West Seattle, Washington
13 Wednesday
The U.S. Supreme Court will uphold President Obama’s health-care plan, 6-3. That prediction today from U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott during a “Coffee with Your Congressman” Q/A session attended by more than 50 people at Dubsea Coffee in White Center’s Greenbridge neighborhood. Rep. McDermott wore a White Center Spring Clean T-shirt in honor of the big event that’s keeping hundreds of volunteers busy in WC right now, including some at Greenbridge Plaza right outside Dubsea. Other topics included the foreclosure crisis, the upcoming presidential election – the president “should be stronger,” Rep. McDermott said, while adding that he has in many aspects been “a very good president.” The congressmember is up for re-election this fall too. We’ll add more toplines plus video of the entire hourlong event later; he had a similar event at West Seattle’s C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor) a year ago.
3:25 PM: Video added. Audio quality fluctuates since this event was in a busy working coffeehouse and Rep. McDermott roved a bit.
Just some of what’s happening (full calendar here) on a busy – and so far sunny! – Saturday:
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATION HUBS’ DRILL: Two of West Seattle’s “hubs” are activated this morning for a drill in which volunteers are running through a scenario of dealing with the aftermath of a terrorism attack. We just took that photo as the Fauntleroy hub volunteers were gathering for their briefing. The drill, which includes amateur-radio operators as well as volunteers elsewhere in the city, is scheduled to continue till noon.
SPRING CLEAN! Puget Ridge, Highland Park, and White Center have Spring Clean events under way now through early afternoon. If you’re not volunteering – still time to get involved on Puget Ridge! – at least give ’em a thumbs-up as you pass by.
FURRY FACES FOUNDATION PLANT SALE: Buy plants, help animals! 3809 46th SW, 10 am-4 pm (continues tomorrow too, if you don’t make it to the sale today).
TIBBETTS CHURCH BOOK SALE: 10 am-1 pm at Tibbetts United Methodist Church (WSB sponsor) – go get your summer reading lined up!
COFFEE WITH YOUR CONGRESSMAN: One year ago, U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott came to C & P Coffee (WSB sponsor) in West Seattle for an hour-long Q/A session with constituents. This morning he’s at Dubsea Coffee in White Center (8th about a block south of Roxbury), 10 am.
STUDENTS’ TOMATO-PLANT PROJECT: Remember that Arbor Heights classroom, growing tomato plants to give away and sell? Today’s their day at Roxbury Safeway, till about 1:30.
EUROPAKIDS OPEN HOUSE: EuropaKids International Preschool (WSB sponsor) is adding a new location this fall, but today’s open house, 10:30-noon, is at their current location, Southwest Teen Life Center/Neighborhood Service Center, 2801 SW Thistle.
REGISTER FOR TOMORROW’S WEST SEATTLE 5K: 1-4 pm today, you can sign up at West Seattle High School, whose PTSA organizes the walk/run.
WHAT ARE THE LINCOLN PARK OWLS UP TO THESE DAYS? Maybe in the mood for love, says naturalist Stewart Wechsler, who’s leading an owling walk through the park starting at 6:30 tonight.
SHOWCASE OF NEW PLAYS: Second of three nights at ArtsWest features works by five playwrights, 7 pm.
NORTHWEST CHORALE’S FOOD-BANK BENEFIT: 7:30 pm at Holy Rosary – enjoy classical vocal music, free, with free-will offering as a food-bank benefit.
Much more on the calendar!
(WS Baby executive director Nancy Woodland and board member Amy Daly-Donovan)
Another night, another big party at The Hall at Fauntleroy! One night after The Taste of West Seattle, The Hall rocked Friday night with “Shake, Rattle, & Roll,” the cocktail-party benefit for WestSide Baby, held last year just hours after WS Baby’s big benefit tea, this year moved to a few months later. Another difference: While the tea moved to a big airport-area conference center, this bash was West Seattle through and through. West Seattle-residing radio star Marty Riemer emceed:
West Seattle band Not Dead Yet provided the music – including their signature “West Seattle Hey”:
We had to grab a separate pic of them once we heard their story, courtesy of Sherri Chun, a founding member of the “47th Ave Bookclub,” a moms’ group that gave birth to Not Dead Yet when the members’ husbands “learned they all have something in common – musical talent! … They write their own music, much of it about family, kids, and famous local landmarks.”
