West Seattle, Washington
27 Wednesday
(From draft Seattle 2035 Comprehensive Plan)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Will Seattle finally ask voters in White Center and the rest of still-unincorporated North Highline to let themselves be annexed?
The answer to that question now rests with the fate of a bill making its way through the Legislature, approved by the State Senate in late January, heard in a State House committee last Friday, and headed for an executive-session discussion in another committee this Wednesday: SSB 5964.
It boosts the amount of state sales tax that can be diverted to the city to cover the cost of annexing (read the full text here).
An update on the bill was part of a briefing the Westwood-Roxhill-Arbor Heights Community Council received from the city’s longtime point person on annexation, Kenny Pittman. He spoke during WWRHAH’s February meeting, which was focused on the status of the Westwood-Highland Park Residential Urban Village and how neighboring White Center might play into it if annexation happens.
While the city waits to see if the bill gets final legislative approval this year, the annexation proposal is on hold with the King County Boundary Review Board, which would have to give its blessing before the proposal could go before voters, as would the Seattle City Council, which has had major turnover – four of its nine members – since giving approval to an early step in the process last summer.
With the city updating its Comprehensive Plan now, via the Seattle 2035 process, WWRHAH is not content to just let this all play out and then wonder how Westwood and White Center might become part of some sort of coherent planning process later. So this month’s discussion was intended as something of a jump-start. WWRHAH, explained co-chair Amanda Kay Helmick, wants to create a joint plan that includes White Center: “Something for people to vote on!”
That underscore: If there’s a chance White Center and vicinity might become part of Seattle within a few years, why wouldn’t planning already be under way, since the city is close to launching its vision for the next 20 years?
The answer seemed to be, in part, that the planning still might be inadequate on this side of the city/county line.
(Photo courtesy Alice Britt)
New this spring: The first-ever Westside Plant and Garden Art Extravaganza! Just out of the WSB inbox, here’s the announcement:
West Seattle garden-related merchants, clubs, & other organizations are invited to be part of the Westside Plant & Garden Art Extravaganza.
The event, sponsored by the Westside Unitarian Universalist Congregation, will be held on Saturday, April 30, and Sunday, May 1, 2016, and will feature:
*perennial, vegetable, herb & berry plants perfect for NW gardens,
*garden art created by local artists,
*advice from local garden experts,
*information on sustainable gardening practices & ways of sharing our garden bounty with those in need.
*representatives from local garden-related community organizations, businesses, & clubsThis event promises to be an enjoyable opportunity for gardening enthusiasts as well a terrific way for local merchants and organizations to promote their products, activities, services and upcoming events. Displays, brochures and portfolios, as well as live or digital demonstrations are encouraged. All participants will also be showcased on the Garden Extravaganza website, soon to be published.
Booths/tables are available both inside and outside for either one or both days. There is no charge for businesses or organizations providing information only; however, there is a $75 booth fee for artists who wish to sell their work at the event.
To secure a booth/table at the the event, please contact Alice Britt at alicebritt@comcast.net as soon as possible. Space will be allocated on a first-come basis.
WSUU is at 7141 California SW.
If this isn’t already on your calendar (it’s on ours!): This Wednesday night (February 24th), the Seattle Symphony performs a free community concert at Chief Sealth International High School‘s auditorium – and you can see the Sealth and West Seattle High School orchestras too! CSIHS’s orchestra performs at 6:15 pm, WSHS at 6:30, and the Seattle Symphony at 7, featuring a side-by-side performance with the West Seattle Community Orchestra on “Finlandia” by Sibelius. Again, everybody’s invited, no admission charge; the Denny-Sealth Performing Arts support group plans a benefit bake sale in the lobby. CSIHS is at 2600 SW Thistle.
