day : 16/06/2024 8 results

WEEK AHEAD: City Council to consider transportation-levy changes, including Councilmember Saka’s proposal to restore 35th, Fauntleroy repaving plans

Tuesday morning, the City Council meets again as the Select Committee on the 2024 Transportation Levy, still working to finalize a package to send to voters this November. At this meeting, councilmembers will consider amendments to the mayor’s proposal. District 1 Councilmember Rob Saka, who chairs this committee as well as the regular Transportation Committee, has already announced his “chair’s amendment,” which would increase the levy’s cost by $100 million, to $1.55 billion; how it does that is detailed in this council-staff memo. Saka is now also proposing his own amendment that would restore the 35th SW and Fauntleroy Way repaving projects that were in the mayor’s draft levy proposal (which we reported here in April), then were scaled back or removed in the mayor’s final proposal (as we reported here in May).

Saka’s amendment would restore the full 35th SW Alaska-to-Morgan repaving project (much of 35th south of that was repaved last decade), and Fauntleroy Way repaving between 35th and Alaska “to keep roadway functional during light rail station construction.” We asked Councilmember Saka about this at Saturday’s Morgan Junction Community Festival; he said that while the mayor had made an “executive” decision to scale back 35th, community feedback led Saka to propose “legislatively” restoring it to the levy plan. He’ll need the support of a majority of his council colleagues, as is the case with the other amendments proposed – so far the agenda for Tuesday morning’s meeting also includes links to amendments from Councilmembers Tammy Morales, Sara Nelson, and Dan Strauss, plus a vice-chair’s amendment from Councilmember Joy Hollingsworth. The meeting includes a public-comment period (as do most council meetings); the agenda explains how to participate, either remotely or in-person at City Hall (you can also email the council any time – that info is here). This is the committee’s second-to-last scheduled meeting; they’re due to finalize the levy plan next month.

FYI: Film crew planning to work near 35th/Morgan tomorrow

Thanks to Chris for the tip about no-parking signs in the 34th/35th/36th/Morgan vicinity. A close-up look shows they’re attributed to a production company for “filming” tomorrow (Monday, June 17). Detailed information on some of the signage pointed us toward the production manager, who tells WSB they’ll be filming a “TV commercial” tomorrow; he isn’t allowed to say what the commercial’s for, but insists it’s nothing “exciting.” He says passersby will notice production trucks and a motor home, and that what they’re filming will include a delivery truck rigged with a camera, “driving around the neighborhoods,” with a police escort.

WEST SEATTLE WEEKEND SCENE: Potter Construction’s Rampathon result

Thanks to Karl at Potter Construction (WSB sponsor) for sending the photo. On Saturday, Potter Construction again participated in the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties‘ annual Rampathon, during which volunteer labor and donated materials result in access ramps for residents in need. This year, Laurie at Potter Construction tells us, the recipients are “a local West Seattle retired couple, in need of a permanent ramp due to mobility issues.” The builders’ association takes applications from prospective ramp recipients each winter. Potter has been participating since the early 2000s.

WEST SEATTLE WEEKEND SCENE: Mountain Fest at Camp Long

June 16, 2024 3:28 pm
|    Comments Off on WEST SEATTLE WEEKEND SCENE: Mountain Fest at Camp Long
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

(Photos by Omar Abdulkadir for WSB)

Park visitors of all ages got a chance to experience climbing during Camp Long‘s Mountain Fest on Saturday. It’s the annual chance to explore the park’s unique features that give you the chance to climb without leaving West Seattle:

Mountain Fest also provided opportunities to learn about wildlife – whether from The Falconer‘s raptors like this owl …

or from Seattle Parks naturalists who were there to answer questions about other creatures you might see (all in a day’s work for them, since Camp Long is an Environmental Learning Ceter):

If you didn’t get to Mountain Fest, Camp Long is open to visitors at other times too – the main entrance is at 35th/Dawson, by the historic lodge, which is available for rentals (as are the 10 cabins at the park)

YOUTH SPORTS: West Seattle Soccer Club finishing spring season, signing up players for fall

June 16, 2024 1:39 pm
|    Comments Off on YOUTH SPORTS: West Seattle Soccer Club finishing spring season, signing up players for fall
 |   West Seattle news | WS & Sports

Got a prospective soccer player under your roof? Not signed up for fall soccer yet? The West Seattle Soccer Club asked us to share this reminder that now’s the time:

Hey, West Seattle Families!

Founded in 1968, The West Seattle Soccer Club (WSSC) is a recreational soccer club for youth who reside in the southwest neighborhoods of Seattle. All youth ages 5-18 are eligible to play and experience is not required.

As we gear up for the Fall Soccer Season, excitement is booming with well over a thousand players already registered! With the Spring Season wrapping up this weekend, it’s time to ensure that you, your friends, and your neighbors join in too! Registration closes June 30th, so act fast. Whether your child is a seasoned player or just starting out, we’re excited to unveil our Fall Registration and anticipate the adventures ahead.

The Fall Season kicks off September 14th and 15th with seasons spanning 8, 10, or 12 games based on age division.

