(WSB photos)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

What a time for a pastor to start a new gig: Rev. Jermell Witherspoon‘s first sermon as the new pastor of West Seattle’s oldest church will be on Ash Wednesday.

The title: “Do You Want to Be Made Well?” (From John 5, 6-10.)

That is not a reference to “fixing” anyone. In fact, one of the first things we discussed in a chat with Admiral Church‘s new pastor on Monday was the difference between being an “affirming” church and a “welcoming” church. It’s easy to say everyone’s “welcome,” he explains, but not so easy to find a place that will affirm you as what and who you are.

But before we get into that, a bit about who Rev. Witherspoon is.

He’s the new minister called by Admiral Church after the departure of Rev. Andrew Conley-Holcom. He’s from a family of ministers, though he grew up in “the Pentecostal space,” he says, so his family’s churches are “directly opposite” from what he’s been preaching, teaching, and exploring for more than seven years, most recently at Liberation UCC downtown.

UCC = United Church of Christ, same denomination as Admiral Church (along with Alki UCC and Fauntleroy UCC, making UCC the only denomination besides the Catholic Church to have three congregations in West Seattle). Rev. Witherspoon also worked with the Disciples of Christ denomination “to help churches become open and affirming.” When he chose to enter the ministry, “being a queer man, I felt the call for something more .., I said, ‘God, I want to continue to be a Christian, but I need you to show me a way that’s life-giving for me.’ I found UCC believed a lot of the things that I believed,” including standing for justice and inclusion.

Back to the difference between welcoming and affirming. Too many churches, he says, say you’re “welcome” because “we gotta get you in here and then get you saved! We’ve created a space where people have to be everything other than what God has called them to be … God manifests in so many different ways … you’re coming here so you can help to change US so we can live more like what God has called us to be … and affirm who God has called you to be.”

So how does that sound from the pulpit? “Our sermons must be relevant culturally, present-day relevant with all the craziness happening around … you gotta name what’s happening and name the hope that is there, that’s part of the gospel … not just despair but also beauty, resurrection … hope that the things we all have to go through in life, that we’re going to find a way to make it better … we have agency, and we are the hands and feet of God working in the Earth.”

But what about the seemingly prevailing sentiment of this time, that churches are dying? Rev. Witherspoon sees the hope for churches in that “we are co-creator with God.” Rather than ask God “what are you doing?” he suggests, “God says, ‘what are YOU doing? How are you being in the Earth in the ways I’ve called you to?” That, he insists, is “important as we invite people to church (who may have been) ostracized, pushed out of religious spaces … We have to stand as public apologies for the way others have been handled … we have to demonstrate the good of God.” Not, he says, the path of some churches that “have these big humongous spaces, seeking money and fame, condemning people to hell, scaring people into donating huge sums … Jesus’s way is not the most popular, but the way that leads to life.”

Speaking of spaces, we should mention that Admiral Church is currently in a cozy one, what they call their chapel, a light-filled but relatively small space at St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church. They moved in because, as we’ve been reporting for several years, they chose to partner with Homestead Community Land Trust to turn much of their 4320 SW Hill campus into housing, with the church’s future home for services and the community groups they’ve long hosted.

(2024 rendering of concept for what you’d see turning off California onto Hill)

Admiral Church’s Anita Shaffer, who invited us to meet the new pastor, says groundbreaking is expected before year’s end, and construction could last up to two years, so they hope to be in their new home before the end of 2028.

And Rev. Witherspoon is looking forward to it. “When we shift into our new church, that will be so electrifying and so affirming, people will be called to come, we will listen to the spirit of God – I’m looking forward to that.”

First, he’s looking forward to the task at hand – leading Admiral Church into the season of Lent. He begins work with a reservoir of admiration for what they’ve already done: “When I … realized how brave Admiral was, what spirit was calling them to do, desiring growth not just in number but in consciousness … it seemed like the perfect setup … I can be a co-creator with the community to figure out what spirit is calling us to do next … there is potential to build community in a deeper way.”

