West Seattle, Washington
27 Saturday
ORIGINAL MONDAY NIGHT REPORT: Police have confirmed somebody shot at a house on Bonair this past half-hour. At least two callers reported hearing the shots in the 1900 block, and one thought they saw flashes, before a vehicle left the vicinity. Responding officers have told dispatch they found two casings and damage to the house’s door and garage. No indication that anyone was in the house when it was shot at. If you have any information, the incident # is 23-118464.
TUESDAY UPDATE: Police now say this was linked to a burglary attempt. They say a “light-colored pickup truck” first rammed “the closed garage door of a house under renovation.” Here’s an SPD photo of the garage door:
The two shots were fired into the air after neighbors “yelled that police had been called.” If you have any information, the tip line is 206-233-5000.
Thanks to Jackie Borg from West Seattle Little League for sending this!
Desmond Hansen painted a new box at Bar-S Little League fields. We’re so excited for the new addition to the fields!
(That’s Mariners slugger Julio Rodriguez, aka “J-Rod,” on the box.)
Another major West Seattle playfield is set to get new artificial turf soon, and the Delridge Playfield project has moved a step closer to construction: It’s open for bids right now. The project includes more than just turf replacement – here’s the overview in the call for bids:
Replace outdated Synthetic Turf including: remove all infilled turf field carpet and infill materials, install new pad system across the playing field surface, replace collector line along the West side with solid collector line and root, replace non-compliant concrete pathways with accessible concrete pathways, replace all dugout gates with accessible gates, replace access staircase with concrete staircase, replace existing drinking fountain with accessible drinking fountain, install new chain-link fence and swing gate.
Additive #1: Improve the Delridge Community Center hardscape entrance and ramp to Delridge Way SW. Additive #2: Improvements at the Northwest corner of the playfield to provide improved access between Delridge Playfield and 26th Ave SW. Additive #3: Improve the ramp at the Southeast corner of the playfield and park lot improvements.
Deadline for bids is May 17th. The playfield website says the project cost is projected to be more than $4 million and that construction is likely to start in July. Also set for new artificial turf this summer, Hiawatha Playfield, which went out for re-bidding earlier this spring, as we reported.
ORIGINAL MONDAY REPORT: That’s what the Delridge Food Mart (5235 Delridge Way SW) looks like after it became the latest West Seattle business hit by crash-and-grab burglars. Police say they got a call just before 4:30 this morning and that a “vehicle was seen driving into the entrance, allowing two of the passengers to gain access to the store.” The burglars were gone when officers arrived, but SPD says “the suspect vehicle was located abandoned a few hours later.” (It was described in initial radio exchanges as a red van.)
ADDED TUESDAY: We obtained the report narrative from SPD. It says store owners confirmed police’s initial assessment that “a large number of various items had been stolen.” The owners eventually estimated a large amount of cigarettes and vape pens were among the items taken, and that the burglars’ haul was worth at least $10,000 (not counting the cost to repair the damage). The getaway car was a red Hyundai that video showed had been “reversed into the front doors to break them” about four minutes before the 911 call came in and officers were dispatched. Up to four people may have been in the car, but the only descriptive information in the narrative is that one wore a blue and white jacket and held “a white trash bag.” (The narrative also notes that an officer spoke with a store owner “about the possibility of installing small pillars to block vehicles from ramming his front door again since his business had been the target of multiple burglaries.” The getaway car, a 2014 Elantra, was found abandoned in the 4700 block of Cottage Place SW just before 6:30 am. The report says it was registered to someone in Kent but had not been reported as stolen – though it had heavy ignition damage – so SPD was asking KPD to check with its owner, and meantime had the car impounded.
May 13th is not only West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day, it’s also the day for Stamp Out Hunger, the annual door-to-door food drive led by the National Association of Letter Carriers. Partnering with NALC, the U.S. Postal Service sent a reminder today, including:
Donating is easy – customers should leave their non-perishable food donations in a bag near their mailbox on Saturday, May 13, before their letter carrier arrives. Food collected during the drive will be delivered to local Washington community churches, food banks and food pantries for distribution.
Customers can also donate online directly to their local food bank. [Our area is served by the West Seattle Food Bank and White Center Food Bank.]
While all non-perishable donations are welcome, foods that are high in protein such as canned tuna, salmon, beans, and peanut butter are most needed. Canned fruits and vegetables, whole grain, low-sugar cereals, macaroni and cheese dinners, and 100% fruit juice also top the list of most-needed items.
