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California Place Park update: Watch for a survey
June 22, 2009 11:56 pm
|    Comments Off on California Place Park update: Watch for a survey
 |   California Place Park | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

Two days after that celebration in California Place Park (WSB coverage here), marking the end of the “design process” funded by a city Neighborhood Matching Fund grant, looking toward possible additions to the park, there’s a P.S. – Friends and Neighbors of North Admiral has an update to share, with two items that were included in our report on the weekend event, and one that is just now being announced:

At the celebration this weekend we announced a few things we are working on and also forgot to mention another. In the interest of keeping people updated and informed, here’s what’s brewing:

A Park Sign — We are working with the Parks Department to ensure a sign is installed in the park so that all who pass by know it to be a PUBLIC park, open and accessible to all. It has been ordered, and is just a matter of time before we see it in California Place Park.

Buffer Plants – Based on input and community concerns, we are working to plant “buffer plants” in the right of way area along California Ave SW. This will create a natural border for the park and California Ave and help to enclose park users. This is an element of the design that Karen Kiest created. Her team will help us with placement and plant selection. All plants will be from the list of approved plants for right of way areas to make sure visibility is not impaired.

We need your help to make this happen – we’re looking for community volunteers to help install these plants and also donations to help purchase plants. If you’re interested in pledging time, money or seek more information please e-mail us at info@californiaplacepark.org. We’ll post more details on this as we have them!

Community Survey — Look for a survey from “Friends and Neighbors of North Admiral” in your mailbox in the next day or so. We are seeking feedback from the community on outdoor community spaces. This survey was sent to most residents North of Admiral Ave SW – about 1,900 households and businesses. Please take the time to answer these questions and return the survey in the enclosed envelope either by using a stamp or dropping it off at Barnecut’s Admiral Service Station (the Shell station on the corner of Admiral Way SW and 41st Ave SW.) We’ll post our analysis of the feedback as soon as possible.

The deadline for returning the survey is July 20th; the money comes from that same original $15,000 Department of Neighborhoods grant that funded the design work done to date.

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West Seattle beaches: Summer’s lowest tide, tomorrow
June 22, 2009 9:44 pm
|      7 COMMENTS
 |   Seen at sea | West Seattle beaches | West Seattle news

Thanks to those who shared photos from today’s low tide – and tomorrow will be even lower, the lowest of the summer, minus 3.9 just before noon. The starfish above and the tide explorers below are both courtesy of Amy; the crab is courtesy of Jim. All three photos were taken at Lincoln Park.

If you can make it out to the beach at midday tomorrow, you will find volunteer beach naturalists (here’s Seattle Aquarium info on the program) south of Alki Point and at Lincoln Park south of Colman Pool, from 10 am till 2 pm. P.S. Kevin points out that if you’re on a downtown-facing beach, there’s another sight to see: The cruise ship that’s in port at Pier 66 till Wednesday is The World, which isn’t just a vacation vessel – it actually sells “residences” on board.

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Awards! West Seattle’s Ventana Construction, Weitzel Construction
June 22, 2009 7:02 pm
|      17 COMMENTS
 |   Development | West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

Those are the “before” and “after” photos from an Eastside project that won a REX (Remodeling Excellence) Award – presented by the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties – for West Seattle’s Weitzel Construction (WSB sponsor) this past weekend. As Dave Weitzel explains …

… there were 64 entrants in 19 categories from best Universal Design to Major Rebuild over $500,000. Our entry was in the Major Remodel $300,000 to $600,000 and won in its category against 6 other entrants. Also, all the people attending the event have the opportunity to view all the entrants before the program begins and vote for their favorite entrant, called the People’s Choice Award, and we also won in that category.

