SCHOOL CLOSURES? ‘Save Our STEM’ rally before board meeting tomorrow; citywide opposition group mobilizes; other updates

Six days after Seattle Public Schools announced two options for closing schools to save money, school closure opposition is intensifying.

‘SAVE OUR STEM’ RALLY: That flyer is being circulated on behalf of Louisa Boren STEM K-8, the Delridge option school that is on both of the proposed closure-option lists. The rally is just before tomorrow’s school board meeting, 3:45 pm Wednesday outside district HQ, the John Stanford Center, at 3rd and Lander in SODO. Organizers ask supporters to bring signs with the SAVE OUR STEM message. (9:30 pm update – As noted in comments as well as at a neighborhood-group meeting we attended tonight, Lafayette, which is on one of the possible-closure lists, is organizing too, and closure opponents have set up this website.)

BOARD MEETING: The school board then meets at 4:15 pm tomorrow inside the Stanford Center. The agenda has a long list of people signed up for the public-comment period (116 just on the waitlist!), as well as business items including an update on the closure proposal (aka “well-resourced schools”). The agenda item for that includes this summary of what’s currently under consideration.

‘ALL TOGETHER FOR SEATTLE SCHOOLS‘: This group is organizing citywide to oppose closures. A West Seattle parent who went to an off-peninsula organizing meeting over the weekend shared a photo and notes:

All Together for Seattle Schools identified two essential paths to save our schools:

1. Say NO to the School District DRAFT
-Oppose budget cuts and school closures.
-Our steadfast goal is to maintain great community schools for all children without compromise.

2. Take Legislative Action
-We are mobilizing to demand fully funded schools from representatives, candidates and more.
-Applying pressure on the legislature to secure full funding for our schools is imperative.

Key Points:

Current Situation: Closing schools will address only $31 million of a daunting $91 million deficit. The remaining $60 million will need to be cut from the schools that remain open, leading to under-resourced schools, potential teacher layoffs and no guarantee of support for the influx of students moving from closed schools.

Funding Trends: Pre-pandemic, Washington State dedicated 50% of its budget to funding schools. That figure has now decreased to 42%. We must urge legislators to restore full funding.

Timing: The school district is set to vote on school closures this fall, with closures to take effect within a year. The state legislative session begins in January, with budget approval expected by spring. The school district is moving too soon to apply pressure in Olympia.

Community Mobilization:

All Together for Seattle Schools aims to sidestep the efforts to pit schools against each other and instead unify all communities.
-Highlight stories from families, especially those who struggle to attend board meetings and require vital services.
-Distribute fliers outside schools, at farmers markets, and local sports events.
-Network with sympathetic public figures, board members, and local political candidates.
-Involve local businesses that will be affected by reduced community foot traffic.
-Organize families willing to speak to the media.
-Advocate through letters to school boards and state legislators.
-Foster hope and belief that collective action can save our schools.

They’re looking for volunteers to help with all of the above; here’s their contact form.

UPDATE – COMMUNITY-MEETING DATES: The district has yet to send out its promised list of upcoming community meetings on the closure proposals (according to West Seattle’s school board director Gina Topp, 6:30 pm September 25 is the tentative time for this area’s meeting). 9:30 pm update – Thanks to the parent who forwarded what the district sent parents but has not yet posted online nor sent to the media. Here are two meeting times of potential interest to people here:

Online: Tuesday, Sept. 24, 6:30 p.m., Zoom Meeting (Families and staff will soon receive the Zoom meeting link, and the link will be posted on our website.)
Southwest Region: Wednesday, Sept. 25, 6:30 p.m. Genesee Hill Elementary, 5013 SW Dakota St.

(back to original) After those meetings, Superintendent Dr. Brent Jones is expected to settle on a final proposal next month, followed by hearings at schools proposed for closure, and final board action by year’s end.

