West Seattle, Washington
09 Tuesday
3:31 PM: Seattle Fire and Police are at the scene of a collision at Fauntleroy and Cloverdale, toward the south end of Lincoln Park. According to @smokeycretin9, it involves a car and motorcycle. Our crew is en route; we’ve heard a call for a private ambulance to the scene, suggesting injuries are not life-threatening.
(WSB photo)
3:43 PM UPDATE: Our crew at the scene has learned that the man riding the motorcycle was taken to the hospital via that ambulance, with what are described as minor injuries. The driver was not hurt. The car and motorcycle are both off to the side and Fauntleroy is reopening to traffic.
Thanks to the Fauntleroy ferry dock neighbor who shared a notice that’s just been circulated in the area: “Noisy overnight work” is planned four nights next week, Monday through Thursday, 7:30 pm to 5:30 am, to fix pavement problems on the dock. (If you live nearby, you are probably aware of some work this past week – we don’t know yet if that was related.) See the notice here; it says in part, “Existing asphalt pavement around deck drains is failing, exposing underlying timber deck to rain water and potential rotting.” No WSF website alert about this yet.
That’s Pablo and he’s one of the Fauntleroy Children’s Center students who helped “Stuff the Bus“ when WestSide Baby‘s diaper drive made a stop at historic Fauntleroy Schoolhouse today.
These might just be the youngest bus-stuffers to participate in this year’s drive.
We’re told that the FCC community gathered 4,000 diapers to contribute! The young donors got a chance to hang out in the bus a bit, too.
The heart of this year’s drive started with last Sunday’s donation event at HomeStreet Bank (WSB sponsor) in The Junction and – since WestSide Baby serves families outside this area too – continues on Capitol Hill this weekend (9 am-2 pm Sunday at St. Joseph’s, 732 18th Ave. E.). If you haven’t donated yet, go here to find out how to help.
P.S. Congratulations to Fauntleroy Children’s Center for recently getting re-accredited for five more years by the National Association for the Education of Young Children! Director Kim Sheridan says, “We have been accredited since 1987 and are currently the only center in West Seattle with NAEYC accreditation.”
(WSB photos by Patrick Sand)
What a beautiful day to celebrate the return of a West Seattle beach to the public domain. This is Cove Park, adjacent to the north side of the Fauntleroy ferry dock, closed for three years because of King County’s expansion/upgrade of the Barton Pump Station – now open again, with a ribbon-cutting celebration today:
Cutting the ribbon were King County Wastewater Treatment Division director Pam Elardo and our area’s King County Councilmember Joe McDermott. But the celebration was even bigger for the Fauntleroy community, which stewards the Cove Park area and has been working closely with the county (some backstory in this 2011 WSB report) to ensure that the beach and its treasured public art would make a comeback – with additions!
That’s the path from Fauntleroy Way to the small beach, where you will find works by artist Thomas Jay – some familiar, some new. A brochure provided by the Fauntleroy Community Association shows nine things to look for, including these:
As this warm weekend continues, come to Cove Park and see for yourself.
This afternoon’s celebration at the park also included tours of the pump station. You can find out more about the project here.
More reminders about all the cool stuff happening in West Seattle this weekend – this one’s at the top of our list tomorrow afternoon between the West Seattle Grand Parade and West Seattle Outdoor Movies: Ribbon-cutting celebration for the restored pocket-beach Cove Park and upgraded Barton Pump Station, just north of the Fauntleroy ferry dock. 2-4 pm, including tours of the pump station (wear closed-toe shoes if you’re interested in taking the tour). Thanks to Phil Sweetland for the photo of posters made by local kids to remind everyone about tomorrow’s celebration!
ORIGINAL REPORT, 4:38 PM: On Tuesday afternoon, southbound traffic on Fauntleroy Way backed up as if it were a weekend, and the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth ferries are running behind again today, so here’s an alert just in case it happens again: Most of it is because a repair project has resulted in single-lane loading at the Vashon Island terminal. The Fauntleroy Community Association board notes that this weekend might be even more intense with both the Vashon Strawberry Festival and Saturday’s reopening of Cove Park. They were planning to ask SPD for traffic-management help, “including creating the center turn lane as a southbound vehicle lane where backed-up traffic must sit in the roadway as it passes parked cars on the curb” and also noted that Vashon ferry users had requested weekday afternoon parking restrictions along Fauntleroy Way. We’ll be checking for the status of those requests, but in the meantime, keep in mind that southbound Fauntleroy between Morgan Junction and the ferry dock might be worth avoiding if you can. You can check dock-area webcams here.
