West Seattle, Washington
17 Wednesday
(sidewalk/planter damage visible, beyond tow trailer with the crashed car on it)
Thanks to Meredith for the tip – traffic is moving very slowly along Admiral at 37th (between the business district and the viewpoint), where she says a crash appears to have taken out some of the median plantings, and responding police/fire have blocked at least two lanes. So avoid the area TFN. No word yet on whether anyone’s hurt. 2:04 PM UPDATE: We’re at the scene; the crash is in the westbound lanes right at the top of the hill before it curves toward the business district, but east/southbound traffic also is down to one lane till it’s cleared. 3:19 PM UPDATE: Adding photos. Car’s been towed.
We’re starting a new story today for updates, if and when we get them, on the search for 18-year-old convicted West Seattle burglar Skyelar Hailey, who police say fled late last night when they tried to arrest him on warrants, touching off an air and ground search that we covered here as it happened. Commenters have asked if we can get his mug shot from police; we have asked, but right now, they are not releasing it. From working in Seattle media for almost two decades, we can tell you mug shots have never been routinely available around here, except for three circumstances: 1. A very high-profile search (murder suspect, kidnapper); 2. Registered sex offenders, whose photos are included in the searchable online database; 3. If the criminal has served state prison time, as an adult (in which case the state Department of Corrections will consider releasing a photo). Commenters have provided this MySpace link which they say is his – it includes a 
small photo (and profanity, NSFW). What you see at left is a section of the publicly accessible state court system webpage showing some of the cases against Hailey; others not shown date back to 2002, when he would have been just 12. Meantime, we checked with the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office to see how last night’s incident might affect the Friday sentencing scheduled for Hailey after a plea deal in the November Admiral incident (prosecutors didn’t have enough evidence to prove he was in the burglarized house, so the guilty plea was for criminal trespass); spokesperson Dan Donohoe tells WSB, “Eluding police would violate part of the plea agreement, and if there is probable cause that he eluded police, then we would use that as a basis for requesting a longer sentence.” We’ll continue tracking this through the day and will add any new information as we get it.
12:33 PM UPDATE: Just talked with Sgt. Sean Whitcomb, who runs the SPD media unit; he says the department’s current policy is that it just doesn’t release mug shots except in circumstances such as, a particularly violent crime is involved. So still no mug shot. But a WSBer has uploaded what they say is an old school photo of Hailey to Twitpic; grainy but you can see it here.
Biking to work in honor of Earth Day? If you’re a regular bike commuter, ever heard of the Bicycle Commuter Act of 2008? Or even if you’re only a casual biker, you’ll still likely be interested in what’s ahead in the full story on bicycling-related news from Monday night’s “Bike-A-Palooza” at Sustainable West Seattle. For starters, you’ll see more sharrows and bike lanes on West Seattle roads before the year’s out:Read More
At the Southwest Precinct for the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting (which has the biggest crowd we’ve seen in a long time, more than 30 people):
Beth Gappert, precinct liaison for the City Attorney’s Office, says the owner of the business best known as “the vacuum shop” in the 5200 block of Delridge (Google Street View image above) has pleaded guilty to Seattle Municipal Code violations, as the result of an ongoing investigation involving stolen goods. No jail time at this point – a “deferred sentence” – but she says he is under “tight scrutiny.” (Added 8:09 pm: Talked to Gappert after the meeting – the Municipal Code violations included “engaging in business without a used-goods license” and “failure to retain property for 30 days” – she explains that businesses dealing in used goods are supposed to hold onto them for that long before turning around and selling them.)
Also so far tonight, Southwest Precinct Sgt. Jeff Durden has had two announcements of note: First, a crackdown on suspicious activity in Westcrest Park (he says community activists and Parks crews will be there this Thursday to do some shrubbery trimming to cut down on the hiding places); he also says that Community Police Team officer Kevin McDaniel has added more duties – he is now also responsible for the three major Seattle Housing Authority apartment buildings in West Seattle.
Plus: Sgt. Durden had a few extra notes from last week’s burglary at closed-since-2007 Fairmount Park Elementary — two of the six suspects arrested were adults, and both were booked into jail (the police report from that incident also says there had been two break-ins at the school in the days before that one — nothing significant had been taken but a broken window from those break-ins may have figured into this one).