If you’re not in line yourself by then – you’ll see one at Easy Street Records starting at 5 this Friday night, because of this:
This Friday, 6pm, @macklemore @RyanLewis signing @EasyStRecords! First 100 to preorder new album guaranteed entry! https://t.co/N6Mmkey374
— Easy Street Records (@EasyStRecords) February 22, 2016
The WSB archives remind us that Macklemore and Ryan Lewis drew a crowd for a signing at ESR in 2011, more than a year before their huge hit “Thrift Shop”:
(WSB photo, April 2011)
Friday is the official release date for the new album “This Unruly Mess I’ve Made.” More on the ESR website.
The question came in via the WSB Forums as well as via e-mail: Why were trees planted, and then removed, at the city-owned triangle in North Admiral that recently served as the temporary location of Fire Station 29?
(WSB photo from late Sunday afternoon)
Here’s what we’ve found out: SDOT urban foresters chose and planted the trees without knowing a key part of the site’s backstory – what was discussed with neighbors last year about the site’s future, after a last-minute city turnabout put the temporary station there in the first place.
SDOT’s Shane Dewald responded to our inquiry today:
Seattle Department of Transportation Urban Forestry staff are so often asked to plant more conifers in the street ROW. We strive to do so when we have adequate space to accommodate them in a manner that is compatible with public safety standards for sight distance. The California/ Hill / Ferry site appeared to be well suited for conifers, which were planted based on species selection and placement by a Forester for my office – before he or I were aware of the strong community interest in the use of this site as open space, or the extent of outreach that had conducted before the recent temporary use as a fire station (including the proposed layout of new trees in the plan that I have attached to this message).
SDOT was immediately contacted and we met on site with a neighbor representing the community interests and aware that the conifers were not compatible with the use of the site. We understood from our meeting that the conifers should be removed and replaced with deciduous trees for consistency with the restoration plan discussed during an outreach effort by FAS prior to the temporary use for fire station 29. Though SDOT asked if there might be a possibility that one of the conifers could remain, we were asked to find a new location for them all.
So what’s next for the restoration? Dewald says SDOT wondered about fruit-bearing trees, but the neighborhood wants to see “non-fruit bearing deciduous street trees … for minimum maintenance and optimum compatibility with the community use of the site.” They have a “hybrid variety of Tupelo” available, “tolerant of urban conditions, has relatively small leaves with an open growth habit that allows sun to filter through etc. If this tree sounds like a good option, I expect the installation of the new trees can be done as early as this Thursday!” But – given what’s happened so far – they’re checking with the neighborhood spokesperson first.
Today we’re welcoming a new WSB sponsor, My Three Little Birds in Morgan Junction! New local sponsors are invited to explain what they’re all about – so here’s what My Three Little Birds would like you to know:
My Three Little Birds is a high-quality resale boutique that has an eye for fashion-forward kids’ clothing, local artists and designers, handmade goods, and unique toys from all over the globe, that everyone can afford. They opened in West Seattle’s Morgan Junction in April of 2014, after owner and local mom Jennifer Young was inspired by her three young daughters to create a beautiful and well-organized space where families can shop comfortably, kids can play freely, and the community can come together.
As their anniversary approaches, My Three Little Birds is growing up and looking to expand, by launching what they believe to be Seattle’s first online resale store catering to upscale children’s clothing, toys, and accessories. They are working in conjunction with Community Sourced Capital, a local company that helps established small businesses expand and grow. It is a unique type of crowdfunding, in that all donors are reimbursed for 100% of their contribution. All supporters can look forward to the thank-you party if this campaign is successful! The minimum target for the My Three Little Birds Campaign is $8,000, and they have a long way to go to reach their maximum of $15,000. If you wish to help fund and support this small business in the fast-growing community we live in, please go here for more information.
What has been most amazing about My Three Little Birds‘ 2 years as a part of the West Seattle retail community is how they have been able to impact their neighborhood in new and exciting ways each year, one connection at a time. Active with the Morgan Community Association, they have sponsored the kids’ area at the Morgan Junction Festival for the last 2 years, and will be there again this summer. They have also enjoyed sponsoring the Harvest Festival and 4th of July Kids’ Parade. An active member of a local group of small-businesswomen aptly named “Ladies Who Do Business,” Jennifer enjoys sharing ideas with other local businesswomen and offering support where she can. The play area has been an ideal location for their Spanish Song and Story Times, Costume Swaps, Kindermusik, Craft Days, Santa Photos, and more. The quarterly Ladies Night Extravaganzas have created a fun following of local women looking for a much-needed night out filled with shopping and mingling with friends.
