Update: West Seattle contender’s in 2nd in “hero” vote
Have you voted yet in the “Cox Conserves Heroes” competition? Fauntleroy’s Judy Pickens is now in second, and there are just a few days left to vote — if she wins, EarthCorps (which works on greenspace restoration in West Seattle and elsewhere) gets a $5,000 donation. Judy is shown at left in the photo above with some of the many visitors young and old who come to Fauntleroy Creek, for which she has worked tirelessly (we won’t soon forget spending some time with her by the creek in March, when a few tiny salmon fry were clearly visible, fighting the current). Take a minute – go here to vote – tell your friends. Two weeks from today, by the way, you can join Judy and other friends of Fauntleroy Creek, drumming to call the salmon home, 5 pm 10/26 at the overlook across from the ferry dock. P.S. There’s a new creek update on fauntleroy.net – a grant application to restore “the last degraded reach of the creek” – read about it here.
Destruction concerns at Delridge-area deconstruction site
Two months ago, we mentioned this post on the Delridge Grassroots Leadership blog about two city-owned properties at 26th/Juneau (map) where old houses were being “deconstructed” to turn the sites into “open space.” Late last night, Betsy Hoffmeister of the North Delridge Neighborhood Council sent word that it might be getting TOO open: Neighbors suddenly discovered “some guy on a bulldozer (was) tearing out the huge mature rhododendrons and other trees” on the property, which is believed to have had a history as an orchard and nursery and is near Longfellow Creek. Many calls ensued but Betsy says, “No one seems to know why or what for.” So far this morning, the bulldozer hasn’t returned, but neighbors are still trying to find out why the land-clearing was happening (there’s no obvious explanation on the DPD page for the property), and have posted signs there asking that it stop; we also are inquiring with Seattle Public Utilities, the site’s owner, to look into what’s happening. Betsy says they “want the destruction of trees STOPPED until the SPU has had a conversation with (the NDNC) about the future of the property. If we want to, we can make any appropriate proposal we want for the property, including P-Patch, park, drainage basin … but we can’t do that without the conversation.” 2:18 PM UPDATE: We’re still awaiting official word but Betsy sent an update – earlier she had reached someone who mentioned “detention pond” work at the site but that’s apparently not the case:
There’s a whole team from the City down at the site right now. Apparently some wires got crossed and some trees that were supposed to have been saved were not, but tree destruction is now halted. They are only supposed to be pulling out the foundation of the old houses. The current plan for the site is NOT a wastewater detention pond, but it was purchased with stormwater control funding. The current idea is for native trees and plantings. But, if we neighbors have another idea like a p-patch or playground or open space or whatever … we can start the conversation with SPU.
ADDED 5:54 PM: Official SPU response from Cornell Amaya, who reiterates there are NO plans for a pond:
In an effort to restore properties along the creek at 26th and Juno, Seattle Public Utilities regrets that trees and shrubs were removed without proper notification to the community. It is our policy that community members should be notified. No further work will occur without proper notification. Longterm plans call for the property to be open space. We intend to plant new trees and work closely with the neighborhood. We appreciate your understanding.
West Seattle greenery, steps from blacktop, needs helping hands
That video zooms in on a well-gnawed tree that we learned about while talking to volunteer forest steward Mike Arizona near one of the beaver ponds in Delridge Natural Area. Mike agreed to meet us there to preview two major work parties he’s organizing, one for tomorrow (Saturday 10/11), one for next month (Saturday 11/8) – steps away from busy Delridge Way, but a world away – read on to find out more about them, and about those beavers:Read More
Three West Seattle winners – and one needs your vote now
“COMMUNITY BUILDER” HONORED: He’s another one of West Seattle’s semi-unsung heroes — North Delridge Neighborhood Council co-chair Mike Dady, who works tirelessly on behalf of an area that’s been fighting its way to a better future. Now, we’ve got word the Seattle Neighborhood Group is honoring him with a “Community Builder Award” at an upcoming event; here’s the flyer. Congratulations, Mike!
CHIEF SEALTH HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER HONORED: The Seattle Public Schools “School Beat” e-mail newsletter brings word that CSHS teacher Gary Thomsen is the first Seattle teacher to win the “Service to Community Award” from the University of Puget Sound, given for his “tireless work in the local community” (read more here).
CONSERVATION “HERO” FINALIST – AND YOU CAN VOTE: Also today, we just got word that Fauntleroy’s Judy Pickens is one of the five finalists in the “Cox Conserves Heroes” program – you can watch her story (and that of the other four finalists) here. Among many other projects with which she is involved, Judy has worked long and hard to help restore and protect Fauntleroy Creek as a rare, urban salmon stream. Whoever wins gets $5,000 to donate to a charity – and Judy has chosen EarthCorps. Vote for Judy by going to this page and using the form in the left sidebar.