But why do that through church? we asked. The pastor sees it as “the power of collective community, building something that honors one’s neighbor and honors one’s God … I think there will always be a call to be called to each other … definitely a space for a church like this.” And yes, he acknowledges that some churches have caused harm – “we’re doing some of that correction at Admiral and that’s one of the reasons I’m here.” He hopes to “co-create” “a place where you feel safe and honored and loved … like minds and different minds… a space where everybody can feel like they are somebody.” And, a place of hope. Including his hope, “that the spirit of Admiral becomes contagious to the community.”

He will be involved in the community beyond the church as well, including the organizations that Admiral has hosted, such as West Seattle PFLAG, meeting tonight, and others in the community at large, including the Westside Interfaith Network. As for that Ash Wednesday debut, tomorrow’s service is at 6 pm; Admiral’s temp home at St. John’s is at 3050 California SW.

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Today was the third Sunday that Admiral Church worshipped in its temporary home at St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church. It’s moved out of its longtime home at 4320 SW Hill, as has the preschool that had occupied its basement. All this, as the next step in the site’s transformation to affordable homeownership with a new home for the church and the community organizations it hosts.

While the plan in partnership with Homestead Community Land Trust is progressing, demolition is not imminent – midyear 2026 at the soonest. But you won’t see the old church building morph into a tagged, squatter-occupied shell of a building.

It’s already morphed, in fact … into the Admiral HUB.

Part of the HUB is a continued home, for now, for the aforementioned community organizations. You’ll see the Admiral Neighborhood Association there this Tuesday, for example; ANA has met there for years.

But it’s not just about meetings. What inspired us to ask for a chat about the building’s interim status was a reader tip about the heart of it: @ Bear Island.

At the heart of @ Bear Island is someone whose work you have probably seen, even if you don’t immediately recognize his name: Mike Henderson.

He’s an Admiral Church congregant, and prolific artist. We published an in-depth story about him by WSB senior contributor Christopher Boffoli last year, when he was still painting enigmatic messages in highly visible spots, such as a retaining wall on California south of Andover.

Admiral Church’s Anita Shaffer explained that when they decided against leaving the building vacant, after discussions with Homeland CLT and their insurance company, Henderson seemed like the ideal caretaker: “He’s such a creative guy.”

(Anita Shaffer and Mike Henderson in the HUB/Bear Island kitchen)

For starters, he and others have “been de-preschooling the basement,” as Shaffer puts it, although the colorfully painted rooms already seem naturally suited to creativity.

“So we have this massive space and at least seven months to make it up as we go along,” Henderson explains. “The exciting challenge is to use the whole buffalo.” That means opening the space to a wide range of possibilities, with people collaborating.

One of the early collaborators, Celeste, elaborates: “We want to bring the community together to see what people can do.” Workshops, for example, might not take the typical format that some might find “scary” when asked to teach what they know. Maybe just spending a little time planting a seed and sharing their skills.

Henderson recounts the thrill of inviting passersby to participate in his murals – “give people the (paint) roller and give them the chance to make art” – and hopes @ Bear Island will be a place where people can “try things.”

There’ll be music, too, a weekly jazz jam starting next month in what was the church sanctuary and will now be known as “the theater.” (The church’s pastor Rev. Andrew Conley-Holcom says they’ve had a ceremony to “de-consecrate” that space, and there’ll soon be a ceremony about removing the sanctuary’s cross and its “complicated” symbolism.) While the Admiral Church organ is going into storage for now, the piano is staying. The space will have “theatrical lighting and sound.” It’ll be open for rentals as a concert venue, too.

What Henderson most wants you to know is that, rather than fleshing out a set of ideas by finding people to make them happen, they want to find people and then let the ideas happen. “Just be in the same room and plug into the creative energy.” He expects it will be “magical.”

Rev. Conley-Holcom agrees – seeing it as a “play space” most of all.

