West Seattle, Washington
25 Saturday
(WSB photo from last year’s Breathe Deep Seattle 5K)
Last reminder – tomorrow’s the next benefit 5K run/walk in our area, Breathe Deep Seattle, benefiting the LUNGevity Foundation, which fights lung cancer. It’s in Lincoln Park, with check-in/last-minute registration starting at 8:30 am Saturday, a program with guest speakers at 9 am, the timed 5K and untimed walk/fun run at 9:30, closing ceremony at 11. If you are already registered and want to pick up your race T-shirt early, you can do that at West Seattle Runner (California/Charlestown; WSB sponsor) between 5-7:30 pm tonight. (P.S. If you missed our recent look ahead to all the 5K’s in West Seattle scheduled before year’s end – five of them including BDS – see it here.)
(Live view from the west-facing WS Bridge camera; other cameras are on the WSB Traffic page)
Happy Friday! The SDOT Construction Lookahead says the work on Roxbury between 23rd and 24th – replacing a concrete panel – is expected to continue all day today, 9 am-5 pm. Looking ahead to the weekend – here’s the citywide lineup of events that might affect traffic.
We received this earlier this week from Kent and Parris Sadow, proprietors of Atomic Boys in the Admiral District. They wondered if we might share the vignette about what happened to their son Monday:
Our 16 year old was skateboarding home when he fell hard. Just by chance, a Seattle police officer happened to see him fall. The officer took the time to stop his car and check on our son, checking for any real injuries, and even asking concussion related questions. Once he determined that nothing more serious than a banged-up elbow resulted, the officer still then insisted on giving our son a ride back to his friend’s house nearby to clean up his elbow.
I wish we knew the officer’s name, but unfortunately our son did not notice. Maybe if he sees this on the West Seattle Blog he will get our thanks. We always hear of typical police activity, but this was to us above and beyond the normal, and just genuinely really nice.
Glad to start Friday with some “nice.”
The man arrested on Tuesday after a cross-peninsula series of incidents involving a stolen truck is out of jail, though not necessarily off the hook. The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office confirmed to WSB today that a judge did not find probable cause to keep the 23-year-old suspect in jail 
when he appeared for a bail hearing on Wednesday. If you missed our coverage on Tuesday – the incident began with a truck full of landscaping equipment stolen from Alki Avenue SW next to Cactus; a citizen pursued the stolen truck, which reverse-rammed the citizen’s car at 53rd and Stevens; the truck continued on to Morgan Junction, where it did the same thing to a police car (photo at right, tweeted by Robert). Officers found the truck ditched shortly thereafter on Gatewood Hill, and found the suspect hiding under a deck at a home nearby; he was arrested and booked into King County Jail – where the jail register shows he was released hours later. Since he was not held, paperwork related to the hearing is not available – so far – but we are told that charges are still possible, as police continue to process and compile evidence. Court dockets show the suspect has a record with more than half a dozen felony convictions as a juvenile and one as an adult, a plea-bargained case three years ago in which he was found with a stolen car.
(Photo courtesy Southwest Seattle Historical Society)
Along with music and art, tonight’s palette of possibilities in West Seattle also included history. In the courtyard at the Log House Museum, 20 people watched and listened as Will Winter shared highlights of the Alki Point Lighthouse‘s hundred-year history. He was in the uniform he and other U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary volunteers wear as they spend summer weekend afternoons showing visitors around the lighthouse and its grounds. The Southwest Seattle Historical Society, based at the museum, has joined with the USCG and the Auxiliary to celebrate the lighthouse’s centennial; it began in earnest with festivities back on June 1st, continues with weekend tours through the end of this month, and will peak at the SWSHS’s lunch gala November 9th, themed “Tripping the Lighthouse Fantastic.” (You can order your tickets now – go here to see how.)
P.S. The next big SWSHS event is a different centennial – on August 18th, Greg and Sharon Nickels host the 100th-birthday party for their North Admiral home, as a benefit for SWSHS and a chance to learn about not only the house and neighborhood history, but also about researching your own home; details here.
