West Seattle, Washington
18 Monday
After our bird-sighting report yesterday (haven’t solved the mystery yet), Ginny (thank you!!!!) sent us a link to the Urban Peregrines of Western Washington blog — pointing out that its newest entry, just published last night, is all about a banding effort targeting a nest that’s right underneath the West Seattle Bridge. Pictures included too. (This is peregrine-falcon-banding season, according to the previous entry.)
A little more than a month is left before Fauntleroy Community Services Agency needs to make an official deal with Seattle Public Schools as part of the first round of negotiations to buy the 92-year-old Fauntleroy Schoolhouse, which the district is putting up for sale as “surplus property.” Meantime, landmark status is being pursued – we heard last night from Alison Swing, who is working on the landmark-nomination documentation and asking to hear from anyone who can help her with this type of information:
I’m just looking for testimonies on behalf of the community on significant impacts the school has had on the local community, whether socially, economically, politically, and any other information on the significance of the school as a historic landmark for the community.
If you have anything to say along those lines, please e-mail Alison at aswing@u.washington.edu as soon as you can.
From Cass:
Just wanted to alert the neighborhood that there have been a few car break-ins in the neighborhood of Fauntleroy and Cloverdale (map), near Lincoln Park. The neighbors have seen a guy who is supposedly selling magazine subscriptions hanging around, and have reported the break-in and sighting to the Seattle Police. No big damage done, but a reminder to keep your eyes open and your cars locked.
This gives us the opportunity to mention that you can get your questions answered about “casing” — what should you consider suspicious, what should you not worry about, when to call the police, when not to — during a Q&A with local police leadership at next Tuesday’s West Seattle Community Safety Partnership meeting (Southwest Precinct meeting room, 7 pm). And if you have any other crime/safety concerns in your neighborhood, that meeting’s also the place to be.
From our latest look at the commercial-real-estate listings: Strata on California (California & Graham, north edge of Morgan Junction) has just been put up for sale, $15,250,000. It was just last June that, after buying the then-Graham Street Apartments for almost $9 million, Mosaic announced the conversion plan (WSB coverage here); the sales pitch started in October (WSB coverage here); Mosaic canceled the conversion in late November (along with its plans to turn the West Ridge Park apartments on Delridge into “Gables” and sell them as condos too). The listing describes Strata as “luxury multi-family” and also notes, “The neighborhood is made up of mostly new townhomes, exciting newer restaurants, and upscale home and clothing retailers.” (And the ex-Chuck and Sally’s across the street.) Listing agent is McQuaid, which has sold a boatload of WS buildings in the past year or so (scroll here). THURSDAY AFTERNOON ADDENDUM: Thanks to Di for the tip that Strata’s having a “model furniture sale” this Saturday, according to this CL ad.
Three notes to share, loosely related in that they have something to do with health care. First, student nurses from the Seattle University College of Nursing are inviting you to a health fair this Saturday – 10 am-4 pm @ High Point Community Center. They’re organizing it as a school-related project and they are really excited about the chance to come help people be healthier; they’re offering blood-sugar testing and blood-pressure checks for adults, mouth-care demos and face painting for kids, as well as information on a variety of health challenges and conditions. Here’s the flyer. Second – On Saturday afternoon 5/31, West Seattle acupuncture practitioner and community activist Miranda Taylor will be offering “community-style acupuncture” at the CommuniChi clinic on Beacon Hill; fees are sliding scale and proceeds on this particular day are going toward West Seattle community activist Maria Ramirez‘s School Board campaign from last fall. Appointments can be made online at the CommuniChi website. Last but not least, the date is now set for a Junction drugstore transition — new information (including plans for grand-opening freebies such as massages!) and a video interview, ahead:Read More
May not be the only one by now but it’s the first one we’ve seen on our morning rounds: 35th/Holden Chevron (often, but not always, West Seattle’s highest price for regular, as noted in our archived coverage of West Seattle gas prices). According to AAA, the citywide average is $3.83/gallon, up 28 cents in the past month, 37 cents in the past year, though this particular station/grade is 43 cents over the price we noted this time last year. (One last data point for fellow numbers fans: The Seattle average is 8 cents over the national average.)
