day : 03/07/2025 9 results

For years, it’s been an “if you know, you know” thing – the night before West Seattle Summer Fest begins, when the streets in the heart of The Junction close and the setup begins, locals flock to wander the streets and enjoy entertainment pop-ups as well as the first night of festival-only sidewalk cafés at your favorite year-round restaurants and bars, all coinciding with the July West Seattle Art Walk. The nickname “Summer Fest Eve” has taken hold in recent years and now, that Thursday night is practically opening night for Summer Fest, turning it into a 3 1/2-day festival. Most of the fun next Thursday (July 10) will be 5-9 pm, though setup starts sooner – here are some times to be aware of:

7 am Thursday – “no parking” enforced along California SW, Oregon to Genesee, for stage setup, which starts at 9 am
2 pm Thursday – California SW closed to traffic between Oregon and Genesee
3 pm Thursday – “no parking” enforced on California SW between Edmunds and Genesee, and on SW Alaska between 42nd and 44th
4 pm Thursday – Those stretches of California and Alaska will be closed to traffic so street-fair setup can begin
6 pm Thursday – Food vendor load-in starts – remember this year the food zone is west of California and Alaska, not east

And some lineup highlights from the West Seattle Junction Association (which also provided the times above):

Five of the musical performances are part of The Art of Music – you can preview those here. Watch for the art preview linked here next week. And we’ll have daily festival previews from here on out!

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BIZNOTE FOLLOWUP: New concept for old Morning Star Market site in Highland Park – Backyard West

July 3, 2025 5:37 pm

| 8 COMMENTS

| Highland Park | West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

Thanks for the tip! A reader told us about the message on the sign at the former Morning Star Market at 9th SW and SW Henderson. It’s been almost four years since we reported the mini-mart beloved for its barbecue was closing after the sale of the property. Now there are signs — and a literal one in the form of a marquee—announcing what might come next – coffee shop, perhaps.

We reached the owner, Ben Greene of Greene Information Systems, this week. He told us he initially intended to use property for office space – as we reported in early 2022 – but he ultimately opted against that. Greene has an IT and data-migration business with a location in the Alaska Junction. Because the Morning Star property had been used as a restaurant and convenience store, he circled back to that, but didn’t want to run those businesses himself. Now he’s looking for one or more businesses that would be interested in leasing space, or who might need a business partner. This could be a coffee shop, a restaurant, food trucks, or something else entirely.

Greene says he’s had a handful of calls so far with interest, and he looks forward to talking to more people about their ideas for the space, which he is calling “Backyard West” as a concept name. He calls the location an “underutilized space at a good intersection.” The marquee, as shown in our photo, has Greene’s contact information.

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WEST SEATTLE FOURTH OF JULY: Six quick notes about the holiday

July 3, 2025 3:09 pm

| 3 COMMENTS

| Holidays | West Seattle news

(File photo – Junction flags, which will fly on the Fourth)

We’ll have a full daily list in the morning as always, but in case you’re about to unplug, here are six things to know about the Fourth of July in West Seattle!

BUSINESS CLOSURES/CHANGES: Here’s the list we’ve been adding to after putting out a call for info earlier this week. Not too late to add to it – email westseattleblog@gmail.com or text 206-293-6302.

KIDS’ PARADE: 10 am, starting from 44th SW/Sunset SW in North Admiral, proceeding to Hamilton Viewpoint Park for sack races and other activities, details here.

ART GLASS SECONDS SALE: A Fourth of July tradition at Avalon Glassworks (2914 SW Avalon Way), 10 am-2 pm.

FIRST FRIDAY, HOLIDAY EDITION: Want to celebrate with friends and neighbors? Highland Park Improvement Club is continuing its First Friday events at the past-and-future HPIC site, 12th SW/SW Holden, (updated) 5:30-8:30 pm, this time including hot dogs and a pie bake-off!

FIREWORKS: The big show is over Lake Union at 10:15 pm (and shown live by KONG TV) and many will crowd north-facing West Seattle viewpoints to get a partial view of them. … If you’re looking for what else is visible from here, southwest West Seattle might have a view of the Vashon Island fireworks at dusk over Quartermaster Harbor. And the highest easternmost points in WS, with a distant view of Bellevue, might be able to see those 10:05 pm fireworks

LOSE OR FIND A PET? The noisiest night of the year tends to lead to more lost/found pets. Remember that WSB has for more than a decade and a half kept West Seattle’s original lost/found pets page – send info/photo to us at westseattleblog@gmail.com or via text 206-293-6302.

