West Seattle, Washington
04 Thursday
(WSB photo, Thursday night)
9:46 AM: You’ll recall that last week, the Southwest Precinct‘s commander announced that Seattle Parks would cover the costs of having three officers on overtime be at Alki Thursdays through Saturdays to help enforce the 9:30 pm closing time. After one night – last Thursday – this was suspended, because, Capt. Kevin Grossman said, transferring money between departments would need council approval. We went immediately to City Councilmember Lisa Herbold‘s office to find out what was being done about this; Friday afternoon, her legislative assistant Newell Aldrich told us they were awaiting more information from Parks because the situation was “complicated.” This morning, Aldrich has just updated us: “We heard from the City Budget Office that Parks will contract with off-duty officers hired through Seattle’s Finest to do the closing of Alki Beach and Don Armeni boat ramp at night. Parks has the resources and appropriation authority to pay for this work.” We are inquiring with Parks to find out how soon this will start.
10:14 AM: Seattle’s Finest, as noted in comments, is one of multiple companies through which off-duty officers freelance; here’s a link. Meantime, we just heard back from Parks spokesperson Rachel Schulkin, who says details, such as when this will start, are still being worked out.
As reported last year, the project to remove the failing seawall on the north side of Lowman Beach Park will also remove the park’s tennis court.
As noted at July’s Morgan Community Association meeting, community members are proposing a new racket-sport court elsewhere in the park, and they have announced a “virtual open house” for later this month. It’ll be at 6:30 pm Wednesday, August 26th.
Details for participating in the meeting are on this flyer.
1:18 PM: Even before last Sunday’s double shooting, Alki Beach residents say the nighttime state of things at the beach has been getting worse – the video above was sent by one reader just hours before the shooting, around midnight Saturday night. Among the problems, illegal beach fires have continued and seem to have grown in number many nights since Parks removed the fire rings (which had been locked anyway) two weeks ago, drawing SFD responses, as we noted last week. Another beach resident sent this photo showing some of the fires on Saturday night:
Fireworks are reported nightly, too.
Alki Beach Park is supposed to be closed at 9:30 pm; residents say a Parks crew makes that announcement but it’s inevitably ignored.
After the shooting last weekend, Southwest Precinct commander Capt.Kevin Grossman explained that SPD no longer has money for the “emphasis patrols” that had been sent to the beach in the past. But today, he announced an update: “The Parks Department has generously agreed to fund a three-officer detail to support Parks staff in closing Alki Beach and the Don Armeni Boat Ramp at night, starting tomorrow (Thursday), August 6th. The officers will work three hours, from 8-11 pm, every Thursday through Sunday night for the remainder of the summer, until Sunday, September 27th. We hope that this partnership between SPD and Parks will address some of the issues neighbors have been experiencing with noise, fires, alcohol use, and other parks violations at Alki and Don Armeni.” However, he added, don’t assume this detail will see everything, so keep calling 911 for emergencies.
On followup, he confirmed to WSB that the three officers will be on overtime (as were past “emphasis” patrols), with Parks footing the bill. We have a question out to Parks regarding how much money it’s providing, and whether that department has any other changes planned for Alki.
ADDED 12:37 PM THURSDAY: Parks spokesperson Rachel Schulkin replied, “Parks and Recreation is paying by shift but the amount will not exceed $27,000 for the remainder of the summer, the funds are coming from our Partnerships Division.”
Most Port of Seattle-owned parks have generic-sounding names. But the port has just announced a plan to change that, with your help:
The Port of Seattle will rename six Port-owned parks and shoreline access sites along the Duwamish River to new names that reflect the cultural and environmental history of the area. The Port has partnered with Seattle Parks Foundation, a well-recognized public parks and greenspace non-profit, to design and implement the re-naming campaign with transparency and community involvement.
The ‘Incredible Parks Want Incredible Names’ nomination period runs from July 24 to August 31.
The parks to be renamed are:
Terminal 117 Park
Terminal 107 Park
8th Avenue Street End
Turning Basin #3
Terminal 105 Park
Terminal 108 Park
(T-105 and T-107 are in West Seattle.) Between now and August 31st, you can suggest names three ways:
–Online
-By voice mail – 206-385-9064
-Writing it on a postcard and texting a photo to that same number
The port will pick three finalists for each and open a “public scoring period” in September.
