West Seattle, Washington
18 Monday
(Kate, mom Denise, and son Alex, an Alki Elementary student, atop the Columbia Tower last winter)
One local woman out running today is on a quest – you may already have seen Kate Calamatta out along the Alki Trail if she kept to her original plan:
I’m a West Seattle resident originally from the UK. In March this year my Mum had a very serious road traffic accident in the South of England. I was running along Alki when I got the news. 24 hours later I was by her bedside at Southampton Neuro ICU in the UK. She was in a bad way and it was touch and go for the first few week. After nearly two weeks she began to awake from her coma and begin her long journey of rehabilitation. Now she’s in a specialist unit for traumatic brain injury. Progress is being made but it is a slow and hard fight. There’s no doubting she will be impaired for life.
After the accident my Mum was airlifted by Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance to Southampton. Had this service not been available there’s no way she would have survived. The Air Ambulance is a charity and not funded by the UK govt.
I have been running for only 8 months and after Mum’s accident I decided to do something substantial to raise money for the people who saved her life. So, (today) I will be running a half marathon that will begin at Queen Anne and end at my home in West Seattle.
So, if anyone sees (or saw) me, a hunkered down, slow, exhausted looking runner, jogging along Alki, please give me a cheer and some positive vibes! I’ll be easily recognizable by my slow pace, red face, black leggings, grey vest and a black headband! Also, if anyone is moved to do so, please look at my fundraising page:
I know this is a foreign charity for most of the people in WS but it is a very worthwhile cause that makes a real difference.
Just in case you were wondering – after a breakdown yesterday, the Highland Park Spraypark is back up and running today, in time for what’s expected to be an even hotter afternoon/evening than yesterday. We just went over to check firsthand, and that’s what we found. (We won’t be able to find out from Seattle Parks what caused yesterday’s problem until tomorrow.)
(Low-tide photos by Jamie Kinney)
Good morning – here’s what you need to know for your West Seattle Sunday:
TRAFFIC ALERTS: This morning, SDOT is scheduled to continue installing the new “zone” signs to help emergency crews know where to find incidents on the West Seattle Bridge, and warns that could cause “rolling slowdowns.” Then tonight, the next closure of the west end of the bridge is scheduled, 9 pm-5 am, for the ongoing Fauntleroy Expressway earthquake-safety cushion re-replacement project.
Now, from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
LOW-LOW TIDE, WITH BEACH NATURALISTS: 10 am-2 pm, Seattle Aquarium beach naturalists are out again at Constellation Park and Lincoln Park.
Go explore the shore – carefully! – during this low-low tide, all the way out to -3.2 feet at 11:39 am.
WEST SEATTLE FARMERS’ MARKET: 10 am-2 pm in The Junction. Special feature today – 11 am-12:30 am, demonstration by Britt’s Pickles on making pickles and Moroccan carrots. (California SW between SW Alaska and SW Oregon)
FURRY FACES FOUNDATION PLANT SALE: 11 am-4 pm, it’s the second day of a fabulous plant sale to help Furry Faces‘ animal-advocacy work – details in our calendar listing. (3809 46th SW)
TATTOOS TO BENEFIT BULLDOGS: Alaska Street Tattoo Parlour in The Junction is raising money today for Bulldog Haven NW – sign up for a spot starting at 11 am – cash only. (4310 SW Alaska)
CARE FOR KIDS DONATION DRIVE: As previewed here on Saturday, noon-6 pm, you can drop off donations of personal-care products to launch Care for Kids, helping local schoolkids whose families might have a tough time affording them. (1701 SW Austin)
HOOD-TO-HOOD VICTORY CELEBRATION: West Seattle fans of KEXP won the neighborhood-vs.-neighborhood fundraising competition again last year, and today’s the promised celebration, starting with a live noon-6 pm broadcast from Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, and then afterparties at other venues – see the lineup in our calendar listing. (4408 Delridge Way SW)
LOG HOUSE MUSEUM: Noon-4 pm, visit the home of West Seattle’s history. (61st SW/SW Stevens)
COLMAN POOL: Three swim sessions between noon and 7 pm on this second and final day of the second pre-season weekend for the pool on the shore at Lincoln Park – see the schedule here. (8011 Fauntleroy Way SW)
ALKI POINT LIGHTHOUSE TOURS: 1-4 pm, the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary invites you to come tour the historic lighthouse at Alki Point – be there by 3:40 pm to get access for the final tour of the day. (Alki SW/Beach Drive SW)
BABY ORCA BIRTHDAY BASH: 2-5 pm at the Alki Bathhouse, it’s a celebration of the calves born to the Southern Resident Killer Whales, with fun and education for all ages – free! Details in our preview. (61st SW/Alki SW)
SEATTLE METROPOLITAN SINGERS: Catch them in concert at 3 pm at St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church. (3050 California SW)
BRIAN BUTLER: “Modern and original songs” plus “classic blues” at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor), 3-5 pm. (5612 California SW)
MORE! on our complete calendar.