Weitzel Construction has won REX Awards before – see the list on their website. Also winning a REX Award — this time for Kitchen Remodeling — another West Seattle builder and WSB sponsor, Ventana Construction – here’s their winning project:

Anne Higuera from Ventana explains:

Each year, the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties and its Remodelors Council honor the best in local remodeling with the REX awards. Projects are judged on aesthetics, special or unique design solutions, quality workmanship, use of appropriate building material, budgetary consideration, and challenges and obstacles. Ventana was honored in the REX category for kitchen remodeling in the $75,000-$125,000 range, a category with 6 entrants. The project was part of a larger remodel on a 1923 home in Fremont.

You can read more about Ventana’s winning project here. Meantime, the full list of awards isn’t on the builders’ group’s website yet, but we’ll add it here when it is.

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Why Fire Station 37 construction hasn’t started yet: It’s rebidding
June 22, 2009 5:27 pm
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   Sunrise Heights | West Seattle news

That was the scene six weeks ago at 35th/Holden (map) as Mayor Nickels, Fire Chief Gregory Dean, City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, local firefighters and many others gathered May 12th to break ground for West Seattle’s new Fire Station 37. At the time, we were told that bids were being reviewed, and we even got a list of the top three bidders (see the 8 pm addition). However, work hasn’t started yet, and we just noticed that the project is being re-advertised (see the call for bids here). So we asked the Fire Department what happened. Christina Faine, communications officer for the Fire Facilities and Emergency Response Levy program (passed by voters in 2003) that’s funding the project, explains:

The city discovered a material defect in our specifications and rejected all of the bids. There was a problem with the original specification that resulted in project construction risk. After careful discussions with other departments, we found the only way to avoid this risk was to rebid the project. It is not unusual to rebid a project. Construction is anticipated to begin in September 2009 and last a little over a year.

Here’s the new station’s design, from Miller Hayashi Architects:

Once the new Station 37 is built and occupied, the old one (35th/Othello) is to be sold – although, since it’s an official city landmark, there will be restrictions on what can be done with it. The re-advertisement for bids says the architects think the project will cost about $3.6 million; in the most recent financial report, the Station 37 budget is listed at $6.6 million. Faine says any savings will go to help revive fire-levy projects that have been delayed because of city budget woes.

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Westwood Village Street Fair update: Another addition
June 22, 2009 3:51 pm
|      9 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle festivals | West Seattle news | Westwood

The next festival in West Seattle is the Westwood Village Street Fair, coming up this Saturday. Here’s the latest official flyer; we also got word from Stuart Crandall in WV management about an addition to the lineup: “We just added CHIPS (Child Identification Program) to come in with 500 free child-identity kits, which will include video, audio, DNA, and dental records of your child just in case kidnapping or other such incident occurs.” The festival is scheduled to run 11 am-7 pm; as with this summer’s other big events in West Seattle, we’ll be reporting “live,” so hope to see you there!

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Want to learn beach volleyball from the stars? Your Alki chance
June 22, 2009 2:43 pm
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   Fun stuff to do | West Seattle news | WS & Sports

flyingplayer.jpg

(2008 photo by Brian Todd, Aus der Traum Photography)
Just in from Seattle Volleyball Association – a clinic this Saturday with your chance to “learn from the best”:

By popular demand, the best players in the Northwest will be taking a day off from playing a tournament and running a beach volleyball clinic to allow anyone a chance to learn from the best. All levels are welcome, whether you’re just starting to play or wanting to brush up your skills. The Northwest’s professional and semi-pro players will help players with passing, setting, hitting and serving, then have the nets open for all players to practice their skills against other players of their same skill level. The event goes 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. with open net play for all participants who want to practice their skills with instructors from 2 to 4 p.m. The cost for each participant is $25 per person.

For full details of the event plus contact info, read on:Read More

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1 more reminder about 2 major West Seattle meetings tonight
June 22, 2009 1:55 pm
|    Comments Off on 1 more reminder about 2 major West Seattle meetings tonight
 |   Delridge | Highland Park | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

Both previewed here in recent days: 6:30 pm @ Youngstown, the third/final Delridge Skatepark design meeting (WSB preview); 7 pm @ Highland Park Improvement Club, Highland Park Action Committee‘s Westcrest Park “mini-summit” (WSB preview), with guests including City Council president Richard Conlin. Be heard – be there!

