West Seattle, Washington
26 Friday
Update on a community fundraising effort first mentioned here last month, to help Jasmin Egan, a West Seattle native and mom of 3 fighting leukemia. This Thursday is the night you can go to Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor) and not only have a good time with some great music – Rocky Votolato is performing a special live acoustic set! – but also bid for some spectacular silent-auction items. Sarah, who’s organizing the benefit, points out for one thing, golfers might want to come bid for BIG items including a 6-day, 5-night golf trip to Maui (at the Kapalua Golf Villas) and “a chance to golf at the famous Lakeside Golf Club in California with Kiefer Sutherland, Oscar De La Hoya, and PGA pro Duffy Waldorf.” Other silent-auction items have been donated by more than 20 businesses in the area – listed at the bottom of the official flyer. Drop by The Feedback on Thursday night, any time after 6:30 pm.
(WS high/low bridges and Highway 99 views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
7:02 AM: Good morning! Freezing (or just below) temps out there again today, but it’s going to start warming up. No trouble reported in our area so far.
8:34 AM: Had trouble with an ORCA card reader this morning? Jeremy and Colleen did (see Twitter exchanges below), and Metro says it’ll check that out:
@kcmetrobus @westseattleblog looks like many (all?) curbside ORCA readers in West Seattle are busted ("UNIT FAULTY")
— Jeremy Kahn (@trochee) December 2, 2014
9:04 AM: Thanks to Flint for sharing this video of the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth ferry, time-lapsed to a minute and a half:
This was recorded in the Monday sunshine.
Remember those wild waves at Alki on Saturday?
(Saturday photo by Long Bach Nguyen)
(More video/photos here.) Monday, it was cleanup time at Statue of Liberty Plaza:
(WSB photo)
We spotted those workers while catching a quick view of the USS John C. Stennis. Later, David Hutchinson shared a clearer look at what Seattle Parks had to pick up:
One inch of sand, David points out. Plus plenty of driftwood:
The afternoon high tides for the next few days are about as high as they were over the weekend – but without the strong north winds and extra stormwater, they’re just, well, high tides.
The person who e-mailed us this report asked to remain anonymous; it was reported to police, and we see an incident number logged. Though we won’t be able to follow up with them until tomorrow, here’s the reader report, just so you know:
I went up Thistle about 5:45ish and turned right onto 30th; there stood a white guy with his pants pulled down to expose his “nether region,” standing by a newish gray Ram 4×4 with license plate B83…didn’t catch the rest.
My kids screamed, “he’s got his pants down!” so I did a U-Turn when I saw him pull up his pants AFTER I drove by and yank them down again when another car behind me went by. I turned around to get the license # etc. After he did this AGAIN, I turned around again to call 911; then he got in and drove away. I was headed to Target so I was behind him anyway and told them where he drove. He turned right on Trenton.
(WSB photos by Patrick Sand)
6:11 PM: We’re at Neighborhood House’s High Point Center, where Seattle Public Schools‘ interim superintendent Dr. Larry Nyland is about to start a “coffee hour” chat with community members. The district has just announced a one-week delay in the board’s vote on whether to offer him the permanent job – a sudden move that turned up in the agenda for Wednesday night’s board meeting. Under the new plan, the proposal will be introduced on Wednesday, then voted on during a separate special meeting one week later, 4:30 pm December 10th; details are on the district’s home page. (Comments? e-mail schoolboard@seattleschools.org )
Meantime, we’re covering tonight’s meeting (which will be followed at 7 pm by a community-conversation meeting with local school-board rep Marty McLaren, who is in the audience right now), and will add toplines as it goes.
6:31 PM: About 15 minutes into the Q/A, nothing about the superintendent’s job, but the first bit of news emerges:
5:21 PM: We’re at the scene of what was dispatched as an “assault with weapons” call in the 6000 block of 17th SW in Puget Ridge. Early word from police is that they suspect it’s a self-inflicted gunshot wound, but they are still investigating.
5:41 PM: One public-safety official tells us the victim did not survive.
(As always when mentioning suicide, we want to point out a local resource for those considering self-harm or otherwise in crisis: The Crisis Clinic has a 24-hour hotline, 206-461-3222.)
(Photo by Long Bach Nguyen – densifying Avalon Way SW is at center)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Appeals of city development decisions aren’t uncommon.
Rulings in favor of the appellants are.
(Keep in mind, the Hearing Examiner has to give more weight to the city’s original decisions, meaning challengers have steep hills to climb.)
Today, the West Seattle-based group Seattle NERD (Neighbors Encouraging Reasonable Development) is celebrating one of those rare rulings – reversing the city’s Design Review and Determination of (environmental) Non-Significance (DNS) decisions regarding a ~100-apartment building proposed for 3078 SW Avalon Way.
