West Seattle, Washington
15 Friday
An update on Fit Bar, the healthy-food café that’s been taking shape next to Anytime Fitness at 2222 California SW in Admiral – Andrew Saldana says he, girlfriend Bles, and his brothers Daniel and Jacob, all West Seattleites, “are thrilled to announce a healthy alternative for our neighborhood! … Our Grand Opening will be Saturday, October 24th, from 8 am – 4 pm. … We are overjoyed to share what inspires us and use it as a medium to inspire others. We know we are all a little different individually, but collectively we strive to find what fuels our lives, and within that journey, we find the strongest connection; that of the mind and body.” Fit Bar will be open weekdays 7 am-7 pm and weekends 9 am-4 pm; Andrew says its website at fitbarcafe.com will go live on Friday. You can see some of the smoothies and bowls they plan to serve by checking out their Instagram feed.
In West Seattle Crime Watch today – another burglary report:
I’d like to get the word out that my home on Fairmount Ave SW was burglarized yesterday during the daytime while my roommates were at work. I arrived home from a trip to see they broke a window in the kitchen & had stolen items from each of my roommates.
David says his house is toward the water end of Fairmount Ave. With reports of three other burglaries in recent days, we took the occasion today to check the SPD Police Report map, sorted for burglary reports, showing nine:
You can sort the map by crime type via controls on its left side (click the image above to go to the live map, where you can also see the locations of these and other crimes, plus time/date reported, by clicking each icon). But as we’ve noted in the past, the map has some omissions – for example, it’s not showing the business break-in in the 3400 block of California SW that was part of our coverage on Saturday. It’s not caught up with yesterday yet, so David’s break-in isn’t shown. And from Tweets by Beat (you can see the West Seattle sectors’ tweets any time on the WSB Crime Watch page), we also have these four:
-Reported this morning, 3200 block SW Morgan
-Reported last night, 9600 block 47th SW
-Reported Monday afternoon, 4400 block 42nd SW
-Reported Monday morning, 2nd SW/SW Michigan
So, by our compilation, that’s 15 burglaries reported in the past week, up from where things were trending at the last West Seattle-wide briefing.
(Photo from SDOT Blog)
Have you traveled on 35th SW and/or SW Roxbury since the recent rechannelizations (and other changes)? SDOT has just published its first report on the aftermath – see it on the SDOT Blog website, now that the work is mostly done. An excerpt:
… The project team has been monitoring the revised segments of 35th Avenue SW and SW Roxbury Street on a daily basis. We’ve also collected data in an effort to obtain preliminary insights into the effects of the recent changes.
To date, we’ve seen no change in volumes on 35th Avenue SW or SW Roxbury Street. Daily traffic volumes on these streets remain within the same range as pre-project volumes. During our public outreach process, some people commented that they were concerned about drivers diverting to nearby residential streets after the channelization changes. We’ve received no reports of diversions from residents and our volume data does not indicate diversions to residential streets. However, we will continue to keep an eye on this issue moving forward.
Our first look at vehicle speeds on 35th Avenue SW is encouraging. The street once commonly referred to as “I-35” in the neighborhood no longer sees the majority of drivers pushing speeds up to 40 miles per hour. Instead, most drivers now travel around 34 to 35 miles per hour. This is a significant improvement but we’d like to see drivers traveling at lower speeds which are closer to the new posted speed limit of 30 miles per hour. We will expand our speed data collection efforts in October and November and hope to see lower speeds as drivers adjust to the new conditions.
There’s no doubt that these corridors feel different than they used to, especially during the afternoon commute when traffic volumes are highest. With just one general purpose travel lane in each direction, vehicle queueing at signalized intersections is more substantial during the afternoon/evening commute period. However, longer signal cycles effectively mitigate the queues and vehicles are able to clear intersections in just one green phase. Occasionally, emergency response vehicles such as police and fire will preempt signals at SW Holden Street, so it can take up to two signal cycles to clear the intersection when traffic volumes are high.
