West Seattle, Washington
06 Wednesday
FIRST REPORT, 8:24 PM: Police are investigating a shooting in the 9200 block of Delridge Way. Per the scanner, a man around 30 years old was shot in both legs. They’re looking for at least three people reported to have fled the scene.
8:55 PM UPDATE: Just back from the scene, which cleared fairly quickly once the medic unit left to take the victim to Harborview Medical Center. We talked with James from Greenlight across Delridge, who told us he heard what sounded like six gunshots and went outside and saw the victim in the small triangle mini-park across the street by the bus stop. We also talked to a sergeant who remained at the scene while other officers fanned out – no word of any arrest so far, but police are searching.
9:17 PM UPDATE: SPD Blotter says the victim is 17 years old and was shot after two “unknown male suspects” approached him at the bus stop. (No mention of a female who was reported in initial scanner traffic to have fled the scene.) Here’s their update, which also describes the victim’s wounds as non-life-threatening.
(WSB photo, taken this morning)
Two months after demolition of the old houses on the site, construction work is now ramping up at the site of DESC’s future 66-unit Delridge Supportive Housing complex in the 5400 block of Delridge Way, north of SW Findlay. As noted in the project FAQ, onstruction is expected to last about a year.
And tonight, the nonprofit that is likely to open a co-op grocery store in the DESC building’s retail space has its next monthly meeting – with big issues including: How about a new name?
Name the Co-op!!! The Delridge Produce Cooperative idea has evolved from a plan for a co-op produce stand to a small, but full-service, community-owned multi-stakeholder grocery store! This means the store will not only be a source for healthy food, including meat, eggs, dairy and seafood but a support network and financial opportunity for large, small, and backyard farmers. The Co-op’s employees will also have an equal stake in the store. Our current name is misleading for some and we have received feedback regarding a name change. We wish to make another round of reusable strawberry bags and founding member t-shirts!! So, we need to choose our name! Please help.
They’re taking suggestions via their Facebook page. And whether you have an idea for a name, or not, you’re welcome at their meeting tonight:
We invite anyone with the time and inclination to join us at this very exciting step of the grocery store creation. We are welcoming founding Board Members and still looking for core volunteers to help at this stage.
Our November meeting is this Monday evening! All interested volunteers are needed to help plan our next steps. Teresa Young, Organizational Development Specialist from the Northwest Cooperative Development Center will join us to find out how the NWCDC can assist us at this stage. We are making final edits to our business plan and reviewing the first draft of our bylaws. This special meeting will be from 5:30-7:30pm, Monday November 26th at the Delridge Library.
(WSB photo by Patrick Sand)
6:31 AM: We’re checking on a house-fire call in the 9000 block of 16th SW. It appears to have been fairly short-lived, with an investigator called just a few minutes after the original call at 5:09 am, but we’ve gone to the scene to find out.
6:41 AM: According to the investigator on scene, this was another case – like Saturday night’s fire on 14th SW – of an “illegally occupied” house, across the street from the Salvation Army center. Neighbors told fire crews that transients are frequently seen at the site. The front of the building shows significant fire damage; nobody was hurt. Official word of the cause isn’t expected until later.
8:03 AM: Also like the Saturday night fire scene, this house has a record of city-code complaints, including a case listed as “not resolved,” with problems including “vacant, open to entry, overgrown, outdoor storage of junk.”
9:33 AM: SFD spokesperson Kyle Moore tells WSB this was an accidental fire: “Transients inhabited the house and created a cooking fire in the living room which resulted in the fire to the vacant home. The estimated dollar loss is $151,000.”
If you’re interested in the Delridge Greenway – a city project to designate a stretch of road through North Delridge as a bicycle/pedestrian-safe alternative to braving Delridge Way – but couldn’t go to Thursday night’s open house, here’s a recap on the North Delridge Neighborhood Council site, by NDNC’s transportation chair Jake Vanderplas. Jake writes that about 30 people showed up to discuss ideas with city reps and each other. The city is scheduled to return on January 15th with a proposal, as first announced last month.