5:31 PM UPDATE: WSF has just announced that because two of its larger boats will be out next Monday through Wednesday, it will shuffle boats and schedules on those dates, including Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth. So July 20-22, the “triangle route” will be on a two-boat schedule, with M/V Issaquah and Cathlamet supplemented by the 34-vehicle Hiyu.
The new state budget will restore funding for traffic control at the Fauntleroy Ferry Terminal, according to City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen. Ever since budget cuts did away with the help four years ago, it’s been a sore spot for terminal users, neighborhood residents, and people who travel through the busy terminal zone just south of Lincoln Park – more than 5,100 vehicles a day, in addition to hundreds of people on foot and on bikes. The new “transportation package” brings back $496,000 for use of off-duty law enforcers to “manage the loading and off-loading of ferry commuters,” according to Rasmussen’s announcement, which you can read in full ahead:
Two West Seattle Crime Watch reports:
(City-provided photo of one of the stolen fish)
FAUNTLEROY CREEK OVERLOOK ART THEFT: Fauntleroy Creek steward Judy Pickens tells WSB that someone has stolen part of the art installation at the fish-ladder overlook across from the ferry dock:
I’m sorry to report that someone cut through the base of both the bronze coho
salmon and cutthroat trout that have been part of “Stream Echo” since its installation at the fish-ladder viewpoint in 1998. … The city’s Office of Cultural Affairs has contacted artist Tom Jay to request replacements. Because Tom is very involved with art installation at Cove Park, we have no idea when he can recast the fish.If the thief still has the fish, we would welcome them back, no questions asked, on our front porch – 4539 SW Director Place.
Judy’s husband Phil Sweetland discovered the theft yesterday, but she says it could have happened any time in the past several days. Though this is on a smaller scale physically, we still couldn’t help but be reminded of the as-yet-unsolved Walking on Logs sculpture theft, which happened almost exactly a year ago.
MOONDROP COFFEE & TEA BREAK-IN: Proprietor David Livingood from the little coffee shop across from Seacrest sent word this morning that someone broke into their shop late last night. They’re still trying to assess what was stolen but wanted to get the word out. (We were headed that way this morning when diverted by the crane fire and are still planning to go over and find out more – we’ll update when there’s more information.)
(WSB photo of Cove Park, taken from the bluff across Fauntleroy Way at midday today)
Exactly three years ago, on June 22, 2012, we reported the closure of Cove Park – the pocket beach just north of the Fauntleroy ferry dock – for what was at the time described as about two years of work to upgrade the Barton Pump Station next door. Cove Park’s beloved art installations were taken away for storage, but now the crow and canoe are back … the beach is being restored … and new art will be in view when the beach reopens soon. Thanks to Judy Pickens for the heads-up that the big celebration is set for 2-4 pm on Saturday, July 18th (as she first reported in the Fauntleroy Community Association newsletter): “Festivities will include remarks from community, county, and artist perspectives, music created for the occasion, refreshments, and tours of the upgraded and expanded Barton Street wastewater pump station.” Perfect timing that day, between the West Seattle Grand Parade and the first of this year’s six West Seattle Outdoor Movies!
Thanks to Ben Ackers for the photos from Friday night’s “Swing Into Summer” dance/concert with the West Seattle Big Band at The Hall at Fauntleroy. Lively crowd out on the floor!
Your next chance to see/hear the West Seattle Big Band – and dance if you want (the littlest concertgoers usually do) – is the annual Hi-Yu Concert in the Park on the east lawn at Hiawatha Community Center, 7 pm Tuesday, July 14th. Bring the family, blanket/chairs to sit on, picnic dinner – it’s free!
(2014 photo by Ben Ackers)
On the night before summer – have a swingin’ time in Fauntleroy! If you don’t already have your tickets, here’s a preview from Judy Pickens:
The Hall at Fauntleroy will rock Friday evening (June 19), when the West Seattle Big Band hosts the second annual Swing Into Summer dance. Other sponsors are the West Seattle and Fauntleroy YMCAs, Fauntleroy Church, and the Fauntleroy Community Association. Tickets are $15/person through brownpapertickets.com or in the church office. Proceeds will benefit area public-school music programs.
Start with dance lessons at 6:30 pm, then hit the floor at 7:00, or just sit back and enjoy the action, plus food and drink concessions. Arrange for free child care at 206-932-5600 or jackie@fauntleroyucc.org.
12:03 PM: Don’t know yet what it was about, but a group of military helicopters flew northbound over the west-facing West Seattle shore a short time ago. Anybody get a photo/video? We ran out the front door with the phone (resulting in this video, but they’re somewhat tiny-looking in the distance). One observer said via Twitter that it looked like four Chinooks and a Blackhawk.
