TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Thursday on the move

(Live view from the east-facing WS Bridge camera; other cameras are on the WSB Traffic page)
Here as always is the bridge-camera view, as the commute begins.

Video: Congratulations, Chief Sealth IHS Class of 2013!

Our area’s 2013 high-school graduations wrapped up Wednesday night with the Chief Sealth International High School Class of 2013 ceremony at Southwest Athletic Complex, right across the street from the school.

That’s Seattle Public Schools Superintendent José Banda, concluding his first year on the job, helping send off Sealth’s more than 250 graduates. In the stands, celebratory signs included this beyond-life-size photo:

And graduation night didn’t just mean farewell for the students – longtime assistant principal Lupe Barnes is retiring:

According to the program, this year’s Sealth grads were awarded more than 400 scholarships.

Video: Congratulations, West Seattle High School Class of 2013!

Congratulations to the more than 240 members of the West Seattle High School Class of 2013, now on to their post-high-school lives after Wednesday evening’s graduation ceremony at Southwest Athletic Complex. And congratulations, too, to the adults who helped them along their way:

On behalf of the district, West Seattle’s school-board member Marty McLaren accepted the class:

According to the Westside Weekly newsletter, this year’s graduating class had a record number of scholarships and awards (listed here):

While seniors finished classes last Friday, this coming Friday is the final day of school for everybody else.

West Seattle Crime Watch: Shots fired, nobody hurt

No injuries or arrests reported in a shots-fired incident tonight in the Ocean View area. So far the only official police information is from a tweet, but Tom has sent a firsthand report and photo of one of the casings found afterward:

At around 8:30 pm (tonight), a silver Acura Integra (with spoiler) stopped at the south end of 37th Ave SW where it meets 35th Ave SW. Inside the vehicle was a couple having a heated argument, drawing the attention of neighbors. They then continued north on 37th Ave SW and stopped a few houses south of the intersection of 37th Ave SW and SW Ocean View Drive where the argument continued and the male driver exited the vehicle and fired 7 shots in rapid succession into the air, leaving 9mm shell casings in the street. By this time the female was in the driver’s seat and noticed a neighbor looking out the window and warned the male to get back in the car, at which point they drove away from the scene eastbound on SW Ocean View Drive. SPD arrived and took statements including good descriptions of the 2 persons involved, and the car. No one was able to see the license plate.

Followup: Alan Polevia held on $35,050 bail after Arbor Heights arrest

(Tuesday photo by WSB’s Patrick Sand)
One day after police arrested 32-year-old Alan Polevia in Arbor Heights, he remains jailed in lieu of $35,050 bail, and we have more information about what police found when they arrested him after rousting him from a hiding place. $10,050 of the bail is because of warrants that were out for Polevia’s arrest, including his failure to appear to answer charges of burglary and theft filed last March. Then a judge set $25,000 more bail at a hearing today, in connection with a possible firearms charge. We have obtained the probable-cause document in relation to that, and it outlines what we first reported yesterday – that he was spotted riding a bike with another one “attached” to it, and had multiple bags. An alert neighbor spotted him and called police to report suspicious behavior. Though that neighbor had lost track of him by the time police arrived, another one had seen him and taken photos of him and the bicycles; she helped police track him down at the house where he was eventually found “under the house, in the crawl space, under the flood wrap, in a small dug-out hole.” Those photos show him with the bags – in which police say they found:

*Carbon-loaded pellet gun
*2 fully loaded Glock 40-caliber magazines in a leather magazine holster (loaded with hollow-point bullets)
*132 Winchester Wildcat 22-caliber bullets
*8 Trapmax shotgun cartridges
*17 Peters brand 30=30 rifle rounds

King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office spokesperson Ian Goodhew tells WSB they have until Friday to decide whether to file new charges. He adds that Polevia will go before a judge in connection with the warrants, too, and says his office will argue for him to be kept in custody rather than released, given his history – even before the burglary/theft charges were filed last March (in connection with this September incident) he had been on the run after escaping from police at Harborview Medical Center while handcuffed.