Again, the corridor feels different but vehicle and transit travel times have been minimally impacted. During community outreach, we mentioned that traffic modeling projected delays on 35th Avenue SW of one-to-two minutes with a maximum delay of 2.5 minutes during the afternoon rush hour. Our travel time data, based on driving the 35th corridor dozens of times during peak hours, show that our models were a bit conservative:
The data tables are in the full post on the city website – with car and bus travel times – as are ways to get your feedback to the city.
P.S. If you missed the backstory on the 35th and Roxbury projects – check the links and slide decks in this story we published while the road work was under way.
A day of protests outside Seattle Public Schools‘ SODO headquarters, less than a week after news of teacher cuts (first reported here last Thursday) began circulating:
Thanks to Helen Green for sending photos from today’s 11 am-1 pm “Half-Baked Sale,” organized by Louisa Boren STEM K-8 parent Shawna Murphy.
Helen, also a STEM parent, says, “There was a great turnout of parents from all over Seattle. A lot from West Seattle. I talked to two Roxhill parents who said that kids have been hit very hard by the teacher reduction there.”
Next up: At 4 pm, a rally – also outside district HQ at 3rd/Lander – everyone concerned about the state of school funding (the big picture as well as situations like the current one) is invited. The North Seattle parent who contributed $70,000 to save a West Seattle teacher job, first reported here Sunday night, is expected to be among the speakers.
A memorial service is planned in West Seattle this Saturday for Patricia J. Hansen, 86. Here’s the remembrance her family is sharing:
Beloved wife, mother, grandmother, aunt and friend, Patricia J. Hansen passed away peacefully after suffering many years with Alzheimer’s Disease on Monday, September 28th at Park West Care Center.
She was born on May 19, 1929 to Ingvald and Christine in Seattle.
Patricia grew up in Ballard and attended Ballard High School, graduating in 1947. After high school, she worked at JC Penney clothing store in downtown Seattle. While out dancing at the Spanish Castle and The Trianon Ballroom, she met the love of her life – Charles “Chuck” Hansen. They married in 1953 and raised three children in West Seattle.
It was here in West Seattle that she made a loving home and worked many years at Don Swanson Insurance. She volunteered at the WS Senior Center and played Bunco there. Pat and Chuck traveled to Australia, Europe, Scandinavia, Hawaii and Mexico. Upon retiring, they spent some years as “rain birds” in Mesa, Arizona. Pat took up clogging and enjoyed time at the pool with Chuck.
Patricia is predeceased by her parents Christine and Ingvald, her loving husband Chuck in 1989, and her sister and brother-in-law, Pauline and Phil Isaminger. Surviving Pat are her three children – son Greg (wife Chris), son Keith (wife Irene), her daughter Diane, her grandchildren Veronica and Charlie, and numerous aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and cousins.
Memorial services will be Saturday, October 17th at First Lutheran Church of West Seattle at 11 am. Remembrances can be made to The Alzheimer’s Association.
(WSB publishes West Seattle obituaries by request, free of charge. Please e-mail the text, and a photo if available, to editor@westseattleblog.com)
(Roxhill Bog volunteer – WSB photo from April 2015 Duwamish Alive! day)
Update as the fall edition of Duwamish Alive! – simultaneous work parties to help Seattle’s only river and its watershed – gets closer (this Saturday, October 17th, 10 am-2 pm): Coalition coordinator Sharon Leishman tells WSB that these West Seattle sites are in most need of more volunteer signups:
T-107 PARK, both kayaks and habitat restoration. DRCC, Puget Soundkeeper Alliance (this is the first time we have the kayak cleanup near the mouth of the river. Double kayaks are used, no experience needed, all equipment and instruction provided.) – 4700 West Marginal Way SW
ROXHILL BOG – habitat restoration with Seattle Parks and Friends of Roxhill – 2850 SW Roxbury
HERRINGS HOUSE PARK – habitat restoration with Seattle Parks – W Marginal Way SW & SW Alaska
LONGFELLOW CREEK AT BRANDON STREET, habitat restoration with King Conservation District and EarthCorps – SW Brandon St. & 29th SW
Choose one and sign up via its link on this page of the Duwamish Alive! website.