If you missed them at last night’s party, Not Dead Yet will be playing Seattle Summer Streets on Alki this Sunday. Back to the Friday night party – click ahead for more photos, and video!
Sunday is looking bigger all the time. It starts with the West Seattle 5K run-walk (Alki, 9 am; register 1-4 pm tomorrow at West Seattle High School or 8 am Sunday at the race site if you’re not signed up already) – continues with Seattle Summer Streets (aka “car-free day”) along the heart of Alki from 11 am-5 pm (growing list of activities!) – and then, how about a partial solar eclipse peaking in early evening? (The weather’s not too promising now but you know how quickly things can change.) Our partners at the Seattle Times have some NW-geared info; more details, including links to important info about safe eclipse-viewing, are on Space.com. (And of course West Seattleite-written AlicesAstroInfo.com has lots of info too.)
City crews spent much of this week repaving part of the section of Beach Drive that has had enough pits and ruts to rattle you from scalp to sole, and shake up the inner workings of your car/truck/motorcycle/bicycle, too. So we drove it this evening to show you the transformation – of the actual repaired section, anyway. Our :43 clip starts with the non-repaired section beneath the slide-plagued slope that has sparked a court fight (with mediation ahead, the city says), and then you’ll see how it transitions to the repaved section, in the 6200 block and a bit further south. Didn’t have the tripod in the car, so we dubbed the result Bumpycam, but it’s an accurate representation – try for yourself. (“Before” photo in our original May 8th report.)
For the second time this year, a worker’s been killed in a Harbor Island incident. Three months ago, a Vigor Shipyard worker died after a fall; last night, a forklift driver at Terminal 18 was killed, according to our partners at the Seattle Times. Seattle Fire crews were summoned last night, and SFD spokesperson Kyle Moore tells WSB, “We responded to Terminal 18 last night to reports of a person falling. When firefighters arrived, the workers at the dock had already freed the patient from being trapped. Apparently the mast of the forklift dropped and trapped the man between the mast and the roof of the forklift. The man was in and out of consciousness. Seattle Fire Paramedics rushed the man to Harborview Medical Center with life-threatening injuries.” He later died, and the longshore workers’ union, ILWU Local 19, called a 24-hour work stoppage at the terminal, as per custom after a fatality. The man has not yet been publicly identified.
He wasn’t originally on the program, but Seattle Police Chief John Diaz was a last-minute addition to this afternoon’s ceremony at West Seattle’s Forest Lawn Cemetery, paying tribute to the 58 members of the force who have lost their lives in the line of duty.
The SPD Honor Guard carried the flags, and the relatively new Seattle Police Pipes and Drums made their first Forest Lawn appearance. The podium stood where a permanent memorial to Seattle’s fallen officers will be built, within a year or two, as Forest Lawn’s David Salove explained. Here’s our video of the entire 48-minute event:
Keynote speaker was retired Sgt. Frank Kampsen, who founded the Washington State Law Enforcement Memorial Foundation; the state memorial was dedicated in Olympia in 2006. In our photo below, he is second from right; second from left is Deputy Chief Nick Metz, who also spoke; Chief Diaz is between them:
Sgt. Kampsen recalled how his career in both the U.S. Marine Corps and SPD led him down a path of ensuring proper tributes for those who made the ultimate sacrifice. “Never forget these heroes – never,” he said, concluding with, for those who serve now, advice to remember: “Your profession is law enforcement. Your job is to come home at the end of your shift.”
Members of two slain officers’ families were also among the more than 60 people there: Officers Joselito Barber, killed by a speeding driver in 2006, and Timothy Brenton, the West Seattle High School graduate killed in 2009. Coincidentally, Officer Brenton’s accused killer was in court today; the judge set his trial for this September.