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Traffic alert: Fauntleroy/California paving plan change
June 22, 2009 1:23 pm
|      18 COMMENTS
 |   Transportation | West Seattle news

The gas-line work that’s been under way at Fauntleroy/California/Morgan already had things a little dicey at that busy intersection, during the day. But now we have a heads-up from SDOT that the plan for the forthcoming repaving work in that area – part of the big Fauntleroy Way repaving/”rechannelizing” project – will also mean major restrictions on traffic flow. Here’s today’s update from SDOT’s Marybeth Turner:

The configuration required to pave the intersection of California Ave SW and Fauntleroy Way SW is now one lane in each direction – without dedicated left-turn lanes. The change is necessary to allow for the turning radii of larger vehicles. As noted in a June 16th announcement, the work is expected to take five days in each direction, starting with work on the north side. A uniformed police officer will be present during peak hours to assist in keeping traffic moving. Crews will work to complete this segment as quickly as possible.

We’ve got a few followup questions out, including when this is likely to start (if it’s not already overlapping with what’s been happening in that area), and will add the answers when we get them. ADDED 2:15 PM: Here are those answers, also from Marybeth Turner @ SDOT:

Work around the California Ave SW / Fauntleroy Way SW intersection begins today. SDOT’s contractor is trying to work quickly to minimize traffic disruption, and they are currently ahead of schedule.

The crews will head west working on the north side of the intersection, wrapping up by June 26, weather permitting. The concrete work on the south side begins July 6, expected to be completed by July 10.

A uniformed police officer will be on site during peak periods to offer assistance with temporary lane configuration changes and to keep traffic moving.

I believe a flyer was distributed in the area last week, but what has changed since then is that we are not able to provide a turn lane during this work.

ADDED MONDAY EVENING: A construction clip from this afternoon, as the old pavement got jackhammered:



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Got a Seattle Public Schools question? Ask your school board rep
June 22, 2009 11:57 am
|    Comments Off on Got a Seattle Public Schools question? Ask your school board rep
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

Though school’s out for Seattle Public Schools, hot issues take no break – like the Student Assignment Plan (which passed one vote last week but still has many details to work out, such as boundaries for schools’ attendance zones). If you’ve got concerns, questions, ideas – West Seattle’s School Board rep Steve Sundquist is having another public coffee hour, 9 am this Wednesday, Uptown Espresso in The Junction. (Hours after that gathering, by the way, the full board has a “workshop” to discuss the assignment-plan boundary-drawing along with “capacity” issues – public’s invited to sit in, albeit without a comment period, 4-8 pm Wednesday at district HQ.)

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Update: Crash slows traffic on Harbor Avenue
June 22, 2009 11:25 am
|      22 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | WS breaking news

Thanks to Vlad for sending that pic a short time ago from the scene of a crash on Harbor Ave, right by the home of West Bay Espresso, Pinup Salon and a few other businesses (here’s a map). The fire call is closed and no medic unit was involved, which means no major injuries; we’ll be checking to see if traffic is back to normal. (By the way, we’ve just added a bit of new info to the end of last night’s story about the 49th/Admiral flipped-car crash.) 11:34 AM UPDATE: We’re at the crash scene and traffic is still slow going – down to one lane right now – so avoid the area for a while.

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West Seattle sports: D-Rays in championship game tonight
June 22, 2009 9:41 am
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | WS & Sports

From West Seattle Little League, John MacKenzie just e-mailed to share this news:

The D-Rays, winners of the West Seattle Little League Majors Division, advanced to the District 7 Championship Game with a 1-0 extra inning game against the Rainier Little League champions yesterday afternoon. The D-Rays beat the South Highline American Little League champs 10-0 on Friday night to get to the semi-final game against Rainier. The championship game will be held tonight at 6 PM at Normandy Park City Hall Fields, located at 801 SW 174th St., Normandy Park.