The Duwamish Tribe, meantime, is campaigning for support to rename T-107 Park as Ha-ah-poos Duwamish Village Park. This video explains its history:
You can support their campaign by nominating that name, and supporting it in September.
11:16 AM: The announcement is from Seattle Parks – we’re just mentioning the local fields on the list:
Seattle Parks and Recreation will turn on field lighting on ballfields throughout the city on the evening of Friday, July 3 and Saturday, July 4 to protect the surfaces. The ballfield lights will be turned on at approximately 8:30 p.m. and most will be turned off at either 10 p.m. or 11 p.m., depending on the field.
The lights will be turned on to discourage the use of fireworks. Fireworks are illegal in the city of Seattle and will destroy the artificial turf on the fields or surrounding facilities. The approximate replacement cost for the synthetic surface based on per average full-size field (110,000 square feet) is $1.2 million. All the fields have been renovated in the past several years and benefit field users including players of soccer, football, baseball, Ultimate Frisbee, and lacrosse.
The fields will be monitored by security from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. Lights at the following fields will be turned off at 11 p.m.:
Delridge Playfield, 4458 Delridge Way SW
Hiawatha Playfield, 2700 California Ave. SW
Walt Hundley Playfield, 6920 34th Avenue SW
West Seattle Stadium, 4432 35th Ave. SW
4:11 PM: The Port of Seattle has a plan too – received from spokesperson Peter McGraw: “Port police will be closing T105, T107, and Jack Block Parks around 3 p.m. this Saturday to prevent possible property damage related to firework use. The parks will reopen on Sunday morning.”
United Way of King County is offering free meals to kids and teens at two local parks this summer – weekdays, noon-4 pm at Highland Park Playground (1100 SW Cloverdale) starting today, 10 am-noon at Roxhill Park (29th/Barton) starting next Monday, July 6th. The announcement notes:
Kids and teens can pick up a free meal for the day, or a parent can come and say that they’re picking up a meal for however many children that they have. Social distancing will be practiced at both of our sites as well!
Thanks to Jan for the photos from Luna/Anchor Park tonight. Don’t know the story behind the group jump – maybe YOU do?
ADDED THURSDAY: Thanks to Marc – whose son was the one doing the back flip – for sending this video:
He says, “They had so much fun doing this! Great kids too!”
(WSB file photo, future park site at 48th/Charlestown)
With the city getting ready to make budget cuts because of COVID-19 revenue losses- see the big picture here, in the slides from an upcoming City Council presentation – individual departments are announcing their plans today. Among them, Seattle Parks and Recreation, which says West Seattle’s three landbanked park-development projects will be “paused.” Here’s the full news release:
As the City moves to reopening and rebuilding, Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) must turn our attention to addressing the impacts of the COVID-19 on both the city’s budget as well as SPR’s budget.
The City is also looking across all city departments and city services to reallocate General Fund resources to support the rebuilding of our communities along with providing essential services.
During this pandemic crisis, SPR has significantly shifted to better serve our communities where it was needed most. Seattle Parks and Recreation has stood up three temporary shelters in community centers, quickly opened and increased service to over 100 restrooms across the city, continued to operate our free shower programs at four sites, operated 9 childcares for essential worker families, and created a new program to support social distancing in our public parks.
Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic the City is proposing budget adjustments to City Council for consideration and approval on June 23.
In summary the savings from SPR that will help the city’s budget shortfall include:
-Leaving current staff vacancies unfilled, and reducing consultants and training budgets
-Reducing seasonal temporary employees in Park maintenance and facilities
-Pausing several capital projects including:
Battery St. Portal Park Development
Reduction in park acquisition budget
Landbank site development (48th and Charlestown, Ernest Park Addition, Morgan Junction, Wedgewood, West Seattle Junction)
-Greenway connection projects
-Athletic field conversion (Soundview, Ballard, and Queen Anne)
-Municipal energy efficiency program
-Park upgrade work through Seattle Conservation CorpAdditionally, SPR anticipates continuing to capture savings throughout the summer due to the closures of facilities and reduction in summer programming (Teen Summer Musical, wading pools, spray parks, summer pools, and other summer programs).
As a result of unfil;ed vacancies and reducing temporary staffing budgets, park and facility maintenance will have a decreased level of service (reduced mowing and park maintenance, along with slower response to fixing broken park amenities).
