West Seattle, Washington
13 Friday
A bit of post-holiday news is still trickling in … including this report from Judy Pickens on how the Fauntleroy Church Festival of Trees‘ food-drive competition turned out:
Last month’s Festival of Trees hosted by Fauntleroy Church is now history but “votes” for favorite trees put over 950 pounds of food and hygiene items on shelves at local food banks.
(This photo and next courtesy Fauntleroy Church)
Youth from the church sorted and counted more than 1,100 donations for the White Center and West Seattle food banks. Two trees garnered the most “votes” in the friendly competition: “Tree by the Sea” (crafted from driftwood by Alki UCC) and “Peace in Many Languages” (crafted from recycled components by the Petty-Johnson family).
The 13 trees in this second year of the festival included several deemed best of show, including “best celebration of diversity,” “most creative use of stuff,” and “most interactive.” Participation was open to any interested group or individual and anyone who viewed the trees could vote. The church hopes to offer this event to the community again during the 2024 Christmas season.
Festival visitors were invited to bring non-perishable food to the event and “vote” for their favorite by placing food items beneath the tree.
West Seattle High School athletic director Corey Sorenson is looking for two people to step up to the plate and fill out his coaching staff – here’s his announcement:
West Seattle has two coaching positions open for this Spring!
Girls Varsity Softball Head Coach
Boys Junior Varsity Head Baseball CoachInterested applicants can apply via the link listed below. Thank you!
12:14 PM: Westbound Roxbury is blocked at 10th right now. A man was reported down in the street; responders have been told he was not hit – he fell and hit his head. So he’s getting medical attention right now. Avoid the area for a while.
1:16 PM: SFD has cleared the scene and closed the call.
(WSB photos by Patrick Sand)
If you’ve watched a Seattle Kraken game, you might be familiar with fans’ appreciative call of GRUUUUU! when goalie Philipp Grubauer gets a save. Not recently – he’s been off the ice with an injury for more than a month. But he’s keeping busy, including in a role as Divisional Youth Ambassador for the Salvation Army, which hosted him at their South Delridge center on Friday.
Grubauer joined kids from the center’s After-School Program for a hockey-skills drill (with a ball, not a puck):
He was scheduled to hang out with the kids through dinnertime.
Orcas are passing West Seattle, per a text from Kersti Muul – NB in the Vashon ferry lanes.
(Seals at sunset Friday off Fauntleroy – photo by Pia VanHanen)
Here are your options for today/tonight, mostly from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar.
FREE! GROUP RUN: Start your Saturday with this weekly West Seattle Runner (2743 California SW) group run! All levels welcome. Meet at the shop by 8 am.
DAY SIT WITH PUGET SOUND ZEN CENTER: Daylong retreat at Fauntleroy UCC (9140 California SW), 8:30 am-5:30 pm – details in our calendar listing.
FREE! HEAVILY MEDITATED: Arrive by 8:50 am for community meditation at Move2Center (3618 SW Alaska). Free event but registration required.
BAGEL POP-UP: 10 am-1 pm at Peel & Press (6503 California SW) in Morgan Junction, Rachel’s Bagels is popping up.
SSC GARDEN CENTER: Scheduled to be open today:
We are open 10 am-2 pm on Fridays and Saturdays! We have all your indoor plant needs, with pots, advice and more! Plus, any last-minute winter outside plants you might need. The Garden Center at South Seattle College provides Landscape Horticulture students the opportunity to increase their knowledge of plants while gaining real-world retail experience. Plants available for sale are selected, propagated, grown and presented by students. Additional plants are brought in from local growers. Proceeds benefit Landscape Horticulture Program projects.The selection includes perennials, ground covers, shrubs, some annual edibles and flowers, as well as indoor plants. The Garden Center is located in the North Parking Lot at South Seattle College (6000 16th Ave SW)
FREE WRITING GROUP: 10:30 am in West Seattle, registration required – see full details in our calendar listing.
DOG MEET-AND-GREET: Catch Forgotten Dogs Rescue at Mud Bay in Admiral (2611 California SW), 11 am-2 pm.
