From the WSB West Seattle Events calendar: Something to say about the potential effects of a tunnel to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct? Tonight’s your official chance to say it to the state, 6-8 pm (open-house format so drop in any time), Madison Middle School (3429 45th SW) … What’s next for Seattle Public Schools‘ new-this-year Student Assignment Plan, as the district looks ahead to the second year of the transition? What changes would address West Seattle concerns and challenges? District officials host a meeting at West Seattle High School (3000 California SW) tonight, 6:30 pm … Also on the school front: Endolyne Joe’s (9261 45th SW) donates 20 percent of today’s proceeds to Gatewood Elementary (same thing tomorrow for Pathfinder K-8) … West Seattle Crime Prevention Council‘s monthly meeting is at the Southwest Precinct (Delridge/Webster), 7 pm, featuring a guest talking about protecting elders from abuse … Tonight at theSenior Center of West Seattle, it’s a Big Band Bash with Center Music Northwest, 7 pm, 206-932-4044 for reservations … At Skylark Café and Club (WSB sponsor), it’s the monthly Alauda belly-dance showcase … Storytellers from Mexico and El Salvador are at the South Park Library for Spanish Storytime, ages 3 and up, 6:30 pm (8th Ave. South and South Cloverdale).
(Photo by, and used with permission of, Robin Lindsey) Seal Sittersvolunteers call that harbor seal Queen Latifah; she is the latest West Seattle shoreline visitor to merit their protection and win their hearts. But others are getting too close for comfort, explains Seal Sitters’ Robin Lindsey: “Over the last few days I have observed an increasing number of people intentionally going under (or over) the yellow tape perimeter of the area near Queen Latifah … those people are truly breaking a federal law and (it’s important) that the pups rest undisturbed.” To underscore that point, Robin has written a new entry for the Seal Sitters’ blubberblog, and asked if we would share the link with you – you’ll find it here. (If you don’t recall hearing so much about seals on our beaches this time of year, you’re right – Seal Sitters are having a surprisingly busy November, and as a result will soon be scheduling a December training session for prospective new volunteers – we’ll let you know when the date’s set.)
Two court-case updates with local links: First, the West Seattle woman accused of drunkenly running her car into people outside Showbox SODO on October 28th has pleaded not guilty. Juanita Wright was in court Monday to answer four charges of vehicular assault; prosecutors say her blood-alcohol level was .29. Wright remains jailed in lieu of a quarter-million dollars bail, and is scheduled to return to court on December 13th.
Meantime, court documents reveal a West Seattle link in the case against two men who prosecutors say “allegedly plac(ed) skimming devices on local bank ATMs to steal data from the magnetic strips of customer debit and credit cards.” While no West Seattle skimming is alleged in the current charges against Claudiu Tudor and Mihai Podaru, the charges say Tudor used a stolen card number (after trying unsuccessfully to use another) to withdraw cash from the BECU ATM at Roxbury Safeway – not far from where he lives in White Center. Prosecutors say the numbers were skimmed from a machine in Renton, where the two men are suspected of skimming more than 50 cards, using them for more than $170,000 worth of fraud. They are charged with 1st-degree theft, identity theft, and improperly obtaining financial information; both remain jailed in lieu of $250,000 bail, awaiting arraignment one week from today, and prosecutors say a third suspect is still under investigation, as are possible crimes that the documents say may result in “hundreds of additional counts of identity theft.”
You’ve probably noticed the wind’s gotten even gustier – we’ve heard of gusts in the 40s, and now the National Weather Service has put out a “wind advisory” in effect till 1 am. Also have word so far of outages in Shorewood and Arbor Heights, though they’re not on the City Light tracker yet – it says 76 are out citywide but an SCL news release says 17,000. 10:51 PM UPDATE: Tracker’s working now and shows the 4,200+-out patch in Shorewood & beyond.
(scroll down for Tuesday updates until we publish a new followup story later)
Thanks to Mike, Diane, and Carol for the tip –Alki Bakery suddenly closed its flagship retail outlet at the beach tonight, after a quarter-century. The official note above reads:
Thank you Alki Neighbors and West Seattle for a great 25 years!