As Paul Haury exulted via e-mail, “We won! 2+ years and tens of thousands later. We won! A neighborhood that pulled together prevailed.”
We covered the three major days of testimony and presentation in the appeal hearing earlier this fall (here, here, and here).
A key point of contention regarding the DNS was one of West Seattle’s most-contentious current issues, parking impacts; this building is proposed with about 60 spaces, and is within a block of one built and two planned “microhousing” projects totaling about 200 living units with no planned offstreet parking.
You can see Hearing Examiner Sue Tanner‘s full ruling here as a PDF, or below:
We are still reading it and will add more to this story shortly.
ADDED 4:36 PM: First, note that this is not a ruling against development on the site. It is a ruling in favor of the challenges to specific decisions made during the process, and sending them back for reconsideration. We have asked DPD for comment on the decision and information on what happens next.
Reading the entirety of the 16-page ruling, key points from the Hearing Examiner’s conclusions, which start on page 11:
After a car break-in over the weekend, Aidan is just hoping to get one thing back:
Saturday night (last night) our mini cooper was broken into in the Skylark Cafe/Bar parking lot. … They took my messenger bag and my coat, which had a number of things in it – a Surface tablet, my iPod, cash, etc. I’d just been picked up from the airport for Thanksgiving & went immediately to our friend’s band’s show at Skylark. … I’m messaging you because there was a black journal/sketchbook in the bag that is incredibly important to me. It’s a yearly book and I’ve had one per year since I was sixteen (aka over ten years). I will pay to have it returned. The inside of the book has my name and contact number/email all over it.
My boyfriend and I returned there (Sunday) morning to pick around the area to see if whoever broke into our car threw it to the ground or the dumpsters nearby, or anything like that, but we didn’t see it. The messenger bag was very important to me as well. Neither of these are worth any money to anyone except for me – the bag was made for me by a very good friend – and I’m more than willing to pay for them back!!!
We followed up with Aidan to ask for any further descriptive information:
Read More
(WSB photo)
1:19 PM: Thanks to Joseph for the tip – he just asked about an aircraft carrier seen heading out from Bremerton; according to our friends at the Kitsap Sun, it’s the USS John C. Stennis, headed out for training after 16 months and $240 million of maintenance work at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard.
2:07 PM: Thanks also to those who’ve sent photos! First one added (top photo) is ours – it was still in view from Alki, looking north, by the time we headed downhill, but moving fast. Others got even better views:
(Photo by James Bratsanos)
Adding a few more. The Kitsap Sun reports the Stennis will be back before Christmas.
Three months ago, we brought you the news that Zippy’s Giant Burgers planned to open a second location in Georgetown. Today, it’s open, weeks earlier than expected, a good thing for Zippy’s fans because the unplanned closure of their White Center location continues – they’re still working on repairs for a key piece of equipment that broke down last week. The Georgetown location is at 5633 Airport Way South (map).
ADDED: Zippy’s expects to reopen White Center on Thursday (December 4) morning.
(Saturday photo courtesy of Michelle)
We’re following up today on the big fire that gutted a unit at a waterfront apartment building in the 3800 block of Beach Drive this past Saturday (WSB coverage here):
FIRE’S CAUSE: Seattle Fire spokesperson Kyle Moore tells WSB that investigators still have not determined how it started.
FIREFIGHTER’S CONDITION: As reported on Saturday, a firefighter had to go to the hospital Saturday for treatment of unspecified injuries. Moore says he was treated and released the same day.
FAMILY’S REQUEST: Kindhearted community members asked in comments here (and in the neighborhood) if they could do anything to help the family whose apartment was gutted. Patricia, who lived there with daughter Amanda, says there is ONE thing they do need help with:
Thank you so much for everyone’s concern and offers of help. We are truly blessed at the response of both friends and strangers to this disaster. We are doing well and have temporary housing, and mom has a permanent place coming up, but what is really needed right now is long-term housing for my 27-year-old daughter who was staying with me at the time of the fire and also lost absolutely everything. She works in West Seattle and needs a long-term, affordable place to live. If anybody has any ideas, that would be greatly appreciated! Thank you again for the outpouring of support… It means everything at a time like this! I can be reached at raisen@chico.com
The Red Cross was called in to help the family right after the fire; here’s an explanation of how that works.
