West Seattle, Washington
27 Thursday
By Linda Ball
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
Ruth Parker Winquist doesn’t say much these days, but when she does, it’s said with a dry, quick wit. Out of nowhere, Winquist remembers “someone daring someone else to lick a cow pie.” Good fun back in the day!
It is not very often that a centenarian is in our midst. Winquist is a week away from that milestone – on Saturday, September 10th, she plans to celebrate her 100th birthday with family, at her home in Brookdale Admiral Heights, where she has lived for more than 10 years.
Winquist was born in Portland in 1916 to Charles Arthur Parker and Ella Ethelyn Gabriel. She was the middle child of three – sister Nancy, born in 1914, is gone now, but brother Ben, born in 1921, lives in Mill Valley, Calif., and talks on the phone with Ruth every Sunday. Her earliest memory is when her mother took she and Nancy to see French Marshal Ferdinand Foch in a parade after World War I. Her mother thought it was important for her daughters to see a real war hero. Read More
With less than three weeks until the curtain rises on its 2016-2017 season, ArtsWest Playhouse has a crowdfunding campaign under way to support the upcoming productions: Dubbed #TellTheStory, the campaign, says the ArtsWest announcement, “allows our patrons and others in the community to engage with the stories we tell together and connect them to the process of getting a show on its feet. We’re asking the members of our community to donate and help support the show or shows in our season with which they most connect. Their donation is a way to show their support of the stories they want to see told and in return we’ll include them on the journey as each show takes shape. We want to cultivate a new audience with a stake in the art that we make.”
The six productions start with “Ghosts,” opening September 22nd, a change from what was announced back in May, though the six plays are the same. September 22nd is also the final scheduled day of the just-launched crowdfunding campaign. ArtsWest is also offering an incentive for bigger donations – the first 50 people to donate $100 will get an invitation for 2 to the season-launch party, one week from tonight at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center.
The donation campaign is on Crowdrise – go here and start by choosing which of the six “stories” you want to support. Tickets for ArtsWest’s upcoming performances, meantime, are on sale via the playhouse’s own website.
(CM Herbold and other riders on Labor Day 2015. Photo by Bob Combs)
Got a motorcycle? You can put the “labor” in Labor Day by joining in this citywide ride that starts in West Seattle on Monday morning. Scott sent the announcement:
Join Seattle City Councilmember Lisa Herbold and Seattle’s labor community for a motorcycle ride through Seattle and a visit to some of Seattle’s union Halls.
Participation in the poker-run is $20 and benefits The Labor Archives of Washington. Registration starts at 8:00 am at the Chelan Café in West Seattle. From there we journey on to several union halls before ending at the Seattle Labor Temple for the annual Labor Picnic at 1:00. And yes, there is reserved parking. An after-event is scheduled for 4 pm at Slim’s Last Chance.
You don’t have to be a union member to participate – everyone is welcome. Given the route, this is a great event for smaller bikes and scooters as well.
Poker-Run route is as follows:
Chelan Café (Registration) – 3527 Chelan Ave SW
IAM (International Association of Machinists) 1500 S. 91st St.
ILWU (International Longshoremen and Warehouse Union) 3440 E Marginal Way S, Seattle, WA
UFCW (United Food and Commercial Workers) 5030 1st Ave S
IBU (Inlandboatman’s Union) 1711 W Nickerson St
DSFU (Deep Sea Fisherman’s Union) 5215 Ballard Ave NW
Seattle Labor Temple – 2800 1st Ave.
2:22 PM: Another report of plant theft, and this one adds insult to injury for Harris, who already was going through a tough time:
I just moved out of my rental house (Arbor Heights area) on the 1st. We were suddenly asked to move out so the house could be sold. The move has been difficult and stress filled.
There were large plants in containers that had to be temporarily left at the house so placement could be arranged. When I returned to the house to get them on the 2nd, the plants were gone. The house was vacant for one day. In that time someone stole the only plants I had intended on keeping. Some have extreme sentimental value to me. The retail value of the plants and containers is over 300$, but it’s not about the money. “They are just plants,” people say. To me, it’s like someone stole my pets. I’ve cared for them for many years and had intended on keeping them in my life. It’s so upsetting. It would be wonderful to have them back but I’m not keeping my hopes up.
