West Seattle, Washington
23 Sunday
Both the city and county are in the throes of budget discussions and decisions, and the coming week is pivotal. For those interested in the question of whether the city will build a new jail for misdemeanor offenders — potentially, on one of two southeast West Seattle sites that are on the current “final four” list — there’s word of a budget-related comment opportunity, from Danina Garcia of Real Change, which has been working with jail opponents citywide:
On Monday the city council will have a series of budget meetings to discuss and vote on the “green sheets” before coming to a final budget decision. One of the things before the council is a budget proviso. This proviso would put a hold on 3 million of the 4.5 the mayor requested to move forward on the jail in 2009. This 3 million could not be spent until a panel, which would include people from outside the government, investigated and reported back on whether and how a new jail could be avoided completely, while increasing public safety and public order, if investments were made into preemptive social services, pre-arrest diversion programs and pre-booking programs. There will be a brief public comment period available before the start of business at 9:30 am Monday morning in City Council chambers.
The budget decisions are pretty much all going to be made on Monday; the final vote by the budget committee and then by the full council later in the week are procedural and largely formalities. So this is a prime opportunity to put a stop on expenditures that we don’t need and that will damage neighborhoods and lives.
If you can’t attend the council meeting, there are multiple ways to comment on this issue (or any other) – you’ll find all the info and links you need, by going to the City Council‘s main webpage.
From Abby Suplizio with West Seattle CoolMom.org, via e-mail: The first-ever CoolMom Toy Swap/Sale at Camp Long on Saturday had an “amazing turnout,” according to Abby (WSB photo at left from our Saturday “happening now” report), and she adds: “The end of the day numbers were that we raised $475 (enough for 600 meals) specifically for the West Seattle Food Bank. We sold $2,000 worth of toys (initial estimate) AND dropped off nearly 25 boxes of toys to WestSide Baby. Nancy (Woodland, of WestSide Baby) was overjoyed that so many families were going to get Christmas this year! We all felt really good at the end of the day!” (More about CoolMom at coolmom.org)
From KSJ and the Beer Church via a comment on last night’s Turkey Bowl report (which included the food-donation photo at right): “We made just over $3,000 and while we didn’t have a scale big enough to weigh the food we filled a van. Thanks to everyone who came and bowled, particularly our local pubs and breweries: Georgetown Brewing, Big Al’s Brewing, Elliott Bay Brewing, Rogue Issaquah Brewhouse, Dog and Pony, West5, and Beveridge Place.” (More about Beer Church at beerchurch.com)
And a few days ago, we got a results report on last weekend’s cat adopt-a-thon at Southwest Community Center. Via e-mail from Megan with the Seattle Animal Shelter “Fabulous Felines” team e-mailed: “13 kitties, including two adults and one special needs cat, found their forever homes.” According to another message we received, that included the two whose photos were at the top of our “happening now” report that day.
SIDE NOTE: Whenever there’s an event (like the 3 above) lasting more than a couple hours, we try our best to get there to take pix and post “happening now” coverage, after sharing advance word via regular WSB features such as the Events calendar, the West Seattle Weekend Lineup, and (seasonally) the Holiday Happenings list. But we also welcome you to send photos during your event (and pix/success stories afterward) – cameraphone photos are often usable too – editor@westseattleblog.com (you can also share via Flickr – where we’ve set up a West Seattle Blog group – Twitter and/or Facebook — all our current contact info is on this page). Thanks!
As your official West Seattle Helicopter News Source – we just wanted to mention we just saw the four helicopters go by too (west to east, just north of us in Upper Fauntleroy). It’s Military Appreciation Day at the Seahawks game; the team’s website says the Blackhawks and Chinooks are doing a Qwest Field flyover.
From WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli:
Christopher reports:
Call went out as a “rescue automobile.” A vehicle driven by a single occupant apparently came down Andover at a high rate of speed, lost control and bounced off the curb before striking a parked van. The owner of the house said he was inside at the time and only heard the sound of the impact. They came out to find the driver trapped in his car with the airbags deployed. SFD responded and pulled the man out the passenger side before strapping him to a backboard and transporting him to the hospital. He was conscious as they loaded him into the ambulance.Police would not say if alcohol or drugs were a factor. Police were still on the scene at 9 a.m. waiting for a tow truck to remove the car.