My Three Little Birds is at 6959 California SW, 206-946-6591, and online at mythreelittlebirds.net. Their message in closing: “Thank you to our family, friends, co-workers, and customers for your continued love and support for our store and our family. We are grateful for all you have done to help this little business along the way. We love West Seattle and are honored to be sponsoring the West Seattle Blog.”
We thank My Three Little Birds for sponsoring independent, community-collaborative neighborhood news via WSB; find our current sponsor team listed in directory format here, and find info on joining the team by going here.
(Rendering by architecture firm Ryan Rhodes Designs)
When we mentioned earlier this month that the “streamlined design review” comment period had opened for four 2-townhouse buidings at 9043 18th SW [map], there was one glitch – the design packet hadn’t been posted online, so anyone interested in commenting couldn’t see it for themselves. We contacted the project’s assigned city planner, Magda Hogness, to ask if that would be fixed; she replied to say it’s there now, and because of the delay, the comment period has been extended a week (that would make the deadline March 3rd). You can see the packet on the city website by going here. “Streamlined” means no public meeting, so this is your one chance to have a say. The project has eight parking spaces along an alley behind the buildings instead of built into the three-story townhouses themselves. It’s going onto a site comprised of two lots, one vacant, one with an old house set for demolition (if it hasn’t been torn down already). To comment, e-mail magda.hogness@seattle.gov and include the city’s project number in the subject line – #3020870.
(Photo by Jon Shields, taken from Duwamish Head)
Welcome to the first day of the last full week of February! Highlights for today/tonight:
TEEN ARTISTS IN ACTION: 4-5:30 pm, the new art club resumes at Southwest Library, working today with chalk. More here. (35th SW/SW Henderson)
‘SNOW MOON’: That’s the official name for tonight’s full moon, and it rises at 6:01 pm:
(Photo of the weekend’s almost-full moon, by Greg Snyder)
You can get the moonrise/moonset and sunrise/sunset times any time on the WSB West Seattle Weather page, by the way.
PACIFIC NORTHWEST GAME LEAGUE: 6:30 pm at Meeples Games (WSB sponsor) – just show up and play, as explained here. (3727 California SW)
FAMILY STORY TIME: 6:30-7 pm at High Point Library, kids of all ages are welcome for this free half-hour of stories, songs, and rhymes. (35th SW/SW Raymond)
MONDAY TRIVIA: 7:30 pm at The Skylark, free and all ages, prizes – “an audio round, a picture round, three themed rounds and a random round with questions from several different categories.” (3803 Delridge Way SW)
PUB QUIZ: 8-10 pm at Shadowland in The Junction. (California SW/SW Oregon)
LOOK INTO THE FUTURE … via our complete calendar.
(Click any view for a close-up; more cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
6:03 AM: Good morning! We start with an alert for sometime today, at 15th and Holden in Highland Park:
Traffic on SW Holden Street near the intersection of 15th Avenue SW and SW Holden Street may be impacted for up to an hour on Monday, Feb. 22, while the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) conducts electrical work to activate the newly installed pedestrian crossing signals at the intersection. Seattle Police will be present at the work zone to maintain two-way traffic during this work, which will take place between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Pedestrian and bicycle access will remain open.
As the full alert on the city website notes, this is part of the Delridge-Highland Park Neighborhood Greenway project. Its website also notes work starting this week on a stairway along the route, and includes progress reports and photos from other spots.
WATER TAXI FYI: If you’re interested in previewing this year’s spring/summer schedule, which takes effect in early April, it’s now posted on the Water Taxi website.