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FOLLOWUP: Damaged barrier removed from still-closed-to-drivers West Seattle low bridge

September 17, 2024 4:57 pm

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| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

(SDOT photo)

4:57 PM: An SDOT crew has removed the low-bridge barrier “severely damaged” when a suspected drunk driver hit it at high speed Saturday evening (here’s our report on the crash). As explained yesterday, that was an important next step so they could take it to the repair shop and evaluate it to see whether it can be fixed or needs to be replaced. Once they’ve done that, SDOT will be able to estimate when the bridge can reopen to drivers; bicyclists and pedestrians can use it, but people in motor vehicles can’t. In addition to the barrier, the gate-control panel and wiring were damaged too, and those are being worked on. Since the barrier’s gone, here’s what’s in place across the bridge instead:

(SDOT camera screenshot)

If any other updates emerge tonight, we’ll add them here.

7:28 PM: SDOT has published an update, including this:

If the repairs are not completed before the weekend, crews would continue working on repairs over the weekend and we would reduce the scale of work on the nearby Spokane St Viaduct paving project to make sure that people have access to get on the West Seattle High-Rise Bridge from SODO.

You can read more – and see more photos of the damaged barrier – here.

Also, SPD published a blotter post tonight about the crash – no new information beyond what we’ve already reported here, but some photos taken that night by responders are part of it.

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YOU CAN HELP: Be part of the international beach cleanup movement Saturday

September 17, 2024 4:13 pm

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| How to help | West Seattle beaches | West Seattle news

(Beach cleanup in Alaska – photo courtesy Ocean Conservancy)

West Seattle already has a strong cleanup community (A Cleaner Alki is testament to that), and this Saturday an international cleanup effort, coast to coast and pole to pole, is leading an event here and inviting you to participate. From the announcement we received today:

Ocean Conservancy, a national environmental NGO headquartered in Washington, D.C., and with offices in Bellingham and other coastal cities across the country, is partnering with Puget Soundkeeper to bring its flagship International Coastal Cleanup® (ICC) event to Seattle. Volunteers are invited to join the world’s largest beach and waterway cleanup movement at Statue of Liberty Plaza at Alki Beach on September 21, 2024. Breakfast, lunch, and cleanup supplies will be provided. (Register here.)

“Over a garbage truck’s worth of plastics – much of it single-use – enters the ocean every minute, where they accumulate year after year,” said Ocean Conservancy’s Senior Director of Conservation Cleanups, Allison Schutes. “While it’s critical that we turn off the tap of plastics flowing into the environment through prevention measures, we also need to clean up what’s already out there. Every piece of plastic collected and recorded as part of the International Coastal Cleanup informs important research and advocacy and makes a tangible difference for our ocean and the creatures that call it home.”

“We’re incredibly proud to be partnering with Ocean Conservancy on this flagship cleanup at one of the most iconic beaches in the Pacific Northwest,” said Sean Dixon, Executive Director of Puget Soundkeeper, which is celebrating its 40th Anniversary in 2024. “This year’s event will bring families, neighbors, activists, and community champions out to help safeguard this vital ecosystem. Plastics in our environment are superhighways transporting toxic chemicals into the food web and, especially during salmon migrations, are a literal poison pill for our already endangered and threatened fisheries. Every little piece of trash collected helps save a salmon.”

Partners in Washington state have been participating in Ocean Conservancy’s ICC for 36 years. Since 2019, in the Puget Sound area alone, nearly 9,000 volunteers have removed close to 200,000 individual pieces of trash, weighing a whopping 75,000 pounds. Meanwhile, Washington state has been at the forefront of plastics policy. The state has banned plastic foam foodware, including clamshell containers, plates and cups, as well as single-use foam coolers and packing peanuts; and last year, Governor Jay Inslee signed into law legislation designed to reduce single-use water bottles, other plastic packaging, and plastic foam docks. …

Globally, since the first ICC in 1986, over 18 million volunteers have joined local cleanup efforts big and small to remove over 385 million pounds of trash from beaches and waterways, making it the largest beach and waterway cleanup in the world. At last year’s ICC, over 486,000 volunteers collected nearly 8 million pounds of trash globally, including nearly 2 million cigarette butts, over 1.3 million beverage bottles, and over 850,000 bottle caps. Ocean Conservancy is expecting an even larger turnout in 2024.