The Crime Prevention Council also now has its own e-mail address, if you have a question or idea: westseattlecpc@gmail.com
While observances have been under way for days, even weeks, tomorrow is the official Earth Day – and since April 22 is the original date of Arbor Day, it seems fitting that Arbor Heights Elementary School launched, and is continuing, what is now a 17-year tradition. We just caught up with Mark Ahlness and his third-graders outside Roxbury Safeway, delivering reusable bags decorated by AH students as part of a worldwide event he founded. As Mark explains, “The store will be bagging groceries with the beautifully decorated bags on Earth Day. This is the 17th consecutive year Arbor Heights has partnered with our Safeway (it used to be at 35th/Roxbury) in this activity. The Earth Day Groceries Project began at Arbor Heights in 1994. One of the oldest/largest educational activities on the Internet, it’s at earthdaybags.org.” Mark says you can also find the Earth Day Groceries Project on Facebook (here) and Flickr (here). Check out the Facebook page – you’ll see notes from not just participants across the country, but even in other countries – and it all started here in West Seattle!
ADDED TUESDAY NIGHT: Two more photos – these are from Mark – first, the presentation of the bags (274 in all!) to Safeway manager Alex:
And this one is captioned “Mr. A’s bag, and its inspiration”:
P.S. — 2 other Earth Day West Seattle grocery-bag notes: West Seattle Thriftway will put all your groceries in reusable bags tomorrow (more details here) … Metropolitan Market will kick off an April 22-May 5 promotion – buy one reusable ReBag for $1, get a second one free.
More than six months after first word of a plan for the city Parks Department to seek a private operator for West Seattle Stadium, the plan is dead (for now) – because no one submitted a proposal in response to the official Request for Proposals. Thanks to Becca for the tip on this, which we confirmed with Parks spokesperson Dewey Potter:
You’re correct that Parks received no proposals in response to the RFP. The stadium will continue to be open to the public, but there is no funding for the needed repairs (those funds come from a fund whose money comes from real estate excise taxes, which are far below projections because of the economic downturn).
What this means is that we are unable to make needed upgrades to improve access for people with disabilities, and that the facility will continue to deteriorate.
We published details of the stadium RFP in February (WSB coverage here), with a shorter wish list than the original draft proposal had outlined months earlier.
See the solar panels on the roof of this High Point duplex (on 30th west of Morgan)? During a media tour this morning, we learned about one unit in that duplex that’s involved in a pilot program — the only HP rental with solar hot-water heat, and today was a prime day to show it off:
It’s an “on-demand” water-heating system also linked into the 3-bedroom unit’s main heating system. During the media tour (also attended by two TV stations, one radio station, and the Daily Journal of Commerce and Voice newspapers), the Seattle Housing Authority showed off this unit — here’s some of what SHA’s HP manager Tom Phillips had to say:
The tour also peeked into a nearby “Breathe Easy” unit specially geared to help asthmatics or reduce the incidence of the disease – note there are no steps leading up to this home’s porch, one of the ways in which it’s built to assist those with difficulty breathing:
This morning’s tour was offered in advance of an event tonight, with dignitaries to include Mayor Nickels and County Council Chair Dow Constantine, 5-7 pm, celebrating the completion of phase two of High Point’s rental housing — 600 units, which SHA estimates are about 85% rented (work on the last few units is just finishing up now; 60 of the 600 are “Breathe Easy” units, by the way). You’re invited to tonight’s event – more info here.
FROM TUESDAY EVENING: Two photos from the evening event held at the duplex with the solar panels – here’s the mayor in the room with the water heater:
And here’s the crowd in the front yard, with the big tree that project managers say makes the site even greener, in a variety of ways:
A cautionary tale just in from Deana, who says what happened to her is a good reason to remind you to closely check your card/bank statements – read on:Read More
A big break in a case we first told you about last week: 
Three Everett men arrested in Snohomish County on Sunday are suspected in the Senior Center of West Seattle break-in two weeks ago – and may be linked more than 100 other commercial burglaries in the region, according to the Marysville detective with whom we just spoke, even another senior-center break-in (in Arlington). Marysville Detective Vinson says the suspects are a 49-year-old man, a 44-year-old man, and that man’s 22-year-old son. We’ll be looking up their criminal histories shortly. The Senior Center burglary two weeks ago not only cost the facility in The Junction hundreds of dollars in cash and gift cards, it also left behind thousands of dollars in damage, including holes kicked in walls. Detective Vinson says the multiple agencies now working on potential cases against these three are hoping to be able to develop more leads from the public “putting these (suspects) at the scene” of the various crimes; in the Senior Center case, there’s surveillance video, as seen in our original report. According to Detective Vinson, by the way, these are the same arrests mentioned in this brief Everett Herald report this morning; he says the suspects are believed to have primarily taken cash in most of the break-ins, and items seized after the arrest included their “tools of the trade.” We just checked the Snohomish County Jail register. All three are still behind bars, with bail set at $100,000 for the oldest and youngest suspects; the other man’s bail is listed as $300,000 for each of two potential burglary counts, so far. Checking online court records, we found that all three have lengthy criminal histories.
