West Seattle, Washington
14 Friday
Three items in West Seattle Crime Watch:
27TH SW SHOOTING FOLLOWUP: Southwest Precinct dayside watch commander Lt. Wes Collier was at tonight’s Admiral Neighborhood Association meeting, and his briefing included an update on the most significant reccent incident in West Seattle, the shooting of a 31-year-old man outside apartments on 27th SW on Monday. He said it’s believed to have been “targeted” so even though the person who shot the victim isn’t in custody yet, they don’t believe the general public is in danger. He said the victim was outdoors with his girlfriend; she went inside, and that’s when the man was shot. He sai officers found evidence of 23 rifle rounds, plus “eight rounds of return fire that hit two vehicles” that happened to be in the line of fire.
CAR BREAK-INS: Manny was hit two days in a row in the 800 block of SW Trenton:
I recently had my car broken into on 9/22. Both windows on the passengers’ side were smashed. I was home all day and did not hear my car alarm go off and none of my neighbors let me know.
Then this morning at around 5:20 am my car alarm went off and someone tried to break in again.
The SPD incident # is 25-277973.
MAILBOX FOUND: Via text, we received this photo:
Anybody reported a mailbox missing? Corner of SW Cambridge and Kelsey Lane SW.
We’re at the Admiral Neighborhood Association‘s every-other-month meeting, where one of tonight’s guests was Seattle Public Schools board president Gina Topp (who also happens to be an Admiral entrepreneur, as co-proprietor of Mission Cantina). Among many other updates, Topp said that the application time for district superintendent closed September 15th, and as of right now, they have “41 qualified candidates” and she says “we are super excited about that number.” She says the board will start reviewing the candidates on Friday. (Previous superintendent Dr. Brent Jones has departed, and interim superintendent Fred Podesta has said he is not interested in the permanent job.) Lots of other news from the meeting too – we’ll have a full report later.
The proposed $9 billion 2026 budget presented by Mayor Bruce Harrell today is contingent on a variety of things, not just the City Council’s review, revision, and approval process. As noted by city budget director Dan Eder in a media briefing before the mayor’s proposal went public, the plan’s status as a “balanced budget” depends on approval of some proposed taxes, like the so-called “Seattle Shield” tax and the expanded Families, Education, Preschool, Promise levy, both of which go to voters on the November ballot, plus the one-tenth of a cent “public-safety sales tax” the Legislature gave local governments the authority to charge.
The city had already done some belt-tightening when financial forecasts looked ever-gloomier, Eder said:
While almost half the full $9 billion plan goes to utilities, transportation, and environment spending, as per the pie chart below, Eder says much of that is mandated:
And if you pull out the $2 billion general fund, half of that goes to public safety:
Eder said the budget for police staffing is growing because they’re hiring more officers than expected and losing fewer than expected:
Meantime, funding to expand the major teams comprising the CARE Department – crisis responders and 911 dispatchers/calltakers – will be heavily dependent on the aforementioned “public safety sales tax”:
In another area of interest, Parks and Recreation would get funding to add three more park rangers, for a total of 31, and would get $1 million more to fight graffiti vandalism. The department’s own summary also mentions increased restroom maintenance.
There’s a lot more to say about the budget, but those are a few notes for now. You can see the entire 702-page budget proposal, with department-by-department breakouts, here (PDF, 20 MB). Here’s the agenda for the council’s first all-budget meeting at 9:30 am Thursday; public hearings are currently planned for October 7 and November 6, with the budget to be finalized before Thanksgiving.
With the end of summer and start of fall, we checked in with the management of West Seattle’s historic event venue Kenyon Hall, to see how close they were to reopening after a summer-long shutdown for renovations. Not close yet, says operations manager Murphy Janssen: “It’s been a bit of a hectic summer as we work through these renos and all the permitting that needs to go into the updates.” So no official reopening date yet; Janssen says they’re “sort of playing it by ear.” But if they are open by November, he says, “I’ve got holds for some fun events …” but he feels closer to certain they’ll “be open for December holiday shows.” We heard a bit about the renovations in this WSB story last May, looking at the status of Kenyon Hall, a nonprofit-owned 109-year-old building at 7904 35th SW.