Video: 34th District Democrats endorse Ed Murray for mayor

(State Sen. Ed Murray, right, speaking with four local political leaders at his side)
We’re at the 34th District Democrats‘ biggest meeting of the year – 139 voting members here, making endorsements for the year’s big races, starting with Seattle Mayor.

SEATTLE MAYOR: Five of the nine candidates were nominated to be in the running for the endorsement. They spoke in this order: St. Sen. Ed Murray, Peter Steinbrueck, Mayor Mike McGinn, Councilmember Bruce Harrell, Kate Martin. (Video added:)

The first two drew no speakers in opposition; a 34th member identifying himself as a longshoreman spoke against McGinn because of his arena support, and McGinn defended the plan – “There (will be) union jobs building it, and union jobs working there’ – which otherwise had not been mentioned. A woman who spoke against Harrell accused him of not coming to neighborhoods except when he’s campaigning. Speaking in rebuttal, Councilmember Harrell apologized for disappointing her, after a defender countered the allegation. No one spoke against Martin. Now, we’re waiting for the vote and results.

8:01 pm update: Murray 1st, McGinn 2nd after the first ballot. So there’s a 2nd ballot. To get a solo endorsement, one will have to win 60% of the next vote.

8:22 pm update: On the second ballot, Sen. Murray gets 70 percent, Mayor McGinn 30 percent. Sole endorsement for Murray, a former West Seattleite.

SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL: First up, position 2, with incumbent Richard Conlin taking the floor first. “I really want to do some great things for West Seattle, great things for the region,” he says, having arrived moments earlier – another LD has an endorsement meeting tonight on the other side of the city, it seems. Challenger Brian Carver follows. … Mike O’Brien speaks but his challenger Albert Shen doesn’t get here in time to … 8:20 pm update: Conlin is endorsed. … 8:32 pm update: O’Brien is endorsed.

BLOCK ENDORSEMENT: In a block “yes” vote toward the start of the meeting, the 34th endorsed a slate including Seattle Councilmembers Sally Bagshaw and Nick Licata, City Attorney Pete Holmes, the King County Parks levy, County Sheriff John Urquhart, Port Commission members John Creighton and Courtney Gregoire (see the full block slate here).

MEETING ADJOURNED … just before 9 pm. We have video from the mayoral candidates’ speeches and are processing it now. The primary election, by the way, is August 6th. And before the 2009 primary, datapoint, the 34th gave a dual endorsement in the mayor’s race to McGinn and then-incumbent Greg Nickels.

Congratulations, South Seattle Community College Class of 2013!

June 12, 2013 5:54 pm
|    Comments Off on Congratulations, South Seattle Community College Class of 2013!
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

From five 17-year-olds to one 62-year-old, 864 people received degrees or certificates in today’s South Seattle Community College (WSB sponsor) graduation ceremony. SSCC’s communications director Kevin Maloney says Benaroya Hall downtown was packed for the big event this afternoon, and shared the photo. Their commencement speaker was Geo Quibuyen from the hip-hop group the Blue Scholars, the Town Hall Seattle artist-in-residence for the past three months. Congratulations, graduates!

P.S. Coverage coming up later from tonight’s two high-school graduations.

West Seattle road work: California SW repaving next week south of Morgan Junction

Just in from SDOT:

Next week, a Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) paving crew will be working on California Avenue SW between SW Myrtle Street and SW Frontenac Street. On Tuesday and Wednesday, June 18 – 19, between the hours of 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., the crew will grind down and then repave the street surface. There will be no parking in the work zone. Sidewalks and crosswalks will remain open. During the work, the roadway will be reduced to two lanes and bicyclists will merge with vehicle traffic. Motorists should expect delays moving through the area.