These reductions do not include layoffs or furloughs currently, however, SPR is holding approximately 10% of our regular positions vacant.
We are committed to keeping you informed about our operational and budgetary changes as we move through this difficult time
All three of the landbanked West Seattle sites had been moving toward construction years after the city bought them. (If you’re new – the Morgan project is the fenced-off ex-commercial site north of the current park along California north of Fauntleroy, and the Junction project is in the 4700 block of 40th SW across from the Alki Masonic Lodge building). We’ll add more followup info later.
While at Alki last night to cover the Moon Dancers, we noticed the newest Seattle Parks pandemic-related signage. It’s the latest in what’s been a three-month-long series of signage, from closures to social-distancing exhortations. We wondered how many signs have been made and how much the city has spent, so at week’s end, we asked. Here’s the reply from Seattle Parks spokesperson Rachel Schulkin:
Since the pandemic began, SPR has spend $87,757 on signage for over 4,000 signs.
The signs have all been made by United Reprographics, a black-owned business that the City often uses for larger printing and signage needs. These funds have come out of our Operating Budget, and may be eligible for reimbursement for federal dollars for COVID response.
(Photo from meeting presentation)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Work will start as soon as next week at the site of the Emma Schmitz Memorial Overlook seawall replacement project on Beach Drive.
The project’s been years in the making. One year after an in-person community meeting (WSB coverage here), Seattle Parks and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are ready to get it going, and they told attendees that construction of the 465-foot-long seawall will last about half a year.
Major concerns voiced during the meeting included the team’s mention of a construction fence covered with a “green tarp” and how that might affect views. (Here’s the meeting slide deck.)
(Corps of Engineers photo, 2014)
The long-in-the-works seawall-replacement project at Emma Schmitz Memorial Overlook (4503 Beach Drive SW) is finally about to start – and that means changes in park access and parking. Two online meetings are coming up for updates and Q&A. As announced by Seattle Parks:
The Seattle District – U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Seattle Parks and Recreation will be holding two virtual public meetings to kick off the project to replace the Emma Schmitz Overlook seawall in West Seattle and discuss the latest project news.
The construction contractor, Bainbridge Island-based Redside Construction, is preparing to begin staging equipment in the coming days, as suppliers have been able to produce key project materials ahead of schedule. It’s anticipated pre-staging will help avoid delays caused by the West Seattle Bridge closure. Redside Construction could start pre-staging equipment and close public access to the park as early as June 22. Construction is still set to begin early-July.
“The good news is the pandemic has not affected the supply chain for the critical construction materials for this project,” said Jeff Dillon, Army Corps project manager. “The unexpected early delivery of the custom piles puts the project in the best position to start and finish on time. Park users and project neighbors will experience some inconvenience earlier than expected, and we appreciate the community’s patience. We look forward to completing a new seawall that will protect the shoreline and underground utilities for years to come.”
In the first week of staging, residents will see the installation of no-parking signs and detours as well as fencing around the construction site. Temporary office trailers and steel piles for the seawall construction will also begin to arrive. Additional construction materials and a crane will be delivered by the end of the third week.
Here’s how to access the June 17th (Wednesday) and July 1st meetings, both at 4 pm:
TO JOIN ONLINE
(VIEW MEETING MATERIAL, PARTICIPATE THROUGH A CHAT AND JOIN BY PHONE):Use this link:https://usace.webex.com
Enter the meeting number:
146 580 1139 (for June 17) or 146 002 2703 (for July 1)Enter your name and email address then select “Join Meeting”
Select ‘Connect to Audio’ (phone icon – the first circle)
Select ‘Call Me’ and enter your phone number to receive a call from the conference system.
If prompted for a security code dial: 1139
TO JOIN BY PHONE ONLY (LISTEN TO MEETING): Call: 1-888-273-3658
Enter Access code: 5721558 followed by #
If requested, enter Security code: 1139 followed by #
We covered an in-person community briefing last July (here’s that report).
As mentioned briefly in our nightly virus-crisis roundup, Seattle Parks published an announcement late Friday about what’s reopening in its system – and what’s not. In case you didn’t click through to the full announcement, here are the highlights:
NOW OPEN
(With this caveat: “Maintenance crews will be reinstalling nets and hoops over the next few weeks. No more than five people should be on the court at a time, players should refrain from sharing sports equipment, and give each other six-feet of social distance while recreating.”)