Thanks to everyone who’s tipped us about a multiple-car crash on Delridge Way between Dakota and Genesee (including Dana, who sent the photo above). Our crew (who took the photo below) just arrived and tells us four vehicles were involved, with one person going to the hospital by private ambulance (which generally means non-life-threatening injuries).
It’s in the southbound lane, but traffic is getting around both days – just be ready for a slowdown in the area.
Another big event tonight – and this one just happens once a month – West Seattle Art Walk! While WSAW official stops are all over the peninsula, and all on the map/list you can find here, you’ll find a few extras around The Junction – like Rose the Kale Lady, above, outside Shoofly Pie. She’s selling curly-leaf kale for $2, with proceeds to the West Seattle Food Bank, also the beneficiary of raffle tickets she’s selling. Rose’s watercolor paintings are on display too.
Further south on California, Easy Street Records is where you’ll find the wings mentioned in our headline – Happy Hour tonight in the café, per this photo tweeted earlier by ESR proprietor Matt Vaughan. Here’s the menu for this new Thursday night feature:
Around the corner at Twilight:
ADDED 8:19 PM: At Firefly Café and Creperie (California/Genesee; WSB sponsor), you’ll find Adriene Travis and his Kolorfusion photo/graphics art:
Next Art Walk: 6-9 pm September 12th.
On the stage on the east lawn at Hiawatha Community Center, playing to hundreds of people enjoying another perfect summer evening, that’s Impossible Bird in our short Instagram video clip. (added) And here’s a full song:
Summer Concerts at Hiawatha aren’t just about the music – there’s lots happening on the sidelines, like Joyful the Clown making balloon animals for kids:
Merrill Gardens-Admiral Heights (WSB sponsor) is presenting Joyful tonight. Other freebies include popsicles from the Admiral Neighborhood Association, which presents the concert series – here’s past and current presidents Katy Walum and David Whiting:
Katy organizes the concert series, now in its fifth year (and we’re proud to have been a sponsor every year since the start). Yet more freebies tonight – coffee and iced tea from Starbucks, and peaches from Metropolitan Market (WSB sponsor), which is now in its Peach-O-Rama mode. Plus: West Seattle’s own Marty Riemer is tonight’s emcee:
He told the crowd that Impossible Bird has been on his podcast many times – they’re making beautiful music onstage while families, friends, and neighbors visit. The free concert continues until 8 or so – if you’re not here already, c’mon over.
P.S. Next week, same time/place, it’s Massy Ferguson, for the fourth of this year’s six Thursday night concerts. And there’s more outdoor music in West Seattle tomorrow – the second of four concerts on the south side of Providence Mount St. Vincent, featuring the Convergence Zone Bluegrass Band; the 6 pm concert is free, and dinner’s available for purchase (menu here).
(8/14 note: To check whether a business is still a current WSB sponsor, please go here)
(Junction True Value owner Bruce Davis and, showing off 60th-anniversary T-shirt at right, 4th-generation family member working at the store, daughter Ahna Davis)
How does an independent, family-owned hardware store last for 60 years?
“A great location and great customers” are a big part of the answer, according to Bruce Davis, owner of Junction True Value, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary with a big sale all this week, culminating in a celebration to which you’re invited this weekend.
(We’re also pleased to welcome Junction True Value as a new WSB sponsor in honor of the occasion!)
Bruce Davis is the third generation of Junction True Value ownership. His grandfather Henry Bergquist bought the store in 1953, and sold it to Davis’s parents, John and Norma Davis. “He didn’t want to get into the business as much as he wanted to give his daughter and son-in-law something to grow into,” Davis says.
Junction True Value hasn’t always been at its current 44th/Edmunds site. It had two locations on California SW, first where Elliott Bay Brewing is now (which had been a hardware store even before that, as revealed in this WSB story), and then, around the time of the 1962 World’s Fair, moved to where Northwest Art and Frame is now. Davis remembers helping move the store across the street with a hand truck when he was 10 years old; he said he was already helping out at the store back then, with tasks such as inventory. The store was there until its current building was built in 1976, about two years after Davis first started working there fulltime. He says he’s been in charge since his dad had a stroke in 1983, but his parents remained owners “until they both passed on – with a lot of veto power.”