Happening now: Council committee takes up ‘Nickelsville’ site

2:10 PM: If you click the “play” button above, it’ll take you to the live feed from City Hall, where the City Council’s Housing, Human Services, Health, and Culture Committee is starting its meeting, with the agenda including an item on the “Nickelsville” site. More to come.

2:18 PM: Public comment is beginning. Those who speak can address anything coming up on the agenda. The first two speakers voiced support for SHARE, the organization that runs shelters around the city. The third, Trace De Garmo, is speaking specifically to Nickelsville: “If you want to speed up our move now, please temporarily provide us with water and electricity hookups.” He says they want two religiously controlled sites, for up to two years, to house up to 200 people. The committee’s chair, Councilmember Nick Licata, is questioning him to verify that Nickelsville has not yet found such sites. The next person says Nickelsville found out about the 7 councilmembers’ “close it by September 1st” letter when media crews started showing up later Monday. She is reading its official response letter – see it here, or here:

Nickelsville response to City Council

The next person says shutting Nickelsville down “would be doing a great disservice” to the city as well as to the encampment itself; followed by another person who says “Nickelsville is badly needed” because of the shelter shortage, and mentions Nickelsville’s vision of being an “eco-village.” Dorli Rainey, speaking next, tells the council, “What you are doing is splitting families.” The next speaker says he is ashamed of having to turn people away from shelters.

A representative of the Low-Income Housing Institute next tells the council they are considering making land available for an encampment. She is followed by a woman who says she supports homeless people but has seen problems with SHARE and has tried to talk with the city – which contracts with SHARE – about it, but contends no one will do anything about it.

2:47 PM: Another commenter points out the police presence at City Hall and is contentiously accusing the council of being unfair to the homeless people who have spoken. Minutes later, public comment ends, and the chambers are all but clearing, though Licata reminds everyone that the Nickelsville-related item is coming up third on the agenda.

3:04 PM: The committee is now discussing the Nickelsville-related item – which isn’t up for a vote, but more a decision on which way they want to proceed. Outside City Hall, the pro-encampment protest has begun; Emily Heffter from The Seattle Times (WSB partner) tweeted this photo showing demonstrators on the steps.

Back inside, Licata is saying that the Monday letter from seven of his Council colleagues did not seem to him to be “anti-encampment.” One of the signers, Councilmember Sally Bagshaw, is agreeing. She says she believes Nickelsville residents “have created community.” She wonders if the proposal to expand possible encampment sites could also include property owned by nonprofits. The philosophical conversation continues.

3:21 PM: Licata says he wants to talk now about specifics about “what we’ll be facing in the next couple months” – specifically, the mayor’s response that if the council wants the camp cleared by September 1st, he will follow their directive to evict anyone who’s left then. And he envisions that not everyone will have left, “so we’re going to be faced with not a good photo op.”

3:44 PM: They’re still trying to shape what the rules would be. Licata notes that Nickelsville has 125 people now. Should legislation, they’re discussing, put a limit on the number of sites? Councilmember Bruce Harrell says, what about people who choose to live in tents? Licata assistant Lisa Herbold says it’s not like they have an option to go into long-term housing, because it has waiting lists: “The function of a tent city is not an alternative to long-term housing, it’s someplace you go while you wait for long-term housing.”

4:04 PM: The document accompanying this agenda, by the way, is here. Option 2, the committee agrees, possibly leaving Nickelsville at the current site, “is off the table.”

West Seattle Crime Watch: Playfield ‘snack shack’ break-in

The “snack shack” used by West Seattle Baseball at Riverview Playfield has been broken into, reports parent volunteer Michelle, who sent the photo. She says someone broke in Monday night, “damaging the building and making a huge mess” along with making off with some money. “We are so bummed someone would do this. … Fortunately it’s the end of the season, and not more was taken.” It’s not the first time the “shack” has been targeted, though; Michelle says volunteers have spent time painting over graffiti vandalism.