(WSB photo, 2024)
Set your calendar for Saturday, October 18, one of two days a year when hundreds of volunteers work simultaneously in multiple areas along the Duwamish River and in its watershed – Duwamish Alive! You can register early for some of the events. Here’s what organizers asked us to share with you:
Duwamish Alive! Saving Our Salmon, Saves Our Orca
Saturday, October 18th 10 – 2 at Multiple Local SitesJoin Duwamish Alive! this fall as our salmon are returning in our Duwamish River and Longfellow Creek, with this watershed-wide effort in improving the health of our salmon by restoring their habitat, which provides food, shelter, and cool, clean water that salmon need. Volunteers will be restoring native habitat in multiple urban parks and open spaces by removing invasive weeds, planting native plants, removing debris, and learning about healthy habitat. This is a family-friendly event, all ages welcomed and encouraged. Tools and instruction are provided.
Can’t volunteer? Visitors are welcome to view the river and the returning salmon at həʔapus Village Park, learn about the river, its ecosystem, salmon and how to care for this special place. Stop by the informational tables and find out why we say this is a “pink” year.
We are honored to help steward these locations which are the ancestral lands and waters of the Duwamish Peoples who have been here for thousands of years.
To volunteer, visit DuwamishAlive.org to see the different volunteer opportunities and register for the site of your choice, or email info@duwamishalive.org
Many of the sites are in West Seattle. Those ready to accept volunteer registrations now include this one.
This has been long mentioned at community meetings as being on the way – and now it’s just been officially announced: The Seattle Police Department is launching a system to register private security cameras, so if and when crime happens, they know who nearby has a camera. The announcement just arrived in email from Southwest Precinct Crime Prevention Coordinator Jennifer Satterwhite, pointing to this new website for the program. The site says the Community Camera Registry is voluntary and does not allow police to connect to your camera – just lets them know you have one (or more):
We are building an interactive map of security cameras in Seattle that will:
-Be accessible to the Seattle Police Department investigators
-Increase the efficiency of direct video evidence collection
-Provide immediate contact information to investigators for camera owners
-Enable communities to work together to create a safer SeattleCamera registration takes less than one minute via our secure online portal. Registering your cameras does not allow the Seattle Police Department access to your live video stream – it only enables investigators to know a camera is present at your location and easily request video evidence should an incident occur. You are under no obligation to provide video if requested.
The FAQ about the program says the resulting camera map will only be accessible by “authorized Seattle Police Department users” but also notes that “your information can be disclosed as part of a public disclosure request as long as the requestor is not using it for commercial purposes.” That refers to the information on the registration form, which the site says includes your name, address, phone number, email address, and the number of cameras (outdoor and/or indoor) you have. While as mentioned this doesn’t seek to automatically tap into your cameras, the potential for that sort of future connectivity was mentioned when SPD showed off its Real-Time Crime Center two months ago.
Four food-related biznotes:
IN PIZZA WE CRUST REMINDER: In case you missed our update a week-plus ago, the new pizza place in the former Swinery location at 3207 California SW opens at 11 am tomorrow (Wednesday, September 24).
CHEESE RIOT PIZZA: If you’re a fan of deep-dish pizza, West Seattle doesn’t have a lot of it, but Cheese Riot Pizza – operating out of Distinguished Foods just south of the West Seattle YMCA (WSB sponsor) – has recently joined the lineup. Here’s what co-founder Rachel told us in an email conversation:
Cheese Riot Pizza is a labor of love between the two of us. Alec is the one behind the oven, and I handle the outreach. Right now, it’s just the two of us, operating out of a shared kitchen, but our dream is to one day grow into our own space and give West Seattle a new spot to gather, eat, and connect.