The name has changed from its original Junction Hardware; Davis’s parents originally joined a co-op called Hometown Hardware, bought by True Value in 1969. True Value also is a cooperative, Davis explains – “a really great system for smaller stores, (with) buying power and marketing power.” The store Rewards Program will save you money, too.
Funny thing about hardware stores – Davis says they’ve had their naysayers for a long time, with people insisting first they’d be taken out by discounters, then big-box stores, “each time, they said we’re going to be toast – but we’ve kept growing, still growing and thriving, doing better than ever – doing very well.” In no small part, certainly, because Junction True Value has kept evolving; if you think a hardware store is low-tech, consider that the store has had a computer system for 30 years! Davis analyzes store data to find out what’s gaining popularity and what’s not so popular (gardening, paints, and housewares are hot, for example) – although the human touch will never go out of style, from his late mom’s ideas for the gift department, to current staffers who “are very creative in their decorating and merchandising. It’s fun!”
He also enjoys working with the people who walk through the door each day, to shop and spend and visit: “Our customers love us and we love them. We do our best not to disappoint them.”
And so, you, Junction True Value‘s beloved customer, are invited to join the anniversary celebration. All week long, a sale is under way, including daily merchandise and gift-card drawings. Then on Saturday, the actual 60th anniversary of the store’s August 10th, 1953, opening, the party gets BIG – as also detailed on the store’s website – hourly drawings, free face painting, free balloons, free popcorn – and from 10 am-3 pm, hot dogs and pop at ’60s prices with the West Seattle Lions Club helping out! (Sunday, the drawings will continue, along with free popcorn and free balloons.)
As Bruce Davis says: “It’s really just appreciation of the customers – we want to say thanks.”
Junction True Value is at 4747 44th SW, 206-932-0450, online at junctiontruevalue.com, and on Facebook here. (Also check out the money-saving coupon on the WSB Coupons page!)
(Now-empty artifact case; photo courtesy Duwamish Longhouse)
The Duwamish Tribe – whose longhouse and headquarters are here in West Seattle – have long pointed out the cost of its lack of official federal recognition, for which they continue to fight, so far unsuccessfully. Today, a new report is out with details of another cost: Tribal artifacts, taken away from the Duwamish Longhouse after 4 years on display because they are to be “repatriated” to a tribe that does have recognition. The artifacts were found here in West Seattle more than a quarter-century ago, reports Indian Country Today Media Network, on Port of Seattle-owned land. They had been exhibited at the Duwamish Longhouse until they were recently taken away, and ICTMN reports that the Port is making the decision about who will get the artifacts. The full story was published today on ICTMN’s website – see it here. The publication reports that the Port has not answered its inquiry about who will get the artifacts; we also are inquiring.
With temperatures still peaking in the 80s, an incident last night is occasion for a reminder to be extra careful of windows when small children are around – Seattle Fire spokesperson Kyle Moore says a one-year-old boy was taken to Harborview Medical Center around 8:30 last night after falling about 14 feet at a residence in the 6500 block of 32nd SW in High Point. He says the boy was “conscious and crying and had no visible injuries” when SFD crews arrived, and was reported in stable condition when taken to the hospital. No other specifics. (P.S. Authorities say that nationwide, 5,000 children a year are hurt this way; here’s prevention advice from a national safety organization.)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
As the recommended design for the new Arbor Heights Elementary School made its public debut last night, the community Q/A expanded beyond the facility’s look and layout.
AH principal Christy Collins reassured the community that, although the school is moving toward an “eSTEM” (environment, science, technology, engineering, math) curriculum, it will remain a neighborhood school. And, Collins said, the new facility will even better serve the school’s role as a “community cornerstone” in Arbor Heights.
Also: While there are still School Board formalities ahead, district reps reiterated that the project remains on its accelerated timeline, with AH scheduled to move to temporary quarters at Boren right after the coming school year, so construction work can get going.