Out of the WSB inbox, from Josie:
I just wanted to report that my electric bike (IZIP) was stolen from outside my apartment building on Alki (it was locked up) this weekend (3000 block of 60th Ave. SW). It’s cream-colored and looks unique because it’s an electric bike (it has a motor). Here’s what it looks like.
If you see it, call police.
NEXT CRIME/SAFETY MEETING: Another reminder that the West Seattle Block Watch Captains Network meets Tuesday, 6:30 pm at the precinct (2300 SW Webster), and it’s your next chance to hear from and bring neighborhood concerns to local police leadership. Plus, SPD’s new director of transparency and privacy will be the special guest.
(Photo courtesy Bureau of Fearless Ideas)
It’s a world now where many if not most of us write more than we speak. That makes writing skills more valuable than ever – so if you can help local students improve theirs, this is for you:
The Greater Seattle Bureau of Fearless Ideas is the world-famous, volunteer-powered, Greenwood-based nonprofit writing and tutoring center that’s been serving kids across the Puget Sound area for the past decade. Our next mission: establishing a satellite bureau in White Center — a move that has us looking to build our volunteer ranks in the West Seattle and White Center areas. This winter and spring bring a number of volunteer opportunities at West Seattle schools, with bureau agents conducting writing workshops with students at Big Picture Middle School, Denny International Middle School, and Chief Sealth International High School. Have a few hours a week for 6-8 weeks to help the younger generation become better writers and communicators? Email David Schmader at david@fearlessideas.org. (And check out all things bureau-related at fearlessideas.org.)
Thanks to Lynn Ogdon-Perrine for the update on the Chief Sealth International High School wrestlers who went to the state tournament in Tacoma this weekend: Daron Camacho (left) placed third in the 195 class, Joe Kereti (right) placed eighth in the 220 class. With them in the photo (by Buiford Martin) is Coach Maurice Dolberry. Full results are here.
While on the other side of the bay earlier this afternoon, we detoured to Ballard for a look at the city’s first of two “safe lots” for people living in RVs or other vehicles, since the other one is set for our area.
It opened this past Friday at 24th NW and Shilshole, north of the old Yankee Diner restaurant, east of a shipyard. Like the future “safe lot” in Highland Park (W. Marginal Way SW and Highland Park Way), it is ringed in canvas-covered fencing. A padlocked chain held the fencing closed on the south side, off a parking lot that’s not part of the “safe lot.”
Four RVs were visible; the lot is supposed to be able to hold at least 30. Two portable toilets were in view on the east side of the lot, along with two tents (regional-media coverage says one is a kitchen tent). No one was in view outside the RVs or anywhere else when we looked around the periphery, so there was no one to ask about how things are going.
Last projected opening date for the Highland Park lot, with room for about a dozen RVs, is still at least about two weeks away, per discussion at last Wednesday’s Delridge District Council meeting. We went by the HP site again at midday today; nothing changed except that the fallen-down fence has been picked up and bolstered with sandbags.
After two reports about this, we’re wondering if it’s happening anywhere else – first DG reported that on Friday, along California SW in Gatewood, they “came home to nails placed at the end of our driveway. They appear purposely placed there, and luckily we saw it before we entered the driveway. They were on the left side (right where the tire would drive in on the left side).” We don’t know their block number, but then today, also from Gatewood, Heather e-mailed to say, “I’ve been finding piles of big tacks/nails scattered in the alley that runs parallel to California between maybe Elmgrove and Rose. Who knows if it’s an accident or malicious, but they’re new and shiny and easy to see. I thought maybe drivers and dog-walkers should be warned.”
Historian Rob Ketcherside recently shared that 1937 photo from tax-assessor files via the WSB Flickr group. It might look familiar even if you weren’t around in the ’30s – it’s the subject of the mural behind the commercial building on the southwest corner of California and Fauntleroy in Morgan Junction. It shows the Morgan Street Drive-In Market; Ketcherside will be speaking about the market (on the site where West Seattle Thriftway [WSB sponsor] is now) at the kickoff event for the SouthWest Stories series just announced by the Southwest Seattle Historical Society. If you want a sneak peek, read his story about the city’s drive-in markets, including this one, and see his photo roundup.