So how do you get involved? Henderson says they have open hours during which you can just “wander in.”

Another participant in our conversation with the key players added, “It’s very easy to get plugged in here. Just show up!”

One possibility for the space is a continuously open “pay what you can” thrift shop to raise money for @ Bear Island; Celeste already has sparked some of that energy by having a vintage sale there. (Shaffer notes that the HUB remains under Admiral Church’s “nonprofit banner,” and that the church donated $1,000 to get it launched, as well as helping apply for grant money to underwrite the jazz jams.)

What @ Bear Island has in abundance already is the spirit of fun. Henderson laughs that while the @ Bear Island name is a tribute to the Native name Me-Kwa-Mooks, the mascot is not a bear but a rabbit. “I like the confusion!”

The pastor says what he likes most about it is that it “embodies one of my core values, relationship first” and Henderson, he says, is an ace relationship-builder: “He’ll introduce you to people HE didn’t even know.”

This will all lead to one thing, Henderson says:

“Joy.”

You can “wander in” 4-7 pm Tuesdays-Fridays for now; find @ Bear Island updates here.

COMMUNITY JAZZ CONCERT AND PICNIC!
Sunday, August 24, 12:00 -2:00 pm
Admiral Church Lawn, 4320 SW Hill St
FREE! All Welcome!
Bring non-perishable food for our Summer Food Drive!

12:00-1:00 Old-fashioned picnic! Hot dogs and all the trimmings!

1:00-2:00 COOL and HOT JAZZ concert!
Ann Reynolds—Keyboard
Susan Palmer—Guitar
Chris Icasiano—Drums
Steve Kim—Bass
Jean Lenke—Vocals
Tobi Stone—Sax/horns

This event is open to the community, Sunday after worship. See you there. If you’re unable to read the book by then, you may want to watch a YouTube video on the subject. www.admiral.church

Admiral Church presents The Idolatry of Whiteness

“Whiteness is not a racial category, it’s a political one.” – David Billings

Six consecutive Sundays beginning May 4th, Noon-1:15 PM at 4320 SW Hill St
Register at www.admiral.church

The United States of America was both designed to be a place where we collectively recognize that “all [humans] are created equal”, and a place where that equality was originally limited only to White men in ownership caste. As the United States has expanded its definition of human, Whiteness has continued to be an issue, one our society has yet to fully grapple with. In this 6 week course, we will read from great 20th- and 21st-century thinkers about how they have come to understand the power of Whiteness and what can be done to dismantle it in the name of “liberty and justice for all.”

Suggested $20 donation covers printed material and honarium for our guest lecturer and presenter, Black American history scholar AJ Musewe

FAT SUNDAY! Jambalaya and Jazz at Admiral Church

Come join us for a soulful celebration at Admiral Church! Indulge in delicious jambalaya followed by the smooth sounds of jazz and swing. It’s the perfect way to spend your Sunday – good food, good music, and good company. Don’t miss out on this unforgettable event! And it’s free!

Date: Sunday, March 2

1 PM Free Cajun Lunch with Jambalaya, King Cake and prizes
2 PM Free Jazz Concert: Lulu Swing Band plus special guests

Location: Admiral Church, 4320 SW Hill Street

RSVP HERE

(Concept for what you’d see turning off California onto Hill)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Before the West Seattle Big Band‘s Christmas concert Sunday (WSB coverage here) in the Admiral Church sanctuary, the church’s pastor Rev. Andrew Conley-Holcom told the full house that it had special meaning: This is the church’s final Advent season before moving out so its half-acre site can be transformed into housing and a “new church,” including space for the many community groups that gather there.

We followed up to find out the newest details about their moving plans, as nothing specific was mentioned when last we updated the future Homestead Community Land Trust project after a community open house in June.

The church will be co-housed with another Admiral congregation, St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church, during construction, Rev. Conley-Holcom told WSB. “St. John’s is a warm, loving community with which we have been developing relationship for years, so this will be an easy, comfortable arrangement even as it represents a drastic change for both congregations.”