(Added 4:59 am: Photo sent by neighbor)
FIRST REPORT, 4:09 AM: A full Seattle Fire Department response is starting to arrive at an address near 35th and Myrtle, and reporting that they see flames. They’re blocking all lanes of 35th at the scene.
(WSB photo)
4:16 AM: The fire is described as tapped/”knocked down” but there’s some concern about wires.
4:27 AM: Our crew is on scene and reports that while the address on the 911 log is that of Our Lady of Guadalupe, this fire was in a shed detached structure behind the house on 35th immediately *south* of the church. SFD’s investigator is on the way to try to find out what caused it. No injuries reported.
4:53 AM: SFD is still on scene mopping up. We’ll check back at the scene when it’s more fully light out.
4:59 AM: Top photo added, showing the burned structure engulfed in flames, taken by nearby resident who says, “Very thankful to neighbor who woke us up.”
5:35 AM: We just checked back at the scene. 35th SW is open again. SFD has a crew still on scene protecting against flareups, including putting more foam on a tree to which the flames were spreading before the fire was out.
In our photo, you can see the charred remains of the burned structure behind the chain-link fence. Neighbors say a car was damaged, too.
Now that June’s here, the big events are rolling in like the tide.
Two weeks from today – on Saturday, June 18th – we are proud to again be co-sponsoring the Morgan Junction Community Festival, in and around Morgan Junction Park, 10 am-5 pm. It’ll bring the first West Seattle summertime sighting of The Bubbleman, at 11:30 am; the Bark of Morgan Pooch Parade is back too, welcoming you and your canine companion(s) at 1:30 pm; and throughout the day, you’ll enjoy live music, food trucks, kids’ activities, and a treat for reading fans – a chance to meet and hear from more than a dozen local authors. We’ll be there to cover the festival live all day – hope to see you there!
Want to do a good deed before the weekend’s out? Be part of the first donation drive for a new community group called Care for Kids. Organizer Nicole Jackson explains that the goal is to make sure that kids have access to the hygiene items they need even if their families can’t afford them. Noon-6 pm tomorrow, she’s hoping for donations of the following items:
Please feel free to drop off fresh: toothpaste, deodorant, dental floss, hair care and styling products, cocoa butter lotion, Gold Bond powder, small hand sanitizers (backpack convenient) and anything else you wonderful, generous folks feel like donating.
She says the first goal is to make kits for students at Sanislo Elementary. The dropoff spot is in West Seattle, 1701 SW Austin, noon-6 pm tomorrow (Sunday).
3:58 PM: We’ve received two reader reports that Highland Park Spraypark is out of service so we’re sharing the news here before anyone else heads that way and is disappointed. We’re trying to find an after-hours number for Seattle Parks to see if we can find out whether help is on the way; we’ll check at the park shortly, too, and will update when we get word it’s working again.
5:15 PM: Not fixed yet.
SATURDAY NIGHT NOTE: We never did get word on its status before official closing time but will check as close as we can to 11 am opening time on Sunday.
