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Story and photos by Jason Grotelueschen
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

Next Friday (November 1), Sealth is on the road at Renton.

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10:17 AM: Update from Kersti – they’re approaching Alki Point. And they’re Southern Resident Killer Whales, from J-Pod.

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Day two of our Hallo-weekend. First, a traffic alert:

LOW BRIDGE CLOSURE CONTINUES: The West Seattle low bridge is closed to all surface traffic – bike/foot path as well as vehicle. lanes – for reinstallation of a turn cylinder, and might not reopen until late Sunday.

Next – the Hallo-weekend highlights for today/tonight, mostly from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:

DIA DE MUERTOS BRUNCH: Special weekend brunch at La Chingona Taqueria (2940 SW Avalon Way), 8 am-2 pm.

WEST SEATTLE MONSTER DASH: 9:30 am at Lincoln Park (8011 Fauntleroy Way SW) – dash in costume! Benefits West Seattle Cooperative Preschools.

HALLOWEEN MOVIES AT THE ADMIRAL: Two screenings today, 10 am and 9 pm. (2343 California SW)

ALKI BEACH TRICK OR TREATING: Noon-2 pm at businesses all along the beach – see the map here.

TRICK OR TREES: Noon-4 pm, Highland Park Corner Store (7789 Highland Park Way SW) is the epicenter of activities including free trees and a pet-costume contest.

PUMPKIN JUNCTION: Annual celebration of pumpkin beers and ciders! At The Beer Junction (4511 California SW), open noon-midnight.

WHITE CENTER TRUNK OR TREAT: 1-3 pm at 10452 15th Ave SW, the White Center Eagles are offering the day’s first round of trunk-or-treating.

BEER GARDEN TRICK-OR-TREATING: Candy, pumpkins, burgers … and for those 21+, beer. 2-6 pm. (3809 Delridge Way SW)

ADMIRAL’S HALLOWEEN BAR CRAWL: 3 pm-9 pm, starting at The Good Society (California and Lander).

HALLOWEEN CARNIVAL: At Trinity West Seattle (7751 35th SW), 3-7 pm, free family fun.

TRAIL OR TREAT: Trick-or-treat at Camp Long‘s cabins, 3:30 pm-7 pm. (5200 35th SW)

‘COME AS YOU AREN’T’ AT THE SKYLARK: Bands pretending to be other bands – the biggest night of the year at The Skylark (3803 Delridge Way SW). Doors open at 5 pm, music at 6:30, 21+. The Skylark website has the full lineup of who’s (not) who.

‘NIGHTFALL’: This haunted experience, benefiting charity, continues tonight at a West Seattle private residence, 5:30-9:30. See our calendar listing for details.

TRUNK OR TREAT AT HOPE NORTH: Hope Lutheran School welcomes families to come see the decorated trunks while trick-or-treating in the Hope North parking Kot (4100 SW Genesee), 6:30-8 p.

MEEDS MANOR HAUNTED HOUSE: One of West Seattle’s most-famous haunted houses is open for the second of three nights tonight, at 3011 45th SW, accepting donations for youth basketball. 7-9 pm.

RADIO ENTHUSIASTS OF PUGET SOUND’S SPOOKTACULAR: 7:30 pm at Kenyon Hall – “The Radio Enthusiasts of Puget Sound (REPS) are celebrating Halloween by recreating spine-tingling radio dramas from the golden age of radio. The REPS actors, featuring Larry Albert of Imagination Theatre, will be joined by Sawyer Best on the mighty Wurlitzer organ and Bruce Johnson and Alice Watson, creating live sound effects.” Ticket info in our calendar listing.

OUT AT THE BOX, HALLOWEEN EDITION: Drag show with costume contest, 9:30 pm at Box Bar (5401 California SW), 21+, no cover.

(Friday sunset, photographed by Tom Trulin)

And everything else that’s up:

SATURDAY GROUP RUN: Meet at West Seattle Runner (2743 California SW; WSB sponsor) at 8 am for the regular Saturday morning run.

HEAVILY MEDITATED: 9 am at Move2Center (3618 SW Alaska), free community meditation – RSVP here.

VACCINATION CLINIC: School clinic, but community’s welcome too – flu and COVID shots available, 9 am-3 pm at Madison Middle School (3429 45th SW).