Every year, more than 11 million metric tons of plastic waste are estimated to enter the ocean, impacting more than 1,300 species of marine life, including seabirds, sea turtles and marine mammals. Plastics never fully breakdown in the environment and instead, break into smaller and smaller pieces called microplastics. Microplastics are being found everywhere scientists look, from the depths of the Mariana trench to mountain tops, and even our dinner tables, showing up in proteins, salt, and even drinking water.

The cleanup is set for 9 am-noon Saturday (September 21); you can register here.

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WEST SEATTLE COYOTES: 4 more sightings

September 17, 2024 2:30 pm

| 13 COMMENTS

| Coyotes | West Seattle news | Wildlife

As we – with your help – continue documenting the coyote resurgence, we publish sighting reports for awareness, not alarm:

The photo is from Michael, who reports: “Coyote spotted walking on 39th Ave from Willow toward Morgan St. [last night]. It seemed healthy but obviously should be avoided.”

South of there, from JP in Gatewood:

A very healthy coyote was in my back yard twice midday 9/16 sniffing air where bunnies graze. I shooed it away from safety of my deck. It was not skittish. My son saw a smaller one later. Sadly, neighbors found a dead cat in their driveway (white paws & tail). It was covered. SW 39th & Othello. Watch out for your roaming cats.

(And it should be noted that coyotes are far from the only threat to small unattended domestic animals.)

We also have a cluster of sightings from last week. One anonymous reader reported, “I saw a coyote at the intersection of Palm and SW Massachusetts (last Tuesday) morning (~6 am).” About that same time, also in North Admiral, Brenda reports a cat was killed in an attack that neighbors attributed to a coyote, though none was seen. That night, near 20th/Holden, Jon reported that he “heard a noise out front and went to look. I knew they were coyotes, maybe 3 to 4 that were attacking something in the bushes. It was loud and they moved to my neighbors’ driveway. I threw a chunk of 2×4 at them and they took off.”

Scaring them off is part of experts’ advice on how to encourage coyotes to keep their distance. Here’s the short version of state Department of Fish and Wildlife recommendations.

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FOLLOWUP: New owner for ex-Wells Fargo building in Admiral Junction

September 17, 2024 12:32 pm

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| West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

(King County Assessor website photo)

After less than six months on the market, the major Admiral Junction commercial building on the northeast corner of California Avenue SW and SW Admiral Way has a new owner. We reported back in March – after Wells Fargo, the building’s then-owner, closed its branch – that the 25,000-square-foot site at 2358 California SW was going up for sale. It was originally listed for $7.6 million and sold last Friday for $6.3 million. The new owner is Mercer Island-based commercial investor/developer Henbart, whose other properties are in neighborhoods including Magnolia, Ballard, and Edmonds. We’re inquiring with the new owner; in the meantime, a source close to the deal says they have no current plans to redevelop the property – zoned for mixed-use development up to 75 feet, as are the parcels on the other three corners of Admiral/California – but are looking for a new tenant for the ex-bank space and “have had a lot of interest.” (Thanks to Jason for the tip about the deal, first reported by the DJC.)

SIDE NOTE: The building kitty-corner across the intersection, where Quality Cleaners closed four years ago, is shown online as still on the market, listed for $1.5 million.

