West Seattle, Washington
29 Friday
(WSB photo: Crews mobilizing in South Park)
ORIGINAL REPORT, 12:39 PM: Just in from Puget Sound Energy:
A natural gas regulator is having some problems in the Highland Park area in West Seattle. More than 1000 customers are currently without natural gas service. There is no safety issue. Work is under way to fix the problem. Once the gas-system pressure is operating normally, PSE personnel will go door-to-door to inspect the meters and gain entry to re-light furnaces, water heaters and other gas equipment. Most of the customers affected are residential. This situation is not due to a natural gas leak. There is no escaping natural gas.
We’re hearing about some customers out in South Park, too, and are asking PSE about that.
3:06 PM UPDATE: PSE’s Ray Lane tells us the bulk of the outage IS in South Park, though some are affected in Highland Park too. Here’s his latest update:
Approximately 1,120 PSE customers in the South Park area are without natural gas service due to a suspected problem with the gas system pressure equipment.
This means there is not adequate gas pressure in the system to operate equipment, such as furnaces, water heaters and other appliances. The situation is not due to a natural gas leak.
PSE is on site to correct the problem. We have 28 technicians in the field and will be working to shut down gas service to impacted customers. This allows us to reintroduce gas into the system safely. We anticipate having all customers shut off by 8:00 p.m. Once we have tested and stabilized the system, PSE personnel will need to enter homes and businesses to relight equipment. This may not occur until late in the evening. Customers wanting gas restored overnight should leave a front exterior light on. Service crews will be available all night and through tomorrow morning until all customers are restored.
As in any situation, call PSE or 911 immediately if you smell leaking natural gas. For updates, follow us on Twitter.com/PSEtalk or call 888-225-5773. PSE representatives will also be able to answer customer questions at the South Park Playfield at 8th Ave S and South Sullivan Street.
15 days until Thanksgiving Day, but you can do something now to help make it a more festive holiday for local families in need. The White Center Food Bank, whose service area includes part of West Seattle, would be thrilled if you can add at least one to-be-donated turkey to your shopping list:
The holidays are approaching quickly. To help us feed our clients we are asking for you to consider picking up a turkey while doing your shopping.
For us to purchase wholesale turkeys, it is over $1.00 a pound. Many local retailers are offering special deals on turkeys for much less. Look for deals while shopping and pick up a turkey or two and drop them off at the Food Bank Monday-Friday between 9 am-5 pm at 10829 8th Ave SW. Your help is greatly appreciated.
Here’s a map.
(Hummingbird at sunrise, Mount Rainier in the distance: photo from Genesee Hill this week, by Elaine Thompson)
A few of your options for today/tonight, from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:
DINE-OUT BENEFIT AT ENDOLYNE JOE’S: As noted in our school-fundraiser update earlier this morning, until 10 pm tonight, Endolyne Joe’s (WSB sponsor) in Fauntleroy is donating part of its food proceeds to Gatewood Elementary, one of several dine-out benefits Endolyne does each year. (9261 45th SW)
‘LION KING’: Arbor Heights Elementary‘s student performance (and bake sale!) is at 6:30 pm tonight. (37th/104th)
HARBOR SCHOOL OPEN HOUSE: As noted here last week, West Seattle families have a special invitation to visit Vashon Island for tonight’s open house at Harbor School (WSB sponsor), a nonprofit independent school serving grades 4-8. See more info in our calendar listing, and RSVP to see if seats are still available on their special shuttle to/from the ferry dock. (15920 Vashon Highway SW)
CO-EXISTING WITH COYOTES: For the first time in years, local wildlife experts invite you to a briefing/Q-A session in West Seattle. If you are curious and/or concerned about coyotes, don’t just wait for our next coyote update (all our coverage, by the way, is archived here, newest-to-oldest) – come to Camp Long Environmental Learning Center tonight, 7-8:30 pm. (5200 35th SW)
34TH DISTRICT DEMOCRATS: 7 pm tonight at The Hall at Fauntleroy, first post-election meeting; see the agenda here. (9131 California SW)
As always, you’ll see even more by going directly to our calendar!