Seen at sea: Sub sighting; lettuce-lugging
Thanks to Chris Hannemann for that shot of a U.S. Navy sub and a U.S. Coast Guard boat, taken from Alki. “You don’t see that every day!” Chris noted. Meantime, thanks to the state Ecology Department for sending a couple photos taken in Dumas Bay (map) but of Fauntleroy relevance:
Those photos show a trial run on Wednesday for Blue Marble Energy, which DOE hired as a contractor for removing sea lettuce when it’s necessary — in other words, when it’s causing “high odor problems” at Fauntleroy Cove and/or Dumas Bay. It didn’t happen this summer but Blue Marble needed a trial run, so the operation was set up for Wednesday at Dumas Bay. As first announced earlier this summer, Blue Marble will harvest sea lettuce for use as a replacement for petroleum products; read about it here.
Bucket Brigade offers you a garden for very little green
This Saturday morning, if you get to a certain Gatewood address in time, you will score one (or more) of those repurposed buckets, planted with winter veggies, for … believe it or not … $5 each. So says the Urban Land Army, in announcing its Bucket Brigade. Here’s how Sandy Pederson explains it:
Bucket Brigade is a project of West Seattle-based Urban Land Army (www.urbanlandarmy.com), a new local business and website that connects urbanites who want to become more self-sufficient and improve the health of their neighborhood. Growing more of our own food and reducing waste is a big focus, and Bucket Brigade lets us do both!
The buckets are donated by a local westside bakery, Little Rae’s Bakery. They are sturdy, food-safe containers, but they cannot be recycled in Seattle, so we have rescued them from the landfill and planted them up for the people! We have cooking buckets with swiss chard, kale, Pac Choi, beet greens, mustards, and Chinese Cabbage, and Fresh Eats buckets with 3 kinds of lettuce and spinach. All of these plants can be harvested through the winter and are easy to care for (but we have instructions just in case!). They are perfect for people in apartments or condos, fun for kids, and for those who just love a good veggie bucket.
Where and when, you ask? 3726 SW Austin (map), 9 am-noon this Saturday. (Side note: Their site points to Not-Just-For-Profit; our fellow small/sustainable businesspeople may want to check it out.) AFTERNOON UPDATE: Sandy says KOMO Radio saw this item and called for an interview, so you may hear her on AM 1000.
West Seattle Gateway Cleanup: The final word, and what’s next
If you’ve driven the westbound Fauntleroy Way end of The Bridge in daylight since Saturday, you’ve probably noticed the difference more than 200 people made with long hours of work under the blazing sun that day: Months in the making, the West Seattle Gateway Cleanup cleared tons of overgrowth, trash, and other materials from the stretch between Walking on Logs and 35th/Fauntleroy, which is where, at one point, we passed this solo worker:
No doubt, getting out there and slogging through the mess last Saturday was a chore. So was organizing the whole thing – with a lot of hard work done by the woman whose name you saw on updates posted here in the weeks and months leading up to it:
Nancy Driver took the podium for a moment before the cleanup started on Saturday morning, just for final logistics and marching orders. After it was all said, done, bagged, picked up, cleared away, hours later, we asked her to put together a final wrapup when she had a chance. And we wanted to share that with you tonight, interspersed with more photos:Read More
Bag-fee battle: Opponents officially get it on the ballot
We told you three weeks ago that bag-fee opponents said they had 20,000 petition signatures – about a third more than they needed for a referendum vote; tonight two newspaper stories (PI here, Times here) say the county Elections Department has verified enough of those names are valid for the anti-bag-fee campaign to get what it wants. What’s next: The City Council decides whether the vote will wait for next August’s primary, or a special-election ballot sooner, and the bag fee/foam ban will be on hold pending referendum results. Side note per the P-I story – the plastics lobbying group American Chemistry Council paid almost $200,000 to help fund the petition drive. MONDAY MORNING UPDATE: Hizzoner is talking about this right now (9:37 am) on KIRO 710 radio (which streams online).
3 “green” updates: Ravine dedication; free hike; trail planning
FIRST UPDATE: Unless you live in the Gatewood vicinity – maybe even if you do – you may not ever have laid eyes on the Orchard Street Ravine, a lovely little oasis that’s way up the eastward Orchard Street hill, at the dead end of its northern fork (map). It’s a Pro Parks Levy project that’s been enhanced with tons of volunteer help through Friends of Orchard Street Ravine (including a work party this past weekend), and now it’s been announced that the city will officially dedicate Orchard Street Ravine with a ceremony and celebration on October 11. Details from the Morgan Community Association bulletin:
The ravine is in the second year of restoration and the trail connecting to the upper neighborhood will be opened at this event. Music, food, displays and information are all part of the celebration, with the official program beginning at 12:30. Parking at the site will be limited to disabled parking and dropoff only, so please plan to walk or bike to the event site.