Here’s a map. Good luck, D-Rays!

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Raise puppies to help people: West Seattle event on Tuesday
June 22, 2009 6:03 am
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   How to help | Pets | West Seattle news

When you meet a blind person with a Guide Dog – there’s someone in the picture who you don’t see, even if you are fully sighted: The volunteer who trained that dog from puppyhood for its life of service and companionship. In West Seattle tomorrow afternoon, at Merrill Gardens-Admiral Heights (WSB sponsor), you have the chance to meet some of those volunteers, and their puppies in training. Ruth Oldham sent the invitation to share with you, plus the photo at left, and full details – read on:Read More

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Looking ahead: Final Delridge Skatepark design meeting Monday
June 21, 2009 11:50 pm
|    Comments Off on Looking ahead: Final Delridge Skatepark design meeting Monday
 |   Delridge | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

We got that sneak peek at the Delridge Skatepark‘s schematic design by going downtown for a Seattle Design Commission presentation last month (that’s designer Micah Shapiro from Grindline). Tomorrow (Monday) night, you can see it, and offer comments, and ask questions, right here in West Seattle, by going to the third and final “design meeting” at Youngstown Arts Center, 6:30 pm. The skatepark (planned for the northeast corner of the parkland at Delridge Community Center/Playfield/Wading Pool) is much closer to reality than it was during the first two design meetings, now that the Parks Department has mustered about three-quarters of a million dollars to replace the funding cut from the city budget — about half a million from the Hiawatha Playfield project – where work is just starting – since its bids came in under budget, and a quarter-million that’s being moved (pending final approval) from a Parks and Green Spaces Levy allotment for a “skate spot” at the future Myrtle Reservoir park site.

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Video: Admiral reopened; one rescued from overturned car
June 21, 2009 9:41 pm
|      13 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | WS breaking news

(see bottom of story for next-day updates)

ORIGINAL 9:41 PM REPORT: There’s an overturned car near Admiral and 48th. It appears to be a single vehicle, overturned in the eastbound lane of Admiral. One person has been taken out of the car and moved to the medic unit. Admiral still blocked in both directions.

9:55 PM UPDATE: The street is being hosed down. So far it appears that the one person removed from the car and taken to the hospital was the only person in the car.

10:06 PM UPDATE: Admiral now open to traffic. The car is off to the side and traffic is moving slowly in both directions.

10:31 PM UPDATE: Just left the scene a few minutes ago; the wrecked car was still there, in the outside eastbound lane just west of 49th. We talked to people at the scene; nobody saw what happened – thanks to the people in the house right over the crash scene for allowing us to share their landing to shoot video of the rescue efforts, which we will add shortly. No word yet exactly why the car crashed, nor do we know the driver’s condition.

ADDED 10:57 PM: That video clip shows the rescue scene just before the man was pulled out of the car and taken to the medic unit by gurney. We’ll add one more showing the car from the other side of the street (11:25 – here’s that clip, from after the man was pulled out:)

And one side note – we’ve noticed at recent crash/crime scenes that red battery-operated lights are used instead of flares – in this case we were close enough to get a little video of them:

MONDAY MORNING UPDATE: Fire Department spokesperson Dana Vander Houwen tells WSB the crash survivor is a 60-year-old man who was taken to the hospital with “non-life-threatening injuries.” We’re about to check with police to see if they have anything more on the investigation. 4:38 PM UPDATE: Detective Jeff Kappel with the SPD media unit says the preliminary – and we stress, preliminary – finding of investigators is that the driver apparently fell asleep at the wheel.