As first reported in our coverage of the North Delridge Neighborhood Council meeting this past Monday – and information we found online afterward – the contract for next year’s big Delridge repaving/road-rebuilding project has been awarded. And now that the city knows the price, it also knows how far the paving will stretch – SDOT had said that depending on the bids, it would be able to add more of Delridge, and possibly even some of 16th. As noted in our earlier story, the contractor is Gary Merlino Construction, and the winning bid includes the “first additive” – which means Delridge will be repaved from Orchard all the way to Roxbury, but 16th will not be included. Read on for the official city announcement:Read More
(UPDATE: The bid just awarded will include Delridge all the way to Roxbury, but not 16th)
Roads, raingardens, greenways, beautification, and elections comprised the topics tackled at Monday night’s North Delridge Neighborhood Council meeting – starting with an update on the big paving project in the works for the south half of Delridge Way:
Earlier this month, SDOT reps told the North Delridge Neighborhood Council (WSB coverage here) that the process of creating a “neighborhood greenway” – a walking/biking-safe zone, proposed for 26th SW – was slowing down a bit, and that community open houses would be the next step. Today, the West Seattle Greenways group shared the news that the dates have been set for those open houses. As outlined on this SDOT webpage, the first one is at 6:30 pm November 14th at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way SW), to look at these questions:
How is the experience of walking and biking in North Delridge?
What locations are the most challenging for people when they walk or bike?
Where do people want to walk and bike?
What should be the goals of a Delridge Neighborhood Greenway?
There *will* be a presentation (6:45 pm) as part of the open house. The second one will be on January 15th, featuring city recommendations and information on what happens next.
10:35 PM: In South Delridge, crews are at a house fire in the 9000 block of 21st SW, just reported as under control and almost out.
10:39 PM: According to SFD, the fire started “in a wall,” according to the first report they got. They’re still checking on some possible hot spots in the attic. SFD says no injuries have been reported.
TUESDAY MORNING UPDATE: SFD public-information officer Kyle Moore says they’ve determined the fire was accidental:
The occupant of the home was working on plumbing when the heat from the plumbing work ignited the wall and extended into the attic space.
At 10:10 p.m., a call came in the Fire Alarm Center reporting flames coming from the wall of a home in the 9000 block of 21st Avenue SW. Engine Company 11 arrived to find smoke coming from the roof of the two-story home. The firefighters used an attack hose line to knock down the flames while the first in Ladder Company searched the residence for occupants and then headed to the roof to cut holes in order to vent the smoke and heat.
Firefighters discovered the fire inside the walls of the home. The flames extended up the walls into the attic. Crews removed two walls and brought down ceilings in order to completely extinguish the flames. It took approximately 30 minutes to completely knock down this fire.
Three occupants safely evacuated the home and there were no reported injuries. The damage estimate is $65,000 to the structure and $5,000 to the contents.
Cider time! Join North Delridge neighbors under a tent at the Delridge P-Patch (accessible from either Delridge or 25th, 5000 block) till 4 pm. When we dropped by, Cooper was one of the young helpers. BYO apples – washed – and give the cider press (on loan from the West Seattle Tool Library) a try! More info here.
The third Southwest Design Review Board meeting for 9051 20th SW isn’t until October 25th, as we first noted two weeks ago, but the “packet” is already available through the city Department of Planning and Development – you can see it here. According to the packet, the project is now proposed for 41 units, three of them live-work, and 3,300 square feet of commercial space. Along 20th SW, it is proposed for four floors, and along Barton on its south side it is proposed for three, as shown in this design from the packet:
This project, on a site where two boarded-up and vandalized houses now sit, had two “early design guidance” meetings because the design changed dramatically after the first one, into one building instead of two. Its next meeting, which could be the last if the board gives its blessing, is scheduled for 6:30 pm October 25th at the Senior Center of West Seattle (California and Oregon in The Junction).
Thanks to Chris for the tip via Twitter – most of the “rechannelization” striping is in on the north end of Delridge Way SW, basically between the south side of Youngstown Cultural Arts Center and the West Seattle Bridge. Above, our dashcam view driving the northbound side just now; next, the southbound view:
The rechannelization was announced as part of a plan announced last spring to speed up Route 120 buses – we just happened to wind up behind one while our camera was rolling on the southbound side. As you might notice in the video, some painting remains to be done – bike lane and bus lane stenciling, for example. Here’s the county’s explanation of what was changed (see the link in that page’s sidebar).