DELRIDGE FARMERS’ MARKET: West Seattle has TWO farmers’ markets – and today is your last chance of the year to shop at this one! Start your market shopping with this one – your weekly Saturday opportunity to go get fresh food from growers and makers – 10 am-2 pm, the market’s fourth season offers produce, plants, condiments, prepared food, more, plus free food for those in need! (9421 18th SW; WSB sponsor)

DRUG TAKE-BACK DAY: Take your no-longer-needed or expired prescription drugs to the Southwest Precinct (2300 SW Webster) for no-questions-asked dropoff, 10 am-2 pm.

BEGINNER OLYMPIC AIRGUN DAY: Visit the Roger Dahl Rifle Range beneath West Seattle Stadium and try out this sport. 10 am-2 pm. (4432 35th SW)

WALKING FOR WELL-BEING: You’re invited to join others taking a walk in Lincoln Park (meet at 47th/Fauntleroy), 10 am.

COMMUNITY CUP SHOWCASE: Rat City Studios and Rain City Clay‘s annual show at Dubsea Coffee continues – shop’s open for viewing, and beverages!, until 2 pm. (9910 8th SW)

SSC GARDEN CENTER: Gardening season is year-round! Student-grown plants await you at the north end of the South Seattle College (6000 16th SW; WSB sponsor) campus, 10 am-3 pm.

FREE WRITING GROUP: 10:30 am – “This is a free, weekly, in-person active writing group grounded in the Amherst Writers and Artists method. It is a safe, critique-free space. Writers of all levels welcome, 16 and up.” Our calendar listing has location and RSVP info.

MORNING MUSIC: 10:30 am-noon at C & P Coffee (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor), Marco de Carvalho and Friends perform. Info about Marco’s music is here.

GET YOUR FLEE BAG IN 45 MINUTES: Preparedness has never been so fun and fast. Join Alice Kuder from Just in Case for this free 45-minute session at 11 am.

Alice will also reveal the two most important steps you can take to be ready for “the big one” or any other natural disaster, plus more essential tips for safeguarding your home and loved ones. Small group and time for Q & A. Register at bit.ly/49cAGNM or by email: Alice@JustInCasePlans.com

This will be at West Seattle Coworking (9030 35th SW).

FAMILY READING TIME: Every Saturday at 11 am at Paper Boat Booksellers (6040 California SW).

POSTCARDS 4 DEMOCRACY: Last bonus Saturday session of long-distance get-out-the-vote advocacy, noon-2 pm at C & P Coffee (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor).

LOG HOUSE MUSEUM OPEN: The home of West Seattle history is open for your visit, noon-4 pm – see the new West Duwamish Greenbelt exhibit! (61st/Stevens)

VIETNAMESE CULTURAL CENTER OPEN: The center is also open to visitors noon-3 pm, as explained here. (2236 SW Orchard)

VISCON CELLARS TASTING ROOM/WINE BAR: Tasting room open – wine by the glass or bottle – 1-6 pm at Viscon Cellars (5910 California SW; WSB sponsor).

SOUL SISTERS SONG CIRCLE: Meets monthly, 1-3 pm. Lift your voice in songs and chants. Register to get the address.

\NORTHWEST WINE ACADEMY TASTING ROOM/WINE BAR: The tasting room/wine bar is open 1-6 pm with student-produced wines and “affordable eats” at the north end of the South Seattle College (6000 16th SW; WSB sponsor) campus.

ALL-AGES OPEN MIC: 7-10 pm at The Spot West Seattle (2920 SW Avalon Way)

REVELRY ROOM DJ: 9 pm, DJ Almond Brown. (4547 California SW)

JARAY’S DJ: 9 pm, DJ Buzsy at Jaray’s Lounge (2216 SW Orchard).

KARAOKE AT TALARICO’S: Saturday singing at Talarico’s Pizzeria (4718 California SW), starting at 10 pm.

West Seattle event coming up? If the community’s welcome, your event is welcome to a spot on our calendar! Please email info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!

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By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Building the new Fauntleroy ferry dock/terminal could take up to four years.

That’s part of what the project’s Community Advisory Group learned during an online meeting Wednesday night.

The time frame depends on what alternative is chosen for the new dock – Washington State Ferries is on the verge of deciding on an alternative to carry forward into environmental review. “We’re getting to the end of the PEL (planning and environmental linkages) study process.”

WSF’s David Sowers started the meeting by revisiting the Good to Go! tolling/advance-ticketing study, a focus of the CAG’s previous meeting last month.

