day : 10/10/2023 10 results

Two Crime Watch notes tonight:

(Monday photo: Memorial for bus-shooting victim)

BUS-SHOOTING VICTIM IDENTIFIED: “M.W.” are the initials seen at the memorial along 15th SW for the man shot to death aboard a Metro bus there one week ago tonight. When we photographed the memorial yesterday, we didn’t know what the initials stood for – but tonight we do. The King County Medical Examiner’s Office has identified the victim as 21-year-old Marcell D. Wagner, saying he died from “multiple gunshot wounds.” Still no word of an arrest, and no update since what we published Thursday night; we’ll check again with the King County Sheriff’s Office tomorrow.

DAMAGED, POSSIBLY DUMPED, CAR: Caren sent the photo and report:

Reported this abandoned car to Find It Fix It app. Car appears to be abandoned or stolen. Showed up sometime early AM this morning, Tuesday, Oct 10th. Obvious damage to rear window and driver’s side windows. Car is a Toyota Scion, unknown year. License plate is BNE9467.

It’s along a residential street in North Delridge. We’ll divulge the location if we hear from its owner. (Caren also is trying to report it to police but hasn’t had luck with that yet.)

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FUTURE JUNCTION PARK: What’s next after today’s site chat

October 10, 2023 6:25 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

Just back from the future West Seattle Junction park in the 4700 block of 40th SW, where Parks reps spent the past two hours under canopies next to the site, talking with people about the plan. Project manager Kelly Goold told us visitors voiced support for the existing design:

The park was close to construction before the pandemic pause defunded it, but now the money for it will be restored by early next year, and after final reviews, it’ll be sent out to bid. Meantime, it’s still getting interim use as a pet-relief area. (Part of the future park will be set aside for that use.) If you missed today’s meeting, you still have a chance to provide feedback – this online survey remains open until the end of the month.

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Pickleball in Lincoln Park or Solstice Park? 3 updates

October 10, 2023 5:12 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

(WSB photo, October 1st)

Updates today in the ongoing issue of Seattle Parks canceling its plan to add pickleball stripes to three Solstice Park tennis courts and instead deciding to turn a former Lincoln Park tennis-court area (photo above) into pickleball courts:

TIMING: The plan to resurface Solstice Park courts – which is what brought up the potential for pickleball – has been delayed. Parks tells us that the resurfacing, recently considered “imminent,” is now not going to happen until spring/summer of next year: “The contractor got delayed because of supplies that did not come in time and now the weather is too wet and temperatures too cool to resurface the courts. This project will be the first one scheduled when the appropriate weather returns.” (Different material than the Lincoln Park plan, which is described as an “asphalt overlay.”)

MONEY: Questions persisted even after Parks clarified that the $140,000 cost of converting the Lincoln Park site is coming from an Associated Recreation Council grant. We asked for more details; Parks says the money was not specifically earmarked for this: “This project is being funded with a portion of a $400,000 grant from the Associated Recreation Council, given to the department last spring. There were no restrictions on where we could spend the funds. SPR decided to spend a portion of them on pickleball expansion, and the rest toward recreation programs and services.”

LINCOLN PARK LIGHTING? Funding may get in the way of that, Parks added: “We are still exploring the possibility of adding lights, but it may end up being cost prohibitive for the time being and may need to be added when future funding can be secured. Funding the lights out of the same grant would mean reducing funding to one of the other promised investments.”

As noted here yesterday, the Lincoln Park pickleball plan now has a page on the Parks website.

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SEEN OFF WEST SEATTLE: USS Bunker Hill, decommissioned and under tow

October 10, 2023 3:03 pm

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| Seen at sea | West Seattle news

Thanks to Gary Jones for the photo and ship ID. Seen passing West Seattle, under tow and headed into Kitsap County waters, that’s the decommissioned guided-missile cruiser USS Bunker Hill (CG 52). It was decommissioned two and a half weeks ago in a ceremony at Naval Base San Diego (this online Navy story has lots of history). According to this online report, it’s being taken to Bremerton to “serve as a ‘logistics support asset’.” (A reference to another ship in that role explains that term as “spare-parts hulk.”)