(Added: WSB photos)
2:45 PM: Big police response right now in the 10th/Roxbury vicinity, where police have found “multiple shell casings” after a report of gunfire. No shooting victim(s) reported so far but a crash nearby might somehow be related.
Per the scanner, police say witnesses reported seeing at least one person shooting on the passenger side of a “black Impala,” described only as a “black male, bald, white shirt, firing out the window.”
3:05 PM: We are in the area; Roxbury is closed 9th to 12th for this investigation.
Our photographer says King County Sheriff’s Deputies (some units are Burien PD, which is part of KCSO) also are investigating; they and SPD are canvassing both sides of the street looking for witnesses.
4:05 PM: Photos added. We’re heading back over shortly to see if the street has reopened.
5:16 PM: Finally got back over to check. All clear and open.
(Added 2:29 pm: Rescue boat after arrival at Seacrest)
1:42 PM: A big Seattle Fire response to the 4800 block of Beach Drive, south of Emma Schmitz Viewpoint, has just been scaled back, but several fire units are in the area and two SFD boats are still on the way. We’re en route to find out what happened.
1:48 PM: The call has just been described (as monitored via scanner) as “two people resting on an overturned kayak.”
1:53 PM: Both people are reported to be OK, “just cold.” A rescue boat will be taking them to Seacrest to catch up with medics on shore.
1:56 PM: Our crew just arrived at the Beach Drive scene and has been told that two men were rescued and are being checked out for possible hypothermia while being taken to Don Armeni/Seacrest vicinity. Meantime, from the scanner, it sounds like boats including one from the Coast Guard are still out at midchannel between Fauntleroy and Vashon, looking for the kayak that was involved.
2:04 PM: That kayak has now been recovered and also is being taken to Seacrest/Don Armeni.
(WSB photos by Patrick Sand)
After 54 years, it’s down to three weeks before students and staff have their last classes at Schmitz Park Elementary, before moving to the new Genesee Hill Elementary, opening this fall.
Last night, hundreds of people gathered at the school to celebrate its half-century-plus history.
They included members of the extended Schmitz family, which not only donated the land on which the school was built, but has stayed involved with the school all these years:
At the event, we photographed Dietrich Schmitz, great-grandson of Ferdinand and Emma Schmitz, with wife Mary Howland Schmitz and mother Vicki Schmitz Block. Family photos and memorabilia were part of what was displayed around the school last night:
The “love (the Schmitz) family has for this community” was subsequently acknowledged by high-profile Schmitz Park alum, King County Executive Dow Constantine, speaking while holding toddler daughter Sabrina, acknowledging “fond memories of a place that did quite right by us.”
For eight years, Gerrit Kischner has led Schmitz Park as its principal:
He recalled arriving at the school in 2008, when its enrollment was 315 and it was something of a well-kept secret; it has more than doubled since then, to 650, the capacity of the new campus half a mile away.
New memories will be made from the moment that school opens on September 6th, but those from last night will linger as well. The event was organized by parent Fiona Preedy:
After speeches in the courtyard, last night’s celebration moved on to group photos – see some of them after the jump: Read More
(Alki Point, where you’ll find two of today’s calendar highlights! Photo by Long Bach Nguyen)
Good morning and welcome to the first weekend of June! Lots going on, but first:
WEATHER ALERT: Noon today through 9 pm tomorrow, the National Weather Service has a “heat advisory” in effect, so be mindful of that – stay hydrated and take extra good care of vulnerable people and pets (don’t leave them in cars!).
TRAFFIC NOTES: No West Seattle Bridge closure tonight – next one is Sunday night – but starting at midnight tonight, crews are scheduled to start installing the new “zone” signs on the bridge, and until about noon Sunday, that could mean “rolling slowdowns.”