FAMILY READING TIME: Every Saturday at 11 am at Paper Boat Booksellers (6040 California SW).
FREE POP-UP IRISH-DANCE CLASS: Noon for kids 5-12, 1 pm for teens/adults, at West Seattle Health Club (2629 SW Andover) – call 206-556-3280 to see if there’s room!
VIETNAMESE CULTURAL CENTER: The center is open to visitors noon-3 pm, as explained here. (2234 SW Orchard)
LOG HOUSE MUSEUM OPEN: The home of West Seattle history is back open, noon-4 pm. (61st/Stevens)
VISCON CELLARS: Tasting room open – wine by the glass or bottle – 1-6 pm at Viscon Cellars (5910 California SW; WSB sponsor).
NORTHWEST WINE ACADEMY: Tasting room/wine bar open 1-6 pm, north end of South Seattle College (6000 16th SW; WSB sponsor) campus.
BASKETBALL: Chief Sealth International High School (2600 SW Thistle) has home games today – both vs. Cleveland – girls at 4:30 pm, boys at 6 pm.
INTIMATE CONCERT SERIES: Music at Alki Arts (6030 California SW; WSB sponsor), 6 pm – tonight, Levi Hilliard. $20 suggested donation (goes directly to musician).
LIVE AT EASY STREET: Acoustic set with Slaughter Beach, Dog, 6:30 pm. (4559 California SW)
COFFEEHOUSE MUSIC: 7 pm, Roo Forrest & Friends at C & P Coffee (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor), all ages, no cover.
ALL-AGES OPEN MIC: 7-10 pm at The Spot West Seattle (2920 SW Avalon Way)
LIVE AT THE SKYLARK: Folk-driven music with Wiseacre, Sheyenne Leonard at The Skylark (3803 Delridge Way SW), 8 pm, $10.
BEATS: Saturday night DJ at Revelry Room – 9 pm, tonight it’s DJ Sessions. (4547 California SW, alley side)
OUT AT THE BOX: 9:30 pm drag show at Box Bar (5401 California SW), hosted by Jolene Granby; no cover, 21+.
KARAOKE: Saturday night, sing at Talarico’s Pizzeria (4718 California SW), starting at 10 pm.
Planning a concert, open house, show, sale, event, meeting, seminar, reading, field trip, fundraiser, class, game, or ? If the community’s welcome, get your event on our calendar! Please email info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
What you see above – taped onto the door of Alki UCC Thursday night – was one sign (literally) of the Alki Community Council‘s “fresh start.”
Another sign – more than 20 people in the room, and others joining online, a much larger turnout than most recent meetings.
“We’re all here thanks to a very long history of volunteer service,” new ACC president Charlotte Starck observed in her introductory comments. “This group has done a lot for a long time … we’re all here because we love Alki, we love our home, we want to contribute … We’re not just driven by one issue.” Starck explained that the new leaders, elected in. November, see the role of the ACC ss to “facilitate the conversation and help keep the dialogue going,” not necessarily to advocate for any particular position.
New vice president Lindsey Pearsall elaborated that they hope “to bring the community together, to uplift Alki in general.” She said they’re working to streamline communications, including launching a newsletter – “a resource for the community to go to.” They’ll also be updating the website, automating membership technology, and working to circulate a community survey. That’ll be announced in the newsletter. She’s also interested in ideas of how you would like to see information distributed. They’ve also been connecting with other neighborhood groups, with new District 1 City Councilmember Rob Saka, and others.
From there, it was on to the night’s featured guests and topics:
10:29 PM: Multiple 911 callers – and texters contacting us after calling 911 – reported suspected gunshots in High Point a short time ago, and police have confirmed it was gunfire: Officers have just told dispatch they found casings at 29th/Brandon. They’ve also heard from people near 29th/Findlay who say they were “shot at” – but no injuries are reported so far. The only description is a “black sedan with aftermarket headlights.”
10:47 PM: A texter says they’ve found casings by the 34th/Myrtle roundabout and have reported that to police.
10:56 PM: Officers have just told dispatch they’re at the aforementioned “second scene.”