A little about us: I met Alec over 8 years ago, and he was first introduced to me as “the pizza guy.” His dad founded Garlic Jim’s and Jet City Pizza, so Alec grew up kneading dough, delivering pies, and working in the shop. This year, he took the leap, leaving the 9 to 5 world to pursue his passion: opening his own place, this time with a focus on deep-dish pizza instead of the thin crusts his dad specialized in. Watching him light up while experimenting and creating new recipes has been inspiring, and I couldn’t be happier to support him in our first restaurant venture together.
We’re currently open:
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday: 4:30–9 p.m.
Friday & Saturday: 4:30–10 p.m.
Sunday: 12–9 p.m.
EZELL’S FAMOUS CHICKEN: The regional chain – including its California/Fauntleroy location – is offering a deal for the next week in honor of a partnership with RedBird Farms for larger “heritage” cuts. Today through September 30, according to an announcement from the company, they’re offering any two chicken pieces and a roll for $3.99 (one per person). The announcement also notes they’re selling Ezell’s-branded merch too.
MUD BAY MATCH: Here’s where the pet food comes in. It’s part of a special day at Mud Bay this Saturday:
Join us at Mud Bay Admiral on Saturday (corrected – September 27th) for Neighborhood Pet Store Day. We will be celebrating with an Adoption Event hosted by the Seattle Animal Shelter from 12 pm-2 pm. In addition, Mud Bay will be matching 100% of all pet food sales (in-store and online) with an equivalent donation of food and supplies for pets in need at our local animal shelter.
The store is – for now! – at 2611 California SW.
By Torin Record-Sand
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
It was a pleasantly warm evening to properly close out summer as Alice Enevoldsen gathered a crowd of around 50 people last night tocelebrate the fall equinox at West Seattle’s Solstice Park. The equinox marks one of two times a year that the night and the day are of equal duration, and notably for us in the northern hemisphere, the passing of summer into fall. This was Alice’s 63rd time hosting the quarterly equinox/solstice sunseet event, which has been taking place since the late 2000s barring some interruptions due to the pandemic.
The crowd started gathering around 6 PM in anticipation of the sunset. The layout of the park has three stones and corresponding passageways which mark the exact location of the sunset for the equinox and solstices throughout the year.
The sunset was at precisely 6:56 PM – as observed. She explained that while the official U.S. Naval Observatory-calculated sunset for our area is 7:06 PM (the time that appears on most phone weather apps), this does not take into consideration local factors that cause the sun to disappear earlier, such as the Olympic Mountains or other environmental factors.
Notably last night, a thin streak of smoke still wavered over the Olympics from ongoing Washington forest fires.
After the sun had set, Alice gave her customary presentation on the scientific explanation and meaning of the equinox. She was helped, as usual, by a young assistant – this time, Jork – who volunteered to represent the sun. During the presentation, Alice and her globe rotated around the volunteer sun to explain the way in which the rotation of the earth causes the changing of the seasons and the corresponding length of the day. At the point of the equinox, she said, the length of the day is changing the fastest – losing about 4 minutes of daylight every day.
Following her presentation, Alice summarized the passing of yet another equinox with reverence. “We are at the same place in our orbit as we were a year ago – the same place in space – isn’t that mindblowingly awesome?” she said.
She presents these events as part of her volunteer work as an official NASA Solar System Ambassador. If you’d like to attend her next event, the sunset watch for the winter solstice will be on December 21. You can also find more information from Alice about local astronomical events or upcoming events by her on her website [https://alicesastroinfo.com/], or her social media feeds.
(Monday aerial view of West Seattle, sent by Greg)
Here’s our Tuesday list, mostly from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
QI GONG AT VIVA ARTS: 10 am with Natalia – last-minute reminder, so mark your calendar for next week!. (4421 Fauntleroy Way SW)
POSTCARDS4DEMOCRACY: New postcard-writers as well as returnees are welcome at this weekly advocacy gathering, 10:30 am-noon at C & P Coffee (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor). Sign up here before you go, if this is your first time.
NAVIGATING MEDICARE: Drop in 11 am-12:30 pm at the Center for Active Living (4217 SW Oregon) and talk with Patrice Lewis about your Medicare-related questions.