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COUNTDOWN: Two weeks until first of three Admiral Music in the Parks concerts

July 3, 2025 1:21 pm

| 0 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | WS culture/arts

As we’ve noted, outdoor-music season is heating up, with West Seattle Summer Fest a little more than a week away (next preview later today!), but we want to take a moment to look a little further into the future: Two weeks from tonight, the Admiral Neighborhood Association presents the first of three free Admiral Music in the Parks (AMP) concerts! The lineup, as announced in late May:

6:30 PM July 17th @ Belvedere Park: Get your dancing boots ready for PNW country-tonk band Lookout Mountain Lookout

6:30 PM July 24th @ California Place Park: West Seattle’s fan favorite Michael Pearsall and friends return for a second year at AMP!

6:30 PM on July 31st @ Hamilton Viewpoint Park: Enjoy the music of John, Paul, George, and Ringo as we welcome The Flaming Pies to close out our 2025 season.

As with all “free” events, they’re not “free” to the organizers, so if you can support the music series, donations are welcome.

P.S. New this year, knitting circles at every concert, with Seattle Yarn!

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PRE-HOLIDAY WILDLIFE WATCHING: Baleen whale in Elliott Bay

July 3, 2025 12:16 pm

| 0 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | Whales

If you’re within view of Elliott Bay, be on the lookout for a baleen whale. Kersti Muul says one was reported west of Colman Dock in the past hour – initial reports were a humpback, but she says it’s since been described as a gray.

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BIZNOTE FOLLOWUP: Here’s what’s (likely) moving in after The Row House closes in The Junction

July 3, 2025 11:55 am

| 17 COMMENTS

| Health | West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

Last weekend, we reported on The Row House‘s announcement it would close its West Seattle Junction location (4203 SW Oregon). The announcement mentioned another business taking the space in early August. We’ve been working since then to find out more about that; now we’ve received an announcement directly from the prospective tenant, NW Fitness Project, sent on behalf of co-founders Kyle Davis and Matt Holland:

After eight years of building community-centered fitness in Fremont, we’re excited to share that we’re in early discussions about bringing our personal and small group training philosophy to a second location in West Seattle. For those not familiar, we believe fitness should adapt to your life, not the other way around and want to help you train smarter and get stronger.

While nothing is finalized yet and lease negotiations are still ongoing, we’re thrilled about the possibility of serving the West Seattle community with the same sustainable, personalized training that has defined NW Fitness Project since 2017 at our flagship studio in Fremont.

We understand that West Seattle Row House members may be searching for a new fitness home, and should our expansion move forward (fingers crossed!), we’d love to assure that the community would be in very capable hands. Whether through our small (10 people max) group classes or one-on-one personal training, we focus on meeting each person exactly where they are while building relationships both in Fremont, and hopefully, in our new home in West Seattle.

We’re committed to taking the right steps at the right pace – growth that’s sustainable for our team, our values, and most importantly, for the community of clients we serve.

They promise updates at nwfitnessproject.com/westseattle and also are offering, if you’re interested, a free class at their current location in Fremont.

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Music, theater, stories, swimming, more for your West Seattle Thursday

July 3, 2025 9:58 am

| 3 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

(St. John’s Wort blossom, photographed by Steve Bender)

With the holiday weekend almost here, we have a shorter-than-usual list for your West Seattle Thursday, mostly from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:

SOUTH SEATTLE COLLEGE GARDEN CENTER: Clouds or sun, it’s the heart of gardening season! The center is open Thursdays-Saturdays 10 am-3 pm, north end of the South Seattle College (6000 16th SW; WSB sponsor) campus.

PRESCHOOL STORY TIME: 10:30 am at West Seattle (Admiral) Library (2306 42nd SW).

MEDICARE INFORMATION PRESENTATION: Get your questions answered, 11 am at Center for Active Living (4217 SW Oregon).

HIGHLAND PARK SPRAYPARK: Open today and every day through Labor Day, 11 am-8 pm. Free. (1100 SW Cloverdale)

WADING POOLS: The city says it’s expecting sunshine and warm-enough temperatures this afternoon to open the wading pools, so that means Lincoln Park will be open noon-7 pm and Delridge and Hiawatha will be open noon-5:30 pm.

COLMAN POOL: The heated salt-water pool on the shore at Lincoln Park (8011 Fauntleroy Way SW) will be open noon-7 pm – see the schedule here.

WEST SEATTLE UKULELE PLAYERS: All levels welcome at this weekly 1 pm gathering. Email westseattleukuleleplayerswsup@gmail.com to get the details of where they’re playing today.

