Fire Station 11 at 16th SW and SW Holden. Per an exchange between officers and the helicopter deputies, the suspects might be linked to other robberies outside Seattle. The one who is reported to have had a gun is described as Hispanic, male, black clothing, red gaiter-style face mask. No other details yet.

(Added: Texted photo of one of the SPD cars involved in search)

8:22 PM: Archived dispatch audio indicates the holdup was at Seamart at 16th/Holden. Meantime, the helicopter and K-9 ended their search because the trail grew cold, possibly with the robbers having left via a getaway vehicle nearby. If you’re in the area and see anything suspicious on your security video, the SPD incident number is 2022-301827.

EARLY GAME: Who’s opening early for Sunday’s Seahawks game?

6:52 PM: We’ve had a few questions about which West Seattle establishments are planning to open early Sunday morning to watch the Seahawks‘ game against Tampa Bay in Germany – with a pre-dawn kickoff time, 6:30 am. So far, we’ve heard from one – Larry’s Tavern (3405 California SW) plans to open at 6:15 am. Anyone else? Let us know so we can build a list – westseattleblog@gmail.com or text 206-293-6302 – thank you!

10:41 PM: Two more:
Christo’s on Alki (2508 Alki SW), opening 6 am
Prost! West Seattle (3407 California SW), opening 6:30 am, taking reservations

ELECTION 2022: Here’s how key races and measures look after King County’s second round of results

checkbox.jpgThe second post-election vote count from King County Elections is in. Last night, 31.8% of ballots had been counted; for tonight’s update, the total counted is up to 35.8%. But many more ballots remain to be counted – so far KCE has received 51.3% of all ballots, and while drop boxes have been emptied, ballots mailed via USPS will keep coming in. Now, the latest results on the 10 races/measures we’re watching:

KING COUNTY PROSECUTING ATTORNEY
Jim Ferrell 44%
Leesa Manion 55%

U.S. SENATE (statewide count)
Patty Murray* (D) 57%
Tiffany Smiley (R) 43%

U.S. HOUSE DISTRICT 7
Pramila Jayapal* (D) 85%
Cliff Moon (R) 15%

34TH DISTRICT STATE HOUSE POSITION 1
Emily Alvarado (D) 69%
Leah Griffin (D) 29%

34TH DISTRICT STATE HOUSE POSITION 2
Joe Fitzgibbon* (D) 83%
Andrew Pilloud (R) 17%

34TH DISTRICT STATE SENATE
Joe Nguyen* (D) 85%
John Potter (R) 15%

SEATTLE PROPOSITIONS 1A/1B (city voting-method change)
Yes 49.2%
No 50.8%
Prefer 1A 26%
Prefer 1B 74%

KING COUNTY CHARTER AMENDMENT 1 (county election-date change)
Yes 69%
No 31%

KING COUNTY PROPOSITION 1 (Conservation Futures levy)
Approve 68%
Reject 32%

WASHINGTON SECRETARY OF STATE (statewide count)
Steve Hobbs* (D) 50%
Julie Anderson (NP) 47%

All percentages above are rounded – .5 and up rounds up, .4 and down rounds down – except for the only close contest, the Seattle ranked-choice/approval voting measure.

-Full list of state and federal results here
-Full list of King County/Seattle results here

Next King County results will be out around 4 pm Thursday.

BIZNOTE: Grand opening with renowned local artist @ West Seattle Realty’s new space Thursday

Location, location, location.

The real-estate maxim also applies to the new space that West Seattle Realty (WSB sponsor) just moved into. You’re invited to visit Thursday night, as WSR hosts muralist Desmond Hansen and shows off his new creation on one of their walls.

The location in the brand-new Admiral Station building is barely a block from West Seattle Realty’s old space on 42nd SW east of Admiral Safeway, but now they’re on West Seattle’s main street, at 2715 California Avenue SW, across from Hiawatha, Lafayette Elementary, and in the heart of a block of other local businesses such as West Seattle Runner (WSB sponsor) and Good Society. “It’s a huge difference!” enthused broker Hayley Martin Hampton when we visited Tuesday to talk with some of the team.

(WSB photo: L-R, Hayley Martin Hampton, Kevin Broveleit, Robert Kelly)

But first, a little re-introduction to West Seattle Realty: “We are a group of five brokers primarily focused on West Seattle. Being hyper-focused helps us better serve our clients,” says WSR principal Kevin Broveleit. They’re all West Seattle residents. “You’re better with what you know,” adds broker Robert Kelly. “The schools, the traffic patterns …”

They’re hoping the new office space will itself better serve the community – it’s set up as a mostly open “living room” that they’re offering as meeting/event space for neighborhood groups and nonprofits to use free of charge. And on Thursday night (November 10), you can see it for yourself as they open the doors for a West Seattle Art Walk reception that’s doubling as a grand-opening party. The guest artist’s work graces the office’s north interior wall – seen as the backdrop of the photo above. It’s by West Seattle muralist Desmond Hansen, renowned for his work all around the peninsula (and beyond). Kevin says they connected with him through one of the workers on the new office’s buildout. They discussed concepts with him and settled on the Seacrest pier, which Kevin says was painted in 20 hours. The artist will be at Thursday night’s 5-10 pm event showcasing some of his other work, too.