ORIGINAL REPORT, 12:46 PM: On a routine check of the city-permit files, we noticed something unusual a few days ago: Permits issued for a Delridge site to include “boarding houses.” Also catching our eye besides that seldom-seen term, the fact that the permit applications were filed more than three and a half years ago, and granted just now – not unheard of, but not common, either. The permits issued last week are for 4546 Delridge Way and 4548 Delridge Way, the overgrown site in our photo (between two houses); there is a demolition permit for a foundation at the latter address, and a construction permit for each address, described as “establish use … as single-family residence, construct boarding house.” (The one for 4546 is here; the one for 4548 is here.) A city website featured the boarding-house classification back in June, as a new “director’s rule” was implemented by the Department of Planning and Development. Seeking specifics about this project, we called the architect listed on the DPD pages as a contact, Novion; they noted that the project – as the DPD pages show – started several years ago as townhouses, and “the use has changed” because “the economy changed” – the idea is indeed, according to Novion, that the design would be “providing multiple bedrooms within a dwelling” and “the potential is that they would be rented or leased by the bedroom.” The architecture firm didn’t know about the current timetable for construction; the permits are good through 2014, so it could be soon – or could be a while.
6:40 PM UPDATE: We just heard from a neighbor who says a handwritten note was delivered yesterday saying construction will start on Monday.
If there were a co-op grocery store on Delridge Way, what would you like to see it carry, and how would you like to see it operate? If you can spare six minutes, Delridge Produce Cooperative is still accepting responses to a survey it launched a few days ago – short, anonymous, but extremely helpful to an up-and-coming organization that is in talks for the retail space planned in the 5400 block of Delridge Way when the DESC supportive-housing building opens – not just for produce, but for a co-op grocery store that would carry much more. The survey is here.
One year ago, the idea of a 26th SW “Greenway” through North Delridge was mostly just a dream. Now it’s edging closer to reality, and that was the biggest topic at Monday night’s North Delridge Neighborhood Council meeting:
(Click image to see larger version as PDF)
Though we didn’t publish a standalone daily preview today – please remember, ALL the preview information is available on the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar at all times, 24/7, for the current day and future days/weeks/months – we did want to make sure South Delridge residents remember to check out Seattle Public Utilities‘ big community briefing tonight: It’s about the possibility of raingardens and/or new storage tanks to reduce combined-sewer overflows that have been going into Longfellow Creek. Here’s the city webpage with an overview. We’ve reported on this three times in recent weeks – a preview here before the Delridge Neighborhood District Council was briefed (here), followed a week later by the Highland Park Action Committee briefing (here) – but tonight is the big chance to get details and answers. 6 pm at the Salvation Army Center, 9050 16th SW.
Just in from SDOT:
SDOT crews will resurface an area of Delridge Way SW between SW Andover and SW Genesee streets from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. today (October 4). One lane of traffic will remain open in each direction. This spot repair was funded by King County Metro.
Chief Sealth International High School (2600 SW Thistle) is just a few blocks from the stretch of Delridge Way SW that is scheduled for a big repaving/resurfacing project next year, with some rechannelization plans included (as detailed on this city flyer). It’s also the place to take your questions, concerns, other comments, about the project, till 7:30 pm, as an open house is under way right now, with city reps on hand in the school library (go up the steps to the entrance off the main parking lot and follow the signs down the hall). No presentation is scheduled; it’s just a drop-in event. SDOT staffers on hand include the project manager as well as specialists in some of the areas involved, from pavement to traffic control. The info-boards on easels around the room include new graphics we hadn’t seen before, including two boards that explain the detours planned for southbound Delridge drivers during the year-long project:
The city expects the work to start in January, and it may include the southernmost few blocks of 16th SW in the city limits, too, if the money is found.
ADDED WEDNESDAY MORNING: We’re expecting to get the newest graphics from SDOT in a PDF we can share – but for starters, we did photograph more of them last night, and you can click ahead to see the images:
If you’ve been in North Delridge the past week and wondered about a section of 25th SW blocked off with heavy equipment working behind ROAD CLOSED signs – this is a Neighborhood Street Fund project, which means that community members applied for city funding – and got the grant. SDOT has a webpage about the project, which is along 25th between Brandon and Findlay, with this basic description of what’s happening:
New sidewalks, curbs, rain gardens, street trees in planting strip area.
