West Seattle, Washington
22 Friday
Two reader reports in West Seattle Crime Watch – first, a hit-and-run solved by the husband of the victim. She writes:
I woke up (Saturday) morning to find my car had been sideswiped overnight. I park on the street because I have no driveway (39th & Hinds). The genius lost a very distinctive wheel hub. I called the police and an officer came within 30 mins. While they were on their way, my husband canvassed the neighborhood and FOUND THE CAR! Just a block away. Unbelievable. The officer headed right up there after I told her where it was. Two criminal citations later and justice is served. Karma wins!! Oh and yes, they have insurance. I am just glad they didn’t hurt anyone!
Second report, about a car break-in at Westcrest Off-Leash Park – and extra information thanks to victim vigilance in tracking down who was using her stolen card:
The team from 1 Green Planet (a nonprofit) was already very busy when we stopped by the fall “Recycle Roundup” at Fauntleroy Church minutes after it started this morning. This pickup truck full of big recyclables followed several vehicles that already had come through and dropped off their contributions to the recycling drive. It continues till 3 pm, so you have time to go see what you have in the basement or the storage unit or wherever – as long as it’s listed here as the type of item they’ll accept – and take it to the church parking lot at 9140 California SW.
Though today’s Walk to End Alzheimer’s is wrapping up along Lake Union right about now, it had West Seattle representation – this group headed out this morning from The Kenney (WSB sponsor). Participants included residents and staffers. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, the walk’s beneficiary, 35 million people are affected by Alzheimer’s worldwide, and this is National Alzheimer’s Month – find out more here.
(Photos by Nick Adams for WSB)
A shelf-like layer of clouds provided the drama for last night’s autumnal-equinox sunset watch with West Seattle’s NASA Solar System Ambassador Alice Enevoldsen at Solstice Park. WSB contributing photojournalist Nick Adams was there and shows us how it unfolded – ahead:
First full day of fall – perfect time for fall cleaning, if you want to divest yourself and your home of any items on the list for today’s “Recycle Roundup” – one of the highlights from the WSB West Seattle Events Calendar:
TRAFFIC ALERT: Tonight begins another Sunday-Thursday series of overnight closures for southbound 99/Alaskan Way Viaduct, 9 pm-5 am.
RECYCLE ROUNDUP: 9 am-3 pm today, it’s the fall edition of Fauntleroy UCC Church‘s twice-yearly recycling event with 1 Green Planet. Free (though they’ll have donation baskets if you want to offer a few $ out of appreciation for the service). Drive into the church parking lot at 9140 California SW (map) – the list of what they will and will not take is here.
PANCAKE-BREAKFAST FUNDRAISER: Support the Westside Wildcat youth sports/cheer organization by joining them for breakfast at the Masonic Hall, 40th and Edmunds, 9 am-11:30 pm – details in the calendar listing.
WEST SEATTLE FARMERS’ MARKET: As always, 10 am-2 pm, 44th and Alaska in The Junction.
CREATIVE-WRITING CLASSES: A new series of weekly classes starts today at Gatewood B&B, 10 am-noon. Details here.
OPEN HOUSE AT CAMP LONG: 12:30 pm-4:30 pm, you’re invited to an open house about Camp Long’s challenge courses and community collaboration around them. Full details here.
GLOBAL LENS FILM SCREENING: The Portuguese/French film “Craft” will be screened free at the West Seattle (Admiral) Library, 2 pm, as part of the Global Lens series.
Preview the week ahead by browsing the calendar!
(Photos by Nick Adams for WSB)
At halftime, when WSB contributing photojournalist Nick Adams photographed Chief Sealth International High School head football coach Luther Carr III talking to the team (top photo), they were down 25-0, at Bishop Blanchet. In the second half, they scored two touchdowns, but those weren’t enough.
Blanchet had another high-scoring half, and secured the win, 52-12. Ahead, more scenes from the game:
Read More
Homecoming today for Seattle Lutheran High School, and while the football team lost the game, it was a fun afternoon just the same:
Pregame barbecue tailgating in the West Seattle Stadium parking lot, of course. In the stadium, homecoming royalty was driven around the track in golf carts – here’s homecoming queen Maddy Jones:
(See everybody in the homecoming court, later in this story.) Then, there was the winning homecoming “float,” lampooning the latest warning that the world would end this year:
The “floats” were audio/visual carts lent to the students to decorate; the seniors’ “post-apocalyptic class” float won a vote and therefore came to the game – the others were to be on display at the homecoming dance. Now on to the game –
Game details, homecoming court members, and three cheerleaders celebrating a big achievement while hoping for community help – all ahead!Read More
Thanks to those who have e-mailed/called about a sizable police response on the east side of The Junction, in the 4500 block of 41st SW.