Today we’re welcoming a new WSB sponsor, AAA Washington. AAA’s West Seattle team wants to make sure you know about everything AAA offers:
AAA Washington has been serving members since 1904. We opened our West Seattle office in 2004 and recently moved to our current location in Jefferson Square. You know us for our legendary emergency roadside assistance and traffic safety advocacy, but AAA offers much more.
Did you know that AAA Washington Insurance Agency is the largest personal-lines insurance agency in the state? Yes, we’re dedicated to helping you find the best coverage for your home, auto, life, boat, RV, and umbrella insurance needs. Three of our best insurance agents – Deb-e, Dane, and Linda – work right in your community. They invite you to come in and talk about your insurance coverage needs, and will provide you with a free insurance review.
AAA Travel is also the largest leisure travel agency in the state. Unlike many travel agencies these days, we don’t charge service fees for cruise or tour packages. Mary and Alison would like to help you make your vacation dreams come true! The West Seattle office Travel Store also offers luggage, travel accessories, destination guides, travel gear with identity theft protection features and many other travel items. Our West Seattle office has two member travel counselors, Kathleen and Debra, who can assist members with trip planning, maps, TripTik routings, and TourBook guides. Our members rave about how helpful our staff is when it is time to pack up the car and hit the road. Need a passport photo? It’ll just take a few minutes. International Driver’s License? We’re the only place in the state that offers them. Foreign currency for your international trip? While you don’t need to be a member to take advantage of all these services and products, members do receive special discounts and benefits.
Our West Seattle staff also wants you to know that giving back to the community and public service is a big part of our DNA at AAA. Through our “Soap for Hope” toiletry donation collection program and similar community outreach programs, we support local charities such as Seattle’s Sojourner Place. Unused toiletry donations (soap, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant, etc.) can be dropped off year-round at the AAA West Seattle office.
The friendly and professional staff at AAA is proud to be a part of the West Seattle community and very pleased to sponsor the West Seattle Blog. We look forward to seeing you soon!
We thank AAA Washington 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.
Two more school fundraisers of note:
DINE OUT TO BENEFIT GATEWOOD ELEMENTARY TODAY/TONIGHT: Endolyne Joe’s (WSB sponsor) is donating 25 percent of its food proceeds from today/tonight to Gatewood Elementary:
It’s on until 10 pm tonight at 9261 45th SW.
‘DINGO’ FOR WEST SEATTLE HS JUNIORS TOMORROW: If you haven’t seen it in our calendar yet, here’s the announcement of this Thursday night fundraiser:
Dessert + Bingo = Dingo!
WHAT is it? It is a FUNdraiser for the WSHS junior class!
WHERE is it? West Seattle High School (in the commons!)
WHEN is it?
November 14 @ 6:30 pm (It’s okay if you’re lateJ)WIN AWESOME RAFFLE PRIZES: Coastal Basket, Tully’s Basket, Movie Night Basket, Golf Basket, Boeing Basket, Spa Basket, Boeing Basket (with 2 Museum of Flight tickets), Bookworm Basket, WSHS Basket, Wakeboard, Mountain Bike
Entrance fee is $7 and includes a bingo card (additional by donation). Bingo lovers of all ages are welcome!
If you have any questions, contact Class President Ellen Salenjus @ ellensalenjus27@gmail.com
Babysitting service available for $5.00 per child
WSHS is at 3000 California SW.
WSHS’s gala next week, Chief Sealth’s gala this week, and six other school fundraisers are listed in our previous roundup – if you haven’t sent word of yours yet, please do, for our next update (and our calendar if it’s a time-specific event) – editor@westseattleblog.com – thanks!
(SCROLL DOWN for ongoing updates)
(East-facing camera on the West Seattle Bridge; see other cams on the WSB Traffic page)
6:34 AM: A crash on the West Seattle Bridge has closed the western end of the westbound direction; one texter tells us vehicles are being diverted off the bridge at the Admiral exit. And according to the scanner, the eastbound side will have to be closed for repairs to the barrier. We’ll continue to monitor.