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ANNIVERSARY: Two years since the West Seattle high bridge reopened

September 17, 2024 11:25 am

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| West Seattle Bridge Safety Project | West Seattle news

(WSB photo, September 17)

September 17, 2022, was a memorable night in West Seattle – that’s when SDOT reopened the high bridge, two and a half years after safety concerns shut it down with four hours’ warning. Looking ahead to today’s anniversary, we asked SDOT last week (one day before the crash that left the low bridge temporarily closed) about the high bridge’s status and inspection schedule. From SDOT spokesperson Ethan Bergerson:

Since the strengthening work on the West Seattle High Bridge was completed, we have continued to monitor the bridge remotely 24/7 with a structural health monitoring system. The most recent in-person bridge inspection was conducted in July 2024 and did not observe any unexpected anomalies. The findings from both the ongoing electronic monitoring and the latest routine in-person inspection show that the bridge is continuing to behave as predicted and there is no indication that the condition of the bridge has changed since we published this update last year.

Fixing/strengthening the bridge cost $67 million, with $37 million of that covered by the federal government. The repaired bridge is expected to last for its original projected lifespan, until 2060.

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18 notes for your West Seattle Tuesday

September 17, 2024 10:21 am

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| West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

(Live traffic cam from the heart of The Junction)

Here’s the list for the rest of today/tonight, mostly from our Event Calendar, where you can look days, weeks, months ahead:

POSTCARDS4DEMOCRACY: Long-distance advocacy via handwritten postcards to be sent to voters in other states – drop in 10:30 am-noon at C & P Coffee (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor), all welcome.

CHESS CLUB: Tuesdays 1:30-3 pm, at the Center for Active Living (4217 SW Oregon). All levels welcome. (Questions? Email conwell@conwelld.net.)

CITY COUNCIL MEETING: Regular weekly full City Council meeting, 2 pm in council chambers at City Hall downtown. The agenda document explains how to comment, either remotely or in person. Watch live via Seattle Channel. Hot issues this week include what to put on the ballot for funding Seattle’s voter-approved social-housing developer.

DOG SWIMMING IN ARBOR HEIGHTS: Third of seven days during which your dog is welcome to swim in the Arbor Heights Swim and Tennis Club pool before it’s drained for the offseason. 4-7 pm, $5 per visit. More info in our calendar listing. (11003 31st SW)

RAINWISE: If you’re eligible for this program offering rebates to install cisterns and/or raingardens, there’s an online event at 5 pm with more info, including a chance to hear from prospective contractors. Our calendar listing has all the info.

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

DROP-IN WINE TASTING: 5-7 pm Tuesdays at Walter’s Wine Shop (4811 California SW) – $10 fee, $5 off with bottle purchases.

FAUNTLEROY COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION: Monthly board meeting, community members welcome – 6 pm at Fauntleroy Schoolhouse (9131 California SW) or online; agenda’s in our calendar listing.

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

FREE TRACK RUN: The weekly run continues on into fall – all runners welcome! Meet up at West Seattle Runner (2743 California SW; WSB sponsor) for this free weekly run at 6:15 pm.”

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

ADMIRAL NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION: 7 pm general gathering at Admiral Church (4320 SW Hill) – bring a gently used winter coat to donate to the West Seattle Food Bank Clothesline. Agenda includes an update from police (got questions for them?), recap of summer events, preview of what’s ahead this fall.

BINGO AT THE SKYLARK: Play – free! – Tuesday nights bring Belle of the Balls Bingo hosted by Cookie Couture, 7 pm. (3803 Delridge Way SW)

OPEN MIC: Your night to shine at Otter on the Rocks (4210 SW Admiral Way), 7 pm. (21+)

TRIVIA X 4: Four trivia options Tuesday nights – The Beer Junction (4711 California SW) has Sporcle Pub Quiz with David at 7 and 8 pm … 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; 7:10 pm at Admiral Pub (2306 California SW).

HIGH-SCHOOL VOLLEYBALL: Chief Sealth IHS plays at home, 7 pm (2600 SW Thistle), vs. Nathan Hale.

LISTENING PARTY: Early chance to hear Bright Eyes’ new album, 7 pm at Easy Street Records (4559 California SW), with a “very exciting giveaway” – free, all ages.