(Junco, photographed by Trileigh Tucker)
Our featured photos today were shared over the weekend after our brief snowfall – but also serve as a reminder to check your bird bath(s) and feeder(s) on behalf of our winged friends, since temperatures have been (mostly) freezing/subfreezing for going on two days now. Meantime, from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar and Holiday Guide:
TRASH/RECYCLING/ETC. RATES: Today’s 2 pm City Council meeting at City Hall downtown includes a final vote on rate increases for trash/recycling/yard waste and other solid-waste services – see the tables in the legislation. (600 Fourth Ave.)
HOLIDAY COOKIE DECORATING: Check to see if there’s room left in this 6 pm workshop at Salty’s on Alki (WSB sponsor) – details including contact info for reservations are in our calendar listing. (1936 Harbor SW)
(Hummingbird, photographed by Karen Richter)
INTERIM SUPERINTENDENT ‘COFFEE CHAT’: As previewed here earlier this morning, interim Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Larry Nyland, now suddenly up for the permanent job, will be at Neighborhood House’s High Point Center, 6-7 pm, for a community “coffee chat,” scheduled before the new development regarding his status. (6400 Sylvan Way)
SCHOOL BOARD REP’S COMMUNITY CONVERSATION: In addition to joining Dr. Nyland during his “chat,” West Seattle’s school-board rep Marty McLaren will have one of her periodic community-conversation meetings immediately afterward, 7 pm, also at High Point Center. (6400 Sylvan Way)
WEST SEATTLE HI-YU: The summer festival’s work is never done, and they’d love to have your help and participation. Just stop by tonight’s monthly meeting, 7 pm at Admiral Congregational Church. (California/Hill)
(Hummingbird, photographed by Debbie Runke)
NIGHTLIFE: Trivia, pub quiz, karaoke … see the individual venues/listings on our calendar.
HOLIDAY GUIDE: Tonight – see the lights now that the major displays are all on! They’re part of what you’ll find in our guide, along with tree-lot locations, upcoming holiday parties/tree lightings/open houses/Santa photos/concerts, and more … we’re updating it at least once daily as events and schedules continue to be added.
(WS high/low bridges and Highway 99 views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
6:57 AM: Good morning. It’s a cold post-Thanksgiving-weekend Monday morning – below freezing, so be careful of icy spots that might be lingering from the weekend, including sidewalks and planting strips as well as some roadsides that have been in the shade. (If you were out of town – in review, we had an inch-plus of rain Friday, followed by a temperature drop and about half an inch of snow Saturday morning, though the north-wind-fueled Alki surf eclipsed it visually.) No major problems in or from West Seattle, so far.
7:56 AM: Of note, the “low bridge” has opened for vessel traffic twice in the past 40 minutes, as logged via @SDOTbridges.
What was originally billed as a “coffee chat” tonight in West Seattle with Seattle Public Schools‘ interim superintendent Dr. Larry Nyland is suddenly being seen through a different prism: The School Board has decided to vote Wednesday on offering him the permanent job, rather than conducting a search to find candidates. The district didn’t even make an announcement – instead, the planned vote simply turned up on the meeting agenda published just before the long holiday weekend; it was first spotted and reported by Melissa Westbrook via her Seattle Schools Community Forum website.
West Seattle’s board member Marty McLaren has offered her explanation of why she supports giving Nyland the permanent job; if you didn’t see it via her mailing list, you can read it on her website. McLaren writes of Nyland, a former Marysville superintendent, that “in his 16 weeks in his job, he has demonstrated strong leadership, integrity, vast competence in his role, and deep awareness of the importance of relationships, among other vital skills.” If you want to ask her about this, or other current issues – such as the boundary-change concerns – she will be having a community-conversation meeting right after the superintendent’s “chat,” same location, which is Neighborhood House’s High Point Center (6400 Sylvan Way) – his meeting is 6-7 pm, hers starts at 7.
And if you’re interested in signing up to speak at Wednesday’s School Board meeting, signups start at 8 this morning, as explained on the right side of this document.
When 9-year-old Miles Trius returns to school at Our Lady of Guadalupe after Thanksgiving break, he has something big to talk about: His second half-marathon. The Seattle Marathon half-marathon on Sunday was the second half-marathon Miles has run with his dad, Navy Chief Ernesto Trius, who says they have run together for the past year and a half. Miles “looks forward to a marathon in his future when he is able to compete (age 12).” He runs cross-country/track for OLG in CYO Athletics. According to the Seattle Marathon online results, Miles finished in 2:17:39.
Tonight was the first night for the 2014 edition of the Menashe Family’s big, bright Christmas lights (5605 Beach Drive SW). You can certainly admire the densely decorated display from down the block, or driving by, but you’ll want to walk right up to see and hear it all.