12:24 PM: Thanks to James Bratsanos and to Joe for sending photos so far. The two above are from James – first the wide view of all five, then a closer look at two of the Chinooks and the (Blackhawk?).
12:28 PM: More info in comments – including Jim Clark spotting what might be the answer to the question of what this was about.
12:33 PM: Further verification of what Jim found – a program on that Facebook page says Special Forces from JBLM were to fly by/in (Paine Field in Snohomish County), with “Chinooks x 4.”
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
What’s happening on a lot in the 8400 block of 41st/42nd SW in Upper Fauntleroy isn’t your standard case of one house down, two bigger houses go up, neighbors get upset. Even a city spokesperson calls it “egregious” – a house going up without a permit, on a site first approved just for a larger garage.
We hadn’t heard anything about this site since mentioning it here one year ago, until neighbors contacted us earlier this week.
After the site and its old brick house were sold last year, a lot split was sought. The new owner built a house on the south side, at 8437 41st SW. For the north side, the owner filed an application in October for a permit granted in January to build a “2,258-square-foot, 35-foot-tall detached underground garage,” at 8454 42nd SW.
A neighbor wrote in e-mail, “In January 2015, the construction began. The 35-foot detached garage was striking in this neighborhood of single-family homes. However, once the garage was completed, the building continued first with one level of living space, followed by a second, and then a week ago, on May 27, 2015, yet a third level of living space was added to this structure. Now this structure, permitted as a detached garage, is a four-story, 10,000 square foot monstrosity. Additionally, the property has 42nd Ave on the westside and 41st Ave on the eastside. On both streets, the structure has clearly marked garages.” Atop this story is the 42nd SW side; here’s the 41st side:
Neighbors complained to the city Department of Planning and Development, which confirms it posted a “stop-work order” on Tuesday.
(Photo by Dennis Hinton – creekside sign created by Taproot School)
One incredibly busy month of visits by salmon-raising schools – starting with Pathfinder K-8 on April 30th (WSB coverage here) – is over at Fauntleroy Creek. Judy Pickens has the wrapup report:
The last of 20 salmon releases in Fauntleroy Creek occurred May 28 when second- and fourth-graders from Concord Elementary brought their coho to Fauntleroy Park.
All told, volunteers with the Fauntleroy Watershed Council hosted 750 students this year and an additional 175 adults and younger siblings. Their participation in the Salmon in the Schools program resulted in the release of nearly 1,700 fry that will spend the next year in the creek.
Also this spring, volunteers documented 31 coho smolts leaving the creek for two years in saltwater, a dozen more than in 2014.
Next big season for volunteers on the creek will be this fall, when they watch for returning spawners – 19 last year.
If you haven’t already … can you help with this?
Do you live between the Arroyos and Morgan Street? Travel through or do business in Fauntleroy? The Fauntleroy Community Association (FCA) wants to hear from you! The FCA has a new community survey to identify and rank local issues. The anonymous survey can be accessed through fauntleroy.net and then clicking on “FCA Survey.” The survey takes just a few minutes, and will provide guidance to the FCA Board on where to focus their efforts during the next two years.The results from the 2013 survey led to the FCA organizing community meetings with city officials to address crime and traffic issues, and helped our group define plans of action. The current survey will be available online through Sunday (June 1st). Take the survey and help to shape the future of your community!
(UPDATED Friday afternoon with fundraising total and more)
ORIGINAL REPORT, 10:07 PM THURSDAY: When you see the advance warning every spring that the Taste of West Seattle will probably sell out, so you’ll want to get your tickets early – it’s not just a sales pitch. Tonight’s benefit for the West Seattle Helpline sold out days in advance and the line above was just for ticketholders waiting to get into The Hall at Fauntleroy! Once inside, you had the chance to sample the tastes and sips brought by dozens of local food and beverage purveyors. From north to south, here’s who we photographed:
Up from Alki were Nadia and Inaam Khazaal from Phoenecia (WSB sponsor) – where giving back isn’t just something they do for occasions like this, but also on Give Back Tuesdays (which raised money for Helpline in March). From East Alki, Chef Paolo Carey-DiGregorio and Corporate Pastry Chef Douglas Taylor from Salty’s (WSB sponsor):
From North Admiral, Cary Kemp from Pizzeria 22:
Also from Admiral, Jude and Megan from Metropolitan Market (WSB sponsor):
From the north end of The Junction, Hotwire Online Coffeehouse (WSB sponsor) proprietor Lora Swift (below right) with Janie and Dan Jacobs:
From the east side of The Junction, at outer Jefferson Square, Dream Dinners (WSB sponsor) proprietor Leslie Thomson and assistant Amanda, with Brooks Riendl from the Helpline board:
Heading south to just north of Morgan Junction, members of the Harry’s Chicken Joint team:
Tom DiStefano from nearby West Seattle Cellars, which raised more than $1,300 for Helpline in honor of their recent 20th anniversary:
More than 40 participants in all – and about 500 people there to be delighted by what they ate and drank. We’re waiting to hear the final tallies on tonight’s Helpline-helping success and will update when we have the info.