Group member Judy Pickens asked about costs. Sowers said it’s in the report – they had options from $5 million to $20 million for using Good To Go! He said it’s effective in its full implementation but only saving a few minutes in “dwell time. … That for us was not enough to .. (pursue) significant policy changes” that it would take, “not something we could implement any time soon.” He added that the cost of operating and maintaining the system is sizable too – “some capital upfront costs … if money were no constraint, it might be a lot more doable, but the benefit we saw” (wasn’t enough to suggest they pursue the costly option).”

WSF’s Hadley Rodero reminded everyone that they had decided to carry a partial implementation of Good To Go! into the level 3 screening, as well as Wave To Go advanced ticketing with a “similar-sized” dock. (All the dock sizes being screened are bigger than the current one.) So all vehicles will continue to go through toll booths.

Another group member, Mardi Clements, said she was glad that there’d be some time saved, so everyone would benefit.

Next, Sowers focused on the factors that would have to be considered for construction. WSF will continue some level of service during construction – the dock won’t be completely out of commission. Sowers said they’d been asked by a King County Water Taxi rep if passenger-only service would be an option. Site constraints include “a narrow piece of land on which to operate.” Permitting requirements will include addressing noise, dealing with staging areas. “We know construction is disruptive – it’s impactful, sometimes stressful, but will lead us to a product we’ll all be happy with.”

Construction criteria are spelled out here:

Regarding maintaining some level of service, they may consider building a temporary slip as well as looking at ways to move passengers. Sowers said they’d also recently hired consultants to look at the Triangle Route schedule – reviewing it for the current time as well as construction.

He handed off to Ed Thomas, project engineering lead, who got further into construction details. He said they’re still trying to identify construction staging and office areas.

In the first stage, they’d use the existing dock. Then for 15-18 months, traffic would move to the temporary slip. Phase 2B, another move, then Phase 3, the temporary dock/slip would be removed and the new dock would move.

They chose the A alternatives for the graphics but that does not mean other options have been ruled out, Thomas clarified in response to a question. In response to another one, WSF acknowledged that some of the offshore components will be replaced as part of the project.

Group member Anne Higuera said she’s “excited to see this” and asked questions – starting with, have they consulted any contractors yet? Sowers said no, but there are a lot of people on staff with experience enough to know these plans are promising. Would materials come in and go out through West Seattle or be barged in? Both, said Sowers – a fair amount of suppliers are on the Duwamish River, for example. It’s a large-enough project that “most of the work is going to be done from the water,” he said. Higuera wondered if the temporary dock should perhaps be built elsewhere on the West Seattle peninsula. No, said Sowers – “building it in a completely different location” would require another level of permitting, among other things. He said they acknowledge building the temporary dock and demolishing it will be costly, but there’s no way around it.

Is there an estimated start date? Sowers was asked. No – could be as early as 2027-2028, “regardless of the option” chosen, he said. And yes, he replied to a question, they have to work around fish windows (times when in-water construction is not permitted because of fish-related considerations).

How much holding will there be on the temporary dock? “Less than 84 cars, so there will be additional traffic that queues on Fauntleroy Way, Sowers said. Thomas said it could range from 18 to 40 vehicles on the dock, depending on how the loading/offloading phase works during construction. So it’s a small temporary structure, Clements said. Yes, Thomas confirmed, it would be pretty much the same between all the alternatives.

The estimated durations are based on all the permit requirements and noise/work hours rules, Thomas said. Pickens asked, so anything affecting the creek flow would be limited to three months of the year? Yes, said Thomas.

Group member Justin Hirsch said he’s glad to see the temporary slip idea – the concept of rerouting downtown just wouldn’t work. But he’s worried that potentially three years of traffic backups on Fauntleroy is daunting, so traffic would need active management. “Sometimes Fauntleroy Way SW looks like a Mad Max movie and it’s going to look even more like that.”

WSF’s Hadley Rodero stressed that planning for schedules and traffic flow will be vital, including how they communicate it to the community.

Thomas said there’ll be a 15-foot-wide clear zone on both sides of the dock, north and south.

For construction duration – depending on the alternative chosen, anywhere from 33 to 48 months. And that’s just the “physical construction activities,” Thomas said.

Sowers then picked up the topic of “construction-delivery method.” They intend to use “design-build” – a single contractor who will design and build the project – as opposed to design-bid-build. “This is more of a ‘best value’ approach to project delivery,” Sowers said, adding that it helps the state manage risk, via one contractor being accountable for so much of it. He said it also means the project can be built faster – maybe they’ll come up with a better way to phase it. (And yes, they’ll have incentives for finishing earlier.) “I want to dispel any myths that the design-builder is going to do whatever they want” – they still have to live up to terms of the contract, Sowers said.

