ORIGINAL 7:12 PM REPORT: Incident near Uptown Espresso in The Junction is causing traffic trouble. Details to come.
7:27 PM UPDATE: We’re told this all started with a fight/argument between two people – while police wouldn’t confirm much to us at the scene, witness Mark e-mailed this report:
Just before 7 pm, a scuffle with no real contact started in front of the Uptown Espresso at Edmunds and Erskine. From a distance it was just posturing and yelling. One of the guys in the fight stormed off. Then a small white car, looked like a Suzuki Samurai or Geo Tracker (white, convertible) pulled out in a hurry, a girl yelled at the people in the car and smacked it. The car then sped toward, and hit the guy that stormed off. Hard enough to knock him feet over head in the air. And they drove off. Shortly thereafter emergency folks showed up.
Police do confirm one person was taken to the hospital. The roads in the area are open again.
ORIGINAL 6:23 PM REPORT: Traffic alert in south Highland Park/north White Center: Roxbury is blocked both ways at 9th, 8th is blocked both ways at Cambridge. A crash here earlier is believed to have involved some kind of pursuit that scanner info linked to reckless driving. On the east side of the scene, Roxbury is blocked at 7th. Detours onto side streets are a mess; avoid the area.
7:50 PM UPDATE: See comments for at least one witness report so far. We spent some time at the scene last hour – and saw at least three dented/dinged police cars, Burien and SeaTac, with one dripping fluid from its undercarriage, another needing a tire change, while the investigation team did its work. The vehicle that apparently sparked the pursuit – at least, one that matches the description put out on the scanner – was still at the scene too (in the photo we added above), all of this on the south (eastbound) side of Roxbury. Going back shortly to see if it’s reopened yet. 9:47 PM UPDATE: Open again. Thanks again to everyone sharing eyewitness reports in the comments section; we hope to get official details (including total damage to law-enforcement vehicles) from King County Sheriff’s Office in the morning.
Just two days left to vote in the primary election.
But one West Seattleite who’s running for office isn’t on your ballot.
Even before the 2010 election season has kicked into high gear, former Highland Park Action Committee chair Dorsol Plants has declared his intention for 2011.
He turned a lot of heads with his City Council Position 4 run in 2009 (that’s when we snapped the photo at right) – almost 18,000 people voted for him in the primary (third place, so David Bloom made it to the general election ultimately won by Sally Bagshaw) — and cites a still-burning city need for change, so he’s trying again.
He hasn’t had a big campaign kickoff, but word’s gotten around.
Every week, courtesy of Gretchen Montgomery @ Square One Books (WSB sponsor), we get the lists of her independent West Seattle bookstore’s 5 best-sellers in each of 4 key categories:
Hardcover:
1. Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest by Stieg Larsson
2. Star Island by Carl Hiassen
3. Burn by Nevada Barr
4. Four Fish: The Future of the Last Wild Food by Paul Greenburg
5. Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart
Paperback:
1. Half the Sky by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn
2. Miss Hargreaves by Frank Baker
3. Dead in the Dregs by Peter Lewis
4. Under the Dome by Stephen King
5. War Dances by Sherman Alexie
Children/Young Adult:
1. Red Pyramid/The Kane Chronicles #1 by Rick Riordan
2. Star Wars/The Clone Wars Character Encyclopedia by DK Publishing
3. How Rocket Learned to Read by Tad Hills
4. The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger
5. The Very Fairy Princess by Julie Andrews and Emma Hamilton
Teen:
1. Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
2. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
3. Mockingjay (Pre-orders) by Suzanne Collins
4. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
5. Whisper by Phoebe Kitanidis
Square 1 Books is in Jefferson Square. And next week – before, after and during the West Seattle Junction Association-presented Big Bonanza multi-merchant sale – Square 1 is offering 40 percent off just about everything in the store, starting Thursday.
Dogs and owners are lining up in the shade outside West Seattle Thriftway as the photo shoots continue for CityDog Magazine‘s third annual Cover Dog Search, which visits a few locations around the region before coming up with a lineup of finalists you can vote on. The past two years, the winning Cover Dog has been from West Seattle – first Cohen, then Murphy. (High Point’s renowned Italian greyhound Sophiahas been on CDM too.) We’re told they’ll be there today till about 3 pm – bring pet food for a donation drive on behalf of West Seattle Food Bank (which collects and distributes pet food as well as people food)!
Cut-up pieces of colored paper lay scattered on the floor, as kids constructed a variety of handmade paper airplanes and rockets and took them for test flights outside the library doors.
This summer, the library has teamed up with the Museum of Flight to create a summer program that helps kids around the community express their creativity while learning about aviation. A communications officer at the Delridge Library, Cheresse Thoeny, noticed that “we… [had] …a lot of boys in this neighborhood” and wanted to find something “interesting to kids of all different ages” to bring the community together.