SECOND UPDATE: We move on to another West Seattle greenbelt, where this Friday is your next chance for a free hike like this one:
That’s Nancy Whitlock of the Nature Consortium, explaining the sights and sounds of the West Duwamish Greenbelt to the group (including two WSB Team members – here’s our report) that joined her on the May version of its free monthly hikes through the WDG. You can join the next one, 1-2:30 pm this Friday, meet at the 14th SW/SW Holly trailhead (map) – but please RSVP first, 206-923-0853 or e-mail lisa@naturec.org – it’s a fairly easy walk, suitable for just about anyone. THIRD UPDATE: Chas Redmond, who co-shepherded the first-ever West Seattle Walking Trails map, sends word that the next phase of making West Seattle more walkable is a planning session to which YOU are invited — 10 am-noon October 18, Camp Long Lodge. What’s to be planned, you ask? Among other things, the deployment of 100,000 city dollars to install signs along the proposed West Seattle Trail Network (which is featured in the WSWT map) – 60 signs and 10 kiosks.
West Seattle Gateway Cleanup, report #1: Making history!
That’s a group shot taken just before the first group of volunteers in the West Seattle Gateway Cleanup left the staging area (ex-Huling Buick lot, future Gateway Center) about half an hour ago and headed off to start tackling the task. Kimberlee Archie from the city Department of Neighborhoods had just noted that this not only is the 89th cleanup under the umbrella of the Clean and Green Program, she thinks the 200-plus volunteers represent the biggest group EVER in a C&G cleanup. Archie also read a proclamation from the mayor (who’s visiting the cleanup crews later this morning) declaring today to be Earl Cruzen Day, and Earl himself was on hand to accept the honor:
(ADDED SATURDAY AFTERNOON – here’s video of the proclamation being read)
You probably see the results of Earl’s work every day. He’s the guy who hatched the idea for the West Seattle Murals, for one; the story of how that happened, and who else helped, is told nicely on this page of the Fauntleroy Church website; you can also read about it in this West Seattle 101 chapter. Cruzen and the murals group then went on to come up with Walking on Logs – the starting point for today’s cleanup. Those two lines barely scratch the surface of what he’s given to the West Seattle community (and continues to give, well into his 80s), but we’ve got to get back out to see how the cleanup’s going; volunteers will be at work from Walking on Logs to 35th/Fauntleroy until about 3:30 this afternoon, and that means a westbound lane closure on the Fauntleroy end of The Bridge, so if you’re going to be driving that way, PLEASE be careful – hundreds of your neighbors are giving up part of their Saturday to make that stretch less of an eyesore, so help them stay safe. More updates later, on this and other big events happening around West Seattle today.
Now there are 2 West Seattle cleanups tomorrow, 1 with goats
Our Lady of Guadalupe School tells WSB its students are getting an environmental lesson by cleaning up the overgrown corner at 34th/Myrtle (north of the school, east of its playground) – and they’re going to get some help starting tomorrow from a herd of goats! The goats will be on site Saturday through Tuesday. OLG development director Chantille Henry adds, “Our Lady of Guadalupe School believes in teaching children the importance of stewardship and each class is assigned a different project to better the world around them. One class cleans Longfellow Creek, and another collects clothing and visits WestSide Baby, helping sort clothing and cleans the grounds, to name a few.” Meantime, tomorrow’s also the day for the huge West Seattle Gateway Cleanup along the Fauntleroy end of The Bridge, from 35th/Fauntleroy to Walking on Logs, where some clearing’s already been done in preparation for what hundreds of volunteers will do tomorrow:
Goats didn’t work out for this cleanup, but organizer Nancy Driver has reported previously that she and fellow organizers are very grateful to the state Department of Corrections for lending people-power to the pre-clearing project. Also a traffic reminder – the outside lane along the cleanup site will be closed tomorrow, 8 am-4 pm-ish, so if you’re coming back to West Seattle via The Bridge at some point, either take the Admiral exit or just remember to go slow!