Our lease has run its course and it’s not viable for us to renew at a rate that works for both Alki Bakery and our landlord.
The letter indicates that their other outlets remain open in Georgetown and Kent, and that their products will still be sold at Metropolitan Market (WSB sponsor) and West Seattle Thriftway. In addition to the official letter on the door, a handwritten note addresses “To all the friends and family we couldn’t say goodbye to … Thanks for the good times and memories, love you all.”
(Photo courtesy Mike Jensen)
Alki Bakery was originally located on the opposite corner of 61st and Alki, where Alki Caféis now; the now-closed bakery location was previously a drugstore. This is the latest of several sudden business closures in West Seattle, including the restaurants Café Revo in Luna Park (here’s our Oct. 12 report), Table 35 in The Junction (here’s our Nov. 1 report) and the Juneau Street Market north of Morgan Junction. But neither of those was a fixture like Alki Bakery; here’s how Carol expressed her surprise on the WSB Facebook page:
Walked past Alki Bakery this evening and noticed paper covering all of the windows & thought there must be a remodel happening but when I got to the front door there was a sign posted saying the bakery and the landlord could not negotiate a new lease and they are now closed for good as of today. Sad day on Alki!
TUESDAY MORNING: A bakery fan has set up a “Save the Alki Bakery” Facebook page. (added) Outside the bakery at 61st/Alki this morning, WSB’s Ellen Cedergreen found Alki Bakery employee Erin Corriston posting a note on the door to her “regulars.” She told WSB that employees were not informed of the decision to close and that she learned of the closing last night from the store manager:
TUESDAY AFTERNOON: Ellen was told by someone else at the scene that the property owner, Joanne Richey, had died recently. We finally found her obituary, online in the Seattle Times, from four months ago (read it here). The pharmacy mentioned in the story is the one that was at the Alki Bakery site pre-bakery.
Quick reminder before Tuesday gets here: Two big one-of-a-kind meetings are scheduled in West Seattle tomorrow night. At West Seattle High School, 6:30 pm tomorrow, the next phase of the Seattle Public Schools student-assignment plan transition is up for discussion, particularly potential tweaks to how it’s affecting local schools and students – this Power Point presentation updated by the district last week includes some of what’s under discussion for West Seattle, including:
*Realign feeder patterns
*Grandfather non-attendance area students at Denny on to Chief Sealth, and non-attendance area students at Madison on to West Seattle
*Ensure more than 10% Open Choice seats at both Chief Sealth and West Seattle
*Establish a “West Seattle Preference” so Open Choice seats go first to students in West Seattle
*Make Gatewood, West Seattle Elementary, and Sanislo dual feed with transportation
*Add ALO at Lafayette to meet needs of students who can’t get into Lafayette Spectrum
*Institute multi-year waiting lists for Spectrum
*Monitor enrollment balance for future consideration of additional school bus transportation for MS grades
Meantime, the Viaduct/Tunnel meeting is at Madison Middle School, 6-8 pm tomorrow, open-house style so you can drop in any time. In addition to obtaining information about the newly released Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement focusing on the tunnel’s potential effects, you can also officially comment – either by talking to a court reporter who’ll transcribe your comment for the record, or by typing into a computer that’ll be on site (if you have had trouble commenting some other way).
10 pm TONIGHT is the deadline for nominating a person or group for the next round of West Seattle Volunteer Recognition Awards, with winners honored during the first West Seattle Junction Hometown Holidays Sunday, December 5th – 1 honoree each in the environmental, community, and youth categories, 1 honoree for volunteer group. It’s a quick all-online process – go here for the details and the form!
We’re on the way to check out a reported armed store robbery in Highland Park, in the 7700 block of Highland Park Way SW (map). Scanner ace Katie says the robber is described as a dark-skinned man about 25 years old wearing a black parka, hood up, gun was shown, last seen headed westbound on SW Kenyon. 7 PM: We’re in the vicinity; police are combing the area and, according to the scanner, bringing in a K-9. The store is still open. No other details so far. TUESDAY NOTE:This was written up for SPD Blotter, but the short item isn’t much more than we reported here.