These changes will: improve the pedestrian environment by providing a landscaped buffer from traffic; improve drainage, and traffic-calm the street. The new street width on 25th Ave SW will be 25’ wide with parallel on-street parking on both sides of the street. The narrowed street width will have a traffic-calming benefit for the neighborhood and further enhance pedestrian safety.
The process of getting a grant and getting the project built takes a while – it’s been two years since we reported the city decided this would get funding. But if there is something in your neighborhood – in city right-of-way (street, alley, planting strips) – that you think might qualify, the next round of applications is due December 17th, and this recent SDOT writeup explains how to go after a share of the money.
Last time we checked in with DESC regarding status/timetable on the 66-unit Delridge Supportive Housing project, executive director Bill Hobson said construction was expected to start in the first half of November. However, we noticed there’s work on the site now – demolition crews (you can’t see the backhoe in our photo, but it’s there). So we checked back with Hobson, who explained via e-mail:
We are demolishing the buildings on the site under a separate demolition permit. We wanted to get this done during August just to get the site cleaned up, but the general contractor encountered significant amounts of asbestos that had to be abated per code and delayed the schedule. The demolition contractor mobilized on site Wednesday and has completed the prep work … and hopefully will have the buildings down and the site cleaned of in the next 10 work days. Actual construction will not begin until sometime between Nov 1st and 10th.
Things are very busy along that section of Delridge right now; SDOT is also doing sidewalk ramp work at the Delridge/Findlay intersection.
Two quick followups, shared by community members:
That’s the brand-new slide at Sanislo Elementary, in a photo shared by Lynette Jeung from the Sanislo PTA. Vandals blew up the left side on the 4th of July, as we reported the next day; the district metal shop confirmed to the PTA about three weeks later that it would make a replacement, and Lynette tells WSB, “Needless to say, the kids are enjoying having their slide back. We appreciate everyone’s support and concern during this time.”
Next, a police car on Delridge means good news for the new opened K-5 STEM at Boren:
As reported here earlier this month, there are “School Zone 20 mph” signs along Delridge Way SW by the school, but no flashing “school zone” beacons, and parents have been standing out in front of the school with signs of their own to try to convince passing drivers to slow down. So today, according to April, who shared the photo, the Aggressive Driver Response Team came out to add some extra muscle.
What had been a boat business at 5050 Delridge Way SW is in the process of conversion to a martial-arts/fitness center. David Stegman from West Seattle Fight & Fitness e-mailed us to share the news of what he and his business partners have in progress there, and shared photos too, saying, “We are very excited to be a part of this growing community of local businesses!” They’ll specialize in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, which he will teach: “I’m currently one of the highest-ranking Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belts in the Northwest and the only one that lives and will be teaching in West Seattle!” They’ll have a “full-fitness gym area,” too – here’s where it’ll be:
(More remodeling photos are on their Facebook page.) And they’re planning on classes for children ages 3 and up – Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, tumbling, and Tae Kwon Do. He’s expecting West Seattle Fight & Fitness to open sometime next month.
In the days leading up to the announcement of his budget proposal for next year, Mayor McGinn has been parceling out parts of the plan. Today’s announcement: 10 extra hours a week for each of seven community centers in the city, after-school and late-night, to “provid(e) at-risk youth with additional safe outlets outside school hours.” Two are in this area: Delridge and South Park. The announcement also included $1.68 million for expansion of the Youth Violence Prevention Initiative.
Just last week, we reported that the city’s Delridge Way SW repaving project had gone out to bid. Today, SDOT sends word that the project – Orchard to Henderson for sure, possibly also including Henderson to Roxbury on Delridge and 16th – will start in January and last up to a year, with crews working in phases, south to north. A pre-construction open house has just been scheduled for Tuesday, October 2nd, 5:30-7:30 pm at the Learning Resource Center/Library at Chief Sealth International High School (2600 SW Thistle). As reported previously, reconfiguration/rechannelization between Myrtle and Kenyon is also part of this project – and there’s now a webpage with graphics/map, here.
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