Admiral Church expects to move out of its current site this summer, the pastor explains, “for a few reasons, the greatest of which was made abundantly clear last night during the deluge. The building is facing pretty serious water penetration issues that can be linked to original design flaws with the current structure (downspouts concealed within the walls of the sanctuary which cannot be unclogged without risking rupture into the walls of the building). We are engaging with professionals for mitigation, but are not going to make major repairs for obvious reasons.”

The “rolling” move will start once the preschool that shares the church’s site, A Child Becomes, finishes its 2024-2025 school year – that’s when, the pastor says, “we will begin shutting the building down until HCLT is ready to take possession and begin demolition.” (A Child Becomes has its own new location.)

If you need to catch up on the backstory – Admiral Church chose redevelopment as the best path toward a sustainable future; trying to fix the (as mentioned above) deteriorating old building was not an option. They finalized a partnership plan with Homestead CLT in 2023. They plan 21 for-sale housing units – 13 townhouses and 8 condos, a mix of affordable and market-rate – as well as a new mixed-use building for the church and its programs. Kathleen Hosfeld of Homestead CLT tells WSB that they still hope to complete construction in 2026, but “construction start times and completion depend a lot on funding.” (Earlier this year, a city grant was announced for part of the funding.)

(WSB video)
In a weekend full of holiday concerts, this was no doubt the biggest, boldest, brassiest sound to be found … the West Seattle Big Band performing this afternoon at Admiral Church. We recorded most of the first half, in case you missed it. Above are the first three songs – a medley, “The Christmas Song,” and “Home for the Holidays“; below, “Winter Wonderland,” “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” and “Marshmallow World”:

Jenaige Lane and Sam Henry sang with the Big Band today; they teamed again during “Let It Snow.”

Jim Edwards directs the West Seattle Big Band, whose musicians donate their time and talents, often for students, but in this case, as a fundraiser for Admiral Church itself, getting ready to move out of its longtime home, after choosing to replace it with 21 housing units (primarily affordable homeownership) and a new church.

Our tour of some of today’s handcrafted shopping opportunities ended at Admiral Church (4320 SW Hill), where the Christmas Market continues until 4 pm. We found one creative stocking stuffer:

Stacey just started her business selling playing cards with recipes, “Make Meals, Play Cards” – simple ideas for meals, five ingredients for less, right on the cards. (If you miss the market but are interested, email her at mmpcdeck@gmail.com.) Chantel is a teacher who is selling clay creations, from dishes to ornaments:

There’s also an opportunity to give to the Westside Neighbors Shelter – a giving tree that gives you the chance to chip in for sturdy footwear:

And if you’re bringing the kid(s), there are craft tables just outside the sanctuary, where most of the market is happening:

Cider and pretzels are available too , outdoors by the entrance. This is part of a full complement of holiday events, that Admiral Church is offering – all in our West Seattle Holiday Guide, but here’s the list as sent by the church:

“Holy Night”; Christmas With The Chosen. November 26, 6:30-8:30 pm. Free movie screening and discussion of “Holy Night”, by the producers of “The Chosen” series. Christmas cookies and popcorn, too! All welcome!

Grinch and Grahams! December 8, 1:00-2:30 pm. Admiral Church, Family Holiday Event! FREE! “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas”, the beloved 30-minute holiday classic movie, followed by making and decorating graham cracker houses! All welcome!

WEST SEATTLE BIG BAND CHRISTMAS CONCERT! December 15, 1:00-3:00 pm. Holiday Jazz Concert, dancing as space allows! All Welcome! FREE! And there’s cookies!