6:40 AM UPDATE: Here’s the camera view of the west end of the bridge just east of 35th/Fauntleroy, no traffic either way right now, so you’ll have to enter the eastbound bridge from Avalon/Admiral or Delridge:
6:54 AM UPDATE: As you can see in the camera view, the west end of the bridge is now OPEN again.
8:10 AM UPDATE: A comment reminds us that cancellations of the Vashon Water Taxi affect buses headed this way, so just in case this affects you – the Vashon WT has been canceled all morning because of mechanical trouble with the Melissa Ann; no word yet about afternoon prospects.
DOWNTOWN BUS-STOP ALERT: For transit riders downtown who are headed this way:
The bus stop westbound on Columbia St just east of 2nd Av will be closed through Friday, 11/15, at all times, due to construction. During those times, board or exit the RapidRide C Line and Route 125 to Westwood Village, and routes 21 Express to Arbor Heights, 55 to the Admiral District, 56 to Alki, 57 to the Alaska Junction and 120 to Burien at the temporarily relocated stop southbound on 3rd Av just north of Columbia St. Once leaving the stop on 3rd Av at Columbia St, Viaduct buses will operate non-stop via their regular routing.
ADDED 1:10 PM: A traffic alert for the weekend:
If your Saturday plans include a trip to SODO, you can cross the State Route 99 ramps near the stadiums off your list of route options.
Crews working for contractors building the SR 99 tunnel and the South Atlantic Street overpass will close the on-ramp from South Royal Brougham Way and the off-ramp to South Atlantic Street for much of the weekend. The right lane of southbound SR 99 will also be closed south of downtown Seattle. The ramps and lane will reopen two hours before the kickoff of Sunday’s Seahawks game at CenturyLink Field.
Closure details
Friday, Nov. 15 – Sunday, Nov. 17
The right lane of southbound SR 99 between South King and South Atlantic streets, as well as the southbound off-ramp to South Atlantic Street, will be closed from 10 pm. Friday, Nov. 15 to 11 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 17.During the lane and ramp closure, crews will remove steel and timber beams that supported construction of the new South Atlantic Street overpass. The overpass is scheduled to open by the end of 2013.
Saturday, Nov. 16 – Sunday, Nov. 17
The South Royal Brougham Way on-ramp to northbound SR 99 will be closed from 7 a.m. Saturday to 10 a.m. Sunday.
During the closure, crews will install drainage and move a power pole.The overpass and tunnel ramp work are both part of the Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement Program.
2:32 PM UPDATE: Vashon Water Taxi will be back in business this afternoon – with Clipper III replacing Melissa Ann, which is out for repairs.
Family and friends will gather in Kenmore on Saturday to remember 74-year-old Loretta Ann Kirby (Lenning), who grew up in the Lowman Beach area. Her family shares this remembrance:
Loretta passed away peacefully on October 4th, 2013, after a courageous battle with cancer. She graduated from West Seattle High School in 1957 and attended Pacific Lutheran University, where she learned how to waterski and play pinochle. She worked for United Airlines until her retirement in 2004.
She was born to Gladys and Ingvald Lenning and is survived by her husband Bob, and sons Scott Jacobson, Jeff Jacobson, & Mason Kirby, as well as four grandchildren and her sisters, Audrey Lenning Anderson, Margaret Lenning Norberg, along with numerous nieces and nephews.
There will be a Celebration of Life Saturday, November 23, 2013 at 1:00 p.m. at the Inglewood Golf & Country Club in Kenmore. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the American Cancer Society.
(WSB publishes obituaries by request, free of charge. Please e-mail the text, with a photo if available, to editor@westseattleblog.com)
Four reader reports and an update tonight:
BURGLARY: Michael’s home camera system caught that quick clip one week ago, on November 5th, when the two people in the video broke into his home in Upper Morgan. In the video, you see them running into and out of a glass door they broke to get in. The main loot, he says, was money that one of his children had been saving up – it appears they left fast because of Michael’s “ear-piercing alarm.” The telltale hat in the video helped him spot one of the suspects near 35th and Morgan two days later; police were called and while Michael says they didn’t have enough evidence to hold anyone at that time, the case is advancing and he’s hopeful of an eventual conviction.