4 West Seattle “Small and Simple” recipients honored
A city celebration last night honored groups citywide who successfully sought “Small and Simple” grants from the Neighborhood Matching Fund; among them, four in West Seattle. Three, we’ve mentioned before — the play-area projects in North Delridge (Cottage Grove “tot lot”) and Admiral (California Place) got $15,000 each; the Pigeon Point neighborhood celebration (coming up 9/20) got $2,100. The fourth is $15,000 for the ongoing restoration of the West Duwamish Greenbelt, this time going to the “Genesee Ravine Action Committee.” All of these projects involve matching funds – the city doesn’t just hand out $ without the groups showing a commitment of their own, money and volunteer labor. Here’s the full list of 24 “Small and Simple” recipients citywide; the city accepts applications four times a year, and the next deadline is October 6 – here’s more about the program. Meantime, the Neighborhood Matching Fund program itself is marking its 20th anniversary with events around the city, including an open house (free food!) this Saturday, 10 am-2 pm, at Youngstown Arts Center.
Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle without waste …
Even though Christmas decorations are on sale at Costco already (anywhere else? no, wait, we don’t want to know) – it’s not that we’re trying to rush you into holiday mode too soon – we just happened to notice King County is inviting businesses to sign up RIGHT NOW to be part of “Waste-Free Holidays” – here’s the link.
Mayor proposes cutting down on tree-cutting
City leaders have talked a lot lately about saving trees and even increasing the city’s “tree canopy” — and yet the tree-cutting doesn’t seem to have slowed. This afternoon, the mayor’s office sent a news release about “interim regulations” just proposed to “close a loophole” — take a look and see what you think:Read More
Two wheels, no clothes: Bicycling protesters in West Seattle
Karen Berge was a little startled to see this sight in her neighborhood a short time ago (the photo was taken at 36th/Dawson) – a group of mostly unclad bicyclists. We don’t think this photo shows anything X-rated; and we’re pretty sure (from what one guy has written on his back – BURN FAT, NOT OIL – visible in a larger version of the photo) that it’s got something to do with this protest (warning, link includes some actual nudity; bottom line to the protest, pun not intended, under the umbrella of the “World Naked Bike Ride,” is to call attention to what “the dangers of oil dependence” and the dangers faced by cyclists and pedestrians). Karen said they were last seen “heading north”; makes sense since as we were about to publish this, we got word they’d just gone through the Admiral District (past Click! Design That Fits, WSB sponsor, who sent that tip). 6:18 PM UPDATE: After posting this and leaving the house for a while, received reports of the bicyclists being spotted pretty much all over West Seattle – Alki, Lincoln Park, etc., plus a few more photos, like this one taken by Bill Schrier as they pedaled north on California through the Admiral intersection:
ADDED 7:06 PM: And here’s a photo from California/Oregon, courtesy of Mac, followed by some info our original spotter, Karen, found online:
Karen found a wiki all about the ride; even an online flyer. It says this was the last of three such protest rides in Seattle this year. Side note — almost everyone who reported sightings included some variation of the line we almost used as our first headline on this post – “West Seattle, or Fremont?”!
Gateway Cleanup countdown: The latest, with 11 days to go
We’re now 11 days away from West Seattle’s biggest community cleanup in a long time, after months of planning, and if you’re not already signed up, it’s not too late. If you’re just hearing about this now – the West Seattle Gateway Cleanup on Saturday 9/13 is targeting the “gateway” area at the Fauntleroy end of The Bridge, from Walking on Logs to 35th/Fauntleroy — since the date was set in early June; today, we have another update from organizer Nancy Driver of the Fairmount Community Association, who says the cleanup now will extend to 3:30 pm:
The day of the event all volunteers should meet at the parking lot at the former Huling showroom at 4545 Fauntleroy (the location of the future Gateway Center). BlueStar Management has graciously allowed us to use the lot as our staging area. One section will be reserved for parking, however, we are strongly encouraging participants to arrive by foot, bus, bike or to carpool with other volunteers – remember this is a “green” event. We will have tents set up in another area with tables for checking in volunteers, handing out safety vests, dispensing water, coffee and light snacks. The mayor will be speaking under one of the tents.
Another important piece of information is that we have extended the project by a half hour to accommodate the mayor’s schedule. He is due to arrive at 9:00 and we understand he will speak for about 10 minutes around 9:30. Tom Rasmussen, City Councilmember, will also be on hand and may want to say a few words. We will actually start moving the volunteers in the first crew down to the site just before 9:30 – people in the 9:30 crew still need to arrive at least by 9:10 to get checked in. Volunteers in the second crew should arrive by 11:10 so we can be down at the site by 11:30; third crew should arrive at 1:10 in order to get to the cleanup site by 1:30. Volunteers must check in at the staging area first and get a safety vest. Volunteers who appear down at the site without a safety vest will not be allowed on to the cleanup site.
More updates to come! If you have questions or haven’t signed up yet to help but want to, e-mail Nancy at ndriver@quidnunc.net.
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