Now, from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar for today/tonight:
ADMIRAL NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION ADOPT-A-STREET: Meet at 9 am at Metropolitan Market (WSB sponsor) to help ANA with the quarterly cleanup. Treats and a sack lunch are your reward, as well as knowing you’ve helped your community. (41st/42nd/Admiral Way)
SHOREWOOD STREETS OF GARAGE SALES: If you loved West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day last month, you’ll love Shorewood Streets of Garage Sales, just south of southwest West Seattle, 9 am-4 pm today. Here’s the map.
EMERALD WATER ANGLERS FLY FEST: The annual big-fun day with Emerald Water Anglers (WSB sponsor) happens today at Me-Kwa-Mooks Park. Here’s the updated schedule:
10 AM – Double Hauling and Dealing with Wind w/ Bill Wheeler
11 AM – Trout Spey w/ Tom Larimer
12:30 PM – EWA Guide Cookoff and Free Lunch
2 PM – Fly Fishing the Puget Sound w/ Dave McCoy
3 PM – Fly Fishing the Cascade Mountain Creeks w/ EWA Guide Staff
All free! (4503 Beach Drive SW)
BEACH CLEANUP WITH SEAL SITTERS: 10 am, meet at Alki Statue of Liberty Plaza to join the “Sentinels of the Sound” beach cleanup with Seal Sitters and the Alki Community Council. Today’s low tide means just a couple hours of helping out can have a big effect on the marine-debris problem that threatens seals and other wildlife. (61st SW/Alki SW)
LOW-LOW TIDE WITH BEACH NATURALISTS: 10 am-2 pm, volunteer Seattle Aquarium beach naturalists will be out at Constellation Park (south of Alki Point) and Lincoln Park (near Colman Pool) to help you explore safely and informatively. Today’s low-low tide bottoms out at -2.7 feet at 10:55 am.
GATEWOOD ELEMENTARY FAMILY FUN FEST: 10 am-2 pm, “FUN free community event with face painting, sidewalk chalk paint, giant bubble wands, arts and crafts, music, jump rope demonstration, and a science demonstration. You can support Gatewood’s 5th grade camp by trying your chances to win a yummy dessert at the cake walk. Express Mexican Grill food truck will there to cover all your hunger needs!” (4320 SW Myrtle)
HIGHLAND PARK SPRAYPARK: Open 11 am-8 pm today and every day until Labor Day – free, fun, and cool. West Seattle’s only spraypark. (1100 SW Cloverdale)
BENEFIT BARBECUE LUNCH: 11 am-4 pm at West Seattle Thriftway (WSB sponsor) – look for the tent and get lunch with the proceeds going to a good cause! (California/Morgan/Fauntleroy)
COLMAN POOL’S 2ND PRESEASON WEEKEND: Three swim sessions noon-7 pm at West Seattle’s only city-run outdoor pool, on the shore at Lincoln Park. See the schedule here. (8011 Fauntleroy Way SW)
ALKI LIGHTHOUSE TOURS: 1 pm-4 pm, free tours at historic Alki Point Lighthouse with the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary – be there by 3:40 pm for the final tour of the day. (Alki SW/Beach Drive SW)
WEST SEATTLE HIGH SCHOOL ALL-SCHOOL REUNION: 2-5:30 pm, it’s the biggest reunion of the year, with all WSHS alums invited to the school to catch up and celebrate another year. (3000 California SW)
LEGO MANIA! 3-5 pm at West Seattle (Admiral) Library, for ages 5-12. Free! (2306 42nd SW)
ANNIVERSARY: Help the Community Acupuncture Project of West Seattle celebrate its 7th anniversary, 3-5 pm, live music and more. (4545 44th SW)
WEST SEATTLE MEANINGFUL MOVIE: “Love Is a Verb” will be screened tonight at Neighborhood House’s High Point Center. 6:30 pm doors open, 7 pm movie; more info in our calendar listing. (6400 Sylvan Way)
AT C & P: 7 pm, Dog House Prayers perform at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor) with “country-ish rock ‘n’ roll.” (5612 California SW)
AT KENYON HALL: 7:30 pm, Casey MacGill and his new band bring arrangements to Kenyon Hall “that conjure up the ’20s and ’30s.” Ticket info is in our calendar listing. (7904 35th SW)
AT PARLIAMENT TAVERN: Three bands, 9 pm. (4210 SW Admiral Way)
Thanks to Highland Park Elementary PTA president Holly Briscoe for photos and a report on “an exciting event” at the school Friday morning:
Cristian Roldan, Seattle Sounders FC Midfielder, came to HPE for the morning assembly. He was there to help the school celebrate the successful completion of their Breakfast Challenge, which is a part of the Fuel Your Future campaign.