Tennis/pickleball courts
Basketball courts
Disc golf
Community gardens
Golf courses
Boat ramps (by June 20)
Trails and walking paths
Outdoor barbecue grills
Picnic tables (not larger picnic shelters)
Public restrooms
Skateparks
Off Leash Areas
Volleyball courts
Athletic fields (for non-organized use and team practices starting 7/1)
Swimming Areas (beginning July 1 at 5 locations)
For a full list visit our blog
STILL CLOSED
Play areas and playgrounds
Adult fitness equipment
Picnic shelters
Fire pits
Community Centers/Environmental Learning Centers (programs)
CLOSING TIMES
“Popular parks will close early, at sunset, and many parking restrictions will continue to limit crowding.”
ATHLETIC FIELDS
The city will begin taking reservations for athletic field practices Wednesday (June 17) for select fields, “with permitted practices starting July 1 for organizations committed to operating consistent with the Governor’s guidance, a prerequisite for reserving fields. Several fields throughout the city will be reserved for informal drop-in use by the public throughout the summer.”
SWIMMING
“Indoor and outdoor pools, wading pools, and spray parks will remain closed for the summer. While the Governor has permitted pool use in phase 1.5 with very limited capacity, Seattle Parks and Recreation previously decided to focus staff resources to provide outdoor lifeguarded swimming areas for summer 2020.”
One last note – you’re likely to see new signage. From Parks’ announcement: “In place of ‘Keep It Moving’ messaging, Seattle Parks and Recreation will be asking park goers to ‘Keep It Small and Simple.’ The public is encouraged to visit parks and enjoy trails, walking paths, and lawns, but must refrain from large gatherings, large sport games, or parties.”
P.S. Many of the facilities/features now reopening have been closed for almost three months.
2:32 PM: As previewed – the Seattle Fire/Airlift NW drill is under way at Alki Playfield, first of 4 drills in West Seattle this week.
2:41 PM: The helicopter has lifted off. Next drill, 2 pm tomorrow at Walt Hundley Playfield in High Point. Viewing was OK today *around the edges of the field* so it should be tomorrow too.
ADDED 5:31 PM: More details, photos, and video:
Airlift Northwest (corrected) has a base in Bremerton – its helicopter can get here in as little as six minutes and carries trauma nurses as well as blood and plasma.
(Photo by David Hutchinson)
SFD plans to use the four drills – continuing 2 pm Tuesday and Thursday at Walt Hundley, back at Alki 2 pm Wednesday – for different local SFD crews to practice a helicopter transfer. Deputy Chief Ron Mondragon talked about it after today’s drill:
The helicopter was on the ground less than half an hour (longer, though, than it would have taken for an actual patient transfer).
SFD stresses that this kind of transport is expected to be rare – if it’s required at all – but they need to be ready just in case.
(WSB photo: Jack Block Park driveway gates, now open)
The parking lots of three more waterfront parks in West Seattle are open again. The Port of Seattle has reopened the lots for Jack Block Park (2130 Harbor Avenue SW) and T-105 and T-107 (both on the east shore of the Duwamish River, off West Marginal Way SW). Port spokesperson Peter McGraw tells WSB the parks and lots are on a “dawn till dusk” schedule and reminds parkgoers, “Visitors should be ready to follow public health guidance and wear a mask while respecting physical-distancing measures.” The parks lots were closed in late March as part of the COVID-19 response.
In summer 2018, we reported on the city’s plan to expand the Seattle Parks-owned area of Orchard Street Ravine by buying 7137 38th SW, a 5,600-square-foot parcel (map) holding the century-plus-old house shown in the King County Assessor photo above. Today, Parks announced it will be tearing down the house soon:
Seattle Parks and Recreation is moving forward with the structure demolition in the Orchard Street Ravine at 7137 38th Ave. SW. SPR purchased the property in 2018 to increase the green space in the Orchard Street Ravine, a natural area and important green space connector for the West Seattle community.
Watterson Excavating will be working in late May to demolish the structure on site. Between May and September, the Seattle Conservation Corps will put in erosion control measures and hydroseed the site. The property was purchased with community support and funding provided by the Seattle Park District.
In 2018, the city said the purchase price would be $235,000 (records verify that’s what was paid), and that it expected additional costs of $25,000 for “staff time, title insurance, and closing cost,” plus “up to $100,000 for demolition of the house.”