West Seattle development: Crane rising over ‘Hole’-turned-Spruce

The crane is going up at 3922 SW Alaska, almost a year since we uncovered the new name and plan for “The Hole,” which stalled in fall 2008 under previous ownership, followed by a court fight and a foreclosure auction. Though the new owners of what’s now called Spruce have been mum on the project – except for what was said/shown at the Design Commission meeting we covered in December – construction equipment showed up five weeks ago and, as noted here, work resumed. Wondering what it’ll look like? Here’s one of the images shown at the aforementioned December meeting:

If you’re just tuning in, Spruce will include apartments and an L.A. Fitness health club.

‘We’re way behind on transit’ – but there’s still hope for light rail: Mayor talks West Seattle transportation

(Mayor McGinn at Diva Espresso on Tuesday; photo by WSB’s Patrick Sand)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Though you haven’t heard much about it lately, there’s still a chance West Seattle will get light rail, some years down the line.

Mayor Mike McGinn came to West Seattle on Tuesday afternoon to get that message out, and we took the opportunity to ask him about other issues related to West Seattle’s transportation challenges.

It was his third visit to West Seattle in a week, and tonight will be his fourth visit in eight days, as the 34th District Democrats decide who to endorse for this year’s election races, including the one in which he’s vying for re-election against eight opponents. His series of visits began June 4th with the Madison Middle School briefing on dental care for students citywide and continued Sunday as he breakfasted at Chelan Café with five community activists.

That brings us to Tuesday afternoon.

The mayor and two staff members – SDOT transit expert Michael James and communicator Aaron Pickus – came to Diva Espresso in The Triangle to offer a West Seattle-specific briefing on the state of light-rail planning, though the conversation turned to other things.

He said that after talking to West Seattleites – including the group with whom he had breakfast on Sunday – he realized people here might not be aware that light rail is at least a bit beyond pipe-dream status.

We recorded the entire briefing/discussion on video – keep in mind it was at a busy coffee shop, so you’ll hear the espresso machinery in the background now and then:

If you don’t have time to listen, the key points are ahead:

Read More

Food for thought: West Seattle Food Bank needs books … especially for its littlest clients

Just out of the WSB inbox, from West Seattle Food Bank volunteer Eve:

The West Seattle Food Bank distributes books of all kinds to their clients. Children’s picture books and toddler board books are especially needed right now. If you have books in good condition, please consider donating them to the Food Bank. You can drop them off Monday through Friday 9 am to 3 pm, or Wednesday until 7pm (Monday and Wednesday are the best drop-off times) The Food Bank is on the corner of 35th Avenue SW and SW Morgan St. (enter through the garage on Morgan). Cookbooks and adult fiction and non-fiction are also welcomed. YOUR DONATIONS WILL BE GREATLY APPRECIATED.

West Seattle Wednesday: SSCC, WSHS, Sealth graduations; council talks ‘Nickelsville’; 34th Dems’ endorsements…

A Western Tiger Swallowtail in our garden this afternoon.

(Western Tiger Swallowtail butterfly on red valerian, by Danny McMillin, from the WSB Flickr group)
It’s graduation day for more than 1,000 high-school and college students in West Seattle! Three ceremonies are part of our highlights from the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar:

First, the graduations:

SSCC GRADUATION: 2:30 pm, more than 800 students receive diplomas and certificates during the South Seattle Community College (WSB sponsor) commencement ceremony at Benaroya Hall downtown. (200 University St.)

WSHS GRADUATION: The West Seattle High School Class of 2013 graduates at 5 pm, Southwest Athletic Complex. Reminder that concessions (including flower and candy leis) are on sale as a Music Department fundraiser. (2801 SW Thistle)

SEALTH GRADUATION: The Chief Sealth International High School Class of 2013 graduates at 7:30 pm, Southwest Athletic Complex. (2801 SW Thistle)

Now, the rest of the highlights for today/tonight:

COUNCIL COMMITTEE TALKS ‘NICKELSVILLE’: Though what transpired on Monday (WSB coverage here) might seem to render this all a moot point, the City Council Housing, Human Services, Health, and Culture Committee is scheduled to discuss the “Nickelsville” situation at 2 pm today, Council Chambers at City Hall downtown. (4th/Cherry)

‘NICKELSVILLE’ PROTEST: Meantime, outside City Hall, encampment supporters promise a “die-in” protest starting at 2:30 pm.