Now, as for the design, here’s how the presentation unfolded:
(River otter – yes, the ones you see in and near Puget Sound are *river* otters – photographed by Mark Wangerin)
The fog will lift, the forecasters say – so envision a sunny summer evening as you look ahead to tonight’s art and music – but first, if you have a wee one at home this morning:
LITTLE CRITTERS: Your little ones get to learn about – and then meet! – a small animal TBA, 11:30 am at High Point Library. (35th/Raymond)
WEST SEATTLE ART WALK: 6-9 pm, all over the peninsula! You can preview some of tonight’s artists by going to the official WSAW website. See the map/venue list here, with participants including WSB sponsors Click! Design That Fits, Firefly Café and Creperie, Hotwire Online Coffeehouse, Wallflower Custom Framing.
WINE AND MUSIC: Tonight’s also the nightly Wine Club event, with music by Choro Tocando, at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor), 6-8 pm. (5612 California SW)
SUMMER CONCERTS AT HIAWATHA: 6:30 pm, Impossible Bird is live, free, on the east lawn at Hiawatha Community Center – see our preview from last night. (2700 block Walnut Avenue)
LIGHTHOUSE HISTORY: The celebration of the Alki Point Lighthouse‘s centennial continues with tonight’s presentation at the Log House Museum by US Coast Guard Auxiliary volunteer Will Winter, 6:30 pm – details in our listing and recent preview. (61st/Stevens)
And to the south …
RATCITY ARTCITY: White Center’s monthly art celebration, 6-9 pm, focusing tonight on live performance (and other types of art) – go here to see who’s doing what where!
(Live view from the west-facing WS Bridge camera; other cameras are on the WSB Traffic page)
So far, nothing out of the ordinary on West Seattle’s outbound routes. As always, we’ll add updates here if that changes.
EARLY WARNING: If you missed the announcement last night, SDOT has sent early warning that a key connector between Highland Park/Puget Ridge and Delridge will be closed for five weekdays starting August 19th – details here.
That’s Impossible Bird, the duo you’ll hear at this week’s free Summer Concerts at Hiawatha show – 6:30 pm Thursday on the lawn east of the community center, along Walnut Avenue SW south of SW Lander. This is the third of this year’s six concerts, presented by the Admiral Neighborhood Association and sponsored by local businesses and organizations including WSB. Haven’t been? BYO chair(s) and/or blanket(s), come stake out a spot on the lawn, bring dinner if you feel like it – it’s a casual event, not a “sit down and sit still” type of atmosphere; usually people of all ages are dancing, chatting, visiting the sponsor tables along the edge of the lawn … come late and leave early, come early and leave late. The weather promises to be perfect once more. See the full season lineup here.
The ongoing Delridge Way Repaving Project will lead to a five-day road closure later this month, according to the SDOT alert sent out tonight:
The Seattle Department of Transportation will close a segment of SW Orchard and Dumar Way SW, which runs between Delridge Way SW and SW Austin Street, from 7:00 a.m. Monday, August 19, until 6:00 p.m. Friday, August 23, to conduct roadway restoration work and make utility upgrades. Local access will be maintained.
Traffic intending to travel west on Dumar Way SW from 16th Avenue SW will be directed to use the following detour (please see attached map):
· South on 16th Avenue SW
· West on SW Henderson
· North on Delridge Way SWTraffic intending to travel east on SW Orchard to Dumar Way SW from Delridge Way SW will be directed to use the following detour:
· South on Delridge Way SW
· East on SW Henderson Street
· North on 16th Avenue SWLane restrictions currently in effect on Delridge Way SW as part of SDOT’s Delridge Way SW Paving Project (between SW Holden and SW Orchard streets) will remain in place until early October. Northbound and southbound traffic will be maintained.
Tonight’s West Seattle Crime Watch is a followup – we finally have details on the two street robberies mentioned in Monday’s report. Seattle Police public-affairs unit Det. Renée Witt says neither case has resulted in arrests so far, and they don’t know if they’re related – detectives are investigating but here are the basics of the two incidents we asked about:
Thursday night (8/1) – The victim (a South Seattle Community College [WSB sponsor] student, according to a safety bulletin from the college) was walking home when four or five people confronted him in the 5200 block of 16th SW, pushing him to the ground and taking his iPhone as well as $160 in cash. Det. Witt says the victim described the robbers as black males, one in a red shirt, one armed with a handgun, but could not provide any further description. The victim, she said, did not want medical attention.