ROTARY CLUB OF WEST SEATTLE: Noon lunch meeting at West Seattle Golf Course (4470 35th SW) features speaker Brian Scheehser from South Seattle College (WSB sponsor)
MAYOR’S BUDGET SPEECH: Noon on Seattle Channel, you can watch Mayor Bruce Harrell talk about his budget proposal for next year. We just sat in on an advance briefing for media and will have a report this afternoon too.
CHESS CLUB: All levels welcome! 1:30-3 pm, at the Center for Active Living (4217 SW Oregon). Questions? Email conwell@conwelld.net.
CITY COUNCIL MEETING: 2 pm weekly meeting. Meeting is open to public comment both online and in person – the agenda explains how.
HIGH-SCHOOL SPORTS: Nothing on the schedules at local high schools (some have away games) or Nino Cantu SW Athletic Complex today.
DROP-IN WINE TASTING: 5-8 pm Tuesdays at Walter’s Wine Shop (4811 California SW) – $15 fee, $5 off with bottle purchases.
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.
TYPE 1 DIABETES SOCIAL GROUP: New group meets 6:15 pm at White Center Library (1409 SW 107th) – our calendar listing has an RSVP link.
TRACK RUN WITH WEST SEATTLE RUNNER: Meet up by 6:15 pm at West Seattle Runner (2743 California SW; WSB sponsor) for WSR’s free weekly track run.
CREATE POTTERY: Weekly 6:30-9 pm “girls’ night” at pottery studio The Clay Cauldron (5214 Delridge Way SW), register in advance to work on your project(s).
ADMIRAL NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION: If you live, work, study, shop, dine, visit Admiral, this neighborhood gathering at 7 pm is for you. Here’s our agenda preview, with guests focusing on schools and safety. At the newly renamed Admiral HUB (former church, 4320 SW Hill).
LISTENING PARTY AT EASY STREET RECORDS: 7 pm, hear the new Geese album three days before it’s released. (4559 California SW)
SCOTTISH COUNTRY DANCING: New classes continue, 7 pm at Fauntleroy Church (9140 California SW). Our calendar listing has details including how to check if they have space.
WOMEN’S MEDITATION CIRCLE: Weekly small-group event at Mama Be Well Healing Studio (4034 California SW), 7 pm. Our calendar listing has info on registering before you participate.
BINGO: Play free Tuesday night Belle of the Balls Bingo at The Skylark, 7 pm. (3803 Delridge Way SW)
TRIVIA X 4: Four options for Tuesday night trivia – The Beer Junction (4711 California SW), 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 pm at Admiral Pub, free, prizes. (2306 California SW).
If you are organizing an event, class, performance, gathering, etc., tell your West Seattle neighbors via our event calendar, from which we draw our daily lists too – just email info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!
Family and friends will gather Saturday to remember Marlene Mann, and are sharing this remembrance with her community now:
Marlene Iris Mann was born on March 15th, 1934, in West Seattle where she spent most of her life. She was the daughter of Elmer Chase and Emma Hill and was lovingly raised by Howard and Charlotte Hill. On September 1st, 2025, at age 91, Marlene went to be with our Lord Jesus.
Marlene met Huntley Mann at West Seattle High School and married him in 1952. They were married for 71 years and had 7 wonderful daughters.
She worked at the Old Granada theater in West Seattle, was a receptionist for Consolidated Freight Ways and a banquet waitress at The Holiday Inn for 38 years. In later years, she helped create window displays for Husky Deli.
Marlene loved life! She was an avid outdoor enthusiast and spent years taking children and grandchildren camping, hiking, swimming at Colman pool, ski lessons at Snoqualmie Pass and many campouts throughout Washington State. It was adventure at its best!
