West Seattle, Washington
02 Sunday
First, new information on the upcoming 16th SW paving project near South Seattle Community College, from Rick Sheridan at the city Transportation Department – he says the schedule is now pushed back about a month:
An update on the paving work that will occur on 16th Avenue SW this summer. The project, previously scheduled for June, will now instead begin in late July. This is being done to accelerate our work on 4th Avenue S between Royal Brougham and Airport Way, and lessen its impact on the traveling public and nearby businesses.
We will still be able to repave 16th Avenue SW during the summer session at South Seattle Community College, when student traffic through the area is lower. The work will last approximately six weeks and require a detour.
Here’s the official city page about the project. Meantime, a report from Marco in High Point, regarding the 30th SW sidewalk work between High Point and Delridge, right after this photo he just sent:
After weeks of construction on 30th Ave SW they removed the ‘road closed’ sign at the bottom of the hill, but not yet at the top (Juneau).
The city’s most recent update, published online earlier this month, said the project was on schedule to be done “in early June.”
Betsy Hoffmeister from the North Delridge Neighborhood Council has just shared these three designs from which the new Delridge Community Center playground (recent WSB coverage here) will be chosen. She also says community fundraising that’s needed for the project only has $350 to go. Here’s the full specs for the design above; here are the full specs for the design below:
And here are the specs for this next one:
We’re checking on the proper pathway for public feedback; meantime, feel free to comment here for starters! And remember there’s a plant-sale fundraiser for the playground project at Delridge Day, Youngstown Arts Center this Saturday (WSB story here – by the way, we’ll be reporting live from Delridge Day throughout the event, so hope to see you there!). ADDED 9:09 PM: More info on what happens next, sent by Holli:
Cast your design vote – you can e-mail helpdelridgeplay@gmail.com with your pick, or attend a public meeting at the Delridge Community Center on Monday, June 1 from 7:30pm-8:30pm. The designs will also be on display this Saturday, at Youngstown Arts Center as part of Delridge Day which runs from 11 am-5 pm.
We’re looking for all the help we can get to build the playground on July 17th. We’ll have the equipment, breakfast, lunch, water and free exercise! Registration starts at 7:45 am, building begins at 8:30 am and ends around 2:30 pm for some fun.
Anyone interested in being a Build Captain on Build Day needs to attend an orientation on Prep Day, July 15th. All are welcome to help on Prep Day.
Food Committee: We also need someone to lead the Food Committee! A few volunteers are doing double-duty on the Food Committee and have done some preparations, but we need a leader.
To volunteer contact Chris via email at helpdelridgeplay@gmail.com or call (206) 499-3733.
Also, we’d love to put the spotlight on some local musical talent to entertain our volunteers at a closing ceremony that afternoon around 3pm, and at a grand opening the following week. Please contact Holli Margell via e-mail at holli.margell@gmail.com if you would like to perform.
Design note: We can only chose from these three designs. Changing any element is no longer an option – it is too far along in the process.
Thanks to Feet First for sharing photos from this morning’s trash pickup involving Sanislo Elementary School students who gathered at the Southwest Precinct for a special-mission walk to school – part of the Go! Project, a Safe Routes to School Program funded by the state Department of Transportation and facilitated by Feet First. We took you along earlier this month during another special Safe Routes to School event with Sanislo families (here’s our coverage) and they’ve been doing something special every week all month long.
Lisa Quinn from Feet First tells WSB they picked up 20 pounds of trash this morning!
Thanks to North Delridge Neighborhood Council’s Mike Dady for sending word that 4117 Delridge (map) is no more. It’s one of the five sites he included on the “Delridge problem properties” tour that drew two City Council members and a delegation of other high-ranking city reps a month and a half ago (WSB coverage is here and here). We reported 11 days ago that its demolition permit had been granted, to close a city-violation “unfit premises” case; also in that report, we noted that one of the councilmembers who attended the tour, Sally Clark, is taking comment on the concept of making it easier for houses like this to be demolished even if the owner doesn’t have a replacement plan.