To give you some perspective, here’s a photo from Nick (thank you!) who got the bird’s-eye view:
here’s a map of the area where this happened.
While freshening up the Blogs page overnight — its centerpiece is an automated digest delivering the newest posts from 100 blog writers around West Seattle — we added a few sites, including 13 in 12. This time, it’s not one we happened onto during, oh, say, a Google Blog Search (our usual means of discovering West Seattleites in the “blogosphere”) — we got a note from the author’s wife. Rachael e-mailed us to say, in part:
I’m not sure if this is WSB news-worthy, but I think it’s a pretty cool thing my husband is doing. He has participated in the Big Climb fundraiser for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society for 3 years, but recently our good friend was diagnosed, so he’s taking it one step (or many steps depending on how you look at it) further with this new challenge (13 races of marathon distance or more in 12 weeks).
Rachael’s husband, Nic, already keeps a personal blog — so 13 in 12 is an addition, and it just launched, including a list of the 13 events he plans to participate in, starting with one in Gig Harbor the day after Thanksgiving. Not only can you follow his progress along the way to achieving “13 in 12,” you can also make a donation (all money goes to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society) from a link on the page (which also has a postal-mail address if you’d rather send $ that way). Good luck, Nic!
Brussels sprouts on the stalk! That’s one of the newest items you might find at the West Seattle Farmers’ Market today, according to the “ripe ‘n’ ready” fresh sheet (see the whole list here) – 10 am-2 pm, southeast corner of 44th/Alaska in The Junction.
They’re not just knocking down pins, they’re stacking up food for West Seattle Food Bank tonight at West Seattle Bowl, where the Beer Church has tapped quite the crowd for its 10th annual fundraiser/food drive Turkey Bowl:
Kendall from the Beer Church told WSB there’s no exact count yet but $ raised for WS Food Bank appears to have surpassed $2500.
This is going on till about 10 tonight – you are welcome to drop by with a food donation, or to just “hang out.” Find out more about the Beer Church at its website (which includes Beer News Headlines!). Also, you can help the two food banks that serve West Seattle any time, with an online $ donation — donate $ to WS Food Bank by going here; donate $ to White Center Food Bank by going here.
Two state playoff games today for Seattle Lutheran, and Bil Hood just sent word of the scores: The football team lost to Naselle 34-7, so their season is over; the Lady Saints soccer team beat Liberty Bell 6-0 and are in the state tournament’s final 4 – next game, next weekend. SUNDAY MORNING UPDATE: Thanks to the fan who provided a link to the brackets with the next game – Noon Friday in Sumner. The Lady Saints are 13-3-3, opponent LaSalle (from Union Gap, WA) is 16-1; the winner advances to the championship game, same place, the following day.
The fish “flag” is flying at the Fauntleroy Creek overlook – because the first coho spawner has arrived! The notice posted at the overlook is the same one you can read on this page of fauntleroy.net. It says: “Our first coho spawner (dubbed “Hillary” as a kind of consolation prize!) came in on Saturday, Nov. 8, and as of Monday is still awaiting a mate. Congratulations to watchers Ann Samenfink and Cathy Follis for making the first sighting.” So, “Hillary” arrived less than two weeks after the gathering to “call the salmon home” (WSB video coverage here); the fish ladder is marking its 10th anniversary this fall. Shortly after visiting the creek, we headed north to catch tonight’s glorious sunset from just south of Alki Point:
Just in from Nathan – read ahead for the report:Read More
Thanks to JenV for adding a comment to our previous post, pointing out that you can donate a turkey to the West Seattle Food Bank today by buying it for just $5 at Jefferson Square Safeway. Two other food drive/fundraiser events for WSFB are happening tonight in the general Junction vicinity — the Beer Church‘s annual Turkey Bowl, starting at 5:30 pm at West Seattle Bowl (the TB lanes are full but you’re welcome to drop by, bring food and/or money for WSFB, and hang out) — and at 8 pm, a live-music benefit, Serve It Up, at Rocksport, with the toplines as follows:
Features Fall from Grace, To the Glorious Lonely, Memphis Radio Kings, Down with People, Something Vital and unplugged sets from Owen Wright, Martin Chandler, Tom Gunn and Dudley Taft. Door goes to Food Bank. $10.00 cover. Bins to donate non-perishable foods as well as raffles for prizes!