ADDED EARLY FRIDAY: A popular feature of The Taste is voting to choose best bite and best sweet – Tuxedos and Tennis Shoes, which operates The Hall, won the former, while Stuffed Cakes for the third consecutive year won the latter.
ADDED FRIDAY AFTERNOON: The fundraising total is in from new Helpline executive director Chris Langeler, $53,000, the most for a “Taste of West Seattle” so far. That includes a $10,000 day-of donation from Metropolitan Market.
(WSB photos)
Pathfinder K-8 is the first West Seattle school to visit Fauntleroy Creek this season to release student-raised salmon. We were there as volunteer creek stewards hosted them this morning, first with a gathering at the park entrance, then on to the creek:
In the next photo, that’s Dennis Hinton, leading the event along with Pete Draughon.
Creek steward Judy Pickens was there too – she’s put together this year’s schedule of releases with 15+ schools (most, but not all, from West Seattle) visiting over the next four weeks:
Here by the way is what the fish that survive will look like when they head out in a year or so as smolt (like this one):
We of course were not alone in photographing the event – this young lady had a GoPro:
This season marks 25 years since the first salmon release on Fauntleroy Creek, Judy says. She estimates that they’ve hosted at least 10,000 students for salmon releases in that quarter-century. Last season, more than 2,500 coho fry were set free in the creek; volunteers then watch in the fall for returning spawners – 19 came back last year.
(WSB photo from Sunday’s Recycle Roundup)
If you dropped something off at the Fauntleroy Church “Recycle Roundup” this past Sunday, you were part of another successful, sizable round of recycling. Judy Pickens shares the news:
The sun on Sunday brought out the best in West Seattle residents as an estimated 400 vehicles delivered recyclables to the Fauntleroy Church Green Committee’s spring Recycle Roundup. The crew from 1 Green Planet carried, loaded, and took away an estimated 10 tons for responsible disassembly. We’ll do it again on September 27!
(WSB photo: Some of the early dropoffs)
You can’t put them out at the curb … you can’t put them in the trash … but chances are, those old items you have in the basement or back yard CAN be dropped off at today’s Recycle Roundup, happening right now in the Fauntleroy Church parking lot. If you haven’t already seen it in our daily highlights list, here’s the guide to what 1 Green Planet will accept (free!) and what they won’t. The church’s Green Committee sponsors this twice a year and will be glad to see you at 9140 California SW (map), until 3 pm.
7:27 PM: Quick West Seattle Crime Watch reader report – somebody just stole a statue of Buddha out of a front yard in Upper Fauntleroy, put it in a car and drove away. The statue’s owner has already called police and says it was a blonde-haired man in his 20s, driving a blue Subaru Legacy or Outback, last seen headed southbound on 40th SW.
7:54 PM: Statue photo added.
A green reminder on this Earth Day: If you’re ready to recycle items that you can’t put out with the usual curbside recyclables – good news: Fauntleroy Church‘s next Recycle Roundup is only four days away, coming up this Sunday (April 26th), 9 am-3 pm. It’s one of the two days each year that the church’s Green Committee partners with sustainable recyclers 1 Green Planet to set up the main church parking lot at 9140 California SW as a dropoff zone for your no-longer-needed items … as long as they’re on this list. See you there!
Washington State Ferries says the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth route is back to three boats now that the Issaquah is repaired. As noted in today’s traffic/transit watch, it’s been out of service since midday.
Traffic trouble and green spaces top the toplines from this month’s Fauntleroy Community Association meeting.
(WSB photo from March)
GREEN SPACES: The push to keep the surplus substations (including Brace Point, above) and some other city-owned properties as open, green spaces continues. From what’s now the Seattle Green Spaces Coalition, FCA’s Marty Westerman said he and SGSC’s Mary Fleck will be outside Fauntleroy’s The Original Bakery on Sunday morning at 10 am for at least an hour to gather petition signatures, urging the city not to sell off these pieces of public land.
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