Update from the Parks and Green Spaces Levy Oversight Committee meeting downtown (the committee includes West Seattleites Neal Adams, Cindi Barker and Pete Spalding): 
The committee unanimously approved what the Skatepark Advisory Committee recommended earlier this month – moving $250,000 to the Delridge Skatepark project, from the levy’s designated funding for a future “skatespot” at the Myrtle Reservoir park site. City Council approval is needed next. The Delridge project originally was supposed to have $700,000 funding in this year’s state budget, but that got cut at the past minute; with community enthusiasm running high for Delridge Skatepark, though, the Parks Department has been trying to find the money somewhere else, and this will be added to $500,000 that materialized when the Hiawatha Playfield improvements came in way under budget. Lots of other interesting info here tonight about plans for the park-levy money: Parks executive Kevin Stoops says that the prices for acquiring land are so favorable right now, the department could move quickly to acquire more than a few sites around the city – from greenbelts to future neighborhood parks to garden sites. (Photo from last week’s Seattle Design Commission review of the skatepark’s “schematic design”; WSB coverage here.)
This was originally supposed to happen during Sustainable West Seattle Festival weekend three weeks ago, but got postponed till today: Alex Wang from Neighborhood House wrote to let us know that the big banner to promote the High Point Neighborhood Center‘s solar array – 256 panels spanning 6,000 square feet, biggest of its kind in the state – is now up, in space donated on the west side of the West Seattle Nucor plant. Neighborhood House will be kicking off a campaign on the summer solstice to solicit sponsors for the solar panels. By the way, if you’re interested in a hard-hat construction tour of the under-construction HPNC– not just being built green, but being built LEED Gold — Wendy Hughes-Jelen of Green Spaces Real Estate has arranged a rare opportunity to do just that, early next Wednesday morning — find out about it (and how to RSVP) here.
That’s Micah Shapiro from Grindline, the firm designing the future Delridge Skatepark, explaining its newly unveiled “schematic design” to the Seattle Design Commission this afternoon at City Hall downtown. We’re expecting a digital copy soon so we can give you a closer look at the design, but this will have to do for now. It has one “bowl” with both beginner- and expert-suited areas, and the half-circle-shaped park will have “skatable paths” around its perimeter. Design Commission members were unanimous in their approval of the “schematic design,” which won’t make way for a “final design” until after one more community meeting (which project manager Kelly Davidson said today is expected to happen in late June), though they did ask for a safety feature between the skatepark and the nearby wading pool so that small children don’t dash from the pool into the skatepark’s bowl. Commission members also were impressed by what the project team described as the “phenomenal public support” for the skatepark; Davidson said she hasn’t received a single call from someone upset about it – instead, she said, she keeps getting calls asking when it’ll be done. As for the answer to that: First, the funding has to be nailed down; as reported here recently, even though the original funding was taken out of the city budget, replacement money has been found from two sources: $500,000 saved from two other Parks Department projects (including the Hiawatha Playfield renovations) that came in under budget, and $250,000 in Parks Levy dollars that will be moved from a proposed “skate spot” at Myrtle Reservoir (where neighbors previously expressed strong opposition to a skate feature), if the Parks Levy Oversight Committee (which meets next week) and City Council approve. Delridge Skatepark would be about 12,000 square feet, which the project team says would roughly tie with the upcoming Seattle Center skatepark for second biggest in the city (largest is the recently opened Lower Woodland Skatepark, at 17,000 square feet).
(photo replaced 1:15 pm with better shot of police when Delridge was blocked)
Thanks to those who have e-mailed and called about police, reportedly with guns drawn, at Delridge/Holden. On our way to check out.