Group member David McDaniel hoped they’d be reviewing a “rough draft” sooner rather than later.” Sowers agreed. He said they’d like to build it faster, but the current estimates are in a three- to four-year timeframe.

In other discussion, Sowers said WSF has a lot of leeway about what they can put into the request for bids – if they wanted the building to be sided in cedar, for example, they could specify that. There’ll also be more community engagement as they move further into the planning purpose. They’ll also have to decide if the CAG will go forward in its current configuration.

As the meeting moved toward the hour and a quarter mark, it was pointed out that WSF had just sent an alert about possible reduced service to Vashon tomorrow morning – “we have to make sure that doesn’t happen during construction,” WSF was told.

Yes, Cove Park north of the dock will be affected, temporarily, Thomas acknowledged in response to another comment. But, CAG member Frank Immel pressed, will it be closed? No, that’s not the intention, Thomas said. Immel and Clements said that the project should take the space it needs – “we as a community have lived without that (access) before,” like during the pump-station project last decade. Speaking of Cove Park, WSF is still working to acquire the “little white house” property north of the park and is in negotiations with King County, said WSF’s Charles Torres. They’re keeping the tenants apprised. They’d use the site for staging and break-room space for starters, with the intersection project starting as soon as next year. Then they’d use it for construction administration during that project, and find a way to occupy it during the interval before terminal construction begins.

Other discussion included logistics and aspects of the intersection project, which will signalize the intersection. Nearby residents along Upper Fauntleroy Way will be taken into consideration as the signal is built, the group was assured. WSF’s Mark Bandy said the signal height should not lead to major effects for nearby residents.

Here’s what happens next – the last steps before choosing a preferred alternative for the new dock’s size and shape:

No date yet for the next meeting – you can watch this page.

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The 73-year-old man arrested on Thursday after gunfire at Camp Second Chance, the tiny-house village on Myers Way, remains in jail tonight. Seattle Police have released more information on the incident. They describe the suspect as a convicted felon, which is why he faces a potential charge of unlawful firearm possession. The initial report that brought them to the scene was a report that he was shooting from his unit toward “the common areas,” and then when an employee checked on him, he “shot another two rounds through the door.” Neither the employee nor anyone else was hurt, but police say the suspect fired more rounds even after their arrival. Hostage Negotiation Team officers arrived and convinced him to surrender after almost two hours. Police say they found the gun and “ballistic evidence” after getting a search warrant. Next step is to see whether charges are rush-filed by early next week. His name is fairly common, so it’s hard to tell from court records what he had a prior conviction for; the newest case against someone with that name was in 2000.

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From the bottom of Charlestown Hill come tonight’s spotlight decorations – J sent the photos:

We are at the corner of SW Charlestown and 48th are again excited for this Thursday. Weather permitted, we intend to flood the streets with fog again and have a spookier-than-ever trick or treat night!

That’s a reminder, the spookiest night of the year is now just six nights away. But we’re still accepting decoration pics – westseattleblog@gmail.com; go here to scroll through what we’ve already shown!

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4:26 PM: The first big event of Hallo-weekend 2024 is happening now – from north to south throughout Admiral, businesses are welcoming costumed visitors with candy galore. The Admiral Neighborhood Association is coordinating this year’s candyfest, and it’s sweet. More pics later – and send us yours! westseattleblog@gmail.com is the best way to reach us. This is one of a half-dozen-plus trick-or-treat events (listed here) around the peninsula this year.

ADDED 5:22 PM: The scene above is from Admiral Theater, where they were handing out kid-size bags of popcorn as well as candy – and it was going out as fast as they could set it out! Around the area, it was a trick-or-treat traffic jam:

Tiny trick-or-treaters, too:

You still have time to go join the fun – till 7 pm.

Don’t forget to wander far and wide – toward West Seattle Grounds and Mioposto (WSB sponsor) in the north, and Little Donkey in the south.

8:23 PM: Thanks to Scott at Seattle Dive Tours for this photo:

And a couple pics from the ANA crew in North Admiral:

The Admiral District’s next Hallo-weekend events are tomorrow – Halloween movie screenings and a bar crawl!

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Thanks to West Seattle photographer Holli Margell for the photos of the new mural wrapping around the Center for Active Living in The Junction. She says she happened to find out that muralist Brady Black was wrapping up his work while she was in the area on Thursday.