It’s the ultimate multitasking — having fun while doing good. P.S. If you can’t join in any of the above, you can still help the two food banks that serve West Seattle, right now without even leaving your computer/tucking away your iPhone/whatever — donate $ to WSFB by going here; donate $ to White Center Food Bank by going here.
That’s the scene at the Camp Long Lodge, where the first-ever CoolMom.org Toy Swap/Sale is happening till 1 this afternoon (added later: everything’s been marked down till sale’s over!) — the “swapping” happened in advance with donations taken in exchange for sale credit, so today, just bring your $ – proceeds benefit WestSide Baby and West Seattle Food Bank as well as CoolMom. Not far away, it’s the second and final day of the Holiday Bazaar at Providence Mount St. Vincent:
You can shop the bazaar till 3 pm. Overall, it’s a great day to get a jump on holiday shopping – it’s also the final day of the Square 1 Books (WSB sponsor) everything-21%-off anniversary sale; another WSB sponsor, West Seattle Nursery, has its annual open house; Capers and Friends and Company have special events in The Junction; Snap Fitness on the 42nd SW side of Jefferson Square (run by longtime WSB’ers) has its grand opening; browse the West Seattle Weekend Lineup for the full list of EVERYTHING happening today — including playoff games for Seattle Lutheran‘s football (1 pm vs. Naselle) and girls’ soccer (4 pm vs. Liberty Bell) teams, both at Sammamish High School.
By Patrick Sand
West Seattle Blog co-publisher
West Seattle High’s seniors took to the field. The game had been over for half an hour.
By ones and twos, they came out of the locker room and all but one walked onto the field. The seniors walked past the clutch of parents, grandparents, younger siblings, and girlfriends who waited for them outside the locker room and onto the turf. This was it – the last time they would all be under the same lights, and on the same field.
Give SDOT credit for proactivity: After our report yesterday that the city’s proposing cutting down travel lanes on Fauntleroy Way between Alaska and California – from two each way to one each way plus a center turn lane, in conjunction with anticipated repaving – SDOT offered up a key interview before we could even ask: Eric Widstrand, the man who will recommend to SDOT leadership whether this should go forward. We talked this morning, and here’s what we found out:Read More
Another followup to the Fauntleroy arrest early Sunday, following one break-in, another attempt, and a helicopter search: Court documents obtained from the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office list the charges now filed against 41-year-old Richard Lovejoy, the convicted rapist caught after that search. Read on for details of the charges, including more information about the evidence prosecutors say they have against him:Read More
That’s the final score, just in from WSB co-publisher Patrick Sand at Civic Stadium in Bellingham, covering the high-school-football playoff game in which the Wildcats (now 9-2) have just lost to the Ferndale Golden Eagles (now 11-0). Patrick says the stadium was jammed – more than 5,700 people (that’s about half the population of Ferndale, which is 11 miles north of Bellingham). Full report later.
The Parks Department has announced its annual volunteer awards. Among the winners: Libby Carr of the Seattle (Alki) Statue of Liberty Plaza Project and Ken Shaw for his Schmitz Preserve work. Among the runner-up nominees, Westcrest Park Off-Leash Area steward Steve McElhenney (of “Bassets for Obama” fame).