12:02 PM UPDATE: Northbound traffic is being turned around at Kenyon a couple blocks south of this scene, and according to the scanner, Delridge also is about to be blocked at Orchard (Arco intersection) – so avoid the area. Because of the roadblock it will take us a few more minutes to get close – just talked to Seattle Police’s media unit and they don’t have much information yet, aside from “We have the SWAT team out attempting to locate some people.”
12:23 PM UPDATE: The “command post” for this is a stone’s throw from the precinct, at Delridge/Webster. But we still have no information on exactly what the search is all about. We’re told a media-unit officer is on the way to deal with us and the rest of the media.
12:47 PM UPDATE: This is winding up and the road is being reopened. Police say they have arrested a male suspect in his mid-20s in a car, and that he is believed to have been involved in a “robbery with force.” SPD is now more actively using Twitter, and described this in a tweet as a “warrant service” in the 7500 block of 21st SW.
1 PM UPDATE: Listening to the short video clip we’re uploading from Officer Renee Witt‘s brief briefing at the scene – the robbery in which the suspect was wanted was a “takeover-style robbery” that she says happened on May 12th. Checking for incidents resembling that description.
1:11 PM UPDATE: Here’s the entirety of what Officer Witt told us and other media at the scene:
2:43 PM UPDATE: Checking back with police, Officer Witt tells us they have NOT confirmed possible reports that someone else might have been involved in the same case, so this arrest closes the search for now.
4:47 PM UPDATE: SPDBlotter has a short item – the only new information is that the suspect’s age is now specified as 24.
10:42 PM UPDATE: Tony Wright took photos at the southwest edge of the “containment zone” during the search. He and we happened to notice that some of the action was outside the same house where we (and he) photographed a Bellevue SWAT team visit a month ago – here’s his photo from today:
We don’t know if the house (where WSB photojournalist Christopher Boffoli also covered a story earlier in the spring) is directly linked to anyone involved in the case.
That photo is from eight days ago, when dozens of kids — and grownups — gathered at Delridge Community Center to sketch out and discuss their dreams for the center’s new playground, scheduled to be built in July, with the help of KaBOOM!, which works on projects like this nationwide. (Here’s our story from that day.) While costs will be dramatically lower than usual because of KaBOOM! and sponsors, the community still needs to chip in, and a major fundraiser has just been announced for the May 30th Delridge Day festival at Youngstown Arts Center – Lisa is circulating this message far and wide, and please note there’s a call for volunteers to step forward NOW:
On May 30th, the North Delridge Neighborhood Council will have a booth to promote the project at Delridge Day … We’ll have a display to raise awareness of the need for volunteers to help build the playground, take volunteer sign-ups, and have a donations jar & plant sale to raise a little “seed” money for project incidentals. We’ll also have a free activity where kids can plant seeds to take home.
Here comes the “ask” part–we need:
* volunteers to staff the booth on May 30th
* donations of plants or starts
* people to come by our booth and support our cause!
Should be a fun and an easy event to staff. I can see our sign now: “KaBOOM! and the North Delridge Neighborhood Council: Growing healthy kids and healthy communities.”If you would like to participate by donating plants or starts, or by staffing the booth, contact me at granolagulch[at]earthlink[dot]net or 937-1522.
Skylark Cafe and Club (WSB sponsor) in North Delridge has just announced details of its 3rd anniversary celebration, and the band in the recent clip above, The Apple War, is part of it:
Skylark Celebrates Three Years In Business With Four Local Acts:
Once, Twice, Three Times a Lady-Owned Rock ClubOn June 5, the party commences at 8 pm with throat-singing, tabla-playing DJ Baba James, continues with the downtempo Deepsleep Narcotics Company, kicks it up a notch with westside country-punk heroes The Stevedore, and culminates with indie rock awesomeness The Apple War. The traditional third wedding anniversary gift is “leather,” but we don’t recommend wearing it to this show. You’ll overheat.