Secure your child’s spot or learn more at westseattlesoccer.org. Questions? Reach us at wsscboard@gmail.com.

Make this Fall Soccer season unforgettable! Enroll today to see your child thrive on the field, make friends, and create lasting memories. Financial assistance is available for qualified applicants. Don’t miss out – register now!

You can help close the loop: Here’s how to bring 2024 Loop the ‘Lupe across one more finish line

June 16, 2024 11:47 am
|    Comments Off on You can help close the loop: Here’s how to bring 2024 Loop the ‘Lupe across one more finish line
 |   How to help | West Seattle news

This year’s Loop the ‘Lupe fundraising run/walk/obstacle course was a success in many ways. Organizer Brian Callanan says a record number of people signed up. (We showed you some of the fun in our coverage.) And they recruited a record number of volunteers, too – some of those are in the photo above. But, Brian says, “We have about half as many donations this year as we’ve had in years past. The Loop is OLG’s largest external fundraiser.. The money goes toward supporting work like providing food and rental assistance to local families in need, helping prisoners re-integrate into the community after their sentences, and much more.” In hopes of bringing in a bit more to support that work, Brian says, the donation link will be open through tomorrow (Monday, June 17) night at midnight. If you can help, here’s where to go

Remembering Albert W. Boss, 1960-2024

Family and friends are remembering Al Boss, and sharing this remembrance with his community:

Al Boss — an everyday hero who made people laugh with his sarcastic wit and irreverent sense of humor — died May 19. He was 63.

Boss was taken to Harborview Medical Center and put on life support after a fall. He was leaving a performance May 14 at the Salon of Shame, a theater in the International District showcasing bad writing from people’s adolescence.

Around 50 of his friends and family lined a hallway outside of the Intensive Care Unit of Harborview to say their tearful goodbyes. In his hand was one of his “Get out of hell free” cards. His son, Nathan, 25, knew he would appreciate it. Boss liked to give out these cards to people to cheer them up.

On LinkedIn, Boss referred to himself as a web developer, accessibility engineer, and a human Swiss Army knife. He prided himself on being a divergent thinker and was known for coming up with ingenious ideas.

Former colleague Elizabeth Inglese called Boss “seriously brilliant.”
“He had a way of problem solving that took all components of a situation into consideration. He could look at scenarios from a 50,000-ft view but also from a boots-on-the-ground perspective. With everything he did, he approached it thoughtfully, carefully, and with a light sense of humor.”

Boss’ friends and family describe him as a frustrated optimist who was passionate about his family, loved ones, and giving back to his community.

He was a longtime volunteer for the Seattle King County Clinic, a giant four-day free health clinic at Seattle Center that provides dental, vision, and medical care to anyone in the region who struggles to access or afford health care. Project Executive Julia Colson told the family Boss will be dearly missed. “He was incredibly kind, dedicated, funny, and always fully present, engaged, and thoughtful. We are incredibly grateful for the time he spent with us, his commitment to making the world a better place, and the bright light he brought with him wherever he went,” she wrote.
Boss was also a long-time volunteer for the Seattle chapter of the Red Cross in disaster services. He was a board member for Third Place Technologies, a sponsor of Electric Sky art camp, which he looked forward to each year.

He also volunteered at Creative Mornings – Seattle, was on the King County Library System Computer Advisory Group, served as the Puget Sound chapter president of the University of Missouri Alumni Association, and offered technical support to several nonprofit organizations, including Cancer Lifeline and Habitat for Humanity.

He taught web courses at South Seattle College and Cascadia College. One of his signature lessons was having students create a website that had the “worst user experience” to show students how they can often learn better from mistakes and what not to do.

He even opened his home to two young men facing housing insecurity and gave them stability and hope. One of those young men said Boss asked him what he wanted to do. He replied, “connect with people,” so Boss paid for acting lessons.

Boss knew life wasn’t easy. He grew up in Potosi, Missouri, a historical town of 2,500, located 72 miles southwest of St. Louis. His father, Marvin Boss, owned independent dry goods stores; his mother, Joyce Boss (Schneidman), managed the household. He was always the center point of their lives, and was also much loved by his older brother, Steven Boss, though they didn’t grow up together. He grew up with lots of open space and dogs, but he talked about being bullied for being Jewish, said his wife, Laura Duncan Boss.

One of Boss’ recent joys was discovering his birth relatives from DNA research. He was adopted and deeply enjoyed getting to know a new side of his family. He even spent the weekend before his death at the wedding of a nephew in California.

Boss graduated from the University of Missouri with degrees in medical anthropology and community development. After graduating, he followed friends who moved to Seattle, and he met his wife in a French class at the University of Washington. She said they would talk in their cars for hours about everything. They were married in October 1991 in the Chinese Room at the Smith Tower. Their only child, Nathan, was born in 1998.

Laura Boss said her husband would take Nathan all over West Seattle as a baby and the two became such a favorite in coffee shops that Nathan asked if he could invite all the baristas at one coffee shop to his birthday party.