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West Seattle 4th of July: Your invitation to a picnic
June 21, 2009 4:00 pm
|    Comments Off on West Seattle 4th of July: Your invitation to a picnic
 |   Alki Statue of Liberty | Holidays | West Seattle history | West Seattle news

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Celebrate Liberty on the Fourth of July – by visiting the old Alki Statue of Liberty (and then if you want, later, the nearby plaza’s new one) at the Log House Museum‘s gift shop. But that would be just one side attraction at the Southwest Seattle Historical Society‘s annual membership picnic. Even if you’re not a member yet, you’re invited to come join at the picnic, which will offer free hamburgers, hot dogs, coffee, tea and lemonade – just bring a side dish to share – and help launch “Telling Our Westside Stories,” which the Historical Society explains as: We’ll collect your memories of the land, water, beaches, and hills of the Duwamish peninsula.” (The LHM is at 61st/Stevens in Alki; here’s a map.)

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First day of summer: High Point “Solar Panel Challenge” launch
June 21, 2009 10:30 am
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   Environment | High Point | How to help | West Seattle news

That sign went up, on building-side space donated by Nucor, a month ago – and now the accompanying donation drive has begun: Today, Neighborhood House launches the Solar Panel Challenge to bring in $100,000 for a “second array of solar panels” atop its under-construction (here’s our recent hard-hat-tour story) Neighborhood Center in High Point, which will be both a community gathering place and a headquarters for social services as well as environmental education. The second array will make the building “energy-neutral” and will pay for itself within a few years, saving up to $30,000 a year. Read on for the official news release about the Solar Panel Challenge:Read More

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Swinery Deli in West Seattle: Change in location plan
June 21, 2009 6:07 am
|      22 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

When we reported nine days ago that Seattle chef Gabriel Claycamp was planning to open his Swinery Deli and cured-meat business as part of the Seattle Fish Company storefront in The Junction, it was noted that the deal hadn’t been finalized yet. This morning, WSB has learned that Claycamp has just signed a lease for a different West Seattle space: WSB photojournalist Christopher Boffoli, who has covered Claycamp’s endeavors before, reports that the Swinery’s planned deli and preparation kitchen will both be housed in the 3207 California SW location (left) that Muttley Crew Cuts is leaving for its new Admiral/42nd digs; the lease, according to what Claycamp told Christopher, was signed yesterday – they’ll meet with architects Monday, and are aiming for a mid-August opening. According to Christopher, “Gabriel says this location is better because they can consolidate their entire operation under one roof and divest themselves of the commercial kitchen space they recently started renting. He is excited about the potential of the outdoor courtyard too, as it will offer the opportunity for a ‘walk-up BBQ window’.” (For more details of what Claycamp is planning, see our June 12th report.)

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California Place Park: Sign on the way; “buffer plantings” proposed
June 20, 2009 11:44 pm
|      17 COMMENTS
 |   California Place Park | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

One year ago – on June 11, 2008 – local preschool operator Manuela Slye stood before the Admiral Neighborhood Association‘s monthly meeting and talked about a “dream” of a playground at little California Place Park, adjacent to Admiral Church. In that park today, she cuddled her six-week-old son while talking with us during the celebration organized by the group she co-founded, Friends and Neighbors of North Admiral, marking the end of the design process for which they procured a $15,000 city Neighborhood Matching Fund grant.

Moments before we spoke with Slye, we talked with FANNA’s Ann Limbaugh, after she announced to celebration attendees that there’s only one certain change in the park’s near future: An official sign, marking it as a park. “That’s something we wanted all along,” Slye told us, “something to let people know this is a park.” According to Limbaugh, the group then hopes to secure volunteer time and donations — “less than $2,000” — for one element of this design crafted by landscape architect Karen Kiest as her contract, funded by the city grant, ended:

Limbaugh says the design element that FANNA hopes to pursue involves “buffer plantings” in the parking strips along the sidewalk that borders the park’s east and north sides; the lack of a buffer between the park space and busy California Avenue SW was one concern that repeatedly surfaced during months of meetings about the park. But they’re not needed, according to the “No Change to Park” group:

Standing next to the easels displaying the park design proposals at the celebration, holding her often-seen “No Change to Park” sign, Jan Bailey told us she is opposed to those plantings because of the potential expense. She and ally Dennis Ross, a longtime community activist in the Admiral area — also displaying a “No Change to Park” sign — continue to advocate for the park to remain unchanged. As for whether FANNA might pursue any more components of Kiest’s design – which would require a new round of fundraising and grant-seeking – Limbaugh said they want to “take a break” so nothing is planned. No Parks Department rep was in sight at today’s event (not that one was expected, as it was a community gathering and not an official meeting), so we will be checking with them on Monday regarding their official view of the park’s status, and the timetable for the sign installation.

To catch up on the backstory regarding this park, you can read newest-to-oldest in our California Place Park coverage archive here.

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About the OTHER new grocery store: QFC “ahead of schedule”
June 20, 2009 8:05 pm
|      21 COMMENTS
 |   Development | West Seattle news

After our update Thursday on the stalled Whole Foods project, we got a note asking what’s new with The Junction area’s other new grocery store – the one where construction is almost done, the QFC at Capco Plaza along Alaska between 41st and 42nd. Just talked with Kristin Maas at QFC HQ, and she tells us that while there’s no exact grand-opening date set yet, it’s looking like “early fall” – which she describes as “ahead of schedule,” because they’d previously expected to open in “late fall.” This will be the second QFC in a mixed-use (commercial and residential) development, she notes, after the Uptown store at 5th/Mercer, which opened two-plus years ago; she says, “We’ve been learning ever since” and that the special features of the West Seattle store will include hot “bistro”-style food for takeout (though there will be some limited seating) – and pizza ovens. The other major retail tenant announced for the building was Office Depot; we’ll check with them next week. Meantime, we just noticed the website for the residential section of the building, Altamira Luxury Apartments, has been upgraded – the building features it lists include a “chic Internet cafe.” When they open later this year, it’ll be the second new set of apartments to open in The Junction this year – after Mural Apartments (WSB sponsor), now renting barely two blocks away.

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West Seattle Clean and Green, report #2: The results; the reason
June 20, 2009 7:01 pm
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   Gardening | West Seattle news | West Seattle video

That’s the site of the new Genesee P-Patch late this afternoon – just a few hours after the big city-supported Clean and Green work party (first report here) that mixed mountains of Cedar Grove-donated compost into the soil:

Among the dozens of volunteers was John Legge, among those who received certificates today in honor of the plots they’ve been awarded in the new community garden:

(If you noticed some lighter spots in the compost pile in that photo – that’s actually where steam rose as the volunteers dug in — pungent steam, at that.) Among the others – Rahn Lee and her 9-year-old daughter Mei Lee Vandervelde, who are with a Girl Scout troop that meets in South Delridge:

The new P-Patch is on a spot of land along Genesee just east of West Seattle Christian Church, which donated the site (and has also been donating food grown on another patch of church land). In this video clip, you’ll hear WSCC’s Pastor Dan Jacobs talking about how the gardening sideline came to be:

As we mentioned in our first report, Mayor Nickels and wife Sharon Nickels volunteered today too. In his kickoff speech, the mayor mentioned this was the city’s 99th Clean and Green event:

And a shoutout to the organizational efforts of two more people who helped make today happen — Stan Lock, one of the city’s two Neighborhood Service Coordinators on our peninsula – he works out of the office in The Junction, next to Rocksport:

Plus, Erica Karlovits, president of the Junction Neighborhood Organization, which held its quarterly Adopt-a-Street cleanup in connection with today’s Clean and Green:

And these events do require planning down to the last detail, like treat procurement – Erica told us these cupcakes, with icing-drawn carrots and radishes, were donated by Coffee to a Tea with Sugar in The Junction:

Side note: In our first story on today’s event, we mentioned the three other West Seattle sites proposed for funding under the Parks and Green Spaces Levy. One is the “southern triangle” near California Place Park, the subject of a story you’ll see later tonight (because of the celebration in the park today); the other is in High Point; and we just noticed this brand-new sign up at the third, in Westwood (34th and Barton):

The sign makes it clear that the proposed disposition of that site (which we originally wrote about here) is as a “community garden,” and says you’ve got till July 20 to send comments to the city (same person that’s listed here).