Skylark Cafe & Club is quite happy to announce its third year beating the odds. “Bad news affecting the industry is everywhere these days and people are definitely adjusting their lifestyles,” says Jessie SK, owner and booking agent. “We’ve never charged a cover, and now we’re adding a $5 lunch menu and a few domestic draft beers to help lower your tab this summer.”
Highlights of the past year have been…
• Playing some of our favorite local acts on the air with Megan Seling at 107.7 The End’s Locals Only
• Hooking up turntables to the sound system and launching Spin Your Wax on Tuesday evenings
• The amazing 2008 Halloween party with Apple War, We Wrote The Book On Connectors, H Is For Hellgate and more local bands battling to win the Golden Cowbell:
• Getting this sweet review on notfortourists.com
New stuff we are excited about…
• Partnering with Shoofly Pie Company to bring you a variety of freshly baked desserts
• Offering bands multi-track recordings of their set (!) in partnership with The Brewery
• Redesigned website at www.skylarkcafe.com
Some things never change…
• Free, live, original local and touring musical acts Thursday through Sunday, all ages shows on Sunday evenings
• Family-friendly homemade lunch, dinner, and weekend brunch for great prices
• Full menu until midnight Tuesday through Saturday
• Yummy cocktails with premium wells, discounted daily from 3 to 6pm
• Open turntables, open mic, karaoke and weekly chances to win cash money for trivia
If you haven’t been there yet, Skylark is on the north end of Delridge, just south of The Bridge (click and pan this Google Street View and you can see exactly where):
Six weeks after two city councilmembers joined a Delridge delegation on a tour of problem properties – long-vacant houses used by squatters, or otherwise threatening neighborhood health and safety (WSB coverage is here and here) – we have two updates. First, 4117 Delridge (map) – where we got the above video clip during the April 3 tour, with North Delridge Neighborhood Council‘s Mike Dady talking about the frustration that site has caused him for years – now has a demolition permit, issued just yesterday. (We saw a work crew at the site earlier today, though no backhoe in sight.) The permit says demolition will resolve a DPD case. Meanwhile, one of the councilmembers who joined in the tour, Sally Clark, mentioned her action plan in her monthly newsletter that’s just been e-mailed out:
… As a result of the neighborhood’s advocacy we will be looking at a change in the land use code to allow quicker demolition of a single family house. Right now you can’t demolish unless you have a plan and permit to rebuild. This concept makes sense in protecting housing stock and should be retained for multi-family areas. In single-family zones the requirement prevents owners who want to do the right thing from removing derelict homes. It’s not a perfect solution. I would rather see these houses reclaimed and lived in, but for some neighbors the wait for the perfect solution has already been too long. Watch for PLUNC to take up this idea this summer. If you’d like more information or have feedback about the idea of allowing demolition of single-family homes without a new building permit in hand, please contact me.
Here’s Councilmember Clark’s contact info; PLUNC is the Planning, Land Use and Neighborhoods Committee that she chairs — track its meetings and agendas here. Councilmember Tim Burgess was on the tour too and promised at the time to pursue a proposal to make property owners more accountable, though it hasn’t come up yet before the Public Safety (etc.) committee he chairs.
Earlier this week, we reported on major progress toward construction money for the future Delridge Skatepark — 
the Skatepark Advisory Committee‘s recommendation that Parks Levy money for a Myrtle Reservoir skate feature move to the Delridge project (future site at right) instead. And this afternoon, there’s word the in-progress skatepark design will go public next week — the agenda for next week’s Seattle Design Commission meeting just arrived, and it includes a review of the Delridge Skatepark’s schematic design, next Thursday, 2 pm at City Hall. (We’re also watching to see if the proposed money move turns up on the next Parks Levy Oversight Committee agenda – the meeting is set for 7 pm May 26, and when the agenda is out, you’ll find it here.)