11:11 PM: They’ve subsequently reported a “bullet in a house” near the second scene. Still no injuries reported in connection with either scene.
If you ever attended Holy Rosary School, they’d love to see you back next weekend – here’s the announcement:
Calling All Alumni for Holy Rosary Alumni Day
Are you an alum of Holy Rosary, or do you know someone who is? Or, come together as an alumni class! We are celebrating all Holy Rosary school alumni on Sunday, January 28, 11:30 am-1:30 pm. HRS alumni are invited to contribute to the Holy Rosary Alumni Book while enjoying light refreshments in the school hall. Families are welcome to join.
Please direct any question to office@holyrosaryws.org
Thanks to Steve for the tip about those covered-up signs near California and Andover. SDOT confirms they’re signs for an expansion of what started as the West Seattle Junction Restricted Parking Zone (RPZ):
These signs are for a single-block expansion of Restricted Parking Zone 35 on SW Andover Street between 44th Ave SW and California Ave SW. We followed our standard practice for single-block expansions as described on our website here.
Here’s what the signs will look like when uncovered:
Here’s the current RPZ map; here’s what this zone covered when launched almost five years ago. This is one of two RPZs in West Seattle; the other is in Fauntleroy,
Two reader reports:
STOLEN SIERRA: From Jon:
My 2000 GMC Sierra pickup was stolen at 4 AM of the 18th while parked in the 6000 block of Beach Drive. The truck is a medium green with a flat bed cover and Washington license N7IGG.
Guilty party was the passenger in a 2000 to 2006 GMC Tahoe, license beginning in “D” and ending in “10”. If anyone notices either please call 911 and mention the case number: 24-16382.
GAS THEFT: Reported via text – “Just a note that on 38th between Stevens and Lander last night at about 930 somebody drilled out my gas tank on my Toyota Tacoma and stole the gas.”
Thanks for the tips that the Westwood Village McDonald’s is temporarily closed. We just went over to verify. The sign on the door doesn’t give a reason for the closure; one tipster says it’s a pipe problem. We’ll check again in a few hours; let us know if you see it reopened sooner.
2 PM: Thanks for the tips. Chief Sealth International High School and Denny International Middle School families have received an email from their schools’ principals about a threat today that they say was determined to be a hoax. Here’s the version sent by principal Ray Morales:
This morning, a threat was reported regarding Chief Sealth International High School. Seattle Police Department (SPD) responded quickly to our campus.
SPD completed a thorough safety check on our shared campus. Seattle Public Schools (SPS) safety and security team has reviewed our security alarm system and found no unauthorized people entering the building. SPD and SPS have determined this was a hoax. There is no credible threat to our students and staff.
The incident remains under investigation with SPD and SPS Department of Technology Services who are attempting to determine the source of the email.
For Denny, out of an abundance of caution, we kept first lunch Denny students inside due to the additional police presence.
I am grateful for the quick and thorough response by SPD and SPS. Today, you or your student may see additional SPD and additional SPS safety and security staff on our campus as they investigate and support our school community.
We’re checking with SPD to see if they have any additional information; the call log on X (formerly Twitter) says police responded to a threat call at CSIHS just after 9:30 am.
ADDED 2:58 PM: Here’s the SPD response to our inquiry:
On 01/19/2024 at approximately 0937 hours, a local news station received an email from an unknown individual. The email was regarding a bomb threat at (the school) and a teacher’s residence. Officers headed to the high school and contacted the principal of the school. Based on the email, the school deemed that the email non-credible and wished not to evacuate the school. The listed teacher declined to speak to officers. Officers checked the outer perimeter of the school and did not locate anything suspicious. The school staff checked the inner perimeter and reviewed security camera footage, nothing was suspicious.