ADDED 11:48 AM: If you thought breaking into a Senior Center was outrageous, check this KIRO TV report – same suspects, though it doesn’t mention the West Seattle break-in. It includes surveillance video of a pub burglary in which the loot was $4,500 in donations to the Muscular Dystrophy Association. And it notes that the three apparently were caught because one of the suspects bragged about their prolific criminal activities.
When the Southwest Design Review Board meets this Thursday night (6:30 pm, West Seattle Christian Church social hall) to settle one last issue with the Conner Homes two-building project at 42nd/Alaska/California, the only thing that’s supposed to be up for discussion is what the western building will look like. Now, architects Weber Thompson‘s planned presentation is posted online, and there are four options offered – the one above is Scheme A; here’s Scheme B:
The view, if you haven’t figured it out, is looking south-southeast toward the building, theoretically from the Easy Street block; the hollow-looking gray rectangle on screen right is where ground-level retail would go. Then there’s Scheme C:
And Scheme D:
You can see the full planned presentation here; for more background, here’s WSB coverage of the 4 previous Design Review meetings:
Design Review #1 – April 2008
Design Review #2 – May 2008
Design Review #3 – March 2009
Design Review #4 – April 2009
Plus, here’s a comparably angled rendering of the same building from last meeting, for comparison’s sake:
WSB photojournalist Christopher Boffoli photographed Mount Rainier from Marine View Drive during the Monday sunset. Forecast says 70s again so you just might see that again tonight. Here are a few other highlights for tonight, from the WSB West Seattle Events calendar:
WEST SEATTLE CRIME PREVENTION COUNCIL: What are the current trends? What’s the latest on high-profile cases? Local police leadership is always in attendance at the WSCPC and you get the chance to publicly ask about whatever you’re concerned about. That’s just one good reason every neighborhood should send someone to the WSCPC meeting, 7 pm at the Southwest Precinct (Delridge/Webster).
CLICK! AND MISSION TEAM UP TO SUPPORT AND SHOW ART! An art and shopping event tonight in the Admiral District — WSB sponsor Click! Design That Fits and nearby eatery/drinkery Mission will both be previewing work that West Seattle artists have donated to the upcoming Pratt Fine Arts Center auction, 6-9 pm, and while the art’s not on sale, both establishments will donate to Pratt 10 percent of all sales made during tonight’s event.
That’s video of Grace Puffert (speaking) and Mary Griffin, Seattle Lutheran High School students introducing their senior-project fashion show Sunday afternoon at the SLHS gym. The benefit for Providence Mount St. Vincent, where the two volunteer, raised about $800 and drew enthusiastic applause and cheers throughout. We first heard of the project more than two months ago, when the students posted about their project in the WSB Forums, looking for classic fashion to be loaned for the show; we interviewed them shortly afterward; then we checked in on their dress-rehearsal show; and finally, Sunday was the big day. And what a production – with almost 30 models! The show kicked off with this Edwardian look loaned (and made!) by Morgan Community Association‘s Cindi Barker, who was watching from the front row:
Phil Yovetich and Alex Meyer served as the emcees, talking their way cheerily through an entire century, including these ’70s looks (with music to match):
And who could have a “Fashion Through the Ages” show without ’80s-height shoulder pads?
