West Seattle, Washington
23 Saturday
Hours after SDOT‘s most-recent update on the West Seattle low-bridge closure, department reps were guests at West Seattle Bike Connections‘ monthly meeting. Among the new information that emerged – more on the plan for free cross-Duwamish travel during the closure:
In response to questions during the online meeting, they clarified that the free rides would be available to everyone interested – not just people with bicycles in tow. As the slide above shows, though the Water Taxi and buses are operated by King County, the city will cover the cost. Since they hope to launch this by the end of the week, watch for details within the next few days.
Another major topic of discussion was the bicycle-detour route SDOT is suggesting, and the refinements they announced this afternoon, such as temporary protected bicycle lanes on sections of West Marginal Way SW and 1st Avenue South. Installation of the cones and other markers will start tomorrow, first on 1st, and may continue into Thursday if they can’t finish tomorrow. Meeting attendees brought up concerns about route conditions – one showed video of a harrowing attempt to navigate a rutted section near the 1st Avenue South Bridge; SDOT said they have engineers working on that section.
As for the repairs themselves, most of what was presented duplicated what was in this afternoon’s update, with an additional emphasis on long-planned work that’s also coming up, beyond the unexpected repairs:
Toward the start of the meeting, SDOT’s Meghan Shepard pointed out that the low bridge was, if not one of a kind, close to it, and that its cylinders all had to be replaced within a year of its 1991 opening – those replacements are what’s lasted the ensuing 30 years, until now,
Adrian Diaz has moved from interim to permanent Seattle Police Chief, after the final step in his confirmation today – City Council approval (8-1, with Councilmember Kshama Sawant the lone “no”). His confirmation as chief comes almost two and a half years after he took on the interim role following the resignation of Chief Carmen Best, and three and a half months after Mayor Bruce Harrell announced Diaz was his choice to become permanent chief. He spoke today after the council’s vote (advance the video to 1 hour, 15 minutes in):
He said the department and city had “experienced many difficult challenges … but people step up.” He also noted that violent crime has been on a “downward trend” in recent months. The new chief has an often-mentioned West Seattle tie, having served as a high-school wrestling coach at Chief Sealth, as noted in our 2008 mention of an award he received as an officer.
That photo of Holy Rosary School is an echo of a similar photo taken 100 years ago:
On this date in 1923, Holy Rosary opened its building at 4142 42nd SW, with more than 200 students. The school itself opened 10 years earlier at an Admiral location; today is the 100th anniversary of moving into the building. 500 students now attend preschool through 8th-grade classes there. “Although much has changed over the past century, the vision of the four Aquinas Academy Dominican Sisters, Father O’Callahan and the Parish community has not,” school administrators say. (They’re currently accepting applications for kindergarten, and have “limited openings in other grades.”)
(‘Live’ image from SDOT traffic camera)
More updates this afternoon from SDOT on the West Seattle low bridge, a week and a half after mechanical trouble closed it to drivers, riders, and pedestrians. Still no estimate, though, on how much longer the closure will last. First, key points from the repair-related update, followed by the detour-related update:
We have made significant progress on repairs, including replacing 500 feet of damaged underground high-voltage power cable. However, there is still a lot to do as we prepare for the mammoth task of removing a significantly damaged 15,000-pound hydraulic turning cylinder, one of the two cylinders responsible for turning the 14 million-pound eastern side of the moveable bridge. Last week we estimated that the bridge would be closed for a minimum of 2 weeks. We have made steady progress since then and will know more about the remaining timeline after we remove the cylinder.
Here’s what SDOT says went wrong:
1) A 15,000-pound hydraulic cylinder that moves the eastern side of the bridge is leaking fluid. We will need to remove and completely overhaul this cylinder as part of our repairs.
2) While we were addressing other electrical and mechanical issues last week, high tides and heavy rain flooded an underground power conduit causing an electrical short to over 500 feet of high-voltage power cables. (We completed repairing and replacing these power cables at 3 a.m. Saturday, December 31st).
The recent ice storm created a power outage to the bridge. After we restored power using the backup generator, we attempted to open the bridge and it was immediately apparent there was a problem. The eastern bridge span would only rotate a portion of the way and then stall, and we had to make several attempts to swing open the bridge. We soon discovered the cylinder had developed an intensified leak, and it could not safely operate in its current condition. …
We started preparations several months ago to overhaul all four hydraulic turning cylinders (including the damaged one) as part of our ongoing comprehensive bridge rehabilitation program. … The work we’ve already completed allowed us to jump into developing a response plan almost immediately after the damage occurred and will likely mean we’ll able to complete this rehabilitation faster than if we had started from scratch.
