West Seattle, Washington
06 Monday
2:54 PM: It didn’t look like a major incident on the 911 log, but we’ve since learned from text and e-mail tips that a car crash in the 5200 block of Delridge Way has the road at least partly blocked, and drivers are having to turn around. We’re checking to see if anyone was hurt. (Thanks to Tim for sending the photo from a passing bus.)
6:03 PM UPDATE: According to Kyle Moore from Seattle Fire, one person was hurt and taken to the hospital with minor injuries.
8:34 PM: For the second night in a row, police are investigating reported gunfire in North Delridge. This time, according to an SPD tweet a few minutes ago, it’s reported near 23rd and Juneau (map), which would be near the north side of the Boren campus, which will be housing two schools, K-5 STEM and Arbor Heights Elementary, as of next month. As in last night’s case – around the same time of night, near Delridge/Brandon – so far, no injuries reported.
8:53 PM UPDATE: A woman who says she saw it happen told our crew the shots were fired from a red car heading north on 23rd just north of Juneau, and were aimed at four young men walking on the street. Again, no injuries reported.
They’re looking at bullet holes in at least two parked cars, one of which has a flat tire (photo above); police won’t say how many shots they think were fired, but the witness thinks it was at least 10.
No word of any injuries, but it appears that police have confirmed that was gunfire heard by many near the Delridge Library (5400 block of Delridge) a little while ago. Officers are still in the area investigating and one reported (via radio) finding shell casings. One nearby resident who called 911 tells WSB that dispatchers told her others had called too.
Seattle Fire has sent a sizable response to the 7500 block of 24th SW (map) for a possible house fire. First crews on scene are seeing “light smoke” from the second floor.
7:47 PM UPDATE: The fire call turned out to be “food on the stove.” Lots of smoke, though, so fans are being used to ventilate the residence right now. No injuries reported. Most units have been dismissed.
(Video from Straight Blast Gym’s Indiegogo page)
Being in business isn’t easy anywhere. You take a chance, hope you’re offering something people want and need, in a place where they want it, need it, and will spend money for it, and then you take the leap.
Sonia Sillan knows how that goes. She and partner Jei took the leap two years ago with a big empty building in North Delridge. They put everything into it, even lived there when they opened in October 2012, found places to shower off-site, ate cheap pizza almost every night. Six months later, things weren’t going well – yet – they parted ways with a business partner and rebranded last year as Straight Blast Gym of Seattle (WSB sponsor). That’s when, Sonia says, things took a turn for the better. They started to grow, started to really fix up the building, added walls, equipment, a heater, a kids-after-school room, a gym-specific van for tournaments and their before/after school program … Now, they need to do more. And they’re looking to do it as a community partnership – mat expansions, showers, bathroom remodels (Sonia says the women’s restroom hadn’t been used in at least a decade when they moved in).
We feel that we are close to being the change that needs to happen in this neighborhood; however, we are not quite there. Most gyms are just a place where you go to sweat; our goal is to become a community center where adults and children thrive through various programs and activities.
To get this done, they’re crowdfunding. This week, Straight Blast Gym launched an Indiegogo campaign, and they’re already a third of the way to their goal. And they’re stressing that this isn’t just a request for contributions – they’ve come up with a list of perks, traditional to crowdfunding campaigns, to give back.
As explained on the campaign page, the projects they’re hoping to get funded are broken into three parts:
SPACE: $6,100 toward new mats and a platform extension
VISIBILITY: $8,400 toward new glass and insulation for the storefront, so it’ll be clear (literally!) when they’re open
EQUIPMENT: $5,840, with resulting expansion in programs including Warrior Woman and Growing Gorillas (kids)
They’re offering perks equal in some cases to discounted services, such as three private lessons for a $200 contribution (worth $300), and also ways to help the community even before the upgrades – a $1,500 donation sponsors a child through SBG-Seattle programs for a year. “We really want to make this about the community,” says Sonia.
ORIGINAL REPORT, 12:19 PM: If you’re noticing the police response in the Delridge/Cambridge area, police are searching for at least one suspect in an armed robbery. The Guardian One helicopter is expected in the area shortly helping with the search.