Two nights after all those kids (and some accompanying grownups too) got together to design the future Delridge Community Center playground, Betsy Hoffmeister posted this pitch via Facebook, reminding they just need a bit more cash for the project:
Shameless plea for cash: NDNC must raise $670 more in earnest money for the Delridge Community Center Playground Project. Here’s how to send anything from $5 to $670: go here https://app.etapestry.com/hosted/DelridgeNeighborhoodsDevelop/OnlineDonationDNDA.html and make a donation. In the comment box write “FOR NDNC PLAYGROUND PROJECT.” Tell me how much you sent so I can keep track and send a TXU/tax letter.
Betsy’s at betsy (at) hoffmeisters (dot) com. NDNC is North Delridge Neighborhood Council, for which she serves as co-vice chair.
By Kathy Mulady
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
The Delridge Community Center playground-planning meeting (earlier update here) just ended, with a firm idea of the types of toys that will be included in the final design and the preferred colors – purple for the plastic parts, spring green for the poles and sunny yellow for other metal parts like bars and railing.
The playground will be built with the help of KaBoom, with lots of community donations and sweat.
The fun part of the meeting was picking out the equipment; the wish list includes a loopy whoop, whirligig, all kinds of slides, a play house or village shop, a super satellite, e-z digger, and something called “crazy bones.”
Next, the equipment will be arranged into three designs that will be presented at another community meeting in about two weeks.
That was the fun part. There is also a lot of work. All the playground building will happen on Friday, July 17. There will be two days of prep work, before the big build.
Several people volunteered to be team captains, and they would love some more help from the community: Overseeing recruitment is Chris Southam (seattlesouthams@gmail.com); public relations, Holli Margell (holli.margell@gmail.com); safety and maintenance, Benjamin Pulanco (benjaminpulanco@gmail.com) and youth involvement, Lou Edwards (louannedwards@msn.com)
There is also a green committee to make sure the build is environmentally friendly, a food committee, and a logistics committee that is charged with figuring out where all the volunteers will park on the big day.
KaBoom has built about 1,600 of these playgrounds across the country and has the details down. The slides and swings and climbers are made by Playworld.
Right after posing for that photo moments ago at Delridge Community Center, those kids all got stickers certifying they are “Playground Designers” – the drawings they made in the preceding hour are proof of that, too. The kids’ portion of the meeting to design DCC’s future playground is over – a spaghetti dinner is about to start – but if you’re interested in the project, there’s still time to get here and join in the grownups’ meeting (with child care provided) starting around 5:30 pm. End result: A playground is to be built, with the help of KaBoom, to replace the unsafe, aged one that DCC has now, in a one-day session (followed by a week or so of curing) in mid-July; the project still needs volunteer help and some money donations too – betsy (at) hoffmeisters (dot) com is your contact if you can pitch in.
One more reminder – today’s the day: Not only is this a rare chance to help design a playground (backstory here) – it’s a rare opportunity for children to be part of the process as well as grownups. 4 pm today marks the start of an all-ages afternoon and evening – with free dinner! — helping shape the new playground that Delridge Community Center will get this summer, thanks in no small part to KaBoom, which helps local communities get new playgrounds that — with volunteer help and community support – are built in a day. The design discussions start at 4 pm with a “kids’ meeting” for their ideas on what they want to see; 5 pm, spaghetti dinner; 5:30 pm, adults’ meeting (with child care provided!). North Delridge Neighborhood Council co-vice-chair Betsy Hoffmeister is hoping for a big turnout – the bigger the turnout, the more support for the new playground, and the more ideas for what it’ll be like, the merrier! Just show up at the community center and jump in.