And that’s part of what the West Seattle Realty team – which also includes WSR founder Shelby White and broker Tracey Kipp – love about their namesake community. Even their new home itself is more local than some new local buildings, as it was developed by lifelong West Seattleite Paul Cesmat.

As for the business, currently the rising loan rates are having some effect, but they’re not seeing “panic selling.” The longterm appeal of West Seattle is manyfold, including future light rail – expected to open in 10 years. “I think it’s going to be a game-changer,” observes Kevin. And that fits in with more words of wisdom: “If you want to avoid a mistake, buy a house you’ll be comfortable in for at least 10 years.”

With their new Admiral space, West Seattle Realty has taken its own advice. You can see for yourself Thursday night.

FOLLOWUP: SDOT sends East Marginal Way project out to bid

(SDOT photo)

Long-awaited improvements on a major route for bicyclists between West Seattle and downtown are closer to reality with this SDOT announcement today, one year after they announced the project was fully funded:

We’ve reached a final design for the north segment of the East Marginal Way Corridor Improvement Project. The project is now advertised for construction contractors to bid on! The community has long awaited this project and we share in the excitement of reaching this major milestone. We appreciate community members’ patience, support, and commitment as the design was developed and informed by public input.

The project will serve people biking, walking, rolling, and driving, and improve safety and mobility along this busy freight corridor. We’ll reconstruct pavement, rebuild and improve signals, build a protected bike lane, and more. Construction of the North Segment, which runs between S Spokane St and S Atlantic St, will begin in 2023.

We encourage you to visit the project website to learn more about key features, benefits, and phased construction plans. You can also learn more about the North Segment of the project. …

After we hire a contractor, we’ll go through a materials procurement period to purchase items that can have a long lead time. This time frame is dependent on the supply chain, which has seen significant delays since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Once the contractor is on board and we have a better sense of how long materials procurement will take, we’ll set a construction start date and share more detailed information about what you can expect during construction.

Construction will disrupt traffic along East Marginal Way S. We’ll maintain freight truck access to the Port of Seattle terminals along East Marginal Way S but anticipate detouring all non-Port of Seattle vehicle traffic in the North Segment project area. We will maintain a way for people biking and walking to use East Marginal Way S, but the route will shift to avoid active construction areas. We’ll have mitigation and detour plans in place to minimize the effects where possible.

The project – estimated last year at $43 million – will be paid for with local, state, and federal funding. SDOT says it’s still looking for funding to cover sections of East Marginal south of the West Seattle Bridge.

WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Stolen white Ford pickup truck

The report and photo are from Dan:

Our 1995 Ford 150 was stolen from in front of our house on Admiral Way near Schmitz Park yesterday afternoon or early evening. It’s white and should have a white canopy on the back now. Glass on street indicates driver-side window (possibly wing) is broken. License #B53335T and incident #2022-300959 in case anyone sees it and is kind enough to contact police.

From transportation to bunnies @ Fauntleroy Community Association

November 9, 2022 12:01 pm
|    Comments Off on From transportation to bunnies @ Fauntleroy Community Association
 |   Fauntleroy | Neighborhoods | West Seattle news

We covered two community meetings last night – here are two brief notes from the first one, the Fauntleroy Community Association‘s monthly board meeting:

TRANSPORTATION: FCA invited new SDOT director Greg Spotts to the neighborhood for one of his “walking tours,” and he accepted. He’ll be visiting next month. Ferry-related traffic is always high on the list of Fauntleroy community concerns, so that’s likely to be a central topic.

FALL FESTIVAL REPORT: FCA doesn’t present the Fauntleroy Fall Festival but does support it, and received a report last night on the October 23rd event, the first full-fledged Fall Festival since 2019.

(WSB photo from last month’s festival)

About 2,000 people attended over the course of the afternoon. A new feature, the bunny “petting zoo” (above), was a hit. Some of the volunteers are already interested in next year; the date’s not set yet but will be soon.

The Fauntleroy Community Association meets second Tuesdays, 7 pm, most months, at Fauntleroy Schoolhouse; updates and info can be found at fauntleroy.net.

Alki Point ‘Healthy Street’ open house and more for your West Seattle Wednesday

(Photo by David Hutchinson, as The Olympics peeked out briefly Tuesday)

Here’s our list of what’s up for the rest of today/tonight, from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:

DINE OUT FOR HOPE: 4 pm-10 pm, get food from/at Pegasus Pizza (2768 Alki SW) and tell them you’re supporting the Hope Lutheran 7th/8th-grade trip fuhdraiser – a percentage of proceeds will be donated.