From this morning’s official police update on last night’s double shooting in the 5600 block of Delridge (WSB late-night and overnight coverage here): The woman is 28, her son is 10. Both are expected to fully recover. Police spokesperson Renee Witt says the woman “was in her kitchen cooking when someone fired multiple rounds through the kitchen window,” hitting her several times in the chest and leg. That was on the north side of the residence; then on the south side, someone – police aren’t sure if it was the same person – fired multiple times into the residence from the south, hitting the boy once in the shoulder. Still no arrests and no suspect description (beyond the possible “burgundy SUV” involvement mentioned last night) — but Witt says that detectives from the homicide and gang units are investigating and “talking to possible suspects” as well as looking into a possible motive. 12:03 PM UPDATE: Side note – two noontime tv updates included interviews with the owner of the future Olympia Pizza location we’ve been telling you about (former Pacino’s Coffee) less than a block north, and reported that it’s opening in two days.
And another major scheduled event from Tuesday night: The JuNO meeting with updates from two major Junction-area developers who had some new info to share:Read More
Busy Tuesday night in West Seattle. Among the scheduled events, the Viaduct open house; thanks to West Seattle writer Charla Mustard-Foote for covering it for WSB:Read More
(scroll down for latest updates – newest update, 2:08 am)
(photo of Delridge/Juneau roadblock taken by Sage K, added 11:53 pm)
Helicopter and many police involved right now in search centering on the 5600 block of Delridge. The call is “assault with weapons 14” which usually means multiple patients known or suspected. Trying to find out more. Thanks to those who e-mailed us with first word. 11:03 PM UPDATE: Whoever they’re looking for in this, scanner traffic indicates they’re not in custody yet, so if you’re in that area, be safe and be sure to call 911 if you see/hear anything/anyone suspicious. 11:05 PM UPDATE: One TV report says woman and boy shot. We heard scanner traffic talking about a 12-year-old male gunshot victim so we believe that’s from this incident. We’re also hearing that police may be looking for two suspects. 11:10 PM UPDATE: Victims taken to Harborview Medical Center, which indicates serious wounds. According to King County records, 5625 Delridge is a duplex. 11:17 PM UPDATE: According to the police media-info line, this started with a 911 call around 10:30 pm from a woman reporting hearing 10 to 12 gunshots. The media-info line describes the victims’ wounds as “non-life-threatening” and also says a third person was believed to have been shot at, but not hit. 11:36 PM UPDATE: Nearby residents say the helicopter has left the area, but we are not hearing any scanner indications of any arrests so far. Sage K does report northbound traffic is still being rerouted at Delridge/Juneau, where police have the road blocked. Sage also sent photos; stand by. 12:01 AM UPDATE: Lots of new info in update we just got from the Seattle Police media-info line. Most important: “Tentative” description of the vehicle police are seeking – a burgundy SUV. That’s ALL the information they have on possible suspects. Also, they identify the victims as a mother and her 12-year-old child. She was shot twice in the chest; he was shot in the back of the shoulder. Both are expected to survive, according to police. They say the search and investigation currently involves: Guardian 1 (helicopter), K-9, CSI, homicide, and gang units. Nobody in custody as of this report filed moments ago. 12:47 AM UPDATE: Sage K reports in comments that Delridge is now fully open again. No notable scanner activity in the case for a while, meantime. (We’ll keep monitoring till at least 2 am and will post whatever we hear/learn …) 2:08 AM UPDATE: For anybody still awake and wondering, no new developments reported. We’ll continue to monitor for a while longer, as we’re still working on an unrelated article that has to be done before the WSB newsroom shuts down for the night.
Another event covered tonight (JuNO and Viaduct reports still to come): the Fauntleroy Community Association‘s monthly meeting. No huge news, but a few notes:
–The recent Endolyne Joe’s fundraiser for Fauntleroy Fall Festival brought in $1150, more than double last year’s take.
–Good turnout and results for the recent cleanup at Cove Park.
—Website updates are in the works.
–FCA’s looking into applying for one of the city’s free-trees offers.
–Still working to settle on the neighborhood gathering place and time as part of the community emergency-preparedness effort that’s under way around West Seattle this spring (by the way, the Fairmount neighborhood’s event is up next, this Sunday).
–No rep on hand to update the schoolhouse-purchase plan.
Fauntleroy.net is the place to find out more about FCA and how to join.