Step into a German-style Christmas market right here in West Seattle! Enjoy a cup of hot cider and a soft pretzel while browsing our festively decorated booths. Discover that perfect one-of-a-kind gift created by a local artisan. Bring joy into your home with our handcrafted holiday decor. Find unique gifts for co-workers, teachers, and holiday hosts. And don’t miss our homemade cookies, pies and holiday sweets. Relax and enjoy the enchanting spirit of Christmas, support Admiral Church’s important community work, and return home prepared for the festive season!” 10 am-4 pm. (4320 SW Hill)

IT’S HOT! IT’S SWINGIN’! IT’S THE ADMIRAL CHURCH COMMUNITY JAZZ PICNIC!!
Sunday August 11, 12-3:00 pm!
(Picnic lunch 12-1:00; performance 1-3:00)
Admiral Church lawn, 4320 SW Hill St
FREE! ALL ARE WELCOME!

Seattle’s renowned LULU SWING BAND is an all-female ensemble which specializes in 1930s Hot Club Swing with a French and Latin twist. Join us as Admiral Church welcomes Adrienne Reed – Vocals & Accordion, Jennie Mayer – Guitar, Alicia DeJoie – Violin, Rachel Contorer – Bass and Tobi Stone – Clarinet & Saxophone for a groovin’ summer gig on the church lawn. How cool is that, on a (hopefully) warm August afternoon?!

And to get us all in the mood, how about a picnic?! Admiral Church will be serving up gourmet box lunches with entrees of baked salmon, chicken or vegetarian and summery side dishes, beverages and desserts. Yum! And it’s all FREE, our gift to the community!

We will be accepting contributions of cash and non-perishable food for our annual Summer Food Drive. Please donate! So many families in our city struggle with food insecurity, especially in the summer, when food bank donations are down. YOU can help!

So bring your blankets and lawn chairs, your appetites and your Summer Swing! Sign up at admiralchurch.org on our Eventbrite link and join in the FUN! Can’t wait to see you there!

(Concept for what you’d see turning off California onto Hill)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Calling it a ‘continuation of transparency” about the future redevelopment of its site, Admiral Church brought back its partners to show off the site plan to the community this past Sunday afternoon, after an earlier meeting with its congregation. It’s not a final design but this has the most details yet about how the church and Homestead Community Land Trust envision filling the site with a mix of affordable and market-rate for-sale housing as well as a new mixed-use building for the church and its programs.

They finalized their partnership plans last year; the church had long been seeking a way to ensure a sustainable future despite its deteriorating building, while using its half-acre campus for community good, including affordable housing.

“We’re thrilled with this design – it’s exactly what we were hoping for,” said Admiral Church’s pastor, Rev. Andrew Conley-Holcom. “We’re over the moon impressed with the work that Third Place Design has done.” That’s the project architect. The bulk of the new information was via this site plan:

The project would be broken up into five buildings. Third Place’s Poppi Handy explained that they didn’t want to design it as “one massive building.” From west to east, the site plan shows a building with four 3-story, 3-bedroom townhouses with garages; another with three 3-story, 4-bedroom townhouses; the mixed-use building with room for the church and its programs, plus eight condo “flats” on three stories above it; a building with two 3-story, 3-bedroom townhouses; and a building with four 2-story, 3-bedroom townhouses. The site also would have a shared courtyard, a rooftop deck, and an 18-space parking lot (12 for the church and 6 for residents). In all, that’s 21 for-sale residential units – 13 townhouses and 8 condos. One note: The condo “flats” in the mixed-use building will have access to an elevator, which the project team says helps with the accessibility challenges otherwise raised by three-story townhouses.

The church would have entrances on two sides – one for people coming from the parking lot, the other for people coming from California/Hill. The church’s space will include offices and community rooms (they currently host a variety of community uses, from the Admiral Neighborhood Association to recovery groups). One thing it won’t include: The preschool A Child Becomes will not be part of the new campus (Rev. Conley-Holcom said it has already secured a new home at another church).

