West Seattle, Washington
10 Monday
(WSB cameraphone photo added 12:37 pm)
FIRST REPORT, 12:21 PM: On our way to a single-family residence fire call in the 8100 block of Delridge (map). Huge callout; more details momentarily.
12:25 PM UPDATE: South of the fire, Delridge is blocked to traffic at Thistle. Don’t know yet where it’s blocked on the north. The fire is centered in the basement, according to the scanner, and has just been declared “under control,” but not entirely out yet.
12:34 PM UPDATE: Looks like Delridge may be blocked to traffic as far north as Holden, north of the fire scene. Still lots of smoke and the house is quite charred, according to our crew on the scene; medic units are there but do not appear to be treating anyone – firefighters have searched the house and not found anyone inside, as of “primary search.” From the scanner, fire was “well-involved in the basement” of the house but is now “knocked down” aside from some hot spots. We don’t have official word at the scene yet if anyone was inside when this started, but we talked to neighbors who say they haven’t seen anyone at the house in quite some time.
1:02 PM UPDATE: Firefighters say nobody was in the house when it started; nobody hurt; cause won’t be known for a while, but it definitely started in the basement. While the fire’s technically out, they’ll be on the scene for a while monitoring “smoldering debris” as well as investigating the cause, so Delridge traffic north of Thistle will still be difficult for a while – we’ll check periodically so we can update you when it’s fully open again.
1:48 PM ADDITION: We shot that video clip is when we first arrived at the scene – you can see some smoke for starters, then more after firefighters break out some of the windows (you can hear the glass breaking, then you see more smoke and steam from a front window); our camera also looked southbound on Delridge, to show how far down the line of fire trucks stretched. Property records show the 1,000-square-foot house, built in 1955, has had the same owners since 1997. We’ll add an update whenever an official cause is announced.
5:40 PM UPDATE: Seattle Fire Department spokesperson Dana Vander Houwen says damage from the fire totals $225,000 – $150,000 to the structure, $75,000 to its contents. The cause is not yet determined; she says investigators still have to talk to a few more people.
While at Chief Sealth High School for the Honor Choir/Mariachi Tamale Dinner last night, we noticed that sign on a courtyard window. The Wednesday activity reminded us of the passion with which restoration workers describe the need to get invasives up and out of our forests, yards, fields, anywhere you see them. (Here’s a list and photos of what to look for.) Meantime, we also have an update from West Seattle Thriftway regarding their big Earth Day plan: Not only will the store bag everything in reusable tote bags (while they last) – and no plastic for the day at all (aside from the health-code-required produce and meat/freezer bags), even if you insist you don’t want a tote bag – but the Movin’ 92.5 “Ladies Room” team will have a contest in the Thriftway parking lot, noon-1:30 pm, giving away a three-wheeled ECO Car. Michelle from Thriftway explains, “These cars are still in preproduction … so the winner will be able to customize the car to their liking…interior, color etc. There will be a model of the car on-site. They have a pre-determined list of contestants [from an ongoing contest], but will be choosing a handful of on-site individuals to participate (maybe 10-15). It will be a mix of some ECO trivia and sort of a ‘Supermarket Sweep’ type game to incorporate our store into the challenge.” Here’s a video of the DJs’ test drive of the three-wheeled car:
Found that on their site’s page with more info, here. Thriftway’s Earth Day page is here.
That’s the team we found in the kitchen at Arbor Heights Community Church for the ARK Park Spaghetti Dinner fundraiser tonight (the park-plan ringleaders we first introduced you to last summer were in the group – Jan Seidel with the salad, at left, Loretta Kimball with the spaghetti, second from right). We showed you the ceremonial groundbreaking last month; the church is raising money to turn a nearby parcel into a playground-centered park. Play figured into tonight’s event, too, with activities for kids in separate rooms after dinner:
By the time we arrived at the spaghetti dinner, 2 hours into the 3-hour event, they estimated they’d already fed more than 200 people! From there, we headed northeast to Delridge, where the Chief Sealth High School cafeteria was also full of good times and good food – plus good music, at the 7th annual Honor Choir and Mariachi Tamale Dinner. In addition to enjoying the talent of CSHS student musicians, diners also heard from guest groups such as Mariachi Quinto Sol, featuring University of Washington students and alumni – here’s one of the songs they performed:
While at Chief Sealth, we bumped into a former TV co-worker, Lowell Deo, who was there to work on a Seattle Channel TV feature about CSHS that will air in his ongoing CityStream series later this spring – he promised to let us know when it’s scheduled, so we can let you know to watch for it. (Lowell profiled us halfway through this CityStream episode six months ago [15 minutes into the program].)