Losing more and more faith in humanity everyday. Karma is going to come back around and get this person. Who steals plants? Seriously despicable!
The noticeable plants would be: 2 tall glossy black cylindrical pots. Overflowing with sedums/succulents, one has a weeping Alaska Cedar, the other has Black Bamboo. If they or any other plants in black pots are found discarded anywhere, please contact me, I would be very grateful!!!
Harris can be reached at harrisblakestarr (at) gmail (dot) com.
3:47 PM: Good news just in from Harris: Plants found several houses away. “Misunderstanding,” not theft.
What you see above is a new 360-degree video from “Diver Laura” James, a look at the “Junkyard” area off Alki Beach earlier this week, as she and dive buddy Lamont tested a new camera array. If you haven’t viewed this type of video before, it’s an active experience rather than passive – after you hit “play,” click and grab the video to see above, below, and all around. (We enjoyed looking up at the fish swimming near the surface.) Here are the accompanying notes from Laura:
The site is in full summer colors, with healthy looking and very ‘tall’ eelgrass and numerous fish. In the video I think I can make out 3 or 4 separate species of schooling fish. Shiner Perch, sand lance, tube snouts and possibly a salmon swimming through disturbing them all :)
There is still evidence of Sea Star wasting syndrome, when the small sunflower stars reach a certain size (just bigger than my hand) it seems some specimens become susceptible to the disease and proceed to tear themselves apart. There are numerous leather stars, and on the artificial habitat further towards the beach house noted several generations of rockfish from tiny, tiny babies to moderate-size adolescents and an adult or two.
We un-snagged a crab trap that had gotten wrapped around the bathtub and daisy-chained it’s rope so it won’t re-snag. So if a reader happened to have a snagged pot out there, well, it’s now free for you to collect.
Of note, folks should be aware that in the nearshore area there is often a fair bit of ‘habitat’ (read: our cast away junk that becomes home to critters) and it is very easy for the sinky nylon crab pot line to get entangled in the shifting currents and up and down tides. Often these free themselves after a night or so of current/tide changes, but if someone does snag or loose a pot not to far from shore where there is public beach access (and if no beach access maybe they could contact the homeowner and gain one time access), and then perhaps could post to the WSB Forum and that way a local diver could go un-snag it and therefor not have it continue fishing without supervision. This is obviously no guarantee, because the diver would be doing it out of the goodness of her heart, time allowed.
BEHIND THE SCENES: Since sharing the video earlier this week, Diver Laura also has sent a clip showing how she set up the 360 camera, and also her work with the aforementioned crab pot. You can watch that video here.
(Pileated woodpecker, photographed by Mark Wangerin)
Happy Saturday, happy holiday weekend … along with relaxing and recharging for the autumn ahead, here are a few ways to spend the rest of the day:
ADMIRAL ADOPT-A-STREET CLEANUP: Get over to Metropolitan Market (WSB sponsor) by 9 am and meet up with the Admiral Neighborhood Association for the quarterly Adopt-a-Street cleanup. Gear provided – all you need to bring is yourself. Treats, coffee, post-cleanup sack lunch provided. (41st/42nd/Admiral)
PLAY GAMES: 10 am-11:30 pm, there’s a lineup of meetups at Meeples Games (WSB sponsor). Or, you can just drop in and get your own game going! (3727 California SW)
LOG HOUSE MUSEUM: The home of West Seattle’s history, headquarters of the Southwest Seattle Historical Society, is a great place to spend part of your holiday weekend. Noon-4 pm. (61st SW/SW Stevens)
COLMAN POOL: West Seattle’s only city-run outdoor pool, on the shore at Lincoln Park, is getting close to the end of its season – here’s the schedule for today’s noon-7 pm swim sessions. (8603 Fauntleroy Way SW)
ALKI LIGHTHOUSE TOURS: Third-to-last day this year for free tours of historic Alki Point Lighthouse with the US Coast Guard Auxiliary, 1-4 pm – arrive by 3:40 pm for the final round of touring. (Alki SW/Beach Drive SW)
JOHNNY AND THE MOLES: Live music with a full horn section! 9 pm at Parliament Tavern in The Admiral District. (4210 SW Admiral Way)
SEE OUR COMPLETE CALENDAR for more.