SOFTBALL PLAYOFFS: West Seattle Girls Softball has playoffs tonight at Lincoln Park at 5:30 pm.

BIKE MASTER PLAN MEETING: The city’s next Open House on the draft revised Bicycle Master Plan is intended for the south areas of the city, including West Seattle. (Here’s a map showing what it envisions for this part of the city.) It’s at the Columbia Branch Library, 6 pm, presentation at 6:30 pm. (4721 Rainier Ave. S.)

JOURNALISM AND DATA: Special event at the West Seattle (Admiral) Library, 5:30 pm, explained on the Seattle Public Library calendar. (2306 42nd SW)

34TH DISTRICT DEMOCRATS’ ENDORSEMENT MEETING: Mingling at 6:30 pm, speeches and votes start at 7 pm, The Hall at Fauntleroy. See the detailed agenda here. (9131 California SW)

Seal Sitters’ alert: Watch for orphaned newborn as pup season starts

Seal SittersRobin Lindsey shares that photo as an example of a pup still displaying “lanugo,” a long, wavy coat that is a sign of premature birth since it’s usually shed in the womb. She’s asking you to be particularly watchful around West Seattle’s shorelines, not just because pupping season has started in this area, but because a motherless newborn might turn up and need help:

Sadly, we responded to an adult female seal (Monday) that died shortly afterward. The WDFW necropsy (Tuesday) revealed that she had given birth probably two days ago. This means it is possible that there is a newborn pup in West Seattle or one of the neighboring communities. A newborn harbor seal pup can live about a week and a half without nutrition from the mother. If the pup indeed survived, he would be extremely weak and vulnerable – most especially to off-leash dogs.

We are asking everyone to please be on the alert for this pup – or any pups on shore. And, of course, to stay away, keep dogs leashed and call our hotline @ 206-905-7325 (SEAL).

Additionally, we heard rumors of a “mom and pup” resting on the rocks off of Lincoln Park the other day. No one called our hotline, but we are told that many people were taking photos. If anyone has photos of the pair, please email us in hopes that we can determine if truly it was a mom and newborn pup and possibly identify the adult female.

Thanks so much. This is truly where the community makes a huge difference!

There’s more info on the Seal Sitters’ Blubberblog.

TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Updates for Wednesday

June 12, 2013 6:31 am
|    Comments Off on TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Updates for Wednesday
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle traffic alerts

(Live view from the east-facing WS Bridge camera; other cameras are on the WSB Traffic page)
Today’s commute is under way with nothing unusual in the routes around/through our area. Updates to come if/when that changes.

Community Tent at West Seattle Summer Fest: Want in?

If your community group or nonprofit would like some space during our area’s biggest festival of the year – Teri Ensley of Furry Faces Foundation has an invitation for you:

Furry Faces Foundation is pleased to be partnering with the West Seattle Junction Association in offering the FREE Community Tent at West Seattle Summer Fest – July 12, 13, and 14. The purpose of this area in the festival is to allow our small neighborhood non-profits and community groups easy access to the event and their community – free of charge! Did we mention free of charge?

Furry Faces Foundation is selecting the non-profits and community groups who strive to benefit our community and fit the spirit of our West Seattle neighborhoods.

Here are the Community Tent details:

Read More

Update: Search over, 86-year-old woman found at hospital.

11:13 PM UPDATE: The woman reported missing earlier has been found at a hospital, her family confirms – though they’re still trying to find out how she got there – and the search has ended.

EARLIER:
Read More

Video: Congrats, Middle College High School Class of 2013!