Boss started working with King County in 2005 on the web team. His colleagues said he spoke his mind in a clever way, using allegories, metaphors, puns, and clever acronyms. When arguing the case against pop-ups, he told a colleague, “How would you like it, if before you go shopping at Home Depot, you were asked if you would like to hear the history of Home Depot?”

Boss was admired for his passion for good user experience and accessibility. His interest was likely fueled by his own unique challenges. He had prosopagnosia, a condition where you have difficulty identifying people’s faces.

Recently, Boss became a dog dad after years of raising cats. A friend had asked his family if they would foster a German Shepherd she had rescued. But it was love at first sight. Boss and 73-pound Viktor, now 3, were inseparable and often traveled by bus to local dog parks.

Nathan Boss, who called his dad a saint and his best friend, said one of the greatest lessons he learned from his dad is to get creative, not mad. He said when his dad was in high school, he was tired of a kid stealing his spray deodorant so he disguised a can of spray paint with a deodorant label. According to his dad, the kid spray painted his armpits black and never bothered him again.

Albert W. Boss truly leaves the world a better place and has taught us all so much about having fun, giving back, showing up, and thinking outside of the box.

In memory of Al, the family asks that you become an organ donor, and find a way to give back to your community.

Al’s wife Laura was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. If you would like to help with her current and future health-care costs, you can do so here.

(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)

WEST SEATTLE SUNDAY: 15 notes!

(Cloudy sky as car carrier Helios Ray arrived Friday – photo by Lynn Hall)

Here’s our list for this Father’s Day Sunday, mostly from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar!

ADMIRAL CHURCH FOOD DRIVE: Continuing today – drop off donations at the church (4320 SW Hill) 9 am-noon.

MINI-POLAR PLUNGE: 9 am every Sunday, you’re welcome to join a group plunge into Puget Sound off Alki – meet at Statue of Liberty Plaza (61st/Alki).

WESTIES RUN CLUB: 9 am, meet at Highland Park Corner Store (7789 Highland Park Way SW) for this week’s Sunday Funday Run.

FATHER’S DAY GRIEF WALK: Walk in Schmitz Preserve Park with Listening to Grief, 10 am (meet at Hinds St. entrance). RSVP not required.

WEST SEATTLE FARMERS’ MARKET: The market is open today, 10 am-2 pm as usual, on California SW between SW Alaska and SW Oregon, offering almost-summer vegetables, flowers, fruit, and plants, plus baked goods, cheese, fish, meat, condiments, fresh-cooked food, beverages (from cider to kombucha to beer/wine), nuts, candy, more! Here’s today’s vendor list.

TALK WITH SDOT AT THE MARKET: Look for SDOT’s booth at the Farmers’ Market if you have comments/questions about the proposed street concepts for West Seattle’s light-rail-station areas (as shown in a survey that debuted this week).

ALSO WHILE YOU’RE AT THE MARKET … visit Jet City Labs (4547 California SW) to shop its small-biz pop-up market, also 10 am-2 pm.

FAMILY MUSIC WITH THE NOT-ITS: Jump, bounce, dance during the last show of this year’s Kindie West concert series at Fauntleroy Schoolhouse (9141 California SW), 10:30 am – tickets here.

ALKI UCC CLOTHING DRIVE: 11 am-3 pm, drop off donations at the church (6115 SW Hinds):

Men’s work clothes are a continued priority! Our donations drive serves many men participating in day labor who go through a lot of jeans, khakis, sweatshirts, hoodies, t-shirts, work boots, jackets … and lots of NEW socks to keep their feet healthy. Your donations of food, clothing and outdoor gear are distributed through the Westside Interfaith Network (WIN) Saturday lunch, hosted in White Center.

Deepest gratitude to our community for your generous support of our neighbors in need.

HIGHLAND PARK SPRAYPARK: Daily operation continues – open 11 am-8 pm, free. (1100 SW Cloverdale)

COLMAN POOL: Another “preseason weekend” continues for the outdoor heated-salt-water pool on the shore at Lincoln Park (8011 Fauntleroy Way SW), noon-7 pm – session times are on the Colman Pool webpage.

NO ALKI POINT LIGHTHOUSE TOURS TODAY: Reminder that Alki Point Lighthouse is NOT open to the public today for tours, which resume next Sunday.

JUNCTION FC PRIDE MATCH: Special activities planned as West Seattle Junction FC returns home to Nino Cantu Southwest Athletic Complex (2801 SW Thistle) to face the Tacoma Stars – details in our calendar listing.

‘CLYDE’S’ AT ARTSWEST: 3 pm performance at ArtsWest (4711 California SW; WSB sponsor) – “In this 2022 Tony Award®-Nominated Best Play, creating the perfect sandwich is the shared quest of the formerly incarcerated kitchen staff of Clyde’s, a truck-stop cafe.” Find the ticket link and more info in our calendar listing.

LIVE MUSIC AT THE ALLEY: Sunday night music by the Triangular Jazztet at The Alley (4509 California SW), 8-10 pm.

Are you planning something that should be on our community event calendar – one-time or recurring? Please email us the basics – westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!