Today’s ceremony was followed by a lunch hosted by Forest Lawn:
To get involved with the planning and construction of the Seattle Police Memorial there, call 206-932-0050.
Two West Seattle Crime Watch reader reports this afternoon – a burglary attempt and car vandalism – read on for both:Read More
Animal advocates are trying to find out who’s responsible for abusing a starved dog that did not survive. The Seattle Animal Shelter sent this release:
The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is offering a reward of up to $2,500 for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for this atrocious act of negligence.
On Saturday, May 12, an emaciated dog was found in the 9400 block of 26th Avenue Southwest. The badly emaciated dog was immediately rushed to a veterinary clinic but did not survive.
Details of where the dog had been for the last 30 days are unknown. If you recognize the dog and have seen him or know where he has been over the past several weeks please call Seattle Animal Shelter Enforcement Supervisor Ann Graves at (206)386-4288. The case number is 5319. Any information about the dog’s whereabouts is vital to helping determine the circumstances around the dog’s condition.
“To intentionally starve an animal that relies solely on you for its care is a truly heinous act,” said Dan Paul, Washington state director for The Humane Society of the United States. “Americans have no tolerance for this type of abuse against the creatures who share our world.”
Animal cruelty is a Class C felony punishable by 5 years in prison, a $10,000 fine or both.
The Seattle Animal Shelter is available for field operations seven days per week, 9:15 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. The phone number is (206) 386-PETS (7387).
A photo of the dog, while it was receiving veterinary care, can be seen here.
(Photos courtesy Puget Soundkeeper Alliance)
Thanks to work this week by Puget Soundkeeper Alliance, in cooperation with the state Natural Resources department and Seattle Parks, there’s less toxic creosote on Lincoln Park’s beach right now – and that means less in the marine ecosystem. Earlier this week, crews were out at Lincoln Park with an excavator and chainsaws – operated by the state Ecology Department’s Washington Conservation Corps – to remove what was estimated to total about eight tons of washed-up logs contaminated with creosote, long used as a preservative.
Thanks to Puget Soundkeeper’s pollution-prevention coordinator Barbara Owens for the photos; she says the downtown waterfront saw a similar project two years ago, in the Myrtle Edwards/Olympic Sculpture Parks‘ vicinity.
So far, we’ve reported on Bike to Work Day and the St. John’s rummage sale, but for more of today/tonight’s highlights – including the WestSide Baby fun(draiser) “Shake, Rattle & Roll” tonight, and the Seattle Police Memorial ceremony this afternoon – we’ll have to point you to the WSB Events Calendar (where you can preview some of this weekend’s events too).
P.S. If you missed this last night – here’s our roundup of major traffic alerts ahead, including this weekend’s Alaskan Way Viaduct/99 closure and the Sunday advisories on Alki.
Six days after the 8th annual West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day, garage/yard/rummage sale season rolls on – and there’s a biggie these next two days, at St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church. We stopped by during prep work on Thursday and found, among other things, what you see above – a Wild West outfit made from duct tape. Many more-conventional items too, of course:
St. John’s is just south of West Seattle High School, at California/Hanford. The sale runs 9 am-3 pm today and tomorrow.
7:22 AM: Till 9 am, there’s a “commute station” on the west end of the low bridge, with Alki Bike and Board on hand (among others). Thanks to Shannon for the top photo; we’re on our way to check it out, along with new White Center B2W Day participants Caffé Delia and Dubsea Coffee, all with treats and more till 9.
(WSB photo by Patrick Sand, added 8:44 am)
ADDED 7:28 AM: Don Brubeck, a WS bicycle commuter whose photos have often appeared here, just called in from the station by the bridge. He told us, “Lots of bikers are going by; people are stopping at the Alki Bike and Board stop and getting their tires pumped up” – about 11 riders are there right now, and about half a dozen staffing the station. It’s cloudy, but no drizzle. We also talked for a moment to ABB’s Stu Hennessey, who says it’s been busy!