(Photo added 12:55 pm) TODAY: Till 4 pm, West Seattle’s most renowned 3-Day for the Cure team, Team Tracy, is outside West 5 selling bracelets and T-shirts and accepting donations – the big walk is a little over a month away (9/24-9/26, Redmond to Seattle). West 5 also is donating a portion of today’s proceeds during the fundraiser, if you head in (air conditioning!) for food and/or drinks.
TWO WEEKS AWAY: Just 2 weeks left till Northwest Hope and Healing‘s Alki Beach 5K Walk/Run! 9 am Sunday, August 29th, leaving Alki Bathhouse for a 5K round-trip course along the water. This year for the first time they’re closing Alki Avenue for the event – the projected time frame is 8 am-11 am – with more than 1,000 people taking part, that’s just too many to funnel onto the sidewalks/bike path. Signed up yet? You can do it online here.
The early-morning forecast update says upper 90s are possible (revised from earlier envisionings of mid-90s). If you’re thinking a swim might be in order – here’s what the city offers in West Seattle: The Colman Pool schedule (outdoor) is here, Southwest Pool schedule (indoor) here, wading-pool schedule here.
We saw the plume of smoke over the Olympics too – looks like it’s a new (or newly flared-up) forest fire; checking to see if it’s the “Hopper” fire listed here, researching to find out more – that’s the only one in the Olympics, according to this list. Meantime, thanks to Shannon for sending the above photo, just as we were publishing the first version of this item. (And thanks to everyone else who’s sent photos since; here’s more information on the area where it’s burning, Mount Hopper.) 11:12 PM: By all accounts, it IS the Mt. Hopper fire. Turns out KING5 went over and shot video via chopper on Friday – see it here. The fire’s official infopage says “fire managers” plan a flyover tomorrow to assess it again. Also, here’s a somewhat-more-zoomed-in photo taken from Alki by David Hutchinson:
Got your seat at West Seattle Outdoor Movies (courtyard next to Hotwire Online Coffeehouse [WSB sponsor]) yet? “Wayne’s World” is onscreen at dusk; live music before the movie; and if you bring a few bucks for the nonprofit-benefiting raffle, you get a chance at prizes including the one you see above – a framed “Wayne’s World” poster donated by Wallflower Custom Framing! As of right now, there’s still room – so bring your own chair/blanket and we’ll see you there.
Thanks to Sha’ari from Inner Listening Healing Gongs and Sound Therapy (on Facebook here) for that photo from inside Pho Aroma, the new Delridge restaurant (first previewed here a month ago) that’s getting ready to open. Sha’ari says they’re expecting a final inspection on Wednesday; WSB contributor Keri DeTore had just spoken with the proprietors and learned they hope to be open by next weekend. Meantime, a couple miles east, a grand opening this morning in White Center:
Apple and peach pie were the kickoff offerings (and non-pie treats too) at 3.14 Bakery, just a couple doors south of Roxbury on 16th SW in the heart of the White Center business district. That photo is by WSB contributor Deanie Schwarz, whose full report on the opening will be up on partner site White Center Now a bit later this evening (update: here’s that link).
Story and photo by Keri DeTore
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
Dan Atherton is “A New England Original,” and that’s what his new West Seattle restaurant will be too.
If all goes well, this October, Dan will be opening “Jonny Bostons,” a take-out sandwich shop featuring cheesesteaks, hamburgers, and sausages — New England style.
The former Authentic Home paint shop at 4151 California SW (map) in The Junction – which went online-only 4 months ago – is where Dan plans to create a space that delivers good food efficiently, so that people who have a limited time for lunch can spend it eating, not waiting in line.
Dan, also in the building business with Artistic Design, moved to Seattle from the Boston area in 1990. Since then, he says, he’s been “always looking for something familiar” to eat. He’s never found anything that hit the spot, and he feels Seattle is “lacking in good intermediate restaurants. You’ve got McDonald’s and Ruth’s Chris Steak House, but not much in between.” He promises that his food will be the same as “what you’d pick up in downtown Boston.”
Dan’s so serious about the Boston theme that baseball fans will recognize the color scheme of the shop as reminiscent of Fenway Park, with its “Green Monster” color outside, and the interior done in dark camel with Boston Blue and Red. His longterm plan is to replace the front wall with a roll-up door, so he can offer sidewalk seating in good weather.
Jonny Bostons will be open for lunch and dinner, 11 am-8 pm, Mondays through Saturdays.
(Photos by Evan Miglorie)
Get any get-out-the-vote doorbellers at your house/apartment today? Here’s one group that set out from Delridge Community Center this morning – volunteers from the Washington Bus, which is trying to encourage younger voters to participate more in the political process. They rallied before hitting the streets:
Stacy and Tunny are the leaders of this year’s Washington Bus fellows – a political-organizing summer camp of sorts (explained here):
After several hours of GOTV’ing throughout the 34th Legislative District – including White Center and Burien – the group planned an afterparty at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center. Meantime – voted yet? Don’t let your ballot just sit there on top of the TV console (or kitchen table, or wherever) till it’s late. 80 percent of ballots aren’t in as of last night, says King County! If you need more voting info – it’s all linked here.