(Part of a 3-D “flythrough” shown at meeting)

Questions were fielded by project participants including Handy, Homestead CLT’s Kathleen Hosfeld, and the pastor. What about the site grade? It’ll be leveled, said Handy. The current basement space will be filled. Will the rooftop deck be available to the neighboring community for events? Hosfeld said that possibility can be explored, though it would require a public restroom, among other things. Will there be solar power? Yes, they’re planning on solar for all townhomes, depending on financing, and probably at least the “common area” of the church/condos building.

The parking plans drew some discussion. Yes, there’ll be EV accommodation, with the help of city subsidies. Why 10 spaces for 21 residential units? They expect nearby street parking to handle it.

As has been the case in previous discussions of the project, many questions centered on the “affordable homeownership” aspect of the project. 13 of the units will be “affordable” to households with income no greater than 80 percent of the area median, though Homestead says they aim for more like 65 percent. Right now, that means a little over $300,000 for a three-bedroom townhouse, considered affordable to a 2-person household making $88,000. “That may sound like a good income, but it’s not so affordable for buying homes,” Hosfeld observed. In the agreement with Homestead, buyers agree to limit their equity to help ensure the unit would be affordable in perpetuity, as the land-trust agreement stipulates.

Why only 13 affordable homes? That’s all the available subsidies – city/state grants, for example, totaling about $250,000 per unit – will cover; profits from the eight market-rate units will also help subsidize the affordable units. So far they have about $4.5 million for the project (we reported on one grant earlier this year); making it all affordable units would require another $2.4 million or so. Which of the currently planned units are the affordable ones? That’s not settled yet, except for the four townhouses on the northwest side of the property.

Buyers will come from Homestead’s 2,000-family waitlist, and they said they have up to 40 qualified applicants for every home that’s become available (they use “fair housing tiebreaking criteria,” as explained here).

A lot of how this all works will be stipulated by a homeowners’ association agreement – for example, though they’re not part of the land trust,, “even the market-rate homes will have to stay owner-occupied.” The church will be a condo, technically, and it too will be bound by the HOA.

TIMELINE: Design and planning will continue through the end of 2025; they hope to get permits in March 2026, and from there, construction would last about a year and a half. The permit process will include more opportunities for public comment; at Sunday’s meeting, attendees were invited to evaluate design elements such as roof pitches, exterior materials, and windows (above).

Four development notes this afternoon:

5249 CALIFORNIA: We noticed new signage today at this long-mostly-idle site just south of the past-and-possibly-future Ephesus: “New Homes Coming Soon!” A check of city files shows that permits are still under review for the latest proposal here, two 3-story buildings with nine townhouses, same project we last mentioned in early 2023. The website for J&T Development, which bought the site two years ago, says the units will all be 3 bedrooms, 3 baths.

3507 SW WEBSTER: This 4-story townhouse project, replacing a 2-story building, is in the “early design review” stage and a community survey closes after tomorrow (Monday, May 27). Project information is on a webpage the developers set up here; the survey is here.

2236 ALKI SW: This site also has a townhouse project in “early design review,” and an outreach webpage set up by the developers. It says they’re planning a community “site walk” for Q&A and info, 4-6 pm on Thursday, June 6.

ADMIRAL CHURCH AFFORDABLE HOMEOWNERSHIP: Also coming up, Homestead Community Land Trust and Admiral Church plan an update meeting at the church (4320 SW Hill) 2-4 pm next Sunday (June 2) with “concepts” for their affordable-homeownership project. (Here’s our most-recent coverage.)

Join us for an update on concepts to develop affordable homeownership and a new church at the current location of Admiral UCC in West Seattle. We welcome your feedback.

(Concept shown at Admiral Church/Homestead CLT event last October)

Last fall, Admiral Church finalized a deal to turn over its half-acre site to Homestead Community Land Trust, which would in turn build housing and a space for the church and its community partners. More than three months after this open house provided more details on the plan, a city Office of Housing grant has been finalized to fund part of it: $1,430,000, as part of the city’s annual affordable-housing funding round. After the city’s announcement on Wednesday, we checked in with Homestead CLT to see where the project is at.

