West Seattle, Washington
19 Thursday
(All photos by WSB’s Patrick Sand unless otherwise credited)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
You can see downtown from the roof of Harbor Properties‘ under-construction Link – and when it’s done, from the same spot, you’ll also see a stretch of green.
No, not more of that green wrap: A rooftop garden (and sizable deck) will be atop the 195-apartment, plus ground-floor commercial, building along 38th SW north of SW Alaska (map) in The Triangle. Construction is about two-thirds done – it started in late November last year, and the building is scheduled for residents to start arriving in late March of next year.
After the project marked a milestone recently with the departure of its big crane, we requested a hard-hat tour, and Harbor obliged, with Steve Yoon and Emi McKittrick as our guides:
Starting at ground level, we could see the commercial part of the Link building taking shape.
That’s the spot along the alley (east side of Link) where a day-care provider plans to take a sizable space, about 12,500 square feet – and its operation will include an outdoor play area. The rest of the commercial space? For one, vegetarian restaurant Chaco Canyon Café is close to a deal, says McKittrick (you might recall the much-commented-on WSB story six months ago, asking you about potential interest).
Three West Seattle school notes tonight:
WEST SEATTLE HIGH SCHOOL’S 1ST NEWSLETTER OF THE YEAR: Denise Lathrop from the WSHS PTSA shares the link to their first newsletter of the year, inviting the community – not only those directly involved with the school – to see what’s up. According to Denise, highlights include an introduction for WSHS’s all-new administrative team, principal Ruth Medsker and vice principals Mike Kelly and Jennifer Kniseley, opportunities to volunteer and/or to serve on the PTSA board, dates for ACT and SAT testing/registration, and what’s up in student life/activities (even the dates for the fall play!). Here’s the direct link to the newsletter (PDF download from the school website).
PATHFINDER K-8 MUSIC PROGRAM NEEDS INSTRUMENTS: Sent by Lashanna Williams from the Pathfinder K-8 PTSA:
This year at Pathfinder K-8 the participation in instrumental music has SKYROCKETED!! We are looking for instruments so that all our kiddos can play!! DO you have an instrument that you would be willing to loan? Clarinets and violins are in high demand- but anything is appreciated! To donate or loan an instrument, e-mail Alisha scrapinmomx2@hotmail.com or call Lashanna @ 715-5265
LAFAYETTE WALK-A-THON DEADLINE: Lafayette Elementary is the biggest public elementary in West Seattle, and every year its Walk-A-Thon raises money for needed items that aren’t provided for in the district budget. Besides walker pledges, they also look for business sponsors every year (WSB signed on again this year) and tomorrow is the deadline for signing up. Sponsors get their logos on the official Walk-A-Thon T-shirt plus published in a directory and the school yearbook. Businesses interested in sponsorship can contact Mark Johnson at 206-932-0501 or markj0501@yahoo.com.
Got a school fundraiser, too? We’d love to publicize your event/campaign/etc. too. E-mail info to editor@westseattleblog.com. That’s also the address for any kind of West Seattle school news (and other ways of contacting us are listed here). Thanks!
As the Total Experience Gospel Choir rocked the rafters in the Alki UCC sanctuary, you could hear them from a block away – we did, as we got out of the car to catch the end of their concert kicking off the fundraising West Seattle CROP Hunger Walk this afternoon. With Pastor Pat Wright leading the nationally renowned group as always, they concluded with the song excerpted in our video clip above – “Reach Out and Touch Somebody’s Hand.” Then it was time for the walkers to head out onto a 5K route, into what was at the time a sunny afternoon on Alki:
In previous years, Alki was the only Seattle site for the CROP Hunger Walk, but this year, it expanded to two, adding one at Green Lake (also held this afternoon). The money raised is split three-fourths to nationwide/world hunger, one-fourth to local food banks (as explained here).
With Monday on the horizon, one more reminder that the West Seattle run of the King County Water Taxi (WSB Traffic page sponsor) is operating via different docks (and vessels) on weekends/weekdays, while the vessel damaged in last Sunday’s downtown crash (WSB coverage here) is assessed and repaired: Monday-Friday this week, it’ll be Argosy Cruises‘ Sightseer again, between Seacrest and Pier 55. Don’t expect to see the Rachel Marie back any time soon – Rochelle Ogershok from the county Transportation Department told WSB a few days ago, “It will likely take several weeks to make arrangements for a move, get the vessel into a ship yard, have it inspected further and then make a final determination as to the extent of damage.”
The small creatures were represented by guinea pigs Cupcake (right) and Zoe – who joined more than two dozen dogs (no cats in sight, so far as we could see) for West Seattle’s third “Blessing of the Animals” this weekend, this time in the West Seattle High School parking lot next to St. John the Baptist Church.