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Happening now, and NOT happening now: Wading pool; ice cream
June 20, 2009 1:35 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle parks | White Center

First, the NOT HAPPENING NOW – this was tentatively scheduled as the first day for Lincoln Park‘s wading pool to be open, but since it’s not warm, sunny weather, that’ll have to wait at least another day. (We went down to check in person just to be sure, as we’ve seen the occasional digression from the “warm, sunny” requirement/s.) Remember – the wading-pool schedule citywide is different this year because of mandatory safety improvements (our coverage, with dates, is here). Now, as for what IS happening now —

That’s Full Tilt Ice Cream proprietor Justin Cline, photographed emerging from the prep room in the back, where he had been working on mint-chocolate-chip peletas. Full Tilt (9629 16th SW, White Center) opened at noon today and will be open late tonight because two bands are playing; the shop’s celebrating its first birthday by donating a cone or pint to the White Center Food Bank for every cone or print purchased today. (Another good reason to go to White Center tonight – the monthly White Center for the Arts open house, starting at 5 pm, enter from the 16th SW entrance to the old skate rink, a few doors south of Full Tilt.)

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Happening now: “Clean and Green” at new West Seattle P-Patch
June 20, 2009 11:23 am
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   Environment | Gardening | West Seattle news

After the speeches and before the digging, there was of course a group photo op for everybody who showed up at the start of this morning’s city-sponsored Clean and Green event at the new Genesee P-Patch on a Junction site donated by West Seattle Christian Church. Right after the photo op, it was time to start digging into a mountain of donated Cedar Grove compost — which is made from the yard waste you put out every week – Mayor Nickels (who volunteered today along with wife Sharon Nickels) talked shovel-turning strategy with Aaron Hernandez, the almost-unsung hero who hatched the idea for the P-Patch:

Lots more coverage to add later – including the awarding of certificates to the 10 applicants (many of whom had been on a long waiting list) who are receiving P-Patch plots. If you’re still on the waiting list, no worries – as we’ve reported previously, at least three other West Seattle P-Patches are in the works, thanks to funding from the Parks and Green Spaces Levy passed by voters last year – including the 34th/Barton site east of the Exxon/Propel station. And if you see this story before 1 pm, you can still go grab a shovel and get involved, or join up with the folks you may see picking up trash along 40th, 41st and 42nd between Dakota and Hudson, as part of the Junction Neighborhood Organization Adopt-A-Street cleanup being held concurrently with today’s Clean and Green.

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Video: Kol HaNeshamah and Alki UCC celebrate partnership
June 20, 2009 11:04 am
|      5 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle religion | West Seattle video

On the surface, it’s just a little sign outside a not-too-big church here in our unassuming corner of the city. But take a bigger look, through the prism of the world’s woes: It’s a Christian congregation and a Jewish congregation, finally declaring to the world that they share a building, and not in an “uneasy truce” sort of way. Listen through this video to the end of the Bible passage that Kol HaNeshamah president Eric Orlin read at last night’s dedication ceremony:

Also speaking at the ceremony, Alki UCC Board chair Gail Christianer (with the church’s Rev. Diane Darling at her left):

As we showed you last month, Alki UCC is celebrating its centennial this year; Kol HaNeshamah, as you heard Eric Orlin say in the first clip, is six years old. The synagogue’s sign was designed by artist Michael Dupille, who is a member of KHN.

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