(Photos by Christopher Boffoli for WSB)
8:56 PM: Police are investigating an assault that officers on scene described to WSB’s Christopher Boffoli as a “domestic-violence situation,” and they say there are no suspects at large. Witnesses saw a woman taken away in handcuffs; a private ambulance was called, and Christopher saw a man being treated for a leg wound. We’ll be following up with police for any additional information.
12:15 AM UPDATE: Southwest Precinct Lt. Alan Williams confirms the suspect has been booked into jail. The victim, he says, was stabbed once in the leg with a knife, and is expected to recover.
One week from today, bus service in, to, and from West Seattle will change in a big way, both with the debut of RapidRide C Line and with a long list of route restructuring. If you ride the bus but haven’t taken a close look to figure out what that means to you, this might be a good time. You can start with the “highlights” links on the right side of this page on the Metro website – it includes information on routes that are changing, ending, starting. Also taking effect next Saturday: The downtown Ride-Free Zone will be no more.
STILL HAVE QUESTIONS? We are talking with the county about some kind of Q/A before Saturday, to help out with your last-minute questions; they plan an informational event on Saturday at Westwood Village, where the RapidRide line starts/ends, but we know from comment discussions that many other questions remain. So here’s our question for YOU – what format would you want to see? Live online chat? Or perhaps a place in the WSB Forums to post questions that Metro could answer? Let us know what you think, via a comment here or e-mail: editor@westseattleblog.com
Two more food drives for the White Center Food Bank (which serves south West Seattle too):
VILLAGE GREEN NEXT SATURDAY: Bring donations to Village Green Perennial Nursery till 4 pm today Saturday, September 29 – look for the barrel. 10223 26th SW.
CHICO’S NEXT FRIDAY/SATURDAY: Shop at Chico’s at Westwood Village next Friday and Saturday (September 28-29), and if you bring a nonperishable-food donation, you’ll get a 10 percent discount on your purchase.
Thanks to Bryan and Janet Jones for photos from the grounds of the former Genesee Hill school, where the community gardens are getting some TLC from neighborhood and Seattle Pacific University CityQuest volunteers. That work’s going on till about 2 pm.
But it overlaps with another event you can join in, too – from 1 till 3 pm, make mosaic stepping stones with Bright River Studio artist Terri Goodwin. Just bring “a colorful old plate or tile to break up for the mosaic” and “dress for mess.” You’ll get to keep your finished creation.
ADDED: Afterward, Janet sent out this summary:
Today was a gold star day at the school, with several long-awaited tasks accomplished, as follows:
Four new basketball nets installed
Some playground sweeping
All summer debris transferred to the dumpster
Ivy pulled from the Dakota hedge
Wildlife area tidied
Blackberries trimmed
Wood chips wheelbarrowed to beds – wildlife area and behind play structure
Two and a half trash bags of litter picked up.
Photos with story posted to the wsblog
Stepping stone artThank you one and all!
If you were at or near Don Armeni this morning, you might have seen them – tribal canoes heading across Elliott Bay to join in the Salmon Homecoming celebration on the downtown waterfront. Anne from Ventana Construction (WSB sponsor) shares the photos, and says she counted eight canoes, including the Duwamish Raven Canoe (top photo):
And from the other side of the bay:
A canoe-welcoming ceremony was scheduled for the festival at 11 am; other demonstrations and celebrations of tribal culture are on the schedule (see it here) this afternoon.
Thanks to Chas Redmond for sharing that photo of part of the new “Hub and Spoke High Course” at Camp Long. It’s a big weekend for CL – a party tonight, open house tomorrow. Tonight’s event is part of our daily list of highlights from the WSB West Seattle Events Calendar:
WEST SEATTLE BRIDGE TRAFFIC ALERT: As noted here on Friday, SDOT says crews will be painting stripes on the West Seattle Bridge, so you just might get stuck in a slowdown.
AUTUMN EQUINOX THIS MORNING, SUNSET WATCH TONIGHT: Fall officially arrives at 7:49 am our time today. Celebrate with NASA Solar System Ambassador Alice Enevoldsen‘s equinox sunset watch at Solstice Park; be there by 6:45 pm or so.
BENEFIT GOLF TOURNAMENTS: Two are happening at the West Seattle Golf Course today – the 11th annual Holy Rosary tournament, with an 8 am start, and the Seattle Parks Youth Scholarship Fund tournament, with a 2 pm start.
BLOOD DRIVE AT WESTWOOD: On the Barton side of Westwood Village, you’ll find the Puget Sound Blood Center‘s Bloodmobile, 9:30-3:30, and they’d love to have you come donate; details here.