Marlene was the heartbeat of her household that kept it alive and thriving! Her home was the hub to all who needed a listening ear, a home cooked meal and a hot cup of coffee. She gave hope when there was despair, encouragement where there was disappointment and always pointed people to the Cross of Jesus to find the answers that would lead them to victory in their life. One of her many talents was hospitality. For over 60 years, she hosted family and friends at her home for numerous holidays, celebrations, and fundraisers. Everyone always felt welcomed and was blessed by her endless giving.
Marlene was Jesus’ personal “Welcome” to all who entered through her door. No matter how you stepped in you always left filled to the brim with God’s goodness after being in her presence. On one occasion, Marlene was described as a “walking Bible with a red leather cover.” How true that was!
Marlene was a lover of Jesus, family, animals and everything in-between. She sacrificed and made the decision to send her daughters to Hope Lutheran School to learn about Jesus and his word. Many of her grandchildren also attended this school because of her support and encouragement to help them build a life around Christ.
She orchestrated, lead, and engaged in many activities throughout her life such as Bible Study Fellowship, Bill Gotherd Ministry, leading Girl Scout outings, along with preparing, decorating and serving at countless dinner/dance fundraisers for the school and her community.
Everyone could always count on Marlene to watch her grandchildren and dog sit any time of the day or night. She loved when her grandchildren and their furry companions came over to visit, and her door was always open!
Marlene was a bottle of wisdom, encouragement and hope poured out over all who had the privilege of meeting her. If you knew her, you were given a glimpse into the heart of our Savior! She always made it a priority to preach the gospel by being the hands and feet of Jesus, feeding the hungry, taking care of the fatherless, forgiving those who wronged her and loving her neighbors.
Marlene always said, “I’ll leave the light on in the window for you!” And she did! She was “Grandma Marlene” to more kids than you could count over the years. She was always there for us in the best times and in the hardest times. Her faith in the Lord and her unwavering courage to take care of, guide, and lead her family earned her the namesake of a Proverbs 31 woman. I know Mom was greeted by Jesus in a warm embrace with His loving words, “Well Done, My Good and Faithful Servant!”
May we all continue to carry her legacy to those who God places in our path… to love unconditionally, forgive often, serve daily, stay humble and kind and fan the flame of the gospel of Jesus Christ to all!
Marlene is preceded in death by her husband Huntley Mann and survived by her seven daughters: Rhonda (Shane) Stanley, Denise (Saeed) Mahboub, Desiree Kjorsvik, Roxanne (Jon) Tunison, Deanna (Steven) Smith, Rachel (Jon) Daniels and Marlo (Michael) Maddy; 23 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren.
A celebration of life for Marlene will be held on Saturday, September 27th, 2025 at 1:00 pm at Hope Lutheran Church. Reception to follow.
We will love you forever, Mom! As always, TO GOD BE THE GLORY!
(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)
6:02 AM: Good morning! It’s Tuesday, September 23, 2025 – first full day of fall.
WEATHER + SUNRISE/SUNSET TIMES
Sunny and in the low 70s today, with smoky haze expected later. Sunrise will be at 6:58 am; sunset, at 7:04 pm.
(Fall’s first sunset, photographed by Chris Frankovich)
ROAD WORK
-California SW’s Fauntleroy Creek culvert gets a month of emergency repair work starting as soon as today.
–59th SW in Alki is closed for at least three more weeks by the school-construction zone.
-“Natural drainage” construction toward the east end of Sylvan Way is under way.
TRANSIT TODAY
Metro buses – On regular schedule and routes today.
Washington State Ferries – WSF has three-boat service on the Triangle Route, with M/V Kittitas, M/V Issaquah, and M/V Sealth. Vessel Watch will show you which boat is where.
Water Taxi – Regular West Seattle service; summer/early fall schedule, with later runs on Friday and Saturday nights through October 10.
STADIUM ZONE
Mariners‘ final regular-season homestand starts tonight, 6:40 pm vs. the Rockies.
SPOTLIGHT TRAFFIC CAMERAS
High Bridge – Here’s the main camera, followed by the Fauntleroy-end camera:
Low Bridge – Here’s the view looking west. Also note, opening info is again available via X (ex-Twitter):
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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