ADDED 9:04 AM: After finishing his bike commute, Don shared that shot from the road – actually, the bike/pedestrian path on the low bridge. His report (with a promise of a few more pix later):
Stu and Louie from Alki Bike and Board were helping people with air in tires, lube on chains, free tubes, and in one attached picture [below], Stu and Monica from SDOT’s bike program group were giving route advice to someone who wanted to know the best route to ride to Burien for her ride this morning.
Matt Johnson and Long Vo from BECU were there with schwag for riders and snagging potential customers. Matt is a West Seattleite.
Rob and Ray, who work at Nuun electrolyte drink company in the I.D., were giving out samples. They ride from West Seattle at least some of the time.
Car traffic was lighter than usual on the low level bridge. Could it be due to more people on bikes instead? Or, just Friday?
Our crew stopped at Caffé Delia in downtown WC – photos are on our partner site White Center Now.
The family of Mimi Feisst says her memorial service is planned for 1:30 pm this Sunday (May 20th) at The Sanctuary at Admiral (2656 42nd SW). Here’s their remembrance of her:
Mimi (Marilyn Jean) Summersby Feisst passed away peacefully, surrounded by her family, at Good Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup, Washington, on the 29th of April after battling cancer for several months. She was preceded in death by her mother and father, Annette and H. Samuel (Sam) Bartel, and husband Allan Feisst. Mimi is survived by son Scott Summersby and granddaughter Taylor of Florida, daughter Kristen Summersby, daughter Dana Brooks, son-in-law Jim Brooks, grandchildren Zachary, Zahn and Allyson, foster daughter Susan Tekola, son-in-law Fasil Tekola, grandchildren Tanesha, Sarra, Sophie and Nataly, sister Janet Deardorff and husband Jerry Deardorff, niece Molly, nephew Christopher, all of Washington, sister Susan Bartel and partner Lorraine Tarrant (of New Zealand), nephew Ian MacDonald (of Washington), and niece Sarah Bartel (of New Zealand).
Mimi’s first love was her family.
11:34 PM: We’re checking on reports of a helicopter in south Highland Park/north White Center, after multiple texts and calls. Nothing obvious from Seattle Police over the scanner, but that could mean it’s in the county jurisdiction, or that it’s not a law-enforcement helicopter at all.
11:51 PM: So far no info – and the helicopter has left the area. If we do find out anything tonight or tomorrow, we’ll add it here.
ADDED 9:45 AM FRIDAY: Sgt. Rodney Chinnick of the King County Sheriff’s Office tells us Guardian One was helping search for assault suspects. We don’t have the incident location yet but he says, “A 40 year old male was assaulted. He suffered a broken jaw and ankle”; 1300 block of SW Roxbury.
The main room at The Hall at Fauntleroy was just one of four spots around the grounds of the old schoolhouse filled by 51 food-and-beverage purveyors for tonight’s Taste of West Seattle. More attendees than ever, too, enthused Tara Byrne, executive director of the event’s beneficiary/organizer, West Seattle Helpline. And it wasn’t just the lineup – it was what they offered:
Jes and Sarah from Chaco Canyon Organic Café (WSB sponsor) offered sweet-potato samosas. And for the omnivore …
… the team from The Bridge had their famous bacon-wrapped dates. For West 5, of course it was their popular mac ‘n’ cheese:
Amber from Freshy’s is known far and wide for her soup:
“Chef Wade” – who’s just unveiled his newest menu at Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor) — had pulled-pork sliders:
The Hall’s resident Tuxedos and Tennis Shoes Catering made asparagus quinoa salad and grilled citrus prawns:
Salad was also on the menu for Pizzeria 22 proprietor Cary – arugula salad with gorgonzola:
Your notetaker here wandered away while co-publisher Patrick was photographing Ere and Ani from Pan Africa Grill, so we didn’t catch what dish/es they were serving:
Of course, there was dessert. There must be dessert. Stuffed Cakes, for one:
Full Tilt Ice Cream‘s ice-cream bike was there – getting ready to turn around to an appearance at White Center’s Caffe Delia for Bike-to-Work Day Friday morning:
Speaking of coffee – Hotwire (WSB sponsor) was right by the front door – one of several coffee purveyors, including Heidi from Bird on a Wire Espresso:
And with 51 participants – Tara said they had to turn some aspiring participants away, in the process of locking in the lineup! – we didn’t get to photograph them all. Check the names out here. Oh, and cheese, courtesy of Metropolitan Market (WSB sponsor), which brought something even bigger than food, a $7,500 donation:
That’s Metro Market Admiral store director Glen Hasstedt with Kim and Laura from the cheese department (where cheese is also made, not just sold!).