Early Saturday (8/3) – This actually happened at 30th and Myrtle, Det. Witt explained – the 34th/Willow address on the report is apparently the home of a friend of the victim, to which he went to report the robbery. The report says the victim was walking when confronted by three people who demanded all his money; he refused, and one struck his face with a handgun, knocking him to the ground. The robbers – described only as black men about 18 to 22 years old, one wearing a green shirt – took the victim’s wallet and iPhone. After he got to a friend’s home, she called police, though, the report says, the victim “did not want to report the incident because he didn’t think anything would happen to the suspects.”
ADDED 10:54 PM: As noted in comments, SPD now says via this SPD Blotter update that it’s looking for a group of robbers who have struck around the city, and one of the aforementioned incidents is believed to be part of their rampage – the one on 16th SW last Thursday night. While the Saturday incident on 30th is NOT mentioned, SPD mentions an additional West Seattle incident – saying that on Saturday, “just after noon, one of the suspects ran up to a 13-year-old girl and stole an iPhone out of her hands near 60th Ave SW and Alki Ave SW.” That incident was not on our radar, as it’s not shown as a robbery on the crime-report map, it’s listed as “theft-other.”
King County Elections has released its second round of primary-election results – which look a lot like the first round, though in the races for mayor and Council Position 2, the distance between first and second place tightened a bit.
SEATTLE MAYOR – Results are here.
Murray 30%
McGinn 28%
Steinbrueck 16%
Harrell 15%
SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL, POSITION 2 – Results are here
Conlin 49%
Sawant 34%
Carver 17%
SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL, POSITION 8 – Results are here
O’Brien 58%
Shen 35%
Ishii 7%
KING COUNTY PARKS LEVY – Results are here
Yes 69%
No 31%
KING COUNTY EXECUTIVE – Results are here
Constantine 76%
Lobdell 12%
Goodspaceguy 7%
SEATTLE PORT COMMISSION, POS. 3 – Results are here
Bowman 66%
Wolfe 18%
Pilloud 15%
A plain-text file of all races is here. Next update is expected in the 4 pm hour tomorrow.
A two-car crash this past hour did serious damage to the signal equipment at 8th and Roxbury – as shown in our photo – and the light is not working as a result. That means it’ll be slow going in that intersection for a while; a police officer is on site to direct traffic. No one was hurt in the crash.
Two days after closing Bada Bistro at 61st/Alki, its now-former owners confirm that Fatburger plans to take over the space. Fatburger is a Los Angeles-based chain, founded more than 60 years ago, which made its first inroads into the Seattle metro area with outlets on the Eastside; so far as we can tell, this would be its first location inside the Seattle city limits. The Fatburger website’s “new locations” page mentions that Alki Beach is “opening August/September 2013.” Its closest current locations include Bellevue, Issaquah, Redmond, and Federal Way. Fatburger’s arrival will make the 2700 block of Alki Avenue something of a hub of food/beverage chains – with Starbucks across the alley, and Subway soon to open in half of the three-years-empty space at 2758 Alki (as first reported here in May; a sign has just gone up this week). We’re hoping to reach the local franchisees for more information, and to find out if the plan includes the parent company’s wings sideline, as suggested by a liquor-license filing from earlier this year.
Beautiful scenes of fog on the water this morning – thanks to Brian for sharing the image above and Susana for sending the image below:
Meantime, this is shaping up as another very busy news day, so here’s a very quick look at highlights from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar (where as always you will find even more listings for the day/night – and weeks/months – ahead):
EARLY DAYS SUPPORT GROUP: Featured at last Saturday’s West Seattle Outdoor Movies (WSB coverage here) – it’s the weekly drop-in meeting of this support group for parents with babies up to a year old. Noon-2 pm at Nurturing Expressions (WSB sponsor) in The Junction. (4746 44th SW, Suite 201)
BENEFIT LEMONADE/COOKIE STAND: Amanda shares this message from the Community School of West Seattle (but note the school is NOT the site of the sale – the address is below):
Our wonderful friend Ian in the Blake classroom is having a lemonade and cookie stand. All the proceeds raised go to help Boyer Children’s Clinic where Ian has spent a LOT of time! PLEASE stop by and support his efforts, I am sure the lemonade will be delicious
3-5 pm today, 9250 14th SW.