Ketcherside’s presentation is four weeks away – 2 pm Sunday, March 20th, at High Point Library; it’ll be followed by five more presentations on the third Sunday of each month, scheduled out through August, rotating among WS and South Park branches of the Seattle Public Library (which is co-sponsoring SouthWest Stories) – see the list on the official flyer. All free!
(Seagull sentinels atop the Alki Bathhouse – Saturday photo by Marc Milrod)
Relatively quiet Sunday, with a handful of highlights on our calendar:
WEST SEATTLE FARMERS’ MARKET: 10 am-2 pm in the street – here’s what’s fresh this week. (California SW between SW Oregon and SW Alaska)
MEET THE GREYHOUNDS: 11 am-1 pm, Greyhound Pets Inc. will be at Mud Bay in The Admiral District. (2611 California SW)
WEST SEATTLE TOOL LIBRARY: Regular Sunday hours are 11 am-4 pm, on the northeast side of Youngstown Cultural Arts Center. (4408 Delridge Way SW)
NATIVE AMERICAN FLUTE-MAKING WORKSHOP: 1-5 pm at the Duwamish Longhouse – online registration is over but contact the longhouse to see if there’s still room. (4705 W. Marginal Way SW)
JAMTIME AT C & P: Bluegrass and old-time music with Jamtime, live at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor), 1-4 pm. (5612 California SW)
GREAT SEATTLE SEED SWAP: As previewed here last night – 2-3:30 pm at West Seattle (Admiral) Library, free chance to swap or pick up some seeds for this year’s planters/gardens. (2306 42nd SW)
ALL-AGES PUNK AT SKYLARK: Party Shark, The Beautiful Freaks, Lubedo, all ages, $5 cover. 6 pm at The Skylark. (3803 Delridge Way SW)
ORIGINAL STORY: Two weeks ago, chef Miranda Krone announced she was returning to West Seattle for a fourth incarnation of Meander’s Kitchen, 
this time at 6400 California SW, where the proprietors of Kokoras Greek Grill had decided to retire (their restaurant had long been listed for sale). Early today, she announced via Facebook that the official Meander’s opening will be Thursday (February 25th). Read full details here, including cuisine and hours.
(Side note: Multiple readers pointed out that the building/lot at 6400 California SW, also home to The Wash Dog, has just been put up for sale for $1.1 million. The flyer notes both tenants have recently signed 5-year leases, with a provision for 6 months’ notice if a redevelopment plan emerges. The site is zoned for 3-story mixed-use. Online files do *not* show any proposals.)
UPDATED FEBRUARY 25: Via Facebook, Meander’s says it’s now planning to open Friday morning at 8.
Two late-night West Seattle Crime Watch reports:
CAR-PROWL ATTEMPT: From S in Admiral:
Just reported (around midnight) to the police a black male about 6’0 6’1 with a Hispanic accent with an Afro, he was trying to break into a car off 42nd and lander in the admiral area wearing all black near the mail center. He punched the car window twice. I was walking near the Safeway and park and immediately left to go back home to call it in because I did not have my phone on me. All of sudden he was behind me trying to speak to me and asked to talk for a moment and I said no I needed to go. I know it is late, but just wanted to give a heads up to neighbors and people close by.
DUMPED BIKES: Christine spotted them by the cleaners at 35th/Morgan in southeast Gatewood:
Or if you’re looking for a blue bicycle – we haven’t heard yet if this one’s been claimed.
(Photo by Mike Jensen – both teams during the pre-game anthem)
11:56 PM SATURDAY: The two schools that played for the Tri-District boys-basketball championship tonight are less than 5 miles apart, but they played on a court more than 110 miles from home. Shorewood Christian from just east of Arbor Heights goes home with the win over Seattle Lutheran from just north of The Junction, 65-57, at Lummi Nation High School in Bellingham. Both will play in the 1B regional round, opponents/locations TBA, Friday or Saturday.