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VIDEO: Seattle City Council candidates’ Town Hall Q&A with Harbor-Alki group

October 10, 2023 2:19 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle politics

Prior to tonight’s 7 pm forum at Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Seattle City Council District 1 candidates’ previous side-by-side West Seattle appearance was last Thursday, in a “Town Hall” Q&A organized by the Harbor-Alki Neighbors group. We weren’t able to be there, but a volunteer recorded it on video for the organizers, and the video has just become available for publication, so here it is for anyone who wasn’t there but wants to see how candidates Rob Saka and Maren Costa responded to the Harbor-Alki questions. (We do plan to cover tonight’s forum, which the Westside Interfaith Network and League of Women Voters are presenting, and will have video of that tonight or tomorrow.)

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BIZNOTE: Signs are up for next restaurant in ex-Yen Wor space

October 10, 2023 12:33 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle restaurants

Thanks for the tips! Two readers messaged us this morning about the signs now up for the restaurant taking over the former Yen Wor space at 2300 California SW. Taste of Mumbai is already in West Seattle – based out of the kitchens in The Triangle at 4611 36th SW, offering pickup and delivery. (Their menu is here.) We have a message out to check on the timetable for their restaurant/lounge in The Admiral District.

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TRAFFIC ALERT: West Seattle low bridge reopens ahead of schedule – here’s why, and what’s next

October 10, 2023 10:53 am

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

10:53 AM: Thanks for the tips. SDOT says the West Seattle low bridge – at one point expected to remain closed until next Saturday – has reopened ahead of schedule; this phase of cylinder work is done.

12:46 PM: We asked SDOT why they were able to reopen much sooner than projected. Spokesperson Chris Miller replied: “The removal and reinstallation work went better than expected. The Bridge Maintenance Crew had the advantage of executing the cylinder removal early this year. Their previous experience working in the limited space and handling such an unwieldy object helped them feel more at ease with the process. Additionally, many of the complications we faced during the initial removal process earlier this year did not occur this time. Predicting the complex issues that may arise during the rehabilitation of aging mechanical and electrical infrastructure is a challenge. We hope that we won’t encounter any significant problems when we reinstall the refurbished cylinder that was removed over the past weekend and the rehabilitation work for the other cylinders shifts to the west pier housing next year.”

The original announcement warned of future “short-term” closures ahead, so we also asked if there’s any timeline for those. While other low-bridge work continues without requiring closure time, “The next major project that will require a bridge outage is the replacement of the bridge control system. This work is currently projected for early spring, and the exact date will be determined based on the completion of the communications line installation. The reinstallation of the cylinder that was removed over the past weekend is still to be determined.”

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Park, politics, musicmaking, much more for your West Seattle Tuesday

October 10, 2023 10:23 am

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| West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

(Glacier Peak silhouette, photographed from West Seattle by Kevin Freitas)

Here’s what’s happening for the rest of today/tonight, mostly from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:

POSTCARDS TO VOTERS: 10:30 am at C & P Coffee Company (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor), meet up for long-distance political networking.

LOOSEGROOVE RECORDS AT EASY STREET: Special event at noon – Easy Street Records proprietor Matt Vaughan explained in email:

Psst, what are u doing for lunch? Surprise! Stone Gossard (Pearl Jam, Mother Love Bone, Brad) and Regan Hagar (Satchel, Brad, Malfunkshun) and their record label Loosegroove Records present their two recent signings. Both from the UK, see what all the talk is about! Meet n Greet with Tigercub from Brighton and also James and The Cold Gun from Cardiff, Wales. Stone and Regan were the same two guys that originally signed Queens of the Stoneage. They got good ears! First 10 people get a free Loosegroove t-shirt!

SOUTHWEST ARTIST SHOWCASE CONTINUES: Noon to 8, Southwest Library (9010 35th SW) is open – drop by to see the work displayed by community members in its annual Southwest Artist Showcase.

CHESS CLUB: Tuesdays 1:30-3 pm at the Senior Center of West Seattle (4217 SW Oregon): “Are you looking for a new activity to keep your brain sharp and clear? The Senior Center Chess Club welcomes both novice and experienced players. Join us at 1:30 p.m. for lessons, short tutorials, and chess for all levels of expertise.” (Questions? Email conwell@conwelld.net.)

FUTURE-PARK MEETING: As previewed here, Seattle Parks will have reps at the long-“landbanked” future Junction park (4700 block of 40th SW) to gather feedback and answer questions as it moves closer to development.

DEMONSTRATION FOR BLACK LIVES: Long-running weekly sign-waving demonstration at 16th/Holden. 5-6 pm. Signs available if you don’t have your own.