OKTOBERFEST AT ELLIOTT BAY BREWING COMPANY: Special German food on the menu all day/night, and live Bavarian music 6-9 pm. Details here.
FREE MOVIE AT THE LONGHOUSE: At noon and 1:30, you can see “Princess Angeline” – the Duwamish story of Native Seattle – free at the Duwamish Longhouse, which explains, “This 2010 film by local filmmakers Sandy & Yasu Osawa explores the unrecognized tribal status of the Duwamish primarily through the life of Chief Seattle’s daughter, Princess Angeline. Funded in part by 4Culture.” The longhouse is at 4705 W. Marginal Way SW.
LIEN OPEN HOUSE & FURRY FACES PET-TAGGING EVENT: 1-4 pm, it’s an open house at the veterinary clinic in The Triangle, and Furry Faces Foundation will be there with their pet-tagging campaign. Full details here.
SEATTLE LUTHERAN HIGH SCHOOL HOMECOMING: The big game vs. Concrete is at 1:30 pm at West Seattle Stadium. Saints fans are urged to wear white to support the team!
SPAGHETTI-DINNER BENEFIT: Holy Family School invites you to dinner! Details on partner site White Center Now. 5-8 pm, 20th/Roxbury.
DESSERT AUCTION AND COFFEEHOUSE CONCERT @ CAMP LONG: Get a look at the new challenge-course element in progress, and enjoy dessert/coffee/music/bidding. 6:30-9 pm – more info here.
LIVE MUSIC: Lots of it again tonight! Use the followin links to see calendar listings with details. Kings of Side Two at C & P Coffee (WSB sponsor), 6-8 pm … Allison Scull & Victor Martin at Alki Arts, 6 pm … Three live bands at Skylark Café and Club, 8 pm … Alan Sobel at The Cask, 8 pm … Beard Feedback and Power Skeloton at The Benbow Room, 9 pm … Beard Brothers at Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor), 9:30 pm.
‘BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON’: First week of the musical’s run at ArtsWest continues, 7:30 pm.
More for today/tonight, on the calendar.
(Photos by Nick Adams for WSB. Here, #5 Diandre Jackson fist-bumps #88 Brennan Newquist after a TD)
Another big-scoring game for the West Seattle High School Wildcats on Friday night, running the score to 51-0 before visiting Cleveland managed one TD to make the final score 51-6. From WSHS band members’ pre-game rendition of the national anthem …
… to the late-game action …
… WSHS never looked back. Ahead, 11 more photos by Nick Adams for WSB, and game toplines:
The city’s time-lagged police-report map includes a notation about an incident coded as a “drive-by” early this morning in the 1700 block of SW Trenton (map). Tonight, we have details via e-mail from the person (requesting anonymity) whose home was hit:
At approximately 5:05 this morning (9/21) a single shot was fired from a moving vehicle into my house in the 1700 block of SW Trenton St. The bullet lodged in the front door a few feet away from where I was sitting, looking out the window and visible to the road. I do not have a good description of the vehicle other than it was a car. No one was injured, and the police were called and came to investigate.
There’s no indication of whether it’s related, but that’s just a few blocks from a recent confirmed case of “shots fired” (no one hit), in the 8600 block of 14th SW, as noted in our most recent WSBeat roundup.
(April 2012 photo of Officer Mike Hope & the SW Precinct Drug Take-Back Day dropoffs)
The most recent Drug Take-Back Day, in April, netted a big take here in West Seattle … biggest of any precinct, though this is the city’s smallest precinct! Can West Seatttle and South Park do it again? Tonight, Southwest Precinct Operations Lt. Pierre Davis sends word that the next national Drug Take-Back Day is just one week away – 10 am-2 pm Saturday, September 29th – and the SW Precinct will again be your local drop-off spot. Lt. Davis reminds you of the rules:
Our West Seattle community members can simply bring their expired and or unused medication to the Southwest Precinct for safe disposal. Any type of prescription and/or over-the-counter medications are acceptable collections. If liquid, please ensure that the lids are tight. Please note that intravenous solutions, injectibles, syringes, or medical waste are not collectable items.
The precinct lobby is off the parking lot, along SW Webster west of Delridge.
A reminder from the West Seattle Water Taxi: It’ll have evening runs next Monday and Thursday for the Seahawks and Huskies games. The county says it’ll have extended evening service for all such games until the end of the summer/fall schedule on October 28th.
The neighbors of Pigeon Point are known for their block parties – like one of West Seattle’s biggest Night Out block parties, and regular community cleanups. But tonight was one of a kind – thanks to a contest won by neighbor Thomas Prowell:
That’s Thomas, with wife Wendy Prowell and their dogs Ginger and Baxter – and the Taco Time NW Traveler food truck. Thomas won a TTNW contest for the Traveler to come cater a private block party with free food and drink for up to 75 neighbors, and tonight was the night. (Taco Time NW, by the way, was founded in White Center half a century ago and now operates more than 70 TT restaurants.)