(video no longer available due to blip.tv shutdown)
Right around sunset – if sunset had been visible – wave-watchers dotted the guardrail south of Alki Point, including one man so exhilarated, he exclaimed repeatedly, “I love it!” The tide wasn’t high enough for the waves to crash against the seawall, but the wind was gusting in the 30s. And it’ll be that way through tonight, according to the newest forecast – which still mentions “a chance of snow showers” late in the weekend, by the way. One more note: No power outages right now in West Seattle (here’s where you’d find the information if there were). 9:25 PM UPDATE: As noted by William in comments, a few people are out of power in north West Seattle, according to City Light’s tracker – and there have been flickers many other places.
(WSB photos by Ellen Cedergreen)
With November so far being rainier than average – never mind that still-out-there possibility of snow showers this weekend! – the city wants people in landslide-prone areas to be on high alert (here’s one way the risk is tracked). This morning, they invited the media to an Admiral home for a demonstration of landslide-preparedness do’s and don’ts. Ellen Cedergreen was there for WSB; she reports that, in the top photo, Seattle Public Utilities landslide expert Bill Benzer is demonstrating the importance of keeping drains cleared – stormwater that has no place to go can run down slopes, adding to the landslide risk. Clearing drains tops this list of what to do:
1. Maintain drainage system (pipes, ditches, etc., on your property and keep street drains free of leaves and debris.
2. Direct stormwater away from steep slopes, if possible.
3. Perform periodic inspections of property before winter and during storms, keeping safety as the #1 concern.
4. Check weep holes on walls and keep them open.
5. Be alert during and following storms.
6. If you have an irrigation system, shut if off and check it out seasonally.
7. Keep fill and yard waste off slopes.
8. Leave stumps in ground on slopes
9. Call a professional if you have questions or a problem.
Part of the drainage check – annually checking downspouts for blockages:
Meantime, the landslide “don’ts”:
1) Don’t direct storm or other water onto a slope
2) Don’t denude vegetation on slope without a re-vegetation plan
3) Don’t cut into the toe (or bottom) of a slope.
4) Don’t remove tree stumps from slopes.
5) Don’t install a permanent irrigation system in landslide-prone areas
6) Don’t put fill or yard debris on a steep slope.
According to a study discussed at today’s event, 86 percent of landslides have some human involvement: broken pipes, uncontrolled storm water, excavating and filling holes. The city is taking a more active role in prevention since 1996-1997, when more than 300 landslides were reported, and no matter what kind of winter weather you’re facing, be ready! From the “Take Winter by Storm” campaign, Cornell Amaya showed off his emergency-preparedness backpack:
What should be in your kit? Here are some ideas (and don’t forget all the great resources at West Seattle Be Prepared). And you can get more tips about landslide awareness and prevention by going to a free city-sponsored workshop (previously mentioned here) that’s coming up on December 4th at South Seattle Community College‘s Judge Warren and Nobie Chan Education Center (across from the north parking lot), 10 am-noon.
With a week and a half till Thanksgiving, it’s time to start thinking how to offer extra help for the holidays. For Thanksgiving, we’re checking with our local food banks regarding their needs for food donations – particularly turkeys – look for that info soon; for starters, we’ve received this volunteer-help request from volunteer/resource coordinator Audrey Zemke at the White Center Food Bank, which serves southern West Seattle as well as WC (and north Burien):
The White Center Food Bank needs volunteers to help hand out holiday food the following shifts
Mon., November 22 – 12:30 to 3:30 and possibly 3:30 to 6:30
Tue., November 23 – 9:00 to 12:30, 12:30 to 3:30, and possibly 3:30 to 6:30
Wed., November 24 – 12:30 to 3:30, 4:30 to 8:30
Mon., December 20 – 12:30 to 3:30 and 3:30 to 6:30
Tue., December 21 – 9:00 to 12:30, 12:30 to 3:30, 3:30 to 6:30
Wed., December 22 – 12:30 to 3:30
Families, individuals or groups are welcome to contact me at audrey@whitecenterfoodbank.org or 206-762-2848.