We happened to sit next to Grace Puffert’s proud grandmother and grandfather, Miriam and Larry Puffert, who live at another of West Seattle’s major senior-living centers, The Kenney. Miriam Puffert told me that Grace’s interest in fashion dates way back – relating the story of an outfit her granddaughter “designed” at age 9, which grandma went on to make for her. Grace plans to study fashion merchandising in college, while Mary told us she wants to study psychology. Congratulations and good luck to Grace and Mary, and to ALL West Seattle’s graduating seniors. (By the way, Storey Squires from The Mount, speaking before the fashion show, said that of the 200 or so volunteers there, more than 40 are youths!)
From our review of the past week’s reports at the Southwest Precinct:
A 41-year-old Highland Park woman got a warning from police after leaving her two-year-old daughter alone in the family car while she shopped at Westwood Village Target. Police were called after passersby saw the little girl alone in a Nissan Frontier, strapped into a rear-facing booster seat, car doors locked, all windows rolled up except for one cracked open half an inch. While one officer went in to ask the store to put out a page, another stayed at the car to figure out how to get the child out. The mother answered the page and told police, according to the report, “She was asleep and I didn’t want to wake her up”; meantime, another officer set off the vehicle alarm and noted that the child got out of her seat, crawled across the cab, played with the gear shift, and opened a door for the officer. After police explained to the mother “in great detail how much danger she put her child in by leaving her unattended in a vehicle … (and) explained the exceptionally high levels of auto theft that occur in the area,” they let her go with a warning, but said the report would be forwarded to CPS. In fact, five auto-theft cases were among the other West Seattle reports we reviewed, as was a 7-11 robbery, and more – read on:Read More
On behalf of West Seattle Little League, Cami MacNamara wants you to know: “West Seattle Little League is still accepting registrations for Big League Baseball, 17-18 years of age. Season begins mid-May (after regular-season high-school ball) and runs through late June. One to two games per week and double-headers on Sundays. Our combined All-Star team won the State Tournament last season. Please visit our registration page and sign up today!” You’ll find that page by going here.
Thanks to Jim for the tip – the stoplights at 30th/Roxbury (map) are out right now (and no temporary “stop” signs had been set up when we went over for a photo shortly after his tip came in) – because of the evening sunshine, the glare might fool you into thinking you have a green light; we’re checking to make sure somebody’s reported the outage.
The Pathfinder K-8 PTSA asked us to remind you that they’re welcoming any and all interested West Seattle-area families to a presentation about Attention Deficit Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Puget Sound author/psychiatrist Dr. Vern Cherewatenko (from Amen Clinic Northwest) will speak in the Pathfinder cafeteria (50th/Genesee; map) at 7 pm Wednesday. It’s free, but they would love to get a head count, so if you can RSVP, they’d appreciate it (marvalee_ahlen@yahoo.com or 206-829-8850).
Today, we welcome one of our newest WSB sponsors, Jen Flynn‘s Four Legs Photography. Jen brings her fine-arts-photography background to taking pictures of people’s pets. 
She says that experience helps her find your pet’s character and capture it on film. Jen does both dog and cat photography in the owners’ homes and occasionally in parks or at the beach [photo at left is C & P Coffee‘s “shop dog” Adie]. When working in a client’s home she says she is careful not to bring her equipment in immediately so that she can get to know the dog or cat she’ll be photographing. Prior to an appointment, Jen also has several tips on how to get your pet’s energy out and still look fresh for a picture. She says that taking this time to establish herself in the pet’s home has led many of her clients to say they were amazed their pet sat still to have a picture taken. Jen also works with several animal rescue and adoption groups and she’s involved with the Northwest Photographic Center. Her work has been seen in West Seattle at Next to Nature in the Junction and at The Kenney during February’s West Seattle Art Walk. She has an upcoming show at Plasteel Frames in June, and she is a frequent contributor to West Seattle-headquartered City Dog Magazine. You can find Four Legs Photography online at fourlegsphoto.com, or call Jen at 206-890-8295.
Thanks to Four Legs Photography for choosing to grow their business and support 24/7 West Seattle community news, information, and discussion by sponsoring WSB; this page has our full sponsor list and info on how to become part of it!