LAFAYETTE KINDERGARTENERS’ PLAY DATE: Going into kindergarten at Lafayette Elementary this year? Join today’s play date at the Lafayette playground, 4:30-6:30 pm.
COOKBOOK LAUNCH PARTY: As featured on WSB last week, Chef Erin Coopey‘s new “Kitchen Pantry Cookbook” launches with a party at PCC Natural Markets-West Seattle (WSB sponsor) tonight, 5-7 pm. (California/Stevens)
SEATTLE BICYCLE ADVISORY BOARD: Of particular interest given that there was another collision today in the East Marginal area. 6-8 pm in the lower-level meeting room (L-280) at City Hall downtown. Tonight’s SBAB agenda includes updates on capital projects and the Bicycle Master Plan Update, and can be seen here.
CLOTHESPIN ON A WIRE: Pop-up shop tonight at Bird on a Wire Espresso, 6-9 pm. Details in the listing. (35th/Henderson)
ARBOR HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY MEETING: Get the latest on the new Arbor Heights Elementary during a community meeting at 7 pm tonight at the current AHES. (37th and 104th)
KELLY CONDRON CONCERT: Grace Church is hosting Kelly Condron in concert tonight (Wed. Aug.7) at 7pm. The church says, “Kelly has been the opening act for many top notch Christian music groups. This is her only tour stop in Washington. Admission is free, but donations will be accepted.” (10323 28th Ave. SW)
‘ONCE UPON A MATTRESS’: Opening night for the ArtsWest conservatory production, 7:30 pm, details in our calendar listing. (4711 California SW)
(Photo courtesy Coach Colin Slingsby, seen with campers this past June)
The camp at Chief Sealth International High School is actually more than a basketball camp – it teaches “life skills” too – and head coach Colin Slingsby sends word that room remains in two sessions later this month:
Sealth Basketball and Life Skills Camp kicks off Session 3 next week after two highly attended and successful sessions back in June, where we hosted more than 250 campers. There are still spaces available for next week’s session (8/12-8/16) grades 2-9, and the new Advanced Concepts session (8/19-8/23), which is for campers in grades 6-9. Contact Coach Slingsby at caslingsby@seattleschools.org or 206-854-8142 for last minute registration instructions.
(Live view from the west-facing WS Bridge camera; other cameras are on the WSB Traffic page)
6:11 AM: The morning commute is off to a quiet start. No road work or closure advisories for today, except for an alert that the Mariners play a day game, which means that the southbound 99 ramp to Atlantic will be closed for about an hour in the late afternoon to try to help traffic keep flowing.
Looking way ahead – the weekend of August 16-19, there will be two closures of note for our area, including an all-weekend closure of the northbound I-5 ramp to the West Seattle Bridge – scroll to the SODO section of the weekly Construction Lookahead.
7:46 AM UPDATE: There’s a crash on the eastbound bridge – thanks to Jay for the tip in comments. Also, there is a crash at East Marginal and Spokane – east of the low bridge – described on the scanner as “bicycle vs. bicycle.” Fire has been called out for possible injury/ies on that one but not for the bridge crash, which has closed the middle lane, per SDOT via Twitter.
7:55 AM UPDATE: Per scanner, the two bicycles collided head-on. One rider is “up and walking around” with minor injuries, while the other one, a 30-year-old man, will be taken to the hospital.
8:01 AM UPDATE: Also per scanner, southbound East Marginal is closed at Spokane because of the aforementioned collision.
8:17 AM UPDATE: That scene is open to traffic, and we have just heard that the high-bridge car-crash scene is clearing too. No injuries reported in that one.
8:54 AM UPDATE: If you’re using Highland Park Way as an alternative – you might run into trouble there too; SFD has responded to an aid call for an incident at HP Way and W. Marginal Way SW describing as a bicyclist falling. No medic unit dispatched, though, so the injuries sound non-major, so far.
5:53 PM: Bridge update:
@westseattleblog stalled vehicle just after curve heading east on WSB. Kind of in a blind spot so use caution.
— mjs1980 (@mjs1980) August 8, 2013
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