Holli notes, “Fun note is that all of the people in black and white on the mural are referenced from photos of members and employees of The Center.”

You can compare it here to the concept the artist showed off during the center’s August open house.

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By Jason Grotelueschen
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

The Alki Community Council gathered last week for their October meeting, to talk about upcoming events and neighborhood concerns, with a visit from Seattle City Attorney Ann Davison.

The meeting was held in “hybrid” format, with attendees in-person at Alki UCC as well as online via Zoom, and was facilitated by president Charlotte Starck:

Starck credited Kevin Kramer (the group’s new Board Chair of Operations) with facilitating the technology for the hybrid meeting, to make things run smoothly.  Starck thanked attendees for being there, noting the mix of neighbors, group leaders, business owners, city staff, and law enforcement (including two SPD community-service officers who were there in-person). 

SPD Officer German Barreto from the Southwest Precinct provided an update via Zoom. He said that for the Alki area, looking at the past month compared to 2023, there has been an increase in sexual assault reports, but everything else (including thefts) is down. He noted the previously reported drive-by shootings on Alki on July 29th, September 6th and 14th, as well as an earlier incident on the 2100 block of Harbor SW. He said it was good news that detectives were able to thoroughly investigate where appropriate. He reminded attendees that the precinct has a new leader, in Captain Krista Bair (who took the position in June). An attendee asked about the “boundaries” related to the crime stats, and how much of West Seattle is included in those. Baretto confirmed that for the stats he cites in each community group meeting he attends, he tries to use data relevant to that specific area of town — in the case of the Alki group, it’s basically the 98116 zip code.

SW Precinct Operations Lt. Nathan Shopay (also attending online) said that for the upcoming weekend, they would be conducting “an experiment” in which dedicated officers would be patrolling the Alki/Harbor area specifically during the “hot time” (9 pm and later) and “won’t be pulled off Alki to go anywhere else.”  He said that the precinct with gather data and findings from the experiment to help inform future patrol assignments. Several meeting attendees thanked Shopay for this, and one noted that “I walk on Alki multiple times a day, and have noticed an increased law enforcement presence every day. I really appreciate it!”

Next up were remarks from Seattle City Attorney Ann Davison, who attended in-person, and is in the third year of her term:

She had talked to the Alki group just over a year ago, and referenced that visit several times during her remarks (she had to cancel a follow-up visit in May 2024), and thanked attendees for being there and for getting involved. She said that it’s important for civic leaders to “be knowledgeable on a local level, where the rubber meets the road” and that the strives to “make myself accessible and take the ‘front desk’ on the road.”

Davison said she has a staff of more than 100 and is the only elected city attorney in Washington (most others in the state and across the country are appointed to their positions). She said that she takes that responsibility seriously as an elected official and an independent prosecutor. 

From the “civil side,” she cited her efforts in suing the carmakers as part of ongoing issues with Kia/Hyundai vehicles being easy targets for theft because the manufacturers “knowingly sold vehicles” that were prone to theft, thus “promoting criminal activity.” She said she was the first in the country to file suit, and now 16 other government entities across the US have joined in. “We want manufacturers to recall the cars and put in anti-theft technology,” she said, noting that such requirements were already being met in Canada and Europe but the carmakers declined to do it here. She said the suit is a “strategic move to help law enforcement partners, who are already too busy” and that customers have been losing their car insurance and a whole host of other problems. 

She also noted her office’s work with the $160mm Monsanto settlement announced in July, the highest for any municipality in the country, as being a major win for public health and the community. She also cited her work as part of an amicus brief for the Grants Pass v Johnson case dealing with urban homelessness, saying that she wants to “let local policy makers make their choices” for these difficult issues. 

From the “public safety side,” Davison said her office has made huge progress dealing with the backlog of roughly 5,000 criminal cases that she faced when taking the job three years ago. She said her office’s goal is to close new cases within five business days, and they’re currently at seven days “and should meet the goal within a week or two” — and that they’re “staying on top of things.”

She said that she’s a big advocate of “data transparency” and providing the public with lots of information. “It’s cutting edge,” she said, “and not what most prosecutors want to do.” She said this is crucial to help her and other leaders make informed decisions — “we don’t want it to be anecdotal” — and that everything gets published to her office’s website including annual and quarterly reports. 