DROP-IN CHESS: Teens are welcome to come play at High Point Library (3411 SW Raymond), 4-5:30 pm.

HPCS FOOD-TRUCK VISIT: First of two regular Thursday night events here – every Thursday, 4-8 pm, Highland Park Corner Store (7789 Highland Park Way SW) gets a food-truck visit. Tonight it’s Jeremy’s Chicken.

WINE TASTING WITH CLARK: Another regular Thursday event at HPCS, 5-7:30 pm – info here.

VISCON CELLARS: This West Seattle winery’s friendly tasting room/wine bar is open Thursdays, 5-9 pm (5910 California SW; WSB sponsor). Stop in for wine by the glass or bottle! (Closed for the holiday, so go by tonight for your wine needs!)

NO WESTIES RUN CLUB: With the holiday approaching, the Westies are skipping this week.

WALKING FOR WELL-BEING: Want to walk? Meet at 6 pm at 47th/Fauntleroy for tonight’s group walk – details in our calendar listing.

LIVE MUSIC IN THE JUNCTION: 6-9 pm, Patrick Rifflin performs Thursdays at Pegasus Pizza in The Junction (4520 California SW).

LIVE AT EASY STREET RECORDS: Maple Valley’s Lucia Flores-Wiseman, seen (and heard!) on “The Voice,” performs at Easy Street (4559 California SW), 7 pm, free, all ages.

‘THE EFFECT’ AT ARTSWEST: Third week begins for new ArtsWest production “The Effect“ at 7:30 pm. Check here for tickets. (4711 California SW)

DJ NIGHT: The weekend spinning starts early at Revelry Room (4547 California SW), with DJ B Max, 8 pm.

Are you planning an event that should be on our calendar and in our daily preview lists? Please email info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!

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REMINDER: Lights will be on at four local fields tonight and tomorrow

July 3, 2025 9:10 am

| 12 COMMENTS

| Safety | West Seattle news

Before we get to the rest of what’s happening today/tonight, a reminder that Seattle Parks plans to keep lights on at some local fields in hopes of deterring fireworks use. And at the synthetic-turf sites, the lights will stay on four hours later than last year. The lights will be turned on at these fields at 9 pm tonight and tomorrow:

Lights at the following synthetic fields will be turned off at 11 p.m. on July 3 and 3 a.m. on July 5 : 

Delridge Playfield, 4458 Delridge Way SW 
Hiawatha Playfield, 2700 California Ave. SW 
Walt Hundley Playfield, 6920 34th Avenue SW 

Lights will be turned off at the following grass fields at 11 p.m. on July 3rd and July 4th: 

West Seattle Stadium, 4432 35th Ave. SW

In addition to turning on the lights, Parks says the fields will be “monitored” 9 pm-2 am.

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TRAFFIC, TRANSIT, WEATHER: Thursday info + holiday previews

July 3, 2025 6:03 am

| 0 COMMENTS

| West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

6:03 AM: Good morning! Welcome to Thursday, July 3, 2025, the day before the Fourth of July.

WEATHER + SUNRISE/SUNSET TIMES

Mostly cloudy, then clearing, high around 70. Today’s sunrise was at 5:17 am; sunset will be at 9:09 pm.

TRANSIT TODAY AND TOMORROW

Metro buses – Regular schedule today. Sunday schedule on the holiday, with “extra late-night service.”

Washington State Ferries – WSF has resumed three-boat service on the Triangle Route, with M/V Kittitas, M/V Cathlamet, and M/V Issaquah. Vessel Watch will show you which boat is where. The route will run on a “weekend schedule” Friday.

Water Taxi – Regular West Seattle service; spring/summer schedule, with later runs on Friday and Saturday nights, plus weeknights with Mariners home games (and some other events). Regular Friday day/night service on the holiday.

STADIUM ZONE

The Mariners continue their homestand tonight, with a 7:10 pm game against Kansas City, followed by fireworks.

HOLIDAY TRAFFIC ALERTS

-The Fourth of July Kids’ Parade crosses California SW near Hamilton Viewpoint Park, so there’ll be some waits there in the 10 am hour.

-Note that waterfront streets (Harbor, Alki Avenues) will be very congested late Friday night (the fireworks show from Lake Union is partly visible, and it’s at 10:15 pm).

SPOTLIGHT TRAFFIC CAMERAS

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

Low Bridge – Looking west:

1st Avenue South Bridge:

Delridge cameras: In addition to 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 (including links to live video for most); for a quick scan of West Seattle and vicinity-relevant cameras, see this WSB page.

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

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