Today was the big day that West Seattle Montessori School (WSB sponsor) students got up close and personal (as previewed here 2 weeks ago) with two turkeys from a flock that’s about to gain nationwide fame: They’ll be officially pardoned by President Obama in the traditional pre-Thanksgiving White House event (a ceremony initiated by the first President Bush in 1989). The turkeys’ role here: Educating kids about agriculture.
West Seattle Montessori was the only Seattle-area school chosen for the turkey talk; it was held at Delridge Community Center since the WSMS campus didn’t have quite enough room for the entire student body plus the turkeys and their entourage.
The “presidential turkeys” – a flock of more than 20 Nicholas Strain toms – were raised by Foster Farms in the Central California town of Modesto. The touring turkeys are making a stop up north this afternoon, in Arlington, the other destination on their whirlwind Western Washington stopover. We’ll be adding video from their West Seattle visit a bit later.
(Aerial view of The Hole, September 2009)
We’re in King County Superior Court Judge Susan Craighead‘s courtroom downtown, where she has just announced her findings in the first trial over the two-years-stalled West Seattle project known as “The Hole” (or “Hole Foods,” before Whole Foods Market announced in July it was no longer part of the project). Among Judge Craighead’s opening remarks this morning: “This case has been my window on the collapse of the financial system and the real estate market. … It seems that all the ‘suits’ were to varying degrees in complicity in a sort of a game that constituted construction financing during this period.” What she was deciding here is whose lien has priority – and she has decided it’s the general contractor, Ledcor Construction, and their subcontractor, Aero Construction (which dug The Hole).
(Photo published on WSB April 30, 2008, courtesy John Cashill)
Various parties argued that what had been done to the site before a certain key point in summer 2008 – including the April ’08 hole-digging to which the above photo is related – did not amount to “work” and therefore Ledcor and Aero were not first in line with their liens – but the judge disagreed with that. She said that former financier Seattle Capital, when trying to make the claim during a potential sale of the site that no work had been done, “should have known and did know (that contention) was false.”
One big loser in her ruling: 3922 SW Alaska LLC, the company related to Madison Development that agreed to buy the note for what remained of the project and its excavated site, then (to boil it way, way down) sought “judicial foreclosure” more than a year ago in hopes of moving on with the site without the burden of millions of dollars in liens to be fulfilled. We are now reading our copy of the 53-page ruling (while about 10 lawyers in the courtroom do the same thing – they have a short window here to ask the judge for clarification before she moves on to an unrelated criminal trial at 10 am) and are going through it – though we didn’t cover the entirety of the 2-plus weeks of testimony in the trial, they are summarized in the ruling, and it affords quite the view into never-before-publicized specifics of how the whole project fell apart. So, what does this all mean for the future of “The Hole”? Depends first on whether the decision is appealed, and what happens with other pending legal action. More to come.
ADDED 11:05 AM: We will transcribe some of this later – since the document itself is not likely to be available online immediately – but one note summarizing the last few pages of the ruling: The judge says that the site should be sold at foreclosure as soon as possible, because The Hole itself was never meant to be permanent, and could either fail or be ordered by the city to be filled in, in which case millions of dollars in work, representing part of the value of the property at sale, would be lost.
ADDED 3:24 PM: The exact language from the judge’s ruling regarding that section is the first transcription we’re adding – read on:Read More
2 items of note in the city’s twice-weekly Land Use Information Bulletin, both of interest to anyone who wants to comment on the proposals, since their official city publication triggers relatively short periods in which you can do that: First, a revised application has been submitted for the 7100 Delridge Way SW development (first reported here last summer, then taken through an Early Design Guidance meeting before the Southwest Design Review Board) – on first look, the main difference appears to be a smaller retail area, 1,344 square feet mentioned in the new application vs. 1,750 originally mentioned. More details, and comment links (deadline 11/28), are here.
Also in today’s bulletin, the official application for Westside School (WSB sponsor) to move 5 portables onto its new site in Sunrise Heights (and create 45 parking spaces); as reported here last week, this is part of Westside’s new Middle School expansion. More details, and comment links (deadline also 11/28), are here.
