West Seattle, Washington
13 Friday
(Photo by Dale Cotton – view from ‘top of the Arroyos, Arbor Heights)
Highlights for the hours ahead, mostly from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
POP-UP BLOOD DRIVE: West Seattle opportunities start today – sign up if you can donate; check here for appointments.
CHESS CLUB: Tuesdays 1:30-3 pm at the Senior Center of West Seattle (4217 SW Oregon). All levels welcome. (Questions? Email conwell@conwelld.net.)
NEW COUNCIL’S FIRST MEETING: As previewed here, District 1’s new Councilmember Rob Saka and other newly elected/reelected councilmembers meet for the first time at 2 pm. You can watch via Seattle Channel or attend the meeting at City Hall.
DEMONSTRATION FOR BLACK LIVES: Long-running weekly sign-waving demonstration continues at 16th/Holden. 5-6 pm. Signs available if you don’t have your own.
WEST SEATTLE TAE KWON DO: January classes start tonight, 6 pm at High Point Community Center. (6920 34th SW)
SCRABBLE NIGHT: 6-10 pm, you can play Scrabble at The Missing Piece (9456 35th SW).
FREE TRACK RUN: Run with friends old and new on these long nights! Meet 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 or drop in to work on your project(s).
BINGO AT THE SKYLARK: Play – free! – Belle of the Balls Bingo hosted by Cookie Couture, 7 pm Tuesdays. (3803 Delridge Way SW)
TRIVIA X 3: Three 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).
You can look into the future any time via our event calendar – if you have something to add to it, please email the info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
Family and friends will gather January 13 to remember Bill Sauter, and are sharing this remembrance with his community:
William Warren Sauter
November 29, 1946 – October 24, 2023William Warren Sauter passed away peacefully on October 24, 2023 at the age of 76. He was a lifelong resident of West Seattle and the owner of the plumbing company West Seattle Sewer and Drain. He was well known as West Seattle’s local plumber, enjoying friendships with his customers and rescuing them from plumbing emergencies. When Bill retired four years ago, he sorely missed his work and his customers.
Bill grew up loving the game of baseball. He began playing for West Seattle Little League at the age of ten and continued through American Legion and West Seattle High School. He pitched for the 1964 West Seattle High School team that won the Metro League Championship that year and was named 1st Team in the State of Washington. Bill was the only Sophomore on that team. In 1966, his senior year at West Seattle High, he was chosen as team captain and awarded Most Inspirational Player.
Bill served four years in the United States Air Force Strategic Air Command during the Vietnam War. After basic training, he served at Goose Bay Labrador’s Air base in Canada, fueling U.S. military aircraft. He finished his service at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne, Wyoming, fueling Air Force helicopters.
Known for his garage sales in Arbor Heights, his signs would be posted on the corner of 35th SW and SW 106th St. in summer and fall months. He loved interacting with the buyers and was famous for his “wheeling and dealing.” Some people would return every year just to share their troubles to a listening ear.
Bill was exceptionally proud of his children and grandchildren, encouraging them to work hard to accomplish their goals. He is remembered by them for his ability to laugh at himself.
He leaves his wife, Diane; two daughters, Julia and Erin; son David and his wife Morresia; seven grandchildren, Ashley, Emily, Jerin, Elisa, Zach, Lexi, and 4-month-old granddaughter River.
A memorial service for Bill will be held Saturday, January 13, 2024 at 11:00 am at Grace Church, 10323 28th Ave SW.
(Updated January 2 at 10:30 pm)
(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)
6:00 AM: Good morning. It’s Tuesday, January 2nd – holiday season’s over, so it’s back to work and back to school.
WEATHER + SUNRISE/SUNSET TIMES
Rain returns, high in the upper 40s. Today’s sunrise will be at 7:57 am, and the sun will set at 4:29 pm.
TRANSIT UPDATES
Water Taxi today – Back to regular schedule. Check the real-time map if you’re wondering where the boat is.
Metro today – Back to 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
(The video options on SDOT’s camera map still don’t work; SDOT tells us they’re working on it, but no ETA for the fix.)
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 – another 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 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/bay, please text or call us (when you can do that safely, and after you’ve reported to authorities if applicable). Thank you!
Apparently Bank of America isn’t planning to repair and reactivate its standalone ATM in Morgan Junction in the wake of last October’s destructive theft attempt. The paved pad where it’s stood for a decade, just west of the north side of West Seattle Thriftway (WSB sponsor), is up for lease. We noticed it while browsing commercial listings, which pointed to this glossy brochure (cover image below), touting the 100-sf site as a “high-visibility single-tenant pad.”
(Cover page of brochure for ex-ATM site)
As we reported in October, the would-be thieves who shut down the ATM tried to get into it with a “Jaws of Life” type of tool stolen from the fire district that serves communities including White Center and Burien.
With five of nine Seattle City Councilmembers brand new to the job – and a sixth soon – tomorrow’s the day we will start seeing what they do. The council’s 2 pm Tuesday meeting is their first of the year and will be devoted to:
*Electing a new president (previous council president Debora Juarez did not run for re-election)
*Ceremonial swearing-in – Along with the five new members, two were re-elected in November, so there will be seven oaths of office: Rob Saka (District 1), Tammy J. Morales (District 2), Joy Hollingsworth (District 3), Maritza Rivera (District 4), Cathy Moore (District 5), Dan Strauss (District 6), and Robert Kettle (District 7).
*Speeches
*Public comment
*Starting the process of appointing a councilmember – Right after the meeting, Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda (a West Seattleite who holds citywide Position 8) will resign to take her new role as a County Councilmember. So the new council has to appoint someone to fill the position until this fall’s election. This webpage explains the basics of the process, and will have more information once the council makes more process decisions tomorrow.