4:28 AM: If you heard all the sirens – a crash in the 5600 block of West Marginal Way SW [map] briefly got a big “heavy rescue” response, but the first units arriving say no one is trapped, so they’re canceling most of it.
4:35 AM: Police are directing traffic to get semitrucks through the area.
One home game for a local team as high-school football season began Friday night:
(WSB photos by Patrick Sand)
At Southwest Athletic Complex, Chief Sealth International High School hosted Washington HS (Pierce County), which went home with the win, 60-20. The Seahawks were being shut out 35-0 until the last four minutes of the first half, when suddenly #2, senior Chase McNelly, caught fire.
“They got the touchdown fever,” announcer Eddie Snead (a Sealth history teacher) proclaimed admiringly after McNelly’s two TDs sent the Seahawks into halftime down 44-13. They have a new, yet not-so-new head coach this year:
As announced in April, Luther Carr III is back. He has a very young team, just a handful of seniors to work with.
But there’s time.
Besides supporting the team, spectators tonight were supporting Denny-Sealth Performing Arts via fundraising concessions:
Next Friday night (September 9th), Sealth is on the road vs. Nathan Hale.
The West Seattle High School Wildcats varsity football team is 1-0 after its first game of the season. On the road tonight in Clark County, they defeated Washougal HS, 28-21. Next Friday, the Tom Burggraff-coached Wildcats will be home at Southwest Athletic Complex (2801 SW Thistle) vs. Ingraham
Two West Seattle Crime Watch notes tonight:
GREENBELT SEARCH: A few people asked about a police search late today in the greenbelt along the east end of the SW Roxbury corridor. We monitored it via scanner; tonight the suspect they sought is listed on the King County Jail register, including a citation for resisting arrest, which means he is charged and therefore we’re identifying him: 32-year-old Dillon Ruffcorn, also listed as having two “failure to appear” warrants in South King County, one in another resisting-arrest case, one for alleged car prowling. His bail is set at $18,000.
VIDEO SHOWS WOULD-BE BURGLAR: Back on Tuesday, we published Richard‘s report about an attempted break-in at his home in the 7100 block of Sylvan Lane. He has since sent five short security-video clips showing the would-be burglar. This is the clearest:
The other clips, all brief, are here, here, here, and here.
One week from tomorrow, you are invited to the 75th anniversary celebration for Camp Long, “the most unique city park in the country.” 11 am-5 pm on Saturday, September 10th, the big party will be held at the 68-acre park along with Mountain Fest. You can join in activities including rock climbing, ropes course, orienteering, nature exploration, outdoor skills, historical exhibit, falconry, crafts, and art. And don’t miss the flag ceremony at 1:30 pm. The park is at 5200 35th SW [map]. (It’s been six years since the last really big party there – the 2010 celebration of the Camp Long Lodge’s million-dollar renovations.)
Labor Day weekend means last-minute back-to-school shopping for many families. But you don’t have to take a trip to the mall – West Seattle’s independent retail stores have a lot to offer – including My Three Little Birds (WSB sponsor) in south Morgan Junction. Kids’ clothes, shoes, and backpacks are plentiful right now. And the shop’s unique features, proprietor Jennifer Young points out, is the “Mom-Made” section, with locally made items. “As a store we also focus on supporting local business by selling the goods of 13 local vendors, the majority of which are West Seattle-based artisans,” Young says.