The Chief Sealth Band is participating in KZOK’s Battle of the Bands competition, in which the winning high school band will receive a $10,000 grand prize. The first round of the judging is based on votes texted in from listeners. We are encouraging everyone to text their vote to help the Chief Sealth Band make it into the finals. Sealth is the only Seattle Public School participating in this year’s contest, so we are encouraging all Seattle residents to rally around this band. Much of the Chief Sealth Band’s inventory is also used by the Seattle All-City Band, so a win for Sealth is a win for All-City.
To support the Sealth Band, text “rock8” to 24300. The system will accept up to 10 votes from the same number per day, so please text ten times a day every day for the next month. Voting begins (this morning) and runs to December 15th. Following the first round of judging, a panel of judges will ultimately judge the video submissions on their musicianship to choose the winning band, but we need texted votes to make it into the final round of judging.
Videos of the high school bands participating [editor’s note, including the one we embedded above] are available online at therockwfp.com/category/botb-2011 and will begin appearing on Comcast on Demand next month.
(WSB photo by Ellen Cedergreen)
Just five days after SDOT invited the media to come see its winter-weather equipment and listen to the readiness plan … there seems to be a slight chance of its deployment within a week. Late today, the National Weather Service issued a “special weather statement” for much of Western Washington, including our area, raising the possibility — however small — of cold weather that could even bring a bit of snow. From the advisory (yes, it’s published in all-caps):
…A CHANGE TO MUCH COLDER CONDITIONS IS POSSIBLE FRIDAY INTO NEXT WEEKEND…
COLD AIR IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP OVER WESTERN CANADA DURING THE UPCOMING WEEK. THERE ARE STRONG INDICATIONS THAT CHANGES IN THE WIND FLOW ALOFT TOWARD THE END OF THE WEEK WILL ALLOW SOME OF THIS COLDER AIR OVER WESTERN CANADA TO FILTER INTO WESTERN WASHINGTON FRIDAY OR SATURDAY.
WEATHER GUIDANCE ALSO SUGGESTS THAT THERE IS A RISK OF SNOW…OR MIXED RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS OVER PORTIONS OF THE AREA FRIDAY OR SATURDAY. THE HIGHEST RISK WILL BE WHERE THE AIR IS COLDER…OVER THE NORTH INTERIOR.
WHILE WEATHER GUIDANCE HAS BEEN CONSISTENT IN SHOWING A CHANGE TO A COLDER WEATHER PATTERN…THEY HAVE BEEN UNEVEN IN SHOWING HOW COLD IT WILL GET AND HOW MUCH…IF ANY…SNOW WILL FALL.
NOW WOULD BE A GOOD TIME TO THINK ABOUT HOW YOU COULD PREPARE FOR THE FIRST POSSIBILITY OF WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS IN THE LOWLANDS.
Tomorrow morning, a judge’s announcement is scheduled to be the next step toward the future of The Hole – the excavation (behind the green-screened fence in our photo) for the stalled West Seattle project originally known as Fauntleroy Place, once slated for a new Whole Foods (they’ve since pulled out) and Hancock Fabrics (they haven’t answered requests for comment), plus apartments. The decision is in the first major trial in the tangle of lawsuits over what went awry; what’s scheduled to be decided is who has “lien priority” – the entity that holds the site’s note, 3922 SW Alaska LLC, is arguing against the claims of Ledcor Construction, among other components of the complicated case. If you’re interested in the fine print, here are documents summing up the points made in closing statements (which we covered a week and a half ago) – one from 3922 SW Alaska here, one from Ledcor here.
But The Hole’s future isn’t entirely a matter for a judge and development company to decide.
Among the great places to be, indoors, this drippy, foggy afternoon – Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor; 6451 California SW) in Morgan Junction, where Holiday Bazaar II continues till 6 pm. In our top photo, Ivette Johnson (L) and Bradi Jones (R) from the Feedback team are with Mary Clymer (C) of Happy Delusions. While we were there, Feedback’s Jeff Gilbert told us last night’s live performance by Fiasco was a huge hit and brought in lots of food-bank donations, and since their annual allotment of live shows isn’t maxed out yet, they might have the band back before year’s end. (Speaking of comebacks, the Feedback’s famous Sunday ribs return at 5 pm today.)