This was most recently mentioned by Sue in her comment on the Fauntleroy-speeding thread last weekend – now, we get word from Megan S (thank you!) that the Fauntleroy/Dawson (map) pedestrian signal is apparently happening sooner rather than later:
Our intersection has been marked with white spray paint for a few days now, so I figured they might be updating the wheelchair ramps or something, but apparently they are going to be putting in a pedestrian signal at this intersection. Since this is right near two fairly busy bus stops and the Fairmount Playground, it is about time that someone make the street a bit safer for people wanting to cross it. Didn’t see this news on the blog, so figured I’d give a heads up to both drivers and those on foot. According to the flier we received on our door today, further info can be found by contacting Awelker Nurhussen at awelker.nurhussen@seattle.gov, or Valerie Lee at valerie.lee@seattle.gov (this latter works in the traffic signal operations department of SDOT) Also of possible concern is the fact that parking will be limited in the area during construction – not such a big deal for those of us with driveways, but I know that there are both apartments and condos in the area.
Megan tells WSB the flyer said that the work originally wasn’t scheduled to start till late summer, but the equipment’s available now so it’s starting this week.
As promised, more details from the Southwest Precinct on the latest burglary arrests – here’s the story as told by Sgt. Jeff Durden:
Today around noon, 911 is called about a suspicious car in the 7900 block of 30th Avenue SW. The license plate comes back to a stolen vehicle. Officer Jonathan Kiehn responds, but the car is gone. However, he recalls that a house on the block was burglarized recently and decides to check it out. Officers discover that the same house was burglarized again. About ninety minutes later Officer Ron Hylton locates the stolen vehicle in South Park, along with the three juvenile male suspects and property stolen from the home.
This makes 13 arrests in the past 17 days for residential burglary in West Seattle. All different suspects.
Yet another bulletin from Lt. Steve Paulsen @ the Southwest Precinct, and this one we will take the liberty of quoting verbatim, because it’s about YOU! too:
Just arrested 3 more burglary suspects..The arrest included a stolen car and weapons. (I am losing count…I think we are up to 13 [arrests]) … In my entire 24 years with the Department, I have never experienced the level of teamwork between the citizens, patrol officers and detectives … truly amazing!
Details should be available a bit later. We were just down at the precinct reviewing report printouts for the first time in a while, and it’s true – so many arrests are coming with the help of alert, persistent, determined citizens. It’s not too idealistic/corny to say you CAN take back the streets.
Say goodbye to what might be the oldest dated street sign in the city, as just one small part of the big upcoming project to change the ramp configuration of, and widen, the Spokane Street Viaduct – once known as the “West Seattle Freeway,” currently considered part of the “West Seattle Bridge” between Highway 99 and the I-5 northbound/southbound ramp split. As money to pay for it continues advancing through the City Council — it’s time for a closer look on exactly what this project will involve, and how it’s likely to change your driving life before, during, and after. We recently sat down at SDOT headquarters with the city’s project manager for the Spokane Street Viaduct work, Stuart Goldsmith, and its communications manager LeAnne Nelson, and here’s what we found out:Read More
Three notable West Seattle meetings tonight from the Events page:
VIADUCT: By the end of the year, state and local leaders promise they’ll settle on what to do about the “Central Waterfront” section of the Alaskan Way Viaduct. Tonight, the latest info on the options, the state/city/council managers involved in the project, and a chance for you to speak up are all converging on one place: Madison Middle School (map), 5:30-7:30 pm. (Open-house format, so don’t worry if you can’t get there right at the start.) Read more here.
JUNCTION DEVELOPMENT: Two developers who have three megaprojects on the board — Conner Homes (Alaska/California/42nd) and BlueStar (Fauntleroy Place and Gateway Center) – are scheduled to present their newest info to the Junction Neighborhood Organization (JuNO) tonight, 6:30 pm, Ginomai (42nd/Genesee).
FAUNTLEROY COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION: Its monthly meeting is 7 pm tonight at the Fauntleroy Schoolhouse, which is likely to be discussed since less than 6 weeks remain before the Fauntleroy Community Services Agency has to reach a purchase deal with Seattle Public Schools, which is putting the schoolhouse up for sale as “surplus property.”