Here’s the agenda; you can watch this all live Tuesday afternoon via Seattle Channel.
(Images from Tails to Astonish)
For the third time in a little over four months, burglars have hit West Seattle’s only comic-book store, Tails to Astonish just south of The Junction. They report it happened around 6:45 this morning and sent these security-camera images:
We woke up this morning with someone having broken into the store. So we will be closed today and tomorrow (Monday/Tuesday) to clean up and do inventory. We will be back open on Wednesday with all the new books! If you recognize them please call us or SPD case number 24-000302.
Last year’s burglaries were on August 23rd and September 30th.
You might have resolved to move more in the new year – and if you did, this might help you get going. West Seattle Runner (WSB sponsor) periodically offers a free “Get Fit” training program, to get you from “couch to half marathon,” and the next one begins with an informational night at the shop (2743 California SW) at 6:30 pm this Wednesday (January 3). Then the first group training run – 1 mile – is set for Saturday. They’ll be training for a half-marathon in May. To sign up and/or ask questions, email lori@westseattlerunner.com.
There’s no simple way to count the number of people who join in the Alki Beach New Year’s Day Polar Bear Swim – but this year just might have been the biggest yet by one measure: As we arrived in the area by car about 25 minutes before the 10 am start, parking was bumper-to-bumper further out than we’ve seen it before. And even after the official “swim,” some were still showing up belatedly and plunging in on their own. Above, our view from the center of the lineup, including the countdown; below, our view from the east edge:
Some lingered in the water for a photo op:
It was also a way to close out the holiday season:
We saw dinosaurs:
Dalmatians:
And politicians:
(That’s former U.S. Attorney and current State Attorney General candidate Nick Brown with 34th District State Senator Joe Nguyá»…n, both West Seattleites.) Organizer Mark Ufkes counted down the crowd by bullhorn and then joined them in the water:
His invitation to write down what you’re letting go for 2023 and your hopes for 2024 had some takers:
After all, today’s the day to retake the wheel and be the captain of your destiny:
Final note – this year’s air temperature was 41 degrees, 10 degrees below the water temperature.
(Reader photo – The Brothers’ peek appearance)
Welcome to 2024! Here’s info we hope you’ll find helpful on this holiday:
BUSES: Metro‘s on the Sunday schedule. (Fares ARE being collected today, after fare-free NYE.)
WATER TAXI: It’s not running today.
STATE FERRIES: Weekend 2-boat schedule on Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth route – check for alerts here.
MORE TRANSPORTATION NOTES: No charge for street parking in areas of the city with curbside pay stations … West Seattle-relevant traffic cameras are here; see all cameras citywide via this map.
GROCERY-STORE HOURS AND OTHER BIZNOTES FOR TODAY: Though we don’t make full New Year’s Day lists because closures/changes are far fewer than on the other fall/winter holidays, we do have a few notes for today: First, grocery-store changes — Trader Joe’s is closed; PCC West Seattle (WSB sponsor) opens later (9 am); Whole Foods opens later (9 am); Metropolitan Market opens later and closes earlier (8 am-8 pm). For Costco fans, the SODO store and other locations are closed today. … Other biznotes, including a few sent in – C & P Coffee (WSB sponsor) is open 8 am-4 pm today … Grillbird is open regular hours; Freshy’s is open 9 am-7 pm, Thunder Road Guitars (WSB sponsor) is closed today but returns to regular hours tomorrow (Tuesday).
NEW YEAR’S DAY WALKS: The Emerald City Wanderers‘ New Year’s Day walks are on again ths year, starting at St John the Baptist Episcopal Church (3050 California SW). Choose the 5- or 10-kilometer walk and start between 9 and noon, with soup and snacks afterward. No fee, but donations to help cover costs are welcome.
ALKI POLAR BEAR SWIM: Be at the beach to be part of the annual tradition of running into Puget Sound with hundreds of other people at 10 am sharp, just about anywhere on the sand – here’s this year’s announcement, with a special invitation to – before going in the water – “write down what you want to leave behind from 2023 and what you want from the New Year for you, your family, and for our great nation” (there’ll be a jar to drop your wish in).
OTHER NOTES: Seattle Public Utilities customers’ trash/recycling/yard-waste pickup is on one-day delay all this week too – Monday customers get Tuesday pickup, Tuesday customers get Wednesday pickup, etc. … Seattle Parks & Recreation closure info is here … Libraries (city and county) are closed today.
ASTRA LUMINA: The celestially inspired light show continues on the grounds of the Seattle Chinese Garden at the north end of the South Seattle College (WSB sponsor) campus, opening at 5 pm. Tickets and info here.
‘4040 HOUSE’ LIGHTS: Last night this season to see the music-synched light show at 4040 47th SW, 6-9 pm – the display’s creator asks that you park on Andover or Dakota if you’re driving to see it.
If you see/hear news, please text/call 206-293-6302 – we appreciate your tips 24/7/365 (or, this year, 366)!
12:27 AM: Big emergency response near the Admiral Way Bridge for a car crash. It was initially dispatched as a “rescue extrication” but responders then reported finding no one in or near the car – so far.
12:32 AM: The location of the crash is logged as 39th/Admiral but one crew has told dispatch they’re actually on Fairmount, so we’re not clear whether they’re on or below the bridge. Dispatch has checked the plate of the crashed Acura and told police it’s “clear and current” to someone in the Pierce County town of Milton.
12:48 AM: Per commenter RS, “The crash is just south of the Admiral bridge on Fairmount. Car is on its side on the east side of the road. You can see it from the Admiral bridge.” Responders searched all around but didn’t find anyone, so SFD has closed out its part of the call.
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