(Neighborhood fall colors, by Flickr member yel0rose, via the WSB Flickr group)
Looking ahead to the rest of the day and tonight via the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
SCHOOL FUNDING RALLY: 4 pm outside Seattle Public Schools HQ, parents from West Seattle and elsewhere are organizing a rally sparked by this past week’s news of teacher cuts – if you’re concerned about the state of public education, be there. (3rd Ave. S. & S. Lander)
SING WITH ENDOLYNE CHILDREN’S CHOIR: It’s “Bring a Friend Night,” an open-rehearsal event for young singers interested in the choir, which actually starts at 4:30 pm:
BAFN is an open rehearsal, free for any child in grades K-10 who is interested in an evening of holiday music singing and hot cocoa.
Rehearsal Times:
Debut (grades K-2): 4:30 PM – 5:30 PM
Encore (grades 3-5): 5:45 PM – 6:45 PM
Advanced (grades 6-10): 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM
This is happening in the reception room at St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church. (3050 California SW)
DEMOCRATIC DEBATE-WATCHING PARTY: Looking for someplace to watch tonight’s Democratic presidential candidate debate at 5:30? Krista in Gatewood is hosting one of the Bernie Sanders supporters’ parties and has room – check here.
CANDIDATE FORUM/DEBATE FOR CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT 1 & POSITIONS 8-9: 6:15 pm mingling, 6:45 pm debating at Neighborhood House’s High Point Center, presented by the WS Chamber of Commerce and WS Transportation Coalition. See the schedule here. (6400 Sylvan Way SW)
TUESDAY TUNE-UP, BENEFITING WESTSIDE BABY: 6:30 pm at Salty’s on Alki (WSB sponsor), live music “by Piano-man and Emcee Victor Janusz with Robertson Witmer on accordion and MD Dixson on saxophone,” no cover but raffle benefits WestSide Baby – details in our calendar listing. (1936 Harbor SW)
ORCA TALK: What do orcas and ants have in common? Erich Hoyt – who filled The Hall at Fauntleroy last time The Whale Trail brought him here – is back as TWT’s new season of Orca Talks begins, tonight at 7 pm – details in our preview. (9131 California SW)
ADMIRAL NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION: 7 pm, The Sanctuary at Admiral. (42nd SW & SW Lander)
FAUNTLEROY COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION: 7 pm, board room at Fauntleroy Schoolhouse. (9131 California SW)
CHIEF SEALTH INTERNATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL PTSA: 7 pm in the Confucius Room. (2600 SW Thistle)
MORE ON THE CALENDAR FOR TODAY/TONIGHT … see it all here.
(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
7:39 AM: The SDOT cameras are fixed, so the bridge views are back … and backed up, though it’s mostly “just” the rain – the big incidents this morning are NOT on the outbound routes from here, but instead on northbound I-5 *south* of West Seattle (truck crashes at Albro and in Federal Way).
8:05 AM: That said, as pointed out in comments, alternate routes are affected as people divert. Meantime, a transportation-related note on tonight’s calendar: The first and biggest of three City Council forums/debates in West Seattle this week is tonight, and you can expect to hear a lot about transportation since the WS Transportation Coalition is co-presenting with the WS Chamber of Commerce. All are welcome, 6:15 pm mingling, 6:45 pm debating, citywide Positions 8 and 9 first, then West Seattle/South Park District 1 – it’s happening at Neighborhood House’s High Point Center (6400 Sylvan Way).