Coffee at the Heights in Sunrise Heights is the third West Seattle business this week to announce its opening date (after Zeeks, 5/1, and Feedback Lounge, 4/25). That banner went up this afternoon, and the coffee shop at 7349 35th SW (map) will be open starting Monday, according to co-proprietor Paul Binder, who with David Robertson also operates PB&J Textiles on Fauntleroy Way as well as the laundromat next to Coffee at the Heights. It’ll be what Paul calls a “super-soft opening” – then on Tuesday, they’ll have full service with pastries, etc., and their grand-opening celebration (with prizes, as noted here) will kick off on Saturday, May 2nd (we’re expecting a little more info on that tomorrow, and we’ll add it here).
ADDED SUNDAY MORNING: That extra info: Hours 5:30 am-8 pm Monday-Friday, 6:30 am-8 pm Saturday/Sunday. Coffee from Caffe d’Arte, baked goods from Macrina. Sandwiches, soup of the day, bagels, and beverages. Plus, starting May 2, the “month of grand opening” will have specials and giveaways- here’s the list:Read More
By Ron Richardson
Special to West Seattle Blog
Maxwell Taylor Kennedy came to West Seattle to pay tribute to Al Skaret and other heroes of the 1945 USS Bunker Hill attack.
(From left, John McNeil, Al Skaret, Lou Tice, Maxwell Kennedy, Art Shipe, Wilton ‘Hoot’ Hutt, Lou Biotano. Al, Art, ‘Hoot’ and Lou were all Bunker Hill crew members)
Over the past four years our neighbor Al Skaret has been interviewed and ultimately featured in Maxwell Taylor Kennedy’s 2008 book ‘Danger’s Hour: The Story of the USS Bunker Hill and the Kamikaze Pilot Who Crippled Her’ (you can see video clips on this page of the book’s promotional website).
This past Wednesday, Mr. Kennedy, son of Robert and Ethel Kennedy, came to the Pacific Institute 
in West Seattle to honor Al and crew members of the USS Bunker Hill. He gave an inspiring talk, like a good college lecturer, about the war in the Pacific, its origins, the struggle, the sacrifice and the final victory. Mr. Kennedy showed a collection of photos from the National Archives that illustrated episodes he discovered as he researched his book.
Maxwell Kennedy showed a photo of a handwritten note prepared by pilot Al Turnbull which said “Keep chute on in case wing comes off.”
Just out of the WSB inbox:
This is Sean and Matthew from the 5200 block of 42nd Ave SW. [map] Our home was burglarized at about 11 AM on 4/16. The thieves kicked in the back door and stole a 52″ flat screen, laptop, Playstation, DVDs, games, and some jewelry.
That’s one day after Dan in the 4400 block of 42nd reported a break-in (part of this roundup). Reminder – if you’re concerned about crime in your neighborhood, this Tuesday night is your chance to talk with police leadership and community advocates at the next meeting of the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council, 7 pm, Southwest Precinct (35th/Webster).
Before the sun went back behind the clouds, blue sky and a big crowd graced the West Seattle Family YMCA (WSB sponsor) Healthy Kids Day fun at midday today – and WSB happened to be there as the Seafair Clowns rolled up. Great reminder that the heart of summer-fun season is just a few months away (the West Seattle American Legion Grand Parade is exactly three months from today – July 18 – and one week before that, on 7/11, the clowns’ “cousins” [?] the Seafair Pirates will storm Alki). Back to Healthy Kids’ Day – it’s an annual tradition, with indoor and outdoor activities:
The West Seattle Y was one of 10 around the metro area to celebrate Healthy Kids Day today.