The campaign is a joint effort between United Way and the Seattle Sounders to help reduce food-insecurity. School Nurse Tina Urso worked to bring both the campaign and Cristian to HPE. Go, Sounders!
ORIGINAL REPORT, 8:23 PM: Heads up if you’ll be traveling Delridge Way near Edmunds any time soon – utility crews are working in the middle of the street. We noticed running water on the edge of the northbound side of the street, and we just received one reader note saying they had called Seattle Public Utilities and been told there’s a water-line break. They also report reduced water pressure at their residence. We’ll be checking with SPU’s media team ASAP to see if we can find out more.
9:44 PM: We haven’t heard back from SPU yet but multiple commenters in the area say they’re without water.
10:33 PM: Now we’ve heard from SPU, which says an 8-inch line broke, no obvious cause. It was first reported by someone who saw the water bubbling up in the street late this afternoon; they cut off service in the area around 7:30 pm for repairs. 110 customers (homes/businesses) are affected, and they’re hoping to restore service by midnight.
11:03 PM: Marieke from SPU just called again with an update – she says they’re turning the water back on right now. It was a “horizontal break” and 10 feet of pipe had to be repaired. Your water might be discolored for a while when it comes back on, so let it run a bit, she says, and it should clear up.
(WSB photo)
Police investigated a report of gunfire at 15th and Roxbury after 5 pm tonight; we found out about it after a texter (thank you) reported multiple police cars heading south. Police say witnesses told them that two men exchanged words and “gang signs”; one fired a shot at a car, possibly an Acura, that subsequently took off. No injuries reported, and no arrests so far.
Thanks to Patrick Kelly for the tip – the National Weather Service has upgraded the weather alert to a “heat advisory” for most of the weekend, noon Saturday through 9 pm Sunday. (See the alert here.) Temperatures in the 90s are possible both days. Our most-recent lists of air-conditioned spots are a few years old now, so if you have new favorites, suggestions appreciated!
P.S. A reader requests that we remind you to NOT leave your pet in the car, especially during the extra-warm weather!
2:25 PM: Retiring last year as PE teacher at Pathfinder K-8 didn’t keep Lou Cutler from coming back for his traditional birthday-month run to raise money for Make-A-Wish. One lap for every year, which meant 65 today – and this time, battling asthma, he walked more than he ran, but nonetheless made it through every one of those laps over the span of five hours, from just after 9 am to just after 2 pm. Above is our iPhone video as his final lap wrapped up, in the company of Pathfinder students who streamed out of the building to finish it with him, chanting “Go, Lou! Go, Lou!” Many were with him at the start:
We’ll be adding photos a bit later. You can still donate to Make-A-Wish, for whom Lou’s been a wish-granting volunteer for more than 20 years – just go here.
ADDED 9:53 PM: Two photos that, like our video above, bookend this year’s inspiring-as-ever event. First, from the morning:
And then, right after that 65th lap, the group photo:
Today was the 17th time Lou’s done this, by the way.
Three West Seattle restaurant notes:
IRASHAI NOW OPEN: While covering the “Group Hug for The Admiral” this morning, we noticed the banner across the street at Irashai, the Japanese restaurant that took over the former Mawadda Café space. When it opened at 11 am, we ducked in to ask a few questions. This is the second day of the restaurant’s “soft open,” we learned; its operators have another restaurant by the same name in Alaska. The hours might change depending on how things are going, but for now they are posted as 11 am-9 pm Mondays-Thursdays, 11 am-10 pm Fridays and Saturdays, noon-9 pm Sundays.