Warm weather got you in the mood for golf? A big decision about the West Seattle Golf Course‘s future is days away. Thursday, the Seattle Board of Park Commissioners is scheduled to make its final recommendations on the citywide Golf Course Master Plan. After previous hearings and discussions, what’s known as “Option 4B” (see a summary of costs and timetables here) is in the forefront; under that plan, the first two elements slated for construction in West Seattle would be a double-level driving range ($3.4 million) and cart paths ($155,000), both scheduled for planning/design next year and construction in 2011. As shown in the Parks schematic above, the driving range would be on the western side of the golf course, south of the stadium and parking lot. Four other improvements — clubhouse, cart barn, maintenance facilities and perimeter trails — would be scheduled, under that “option,” for planning/design in 2013, construction in 2014. The Parks Board meets at 7 pm Thursday, department HQ at Denny Park (map); full documentation for this agenda item, and other agenda topics including athletic-field scheduling and park operating hours citywide, is linked from the board’s webpage.
Update from Seattle Fire Department spokesperson Dana Vander Houwen on the house fire in the 8100 block of Delridge (here’s our coverage from yesterday): Investigators have determined how it started — accidental, blamed on a “malfunctioning light fixture.” Nobody was hurt, but Delridge was closed from Holden to Thistle for a few hours because of the major fire-crew presence required to extinguish it.
We usually do not publish complete “tags” on WSB, as it’s believed publicity may further encourage tagging vandals, but this time, police actually are asking us to show you these two photos in hopes you might be able to solve a costly crime: One month after we first told you about a break-in and vandalism spree at the permanent Chief Sealth High School site (WSB coverage here and here), currently closed for renovation work, Southwest Precinct Detective Nick Bauer tells WSB the damage now totals $200,000; much of that damage was from a fire set by the burglar(s), but they also broke windows, skylights, and even some equipment in the library. Believed to be linked to the break-in: Graffiti vandalism on the roof, as seen above and below:
What police are asking is this: If you have seen graffiti/tagging in a style resembling either of these photos – or if even better, you have any idea who the “writer(s)” might be – please give them a call. CrimeStoppers of Puget Sound is a good place to start, since you can tip anonymously: 206-343-2020 or 800-222-TIPS. SPD also has a non-emergency line, 206-625-5011. Just one of the ways in which your tip could help: Police can check their databases for known taggers, and if it turns out that something you have seen has already been linked to a certain offender, that may help them make the connection that cracks this case. Side note: The white blob in the top photo is our edit to block a profanity; investigators wonder if “f— the merger ” might be a reference to the end result of the work that is under way now, not only renovating CSHS but also building a new Denny Middle School on the same campus.
Published this morning at seattletimes.com and seattlepi.com: Stimson Bullitt died over the weekend at his home in south West Seattle. He was well-known in the region for a variety of endeavors including conservation activism and running KING-TV in what was considered its heyday, a time when it drew national fame for quality local news broadcasts and other programs; he was a son of its founder, the legendary Dorothy Stimson Bullitt. 
He also founded Harbor Properties, which currently has three project sites in West Seattle, the almost-open Mural Apartments (WSB sponsor), the future mixed-use Link at 38th/Alaska, and the motel site (no design proposal yet) at 36th/Alaska. And one more note: As is written on his own website (from which the photo at left was taken), “Among honors he has received, perhaps the best known was Nixon’s ‘Enemies List’.” Stimson Bullitt was less than 2 months away from his 90th birthday.
As reported two months ago, the homeless shelter that moved into West Seattle Church of the Nazarene at 42nd/Juneau in March of last year was supposed to move to Ballard — but its planned new temporary home in Ballard fell through. Now, according to this story posted tonight at seattlepi.com, the shelter’s West Seattle stay has just been extended again — to June 1st — because parent organization SHARE hasn’t found a new place for it. The article also says the Community of Christ Church in Highland Park recently “evicted” a shelter it had hosted for seven years.
James sent photos with this explanation:
I was walking through Solstice Park with my baby and dog and noticed a bunch of skinny-tired donut (360 skid-out) tracks in the groomed gravel of the lookout. Following the tracks, they led to the culprits fixing their scooters up the trail.
He says the riders were 3 male teenagers/young men: “… the broken (scooter) was blue.” One of the other two, he says, had a license plate that starts with 78 and ends in 52; he says some of the ruts left behind in this small park, formerly known as Lincoln Park Annex — uphill east of the tennis courts across from Lincoln Park’s north end, and also home to a P-Patch — were almost half a foot deep.
James says he did call police to report this. Motorized vehicles, including scooters, are prohibited on Seattle Parks trails.
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