Davison cited her partnership with the Seattle City Council in last month’s 8-1 council approval of the creation of Stay Out of Drug Areas (SODA) areas, targeting drug-related criminal activity in key areas (such as parts of Belltown and the International District) and authorizing courts to prohibit someone from entering those areas if they commit a drug-related criminal offense in those zones. She said that she lives in the north end and has had hard conversations with her kids while driving through areas like north Aurora Ave. “Public areas need to be protected; the anti-drug zones should help,” she said, noting that October 23 (one month after passage) would be the effective date for the new law. After it goes into effect, “I’ll see what the referrals are like. I’m the second leg of the process; SPD is first, then I get referral and can act accordingly.”

Davison closed her remarks by saying she’s lived in the city since 1996, when she first started working for the Seattle Supersonics basketball team “the year we went to the NBA Finals!” and is proud to have gotten involved with public service. “I never thought I’d be doing this kind of work,” she said, but that she’s been drawn to taking action on behalf of the community, and doing her part. 

Some Q&A from attendees:

• Q: How about the legality of city surveillance video being used in cases? Davison: I’m not the decision maker; as a lawyer if it’s challenged then our lawyers would defend it.
• Q:  Regarding State Senate Bill 5444 (prohibiting firearms in certain areas), the bill didn’t include parks and playgrounds. Will your office seek to amend the bill to include them?  Davison: I would support that, but would only get involved if my office gets involved. I’m not totally familiar with the specifics of the bill, but my office can follow up if contacted. I’m very aware of the disparity in penalties (364 days for a gross misdemeanor, 90 days for misdemeanor).
• Q: What about jail capacity? We’ve reported things in the past but officers told us they couldn’t book for most crimes, meaning that officers would try to take them to jail and nothing would happen, leaving me and public saying “why should we call?”  Davison: As SPD has said, we definitely need you to continue calling 911 so they have that data to help inform staff levels.  Booking restrictions are getting lifted (as announced last month) and when officers have probable cause for arrest then they should be able to book them.  My office believes they shouldn’t have those restrictions.  
• Q: Does your office deal with financial crimes like wire fraud?  Davison: No, my office doesn’t. 
• Comment from neighbor Barb Richter regarding the Alki Point Healthy Street revision that was installed last June:  We’ve been happy with this, it’s resulted in a 76% reduction of 911 calls. Great example of city working with community to reduce crime in the area.  Davison: I’m very glad to hear that, but can’t really take credit. Anne I can only take small credit. It’s nice to hear these things. I recently attended an event with builders and realtors, and they say it’s a different sense right now because everyone is working together, unlike some years prior. My approach when we need to get something done is to ask “are you a problem solver” and to gravitate toward those people. 
• Q: What about jail time and enforcement of home monitoring, instead of giving constant reprieves to offenders?  Davison: My prosecutors make recommendations. I’m the first woman to hold this office (of the 10 people who have held it), I take domestic violence very seriously, if you’re a kid exposed to violence at home, then you’re much more likely to commit those crimes. My office’s role is to make recommendations to the judge, if the judge isn’t convinced then we can’t force them, but we certainly do what we can.

Davison thanked attendees for coming and departed for another commitment, and the group took a break for some raffles. Then, group vice president Lindsey Pearsall (attending via Zoom) talked with the group about a new idea that came out of discussions with the Alki Elementary PTA, regarding the creation of a partnership to display student artwork in local businesses. Such a program existed years ago, and they’d like to bring it back, ideally by the beginning of 2025. Attendees agreed that this was a great idea and they were “all in,” and Lindsey encouraged anyone interested in helping to contact her at lindsey@alkicommunitycouncil.org. 

Next, board member Robyn Fritz (the board’s Chair of Parks) encouraged attendees to do what they can to help Seattle Parks staff to keep the area beautiful and safe. She said she has lived on Alki since 1987, and is out every day walking her dog. She plans to create and manage an online list of projects (such as broken park benches, areas of overgrown or unhealthy greenery, etc) that people can contribute to, and she’ll take the lead on working with Parks staff to get things done. She encouraged neighbors to ask themselves: “What do we need to do to make Alki even better than it is?”