With coordination from EarthCorps and the West Seattle-based Nature Consortium, hundreds of volunteers are working at 20+ sites in the West Duwamish Greenbelt section south and east of Pigeon Point’s Cooper School, just one of more than a dozen Duwamish Alive! events today in honor of Earth Day (which technically isn’t till Wednesday). In a clearing close to the school, numbers mark where each group’s supplies were gathered:
EarthCorps told us we were the first media visitors of the day; they were expecting a few high-profile political visitors too, including County Councilmember/Executive candidate Larry Phillips, who was there (at right in the photo below) during our stop (expected this afternoon, two West Seattleites: County Councilmember/Executive candidate Dow Constantine and Mayor Nickels):
The heart of the work: Tearing out, pulling out, pulling down the invasive plants that choke the life out of the forest and its native understory – this gentleman was doing battle with a thickly trunked Scotch broom:
Some invasive plants like Scotch broom and ivy are still sold for planting, but even if you think they’re great in your yard, birds can eat the seeds and distribute them far and wide, so think twice before using them in your landscaping. More on Duwamish Alive! after we go back for this afternoon’s community festival at Cooper, 2-5 pm (and you’re invited), and we’ll add some video later, including the musician serenading the volunteers in the meadow.
We first told you last year about Longfellow Creek Garden, an “urban farm” in the Delridge area — with volunteers tending it and reaping the benefit. All day today, its first major work party of the year is under way – getting the rows ready, composting the herb-garden area, tackling a list of tasks that even includes “who brought the beer?” That part of the plan, of course, will be skipped by the youngest members of the team:
And alumni of Minnesota’s St. Olaf College are even pitching in for their day of service – here’s their official check-in station along the nearest road:
The tool table has a pair of guards, brought along by Shannon and Jason from the newly formed Longfellow Creek Garden Board of Stewards:
To get involved with Longfellow Creek Garden, e-mail lazylocavores@me.com – you too can help with this adventure in “urban farming” – LFCG is on Facebook, too. Today’s work party continues till 4 pm.
(note at left, Zeeks has put in its glass)
They promised they’d announce their opening day/time today, and indeed, here it is, announced online: 6 pm next Saturday, April 25, the doors open at Feedback Lounge (between the new Zeeks Pizza opening May 1st and the old Beveridge Place Pub location that opened exactly a year ago immediately south of the new one).
ADDED 9:45 AM: More details from the e-mail announcement that came in about 45 minutes after we originally published this item – if you’re not on the FL e-mail list and haven’t seen it, read on:Read More
With Oprah talking about it today, Twitter is suddenly The Next Big Bandwagon. We’ve been talking about Twitter here for a long time – WSB has been using it since November 2007, and we added a page here last year enabling you to check out recent tweets by almost anyone mentioning West Seattle, plus our latest tweets. You don’t need to sign up for Twitter to see what’s on it — just as long as you know who you’re looking for, you can check out their latest tweets on the Web; for example, we are @westseattleblog, so you can see what we’re up to at twitter.com/westseattleblog, Twitter member or not. Enough about us: We got word via Facebook (where you can “friend” us: WS Blog) from local diving instructor Dave Rintoul of Dive Canuck SCUBA that he’s set up a Twitter account – inspired by one in Malibu – to share info on Seacrest diving conditions. Find him at twitter.com/seacrestdiving – he says he’ll be looking for more divers to share the responsibility of posting condition updates.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Much has changed since the first public discussion of possible changes to little California Place Park in North Admiral – and much has not.
What has changed:
*After going through the design process funded by a $15,000 city matching-funds grant, the proposal for possible park changes does not include anything resembling a children’s play area.
*The so-called “southern triangle” of city-owned land, southwest of the park itself, is now under Parks Department supervision since the process brought to light the fact it was somewhat neglected SDOT-owned right-of-way.
*Life has changed for one of the leaders of Friends and Neighbors of North Admiral — Manuela Slye is moving her Admiral District home-based bilingual Cometa Playschool — which some critics had suggested was a motivation for proposing park changes — to part of the former Prudential NW space about two miles south.