ADDED 12:26 PM: Just talked to SPD spokesperson Det. Drew Fowler. The Tienda Super store in the 9400 block of Delridge was held up by two men who came in through its back door and stole cash at gunpoint. No one was hurt. Police are still searching for the robbers, both described as black men in their 20s, one 6’2″ with “facial scruff,” balding, gray hoodie, black pants, the other 5-6, thin, wearing a blue “do-rag,” white T-shirt, blue jeans. One robber was carrying a black backpack. If you have any information, call 911.
4:27 PM: Just checked again with SPD. Nobody in custody so far.
The youth artists who have just finished the mural along Delridge outside Youngstown Cultural Arts Center had a big community turnout for this afternoon’s celebration of their creation – including local leaders:
With Duwamish Tribe chair Cecile Hansen, who is featured on the mural, in the photo above, is Louis Chinn, one of the artists who mentored the youth. The mural was created as part of the Work Readiness Arts Program, under the city Office of Arts and Culture, whose leader Randy Engstrom is a former Youngstown director – he’s at left below with the center’s current leader David Bestock:
The mural’s story was told by two of the young artists:
Admiring the mural’s celebration of history – including a totem pole! – was Southwest Seattle Historical Society executive director Clay Eals:
The RecTech youth who have been documenting the project via photo and video were of course there too – we’re told their work will premiere later this month:
Just in case you can’t get to 4408 Delridge Way SW for a first-person look at the mural any time soon, we walked its 200-plus-foot length in this next clip:
Just sixteen days ago, that entire wall was blank, as shown in our July 29th story.
Tomorrow, the new youth-painted mural along the 4400 block of Delridge Way in front of Youngstown Cultural Arts Center will be officially “unveiled.” Tonight, it’s still getting some last-minute touches. What you see in our quick pic is only about a third of the mural – the rest of it looks pretty cool too – so come to the ribbon-cutting at 2 pm tomorrow (Thursday, August 14th) if you can, and meet the artists! If you’ve missed the backstory in our previous coverage (here, here, and here) – check out the Youngstown website.
(Festival music/activities schedule here)
ORIGINAL REPORT, 11:20 AM: As of the top of the hour, Delridge Day is on – with cool people ready to meet you, and to entertain you, on the north side of the park by Delridge Community Center (Genesee/Delridge). Not just people – check out Olive the goat:
And a Seattle Police robot, converted for the moment into a Tootsie Pop dispenser:
“Picnic at the Precinct” is instead happening here in the park concurrent with Delridge Day again this year. We’re told new SPD Chief Kathleen O’Toole is expected here around noon, so if you’d like to meet her, be here. But first, come meet all your neighbors, here with various organizations and activities. And tell them what you want to see in your community – there’s a big blackboard ready for your thoughts, as part of the North Delridge Action Plan kickoff.
Also here: Seattle Public Library:
Miss Bea says "Come see us at the @SPLBuzz booth #DelridgeDay!" pic.twitter.com/n6efMWJ3UJ
— Beck Be (@BeaucoupBeck) August 9, 2014
Commenters asked earlier if any food trucks are here. Yes, Outside the Box is here again this year, up near the Delridge CC entrance.
Where, we’re also told a Seattle Fire engine is expected around noon.
(Photo added: From left, Pete Spalding, Dorsol Plants, Michael Taylor-Judd)
12:19 PM: Shoutout to the festival organizers – a small group of local community advocates put it together this year, including Dorsol Plants, Pete Spalding, Michael Taylor-Judd, Ron Angeles, and music by Chas Redmond, who is tune guru for more than a few local events:
Ellis Bros in stage at Delridge Day Festival pic.twitter.com/pE6sDp6zDU
— chas redmond (@chasredmond) August 9, 2014
12:38 PM: In addition to community groups/nonprofits – North Delridge Neighborhood Council, which is screenprinting its (Heart) Delridge logo onto T-shirts you bring, or bags they have…
….Also: West Seattle Food Bank (whose board member Rev. Ron Marshall pointed out they have a fundraising raffle going on):
Also: Westwood-Roxhill-Arbor Heights Community Council, West Seattle Transportation Coalition, 34th District Democrats, Seattle Neighborhood Group, Nature Consortium …
… and more – local businesses are here too, including Skylark Café and Club and Mode Music Studios, neighbors in the 3800 block of Delridge Way SW:
12:49 PM: SPD Chief Kathleen O’Toole is here, as promised. We photographed her with Karen Berge and Deb Greer from the West Seattle Block Watch Captains Network:
SFD Engine 36 was here for a while but had to rush off on an aid call a few minutes ago. (added) SPD Mounted Patrol horses were the center of attention:
If you missed the horses today – the Mounted Patrol Unit’s next open house at its Westcrest Park-adjacent headquarters will be 11 am-5 pm on Saturday, September 20th.