The cylinder will need to be temporarily removed and overhauled off-site. Over the past 10 days, we built and assembled some of the equipment necessary to move the massive cylinder. Once the cylinder is removed, we will re-engineer the bridge’s eastern span to temporarily operate on the single remaining turning cylinder. This work requires reprogramming the control system and testing it to
ensure the new configuration is reliable and safe. While the eastern bridge span is running with one cylinder, opening and closing the bridge for passing ships will take about 10 minutes longer than usual. Over the coming months, there will be additional bridge closures to reinstall the cylinder and to complete other projects in our comprehensive Spokane St Swing Bridge Rehabilitation Program. Occasional bridge closures were already planned for 2023 to complete proactive refurbishment and repair work planned this year.
As for the bicycle detour, SDOT says it’s taking these major steps:
This week, we are converting sections of W Marginal Way SW and 1st Ave S curb lanes to temporary protected bike lanes using cones, barrels, paint, and signs. The temporary bike lanes will remain until the Spokane St Swing Bridge reopens. We continue to procure traffic control devices and finalize the traffic control plan. We expect to complete the bike lane installation by the end of the day on Wednesday, Jan. 4. …
While the temporary bike lanes are in place, 1st Ave S will have one general-purpose traffic lane in each direction, a center turn lane, and one bike lane in each direction. As possible, existing on-street parking will remain but be restricted near driveways to help people biking and driving more easily see each other. In two instances at the north and south ends, people on bikes will have to use the sidewalk-see map above. You may wish to get off your bike and walk it through these areas with pedestrians.
We will also convert the southbound general-purpose travel lane at the northern segment of West Marginal Way SW to a temporary protected bike lane. We expect this to have a minimal impact on people driving, as this is not a through-lane.
We will check the detour twice daily to reset cones, barrels, or signs that may have shifted while the temporary bike lanes are in operation.
As noted in our daily preview, the detour will be discussed at tonight’s 6:30 pm online meeting of West Seattle Bike Connections.
ADDED 4:15 PM: SDOT also says it’s working toward “temporary free transit rides on the bus & West Seattle Water Taxi.”
ADDED 6:37 PM: We asked SDOT on followup how soon they expect to remove the cylinder, since they won’t have a full timeline until after that: “Our goal is to remove the cylinder within the next week. We are currently working to identify suppliers for all the parts and equipment necessary to move the massive cylinder and to reprogram the control system to operate with one cylinder.”
(WSB photo, this morning)
Last week, we published photos of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers debris-recovery vessel at work off Alki, picking up some of the many logs left afloat after the king tides and heavy rains. So what about all the logs that went the other way, now strewn across park shores at beaches like Alki, or piled up like the ones above at Don Armeni Boat Ramp? We asked Seattle Parks, whose spokesperson Rachel Schulkin replied:
We have a plan to reuse as much of the driftwood as possible in the parks. Some to use as log and saddle replacements where needed. And if there are any interesting ones, they may be used for interest in shrub beds.
So far, we are just moving what we can out of the way where necessary. Such as Don Armeni, so the boat ramp is accessible (hence the pile farther up in the parking lot, which was moved last week by the heavy crew). And we will come back in February after we see the next round of high tides this month to start removal/relocation.
We also have plans to go onto Alki Beach to move and remove some of that driftwood before peak season, since so much washed up so far on the sand. But that must wait until the tides settle a little bit for the sand to be a little safer to get our tractors in.
The final round of major winter “king tides” is due January 22-26, with high tides around 13 feet, which is what last week’s high tides were supposed to be (but ended up higher because of weather conditions)
(WSB photo, this morning)
11:57 AM: The crew contracted to remove a semi-sunken sailboat from Don Armeni Boat Ramp is trying again today. Last Thursday, we reported on their plan to take it to Shilshole; a commenter noted the next day that the boat hadn’t been moved after all. So we went by this morning to see if it was gone yet, and found the tow crew working on it again. They explained that last week’s attempt was thwarted because the boat “sprang a leak” but they’ve remedied the situation and are hopeful today’s attempt will work. (We’ll check back later.)
ADDED TUESDAY EVENING: We did go back to look at day’s end, and the boat indeed is gone.
(Monday photo of The Brothers by Kanit Cottrell)
Here’s your Tuesday list, from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
CITY COUNCIL: The city’s holiday hiatus is over and the council’s back for its weekly meeting today, 2 pm online or at City Hall (600 4th Ave.). See the agenda here; the meeting is viewable via Seattle Channel.
DEMONSTRATION FOR BLACK LIVES: Longstanding weekly sign-waving demonstration at 16th/Holden. 5-6 pm. Signs available if you don’t have your own.
SCRABBLE NIGHT: 6-10 pm, you can play Scrabble at The Missing Piece (9456 35th SW).