The food drive is held annually in late spring because most of the food banks’ donations are received and distributed between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
This will be the 31st year for Stamp Out Hunger, which resumed last year after a pandemic hiatus.
1:55 PM: Thanks for the tip. SFD and SPD are in the 2400 block of Harbor Avenue SW, near the 7-11, for what was dispatched as a “rescue extrication” call. SPD says the street is closed in both directions. We’re on our way to find out more.
2:01 PM: SFD has already closed the call. They’re working to clear the road and letting the Water Taxi shuttle through, but not other traffic.
2:14 PM: Flipped-car crash, as our photo (and the one Angela has posted in a comment below) shows. We’re told at the scene that the driver hit a parked car and flipped.
2:21 PM: Harbor is open again, police just told dispatch.
4:55 PM: SFD tells WSB that the driver, a 53-year-old woman, was in stable condition when taken to Harborview by AMR ambulance.
Thanks to James Bratsanos for the photos of a cluster of fishing boats south off Alki Point today. Online research suggested they’re likely looking for lingcod, and state Department of Fish and Wildlife spokesperson Chase Gunnell confirmed it: “Yes, May 1 is the annual lingcod fishing opener for recreational anglers in Puget Sound, the San Juan Islands, and Strait of Juan de Fuca. Rockpiles and reefs off Alki Point and Blake Island are popular fishing spots for these predatory and delicious bottomfish.”
Gunnell also notes you can find out more about lingcod fishing here.
(WSB photo, April 22)
If you dropped off recyclables during Fauntleroy Church‘s spring Recycle Roundup on Earth Day, here’s the tally, reported today by Judy Pickens:
450 people took advantage of 1 Green Planet‘s free, responsible recycling. The day’s take of just over 14 tons of recyclables brings the total since these roundups began, in 2010, to more than 336 tons. The fall event will be on Saturday, September 23.
(Sunday’s sunset – photo by Greg Snyder)
Here’s the list for the rest of today/tonight, mostly from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
ONLINE BIDDING: Now open for the Southwest Seattle Historical Society‘s fundraising auction, as previewed here. Everybody can bid, not just people attending the in-person gala Friday!
BABY STORY TIME: Baby Story Time is back, noon-12:30 pm Mondays at Southwest Library (9010 35th SW).
MONDAY MOVIE: 1 pm at Senior Center of West Seattle (4217 SW Oregon), “Terry’s Greatest Movies You’ve Never Heard Of,” today featuring “Stage Door.” Free popcorn! Contact SCWS to register in advance.
CITY COUNCIL BRIEFING MEETING: We usually make note of this weekly meeting, but this week it’s been canceled, so it’s not happening today.
FREE INDOOR PLAYSPACE: Free Toddler Gym weekday afternoons at the Salvation Army Center (9050 16th SW), ages 2-6, 3:30-5 pm.
CRAFTING AND CREATIVITY NIGHT: 6-10 pm at The Missing Piece (9456 35th SW), info here.
OPEN MIC: Weekly BedHead Open Mic at West Seattle Church of the Nazarene (4201 SW Juneau), 6:30 pm – info in our calendar listing.
D&D: Open D&D starts at 6:30 pm at Meeples Games (3727 California SW), all welcome, even first-time players. $5.
FAUNTLEROY MEDITATION: Free weekly Zen sitting/meditation event at the chapel at Fauntleroy UCC (9140 California SW), 7 pm-8:30 pm.
ALKI MEDITATION: Free twice-monthly Dharma Community meditation, 7-8:30 pm at Alki UCC (6115 SW Hinds).
PLAY TRIVIA! Three options on Monday nights for playing trivia – 7 and 8 pm Sporcle Pub Quiz at Three 9 Lounge (4505 39th SW); 7 pm at The Good Society (California/Lander), 7:30 pm at The Skylark (3803 Delridge Way SW)
MONDAY MUSIC: Live music with The Westside Trio, 8 pm at The Alley (behind 4509 California SW), 21+, no cover.
Have a West Seattle/White Center event to add to our calendar ? Please send info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
9:23 AM: For a third day, transient orcas are off Seattle shores – just got word from Kersti Muul that the same groups are southbound, already past Discovery Park on the north side of Elliott Bay. Let us know if you see them!