At tonight’s meeting of the city Skatepark Advisory Committee, a big step was taken toward cobbling together the money needed to build the Delridge Skatepark, even though its original funding was pulled from the city budget: With Parks Superintendent Tim Gallagher and two managers in attendance, 
as well as what one committee member called “the largest number of people we’ve ever had in this room over the age of 12,” the SPAC voted to recommend moving a quarter-million dollars in Parks Levy money to Delridge. The $250,000 was originally earmarked for a “skate spot” at the future Myrtle Reservoir park, but as committee member Matthew Lee Johnston of West Seattle (center, in photo at left) noted, multiple community meetings last year turned thumbs down on the idea of a skate feature at Myrtle. It’s still in the citywide Skatepark Plan and could resurface someday if money appeared from elsewhere, but for now, if the necessary approvals ensue, it’s going into the Delridge pot. First, the Parks Levy Oversight Committee will have to give its blessing; then, City Council approval, which also would be needed to seed the Delridge Skatepark funding with $500,000 saved from other Parks projects (first revealed at a Parks Board meeting last month). However, with the community support reiterated tonight — Pete Spalding spoke on behalf of the Delridge District Council and the Pigeon Point Neighborhood Council (he’s on the Levy Oversight Committee too), while Nancy Folsom spoke on behalf of the North Delridge Neighborhood Council – department leadership didn’t think that would be much of a problem. “Everybody’s blown away by how amazing the process has been,” Johnston noted. However, he called for one additional demonstration of community support: Fundraising. The site apparently can support a skatepark of up to 14,000 square feet; it’s being designed right now to 10,000 square feet because that’s what the original budget would have paid for, but Gallagher says $750,000 would buy 12,000 square feet. Perhaps the community could chip in enough to cover the rest of the way to 14K, Johnston suggested. West Seattleite Mike Shaughnessy – a former SPAC member – said he supports the maximum possible size for the skatepark, as he could imagine it becoming overcrowded quite quickly. Meantime, the design process continues – two meetings already have been held, and project manager Kelly Davidson said she hopes to schedule the third meeting soon. First, the money matters have to be worked out; Parks executive Kevin Stoops said the Levy Oversight Committee likely will be asked May 26 to consider the Myrtle-to-Delridge transfer. Also ahead in late May, Folsom said a Request for Proposals will be published for the art project that’s proposed to be built by the skatepark site at the northeast corner of the Delridge Community Center playfield/park. Though it’s not technically part of the skatepark, designers are working with art-project planners, Folsom said.
SPACE: Countdown continues (clock here) for the scheduled launch (11 am our time) of Atlantis, piloted by West Seattle High School Class of ’72 alum Gregory Johnson. It’ll be live online at nasa.gov (and via Twitter, you can see updates at twitter.com/nasa; plus there’s a “launch blog” here).
STAMPS: Up 2 cents for first-class postage, to 44 cents, as of today.
SKATEPARK: Tonight, the status of funding for the future Delridge Skatepark will be up for discussion at the citywide Skatepark Advisory Committee meeting, 7 pm, Parks HQ downtown (location) – as noted here, seattleskateparks.org has the newest developments, including an exhortation for Delridge Skatepark supporters to be there in person.
West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day is of course far from the only thing happening today – the West Seattle Weekend Lineup has a TON of other events (see it here) – among them, an event to which you’re invited at the Vietnamese Cultural Center on SW Orchard just north of Home Depot (west of Delridge) – home to the sculpture shown above (as featured in this WSB story last year):
We are observing Memorial Day on May 9th to honor the 50,000 American soldiers who died fighting for freedom in Vietnam. Annually, the Vietnamese American Community gather around April 30th to remember the fallen soldiers of the Vietnam War. We invite you to join us in our traditional memorial ceremony this year.