10:30 PM SUNDAY: The bracket for regional games is set – Seattle Lutheran will play Columbia Adventist at 8 pm Saturday (February 27th) at Renton High School (400 S. 2nd); same location for Shorewood Christian’s 2 pm game Saturday vs. Naselle. All regional games are winner to state, loser out.
We are exactly one month away from spring and four months away from summer. No better way to celebrate the approaching longer days than to get ready to garden. Whether you’ll be growing in a planter on a deck or a stoop, or a patch in a yard, or some other venue, if you plan to grow something from seed, you might want to be at the West Seattle (Admiral) Library (2306 42nd SW) tomorrow afternoon, 2-3:30 pm, for the second annual Great Seattle Seed Swap. It’s free, whether you have seeds to swap or not. Find out more on the Seattle Farm School website (if you haven’t already seen the listing on the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar).
Thanks to everyone who called/texted (206-293-6302 any time) about the big police response outside the burned-out auto shop on the northeast corner of Delridge/Henderson. We just came back from going over to find out what was happening. According to officers at the scene, they were called because of a loud argument/fight between two men, which apparently started up the street and drew attention as the altercation moved toward the arterial. As they arrived, they determined the two knew each other, and that neither was seriously hurt so police were focused mostly on trying to break it up. Some of the SPD cars, and SFD Engine 11, were already leaving as we pulled up.
(UPDATED SUNDAY with details of WSHS’s next game)
(WSB photos: WSHS #20 Grace Sarver)
4:58 PM: As we left the Bellevue College gym following the West Seattle High School girls’ 48-44 loss to Mercer Island this afternoon, WSHS principal Ruth Medsker pointed something out:
The team is exactly where it was at this point last year – taking fourth place in the district playoffs.
The next game, in the “regional round” to winnow the field for the 3A state tournament, is must-win. The Wildcats have at least six days to rest up for it, after the grueling past two weeks of tournament play, which have been rocky, with their only three losses of the year, following an undefeated regular season and a long list of Metro League honors.
Today’s game ended in nerve-wracking fashion for WSHS fans. Things looked a little gloomy at the end of the first quarter, down 20-7. They got within two points and then went into the locker room at the half down 28-24.
Midway through the third quarter, they pulled even at 28-28. But shooting trouble and multiple traveling violations didn’t help their case and they were down four points again at the end of the third. They stepped up the defense to keep the Islanders from pulling away, but even the foul shots weren’t going in. Nonetheless, the battle continued, and within 18 seconds left they were just one basket down, 46-44. Mercer Island took the ball from there, and to keep them from running the clock out, there was nothing to do but foul, and both shots went in. WSHS couldn’t convert after that, and the game ended 48-44.
Today’s top scorers: #32 Lydia Giomi with 22, #30 Lexi Ioane with 10, #20 Gabby Sarver with 5, #21 Grace Sarver with 4, #3 Izzy Turk with 3.
The Wildcats’ next game will be listed here when the regional field is set.
12:16 AM UPDATE: According to the bracket, WSHS will play the defending 3A state champions, undefeated Lynnwood, at regionals, time/location still TBA.
4:49 PM SUNDAY UPDATE: Time and place now set – WSHS will face Lynnwood at 2 pm NOON next Saturday (February 27th) at Mountlake Terrace HS EVERETT COMMUNITY COLLEGE (2000 Tower).
In honor of Parent Education Month, the South Seattle College Cooperative Preschools program is working with the Northwest Wine Academy to host an event with complimentary wine tasting and appetizers plus a parenting seminar, “Tell Me What to Say,” this Wednesday (February 24), 6:30 pm. Here’s what it’s about:
You talk … and talk …to your children, but are your words teaching your children what you want them to learn? Join us in exploring more effective ways to talk to your children and spend a fun, lively evening practicing “what to say” in real life situations.
It’s free, at the NWWA building on the north side of the SSC campus (6000 16th SW), and all are welcome. If you’re interested, register ASAP by e-mailing wscoopevents@gmail.com.
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