“As a mom who started her own business to support her family, I love to pay it forward and support other talented moms by giving them a great place to sell their own creations,” Young adds. Lunch containers, water bottles, and books are in stock at My Three Little Birds too. The shop is at 6959 California SW and open 10 am-5 pm tomorrow, 11 am-4 pm on Sunday.
If you were seeing/hearing the helicopter hovering in the Arbor Heights/Fauntleroy vicinity – no, nothing going on, just TV checking on the ferry traffic as the holiday weekend gets under way. Most recent report from Washington State Ferries was that Fauntleroy had a one-hour wait, not unusual for a summer Friday. You can see the “live” cameras at and near the terminal by going here.
(July aerial of West Seattle with Terminal 5 at left, shared by David)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
The news of shipping line Hanjin, a major Port of Seattle customer, filing for the equivalent of bankruptcy in its home country, South Korea, has sparked renewed discussion about the nine-digit-price-tag plan to modernize West Seattle’s Terminal 5.
Is the project really necessary, amid the turmoil in the shipping industry, with the port operating without T-5 for more than two years now? We put that question to the Northwest Seaport Alliance, the entity formed a year ago by the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma.
First, the latest on how Hanjin’s receivership filing on Wednesday is affecting the Port of Seattle: Read More
1:21 PM: Thanks to the resident who texted to report a water outage in the 8100 block of 27th SW. We advised a call to the Seattle Public Utilities hotline (206-386-1800), and the resident reported back that SPU is working on a water-line break in the 27th SW/SW Kenyon vicinity. We’re checking with SPU to find out more.
2:07 PM: SPU spokesperson Ingrid Goodwin tells WSB that the break is on an 8-inch pipe at the location mentioned above [map]. “SPU crews have throttled the main, which means some customers are experiencing a reduction in pressure and while others may be out of water. This break is impacting about 25 homes and businesses in the area. At this time, I don’t have an estimated time when the repair will be complete and water restored.”
3:17 PM: Update from Goodwin: Repairs will take several hours, so the water will likely be back on between 7 and 9 pm.
11:32 AM: A sizable Seattle Fire “heavy rescue” response is headed to the 9400 block of 37th SW [map]. It’s a report of a car crashing into a garage.
11:46 AM: Our crew is at the scene and has been told no one is hurt. All SFD units are leaving except Engine 11. We’re waiting to talk with SPD to get details.
12:03 PM: Here’s what happened, according to police: The driver came down the Roxbury dead-end at 37th and veered off through the trees, onto residential property, clipping one structure and coming to a stop after crashing into a freestanding garage. They’re talking with the driver, who is unhurt.
High-school football season starts tonight:
CHIEF SEALTH INTERNATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL HOME GAME: The Chief Sealth IHS Seahawks start their season with a home game vs. Washington HS (Pierce County), 7 pm at Southwest Athletic Complex (2801 SW Thistle)
WEST SEATTLE HIGH SCHOOL ON THE ROAD: At 7 pm, the West Seattle HS Wildcats will be in Clark County to play Washougal.
SEATTLE LUTHERAN HIGH SCHOOL ON THE ROAD: At 7 pm, the SLHS Saints will be in Whatcom County to play Lummi Nation.
AT WEST SEATTLE STADIUM: O’Dea plays five home games at WS Stadium this season, and hosts Lincoln HS at 7 tonight. (4435 35th SW)
(WSB photo: Architect presentation during 2749 California SW project meeting)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Madison Development Group‘s mixed-use project at 2749 California SW in Admiral has the go-ahead to move to the second and final phase of Design Review.
That approval came last night from the Southwest Design Review Board after the second Early Design Guidance session for the project, which proposes 112 apartments and a new 25,000-square-foot PCC Natural Markets (WSB sponsor) store at the site that’s been home to the current one for more than a quarter-century.
Two SWDRB members – Matt Zinski, chairing, and T. Frick McNamara – and one substitute, former board member Robin Murphy, were in attendance, along with planner Josh Johnson from the Department of Construction and Inspections, filling in for the project’s assigned planner Crystal Torres. The gallery, including neighbors, observers, and project-team members, peaked at about 20.