9:09 AM: Bridge trouble, per SDOT:
Stall on the West Seattle Br EB before SR 99 in left center lane. Use caution and expect delays pic.twitter.com/UKPpc7jCXW
— seattledot (@seattledot) October 13, 2015
9:22 AM: And don’t take the low bridge as an alternate route right now:
The Lower Spokane St Bridge has closed to traffic – 9:21:16 AM
— seattleDOTbridges (@SDOTbridges) October 13, 2015
(May 15th photo of Polar Pioneer at T-5, by Long Bach Nguyen)
1:54 AM: Since Shell‘s announcement two weeks ago that it was shelving Arctic offshore drilling TFN, we’ve been awaiting word on where its rigs would wind up – whether there was any chance, for example, the Polar Pioneer would come back to West Seattle’s Terminal 5, where it spent a month before heading off to drill. You’ll recall that the T-5 interim tenant, Foss Maritime, said at the time that it was too soon to say.
According to new reports in two publications, both quoting Shell, the answer is “no.”
Both KUCB in Unalaska and the Peninsula Daily News in Port Angeles say the Polar Pioneer will head back to PA. KUCB reports that both the PP and Shell’s other rig, the Noble Discoverer, arrived Sunday in Unalaska’s Dutch Harbor. According to KUCB, the ND didn’t stay long, heading out on Monday, bound for Everett, where it was docked until heading north for Shell’s short-lived drilling effort. The PDN reports Shell isn’t saying when the Polar Pioneer is due back in those waters, where it spent four weeks before coming to T-5 for a similar stay. And we don’t know if any of the support vessels might return to T-5; the one that seemed to spend the most time there, Aiviq, is currently Everett-bound, according to MarineTraffic.com.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Along with the City Council races, the “Move Seattle” levy – Seattle Proposition 1 – is the biggest thing on your soon-to-arrive ballot. A mini-forum with reps from both sides headlined this month’s Southwest District Council meeting, along with a Port of Seattle update on the Terminal 5 modernization project, and a briefing on a new project for the West Seattle Timebank.
Toplines on all of the above follow, plus a few extras:
(Annie’s Nannies founder Annie Davis with daughter & partner Suzanne Royer McCone)
Congratulations to Annie Davis, founder of West Seattle-based Annie’s Nannies (WSB sponsor), for a big honor. Here’s the announcement:
The Association of Premier Nanny Agencies, a national non-profit that helps set the bar for safe professional service in the nanny industry, has bestowed a Lifetime Achievement Award to Seattle’s Annie Davis, founder of Annie’s Nannies, Incorporated.
“I started my business in 1984. In the last 31 years, my staff has done a wonderful job helping thousands of our families find a nanny for their children. These women make me so proud and happy,” says Davis. “They offer integrity and compassion in finding a nanny the perfect position and the family the perfect nanny. My staff deserves this award and I will be sharing it with them, as well as a nice bottle of champagne!”
The Northwest’s longest-serving household staffing agency, Annie’s Nannies, Incorporated provides child care/family assistants, elder companions and other personal employees. ANI is a 2009 Mayor’s Small Business Award winner and the first Seattle small business to pay a $15 minimum wage.
Annie’s Nannies moved its headquarters from Ballard to West Seattle almost exactly a year ago.
Big week as the November 3rd election approaches.
BALLOTS MAILED THIS WEEK: By week’s end, you should have your ballot – since King County says they’re going out Wednesday. (The sample ballot on the county website is what yours is going to look like, if you’re in West Seattle.)
THREE CHANCES TO SEE, HEAR, QUESTION COUNCIL CANDIDATES: Unless you are absolutely certain without a hint of a doubt who you are voting for in the City Council races – West Seattle/South Park District 1, plus citywide (at-large) Positions 8 and 9, you might consider going to at least one of this week’s three local forums/debates:
–First and biggest, tomorrow night (Tuesday) brings all six of those candidates (who last shared a table in West Seattle at the Fauntleroy forum five nights ago) to Neighborhood House’s High Point Center (6400 Sylvan Way) for the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce and WS Transportation Coalition co-presented event, focusing on business and transportation related questions. The at-large candidates are up first – Jon Grant and Tim Burgess for Position 8, Bill Bradburd and Lorena González for Position 9 – with District 1’s Lisa Herbold and Shannon Braddock for the finale. Mingling at 6:15 pm; debating starts at 6:45 pm.