PECOS PIT OPENING DATE: Pecos Pit BBQ at 35th and Fauntleroy has announced it will open on June 21st. It’s totally remodeled and expanded the former Beni Hoshi/Yasuko’s Teriyaki space. According to an announcement sent to the Junction Neighborhood Organization, a ribboncutting is planned at 3 pm on June 21st, and the restaurant will welcome its first customers at 4 pm.
SHELBY’S OPENING DATE: It’s been two months since we reported on Shelby’s Bistro and Ice Creamery, taking over the former Westside Public House space on the northeast corner of California and Edmunds in The Junction. This establishment has also announced an opening date: July 19th.
(Photo by Jean Sherrard, courtesy Southwest Seattle Historical Society; click here to see full-size version on SWSHS website)
10:58 AM: After a burst of excitement this morning, with a crowd including about 800 elementary-school students and former mayors Greg Nickels and Norm Rice, The Admiral District is getting back to the usual dull roar. The “Group Hug for The Admiral” photo event, organized by the Southwest Seattle Historical Society, went off flawlessly, with photographers Jean Sherrard and Brad Chrisman atop a lift truck across the street from the historic theater, hailed as a classic “neighborhood moviehouse.” (Updated) Here’s what the crowd looked like on the ground:
(WSB photos/video from here down)
The speakers included theater operator Far Away Entertainment, Sol Baron told WSB that the renovations to convert it into a fourplex – the reason to capture this moment in time – are expected to start by mid-August, provided the final permits come through. (added) You’ll hear him in this clip, introduced by Southwest Seattle Historical Society executive director Clay Eals, who emceed and organized the event:
12:37 PM: More of how it unfolded: Plenty of orange-vested adults (the vests were loaned by Highland Park Elementary) were there to help ensure the safety of the students, who walked from each participating school – we rolled a bit of video as each arrived:
First, the most distant school, Schmitz Park:
The @schmitzpark 3rd graders arrive for @HistoricAdmiral 'Group Hug' – Alki, Lafayette students on the way pic.twitter.com/GWqDiCNwh5
— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) June 3, 2016
Then, Alki:
And here come the Alki Elementary students. Former mayors Rice and Nickels are here to greet them. pic.twitter.com/xE7aq7f0m1
— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) June 3, 2016
Finally, the nearest school – about half a block south – Lafayette:
Third and final school to arrive, nearby Lafayette Elementary, crossing at California/Admiral pic.twitter.com/K4XOTJD31w
— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) June 3, 2016
Along with those we’ve mentioned earlier, speakers also included the principals of all three participating schools – Shannon Hobbs-Beckley from Alki, Gerrit Kischner from Schmitz Park, and Robert Gallagher from Lafayette – as well as Jim Kelly from 4Culture (which donated $95,000 to the Admiral renovation project) and Shannon Braddock from County Councilmember Joe McDermott‘s office:
The principals voiced appreciation for their students’ chance to be part of a moment in local history:
The theater, its operators stressed, will remain open throughout the renovation work later this year. We’ll find out more about the specifics as the plan goes to the city Landmark Preservation Board – whose approval is required because of the theater’s landmark status – later this month.
Mayor Nickels, as introduced by Eals, represented this area on the King County Council when The Admiral closed – in danger of never reopening – in 1989. The Admiral enhances our area’s “sense of community,” he pointed out, also lauding Eals for organizing the campaign to save the theater, which reopened in 1992. Mayor Rice was in office at the time of the reopening and said The Admiral continues to “symbolize West Seattle … and the people who care so much about it.”
P.S. From-above SWSHS photo added 10:30 am Saturday!
Family and friends will gather next Monday to remember John W. Sisson. Here’s the notice they’re sharing with the community:
John W. Sisson, beloved husband and father, passed away at home in his sleep May 25th.