Helpline doesn’t expect to have the night’s take tallied up for a few days; we’re also awaiting word on who won the votes for best taste. P.S. If you want more proof of how this event has grown – we looked up a WSB mention from three years ago; the number of participating food/drink providers was only about a third of what it is now!
1:08 AM UPDATE: From the Taste of West Seattle Facebook page – Fresh Bistro/Herban Feast Catering won “best taste,” Prost! West Seattle came in 2nd, Ma’ono Fried Chicken and Whisky was third.
(WSB photo by Patrick Sand)
We often hear from youth sports groups including soccer, softball, baseball, football, swimmers, skaters … but until a tip from Larry two nights ago, we hadn’t heard from or about the West Seattle Totems. They are a very successful youth-sports group in our area – with a waiting list, we’re told. The Totems’ sport is riflery; they practice at the West Seattle Sportsmen’s Club‘s Roger Dahl Shooting Range underneath West Seattle Stadium. We were invited to visit the Totems’ celebration last night of recent successes in statewide and other competition – note the medals and trophies – and took a group photo; speaking of photography, West Seattle photographer Machel Spence was there too – turns out she’s a Totem mom and helped round up information, including the fact that several of the team members will compete in the Air Rifle Nationals this year, and that West Seattle Totems shooters have achieved three national records!
BIKE-TO-WORK DAY TOMORROW: For participating bicyclists, there’s the “commute station” by the west end of the “low bridge” plus, if you’re coming from White Center, or heading through there, two WC stops, Caffé Delia and Dubsea Coffee, all detailed in the preview we published earlier this week.
ALASKAN WAY VIADUCT WEEKEND CLOSURE REMINDER: 11 pm Friday to 5 am Monday, so WSDOT can keep working on reinforcing the section of The Viaduct that the tunnel will go beneath.
SUNDAY CLOSURES/CHANGES ON ALKI: Sunday starts with the West Seattle 5K (co-sponsored by WSB) benefit run/walk at 9 am, and at 11 am, Seattle Summer Streets (aka “car-free day”) – here are the Alki traffic changes you can expect as a result – note that even though the car-free events are on a limited section of the street, the rest of it is ONLY open to residents. Here’s how SDOT explains the plan:
•From 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.: Alki Avenue SW will be fully closed from 63rd Avenue SW to the Don Armeni Boat Launch Ramp for the West Seattle 5K Run/Walk. All parking will be restricted from 63rd to 56th and along the waterside from 56th to the boat ramp.
•From 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.: Alki Avenue SW will be fully closed from 63rd to 56th Avenue SW for the Summer Streets event. Parking will be restricted on both sides of the street during this time.
Access exceptions will be made for emergency vehicles and people with disabilities. After 11 a.m. local access to condos will be allowed from 56th Avenue SW to the Don Armeni Boat Launch Ramp. As in the past, SPD will detour those who do not live in the vicinity from Alki on to California Ave SW until 5 p.m.
(Added Friday morning: The citywide weekend event alerts, here.)