WEST SEATTLE BIKE CONNECTIONS: 6:30 pm online meeting, with the low-bridge closure and bicycle detours at the heart of the agenda; an SDOT rep is expected to be in attendance. You can join via video here (Meeting ID: 821 5334 5420 – Passcode: 758937) or call in via 253-215-8782.
11:43 am update – see comment below; this has been postponed a week: SEATTLE METROPOLITAN SINGERS: This award-winning choir rehearses in West Seattle! Tonight’s announcement:
The Seattle Metropolitan Singers are starting their next season on Tuesday, January 3rd. Rehearsals are 7pm to 9pm every Tuesday at the Senior Center of West Seattle [4217 SW Oregon]. This choir won The People’s Choice award at the 2022 Great Figgy Pudding Competition at Pike Place Market. This is a treble voice choir and all are welcome to join that fit in that vocal range. Please e-mail the_met@seattlegleeclubs.org if any questions. Or check out their website seattlegleeclubs.org/themet
TRIVIA X 3: Three places where you can play Tuesday nights – 7 pm at Ounces (3809 Delridge Way SW), 7 pm at Admiral Pub (2306 California SW), 7:30 and 8:30 pm Sporcle Pub Quiz at The Lodge (4209 SW Alaska).
BELLE OF THE BALLS BINGO: Play bingo with Cookie Couture at The Skylark (3803 Delridge Way SW), 8 pm. Free, all ages!
You can always see more, and preview future events, via our event calendar – if you have something for us to list, please email info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
Two car-related notes this morning:
STOLEN CR-V: From Kerry: “My 1999 red Honda CR-V was stolen this morning between 6 and 8 am. License plate number AOZ7418. Taken from 4800 block of 50th Ave SW. text if you spot it – 206-245-8720.” SPD case number is 23-002115.
MYSTERY CAR: Nancy says this car “has been sitting on Cambridge SW between 25th and 26th for many weeks. The license plate has been removed and so have the four wheels. Perhaps, someone is missing this car.”
She says it’s locked and that no VIN number was visible.
Family and friends are remembering Anna W. Missler, and planning a celebration of her life this spring. For now, this is the remembrance they’re sharing:
Anna Wilhelmina Missler
May 20, 1929 – September 21, 2022Anna passed away on September 21, 2022, at the age of 93, after a short illness, with her family by her side.
She was born May 20, 1929 in Utrecht, The Netherlands, to parents Anna Christina Wilhelmina Albertha Bedina Huisen and Jan Willem Van Voorthuisen. Siblings Sophia, Willy, Christina, Yanni, Albert, and Chris. Times were difficult growing up during WW2, and her mother passed shortly after the war ended.
In 1950 Anna and Nicolaas Missler were married in Utrecht, The Netherlands. They welcomed daughter Yvonne in 1950, and Elizabeth (Christa) in 1958. With their young family, they immigrated to the United States in 1960, sponsored by the Fauntleroy Church, and settled in West Seattle. In 1961 they welcomed daughter Diana, and in 1964 Nicolaas Jr.
Family was most important to her, and she was so proud of her many grandchildren and great grandchildren.
Anna put herself through beauty school, and then became a partner operator at Elite Beauty Salon in the West Seattle Junction. She worked as a hairstylist for 20 years until 1993 when Nico became ill, and she retired to care for him at home. Nico passed away in 1996.
Anna’s next adventure was moving into her beloved condo on Alki Beach. She loved daily walks on the beach and sitting by the window watching the daily activities of walkers and boaters throughout the day.
A Celebration of Life is planned in May. Details will be provided closer to the date of event.
(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)
6:03 AM: Good morning! It’s Tuesday, January 3rd, back to work and school for many.
LOW-BRIDGE CLOSURE
This is the 12th day the low bridge has been closed to surface traffic, with SDOT saying they don’t yet have a timeline for all repairs.
We’ll be checking on its status again today; here’s our most-recent update, published Saturday.
WEATHER
Slight chance of rain, high in the mid-40s.
TODAY’S TRANSIT STATUS
–Metro is on a regular schedule today but still down buses for repairs – keep watching notification channels such as @kcmetroalerts for trip cancellations and route suspensions.
-The West Seattle Water Taxi is back on its regular schedule.
-WSF’s Triangle Route remains on its two-boat schedule- check here for alerts/updates.
SPOTLIGHT CAMERAS
Delridge cameras: Updating this recent report, five are now live. Besides the one below (Delridge/Genesee), cameras are also up at Delridge/Oregon, Delridge/Juneau, Delridge/Orchard, and Delridge/Henderson.
High Bridge – the camera at the top.
High Bridge – the view from its southwest end (when SDOT points the 35th/Avalon/Fauntleroy camera that way).
1st Ave. S. Bridge – the south route.
Highway 99: – 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 a problem on the roads/paths/water, please text or call us (when you can do so safely) – 206-293-6302.
| 13 COMMENTS