“I MADE IT,” proclaimed the art atop the cap of one grad-to-be tonight as The Hall at Fauntleroy hosted the Middle College High School-High Point Center Class of 2013’s graduation tonight.

21 students comprise this year’s graduating class – here they are, making their entrance:

This is the first class to graduate since the southern branch of Middle College High School moved into its new High Point quarters, chosen after it lost its longtime home at South Seattle Community College (WSB sponsor) this time last year. As recently announced on the MCHS-HPC website, the school has extended its High Point lease for another year.

This was the first of our area’s three Seattle Public Schools graduations in two nights; tomorrow night, Southwest Athletic Complex in Westwood will be the site of the graduations for both West Seattle High School (5 pm) and Chief Sealth International High School (7:30 pm). Our area’s lone private high school, Seattle Lutheran, gave its 33-member Class of 2013 their sendoff last Friday (WSB coverage here).

Mariners go to bat for local students at West Seattle Elementary

Hours before taking the field tonight – a lineup of Seattle Mariners took the stage at West Seattle Elementary School this afternoon. it was one of five DREAM Team assemblies around the region, held simultaneously on the Mariners’ 16th annual Education Day. Here’s what DREAM stands for:

It was not just a DREAM for kids to meet pro baseball players, who moved into the audience to sit with them while watching a reel of recent highlights …

… but it also was a dream for some of the grownups on hand, like Ms. Raymond, who’s a major Mariners fan:

The lineup announced for WSE just before the event included announcer Aaron Goldsmith, players Jason Bay, Jeremy Bonderman, Nick Franklin, Joe Saunders, Kelly Shoppach, and coach Robby Thompson.

West Seattle development notes: 4730 California begins; Charlestown Café site followup; this week’s design reviews

Four West Seattle development notes tonight:

4730 CALIFORNIA: Thanks to Heidi for the tip that a fence was up and the awning was coming down at the site of 4730 California, the 88-apartment project formerly known as 4724 California, aka “the former Petco site.” We’d noticed the re-branding recently when sponsor logos (including ours) went up on the West Seattle Summer Fest website. This project’s website’s not up yet – you can find a mention here – and we’re working to get more information about the demolition schedule.

CHARLESTOWN CAFE SITE FOLLOWUP: Since we first reported one week ago on a development proposal for the former Charlestown Café site, we’ve finally heard back from a rep for the prospective developer, Intracorp. Right now, the rep tells us, the proposal for six 5-unit townhouse buildings is in spec mode – the site has not been purchased and no official application to the city has been made. Intracorp is focused right now, we’re told, on getting its biggest West Seattle proposal, 3210 California SW, through Design Review; its second round of Early Design Guidance is scheduled for 6:30 pm June 27th on the second floor of the Senior Center of West Seattle at California/Oregon.

SPEAKING OF DESIGN REVIEW: Before that meeting, two projects are on the Southwest Design Review Board agenda for this Thursday night (June 13th), and the “packets” are available online for both. The 6:30 pm meeting is for 4435 35th SW, the re-activated proposal for the site that currently includes a vacant lot and the building that’s home to The Bridge (which, as reported here last month, is already preparing its new home at the former Chuck and Sally’s Tavern site in Morgan Junction). The project has changed since its first Design Review meeting in 2009, so it’s going back through Early Design Guidance. The current version proposes a six-story building with 170 apartments and 187 parking spaces; see the “packet” here. The 8 pm meeting is the second “recommendations” session – in other words, possibly the final meeting – for 3829 California SW, 29 apartments with 30 parking spaces; see its “packet” here. Both meetings are open to the public and will be held on the second floor of the Senior Center of West Seattle at California/Oregon.

ROWHOUSES IN FAIRMOUNT SPRINGS: The newly popular form of townhouses known as “rowhouses” are popping up in neighborhoods all over. One of the newest applications proposes a 5-unit rowhouse building, with attached garages, for 5457 Fauntleroy Way SW in Fairmount Springs, on the site of a 103-year-old home sold in April.