Here’s how the meeting unfolded along the way: Read More
(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)
7:22 AM: After-the-fact bus cancellation tweet/text just sent by Metro:
Transit Alert – Route 57 to downtown Seattle due to leave the Alaska Junction at 7:06 AM did not operate this morning.
— King County Metro (@kcmetrobus) September 2, 2016
LABOR DAY REMINDERS: Metro, the West Seattle Water Taxi, and Washington State Ferries’ Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth route are all on Sunday schedules for the Monday Labor Day holiday.
1:21 AM: If you’re heading out on this rainy early morning – the one route you are NOT going to want to take is the eastbound West Seattle Bridge to southbound I-5. In the past hour or so, we’ve been monitoring scanner traffic about two crashes – currently, one that is reported to involve a jack-knifed semi-truck, blocking all lanes of SB I-5 just south of the WS Bridge. No major injuries reported in either one so far, and we don’t have full details, but we’ve heard enough to publish this alert.
2:04 AM: Some lanes of SB I-5 have reopened, per WSDOT, but the ramp from the EB WS Bridge is still blocked.
(A proposed window sign/button design by Hate-Free Delridge’s Rob Becker, held by Susan Lebow)
By Linda Ball
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
What started out four weeks ago with a meeting of concerned neighbors reacting to a hate crime in Pigeon Point has developed into a cohesive grass-roots group, determined to bring people together with the message of tolerance, inclusion, and community.
The core group met again, this time at Lisa Kauffman’s Puget Ridge home. Present were Rob Becker, Dave Gamrath, Stu Hennessey, Susan Lebow, Steve Richmond, and Pavan Vangipuram, all of whom have been with the group from the start (along with Rachel Glass, who was unable to attend).
Hennessey said he has spoken with the victim, Stephanie Endres. She wasn’t able to attend the meeting but said she’s aware of what’s being done by the group, called Hate-Free Delridge, as first reported here last month. Now, details for its official introduction and mission-kickoff event later this month have been firmed up: Read More
ORIGINAL REPORT, 7:35 PM THURSDAY: Thanks for the tips: SDOT crews have started marking the roadway for upcoming lane changes as part of the final design of the SW Admiral Way Safety Project. Our photo shows what we found in the 61st SW-62nd SW area when we went by this afternoon. SDOT project reps did not respond to our subsequent request for an update on the construction schedule; during the August 20th walk-and-talk meetings (WSB coverage here), they had promised to get that information out “soon.” The project page says only that work will be done in “late summer/early fall.” The final design was announced via e-mail on July 21st.
The first version of the plan was unveiled in April 2015 at an Admiral Neighborhood Association meeting. Much neighborhood criticism ensued, especially concern over the city underestimating how much Admiral Way parking is needed for residents and visitors; the city re-evaluated and then held a second and final community meeting in July of last year.
At the walking tours last month, the focus was on the possibility of added pedestrian improvements along the route, and the project webpage says tomorrow (September 2nd) is the deadline to make suggestions along that line – go there to see how.
ADDED 11:43 AM FRIDAY: Finally heard back from SDOT. This “preparatory work” will continue into next week, says spokesperson Norm Mah: “We are looking to start construction toward the end of the month and will provide a 3-week notice prior to beginning construction.”
Reader report, just received this afternoon:
I was out for a run early this morning and at around 6:15 AM a man ran up behind me really fast and grabbed my butt with both his hands. When I started to turn around he ran away in the opposite direction. I never saw his face but he was about 5’9 to 5’10 and was wearing a dark blue hoodie with the hood up and black jeans. This happened as I was running north on 44th Ave SW right before the Charlestown Ave SW intersection. I just want to get the word out to other women who may be out running or walking in the early morning.
This is the first incident of this type we recall hearing about in some time.
SIDE NOTES: First, before you ask: Yes, the man convicted in similar attacks (and more) early this decade is still in prison.
Second: The description, scant as it is, is reminiscent of this 2013 incident south of The Junction which, to our knowledge, has never been solved.
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