The most distinctive-looking U.S. Navy ship here for Seafair fleet tours last week, USS Green Bay, sailed out of Elliott Bay today, according to Jamie, who shared photos – above, one of the pictures taken from the King County Water Taxi (WSB sponsor) when Jamie spotted the Green Bay (LPD 20) heading out today, and this one, from a tour during the Green Bay’s Seafair stay:
Jamie also notes, “This amphibious transport dock has a landing pad for helicopters and harrier jets and a submersible dock that is used to launch hovercraft.” You can see video of the Green Bay’s Seattle arrival in our August 4th report on the Seafair fleet parade. It’s currently homeported in San Diego.
As of 5 pm, it’s 91 degrees at nearby Boeing Field, and the newest forecast still predicts 90s for the next two days. That’s led to a request that we share a reminder about pets – not just the oft-heard one about “don’t leave them in cars” (the Humane Society just reissued that one – read it here) – but also this one from the owner of one of the many missing, and missed, animals on the WSB Pets page:
Could you please post something … asking for people to look for lost animals in their garages and sheds? In this weather it could be fatal to the missing pets. … Still looking for mine. I hope I find her soon!
From Ken Gollersrud, a timely two-part reminder about West Seattle library branches:
The West Seattle Branch and book drop will close at 5 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 15, to complete a partial re-roofing project. The branch and book drop are scheduled to reopen at 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 11.
The following branches have air conditioning:
High Point, Delridge and South Park
Saturdays 10 am to 6 pm
Mondays and Tuesdays 1-8 pm
Wednesdays and Thursdays 10 am to 6 pm
Closed Fridays and Sundays
For information on hours and other locations please view www.spl.org
There are more details about the Admiral branch’s roof project in the original announcement published here a month ago.
Thanks to Pamela from Nico and Zoe Toys and Machel from Spence Photography for sharing photos from the arts/crafts fair under way right now at C & P Coffee – it’s on till 3 pm, another great place to get out of the heat! (It’s an indoor/outdoor event.)
As was observed during this morning’s groundbreaking for Transitional Resources‘ new Avalon Place facility (2988 SW Avalon Way, just north of the old Tillicum Village building) – here’s the before/after:
TR is one of those places you drive by all the time without realizing it’s there. Its business is to help those with “serious, persistent” mental-health challenges, dozens of whom either live in its current buildings along Avalon, or get services there. Now it’s adding a brand-new building that’ll provide 16 “permanent, affordable housing” units, as well as space for other services, and that’s what brought TR staff, board members, and dignitaries out for today’s brief ceremony. In our video, the woman toward the right is TR CEO Darcell Slovek-Walker; the others include King County Executive Dow Constantine and City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen (project funding includes county and city dollars). Slovek-Walker tells us the house now on the site (you can see it in our video) will be demolished within a week or two; construction of Avalon Place should take about seven months.
(Photo copyright Robin Lindsey)
Just received this from Seal Sitters‘ Robin Lindsey, regarding Primo, the first seal pup to turn up on a West Seattle beach this pupping season:
She was just so excruciatingly thin that she did not have the strength to survive the night in the San Juans. She was a real fighter, however, and had an extreme will to live. It is too bad that more people didn’t get the opportunity to see how alert and beautiful she truly was.
An additional place to stay cool tonight, with that “heat advisory” kicking in a few hours from now – air-conditioned West Seattle High School Theater, where “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” is onstage at 7:30 tonight and 3 pm tomorrow (plus next Friday/Saturday/Sunday). Anna from Twelfth Night Productions (WSB sponsor) shared the photo of Kyla Phillips and Clementine proprietor Linda Walsh, who have cameos in tonight’s performance. Tickets are available online (or at the door pre-show).
The strains of “Bohemian Rhapsody” will fill the Hotwire Online Coffeehouse (WSB sponsor) courtyard tonight, among other memorable moments from “Wayne’s World,” tonight’s West Seattle Outdoor Movies feature. Big change in the weather from last week’s rainout! Movie’s at dusk, free, bring $ for nonprofit-benefiting raffles and concessions. And tonight there’s a second movie-under-the-stars – “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle” at Coastal on Alki. … Long before nightfall, you just might find a politician, or at least a political organizer/volunteer, on your doorstep. Primary Election Day is Tuesday and you have to dig that ballot out from under the coupons and catalogs and MAIL IT IN by then, so lots of doorbelling expeditions are planned to remind you of that. It’s so big, the Magic Vote Bus is even going to be in West Seattle (10 am, Delridge Playfield, they’d be happy to see you). Also on the docket: “Stage Struck” summer theater camp celebrates its 10th anniversary at 5 pm, St. John the Baptist Church Hall; Seattle Lutheran High School‘s Class of 1990 has its 20-year reunion at 7 pm tonight, Table 35in The Junction. More on the calendar!
Even before the 2010 election season has kicked into high gear, former 
Dan Atherton is “A New England Original,” and that’s what his new West Seattle restaurant will be too. 
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