34TH DISTRICT DEMOCRATS: 6 pm at The Hall at Fauntleroy (9131 California SW), this month’s meeting of our area’s largest political organization will include the annual awards and a tribute to outgoing longtime 34th District State Rep. Eileen Cody.

ALKI POINT ‘HEALTHY STREET’ OPEN HOUSE: 6:30-7:45 pm at Alki Bathhouse (60th/Alki), drop in to see and comment on design proposals for the no-through-traffic street around Alki Point.

JAZZ AT OTTER ON THE ROCKS: Piano/bass duet tonight, starting at 6:30 pm. (4210 SW Admiral Way)

LIVE AT LOCOL: Locöl Barley & Vine (7902 35th SW) spotlights live music 6:30-8:30 pm Wednesdays, no cover, 21+, rotating artists.

MUSIC BINGO: Play weekly at The Good Society (California/Lander), 7 pm.

TRIVIA x 4: At 7 pm, you can play trivia at the West Seattle Brewing Mothership (4415 Fauntleroy Way SW); Larry’s Tavern (3405 California SW) hosts Wednesday-night trivia starting at 7:30 pm; trivia starts at 8 pm at Beveridge Place Pub (6413 California SW); at 8:30 pm, trivia is back at Talarico’s (4718 California SW) with Phil T.

SKYLARK OPEN MIC: 7:30 pm signups @ West Seattle’s longest-running open mic – no cover to watch. (3803 Delridge Way SW)

Have an event – one-time or recurring – to add to West Seattle’s only comprehensive event calendar? Please email westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!

WHALES: Orcas in the area, day 3

(Added: Photos by Robin Sinner)

9:40 AM: For a third consecutive day, Southern Resident Killer Whales are in central Puget Sound. Kersti Muul reports resident orcas were seen passing West Point on the north side of Elliott Bay a little while ago, heading southbound, quickly.

10:11 AM: Commenter Shannon says they’re now in view from Alki, looking toward Bainbridge.

10:21 AM: Donna Sandstrom from The Whale Trail texted to say they’re is at Constellation Park with binoculars to share.

11:22 AM: Just got a text about a sighting near the Fauntleroy ferry dock.

2:36 PM: Just heard again from Donna, and also from Jeff Hogan of Killer Whale Tales, reporting the orcas are now northbound, visible from Lowman Beach/Lincoln Park.

3:11 PM: Donna says they’re visible now from Alki, if you look west/northwest.

BIZNOTE: West Seattle Thriftway’s Holiday Taste event returning

(WSB file photo)

Yet another holiday tradition is coming back from pandemic hiatus. The West Seattle Thriftway (WSB sponsor) Holiday Taste sampling event returns Thursday (November 10th), 4-7 pm. That’s when the store and its vendors serve up tastes of a wide variety of foods you might consider for your holiday menus; this will be the first time since 2019! The store is at California/Fauntleroy.

TRAFFIC, TRANSIT, WEATHER, ROAD WORK: Wednesday begins

November 9, 2022 6:01 am
|    Comments Off on TRAFFIC, TRANSIT, WEATHER, ROAD WORK: Wednesday begins
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

6:01 AM: Good morning! It’s Wednesday, November 9th.

WEATHER

Mostly sunny and breezy again – high around 40, followed by another cold night. (Tuesday’s high was 43, 11 degrees below what’s normal for that date.)

ROAD WORK

-West Seattle Bridge lane closures again tonight and tomorrow: “11 PM Wednesday to 5 AM Thursday and 11 PM Thursday to 5 AM Friday: All westbound travel lanes on the Spokane St Viaduct approaching the West Seattle bridge will be closed. Access to westbound lanes on the West Seattle Bridge from southbound SR 99 will be maintained during this time. People driving should detour to the Spokane St Swing Bridge (low bridge) to avoid delays and construction.”

-The east end of Sylvan Way just west of the Home Depot entrance remains closed for drainaage work.

TRANSIT STATUS

Metro buses are on their regular schedules; watch @kcmetroalerts for trip cancellations/reroute alerts.

-The West Seattle Water Taxi resumes service today, running its fall/winter schedule (still daily, all dayparts, but no late Friday/Saturday runs). No service Friday for Veterans Day.

-Still a 2-boat schedule for WSF’s Triangle Route (check here for alerts/updates).

SPOTLIGHT CAMERAS

High Bridge – here’s the camera at the top.

High Bridge – the view from its southwest end (if SDOT points the 35th/Avalon/Fauntleroy camera that way).

Low Bridge: Or nearby, depending on where SDOT points the camera.

1st Ave. S. Bridge: The alternate route.

Highway 99: Here’s the northbound side at Lander.

All functional city traffic cams can be seen here, most with video options; West Seattle and vicinity-relevant cameras are also on this WSB page … Are movable city bridges opening for vessels? Check the @SDOTBridges Twitter feed.

If you see trouble on the roads/paths/water, please text or call us (when you can do so safely) – 206-293-6302.