NEXT WEEK AND BEYOND, SPOKANE STREET VIADUCT PLANS: A roundup of what’s ahead for the Spokane Street Viaduct section of the West Seattle Bridge includes two notes looking past next week, before next week’s closure schedule – the switch from eastbound 1st ramp open to eastbound 4th ramp open is not going to happen next week after all; plus, in early June there will be a full=weekend closure of the westbound SSV – read on for complete details from SDOT:Read More
The photo is courtesy of a North Admiral resident who doesn’t want to be identified but wrote, “Looks like the leprechauns finally woke up from their 2-month nap and refreshed the green stripe on 41st (behind Metropolitan Market) last night. They even did the shamrock at the end. Was it a special Irish saint’s day? Or just a delay due to rain? Either way, we’re glad it’s back!” We looked up Irish holidays; nothing. Today is exactly two months since St. Patrick’s Day – when the stripe usually turns up “refreshed” – perhaps May was confused with March? Or, someone decided to make it a Syttende Mai stripe instead?
Mystery solved, regarding the unusual flight pattern – and noise – that many heard over north West Seattle last night (as reported here); we contacted Sea-Tac Airport‘s media officer Perry Cooper, who researched it and, along with the airport’s noise officer, just called back with what they found out: A quirk in the weather caused Sea-Tac and Boeing Field to be in opposite flows; almost always, they are landing/taking off in the same “flow,” according to Cooper, but a “weird wind” last night caused Sea-Tac to be in south flow, Boeing Field to be in north flow, “so in order to make sure there would not be any conflicts, the jets taking off from Boeing Field were being routed (over) West Seattle.” So unless the wind quirk happens again, it was a one-time thing.
Three notes this afternoon: First, a stolen-car report from Thaddeus:
Our 1994 Dodge Caravan was stolen Sunday night from in front of our house in Puget Ridge. Dark green with purple decorative stripe, tinted windows. License # ACF0177. Apart from the usual hardships from losing a car, this van also served two handicapped individuals. Any info greatly appreciated!
Ahead, e-mail about a troubling encounter in North Admiral, plus a followup about an assault incident first reported by a commenter:Read More
Capacity on the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth run of Washington State Ferries will be down a boat next Monday and Tuesday because the Tillikum has to go in for its annual inspection and the Klahowya isn’t available to replace it – it’s still out of service for repairs. So WSF has sent an alert about this, as well as posting notices at terminals and publishing the 2-boat schedule on its website (see it here). The Tillikum actually will be out of service for the inspection starting Sunday, but WSF will be adding the Yakima on the route, just for that day, before it moves to another run.
That’s one of the most personal moments we caught on video this morning as Arbor Heights Elementary School played host to José Banda – who starts work as Seattle Public Schools’ next superintendent July 1st, after the School Board voted unanimously last night to finalize his hiring. It might be a little hard to hear (with multiple camera shutters mixed in), but he’s speaking with a student about world geography, and mentioning that his son is currently working half a world away – as a teacher. Banda looked in on classrooms all over the school, as well as orchestra practice in the cafetorium, and gave short interviews to the panoply of media crews that showed up (this was his only official photo op as his Seattle visit continued today). But before the designated 10 am start time for the school tour, he was greeted by AH students:
Thanks to an AH parent for sharing that photo of Marcia Ingerslev‘s first-graders, who were dressed as farmers, since they presented the new superintendent with a plant – you saw their story here last week, as they are selling and giving away tomato plants, and will be at Roxbury Safeway this Saturday. (Watching the students, from left, are district communications director Lesley Rogers, executive director of West Seattle schools Aurora Lora; superintendent-to-be Banda; and AH principal Christy Collins; WS school-board director Marty McLaren was there for the visit too). We also took many photos, and more video, and are going through it all right now, to add more to this story later.
(And yes, the new superintendent said, the students did make sure he knows about the poor condition their building is in – rated worst in the district – the BEX IV levy currently proposes a new building for AH, but not to be completed until 2018, and the community is campaigning to have that timetable moved up before the levy plan is finalized this fall; its problems were amply explained during a BEX-related meeting at AH that we covered in April.)
ADDED 4:50 PM: More photos, ahead:Read More
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