Though the meeting was held at Delridge Library as usual, much of the attention at tonight’s North Delridge Neighborhood Council meeting was focused north, on future projects at the Delridge Community Center playground and park grounds. First, the plan we’ve been telling you about to build a new playground there, with the help of KaBoom; the times are now set for the park-designing session that Betsy Hoffmeister announced Monday — 4 till 8:30 pm next Tuesday (May 12) at DCC. Child-care provided; the schedule is: Kids’ meeting 4-5 pm; spaghetti dinner 5-5:30 pm; adults’ meeting 5:30-8:30 pm. Betsy said at tonight’s meeting that she’s looking for volunteers to work on the playground July 17th; it would open the following week, after the cement cures. As also mentioned in our Monday report, $4,000 is needed to match money that KaBoom has put up, and some brainstorming went on tonight, including the idea of a plant sale at Delridge Day on May 30th. Also discussed tonight, the future Delridge Skatepark (planned for the northeast side of the park grounds), which as reported here two weeks ago, now may be in line for funding after all, since other city projects are coming in under budget. As a result of tonight’s discussion, Nancy Folsom is getting a letter of support from NDNC to take to next Monday night’s Skatepark Advisory Committee meeting, showing the city that the neighborhood supports the skatepark. It seems there’s some potential dissonance right now between what’s possible size-wise and maybe even big-picture-money-wise and what the city is looking at, according to this report by West Seattle skating advocate Matthew Lee Johnston at seattleskateparks.org.; he’s also planning to advocate for Delridge at Monday’s meeting, which is at 7 pm at Parks Department HQ downtown (map), public welcome.
Here’s hoping you feel more like the osprey in Alkimac‘s photo today than the crow – unless you prefer to be the scrappy outsider! Anyway, once your great Wednesday is in the books, here are tonight’s highlights for how to make a difference in your neighborhood (and beyond):
NORTH DELRIDGE NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL: 6:30 pm, Delridge Library. Discussion is certain to include the big Delridge Community Center playground breakthrough reported here earlier this week.
SOUTHWEST DISTRICT COUNCIL: 7 pm, South Seattle Community College board room. Agenda includes a presentation on the changes ahead (reported here three weeks ago) in the Restricted Parking Zone program (here’s the city’s official page).
PARK LEVY $ AND HOW YOU THINK IT SHOULD BE SPENT: 7 pm, West Seattle Golf Course. Not all of the money in last fall’s Parks and Green Spaces Levy was earmarked for certain projects, so the city’s going into neighborhoods to talk about the possibilities (as well as the already-set projects).
West Seattle festival season is about to kick into high gear, and one of the upcoming events has just gone public with more details of what you can expect: Delridge Day — May 30th at Youngstown Arts Center — will be themed “FRESH,” focusing on everything from fresh food to fresh arts creations and fresh community involvement. One highlight: A “micro-farmers’ market” with organic produce. Read on for more details of what’s just been announced:Read More
Another big development this morning in the Delridge Playground saga. As reported here last week, Delridge Community Center has a chance to get a new, safer playground for a dramatically reduced cost. Community volunteers jumped in — and this morning Betsy Hoffmeister reports, a date is set and a sponsor has come forward for the project involving an organization called KaBoom that, with volunteer and sponsor help, builds new playgrounds in a day. Here’s what we just received from her, including more on the help that’s still needed from the community right now:
I am thrilled to be the one to report that Delridge Community Center will be getting a new playground on JULY 17. The project sponsor is Bank of America! Thank you, Bank of America. Volunteers from BOA will be there on July 17 to help our whole community build our new playground.
Important dates:
On May 6 or so, we will be getting many more details on the scope of the project.
On the afternoon of Tuesday, MAY 12, a playground designer will be at the Community Center to meet with children and their parents to choose design elements for the playground. The kids who will get the most priority in participating in the design will be kids from the community, especially kids from the Community Center’s own preschool and after school care, as well as any kids from the SWY&FS preschool. I am not sure how many people there will be physical room for. The parents will have time to give input, as well. There will be translators.
After one week, KaBoom will send us three playground designs to choose from. After the Parks Department swiftly confirms that all three designs are safe and appropriate for our space, there will be significant public process to do that selection and make sure everyone is on board with the design.
What we need to accomplish in the next few weeks is raising $4000 extra to cover some extra bits. If you have volunteered to help with the playground, now is the time to contact me to get serious!
Very excited!
Betsy Hoffmeister
North Delridge Neighborhood Council
You can reach Betsy at betsy (at) hoffmeisters (dot) com.
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