Last night in the WSB Forums, member “Bigmark” posted e-mail he had received seeking support for a soccer complex on Port land along Harbor Avenue. “Has anyone heard anything about this?” he asked. We sent an inquiry the person who had sent the mass e-mail that “Bigmark” received – and finally got more information tonight, including the Request for Proposal cover photo shown above. Turns out the soccer field is one of the latest proposals for the so-called “CEM site” – which we last reported on in July of 2007, when Jack Block came to the Alki Community Council to advocate for a residential/urban proposal for the site; our coverage from that meeting indicated that was one of two primary competing proposals, with the other being boat storage. But now, a soccer complex is in the mix, at least for some CEM land – here’s what its supporters have to say:Read More
Driving through The Junction this afternoon, we spotted the lamp-post wreaths going up. Just in time for various holiday events happening this weekend (as you can see in the latest West Seattle Weekend Lineup). It also gives us a chance to mention that the dates are set for Junction fun you can enjoy before, during, and after shopping trips, as the West Seattle Junction Association (WSB sponsor) reminds you to “Live Local” this holiday season, and beyond. An hour of fun is planned for the West Seattle Junction Christmas-tree lighting, 5 pm December 6, including music and giveaways – dozens of Junction merchants are offering free tickets (available starting next weekend) for December raffling of thousands of dollars in gift certificates, and the tree lighting event will include an announcement of some of the winners (as well as holiday music and surprises). You’ll also see Junction fun on the following Sunday afternoons: December 7, 14, 21, with carriage rides and lots more – instead of picking just one “Hometown Holidays” weekend like last year, they’re spreading out the holiday joy.
Photographed within the past hour, that’s West Seattle High School athletic director George Foster giving WSHS varsity football players the scouting report on tonight’s playoff opponent, the Ferndale Golden Eagles, before the Wildcats’ bus hit the road for Bellingham. Also handed out before the trip, lunches provided by the WSHS Foundation:
What’s the lunch of champions, you ask? We know it included peanut-butter bagels and Gatorade. Speaking of champions, check out the new patch:
As mentioned earlier, WSB will be in Bellingham tonight to cover the big game – short in-progress updates as they happen at twitter.com/wsbbizdev (which will display in a red box you’ll see on the sidebar here later) and the halftime/final scores here on the main page, also as they happen. ADDED 1:03 PM: We shot video of the team boarding the bus. Nothing dramatic but we like to share the unprocessed video when we can:Read More
Brian Presser at TouchTech Systems in The Junction sends word that the crane at Mural, Harbor Properties‘ mixed-use building across from Jefferson Square, “is coming down” – and included that photo — clearly no acrophobes in that group! We showed you the crane’s arrival nine months ago; Mural is scheduled to open in April. (added 10:33 am) Here’s a crane piece, ready to be trucked away:
Meantime, WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli has an update on 4532 42nd SW, the doomed house a few blocks north of Mural:
That’s one of Christopher’s archive photos of the house, whose storied past includes service as a hospital. It’s been tabbed for demolition for a while – we were told of a late October target, and have seen a backhoe in position behind the house for a while; Christopher says the “heavy equipment” has shown up today – updates to come. (To see what’s going in at 4532 42nd, see the second half of this WSB report.)
One online writer calls it the “marquee matchup” of the playoffs’ 1st round: The West Seattle High School Wildcats (9-1) are in Bellingham tonight to face the Ferndale High School Golden Eagles (10-0). Here’s a fairly straightforward preview from the Bellingham paper; the P-I calls Ferndale “the best team nobody south of Everett has ever seen.” The game’s at 7:30 pm at Bellingham’s Civic Stadium; WSB co-publisher Patrick Sand will be there to continue his coverage of the Wildcats’ best season in decades (previous reports are in our WS & Sports archive), including Twitter updates during the game (twitter.com/wsbbizdev, or/and watch the extra Twitter box we’ll add to the sidebar here) and a full report afterward. (P.S. Seattle Lutheran‘s in the state playoffs too, playing Naselle at Sammamish on Saturday afternoon; more on that and other sports later.)
Two quick toplines from tonight’s city Board of Park Commissioners meeting: The nudity rules we covered yesterday are mostly toast. The board, led by vice chair Jackie Ramels of Alki, asked for more information on what complaints really had resulted from events for which permits had been issued (such as the World Naked Bike Ride, September photo at left shared by Mac), and suggested revisiting that in a few months; separately, they also asked staff to take a closer look at a possible clothing-optional beach. Dozens of people concerned about the proposed nudity rules showed up, but didn’t testify because this was a briefing, not a public hearing. Meantime, the plan to seek proposals for private operation of West Seattle Stadium moved forward. Read on for those details:Read More
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