Blessing some of the dogs in that photo are St. John’s Rev. Peter DeVeau next to (in Franciscan robe) Brother Kris Wilder (the photographer at right was from the Seattle Times [WSB partner]). Rev. DeVeau asked the crowd first, “Happy about the purple tent?” (upper right) – referring to yesterday’s big Washington Huskies win. Then, after a parade, it was blessing time:
(If you’ve missed our previous coverage – the reason this is done this time of year is that tomorrow’s the Feast Day for/birthday of St. Francis of Assisi, patron saint of animals.)
Thanks to LyndaB for the tip – we just found a webpage with details: Goalkeeper Kasey Keller from Sounders FC will sign autographs (and promote a beverage) at the Junction QFC (42nd/Alaska) this afternoon, 4-6 pm.
VOTING NOTE #1: Time to start banging the drum for the November 2nd statewide election, four weeks from Tuesday. If you are not yet registered – TOMORROW (Monday 10/4) is your deadline to sign up online. You can do it right now by going here. That’s also the deadline to change your address. If you’re not currently registered in Washington, you can do it in person till 8 days pre-election, but why push it? By the way, we’ll spotlight election issues/races daily starting tomorrow – ballots will be mailed in ten days. Now, voting note #2:
(Photo courtesy Krispijn Larrison)
That’s Krispijn Larrison, Easy Street Records‘ visual artist – the guy behind the displays you see in The Junction (and also at ESR-Queen Anne). He is one of five finalists, from among 1,500 applicants, in a contest with an unusual prize: Live inside the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry for a month. This is one of those “vote for the winner” contests, and tomorrow is also the deadline to vote for Krispijn to win. He says you can vote once every 12 hours, so, assuming the contest runs through the end of Monday, you can vote for him three times between now and tomorrow night – here’s where to go to vote (you can see his official entry video on that page, too).
Two wildlife sightings from the WSB inbox – first, from Nancy:
3:00 AM – 36th SW in Admiral area Friday night/Saturday morning. Our dog went crazy barking in house. Turns out a large black/white skunk had taken over our backyard. Anyone else report a skunk in the Admiral area?
We don’t hear much about skunks, but the state has a “coexisting with skunks” webpage with handy advice, if you’ve encountered them – see it here. We hear much more often about coyotes, including this report this morning shared by Chris from SoundYoga (WSB sponsor):
6:45 am, walking my dog going north on 37th, and a coyote loped by us at 37th and Juneau on the opposite side of the street. We looked at each other but he seemed on a mission…
The state’s “coexisting with coyotes” info is here; our archive of West Seattle coyote-sighting reports (some with photos) can be browsed, newest to oldest, here.
(Photo from today’s WS Farmers’ Market added Sunday afternoon, courtesy Girl From Arizona)
From the WSB West Seattle Events calendar: Alki UCC is a community hub today, welcoming you to breakfast at 9 am, Blessing of the Animals during 10 am service, then the annual CROP Walk to raise money to fight hunger at 1:30 pm, details here (6112 SW Hinds) … The West Seattle Eagles also invite you to breakfast, steak and eggs for $9, 9 am-noon (4426 California Ave SW) … The day’s second Blessing of the Animals is presented by St. John the Baptist Church in the West Seattle High School parking lot at noon (3000 California SW) … Also at noon, join Spokespeople West Seattle for the West Seattle Farm and Fowl Tour bicycle ride, leaving the north end of South Seattle Community College (6000 16th SW) … 2 pm, 90-years-young writer/comedian/activist Georgie Bright Kunkel‘s one-woman show at the Admiral Theater (previewed here) … Pencil Me In For Kids‘ first fundraiser for next school year, a “Cookie Lee” jewelry sale @ the West Seattle Eagles, 4-6 pm … Special event at the weekly West Seattle Farmers’ Market: Apple tasting! Here’s the weekly Ripe and Ready list, 10 am-2 pm (44th/Alaska).
The third of this weekend’s three games involving local schools is in the books: Concrete 47, Seattle Lutheran 6, tonight at West Seattle Stadium. A few more details, plus a highlight, ahead:Read More
(Photo from Kitty Cornered Facebook page today – 2 of the kittens discover sunshine=naps)
Almost two weeks after our story about the five foster kittens that High Point’s Wendy and Stephen Hughes-Jelen have raised since they were a day old, the kittens are almost ready for their permanent homes. They were born in early August, and eight weeks/two months is considered “ready for adoption.” The Hughes-Jelens are hoping not to have to take them to the Kitty Harbor shelter for whom they volunteered to take on the then-newborns:
We would like to have them all spoken for and adopted without having to spend time in the shelter at Kitty Harbor. It is a great facility here in West Seattle but there are about 80-90 cats/kittens down there and new kittens can get sick easily. It’s just safer if they go from here to another home.