Attendee Steve Pumphrey, who is an organizer of an Alki/Harbor neighborhood group (focused on the three blocks around Don Armeni and Duwamish Head), then talked about safety issues relevant to that area. He said he lives across from the diagonal parking and boat launch, in the apartments on Harbor Ave. He said the area is a popular place for groups to meet and then go to Alki Beach and back. He said that his group was pleased to recently get a group from the city to come out and walk the area, and that the group included SPD leaders and someone from mayor’s office. He said they walked between the parking lot area and the boat launch, and talked about the problems, and were able to show the broken glass and tire-burn marks, and that he expects a status report from the group soon. Pumphrey encouraged attendees to attend the budget meeting on Nov 12^th at 5pm at the council offices city hall, at which Councilmember Rob Saka will propose speed-activated cameras and a study for addressing diagonal parking. “We need a big crowd to testify in favor of these things,” Pumphrey said.  He added that typically the signups open at 4pm and then the meeting starts at 5pm.  Robin Fritz noted that big crowds were on the beach recently for the northern lights, walking around, and Pumphrey said the area is always crowded but usually for no good reason. “Between 930-10pm it’s mostly people racing around; at 11pm it’s supposed to be ‘no parking’ but nobody pays attention to that.” 

The next portion of the meeting was a quick update from Sean Blackwell from the city’s CARE Department (Community Assisted Response and Engagement), who confirmed that the program plans to expand its number of Community Crisis Responders (CCRs) from 11 currently to 28 eventually, which will include an expansion into the South Precinct and into West Seattle’s Southwest Precinct in the first quarter of 2025.  He said the CCRs aim to support and complement police and fire responders, and to focus on crisis mitigation including connecting people to necessary services. 

The group then highlighted two upcoming events:

• Saturday Oct 26^th  Alki Beach trick-or-treating, from noon-2pm. This spans the business district along the beach, from 57th to 63rd. Info is online at alkitrickortreat.com. The Alki council will have booths near Ampersand Coffee with coffee and donuts.
• Saturday Nov 23^rd Alki Holiday Lights from 7-9pm (along with the Argosy Christmas Ships visit).  During the meeting, group member Stacy Bass-Walden (co-founder of Alki Pride, which just celebrated its 10th year) and other members turned off the overhead room lights and gave a preview of festive holiday lights, reminding everyone that the Christmas Ships visit is very early in the season this year (just one month from now! The ships will be at Don Armeni on Sat Nov 23rd from 5:35-5:55pm, and at Alki from 8:35-8:55pm; full schedule here).  Bass-Walden said that they want to bring back some of the “shore festivities” that accompanied the ships’ visits in past years, which have waned recently.  They’re getting local business involved and want to have cocoa and fun activities. This is a “trial event” to help set the stage for future years, and they plan to have a booth with a survey to gather feedback about what residents would want to have in future years — “we want to ‘glow-up’ Alki!” they said.  

Have you been impacted by power outages in West Seattle in recent years? If so, group member Wyatt Carlock wants to hear from you, he is a design intern for a startup called PwrOn whose mission is to improve residents’ experiences during power outages (particularly for refrigeration and internet service). He said that areas like Alki are susceptible to this.  If you’re interested in getting involved and sharing your experiences, contact him at: wyattcarlock@gmail.com.  

As the meeting came to an end, members noted that their annual election of officers will occur in next month’s meeting, and they’ll need to identify candidates and renew memberships. They’ll be doing their budget as well (yes, the group is a 5013c), and they’ve been talking with other neighborhood groups like Fauntleroy to get ideas. 

The Alki Community Council can be contacted at hello@alkicommunitycouncil.org. The group meets on the third Thursday of each month, with upcoming meetings as follows:

• Thu Nov 21 at 7pm – hybrid format, Zoom and onsite at Alki UCC
• December – No member meeting

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RUNAWAY TRAILER: Mike is hoping you know whose trailer hit his car:

At 9:50 a.m. a truck with construction utility trailer driving southbound on 38th Ave SW between Juneau and Raymond hit a speed bump and the trailer disconnected from the truck which then crashed into a vehicle parked on the street. The damage is considerable. The contents of the trailer consisted of drywall and mint green painted wood which is clearly from a remodel project in the area. Are you or a neighbor doing construction? A policy report has been filed and the trailer impounded. There are no plates on the trailer and there is an investigation to locate the contractor.

Police report # is 24-302885.

ABANDONED-LIKELY-STOLEN CAR: Coleman spotted this Honda Accord:

Looks like someone dumped a car around the corner from my house on Holden and 32nd.

Plate is CKU9733, and there’s internal damage further suggesting it was stolen.

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Congrats to the Girls X-Country Team for winning the 2A Metro Championship this week at Lower Woodland.