First a bit of backstory – Admiral Church had been working for years to figure out a sustainable future to deal with its deteriorating building, while using its half-acre campus for community good, preferably including affordable housing. The church started working with Homestead in 2022 and announced an agreement in fall 2023 that is expected to result in townhomes on the site, all for sale, some at market rate, more at “permanently affordable” prices facilitated by Homestead holding the actual land “in trust.” The latter is made possible by funding Homestead obtains from both public and private sources.

So we asked Homestead’s Kathleen Hosfeld what the newly finalized city grant means to the project: “The City funding is one of several sources we need. It represents a little over half of the public funding to make the project feasible. Unfortunately, the project did not receive an award from the State in the 2023 funding round just announced. This means we’ll need to apply again next fall.”

The city announcement included some specific projected numbers for the housing that the project would create – saying the project would “construct 18 new townhomes, where 11 will be permanently affordable 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom townhomes.” However, Hosfeld tells WSB that the numbers are not final yet: “We are still in the scenario exploration phase – working to create a cohesive campus with a church facility that meets their needs, housing that meets our mission goals, and an overall design that fits with the neighborhood. As a result, we have not finalized the number of affordable and market rate homes. The funding amount awarded by the city can be amended if we reduce the number of homes. We will know more as we continue to learn about site constraints.”

More information for the community is expected in spring, she added: “We are hoping to have some concepts to share with the community in either March or early April for feedback.” If you’ve missed previous coverage explaining how Homestead’s model works – here’s their explanation.

It was a full house – more than 100 people of all ages, babies through seniors – when the West Seattle Big Band presented a holiday concert this afternoon at Admiral Church. We recorded three of the Christmas songs for you – first, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year”:

Here’s “The Christmas Song”

And “Baby, It’s Cold Outside”:

(Jim Edwards directs the WSBB; Jenaige Lane and Greg Dirks were the vocalists in our clips; Bud Jackson sang later.) The rest of the program included some non-holiday selections too. The band, which spends much of its year donating its time to raise money for school music programs, donated this appearance too so the church could raise money (admission was free but a basket was passed) for its music program.

Watch for more public WSBB performances next year – their calendar is at westseattlebigband.com, along with history on this quarter-century-and-going-strong group!

CRAFT FAIR IN THE STYLE OF AN OLD-WORLD GERMAN CHRISTKINDL MARKT!

Saturday, November 18th
from 10 A-4 P at Admiral Church
4320 SW Hill Street
(in the North Admiral District just off California Avenue)

Beautiful, unique crafts and homemade holiday baked goods.
Bavarian pretzels, hot drinks, including hot chocolate and cider.
Christmas lights, evergreen boughs and holiday music.
Drop by for a holiday drink and find great gifts for family and friends!

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Admiral Church‘s agreement to turn over its half-acre property to Homestead Community Land Trust is just the first step in what’s expected to be at least a four-year journey to transformation of the site into new homes and a new home for the church.

The projected timeline is part of what was revealed at an open-house-style gathering in the church sanctuary this past Sunday afternoon, four weeks after the church and Homestead CLT announced the plan. As we’ve been reporting, the church had been on a years-long quest to secure a sustainable future – the costs of maintaining an aging building could not be borne without some sort of change. The plan will enable “affordable” homes, offered for sale, to be built on the site along with a new “flexible” space for the church and its ministries/tenants, which currently include a preschool as well as various community groups.

The architects working on the project, Third Place Design Co-operative, were in attendance, with renderings showing possibilities for how the church site’s future housing could look and feel. They told us the predominant housing type they’re considering for this site is “three-story townhouses.” The easels offered people at the gathering a chance to place dot stickers on images they liked, from architecture to amenities such as greenspaces between the buildings, porches, small fenced yards. Some of the featured images, they told us, were from a project under way now in Tukwila.