We’ve chronicled their entire life online at http://www.facebook.com/KittyCornered We will be posting video profiles of each individual kitten in the next few days.
If any of our neighbors would like to meet these kittens now, please let us know. They should read the adoption information at http://www.kittyharborseattle.org/adoption-info/ and have completed and submitted an adoption application to the shelter before coming into our home. The kittens have to be adopted in pairs or the adopter has to already have a cat in their home as a companion to the new kitten.
As noted on the Kitty Cornered page, once you’ve applied – which you can also do tomorrow in person at Kitty Harbor (or next weekend if they’re not spoken for yet) – you can go meet The Kittens.
If you only ride Metro on weekdays, you won’t notice till Monday, but today’s the day the latest round of “service changes” kicked in, as first mentioned last month. 
Several West Seattle runs have schedule changes, including deleted trips, as listed here. But the big news for Metro is the debut of RapidRide, with the A Line serving South King County, two years before we’ll see the RR branding on the C Line here in West Seattle (mostly along the current 54 route). Not all its features are in place, according to Metro’s announcement, but if you want to go take a look at the new buses (wi-fi!), rides are free all weekend.
Patty from Highland Park came to the Blessing of the Animals at Providence Mount St. Vincent this morning with her five furry friends, two of whom are regular volunteers at The Mount. They mingled with, and sometimes barked at, more than a dozen other dogs, till Father Lyle began the blessing:
After a prayer and reading paying tribute to pets “for the joy and happiness they bring us,” the Redemptorist priest led a procession through the building – first scheduled stop, the second-floor fish tank – to bless animals that hadn’t been brought down to the lobby. The ceremony is a tradition on or near the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi – which is coming up Monday – and there will be two others in West Seattle tomorrow, at Alki UCC (6112 SW Hinds) during 10 am service and outside St. John the Baptist Church (3050 California SW) at noon.
Avoid any onramp to the eastbound West Seattle Bridge – there is a crash near 4th Ave but it appears the bridge has been blocked off all the way on this end. We are in the middle of a big backup on northbound Avalon and are getting reports it’s blocked off at 35th and Fauntleroy. Admiral is reported to be backing up southeastbound too. 1:17 PM UPDATE: We are now seeing cars get on from 35th and Fauntleroy, so it appears the high bridge is open again.
Larry and Gini – “half of The Johnson Team” – are just two of many Prudential NW team members volunteering today in a multi-location food drive, all over the area. We found them at Metropolitan Market (WSB sponsor) just as the drive was getting under way at 10 am; other collection sites include West Seattle Thriftway, PCC West Seattle (WSB sponsor), Jefferson Square Safeway, and the White Center (16th SW) Albertson’s. You can drop off nonperishable food donations at any of those sites till 2 this afternoon. They’re collecting diapers for WestSide Baby, too. 1:53 PM UPDATE: We checked in with the volunteers at PCC around noon – Jeni Desmond, Tanya Edwards, Lisa O’Farrell – and they already had shopping carts full of donated food:
Also at PCC, we found another donation-drive effort – not related to the Prudential food drive, but just steps away – you can donate to the Northwest Burn Foundation for “Give Burns the Boot”:
2nd from left, by the way, is former North Highline Fire Chief Scott LaVielle (that district handles White Center and the rest of the unincorporated area south of West Seattle). The Burn Foundation fundraiser, they told us, will continue outside PCC West Seattle till 4 pm.
2 more high-school-football notes in addition to our coverage of last night’s West Seattle High School homecoming victory: Also last night, Chief Sealth International High School played a nonconference game at Eastside Catholic, losing 56-6; Seattle Lutheran High School plays tonight at West Seattle Stadium, hosting Concrete, 7 pm.
After gathering at a picnic shelter along the Alki promenade, the participants in this morning’s Walk ‘n’ Roll for Ataxia (about 50 by our informal count) headed out eastbound along the beach, with these young banner-carriers leading the way:
Ataxia is a nervous-system disorder (explained here) that in some cases can turn deadly. Researchers are working on some studies that show promise, but as with all research, it takes money, so events like this one are geared toward raising some. You can donate to the cause any time by going here.