WEST SEATTLE COMMUNITY ORCHESTRAS: Rehearsals continue and new musicians are welcome. 5:30-9 pm at Chief Sealth International High School (2600 SW Thistle) – see our calendar listing for the link to more info and registration. (WSCO is a WSB sponsor.)

LEARN ASL: Free class, 6 pm at West Seattle Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (4001 44th SW) – info’s in our calendar listing.

SCRABBLE NIGHT: 6-10 pm, you can play Scrabble at The Missing Piece (9456 35th SW).

FREE TRACK RUN: Meet at West Seattle Runner (2743 California SW; WSB sponsor) for this free weekly run at 6:15 pm.

THE CLAY CAULDRON: 6:30-9 pm “girls’ night” at pottery studio The Clay Cauldron (5214 Delridge Way SW), sign up in advance or drop in to work on your project(s).

CITY COUNCIL CANDIDATES: 7 pm forum with District 1 candidates Maren Costa and Rob Saka, presented by Westside Interfaith Network and the League of Women Voters, moderated by Brian Callanan. All welcome to attend, Walmesley Center at Our Lady of Guadalupe (35th/Myrtle).

SING! Singers have an open invitation to join the Seattle Metropolitan Singers – “all treble voices welcome” – just show up for one of their rehearsals, Tuesdays 7-9 pm at Senior Center of West Seattle (4217 SW Oregon).

FAUNTLEROY COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION: Monthly board meeting, community welcome, 7 pm at Fauntleroy Schoolhouse (9131 California SW) or online.

TRIVIA X 4: Four places to play Tuesday nights – 7 pm at Ounces (3803 Delridge Way SW), free and hosted by Beat the Geek Trivia; 7 pm at Zeeks Pizza West Seattle (6459 California SW), hosted by Geeks Who Drink; 7 pm at Admiral Pub (2306 California SW); also, 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 look ahead any time via our event calendar – if you have something to add to it, please email the info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!

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BAKERS WANTED: Fauntleroy Fall Festival cake contest

October 10, 2023 9:00 am

| Comments Off on BAKERS WANTED: Fauntleroy Fall Festival cake contest

| Fauntleroy | West Seattle festivals | West Seattle news

(A few of the cakes from 2022 Fauntleroy Fall Festival)

As we’ve been reminding you, the Fauntleroy Fall Festival is now just days away – Sunday (October 15th), 2-5 pm. Here’s another way you can be part of it – bake and decorate a cake! From organizers:

The Fauntleroy Fall Festival will be hosting our annual Cake Decorating Contest and Cake Walk! Here’s your chance to show off your baking skills! We’re accepting fall-themed cakes for beginners, intermediate, and advanced categories. Please submit entries by noon (Sunday) in the Vashon room of the Hall at Fauntleroy. Following contest voting, cakes will be gifted in the Cake Walk.

The Hall (south end of Fauntleroy Schoolhouse, 9131 California SW) is one of the main venues for the festival. Meantime, a few volunteer openings remain, and even if the online signup fills up, organizers tell us you can show up on festival day to help out, too.

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TRAFFIC, TRANSIT, WEATHER: Tuesday info, as low-bridge closure continues (update: reopened)

October 10, 2023 6:01 am

| 3 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

10:56 AM: Thanks for the tips. The low-bridge closure is over.

Earlier:

6:01 AM: Good morning! Welcome to Tuesday, October 10th.

WEATHER AND SUNRISE/SUNSET TIMES

More rain expected, breezy,, high in the upper 50s. Sunrise today is at 7:20 am; sunset, 6:30 pm.

(Monday photo by Brooke Gosztola)

LOW-BRIDGE CLOSURE CONTINUES

Fourth day of West Seattle low-bridge closure (to surface use – driving, riding, walking, running, rolling), for cylinder work. Free transit rides available – explained in the final paragraphs here.

TRANSIT TODAY

Water Taxi – Back to regular schedule today.

Metro – Regular schedule today; check advisories here.

Washington State Ferries – 2-boat service on the Triangle Route. Check alerts for changes, and use Vessel Watch to see where your ferry is.

SPOTLIGHT TRAFFIC CAMERAS

Delridge cameras: Besides the one below (Delridge/Henderson), cameras are also at Delridge/Genesee, Delridge/Juneau, Delridge/Orchard, and Delridge/Oregon.

High Bridge – the main camera:

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

1st Ave. S. Bridge – southeastern route across the river:

Highway 99: – 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: The @SDOTBridges feed on Twitter/X shows whether 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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