CATALYTIC CONVERTER STOLEN: From Ray: “Just wanted to alert the neighborhood… The catalytic converter was removed from my truck (Toyota 4-Runner) early Monday morning. It was parked in front of my house but on the street. I was told that the thief used pipe cutters and it only takes a few minutes. We live on 40th/Dakota.”
CAR PROWLS IN ADMIRAL: From someone who wants to remain anonymous:
Monday morning (Nov. 11), when leaving for work, I discovered my car broken into. Incident occured on 2700 block of California Ave, right by Freshy’s Coffee. Note, this appears to be the fourth similar occurrence within a few blocks in just the last two weeks. Our GPS was stolen, loose change stolen, and all car compartments were emptied and strewn about. Our car was locked, it’s a 2004 Ford. This is also the second time our car’s been broken into while parked here. Police report was filed.
POSSIBLE PROWLER: Elizabeth noticed a car driving slowly back and forth along her street (SW Monroe in Gatewood) last night, light-colored boxy sedan, possibly early to mid-nineties Toyota or Honda: “The driver picked up speed pretty quickly when they saw me watching. This is a good reminder that we all need to keep a watch out for unusual activity to prevent crime in our neighborhoods.
OUT OF JAIL: Alan Polevia, the convicted burglar/thief sentenced to six months in jail back in September after serving three months, is out. His release on October 21st carries the note “sentence expiration.” We recorded video of his sentencing hearing September 27th (that report also recaps his lengthy backstory).
Two updates on West Seattle salmon:
FAUNTLEROY CREEK: Two weeks after this fall’s salmon watch began, volunteers report the first sighting. Creek/watershed steward Judy Pickens shared the word that Dennis Hinton had spotted one from the ferry dock, watching the creek mouth. He then elaborated:
Saw the single spawner from the dock at 2:30 pm. Went back down to the ladder with daughter’s dog, Blazer. We watched at the culvert until 4 pm to see if any fish had ventured up the creek. Saw no fish. But saw two river otters approaching the culvert about 4 pm. I’ll bet they can smell the coho coming. Blazer barked and scared the otters away. But bet they’ll be back to get the first pickings.
LONGFELLOW CREEK: We’ve reported twice on spawners spotted in the eastern West Seattle creek. “Diver Laura” James has gone in with a camera for a closer look – some of it was heartening, some not so much:
Laura leads the Tox-Ick.org program teaching people how to reduce polluting, potentially deadly runoff; tonight she is at The Whale Trail‘s Orca Talk on behalf of the program.
(Added: Seattle Times photo by Greg Gilbert, republished with permission)
4:23 PM: The newest ballot count is just in from King County Elections, and the race that has had the city on the edge of its election-watching seat has continued going the challenger’s way: Kshama Sawant now leads incumbent Richard Conlin in the Seattle City Council Position 2 race. Numbers here – 79,751 for Sawant, 79,710 for Conlin:
4:41 PM: If you haven’t been paying close attention, Sawant is a community-college economics teacher who ran as a Socialist. If she wins, she will be the first Socialist member of the Seattle City Council; she would be the fourth woman and second person of color on the current council. She would have to run again in 2015 because of Seattle Charter Amendment 19, which won in a landslide, setting up elections by district for seven of the council’s nine seats, including the creation of West Seattle’s District 1. (A Facebook group is already active for discussing ramifications – find it here.)
Meantime, the numbers from the next batch of ballots will be announced tomorrow around 4:30 pm. As our partners at The Seattle Times note, Sawant had 46 percent of the vote on Election Night, but has been closing the gap daily ever since.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
One of West Seattle’s three state legislators, just back from the short special session in Olympia, shared insights today at a West Seattle Chamber of Commerce-sponsored brown-bag-lunch discussion.