(WSB photo, 2021)
Three years have now passed since we reported that the pier at Jack Block Park (2130 Harbor Avenue SW) might have to be rebuilt, after what by our count was at least its third closure in a year and a half – and this time, a closure from which it has never reopened. The park is owned by the Port of Seattle, and inquiries are handled by the Northwest Seaport Alliance, the partnership of the Seattle and Tacoma port authorities. So we asked NWSA spokesperson Melanie Stambaugh for an update on the pier’s status/future. Here’s what she told us:
Analysis on the best solution (repair or replacement) for the Jack Block Park Pier was conducted and the NWSA has determined a replacement of the pier is best. Design of the Pier Replacement Project will begin this year and funds for the replacement were approved in our 2024 budget. The full completion date of the project has yet to be determined.
We didn’t find the line item in the NWSA’s budget but it’s in the Port of Seattle budget – 196 pages in, $500,000 is allotted this year, $2.5 million next year, and $3.4 million in 2026 for what’s billed as “pier and plaza replacement” at the park.
The extra-cold weather didn’t keep students from spending their day off as a “day on” back on Monday – the photos and report are from Lincoln Park forest steward Lisa McGinty:
Sharing some highlights from Monday’s MLK Day of Service co-hosted with students from WSHS Earth Club. 53 students from WSHS and other area high schools showed up on a cold morning to help restore our urban forests in Lincoln Park. It was a great ‘youth-leading-youth’ event with WSHS Earth Club leaders helping to guide students at restoration sites in the Park. They worked to remove blackberry, ivy, holly and trash debris found in the forest. Thanks to all the awesome students who braved the cold and shared the 💚!
Watch this site for opportunities to help in Lincoln Park (and elsewhere!).
(“Northwest conifer with decorative flattened scales and winter buds,” explains photographer Rosalie Miller)
Mostly from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar, here’s the lineup for the rest of your Friday:
TODDLER GYM: Free drop-in gym at Arbor Heights Community Church, 10 am-11:30 am. (4113 SW 102nd)
SCRABBLE CLUB: Play 12:30-1:30 pm at Margie’s Café inside the Senior Center of West Seattle (4217 SW Oregon).
TODDLER GYM: Free indoor playspace, 3-5 pm at Salvation Army Center (9050 16th SW).
FAUNTLEROY YMCA TOWN HALL: As previewed here, the YMCA (WSB sponsor) wants to hear from you regarding the future of its longtime Fauntleroy location. This event, 4-6 pm at Fauntleroy Church/Y (9140 California SW), is intended for you to offer comments and/or ask questions.
VISCON CELLARS: Tasting room/wine bar open – wine by the glass or bottle – 5-9 pm at Viscon Cellars (5910 California SW; WSB sponsor).
SONGWRITER INCUBATOR NIGHT: 6 pm signups, 6:30 pm music at Kenyon Hall (7904 35th SW).
LIVE MUSIC AT C & P: Folk rock with Dublin Abbey at C & P Coffee (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor), 7-9 pm, all ages, no cover.
SHOWCASE AT THE SPOT: Fridays are Live Artist Showcase nights at The Spot West Seattle (2920 SW Avalon Way), 7-10 pm.
‘ALMOST, MAINE’ AT WSHS: The West Seattle High School Drama-produced play has its final performance tonight at 7:30 pm in the school theater. (3000 California SW)
LIVE AT THE SKYLARK: 8 pm at The Skylark (3803 Delridge Way SW), Beefeetees, Torch, Justin Harden. $10.
DJ NIGHT AT REVELRY ROOM: Music 9 pm-1 am on Fridays! (4547 California SW)
Something to add to our calendar? westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
You donate, they read! The Madison Middle School ASB (student association) has a request:
Help us get people reading!
Madison Middle School’s annual fundraiser is approaching! This fundraiser allows us to fund clubs, sports, and extracurriculars. This year, we’ll be holding a read-a-thon, from March 11th to March 25th. We are looking for incentives for students to motivate them to participate. The Madison Middle School ASB will be accepting gift cards/certificates to local West Seattle businesses, no more than $25 each.
If you have any questions, or would like to make a donation, please email madisonmsasb@gmail.com
6:00 AM: Good morning. It’s Friday, January 19th.
WEATHER + SUNRISE/SUNSET TIMES
Big news today is an expected high in the 40s for the first time in more than a week – mid-40s to be specific, per the forecast, which also says it’ll be cloudy with a chance of more rain. Today’s sunrise will be at 7:50 am, sunset at 4:50 pm (one week from tonight, the sunset will be at 5 pm).