Just in from SDOT:
SDOT pavement marking crews will re-mark lines on the West Seattle Bridge tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 22, weather permitting. They plan to begin at approximately 4:30 am and complete the work by 3:30 pm.
The crews do not expect to close lanes, but motorists will need to slow down when driving behind the paint trucks which travel an average of three to six miles an hour during this operation. Motorists are asked to drive cautiously, allowing the crews plenty of room to do their work safely.
Full Tilt Ice Cream proprietor Justin Cline sends word that pre-packed pints of FT are about to go on sale at West Seattle Thriftway (WSB sponsor)! Starting next week, he says, Thriftway (California/Fauntleroy/Morgan) will be selling 12 flavors of Full Tilt – vanilla, salted caramel, übe, green-tea chip, Thai iced tea, backyard-mint chip, dark chocolate, Mexican chocolate, huckleberry chip, lavender, peanut butter and jelly, and strawberry basil. P.S. Justin tells us this is Full Tilt’s first retailer in West Seattle!
Several sites around West Seattle/White Center/South Park got an extra boost from volunteers today, during the United Way of King County “Day of Caring”:
At WestSide Baby‘s WC headquarters, the volunteers included former Mariners player Dan Wilson and wife Annie Wilson, photographed with WS Baby executive director Nancy Woodland. They are the chairs of UWKC’s campaign this year. WS Baby also welcomed dozens of volunteers from Virginia Mason. Full story – with video – is on our partner site White Center Now.
In West Seattle, volunteer sites included the Westwood Village QFC:
That’s where we photographed Judy Nash and Sukhvinder Singh Gulati, Microsoft employees there to help with a food drive to benefit the White Center Food Bank. Microsoft also shared some of its staff with the Nature Consortium‘s work party in the West Duwamish Greenbelt today. (Anyone else who worked on “Day of Caring” today – as a volunteer or a nonprofit host – let us know!)
(Photos by Christopher Boffoli for WSB)
FIRST REPORT, 1:13 PM: Avoid Fauntleroy Way SW south of the Triangle – there’s a big fire-department response for a house fire in the 5000 block (map).
1:21 PM UPDATE: Firefighters are actively fighting what’s described as a basement fire in a one-story home. We’ve added a photo from WSB’s Christopher Boffoli. No word of injuries so far – firefighters are searching to make sure there’s no one inside. Again, Fauntleroy is blocked by fire units – so take alternate routes.
1:26 PM UPDATE: The fire is “tapped” – the first milestone of major progress – but firefighters are being warned to be careful in the room where it started, because of what was described on the scanner as “a possible hazardous situation” involving “needles on the floor.”
1:45 PM UPDATE: The fire has since been reported as “out.” SFD spokesperson Kyle Moore is on the scene so our crews are getting a summary from him shortly.
1:51 PM UPDATE: Moore confirms no injuries; firefighters did encounter very thick smoke upon arrival, and that plus the results of the firefighting operation make it unlikely the home’s residents will be getting back in any time soon. Regarding the needles, he says a box of hypodermic needles was in the basement and got knocked over, but doesn’t know anything more regarding why they were there. No cause determined so far. Fauntleroy’s still likely to be blocked in the area for a while, an hour or so, he thinks. We have his briefing on video and will add here when it’s uploaded. (added – here it is)
3:29 PM UPDATE: Fauntleroy is open again through the fire zone, so you won’t have a problem during the commute. Still awaiting word from SFD on the cause.
MONDAY UPDATE: The cause, from SFD spokesperson Moore:
Seattle Fire Investigators determined a fire at a West Seattle Home on Friday was accidental. Fire investigators determined the basement bedroom fire was most likely caused by an unattended candle or improperly discarded smoking materials.
The first 911 call came in 1:05 p.m. to reports of flames visible from a one-story home with basement in the 5000 block of Fauntleroy Way SW. The firefighter/paramedics from Medic Unit 31 arrived first and made sure all occupants were safely outside the house. Firefighters ran hose lines to the basement. It took about 12 minutes to knock the flames down.
The American Red Cross was called for the two female and five male occupants who were displaced by the fire. No one was injured.
Fire investigators estimate the fire caused $30,000 damage to the structure and $15,000 to the contents.
The first of this fall’s three homecoming football games in our area is tomorrow afternoon at West Seattle Stadium, as the Seattle Lutheran High School Saints host the Concrete High School Lions (from eastern Skagit County), 1:30 pm. SLHS fans asked us to remind you today – “Wear white to support the Saints!”
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