Jonathan French shares the photo from the free Sunday dinner for people 65+ that he e-mailed about last night – with OLG students serving the visitors! If you or someone you know fit the criteria, you can still head over till 5 pm and get in on dinner (34th/Myrtle).
Out of the WSB inbox: Jo Bader updates us on Girls On The Run of Puget Sound, “a non-profit organization whose mission is to use the power of running to educate and prepare girls in 3rd through 5th grade for a lifetime of self-respect and healthy living.” Their after-school program has worked with girls at West Seattle sites including, in recent years, Hiawatha – where Jo coached last year – plus Pathfinder and Alki, and a big regional event is coming up in three weeks, Jo says:
On December 4, 2010, Girls on the Run of Puget Sound will host the New Balance Girls on the Run 5K <> at Seward Park in Seattle. This super-fun race is the culmination of the Girls on the Run fall training program and is an opportunity for girls to demonstrate their new “girl power!” This event is open to the public and one-hundred percent of proceeds will benefit Girls on the Run of Puget Sound programs.
Jo says GOTR is looking for “about 40 more volunteers to help out on race day” – and West Seattle help would be welcomed!
To register, volunteers should go to www.volunteerspot.com/login/entry/111234563257211405 and follow the instructions to access the volunteer sign up site. Once in, navigate to December 4th and sign up for a job.
The headline comes from the subject line of the e-mail in which Shelleyshared the photo. As we had tweeted from the West Seattle Farmers’ Market earlier, violinist Pasquale was serenading shoppers today – and Shelley caught this scene of young fans who decided to savor the concert. (We last saw him in The Junction in June, when he played at the dedication of Junction Plaza Park – which by the way will be the site of this year’s West Seattle Junction Christmas Tree Lighting on December 4th, first time since 2006 that the official tree’s been on that site.)
“Hard to believe it’s really me, whose name will be on high … to challenge those walking by …”
That line is from a poem by Pigeon Point-residing community activist Vivian McLean (above). It refers to the Delridge building carrying her name, Vivian McLean Place, home to the Delridge Library as well as apartments, and adjacent to offices. One of those offices belongs to the Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association, whose former executive director Paul Fischburg read the poem aloud last night at a party to celebrate Vivian’s 90th birthday:
Vivian is a founderof DNDA. Her birthday party filled the Highland Park Improvement Club with laughter and love, as well as for respect for Vivian’s many accomplishments, which themselves filled a scrapbook placed on a table for all to view:
The scrapbook went back decades; its first page told of an honor she had won in Michigan in 1940, years before moving here in 1948.
Even if you weren’t familiar with the impact she has had, you would have realized it with a look around the room last night. City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen stopped by. Community activists and organization leaders from around West Seattle abounded. Among them, her fellow Pigeon Point’er Pete Spalding, who wore this tribute in lights:
Last night, though, his main role was that of making sure Vivian was in attendance. And, of course, to help celebrate. “She likes to be with people,” her son Bruce had explained in his remarks; and last night, she certainly was.
11 months after the drunk-driving crash on Beacon Hill that seriously injured the operator of West Seattle’s Jade West Café and his son, there’s finally, and sadly, a sign of the little restaurant’s fate. Sometime in the past few days, a “FOR LEASE” sign appeared in the closed-since-the-crash café’s window at 6032 California SW. We have not yet reached anyone at the number on the sign; other various inquiries over recent months, by us and others, had gone unanswered, so this is the first verification of what many had feared, that the café would never reopen. The driver who hit Wah Wong and son Jason Wong, who lost a leg as a result, pleaded guilty weeks later and is at Cedar Creek Correctional Centerin Littlerock, serving a 2-year sentence (here’s our report from last February’s sentencing hearing).
Two court-case updates with local links: First, the West Seattle woman 
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