WEST SEATTLE PFLAG: 7:30 pm in the lounge at Admiral Church (4320 SW Hill).

Planning an event? Tell your West Seattle neighbors via our event calendar – just email the info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!

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‘Free workshop led by local writers for local kids’: Sign up for ‘Write YOUR Story’ ASAP

September 17, 2024 9:00 am

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| West Seattle books | West Seattle news | WS culture/arts

It’s fun, it’s free, and it’s open for signups right now (limited space so don’t wait) – here’s the announcement of the next “Write YOUR Story,” starting soon:

Write YOUR Story
Fall 2024
Enrolling now

Theme: We’ve got this! Tales of innovation and make-do

Who is invited? People age 7-11 who like stories

When? Every Wednesday, September 25—December 11, 2024, 4:30—5:30 pm

Where? Upstairs activity room, Curious Kidstuff toy store
4740 California Ave SW

Write YOUR Story, est. 2012, is a free workshop led by local writers for local kids – “We read, we write, and we have a lot of fun.”

For info or to enroll, contact: juliawsea@gmail.com

We will read The Whirlys and the West Wind and “Old Sultan”: two tales that begin in calamity and show how to carry on!

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West Seattle low-bridge still closed to drivers, and other traffic/transit/weather info for Tuesday

September 17, 2024 6:01 am

| 2 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

6:50 AM: Texter says 35th/Roxbury signal is malfunctioning.

Earlier:

6:01 AM: We start again with the reminder that the West Seattle low bridge remains closed to drivers (but open to people riding bicycles or walking/running/rolling):

SDOT says it’ll be closed at least several more days for repair of “severe” crash damage to the gate and barrier at the edge of the east half of the low bridge (here’s our coverage of Saturday’s crash). Here’s the latest on the repairs.

This morning’s other notes:

TRANSIT NOTES

Metro buses today – Second weekday since the twice-yearly service change on Saturday – West Seattle-area routes with changes are 60, 125, 131, and 132.

Water Taxi today – Regular schedule for both routes.

Washington State Ferries today – 2 boats on the Triangle Route, plus the “unscheduled third boat.” Check for alerts here.

WEATHER + SUNRISE/SUNSET TIMES

Today’s forecast: Rain on the way, high in the low 60s. Today’s sunrise will be at 6:50 am, while sunset will be at 7:15 pm. (The fall equinox is Sunday!)

SPOKANE ST. VIADUCT, AND OTHER ROAD WORK OF NOTE

*See this week’s plan for the Spokane Street Viaduct resurfacing project by going here. Tonight: Eastbound right lanes closed 7 pm-6 am, 1st and 4th exits open.

Other projects:

*For the Admiral Way Bridge seismic project, the north half of the bridge remains closed, with one lane each way on the south side; Fairmount Avenue remains closed under the bridge.

*The Delridge pedestrian-bridge earthquake-safety project also continues, with narrowing at Delridge/Oregon.

*Beach Drive gas-line work continues.

SPOTLIGHT TRAFFIC CAMERAS

High Bridge – Here’s the main camera, followed by the Fauntleroy-end camera:

Spokane Street Viaduct – This view usually looks westward, with eastbound lanes at left and westbound lanes at right:

1st Avenue South Bridge:

South Park Bridge – Looking east (this camera has been malfunctioning lately):

Delridge cameras: Besides the one below (Delridge/Genesee), cameras are also at Delridge/Juneau, Delridge/Henderson, Delridge/Oregon, and video-only (so you have to go to the map), Delridge/Holden and Delridge/Thistle.

MORE TRAFFIC CAMS: All functioning traffic cams citywide are here; West Seattle and vicinity-relevant cameras are on this WSB page.

If you see a problem on the bridges/streets/paths/water, please text or call our hotline (when you can do that safely, and after you’ve reported to authorities if they’re not already on scene) – 206-293-6302. Thank you!

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