Reader report from North Delridge via text:
With Seattle Parks grounds crews overwhelmed, these neighbors and others decided to mow out most of Puget Blvd. Park (Sunday) evening for the little kids to run. One was even using a push mower. Good social distancing too.
The area is adjacent the Delridge P-Patch.
That’s the newest city-provided “hygiene station,” installed this morning in the northeast corner of Junction Plaza Park – portable toilets with a hand-washing station. We reported in late March on the first round of installations, which included one at Westcrest Park; the second round of installations did not include any West Seattle sites. After getting a tip about this one, we asked the city if any others were being installed in West Seattle; the reply – “A hygiene station was also deployed at Salvation Army White Center, located at 9050 16th Ave SW” (in South Delridge). The original city announcement says these sites “will be accessible 24/7 and serviced daily, with waste removal, needle disposal, and supplemental cleaning.”
(Photo sent last week by Mindi)
As first reported here last Friday – after numerous WSB readers noticed those blocks in the south lot of Lincoln Park – the city is planning to reopen some parking spaces there and elsewhere for accessibility. Here’s the official announcement:
On Friday, May 8, Seattle Parks and Recreation will reopen limited accessible (ADA) parking at four major parks: Lincoln Park, Seward Park, Green Lake Park, and Magnuson Park.
In March, Seattle Parks and Recreation closed parking lots at the most popular parks in order to reduce usage of these parks. As the stay-at-home order has been extended, these parking lot closures are still in effect.
Accessible parking for people with Disabled Parking Permits will be made available at four parks, to provide access those who need parking to be able to access these parks:
*Lincoln Park — nine accessible parking spaces (four at lower beach lot, and five at the southern upper lot)
*Green Lake Park – eight accessible parking spaces at the Bathhouse Theater Lot
*Magnuson Park — ten accessible parking spaces (seven at the W6 play area lot, and three at the Off Leash Area)
*Seward Park — eight accessible parking spaces at the tennis court lotSeattle Parks and Recreation has started with these four lots as a way to give equitable access to these parks and hopes to add additional spaces at other closed lots if possible. General use parking is still prohibited at these sites.
All spots will be designated with “State Disabled Parking Permit Required” signs. No other parking is permitted in these lots, and violators will be ticketed. Lots are still closed to discourage crowding at our most popular parks, and community is encouraged to recreate closer to home.
(WSB photo)
The latest order by Mayor Durkan will allow West Seattle and the city’s 3 other municipal golf courses to reopen tomorrow, the date Gov. Inslee chose for allowing the sport to resume. As we reported at the time, his order didn’t automatically give local courses the green light – city and county authorities are allowed to keep tighter restrictions – but one WSB commenter said last week they had already booked a tee time. Noted in the city’s announcement:
Courses will follow new operational guidelines and strict physical distancing practices which include: signage to indicate social distancing guidelines, minimized face-to-face interactions, removing high touch surfaces, increasing sanitization practices, converting sit-down food and beverage service to take-out only, eliminating equipment rentals, closing mini golf and using golf ambassadors to enforce social distancing. Seattle Parks and Recreation is also developing a pilot to provide hours when the public can run, bike, or walk within the golf courses.
The rest of the order extends other existing Seattle Parks closures through May 31st, the new expiration date for the governor’s stay-home order.
(Photo sent by Glenda)
Thanks to everyone who has tipped/asked us about this! Thursday afternoon, we started hearing about those new additions to the south parking lot at Lincoln Park, more than a month after Seattle Parks closed it and some other parks’ lots. We checked some of the other closed lots around the area – nowhere else, just this lot. This morning we asked the city about them. Our reply is just in: “”We are looking at ways to provide ADA parking access without reopening the whole lot. We will have more to share in the coming days.”
P.S. Thanks to everyone who continues to share sightings even before official announcements are made (like last week’s boarding and unboarding of Alki benches) – that’s true community collaboration! Email westseattleblog@gmail.com or text 206-293-6302 any time.
Though Governor Inslee announced Monday that golfing would be allowed again – along with some other outdoor recreation – starting May 5, that doesn’t automatically mean West Seattle and other city golf courses will reopen. We followed up with the city – where golf courses are closed by order of the mayor – and got a response this morning: “At this time, City golf courses are still closed. The City will utilize the Governor’s order to consider changes to current restrictions, but we have nothing to announce at this time.” Meantime, the detailed rules for golfing are spelled out in this state document (starting at page 5) and include, notably, beyond what was mentioned Monday, “At the golf course’s discretion, foursomes are allowed if they are from the same household. Otherwise, no more than two players from separate households per tee time.”
