(New design proposal for Alki Elementary, with 15 parking spaces in southwest corner of site)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Four months after a city hearing examiner ruled that Seattle Public Schools must address parking concerns in its plan for rebuilding and expanding Alki Elementary, the district has submitted a new plan to the city. The original plan had no offstreet parking; the new one has 15 spaces.

First, some backstory – the hearing examiner’s order was the result of an appeal filed by nearby residents challenging the original city Department of Construction and Inspections (SDCI) decision last May to grant zoning exceptions (“departures”) for the project, including building it with no offstreet parking. The appeals were either dismissed or settled, except for the parking issue; the district was ordered to “revisit” it. SPS instead chose to go to court to challenge the ruling; after a hearing October 20th, a judge dismissed that challenge (on a technical point, not on its merits), leaving the district no option but to come up with a project revision. Now it’s done that.

One point of contention for the nearby residents’ appeal had been the parking study done for the original plan by Heffron Transportation, during a time period when both the pandemic and the West Seattle Bridge closure were factors. The firm has done a new study (see it here), looking at neighborhood parking this past August and September, and also looking at parking at and near the former Schmitz Park Elementary, to which Alki Elementary has moved until its new building is ready. The new parking study has findings similar to the previous one, contending that school-related needs still wouldn’t max out the available street parking near Alki Elementary. The new study also says they found Schmitz Park’s 47-space lot a little more than half-utilized.

All this, and the new plan, is summarized in a memo to SDCI (see it here) by project architect Rebecca Hutchinson of Mahlum Architects. Here’s how she explains what they did to come up with the 15 spaces:

… the design team was able to remove the loading platform and a dedicated driveway and staging area for SPS delivery trucks and garbage pickup. The design team also relocated the proposed transformer further away from the school building, which adds a greater cost than the original design. The design team then removed some storage space from the school and reconfigured the long-term bike parking structure (while still retaining the same number of long-term bike parking stalls). Finally, the design team removed the dedicated pedestrian path at the south edge of the site. This redesign sacrificed those elements that are desired for the functioning of the school, such as better loading, storage, and separated pedestrian path, and left only those architectural elements that were necessary to meet educational goals.

The result is that SPS was able to redesign the school to accommodate 15 parking stalls, including one ADA van stall. Depending on the needs of the student and staff population at the time the school reopens, it is possible that SPS can include one additional ADA stall and/or a time-limited load or unload zone. Now that the ADA stall can be included on the school site, the previously proposed on-street ADA stall across the street has been removed, which will result in retaining one additional on-street parking stall.

The architect’s memo also details why that’s the most they could do in terms of parking (if the project was built to code, 48 spaces would be required). A parking garage wasn’t an option, either above or below ground, Hutchinson wrote, for factors from height to water table to “(it) would increase the potential for uninvited persons to utilize the parking structure for a multitude of nefarious reasons.” She also wrote that a parking garage would likely add at least $10 million to the project price tag.

Another option examined: Condemning/buying adjacent residential property. They looked at a 16-unit apartment building south of the school and two single-family homes east of the school; neither seemed feasible or desirable for using that way, nor would either site enable the code-compliant number of spaces, the architect wrote.

In one last bit of case-making, the memo notes that seven SPS elementaries have no parking (none in West Seattle), 12 have fewer than 15 spaces, six have 20 or fewer; the project team has pointed this out before.

WHAT’S NEXT: It’s up to SDCI to review the revised plan and decide whether to approve the new version of the zoning exception (departure) or to reject it and insist on a plan with the required 48 spaces. If SDCI approves the revised departure, it would again be subject to appeal. The old school building already has been demolished but construction permits won’t be issued until this issue is settled.

Next year’s the big one for members of the Class of 1974 = and organizers of the West Seattle High School ’74 reunion sent this to get the word out early:

The West Seattle High School class of 1974 will be holding their 50th class reunion on May 31st, 2024 from 5-9 PM at Whisky West Bar and Grill, 6451 California Ave SW. The cost is $25 per person, of which $18 will go toward your food and drink. Checks are to be made payable to and mailed to Wayne Senter, 134 Dolphin Ave NE, Ocean Shores, WA 98569. Payment can also be made through PayPal to wsenter@aol.com. The WSHS class of ‘74 has a facebook page. Any questions can be answered by committee members there or by contacting Wayne at wsenter@aol.com.