2:30 PM: Half an hour left until Delridge Day wraps up – such a beautiful afternoon. Hard to think about rain in the midst of the sun, but RainWise is here, to help you envision a raingarden at your home:
In some areas of West Seattle, you can get a rebate to install raingarden and/or cistern-type “green stormwater infrastructure” to cut down on how much of your stormwater runoff goes into the sewer system – find out more here.
2:54 PM: Moments to go and booths are folding up. SPD Chief O’Toole was here for a couple hours but departed a short time ago. We’ll be adding a bit more to this coverage in the hours ahead, but also wanted to mention an event for which we just got a flyer – mark your calendar for the North Delridge Tree Walk, starting near the boulders at Greg Davis Park 10:30 am Saturday, September 13th, five weeks from today. As for the rest of today – there’s more going on around West Seattle, and here in the park, the wading pool is open for almost four more hours!
Hours to go until summer’s next West Seattle festival – Delridge Day is happening Saturday in the park adjacent to the community center at Delridge Way/SW Genesee, 11 am-3 pm. Here again is the activity schedule and music schedule:
Other reasons to come to Delridge Day:
*Again this year, the Seattle Police Foundation-presented “Picnic at the Precinct” also is happening concurrently, at the park instead of the precinct. We’re told new Seattle Police Chief Kathleen O’Toole is expected to visit, though we don’t have a time on that yet – that would be her first official public visit to West Seattle.
*Want to talk/ask about the SW Roxbury Safety Project, including a potential “road diet” for Roxbury from 17th SW westward? SDOT will be at Delridge Day, ready to chat.
*Want to find out about the North Delridge Action Plan? City reps are ready to talk about that too.
*Live and/or work (etc.) in North Delridge? Meet your community council – the North Delridge Neighborhood Council – which is offering freebies including a chance to screenprint the (Heart) Delridge emblem on a shirt (you bring it) or tote bag (free blank bags available). Two screenprinting stations! And, adds NDNC’s Amanda Leonard, “We will even have a drying rack so you can enjoy the rest of the festival without dealing with wet paint.”
*Check out the close-to-finished Youngstown Cultural Arts Center mural right across the street from the festival zone, along the east side of the 4400 block of Delridge Way.
*Safety and preparedness: The West Seattle Block Watch Captains Network and West Seattle Be Prepared will be there.
… and so will we. 11 am-3 pm, Delridge CC Park, come have fun!
Just stopped by the mural project outside Youngstown Cultural Arts Center for a quick update. We reported last week on the start of work on what was a blank 200-foot wall along Delridge Way SW beneath the center’s parking lot, with participants in a summer arts-jobs program, same one that led to the signal-box mini-murals last year. This mural is still scheduled for completion and “unveiling” one week from tomorrow; its features so far include not just Northwest beauty like water and mountains but also a hint of the nearby maritime industry (the iconic red cranes).
One week from today (on August 9th), it’s West Seattle’s next big summer festival – Delridge Day, in the park next to Delridge Community Center (Delridge/Genesee). Here’s the schedule for the day, just made public by organizers:
And remember the free outdoor screening of “The Lego Movie” in the park the night before (9 pm Friday, August 8th) – here’s our preview of that.
West Seattle’s next roadside-raingarden project, officially dubbed the Delridge Natural Drainage System, is in the “early design” process. Next chance for neighbors to get updates and ask questions has just been announced – a “project-design walk-and-talk” event on Tuesday, August 12th, starting at the corner of 17th and Elmgrove (map) at 6 pm. The updates, according to this postcard that’s on its way to nearby mailboxes, will include a chance to “review proposed design concepts and plantings.” Like the county-initiated “green stormwater infrastructure” raingardens under construction in Westwood and Sunrise Heights, the goal is to reduce the stormwater going into the combined-sewer system, which in turn should reduce overflows at the end of the line. Construction is scheduled for next year.