He was born in Minnesota in 1932. He was the son of Frank and Ruth Sisson. He spent a 35-year career in public service as an auditor for the General Accounting Office. He loved horses, boats, camping, reading, dogs, sports cars, WWII aircraft, and especially his family. He would always make time for his family.
His funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11 am on Monday, June 6th, at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 7000 35th Avenue SW in West Seattle.
In lieu of flowers please consider a gift to either the Union Gospel Mission or the Seattle Humane Society.
Please visit his memorial web page here.
(WSB publishes West Seattle obituaries by request, free of charge. Please e-mail the text, and a photo if available, to editor@westseattleblog.com)
(View from Alki this morning, photographed by David Hutchinson)
Today’s themes – schools and history. Here are the highlights from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
LAPS WITH LOU: As previewed here last week, retired Pathfinder K-8 PE teacher Lou Cutler is returning to the school on Pigeon Point for his annual Make-A-Wish-benefiting run/walk around the field, a birthday celebration with one lap for every year – 65 this time! 8:45 am was the scheduled start time, so he should be on the field now – as we publish this, we’re headed for the school to check in. All welcome to come share a lap or two or more, and/or to donate here. (1901 SW Genesee)
GROUP HUG FOR THE ADMIRAL: The Southwest Seattle Historical Society is gathering students from three local elementaries, plus two former mayors, for a “group hug” photo op to celebrate its soon-to-start renovation, almost a quarter-century after local residents rallied to save the landmark movie theater. It’ll be unfolding between 9:30 and 10:30 am. (2343 California SW)
WSHS CLASS OF ’56: 60th reunion today, 11 am, Salty’s on Alki (WSB sponsor)! (1936 Harbor SW)
WORDS, WRITERS, WEST SEATTLE: 5-7 pm at Barnes & Noble/Westwood Village, Lisa Richesson talks about her book, “White Lady, Black Sons.” Here’s her video invitation:
This ongoing series is presented by the SW Seattle Historical Society. (2800 SW Barton)
CORNER BAR: Tonight’s the monthly pop-up bar, with tunes, at Highland Park Improvement Club, starting at 6 pm – full details here. (12th/Holden)
SCHMITZ PARK ELEMENTARY CELEBRATION: Before the school community at Schmitz Park Elementary concludes its final year before moving to the new Genesee Hill Elementary in the fall, its history and legacy will be celebrated tonight, 6:30 pm – details in our calendar listing. (5000 SW Spokane)
WSMA AT C & P: Performers/composers from West Side Music Academy perform tonight at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor), 7 pm. (5612 California SW)
THE SKYLARK TURNS TEN: 9 pm anniversary show – details in our listing. (3803 Delridge Way SW)
MORE … on our complete calendar!
(SDOT MAP with travel times/video links; is the ‘low bridge’ closed? LOOK HERE)
(Click any view for a close-up; more cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
7 AM: After many uneventful mornings, this one is getting busy. There’s a crash on northbound 99 at Lander, blocking the left lane.
Also, Metro has just sent word that two trips are canceled this morning – Route 57 leaving The Junction at 7:06 am, and Route 56 leaving Alki at 7:23 am.
7:13 AM: Just for the record, Matt points out that Metro also tweeted the 6:40 am Route 116 run was canceled too. And we have other reminders:
*No bridge closure tonight – the Fauntleroy Expressway work was on its regular Sunday-Thursday night schedule this week, so the next one is Sunday night (9 pm-5 am)
*Reminder that the “Group Hug for The Admiral Theater” will bring about 800 students to The Admiral District later this morning for a photo outside the soon-to-be-renovated landmark – here’s our preview from last night. No road closures but they’re walking, so be ready for some big pedestrian groups.
7:25 AM: SDOT says the vehicles involved in the NB 99 crash have moved to the shoulder, so “all lanes are clear.”
7:37 AM: Back to previews – here’s the SDOT lookahead for this weekend, including a big soccer game at CLink on Saturday night, and Race for the Cure through part of downtown on Sunday.
Story, video, and photos by Tracy Record and Patrick Sand
West Seattle Blog co-publishers
“Y-tastic!”