–Wednesday night, Braddock and Herbold will be at centerstage in a forum/debate during the 34th District Democrats‘ monthly meeting, 7 pm at The Hall at Fauntleroy (9131 California SW), with guest moderators (your editor here is among them) asking questions on a variety of topics.
-Thursday night, Herbold and Braddock meet again, as we emcee the Friends of the Seattle Public Library-presented District 1 debate/forum at 6:30 pm at High Point Library, part of a simultaneous series of forums in the council districts citywide. Audience questions too – see you there!
As promised, we’ve followed up today on Sunday morning’s burglary in the 8200 block of California SW, with a nearby resident seeing it happen and calling it in, but police not arriving until after the burglar was gone.
The 911 call was made at 11 am, as we reported on Sunday – the witness has record of that on a cell phone screen. The first officer to arrive at the house was shortly after quarter past – we happened to see it firsthand, because we are based a few blocks south and happened to be heading out on an errand at the time.
Here’s what SPD told us happened in the meantime.
*The dispatch went out at 11:03. An officer was headed to the house by 11:09.
*Before arrival, police got word the burglar(s) had left (11:14, the witness said), and so instead of proceeding immediately to the house, they tried to find the vehicle, using the description and plate (Washington AWB5824 – here’s a photo from the witness):
As the witness told us, they spotted a car they believed to be the vehicle, and they tried to pull it over – but the driver didn’t stop, and proceeded “in an unsafe manner,” as SPD put it, so officers were told to terminate the pursuit, which is SPD policy if it’s believed to be a threat to public safety. From the SPD pursuit policy, which you can read in full here:
…3. Officers Will Not Pursue Without Justification
The circumstances justifying the decision to pursue an eluding vehicle must be articulable at the time the officer initiates the pursuit.
Officers will not pursue solely for any one of the following:
– Traffic violations / Civil Infractions
– Misdemeanors
– Gross misdemeanors
– Property crimes
– The act of eluding alone4. Officers Will Cease Pursuit When the Risk of the Pursuit Outweighs the Danger to the Public if the Suspect is not Captured
Following up on one other point from our original story – the SPD spokesperson with whom we spoke hadn’t seen anything about the mention of “shift change” and did not think that was related. The case is open, SPD verifies, and detectives have “good information” to follow up on.
(2012 WSB photo)
How does this sound for a volunteer gig: Sit and watch the water! That’s exactly what you’re invited to do:
If you’d like to experience coho spawners up close, consider joining Salmon Watch 2015 on Fauntleroy Creek. We’ll begin Monday, Oct. 19, with veteran watchers, then fold in newcomers if/when we start seeing fish. To learn why West Seattleites eagerly get wet and cold to document fish, contact Judy Pickens at judy_pickens@msn.com.
Hard to tell how exciting (or not) this’ll be this year – last year saw 19 spawners, two years earlier, a record 274. Salmon watch starts right after a community event this Sunday – the annual gathering to drum, sing, and dance to call the coho home. To be part of that (all ages welcome!), be at the creek overlook (across the street and up the embankment from the ferry dock) at 5 pm Sunday (October 18th).
Two months after Feedback Lounge closed in Morgan Junction, we know what’s next. And yes, it’s local. Get ready to say hello to Sound Bar. Its prospective proprietor is already a Morgan Junction entrepreneur – Dan Austin, whose restaurant Peel and Press less than a block south is about to celebrate its first anniversary. Full details on Sound Bar are yet to come, but Austin tells WSB that the space at 6451 California SW “will continue to be an awesome neighborhood cocktail bar and live music/entertainment venue.” He’ll continue to operate Peel and Press, too (if you haven’t been lately, it added lunch this summer).
In the midst of the current school-funding crisis – with schools here and around the city facing the loss of teachers, and voices (including last night’s $70,000 donor) calling for a look at the big picture – here’s your chance for the latter. Just out of the WSB inbox:
Fairmount Park Elementary PTA cordially invites members of the West Seattle Schools Community to join us Wednesday for an overview of the current education funding situation and a candid conversation about how our schools can come together to effect change.