As noted here on Saturday, the session led to approval for extending Boeing tax breaks but inaction on a transportation package that could save Metro from slashing service.
State Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon, a Burien Democrat who’s on the House Transportation Committee, told today’s “Lunch with LEO” (local elected official) gathering at ArtsWest that he didn’t think transportation “was ever likely to get resolved” in this special session: “We’re not close enough to a deal on a transportation package,” between the Democratic-led House and Republican-led Senate. “We have some philosophical differences on things. … The Senate does not believe transit, pedestrian (etc.) is a state responsibility.”
One of West Seattle’s longest-running Thanksgiving traditions is happening again this year – and the official announcement is just in from Tuxedos and Tennis Shoes:
Just wanted to get the word out about our Free Community Thanksgiving Community Meal at The Hall at Fauntleroy this Thanksgiving Day on Thursday November 28th from 12 noon until 3 PM.
All are welcome for a traditional turkey dinner with all the trimmings prepared by Tuxedos and Tennis Shoes Catering Executive Chef Michael Chase. This is the 15th year that Tuxedos and Tennis Shoes owners Meg and David Haggerty and David Meckstroth have hosted this wonderful dinner. They are joined by a wonderful group of volunteers who help greet our welcome guests and serve dinner.
We will gladly accept donations for desserts. This year we are also asking for donations of gently used/clean or new warm clothing such as coats, jackets, scarves, gloves and hats. We are also asking for blankets or throw blankets to be given to our guests in need of them. Desserts and items can be dropped off at the Hall at Fauntleroy on Thanksgiving Day after 10 AM.
We are located at 9131 California Ave SW in the Fauntleroy Community School House across the street from the Fauntleroy YMCA.
If your business, organization, group, school, etc., has an event – including any kind of donation drive – happening this holiday season, please make sure we know about it, for our calendar and the annual WSB West Seattle Holiday Guide, the first draft of which is going “live” within the next few days – thanks!
1:19 PM: That photo shared by Pam in Gatewood shows what she and her neighbors believe are aircraft parts – “metal frame, clear plex of a window” – that fell in their neighborhood within the past hour and a half. Some hit a roof, some turned up in a yard. They’re wondering if anyone else found something similar, and they’re contacting aviation authorities. An eastbound approach to Boeing Field does go over part of Gatewood, and Pam says they heard a plane just before this happened. No injuries reported.
2:27 PM: Per comments, the National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.
Busy night for meetings. Ready to get involved in your neighborhood, if you’re not already? From the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar, our first group of listings features who’s meeting tonight – public welcome, and, the groups will tell you, very much appreciated. These are all-volunteer groups led by your neighbors, and the more people involved, the stronger they are and the more they can do):
HIGH POINT NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION: 6 pm, monthly meeting, Neighborhood House’s High Point Center. (6400 Sylvan Way)
WEST SEATTLE TRANSPORTATION COALITION: 6:30 pm, Neighborhood House’s High Point Center. See the agenda here. (6400 Sylvan Way)
JUNCTION NEIGHBORHOOD ORGANIZATION: 6:30 pm, Senior Center of West Seattle. (California/Oregon)
ADMIRAL NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION: 7 pm, lower-level meeting room on south side of Admiral Congregational Church. (California/Hill)
FAUNTLEROY COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION: 7 pm, conference room at Fauntleroy Schoolhouse. (9131 California SW)
Also happening tonight:
VOLUNTEER AT WESTSIDE BABY: 6-9 pm Tuesday nights, you are invited to come help WestSide Baby help thousands of local babies, children, and their families! Details here.
STORYTELLING/OPEN MIKE AT CHACO CANYON: 6 pm, details in our calendar listing. (3770 SW Alaska)
STUDENT STORYTELLERS: 6:30 pm at Dubsea Coffee in Greenbridge, students from on-the-rise White Center Heights Elementary School make their storytelling debut. (9910 8th SW)
DENNY INTERNATIONAL MIDDLE SCHOOL PTSA: 7 pm, with a featured presentation on how to help your middle-schooler get ready for success in high school; more info in the calendar listing. (2601 SW Kenyon)
SOLD-OUT ORCA TALK: Just a note in case you were hoping to get a ticket at the door – The Whale Trail‘s Orca Talk at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor) tonight is sold out. (If you don’t already have a ticket, watch TWT’s site for video to follow.)