We are always thrilled to get contributions — stories, photos, tips, suggestions — that help WSB become a place where together we all tell and share even more of the ongoing story of West Seattle and its people. Tonight, Camp Long‘s Sheila Brown wanted to share an article and photos (including the one above) about a new grant that will help Camp Long and other Seattle city park/recreation facilities provide more outdoor opportunities for young people (such as climbing) — read on:Read More
Now that the brick fourplex at 3811 California is officially deemed unqualified for city-landmark status, the project to replace it with a 4-story apartment/retail building is proceeding. Next step, a Design Review Board meeting just set for June 12, 8 pm, Madison Middle School (following the 6:30 pm meeting, same place, same date, for 4532 42nd SW, as reported here last week). A much bigger West Seattle project has also just reappeared on the city’s “upcoming Design Review meetings” page — the 6- and 7-story Conner Homes buildings at California/Alaska/42nd in The Junction, which drew a lot of constructive criticism at their first DRB meeting exactly one month ago (WSB coverage here) — this project is now tentatively set to return before design reviewers at 6:30 pm May 29 in the Southwest Precinct meeting room. (As mentioned here earlier today, Conner Homes reps are scheduled to speak to the Junction Neighborhood Organization, along with reps from BlueStar — developing Fauntleroy Place (Whole Foods project) and Gateway Center (old Huling showroom) — tomorrow night, 6:30 pm in the community room @ Ginomai, southwest corner of 42nd/Genesee.)
This note from Sonja at Washington Reading Corps, a branch of Solid Ground, is not only a request for help, but also a heads-up about some door-to-door activity you may see tonight or tomorrow (if you haven’t already):
We are currently looking for businesses and neighborhoods in the West Seattle area to participate in a food drive on *Friday, May 16th, from 10-2pm*. The food donations are being distributed to *Solid Ground’s* *Hunger Action Center. *Household items that are gathered will be placed at our transitional houses and shelters, such as *The Bethlehem House, Family Shelter, and JourneyHome*.
Our service project will include a minimum of two members from our team setting up a table outside of local West Seattle businesses with pamphlets regarding Solid Ground and our purpose. We will encourage the purchase of household goods (such as cleaning products, toiletries, and non-perishable foods) and non-perishable foods for donations.
We will also have a crew collecting donations from households in the Delridge, Admiral and Junction neighborhoods. We will be distributing flyers door-to-door within the next 24 hours to inform the community of how they can assist those in need within their community by leaving donations for us on Friday, May 16th.
Sonja’s contact info is: 206-788-7484 or sonjaspinarski@gmail.com
Busy day for the Southwest Precinct – another update just in from Lt. Steve Paulsen: “We just arrested another burglar who has been working the North Admiral neighborhood. That is a total of 8 burglary arrests in the last week.”
In the Alki neighborhood along and around Stevens near 59th, SDOT crews are out today putting up the parking-restriction signs we first told you about three weeks ago. These aren’t new restrictions, but rather official demarcation of the existing rules regarding parking within a certain distance of intersections, driveways, etc. (On a slightly related note, we’ll take this occasion to remind you that the neighborhood meeting about the 59th/Stevens development is a week from Thursday; previous WSB coverage here.)
Quick update from Lt. Steve Paulsen at the Southwest Precinct: A suspect is now in custody in connection with the purse-snatching attack that preceded the now-famous citizen pursuit involving local businesspeople from Husky Deli and Mashiko. (We talked to the victim, a local real-estate agent, a few days ago, and she’s doing OK.)
For starters, that’s what was “up” over the weekend; WSB contributing photojournalist Matt Durham caught West Seattle resident Fred Cavazos, owner of “Above the Rest,” maneuvering his blimp-borne photographic equipment over Huling land in the Fauntleroy Triangle. (Matt reports: “The blimp is tethered without power and the camera is controlled remotely from the ground. A video camera sends an image from the camera viewfinder where the operator can view it from a small screen mounted on the controller. This type of aerial photography can be used to better understand the views before developing a condominium or other high-rise venture.”) Matt adds that Cavazos couldn’t discuss exactly what he was working on, but certainly there’s plenty of development proposals in the area (see our clickable map here). This week brings two chances in West Seattle for you to find out more about development and issues relating to it: First, at the Junction Neighborhood Organization (JuNO) meeting Tuesday night (6:30 pm, Ginomai @ SW corner of 42nd/Genesee), reps from major players in current Junction-area development are expected; read more at the JuNO site. Second, the Alki Community Council meeting on Thursday (7 pm, Alki Community Center) is expected to include an agenda item on the upcoming multifamily code revisions, according to member Karen Clegg; read on for information she wants you to know about it:Read More
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