The West Seattle Preschool Fair is back! If you’re interested in exploring options for a young family member, this will be the place and time to do it – at least 14 local preschool providers are expected to be there. It’s after the holidays, but we thought a heads-up now might be helpful before the holiday season hits its crescendo so you can mark your calendar before too many distractions rush in. The West Seattle Preschool Fair is set for 5:30-7 pm Monday, January 8th, in the Menashe Gym at Hope Lutheran North (4100 SW Genesee). Hope Lutheran and Westside School (WSB sponsor) are coordinating it and are two of the participants; if you have questions before the event, you can contact Ted Holmes at Westside, tedh@westsideschool.org or 206-932-2511.

Looking ahead to the 2024-2025 school year? The Bridge School Cooperative Elementary (WSB sponsor) is having an open house tomorrow. If you haven’t already seen it in the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar, here’s the reminder:

The Bridge School Cooperative Elementary invites prospective families to an open house this Saturday, December 2 from 10 am – noon, refreshments provided. At our Open House, you’ll learn about our whole-child, hands-on approach to learning that includes multi-age small classes, an outdoor education program [photo right], and an emphasis on the arts. We have openings for students ages 5-11 for the ’24-’25 school year!

What makes The Bridge School special?
– Core teachers with over a decade of experience in the classroom and boundless passion for students
– Teaching that meets each young learner where they’re at using responsive teaching and continuum-based assessment
– Hands-on and project-based learning experiences with lots of field trips
– An emphasis on social-emotional learning
– Weekly outdoor education and arts instruction
– Prioritizing social justice while we learn and grow together as a community of teachers, caregivers, and students

Please join us this Saturday, December 2 (or on Saturday, January 6th), to meet our teachers and tour the school. Community members will be present to show you around, answer questions about the cooperative model, and share about why they chose The Bridge School for their children.

Interested in The Bridge School but unable to make it to an open house? Fill out our inquiry form and our Head of School will contact you to schedule a conversation and tour.

The Bridge School is at 10300 28th SW.

The agenda for tomorrow’s Seattle Public Schools board meeting was updated tonight with the document for superintendent Dr. Brent Jones‘s promised briefing on tackling next year’s expected budget gap – and it does NOT include a list of proposed school closures/consolidations – for now. Instead, the document says Dr. Jones is expected to present his “system of well-resourced schools” plan by May 8 of next year, and closures/consolidations for 2025-2026 might be part of it. From the presentation prepared for tomorrow’s meeting:

Here’s what might instead be used to balance next year’s budget:

Tomorrow’s meeting starts at 4:15 pm at district HQ (3rd/Lander in SODO) and also will be streamed on the SPS YouTube channel.

Larry asked for help circulating this request:

Are you a former student or co-worker of Mr. Ed Doyle from Denny Middle School?

Mr. Doyle taught band, history, media, and more from 1967-2001 at Denny Middle School, and although he hasn’t taught for over 20 years, the memories and the relationships of his years at Denny Middle School have continued to be a source of joy for him in his retirement.

Mr. Doyle turns eighty this month, and we can’t think of a better way to celebrate this milestone than honoring the career that he was so passionate about and connecting him to the students and staff that meant so much to him.

If you are a former student or co-worker of his and you would like to write a quick, kind thought or share a good memory, please sign his virtual birthday card at kudoboard.com/boards/YcBLzwj0.

Thank you so much in advance for taking a moment to participate in this surprise virtual card! And if you know of anyone, student or staff, who might like adding to this card, we would deeply appreciate you passing the link on to them.

Denny International Middle School students walked to the campus together from Westwood Village this morning in commemoration of Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day.

It’s a simple observance in honor of what Ruby herself did on this date 63 years ago – as explained on the official event website, “Six-year-old Ruby Bridges stepped into the history books in 1960 when she integrated William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans, becoming a national icon for the civil-rights movement.”

The students warmed up with hot cocoa in the Galleria after their walk. Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day continues to grow nationwide, with Denny students among the more than 343,000 who participated last year.