That’s an 18-home development on land previously owned by Riverton Park United Methodist Church, according to Homestead CLT’s executive director Kathleen Hosfeld, who was also at the Admiral gathering, standing by an easel explaining the “Net Zero” building philosophy for which they aim – energy-efficient, which in turn means lower utility bills.

Another Homestead rep staffed a general Q&A table, including how their model works (here’s how). 60-65 percent average mean income (AMI) is their sweet spot for potential buyers; 80 percent AMI is the ceiling to qualify. They are able to offer lower prices to qualified buyers because of subsidies from public (like the Seattle Housing Levy, which is on the current ballot) and private funding, These have to be the buyers’ only homes, and they can’t be rented out – the owner has to live there. If they want to sell their home, they can find a qualified buyer on their own, but most work with Homestead, which has a long waiting list. They even have a tiebreaker system if needed.

The open house ended with a moment of recognition for City Councilmember Lisa Herbold, who helped connect Homestead CLT with Admiral Church years ago. Rev. Andrew Conley-Holcom offered a few words of appreciation, telling the backstory of the church’s journey to this point (including this meeting we covered four years ago), and the councilmember briefly spoke:

We asked Hosfeld where the project goes from here: “What happens next is we start the design process. We need to engage the civil engineer, geotech and other advisers to study the site, and model out what we can build. That’s probably a 4-6 month process. Once we have some concepts to share, we’ll reach back out to the neighborhood for some input again. In the meantime, we’ll meet with the immediate neighbors across the street and make sure we set up a good communication system with them.” If all goes well, construction of the as-yet-undetermined number of homes could start in fall of 2025 and last about a year and a half. If you have questions for Homestead, you can email westseattle@homesteadclt.org.

SIDE NOTE: We noticed on the Homestead website that the first of its now-245 homes in trust was referred to as the “Delridge House.” Indeed, Hosfeld told us, it all began with a little house that was moved off the site of the Delridge Library to a site elsewhere in Delridge. The nonprofit made this video a few years back telling the story:

Hosfeld says the original owner of the “Delridge House” has since sold it – but as with the other homes they’ve acquired or built, it will forever remain in trust.

(Photo by Jamie Kinney – see more here)

Here’s what’s happening as the weekend continues!

WESTIES RUN CLUB: Now they’re running on Sunday mornings too – meet at 9 am at Dough Joy Donuts (4310 SW Oregon).

SOUTHWEST ARTIST SHOWCASE: Community art on display at Southwest Library (9010 35th SW), open 10 am-6 pm.

WEST SEATTLE FARMERS’ MARKET: 10 am-2 pm, the market is open as usual between SW Alaska and SW Oregon on California, offering fall fruit and vegetables as well as flowers, cheese, fish, meat, baked goods, condiments, fresh-cooked food, beverages (from cider to kombucha to beer/wine), nuts, more. Here’s today’s vendor list.

DONATION DRIVE: Help people in need – bring donated items to Alki UCC (6115 SW Hinds), 11 am-3 pm. The wish list is in our calendar listing.

ADMIRAL CHURCH DEVELOPMENT MEETING: All are invited to come hear and talk about the church’s recently finalized partnership with Homestead Community Land Trust, 1:30 pm. (4320 SW Hill)

LEARN TO RESEARCH FAMILY HISTORY: Free family-history lab at the West Seattle Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (4001 44th SW), 2:30 pm-4:30 pm. Email to reserve a slot if you can – info’s in our calendar listing.

DRUMMING TO CALL THE SALMON HOME: It’s just about time for splmon to show up in Fauntleroy Creek, looking for love. To encourage them, the annual tradition of gathering to drum and sing for a bit is set for 4 pm. Come to upper Fauntleroy Way and SW Director (across and upslope from the ferry dock), and a drumbeat will lead you down the driveway to the gathering.

SUNDAY NIGHT JAZZ: Triangular Jazztet at The Alley (4509 California SW), 8 pm and 9 pm sets.

Something for our calendar – one-time or recurring? Email us the info – westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!