What hasn’t changed:
Those opposed to any changes in the small triangle of lawn and trees remain resolute, particularly nearby resident Jan Bailey, who has spent many hours standing in the park with her NO CHANGE TO PARK sign, gathering almost 700 petition signatures, and brought her sign and flyers to last night’s meeting, greeting neighbors at the door, then keeping vigil at the back of the room.
Also unchanged, one stark reality: The fact that intensive community fundraising would be needed to make any changes to the park.
Will add this to the West Seattle Weekend Lineup too, but wanted to share the entire announcement just in from King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson John Urquhart – a big football event in West Seattle tomorrow, presented by an organization led by both KCSO and Seattle Police – read on for details:Read More
Thanks to the anonymous e-mailer who tipped us to this last night; we confirmed it in person this afternoon: Alki Cafe‘s longtime owners Carol and Steve Roaldson have sold the restaurant. It’s now owned by John Bang, who was there today, greeting customers, too busy to talk in detail at the time but promising to share more information about his plans shortly.
Announced this morning: $13 million in planned cuts to the general fund, plus $5 million to be pulled from the so-called “rainy day fund” (a sixth of its total), to help make up for that $40 million-plus shortfall in last week’s revised city revenue forecast. Here’s the city news release; there’s also a doc online with all the details, line by line (the very last page includes planned Seattle Public Library cuts, such as a weeklong closure saving $655,000).
(2007 Mudhoney photo via Flickr, by DaigoOliva)
With less than three months to go till West Seattle Summer Fest — the huge three-day street festival in The Junction — a big-name music act has signed on: Dave Montoure from West 5 and the West Seattle Junction Association confirms that Seattle’s own Mudhoney (which has at least one member with WS ties) will headline the first night of the live music slate, Friday night, July 10th. Some other big changes/improvements are on the drawing board for this year’s festival (July 10-12) too, with details to be made public soon. By the way, if you’re a vendor, performer, artist, or food seller, you can find applications for Summer Fest at the festival website.
Metro has just unveiled a slate of proposed route changes, mostly related to the impending opening of the light-rail line: Southwest changes are listed here (including rerouting the south end of 128, which travels through West Seattle/White Center) – but we noticed one big thing missing: The proposed Route 50, which generated some West Seattle excitement because it would have included a leg taking bus riders directly between North Delridge and The Junction, is no longer under consideration. That’s “because of costs,” Metro spokesperson Linda Thielke tells WSB; she also noted that the proposal generated mixed feedback during the public-comment period. Its Southeast Seattle leg had been linked to some changes that were generating concern in that area, according to what Metro reps told the North Delridge Neighborhood Council two months ago (WSB coverage here). The next step for all the changes proposed today is a County Council committee public hearing next Tuesday night (info here) and then a vote in May. (If you want to see what’s being proposed for southeast Seattle, here’s the direct link to those details.)
Before we publish the full West Seattle Weekend Lineup a bit later, a couple quick notes about events today/tonight: St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church‘s two-weekend rummage sale starts today, 9 am-3 pm; the West Seattle CoolMom group’s next Family Movie Night, featuring “An Arctic Tale,” is 6-8 pm at Camp Long Lodge (there’s still room, according to CoolMom’s Laura Elfline, who recommends calling Camp Long NOW to save a space).
From Thursday night’s quarterly meeting of the Sunrise Heights Neighborhood Association (this area is roughly between High Point and Westwood, between 35th and Delridge):
E.C. HUGHES SCHOOL’S FUTURE: Sage Wilson of the SHNA board has been talking with Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association about applying for a city Department of Neighborhoods grant to study community interest in the closed Hughes school. (After temporarily housing South Lake High School the past two years, it’s vacant again this year.) The grant would facilitate open houses for public input on the site, to figure out if there’s enough interest to look into buying it, since it’s on the Seattle Public Schools surplus-property list. Neighbors’ general consensus was that it’s a good idea to talk about this before a development proposal comes in from outside the neighborhood. Sage will head up the grant-writing effort, to meet a July deadline.