From the WSB West Seattle Events calendar: The “Walk ‘n’ Roll for Ataxia” on Alki, benefiting the National Ataxia Foundation in its fight against the not-so-well-known nervous-system disease (explained here), starts at 10 am from Alki Beach shelter #1 … 1 pm, Jack Block Park is the starting point for the FUNdraising food-bank benefit presented by longtime WSB sponsor SoundYoga (more details here) … 10 am-2 pm, Prudential NW team members are collecting food donations at local supermarkets … It’s Solar Washington Tour day – sample West Seattle solar scene starting at Solar Epiphany’s new offices (recent WSB feature here) at 6016 California SW, 10 am … West Seattle has 3 “Blessing of the Animals” events this weekend (as noted here); the first is 10:30 this morning, Providence Mount St. Vincent lobby … If your beloved pet happens to be a Dachshund, there’s a roundup at 1 pm at Westcrest Park‘s small-dog area today.
While we were covering Friday morning’s orca sightings between West Seattle and Vashon Island, as noted here, orca expert Jeff Hogan of Killer Whale Tales turned up at the same small shoreline park where we were on the lookout – and he had his camera in tow. These are four photos he shared afterward – two of them including ID’s, like this one, J16, with a state ferry on the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth run:
And this one is J1, the oldest male among the “southern resident” orcas, believed to be in his fifties:
Jeff even got a photo of one orca breaching:
Whenever we get a tip about a nearby sighting, we publish it here (usually with running coverage ensuing) as well as to Twitter and Facebook – this is prime season for the southern resident orcas to come further south in Puget Sound to chow down on salmon, so we’ll likely be seeing more of them in the weeks ahead. One great way to get a daily roundup of regional sightings is through the Orca Network‘s mailing list – sign up here. Its leaders are based on Whidbey Island. Back here in West Seattle, in addition to Jeff’s Killer Whale Tales, there are other great orca-related resources, like Donna Sandstrom’s The Whale Trail.
Just in from Southwest Athletic Complex – West Seattle High School‘s first varsity-football win of the year, and it was homecoming too – 29-6 over Cleveland. More after the jump:Read More
(Photo by Christopher Boffoli)
ORIGINAL 9:19 PM REPORT: Police are closing the West Seattle Bridge westbound right now at the scene of a one-car rollover, according to initial scanner reports. Via e-mail, Debra, who just drove past, says the rolled vehicle looked like an SUV: “Debris was strewn far … ended up on wheels.” No word yet on injuries – some of the initial responding units have been canceled – but again, the (high-rise) bridge is closed westbound right now.
9:30 PM UPDATE: Medics on the scanner have reported a 25-to-30-year-old woman with a suspected head injury, being rushed to Harborview Medical Center right now via Medic 10. Though the final determination will be up to Seattle Police investigators, the medic discussion included a description of the crash as “high-speed.”
9:49 PM UPDATE: Police have called for help to impound the wrecked car and also for an SDOT crew to come cleanup what was described as a 10′ x 10′ spill at the scene. As Diane points out on Facebook, the westbound side is actually open till everyone heading that way is detoured off onto the Admiral offramp. Via Twitter, Brad notes that the Mariners’ game just got out, which means more drivers heading this way.
10:22 PM UPDATE: Per the scanner, the bridge is now open again. Adding a photo atop the story, taken by Christopher Boffoli. He says the vehicle appears to be a Mercedes SUV. No word on the victim’s condition – according to one witness, it appears she was the driver.
If you hear about “Friday night hoops,” a basketball court might come to mind. During Family Fun Night tonight at Seattle Civic Dance Theatre‘s headquarters in Fauntleroy, it meant hula hoops – for kids (above) and parents (below):
STAR 101.5 DJ Paul Thompson played the tunes and announced the action – the hula hoops were part of a “sock hop” at the event. There was a mini-basketball hoop in the hallway, too, one of several carnival-style games … and face-painting too:
Admission for tonight’s event was free, but visitors had the option of buying refreshments and/or bidding in a silent auction to raise money for the Seattle Civic Concert Dancers, whose fall performance schedule includes the upcoming Fauntleroy Fall Festival on October 17th. Other festival participants will include SCDT’s neighbors in the Fauntleroy Schoolhouse, such as new WSB sponsor Tuxedoes and Tennis Shoes Catering.
Out of the WSB inbox, from Katie – she sent this around 5:30 but our mail system didn’t deliver it till a few hours afterward:
My husband was in Lincoln Park dropping off our son for soccer practice. I am e-mailing you to report that a soccer coach in Lincoln Park was just assaulted about 20 minutes ago. The coach was hit by a man who appeared to be intoxicated.
Another dad pulled the man off of the coach. Other parents, along with my husband, stepped in to break up the scuffle. Police have responded and are looking for the man, who appeared to be intoxicated.
The man was Caucasian with dark hair and beard, wearing dark clothing and carrying a dark blue backpack. The coach is okay and currently conducting practice.
Please be cautious at this time as the man is still wandering the area.
We’re checking with police, but Friday night is often difficult for reaching anyone for official comment except in case of something huge.
| 12 COMMENTS