ROAD WORK
As noted here last night, SDOT says it’s resuming work at Roxbury/Olson – here’s the project flyer.
TRANSIT NOTES
Water Taxi today – Regular schedule. Check the real-time map if you’re wondering where the boat is.
Metro today – Regular schedule; check advisories here.
Washington State Ferries today – 2-boat service on the Triangle Route. Check alerts for changes, and use the real-time map to see where your ferry is.
SPOTLIGHT TRAFFIC CAMERAS
Delridge cameras: Besides the one below (Delridge/Orchard), cameras are also at Delridge/Genesee, Delridge/Juneau, Delridge/Henderson, 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):
Low Bridge:
1st Ave. S. Bridge:
Highway 99: – northbound side at Lander:
MORE TRAFFIC CAMS: All functioning traffic cams citywide are here; West Seattle and vicinity-relevant cameras are on this WSB page.
BRIDGE INFO: The @SDOTBridges feed on X (ex-Twitter) shows whether the city’s movable bridges are opening for vessel traffic.
If you see a problem on the bridges/streets/paths/water, please text or call us (when you can do that safely, and after you’ve reported to authorities if applicable). Thank you!
If you didn’t get to watch tonight’s public forum with the eight finalists for the 10-month appointment to Seattle City Council citywide Position 8, the Seattle Channel video is already available, and you can watch it above. They were chosen from 72 “qualified applicants” who applied for the job; last Friday, each current councilmember nominated one finalist. The contenders include one West Seattleite, Steve Strand, a Seattle Police captain who was nominated by Council President Sara Nelson; District 1 Councilmember Rob Saka nominated Mark Solomon, a Seattle Police crime-prevention coordinator. The other six finalists are Juan J. Cotto, Neha Nariya, Vivian Song, Mari Sugiyama, Linh Thai, and Tanya Woo. While you don’t get to vote on the appointment – the councilmembers will do that next Tuesday – you do get to tell them who you think they should choose; they’ll take public comment at a special council meeting at 9:30 am Monday (the agenda explains how to participate) and here’s how else to contact them, about this or anything else. You will get to vote on who holds the job next year – the chosen appointee is not obligated to run, but there will be an election this fall, for the last year of what was Teresa Mosqueda‘s term before she moved to the King County Council, and then another election next year for a full 4-year term.
Announced tonight by SDOT, the Roxbury/Olson crossing-improvement project is restarting and will continue into spring – here’s what they want you to know:
Construction of safety improvements for people walking or rolling at the SW Roxbury St and Olson Pl SW intersection began in May of 2023 and we are set to begin the second and final phase of construction.
WHAT TO EXPECT IN THE COMING MONTHS
Construction work will resume as early as this week
-Work hours are 7 AM to 4 PM, Monday through Friday
-East leg of SW Roxbury St will remain closed for equipment staging and safety area and is local access only
-Work includes installation of new traffic signal poles and wiring, pedestrian signals, and work on sidewalk and road panels
-Painting permanent street markings
-New security guardrail on the northeast corner of the intersection
-Expect noise from equipment backup beeping and engine soundsThis project is expected to be finalized as early as May 2024. The work during this first phase included:
-Shifting the crosswalks across SW Roxbury St so they’re better aligned
-New curb bulbs that extend the sidewalk corners for people walking on the south side of the intersection
-Construction of curb ramps for improved ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) accessibility
-Temporary crosswalks and stop bars
-Temporary barrier at the northeast corner until a permanent guardrail is installed
-Temporary push button pedestrian crossing at the east leg of SW Roxbury St
“That’s all I drink, so that’s all I sell.”
That’s how Sebastiano Tecchio summarizes his plan to open a natural-wine shop/bar at 3278 California SW.
It’s where he managed Molly’s Bottle Shop for more than two years. Molly’s closed recently, and Sebastiano’s is taking over the space.