Our Paramount Duty: Getting to the Heart of School Funding in WA
Wednesday, October 14th, 7:00 PM to 9:00 PMFairmount Park Elementary School Auditorium
3800 SW FindlayAgenda
*Welcome from FPE PTA Leaders
*Show Us The Money: McCleary & Washington State Budget – Heidi Bennett
*Coming together to create change: How can community members work together to address the ongoing funding shortfall in our state?
*Participate in constructive dialog and candid conversation with longtime education advocates and PTA leaders to formulate action items to which our community can commit to moving forward.
(This fierce-looking little bird is a bushtit, photographed by Mark Wangerin)
Happy Monday! Very busy weekend. If you didn’t check in with the news, we covered a lot … just keep rolling on down the main page. First, our look ahead to the rest of today/tonight, from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
ALZHEIMER’S CAREGIVER SUPPORT GROUP: 1:30 pm at Providence Mount St. Vincent, it’s the twice-monthly meeting of this free “support group for unpaid care partners, family members and friends of individuals with memory loss.” (4831 35th SW)
NORTH DELRIDGE NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL: 6:30 pm at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, with an agenda – according to its online announcement – including “the #50 Metro bus, and recaps of recent neighborhood events such as the mayor’s walk.” (4407 Delridge Way SW)
EVENING BOOK GROUPS: 6:45 pm at Southwest and at West Seattle (Admiral) libraries. All welcome. WS (2306 42nd SW) is reading “Dirt Music” by Tim Winton; SW (35th SW & SW Henderson) is reading “The Tenth Muse” by Judith Jones.
PIGEON POINT NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL: 7 pm in the cafeteria at Pathfinder K-8. (1901 SW Genesee)
JOSH RITTER AT EASY STREET RECORDS: 7 pm, free, all-ages in-store concert – but ESR says CD pre-order is the only way to guarantee entry. (California SW & SW Alaska)
FROM ‘SKIES OVER WEST SEATTLE’: Tonight’s the new moon. Haven’t read the latest SOWS yet? See what’s coming up, starting next weekend!
TIME TRAVEL … by looking into the future via our complete calendar.
Thanks for the texted photos! As previewed here last week, the house on California SW immediately north of West Seattle Nursery (California SW & SW Brandon) is coming down today to make way for the nursery’s expansion. We’re told many parts of the house were salvaged before teardown; there was hope of giving the house away to someone to move a new site, but no taker. The new addition, designed by LD Arch Design and built by Ventana Construction (both West Seattle businesses and WSB sponsors), is expected to be done by spring.
6:58 AM: No incidents so far this morning, in or from West Seattle – but SDOT’s traffic cameras are all out of service, which means, for example, no West Seattle Bridge views – so we’ll rustle up a few more state cameras from around the area to add in the meantime.
7:48 AM: If you’ve traveled on Delridge this morning, you might be wondering about the two police vehicles, lights flashing, parked in the center lane north of the Brandon/Findlay/etc. business district. We’re just back from trying to find out, and also looking into a reported police search on Pigeon Point. The vehicles were unoccupied and we couldn’t find the search, so, no info yet, but look for a Crime Watch followup later. Meanwhile, we CAN report that the 21st SW detour on Pigeon Point is still in effect south of Andover.
8:01 AM: Reminder from Washington State Ferries:
Expect delays on most #Fauntleroy #Vashon #Southworth trips this week due to smaller boats on the run. Ferry status: http://t.co/skL9rUOPg9
— WA State Ferries (@wsferries) October 12, 2015
8:06 AM: Ride the Route 50 Metro bus? It’s on the agenda for tonight’s North Delridge Neighborhood Council meeting (6:30 pm, Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, 4408 Delridge Way SW).