The last speaker at Thursday’s West Seattle YMCA expansion groundbreaking celebration, member Michelle Silver, used that term for her enthusiastic view of the Y, whose director Josh Sutton picked it up and ran with it.
It was perfect for the energy and enthusiasm that marked the event outside the Triangle headquarters of the Y (a longtime WSB sponsor).
Though members of the Y board posed for the top photo, this wasn’t really a groundbreaking about, well, breaking ground – the shovels were mostly for fun:
Major work on the Y’s long-in-the-works expansion had started last week with demolition of the old Youth Programs building. The event was more a chance to honor those who made the project possible, and to celebrate a side benefit, the new “festival street” designation for SW Snoqualmie in front of the Y, recently finalized and used for the first time for this party, which included a bouncy house, free barbecue, and even the West Seattle High School Band:
And it was a chance to recap what the expansion will bring – Sutton hit the highlights: “When this project is done, we’ll have a whole new Y from the outside and new tools to help the community.” They include a meeting room, kitchen, expanded fitness space, new family room with “active play for all ages,” a new cycling room. (More details here.)
With its perch in the West Seattle Triangle, part of the “urban village” at the heart of the peninsula, and within walking distance of thousands of new apartments, the Y also has to have its eye on the future. That was noted by Mark Tabbutt, who spoke after Sutton’s introduction, a West Seattleite representing the Greater Seattle Y’s board.
“There’s a ton of new people coming in – this organization, this Y, is going to be a big part of drawing those people in.”
Without money to pay for the expansion, it wouldn’t be happening, and about $800,000 came from the state, so the program included an area legislator, 34th District State Senator Sharon Nelson.
“Why should the state support this?” she asked rhetorically. “Because it’s about youth and families.”
From the WS Y board, Scott Hitchcock hailed the “hard work” by so many, over the decade it took for this to become reality:
Those gathered in the new “festival street” also heard from Dino Vasquez and Steve Sundquist, co-chairs of the capital campaign. Sundquist, a former Seattle School Board member, voiced appreciation for the Y’s work at local schools.
A donor whose family made the first gift to the campaign, Sue Chamberlain, recalled her membership dating back 30 years, when she said she walked into the Y with her then-1-year-old son. The Y goes back almost a century here, she said, so those enabling its expansion are “continuing a great legacy.”
Gratitude was threaded through all the speeches, not just for those who gave money, but for those who gave time.
But the show was stolen by final speaker Michelle Silver, from the moment Sutton introduced her while making note that Silver was wearing a Cleveland Cavaliers T-shirt and obviously had to get home in time for the game. First, here’s some of what she described, memorably, as Y-Tastic:
The speeches wrapped up, and the party continued for guests of all ages.
Here’s what happens next, according to a timeline Sutton shared: The main building stays open throughout the project, Later this month, the entrance will move to the festival-street side. More changes will be ahead in August, when the first Y-hosted West Seattle Outdoor Movies screening will happen (last one of this year’s season, before the entire series moves next year). Then a new entrance is expected in October, and more of the new building will be open around Thanksgiving, with the project largely wrapped up by year’s end, meaning that 2017, in Sutton’s words, will bring a “new Y for a new year.”
In the chapel at Providence Mount St. Vincent tonight, worldwide celebrities drew a crowd. They are the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura, best known for a documentary titled “Landfill Harmonic.” As the website about the documentary explains, they are a “Paraguayan musical group of kids that live next to one of South America’s largest landfills. This unlikely orchestra plays music from instruments made entirely out of garbage.” Like this violin, made from paint cans, kitchen baking pans, wood from pallets, and a fork:
And this cello, also made from pallet wood and an old oil can:
Here’s video with an introduction, translated, from their leader, followed by tango music starting at about 2:45 in:
If you missed the Recycled Orchestra in West Seattle tonight, they have two Seattle performances tomorrow – 3 pm at the Royal Room in Columbia City, and 7 pm at Hearthstone in Green Lake.
| 3 COMMENTS