4:28 PM: That photo of a boarded-up bench at Alki came in just as we heard about this new “Keep It Moving” action from reader John, who had emailed Seattle Parks to ask if “Keep It Moving” also meant to keep people from resting on benches – as he and his spouse do while out walking – or to stop parents of little kids from sitting on the beach while their children played. The reply he got from a Parks staffer:
… We don’t have the staff capacity to sift out more and less appropriate activities, so we’re using the “blunt instruments” such as the Keep Moving initiative and partial closures such as at the beach where people tend to congregate and party. These measures are the best we can feasibly do at this time.
Of course parks are not only for the young and fit, but it seems relevant that persons who are older and less fit are at the highest risk from the virus. We’re doing our best, with the tools available to us, to keep people safe during this public health crisis.
John included that im a note to us, cc’d to City Councilmember Lisa Herbold, reading in part:
[That is] the answer we finally got from the Parks Dept in reply to our asking if it was okay for my wife and I to rest on a park bench while taking our daily walk.
As I write this, Park Dept staff is bolting boards to park benches to render them unusable. The staffer’s answer also seems to somewhat bluntly suggest that older citizens really shouldn’t be in the parks due to their high risk status.
Young people walk and run to get fit and lose weight. Older people take their daily walk as a prerequisite to staying alive, and with proper social distancing the Parks Dept should have no objection to them doing it.
My wife and I both judged the staffer’s reply to be word salad, and we already hear enough of that on TV. We think this is ridiculous. We live at Alki and watch it all day long. There are no real problems here. The Easter closure was an excellent idea, as was reopening it on the following Monday.
I want to know the official justification for the bench banning. And are all park benches throughout the city going to be boarded up? …
We’ll be asking Parks about that.
ADDED 10:05 AM FRIDAY: Got a city response this morning:
Alki saw significant crowding on Sunday, April 19. We are implementing two additional strategies to deter crowding this coming weekend: 1. Adding additional signage. 2. Deterring congregating in picnic shelters and benches through caution tape and placing boards or signs on seating. We will leave some benches open through the park to serve those with disabilities. These efforts are in hopes that we will not have to close Alki Beach due to persistent crowding.
Our goal is that people would stay home, and when they go out to recreate that they walk in their neighborhood or use neighborhood parks. If folks do want to use Alki we would like them to keep it moving when they are there—walk, run, or bike, and try and visit the park during a less busy hour.
The response included two sheets related to social-distancing observations by Parks personnel – we’ll add those a bit later after converting them to PDF.
9:04 PM FRIDAY: As noted in comments – and seen by us at the park a few hours ago – Parks crews were REMOVING the boards tonight, and the department has just confirmed via Twitter that it’s removed them all.
12:22 PM: Those are just a few of the sea lions hanging out off Emma Schmitz Memorial Overlook (4503 Beach Drive SW) this midday, some “sailing” while taking a break from an all-you-can-eat brunch. Birds too:
Consensus so far seems to be that they are feeding on spawning herring.
That would seem to be borne out by the water color difference you can see in this reader-contributed video from Terence:
Here’s a story about a similar recent event up north. Our archives show a local spawning event three years ago.
P.S. Thanks for all the tips on this!
ADDED 4:32 PM: Kersti Muul sends this photo of herring eggs on the shore:
And from Erica Sokoloff, two more Beach Drive sights – first, a tern (those are the birds with the prehistoric-sounding screech); second, a sea lion nosing out of the water:
ADDED LATE SUNDAY: Aerial view from “Diver Laura” James:
We asked Seal Sitters Marine Mammal Stranding Network‘s David Hutchinson about the phenomenon:
The Hotline has had a number of calls recently about sea lions offshore, with people expressing concern that they were entangled or injured. We encourage people to call and report these sightings to the Seal Sitters Hotline (206-905-7325) so we can keep track of this activity and just in case a sea lion is actually in distress. A couple weeks ago, our contact at WDFW reported there were herring spawn events in the area (Purdy, Indianola, Case Inlet) which are likely attracting those large numbers of sea lions. Most of these animals will be heading out of our area within the next month.
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