Even MORE of what’s up today/tonight can be found on our calendar.
(East-facing camera on the West Seattle Bridge; see other cams on the WSB Traffic page)
Back to post-holiday normalcy. We start with two reminders:
STREET-TREE PLANTING: Today’s the day the city plans to start planting new street trees along sections of California SW and Fauntleroy Way, as detailed here.
WEST SEATTLE TRANSPORTATION COALITION TONIGHT: This all-volunteer group, determined to advocate for this area’s distinct transportation needs, can’t do it without you, so they’re inviting you to come find out tonight how you can help along some very specific lines. 6:30 pm at Neighborhood House’s High Point Center, 6400 SW Sylvan Way.
Updates as the day goes…
5:45 PM: Crash reported on southbound I-5 just before the West Seattle Bridge exit.
Thanks to Angelique for sharing the photo of a coyote spotted in her neighbor’s yard near Delridge/Willow (map). Hard to tell from the photo, but from a video clip she also sent (see it here), it was seen in mid-meal, and the main course looked to Angelique like a raccoon.
The photo gives us another reason to remind you about Wednesday night’s event at Camp Long Environmental Learning Center – the first time in years that you have a chance to come learn (and ask) about coexisting with coyotes – safely for you and for them. Here’s the announcement again:
Living with Coyotes in Seattle
Coyotes live in our neighborhoods and we humans can learn to live with them. Camp Long and the WA Dept. of Fish and Wildlife team up to give tips and insight into co-existing safely with these wild dogs. Learn how they live and how humans can avoid and resolve conflict with them.
Camp Long Lodge
Wednesday, November 13th
7 PM to 8:30 PM
FREE
Camp Long’s entrance is at 5200 35th SW.
(UPDATED TUESDAY AFTERNOON: City confirms, comment deadline extended to Nov. 27th)
Last Saturday, we updated the saga of 6917 California SW, the 30-units, no-parking building proposed for part of what’s currently the site of three old houses in south Morgan Junction, with 2 houses and 4 townhouses on the rest of the site. The deadline for comments is Wednesday; formal requests have been filed for a two-week extension, but there’s no official confirmation yet. And neighbors are organizing: They are seeking signatures on an online petition via change.org – see it here – and also circulating a flyer:
The project currently requires no public meetings; that’s part of what neighbors hope to change. We first reported on the project four weeks ago, after discovering it in city files even before the land-use-application sign went up. Official comments on the proposal can be sent by following the instructions on the official notice
ADDED TUESDAY AFTERNOON: We now have multiple confirmations, including one from the city, that the comment deadline for this project has been extended to November 27th.
Just before sunset, one final solemn ceremony on this Veterans Day: Scout Troop 375, based in Burien, came to Alki for a formal flag-retirement ceremony. More than two dozen people joined them.
With flames and Taps, as per tradition, the flag was taken out of service.
The troop and Scoutmaster Mark Ufkes had invited community members to bring flags for a future retirement event; some did. (No date set yet.)
(WSB photo added 8:37 pm)
7:26 PM: Seattle Police say (via scanner) they’re closing Admiral Way between 47th and 49th after a vehicle hit a pole. No word of serious injuries, but “the pole is ready to come down,” one officer warned. More to come.
7:53 PM: Seattle City Light is on scene. The impact actually detached the pole at its base; no word how long the road will be closed. The driver apparently was not seriously hurt, but was being questioned by police.
11:29 PM: Still closed, per commenters.