SEX OFFENDERS: Detective Bob Shilling from the Seattle Police Sex Offender Detail briefed the neighborhood about how to find information online, as well as what families really need to know about sex crimes: Long story short, very few involve “strangers.” As for sex offenders in local neighborhoods, you can use this website to see if any level-1 or level-2 offenders are living near you (it’s linked from the bottom of our Crime Watch page if you ever need to find it again); the West Seattle overview is that the Southwest Precinct area has 163 right now, fewer than any other precinct in the city (the largest number is 343 in the North Precinct). Statewide, there are 20,178 registered sex offenders.
POKER TOURNAMENT FUNDRAISER: This Saturday night is SHNA’s 4th annual Texas Hold’em Poker Night at the social hall of Our Lady of Guadalupe, $15/person or $120/table of 9. Must be 21 or older. More info on the SNHA website.
We’re at Alki Community Center for the third and final “design workshop” in this stage of the process that could result in additions to little California Place Park next to Admiral Church (WSB sponsor) at California/Hill. Park-change opponents are here with bright lime-green mini-signs that say NO CHANGE TO PARK on one side, echoing the large sign held by Jan Bailey, greeting meeting attendees outside (then at the back of the room once the meeting began, per photo added above at 7:16 pm), while landscape architect Karen Kiest and members of Friends and Neighbors of North Admiral get ready to lead the meeting inside. About 35 people are here as the meeting starts; Steven Gray from FANNA just announced there will be a May 24 gathering, location TBA (probably at the park), to celebrate the time and energy everyone’s put into this – on both sides. Kiest will be presenting final design options for the park; we’ll add a note or two along the way as the meeting proceeds, before a separate, full writeup afterward. 8:41 PM UPDATE: The meeting just wrapped up; next steps, Kiest will write up a report within the next month and a half or so, and FANNA will decide what if anything they might pursue funding for – cost estimates presented here went all the way from less than $100,000 for one component of the “draft plan” to almost $400,000 for everything that could be done (including extending the park boundaries to green up a currently paved section of land on the north side that belongs to the park but is currently used as road). ADDED FRIDAY MORNING: While we’re working on the in-depth followup, here’s the design artwork shown at the meeting.
After more than two years, the “Auto Buff Is Moving” banner is finally about to come down at 42nd/Admiral – because the building’s getting a facelift, with someone new moving in: Eric Renn talked to WSB today about his new “athletic gym,” taking over the long-vacant former Auto Buff space. Our discussion also reveals a bit about the future of the corner in general – previously slated for a mixed-use development with a “grocery store” once rumored to be the ever-elusive Trader Joe’s – read on to find out more:Read More
Tomorrow morning, Mayor Nickels will brief the media on more of the budget-cut plans to bring city spending in line with the dramatically reduced revenue forecast revealed last week. Though council votes aren’t required for him to implement cuts, councilmembers say they want to hear what you think – so they’ve just announced another public hearing, this one for next Tuesday night – read on for the official announcement from the office of Councilmember Jean Godden, who chairs the council’s budget committee:Read More
More than a few WSBers have asked what we know about the city crew that’s been clearing part of the slope this week along the west side of Admiral Way, about halfway uphill from the West Seattle Bridge. We checked with Parks Department spokesperson Dewey Potter, who explains:
At this site there’s a little bit of park property and mostly Seattle Department of Transportation property. Under the Green Seattle Partnership, it’s the first piece of work to be done on non-park property, and the largest piece of non-park property identified as a Green Seattle Partnership site. Here’s the partnership web site: greenseattle.org and a recent Mayor’s news release
Parks is clearing the invasive blackberries. A banner will go up soon at the site inviting volunteers to come and help, if they’d like to, on the east side (the west side is too dangerous for volunteers because of its proximity to traffic and the steepness of the slope).
By the way, we regularly feature Green Seattle Partnership-promoted work parties in our West Seattle Weekend Lineup, published every Friday – here’s the GS list of what’s coming up this weekend, a particularly big slate since it’s the weekend before Earth Day. This page on the GSP website explains the importance of clearing invasives (ivy, and more) in urban forests.
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