Stopped by Youngstown Cultural Arts Center at midday to check on the progress of this year’s mural project – and we discovered the young artists are officially starting work on the mural today! They actually have been working on the 210-foot retaining wall along Delridge for a while now, but first job was to get it primed, and now that that’s done, it’s mural-painting time. That’ll take about two weeks – the grand unveiling is planned for August 14th. As noted here last month, this is part of the same city-funded summertime program that resulted in more than a dozen mini-murals on signal boxes along Delridge last year. The youth are working with professional artists, and according to this online update, they welcome community volunteers, too.
Program names go by … say, the Seattle Youth Violence Prevention Initiative … but we don’t often see/hear the results of activities related to those programs. Here, for a change, is a result. In the photo is Terry, one of the participants in a SYVPI project that led to the teardown and rebuild of that custom vintage motorcycle over the course of a 10-week after-school (etc.) project. He did it with MISSIONmoto, a nonprofit “motorcycle ministry” with garage space near Morgan Junction, which invited youth from the SYVPI program at North Delridge-based Southwest Youth and Family Services to “do a complete teardown and rebuild of a custom vintage motorcycle” – a 1973 Honda CB750K, to be precise. It was a pilot partnership, MISSIONmoto explains; we photographed Terry and the motorcycle at a celebratory barbecue held Thursday afternoon at SWYFS.
That flyer is just in, courtesy of Pete Spalding, one of the organizers of next month’s Delridge Day festival. It’s a new addition to the celebration – an outdoor movie in the Delridge Community Center park the night before Delridge Day. That means at 9 pm Friday night, August 8th, you’re invited to the free screening of “The Lego Movie.” Then on Saturday, August 8th, 11 am-3 pm, the Delridge Day festival takes over the park; the music lineup is already out:
11:00 Bill Wolford – world music, alt folk
12:00 Ellis Brothers – jazz
1:00 The Slags – rock and reggae
2:00 Roo and the Few – Americana
The park is at Delridge/Genesee, south and west of Delridge Skatepark. More festival details to come.
Sarah, Susan, Constance, and Ariana posed with leafy greens at the first Delridge Grocery Friday Farmstand because that’s all they had left by the time we got there at 7 pm. Ariana reports the stand had a line for the first two hours as buyers scooped up all the fruit. We mentioned the produce offerings in this morning’s daily preview; next Friday, they’re likely to have more raspberries and blueberries, cherries, peaches, greens, tomatoes, summer squash, and green onions, among other offerings. The farmstand is a sort of appetizer for the future Delridge Grocery, the cooperative store that volunteers are working to open in the commercial space of DESC’s Cottage Grove Commons. To add to the festive flavor of today’s stand, live music was provided by Thaddeus Spae.
Look for the farmstand’s second edition just south of Delridge Branch Library (5423 Delridge Way SW) next Friday (July 25th), 4:30-7:30 pm.
What does your community need to thrive, to be a great place to live, work, visit? Right now, the city is getting ready to draw up a North Delridge Action Plan for that section of eastern West Seattle – as explained here – and looking for people to be part of an advisory committee. Your participation would include not only making suggestions and offering opinions, but also reviewing what other community members are saying as part of the process. Creating the plan is expected to take a year or so, during which there will be monthly meetings and three community events. You have two weeks to apply – August 1st is the deadline – contact Jake Hellenkamp (jake.hellenkamp@seattle.gov) for an application, and if you have questions about the plan itself, you can contact David Goldberg at DavidW.Goldberg@seattle.gov. The city’s also planning to have a booth at the Delridge Day festival on Saturday, August 9th, to share info about the planning process. Don’t find yourself five or ten years down the line wondering “whose idea was THIS?” – jump in now.
Starting next Friday, another farmstand plans weekly sales of fresh produce in West Seattle – this one, announced today by the future Delridge Grocery:
Exciting news! Our Friday Farmstand launches this week! Finally – fresh, local, sustainable fruits and vegetables in Delridge!