Federica Dilley is your 2A Individual Metro Champ with a time of 19:11 in the 5K. That is the best time in recorded Sealth history.

And tomorrow morning, the cross-country program is cleaning up the campus and neighborhoods to raise money from the program, 9 am-noon Saturday, in partnership with A Cleaner Alki – here are the details, including how to contribute:

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Hallo-weekend begins! The first major trick-or-treat event on the peninsula is part of what’s happening in West Seattle and vicinity for the rest of today/tonight, mostly from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar (go there any time to look into the future), First, the Halloween/fall events:

PUMPKIN JUNCTION: Annual celebration of pumpkin beers and ciders! At The Beer Junction (4511 California SW), open noon-midnight.

ADMIRAL DISTRICT TRICK-OR-TREATING: Coordinated by the Admiral Neighborhood Association, with participants from North Admiral to South Admiral, 4-7 p.

‘NIGHTFALL’: This haunted experience, benefiting charity, continues tonight at a West Seattle private residence, 5:30-9:30. See our calendar listing for details.

BENEFIT MOVIE: The West Seattle High School Key Club is raising money for UNICEF by showing “Hocus Pocus” tonight at 6:30 pm – get a discount if you show up in costume! (3000 California SW) **CASH ONLY**

MEEDS MANOR HAUNTED HOUSE: One of West Seattle’s most-famous haunted houses is open for the first of three nights tonight, at 3011 45th SW, accepting donations for youth basketball. 7-9 pm.

WEST END GHOULS: West Seattle’s monthly drag extravaganza is for tonight a drag spooktacular! Doors at 7 pm at The Skylark (3803 Delridge Way SW).

Now, everything else that’s up:

PET FOOD DONATION DRIVE: Another reminder that you can still donate at All The Best Pet Care (4722 Fauntleroy Way SW; WSB sponsor), as announced earlier this month – open until 7:30 pm tonight.

INDOOR PLAY: Need an indoor place for your little one to play? 10 am-11:30 am, you’re welcome to “Stay ‘n’ Play” at Arbor Heights Community Church (4113 SW 102nd).

SOUTHWEST ARTIST SHOWCASE: Visit the Southwest Library (9010 35th SW) to see the art in this year’s Southwest Artist Showcase. The library is open today 10 am-6 pm.

SSC GARDEN CENTER: As we get further into fall, season-appropriate plants await you at the north end of the South Seattle College (6000 16th SW; WSB sponsor) campus, 10 am-3 pm.

LOG HOUSE MUSEUM: Visit the home of West Seattle’s history, noon-4 pm. (61st SW & SW Stevens)

NORTHWEST WINE ACADEMY TASTING ROOM: 1-6 pm, open in the north lot of South Seattle College (6000 16th SW; WSB sponsor).

VISCON CELLARS: Season’s just right for this cozy tasting room/wine bar, open for wine by the glass or bottle – 5-9 pm – at Viscon Cellars (5910 California SW; WSB sponsor).

SUMMIT ATLAS FUNDRAISER AT KENYON HALL: 6:30 pm “End of Eras“ fundraiser for Summit Atlas at Kenyon Hall (7904 35th SW).

COMEDY AT THE COFFEEHOUSE: 7-9 pm, steel guitarist Fraser Havens at C & P Coffee (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor).

THE BUG CLUB: Live at Easy Street Records (4559 California SW), 7 pm, free, all ages.

AT THE SPOT: Fridays are Live Artist Showcase nights at The Spot West Seattle (2920 SW Avalon Way), 7-10 pm.

FOOTBALL: One local team plays tonight at Nino Cantu Southwest Athletic Complex (2801 SW Thistle) – Metro 2A champs Chief Sealth IHS vs. Lincoln at 7:30 pm.

BENEFIT SCREENING: “Call Me Dancer” at Chief Sealth International High School (2600 SW Thistle), to benefit the theater program as well as West Seattle Performing Arts. Ticket info in our calendar listing.

MAKE IT LOUD: Tonight’s music at Southgate Roller Rink is: The Brittany Davis Group with special guests Lil Lebowski. 9 pm doors, $30 cover at the door, $5 skates, 21+. (9646 17th SW)

REVELRY ROOM DJ: 9 pm, DJ Epop tonight! (4547 California SW)

JARAY’S DJ: 9 pm, DJ Buzsy at Jaray’s Lounge (2216 SW Orchard).

Are we missing anything? If you have something else to add to our event lists and calendar, please email info to westseattleblog@gmail.com – thank you!

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