9:27 AM: Kersti adds that they’re visible from Luna/Anchor Park, and the water’s calm, so the viewing conditions are good.
Family and friends will gather May 24th to remember Kenneth Hesselbalch, and are sharing this remembrance with the community:
Kenneth “Kenny” Hasselbalch was born on June 29, 1968, in Huntington Beach, CA. He was one of five children of Anna and Knud Hasselbalch, immigrants from Denmark. The family first moved to Canada and then to the US in 1961. Kenny and his younger brother Frank were both born in CA. They moved to Seattle in 1974, where their brother Ely Delos Santos was adopted.
Growing up in West Seattle, Kenny spent his life near Puget Sound. An excellent mariner, fisherman, and storyteller, Kenny – AKA Kelp Cod – enjoyed his time on the water. His boat the “Ms. Dori” could be seen launching at Don Armeni at Alki Point where he would converse with the fish checker to see where the best catch was. Known for his smoked salmon, which he often gave away along with the pots full of Dungeness he was always pulling.
Kenny worked in the world of finance, first at Merrill Lynch with his Father-in-law Jack Blondin, and later at Morgan Stanley, where he earned the title of First Vice president. He was a long-time member of the Seattle Bond Club and a past president. He was Chairman of the Father Mallahan Endowment Board at Holy Rosary Church.
He was a member of the Seattle Yacht Club and part of the Sports Fishing Committee. He spent over 30 summers at the SYC cabins on Cortez Island, where he dropped shrimp pots, caught salmon, and gathered oysters.
Kenny was a talented cook who put on many gourmet fundraising dinners and was known for his crab boils benefiting charities dear to his heart such as the Experimental Education Unit-Haring Center and Holy Rosary School. He learned the love of cooking from his mother; the two of them prepared magical meals together.
Kenny had a passion for music with a beautiful singing voice. He played guitar and found solace in music. He was a lover of symphony and the theater. He was an avid sports fan, always supporting the Mariners and Seahawks. He enjoyed golfing and organized many tournaments.
The love of Kenny’s life was and forever will be his daughter Doriana, now a Junior at Chapman University in Orange, CA. He and her mother, Christina, raised Dori in West Seattle, where she attended Holy Rosary School and later Bishop Blanchet High School.
He will be remembered for his generosity, willingness to help those in need, quick wit, and contagious smile. He will be missed.
Kenny passed away on January 20 surrounded by his family and close friends.
He is preceded in death by his parents and his brothers Frank and Ely. He is survived by his daughter Doriana, her mother Christina, and his sisters Conny (Randy) and Susan (Mike) and his brother Kim (Lori) and his many nieces and nephews.
A memorial service will be held in his honor at 10:00 AM on Wednesday, May 24th, at Holy Rosary Church in West Seattle (4210 SW Genesee) with a reception to follow at the school hall across the street. We look forward to seeing you.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Mary’s Place: marysplaceseattle.org
To share your condolence and memories of Kenny, please visit his online memorial at: emmickfunerals.com/obituary/Kenneth-Hasselbalch
(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)
6:01 AM: Good morning! It’s Monday, May 1st.
WEATHER & SUNRISE/SUNSET TIMES
TRANSIT
Metro – Regular schedule, but trip cancellations are still happening. Metro is no longer tweeting cancellations, so you’ll have to sign up for email or text alerts if you’re interested in them.
Water Taxi – Now on the spring/summer schedule.
Washington State Ferries‘ Triangle Route continues on the 2-boat schedule but with the chance of sailing cancellations, so check here for alerts/updates and see Vessel Watch for boats’ locations. Also: Peak-season surcharges for some vehicle fares start today.
SPOTLIGHT TRAFFIC CAMERAS
Delridge cameras: Besides the one below (Delridge/Henderson), cameras are also up at Delridge/Genesee, Delridge/Juneau, Delridge/Orchard, and Delridge/Oregon.
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):
Low Bridge – east-end vicinity:
1st Ave. S. Bridge – another route across the river:
Highway 99: – the northbound side at Lander.
MORE TRAFFIC CAMS: See all working traffic cams citywide here, most with video options; West Seattle and vicinity-relevant cameras are on this WSB page.
BRIDGE INFO: Check the @SDOTBridges Twitter feed to see if the city’s movable bridges are opening for vessel traffic.
If you see trouble on the bridges/streets/paths/bay, please text or call us (when you can do it safely, and after you’ve reported to authorities). Thank you!
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