Come by every Friday all summer:
4:30-7:30
5435 Delridge Way SW
Two doors south of the library, across the street from our future full-service grocery locationCelebrate our launch this Friday, July 18th, with free lemonade at the farmstand, and a fun comedy event afterward from 8-12 at the Skylark!
Want to be more involved?
Volunteer and take home free produce! Help run the produce stand and take home some leftovers! It’s easy and fun, and we’ll provide training. Sign up for volunteer shifts online.
Join the Canning Club!
Do you like canning pickles and jams to save for the winter? Join Friday Farmstand Canning Club and get first crack and discount prices on bulk quantities of leftover produce! To sign up, e-mail Farmstand Manager Ariana at taylorstanley@gmail.com with your name and phone number. You must be available to pickup produce after the farmstand, at 7:30 on Fridays.
Delridge Grocery, which has its roots in the Delridge Produce Cooperative effort launched five years ago, is working toward opening a co-op grocery store in the commercial space of the Cottage Grove Commons building at 5444 Delridge Way SW.
At midday today, West Seattle’s Fire Station 36 in North Delridge welcomed visitors to an open house with tours of its upgrades and renovations:
The station recently reopened after about nine months of work – read more about it here – during which time Station 36’s crews were temporarily stationed at a spot off Harbor Avenue SW. Among those on hand today, Fire Chief Gregory Dean:
And history, courtesy of the Last Resort Fire Department:
The next West Seattle fire station to relocate for an upgrade is Station 32 in The Junction, which will be demolished and rebuilt on its current site; during the project, that station will be temporarily relocated to city-owned property on 40th SW across from the Masonic Center.
One Saturday night in July of last year, a pickup truck sped through a red light on southbound Delridge Way at Kenyon, hit an SUV (its wreckage is at right), and rolled. 43-year-old Michael Fisher was thrown from the truck and died at the scene; another passenger was hurt, as was the SUV’s driver. The pickup’s under-the-influence driver, 44-year-old William Edmon, was arrested that night and has since pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide and reckless endangerment. We just discovered it in a periodic check of ongoing case files; the plea was entered in late May. Edmon has a long record, as reported here when he was charged last year, including 13 instances of driving with a suspended license, three DUI cases, and cases including inattentive driving, ignition-interlock violation, reckless driving, property destruction, harassment, hit-and-run, malicious mischief, plus several “failure to appear” charges along the way. Because of his record, prosecutors are recommending a prison sentence that would total 160 months – just over 13 years – with 72 of those months as a “DUI enhancement.” The sentencing is scheduled for July 25th, postponed from a date last month so the victim’s relatives can be present.
(Station 36 rendering courtesy SFD)
You’re invited to Seattle Fire Station 36 11 am-1 pm this Saturday, for its dedication/open house. Station 36 has been going through upgrades and renovations for nine months, with the station’s crews temporarily relocated to a site off Harbor Avenue, but now the work’s done and it’s time to celebrate. First 100 visitors get free hot dogs courtesy of International Association of Fire Fighters Local 27; special kids’ activities too (as if touring the station and checking out the firefighting equipment wasn’t enough to impress most kids!). Station 36 is at 3600 23rd SW (map)
Design is under way for the third area of West Seattle to get roadside raingardens to help reduce runoff that contributes to combined-sewer overflows (CSO), and project team members are now going door-to-door to make sure residents are aware. As outlined at a meeting last November, the raingardens will be built in an area of South Delridge primarily involving several blocks of 17th SW – between SW Kenyon and SW Henderson – that’s also part of a future greenway. Seattle Public Utilities is the lead agency, and says:
Project design is happening through 2014 and into 2015. Throughout the upcoming months, SPU will continue to work with project area residents to finalize the design. During design and leading up to construction, pre-construction activities may include geotechnical and survey crews in the neighborhood, and utility relocation work prior to construction. Construction of the natural drainage system is scheduled to begin in summer of 2015.
The city’s project website is here; the project reps going door-to-door are distributing two infosheets, here and here. And if you have questions, be at the Delridge Neighborhoods District Council meeting next Wednesday (June 18th, 7 pm) at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center – an SPU rep will be there with an update on the project that’s officially known as “Delridge Natural Drainage Systems.”
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