West Seattle Crime Watch update: Arrest after police search in Arbor Heights

(Photos by WSB co-publisher Patrick Sand – top photo substituted for earlier phone photo)
ORIGINAL REPORT, 3:02 PM: We’re still trying to sort out exactly what’s happening with a big police response in the 32nd/106th area of Arbor Heights. Radio communications indicate it’s a search for a burglary suspect. More as we get it.

3:26 PM UPDATE: The original scene is now clear – but we’re checking out another address where a suspect may have been spotted, in the 32nd/105th area.

3:37 PM UPDATE: … and we’ve found the police all back at the original house, where the suspect might be hiding. So this remains an active investigation, but focused at the moment on one particular location.

4:03 PM UPDATE: Police are focused on the back yard of a house at 32nd and 106th; they have a K-9 team, too.

4:19 PM UPDATE: Co-publisher Patrick Sand has spoken at the scene with SW Precinct Lt. Ron Smith (photo above, in blue). He says this was called in as “suspicious circumstances” – a man was spotted riding a bicycle, towing another bicycle, in possession of two backpacks. More tactical police reinforcements have arrived. Lt. Smith also confirmed they believe the suspect is 32-year-old Alan Polevia (we had heard the name on the scanner but wanted to confirm before publishing) – target of a search in Shorewood earlier this year, and prior to that, known for escaping from custody at Harborview while in handcuffs.

4:33 PM UPDATE: Suspect is out and in handcuffs.

5:24 PM UPDATE: We’re adding photos. Identity confirmed; police are checking on warrants. King County Jail records show Polevia spent three days in jail when finally arrested in late March, three weeks after the Shorewood search. On March 28th, he was charged with burglary and theft in connection with an incident that was reported here, involving a scooter taken in the 5000 block of 37th SW, and a search that eventually ended at 36th and Morgan. He didn’t appear for arraignment, so a warrant was issued for his arrest in April, according to court records.

8:57 PM UPDATE: Polevia is on the King County Jail Register as of about an hour ago, held on the aforementioned warrant and two others, as well as for investigation of unlawful firearm possession related to today’s events. This likely means he’ll have a bail hearing tomorrow; we’ll check with the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office in the morning. We have added one more photo, above, from this afternoon’s arrest.

West Seattle road work: What’s planned for the west end of Avalon

If you drive the road above – the westernmost stretch of Avalon Way, between Fauntleroy and 35th – you might have noticed pavement markings indicating some reconfiguration ahead. WSB Forum members have been discussing it, too. We asked SDOT, and spokesperson Marybeth Turner has just provided an extended explanation:

This bicycle and pedestrian improvement is on Avalon starting approximately 100′ east of 35th Ave SW and extending to Fauntleroy.

There are no bike facilities in this area currently. We are installing bike lanes on both sides of Avalon. The north side/uphill side of Avalon will now have a continuous bike lane from Spokane St to Fauntleroy. The south side of Avalon will have a small stretch of bike lane starting at 36th Ave then changing to a shared lane as you pass by 35th Ave SW.

The lane widths and configuration will be: one 6-foot bicycle lane on each side of Avalon, one 12-foot eastbound lane narrowing to 10 feet, one 10-foot two-way turn lane, and two 10 foot westbound lanes.

We are also remarking the crosswalks at the intersection of Fauntleroy/36th/Avalon and also at Avalon and 35th. There will be large crosswalk warning signs at the side of the street for drivers approaching Avalon from Fauntleroy.

As they do now, drivers coming and going from off-street parking areas will need to watch for pedestrians and bicyclists.

This does not affect parking, since there’s no on-street parking in that area now. But the area unquestionably is getting busier, with one development finally completed (The Residences at 3295), one about halfway done (3261 Avalon), another one likely to start later this year (4435 35th SW), and a microhousing project next to the 7-11, not to mention three other projects further east/northeast on Avalon.