Yet more updates on West Seattle development plans – this time, focused around the Design Review process:
3078 AVALON WAY ‘PACKET’ FOR NEXT DESIGN REVIEW: As reported here last month, 3078 SW Avalon Way goes back to the Southwest Design Review Board on November 21st, more than a year after its Early Design Guidance meeting (WSB coverage here). Today’s update is that the “packet” containing the newest plan for this ~100-apartment, ~60-parking-space project is now available online. Its text notes that the adjacent, almost identical project (3062 Avalon) has been canceled:
Soon after the September 13 [2012] EDG meeting, Caron Architecture was approached to design a second building on the three parcels to the north of this project. That project under DPD # 3014100, was slated to be designed concurrently with this proposal, 3013303. The schedule for this proposed project was slightly delayed so the two project schedules could synchronized. Both MUP sets were submitted within weeks of each other but the buildings were placed on hold by the owners during the MUP review period due to a myriad of factors, and the application for the other project was eventually cancelled. The decision was made late summer to continue the moving forward with this project only. Comments and concerns raised through the design review process for both buildings have been incorporated into this design, although only the EDG report for this project is specifically addressed in this presentation.
The review of 3078 SW Avalon Way is at 8 pm Thursday, November 21st, at the Senior Center of West Seattle, right after the 6:30 pm review of 3210 California SW (the meeting “packet” for that project is not yet available).
4535 44TH SW DESIGN REVIEW: Since our report that the city has scheduled a special public-comment meeting November 19th after being petitioned by neighbors concerned about this 36-unit, no-parking project in The Junction, there’s yet another date set: It’s going back before the SW Design Review Boardat 6:30 pm December 5th, also at the Senior Center of WS. The formal notice isn’t out yet but it’s listed on the city schedule. (Here’s our coverage of its previous SWDRB review back in May.)
3400 SW GRAHAM DESIGN REVIEW, BUT NO MEETING: We reported two weeks ago about the new development proposal for part of High Point’s long-in-flux site at 35th/Graham – 36 townhouses, 9 single-family houses. It is now scheduled for Administrative Design Review – which means no public meeting, but public comments will be accepted. The formal notice is scheduled to go out this Thursday, with comments accepted until November 27th. If you want to comment before that, send yours to the city planner assigned to the project, Tami Garrett, at tami.garrett@seattle.gov.
Thanks to Arrowhead Gardens for inviting WSB to their Veterans Day observance, which featured an Honor Guard from Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Pierce County. The Honor Guard brought and raised a flag:
The event included residents parading around the grounds to and from the flagpole:
Their commemoration also included a poetry reading.
(P.S. In case you wondered – we did! – here’s how to ask JBLM about providing visitors like these for an off-base event.)
If you haven’t taken the quick and easy online step of checking to see whether your ballot from last week’s election was received and validated, you might consider doing it now. 
You’ve probably heard that one City Council contest has narrowed dramatically since the original Election Night count – Position 2 incumbent Richard Conlin and challenger Kshama Sawant are now 1,237 votes apart, – and the ballot-counting isn’t over yet, so it could come down to a handful of votes.
Both campaigns have suggested that while we await the next round of ballot totals tomorrow, you check to make sure your ballot has been counted. It can get lost on its way to Elections HQ; one West Seattleite tells us his was dropped into a box at the Junction post office on Election Day – but came back marked “return to sender.” He contacted King County Elections and received an e-mail reply explaining that he needed to bring it in ASAP; the reply included, “We have heard of this happening to other voters …” Other things that can go awry include the possibility your signature wasn’t validated (happened to us a couple elections ago). Don’t wait to see if yours turns up back on your doorstep. Just go here – it’s really quick.
On this day during which we honor those who have served – a nod also to those who supported their efforts back home, including the women who became known during World War II as “Rosie the Riveters.” Five years ago, West Seattle “Rosies” had their first meeting. 
Then, this past September, we reported organizer Georgie Bright Kunkel‘s search for more “Rosies”; today, we’re publishing her update:
The Rosie the Riveter group in West Seattle is up and running again. The announcement in the blog brought several new Rosies forward. Since not all Rosies are computer-techie, their offspring might have to reply. So if your mother was a Rosie the Riveter during WWII, please contact Georgie Bright Kunkel at 206-935-8663 for more information. Or e-mail gnkunkel@comcast.net.
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