That includes listening to your fellow light-watchers, who might be heard asking such questions as “Where do they store all this during the year?” But mostly, what we heard were exclamations of wonder. See why, ahead:
Quick note looking ahead to next weekend, as this one concludes: The southbound Alaskan Way Viaduct is scheduled to be closed overnight next Saturday night, from 11:59 pm December 6th until about 5 am December 7th, according to the newest “construction lookahead.” The reason for the closure between the Battery Street Tunnel and the West Seattle Bridge is described as “… crews remov(ing) a crane from the adjacent job site.”
(WSB photo by Tracy Record)
6:14 PM: Westbound Roxbury is closed between 15th and 16th SW (map) after a hit-run crash that sent a woman to the hospital. Police told us at the scene that she was in the crosswalk when hit by what witnesses describe as a blue SUV. The road closure will last a while, since the Traffic Collision Investigation Squad has been called in. We don’t yet know the victim’s condition or age; the initial callout was on the 911 log as a simple medic response, but readers (thank you) alerted us to a major police presence and crime tape across the road, so we went over to find out what had happened. If you have any information about this crash, please call 911.
(WSB photo by Patrick Sand)
8:15 PM: That section of road was still closed when we went back over about 15 minutes ago; TCIS is on scene doing its work. At this point we might not be able to get any more information until tomorrow; we’ll add an update when the road reopens tonight.
9:22 PM: Police have just announced (as monitored via scanner) that the road is open again.
MONDAY 10:58 AM UPDATE: We’re following up today with SPD and SFD. We’ve heard back from the latter, with spokesperson Kyle Moore telling us the woman is 35 years old and was in stable condition when taken to the hospital, where she was to be checked for possible serious internal injuries. (That’s all the information we will get about her without knowing her name, so if anyone reading this knows how she is doing, please consider either commenting, or e-mailing us at editor@westseattleblog.com – thank you.)
One week left to build your gingerbread house for the competition at the first-ever Holly Jolly Holiday Fest, presented next Sunday afternoon (December 7th) at The Sanctuary at Admiral, by the Admiral Neighborhood Association. Two divisions, with a prize for each! Build your creation ahead of time and bring it in for judging – here are the rules:
As previewed here earlier this week, the noon-4 pm holiday extravaganza also will include Santa photo ops, holiday music, a craft bazaar, treats … admission free! The Sanctuary, itself a beautiful (city-landmarked) sight to see, is at on the northeast corner of California/Lander.
While we have soccer on our minds (go, Sounders!) – a local update: Congratulations to the West Seattle Soccer Club‘s Girls U14 Team Streak and coach Rob McAllister, who shared the news of their recent tournament win. The girls went undefeated in the annual pre-Thanksgiving Turkey Shoot in Mukilteo.
P.S. Next round of WSSC registration starts February 1st for the spring season – keep an eye on westseattlesoccer.org.
(WSB photo by Patrick Sand)
We hope you’re finding a multitude of reasons to shop at your local independent small businesses this holiday season (as well as the rest of the year!). Continuing our spotlight on many of those reasons, we stopped by West Seattle Fabric Company (in The Admiral District at 2210 California SW) this weekend after proprietor Monica Skov sent word that she’s added giftable merchandise “because not everybody sews” (you’ll see that on the sidewalk sign outside). The items she’s posing with are among the added lines – we found the beach-walking exhortation especially appropriate because we stopped in just after revisiting those wild waves at Alki. WSFC is open until 4 today, and expects to add more non-sewing “gifts and goods” in the days ahead, including West Seattle-themed merchandise.
P.S. Watch our West Seattle Holiday Guide for an ongoing list of shopping notes and highlights (including some local businesses’ online deals, too) as well as for the list of open houses still to come (if yours isn’t listed yet, send us info, plain-text e-mail at editor@westseattleblog.com).
11:34 AM: Orcas are back in Puget Sound today, and might be visible off West Seattle soon. After tips to a sighting off Kingston at midmorning – thanks to our friends at Killer Whale Tales and The Whale Trail for early alerts – we’re seeing mentions via Orca Network FB commenters that they’ve been seen from Discovery Park, still “trending southbound.” Expert advice for today includes using binoculars to watch from bluffs, rather than on the surface. Please let us know if you see them – comment here, or text/voice 206-293-6302; we’ll be looking too.
1:08 PM UPDATE: By multiple reports, including Gary‘s comment here, they’ve turned back northward just as they got close to our area … for now.
The Puget Sound Clean Air Agency has announced a Stage 1 burn ban for King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties starting at 1 pm today and continuing until further notice. That means no use of fireplaces or uncertified woodstoves, unless you have a “previously approved ‘No Other Adequate Source of Heat’ designation from PSCAA,” and no outdoor fires of any kind.
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