ORIGINAL REPORT, 11:23 PM SUNDAY: Just in: The West Seattle school that was crowdfunding to try to save a teacher from being cut has apparently met its goal. After receiving e-mail announcing that the Alki Elementary fundraising drive had reached its goal thanks to a $70,000+ donation, we checked the crowdfunding page, and the donation is listed there. Donor Brian Jones posted on the Crowdrise.com page:
This lack of funding has to end. It starts with our state legislature who has dropped the ball and is failing our children. We need to come together as families and support the most important need of our children – education. I donate this money on behalf of my two children, one who entered kindergarten at Loyal Heights this year and the other who will start kindergarten in two years. I am outraged and fed up with this entire issue and the fact that our legislature does not seem that this is an urgent priority. Please contact me at brian@psgfilms.com if you feel the same and let’s make some real change. I am ready to lead and make that happen. I’m not a politician. I’m just a pissed off parent, who is sick and tired of the horrible leadership that is failing our children.
ADDED MONDAY 12:25 AM: We e-mailed Brian Jones with a couple questions, to follow up. He replies:
I have two daughters, age 3 and 6. I live in Ballard and have no children that attend school in West Seattle. When my daughter entered Kindergarten this year at Loyal Heights, I learned I had to pay over $2000 to cover the second part of the day. I found that ridiculous and didn’t know why until I learned more about the McCleary decision and the basis of that lawsuit.
The legislature and Governor seem to be taking forever, (and my state rep and senator never even email me back). So when I heard about the lack of funding and teacher pulls, I talked with my wife and we decided that enough was enough and that we would do what we could to help, because our elected officials are failing our children. I don’t know anything about politics, but I do know a child’s education and a loving family is a recipe for success.
The first step that anyone can do is come to the rally this Tuesday at SPS headquarters and learn how our children are taking a back seat to this absolute ridiculous inaction by our elected officials.
After that I plan on galvanizing others to pressure our legislature to move fast and swift regarding this issue or face a movement of parents who will vote them out of office. … I’m not a politician or even “political,” I just can’t stand by and see our education system run like this.
The rally he mentions has also just been mentioned to us by Schmitz Park Elementary parent Rachel Lazar, who’s been a leader in advocacy at that school since this all started circulating on Thursday. It’s set for 4 pm this Tuesday (October 13th) outside district headquarters, 3rd and Lander in SODO.
Big thanks to David Hutchinson for sharing that photo of Mount Rainier, as seen this evening from West Seattle’s Don Armeni Boat Ramp. So cool, we wanted to rush it right onto the site. Looks to be a lenticular cloud formation. What a sight to end a weekend that began with wild weather!
Two West Seattle Crime Watch reader reports:
GATEWOOD BURGLARY: For at least the third time this weekend, there was a burglary on California SW. We reported Saturday on two business break-ins, in The Junction and South Admiral; today, burglars hit in Gatewood, in the 8200 block of California SW. A neighbor reports seeing the burglars break in and carry out “duffel bags and TVs” while the victims were away on an errand; the neighbor called 911, but the burglars were gone before police arrived. The neighbor called 911 at 11 am; she says police arrived after the burglars left at 11:14. (We happened to see the first car pull up, as this is a couple blocks away from WSB HQ and we were passing by.) The neighbor says the 911 operator mentioned “shift change” as a complication; we don’t know what else was happening in the sector at the time, as we were away from the scanner, but we’ll be following up with SPD tomorrow.
CAR PROWL: Karen e-mailed today to say that “our car was broken into Friday night. It was in front of our house on Hanford St SW, near 36th Ave. They smashed the passenger side window but we didn’t have anything worth taking, luckily.”
6:04 PM: If you were headed for Highway 99 any time soon – northbound from here, or southbound toward here, you should know there’s a big problem right now: The Battery Street Tunnel is closed in both directions.
6:16 PM: Scanner indicates the fire suppression system in the tunnel went off though there was no fire, and that a shutoff is in the works – “shouldn’t be long” is the exact quote.
6:55 PM: SDOT says the tunnel is now open again, both ways.
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