The proprietor explains that “natural wine” – not necessarily organic – is a way of describing both the way the grapes are grown and the wine is produced, without chemicals/additives. Sebastiano says only one percent of wines are “natural,” but that’s still a wide enough selection that he’ll be able to offer a variety of types – frequently changing, because they’re generally small producers whose offerings are in flux.
He was a wine importer in New York for more than decades, and ran a gallery there for a while too – along with working as a fine-art photographer – so he plans to be part of the West Seattle Art Walk. Sebastiano also sees that as a way of showing support for a community that has embraced him already: “What I love about this place is the community that formed here – I’ve made so many friends.”
Some are helping build the bar, in fact. (Other changes to the space will include transforming its little loft into an office area.)
He’s hoping to be able to open in about a month, in the area that’s grown into so much of a mini-business district, he says it ought to be nicknamed “Hinds Junction” (after the nearest crossstreet). Once Sebastiano’s is open, hours are likely to be Wednesdays-Thursdays 2-8 pm, Fridays-Saturdays 3-9 pm, Sundays noon-6, closed Mondays and Tuesdays.
We checked on these two incidents after getting reader photos/questions:
MAIL TRUCK IN DITCH: This happened on SW 106th near the city-limit line this afternoon; as the photo shows, King County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded. KCSO tells us the mail carrier got stuck in the ditch but was unhurt; USPS sent its own tow truck to pull it out.
DRIVER ARRESTED: That was the scene at 47th/Graham around 11 pm last night; the neighbor who sent the photo says, “This guy started hitting cars on Raymond and 46th, then came flying down 47th Ave SW, lost control, then kept flooring it trying to get away.” SPD took the driver into custody; we asked today about what happened next, and a department spokesperson replied, “The 46-year-old male driver was arrested for DUI and will receive the applicable traffic citations as well. After the investigation, he was released from the precinct.”
The Seattle Housing Authority has changed the way people can apply for vouchers that help cover rent costs. Here’s the announcement about how it works now, and that the new ongoing application period has just opened:
The Seattle Housing Authority has opened application to families and individuals for a chance to receive a Housing Choice Voucher (formerly known as a Section 8 voucher), which provides rental assistance for people with low incomes to rent from landlords throughout the Seattle rental market.
Application is available online through SHA’s website at seattlehousing.org. Application is free. If any website asks for money to complete an application, it is not the correct site. To avoid misleading websites, applicants should type seattlehousing.org into an internet browser. Applicants are required to establish an SHA Portal user account on SHA’s website to log in and apply to the voucher list.
The opportunity to apply for a chance to receive a voucher is ongoing, which differs from SHA’s previous process in which registration was open for a few weeks every few years and a single random drawing was conducted to create a number-ordered waitlist for a set number of vouchers.
Under the new process, applicants on the list will be chosen at random when vouchers are available. The number of applicants selected in each drawing will vary, depending on the number of vouchers available. The chance of being drawn is the same no matter when households apply. Random selection ensures that all applicants have an equal chance of being drawn at any time. People may apply to the list whenever they wish.
Application is open to adults 18 years or older or emancipated minors, no matter where they currently live, however applicants selected for a voucher will initially be required to use the voucher within the city of Seattle for a minimum of one year. Applicants with a total household income greater than 50 percent of Area Median Income are not eligible for a voucher.
SHA will review eligibility and verify income at the time applicants are selected from the list. Applicants who meet the voucher program eligibility requirements and meet the program preferences will be served. Those preferences are applicants with a total household income of 30 percent or less of Area Median Income at the time of selection or for the 12 months prior to selection and applicants who are homeless at the time of selection or have been in the prior 12 months. Applicants with a total household income of 31 through 50 percent will be returned to the list until all eligible applicants who meet the preferences have been served. Applicants with a total household income above 50 percent are not eligible for a voucher and will be removed from the list.
Information in multiple languages and answers to Frequently Asked Questions can be found at seattlehousing.org. Applicants who need assistance applying online, want a paper application, want to apply in person, need accommodation for a disability, or need translation or an interpreter can contact SHA’s Housing Choice Voucher staff at 206.239.1674 or by email at voucherlist@seattlehousing.org.
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