West Seattle, Washington
10 Wednesday
(Photos courtesy of Seattle Fire Department Public Information Officer Kyle Moore)
Seattle firefighters are touring library branches for Firefighter Story Times, teaching preschoolers fire safety. Today, Fire Chief Gregory Dean (above) led the team at the High Point branch. Firefighters from nearby Station 37 impressed the kids too:
And if you missed today’s event …
… you have another chance tomorrow, with a different crew of firefighters coming to the West Seattle (Admiral) Library at 10:30 am.
(‘Slip 4’ Duwamish cleanup area, photographed in 2010 by Christopher Boffoli)
Even if you’ve toured the Duwamish River – you’ve probably never toured it THIS way. The annual Halloween-time tour is coming up in less than two weeks – 1 pm Sunday, October 28th, according to word we received tonight from Alberto Rodriguez at the Duwamish River Cleanup Coalition:
It is about time for this year’s Halloween Haunted History Toxic Terrors Tour! This year we will have four speakers that will talk about:
*History of the Duwamish River and the Superfund site
*Native American supernatural legends
*Ghost stories of Georgetown and South Park
*”Scary” stories of the pollutants in the riverThe tour will be 2 hours long and is $25 for adults and $15 for children. Find more information here.
That link is also where you can register for the tour.
Tomorrow night, the final draft – not necessarily the final wording – of Seattle Public Schools‘ BEX IV levy is scheduled for formal introduction to the School Board. We’ve just checked the agenda, and it includes an “edited” list that has the Arbor Heights Elementary rebuild now scheduled for completion in 2018, one year earlier than the last draft. Fairmount Park Elementary is still scheduled for reopening in 2014, and a rebuilt Schmitz Park Elementary on the current (closed) Genesee Hill campus is still scheduled to open in 2015.
Meantime, we’re told this afternoon by Arbor Heights parents and other supporters – who say their dilapidated school needs to be rebuilt ASAP and should be the first project on the BEX list – that they plan a rally before the board meeting tomorrow, around 3:45 pm at district HQ in SODO. The school board meeting itself starts at 4:15 pm; the public-comment period starts at 5; the scheduled introduction (and potential discussion) of BEX IV is after that. They’re hopeful for as much community support as they can get, so if you would like to stand with them for a “soon as possible” rebuild, be there tomorrow.
Lousy way to get welcomed to a new neighborhood. Brand-new West Seattleite Rebecca hopes you’ll be on the lookout for her car:
My husband and I moved to West Seattle two days ago and our car was stolen last night from in front of our house in Highland Park! It is a green, 4-door Honda CRV, license plate 780-WYL. The year is 2000.
Just a week and a half ago, two vehicles reported here as stolen were found, so here’s hoping the same for Rebecca.
11:11 AM: Crossposted from our daily traffic thread as well as our partner site White Center Now: Avoid 16th/Roxbury – only one lane, westbound, is open on Roxbury, and only northbound is open on 16th – a man is reported to have been hit by the bike rack of a Metro bus. (A Route 128 is stopped at the scene.) His injuries do not appear to be serious, according to the medic crews radioing in to the hospital; he’s being taken to a hospital.
11:41 AM UPDATE: Metro Route 120 is being routed off eastbound Roxbury, according to a Metro alert, because of the investigation.
1:24 PM UPDATE: As of about 1:15, investigators still had eastbound Roxbury blocked off from 15th to 17th. Westbound is open and 16th is fully open. The King County Sheriff’s Office is investigating, since it’s on their side of the line; spokesperson Sgt. Cindi West tells us the bus was southbound on Delridge turning left to go eastbound on Roxbury; the man who was hit, in his early 30s, was crossing Roxbury northbound southbound* in the crosswalk when the bus hit him.
*New information Wednesday from KCSO.
Exciting morning at Roxhill Elementary, as principal Sahnica Washington (photo below), her staff, and scholars welcomed VIPs including Superintendent José Banda and Mayor Mike McGinn for this year’s “Be Here, Get There” launch this morning.
Also partnering in the citywide campaign this year: The YMCA (WSB sponsor), whose Greater Seattle CEO Bob Gilbertson was on hand, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, whose Pacific Northwest Initiative director David Bley was, too. And Roxhill 4th-graders got to be in the spotlight (that’s who is on the stage in our top photo) because they’ve had 97 percent attendance already this year – attendance is what “Be Here, Get There” is all about, and participating schools will be eligible for incentives throughout the year.
Here’s the official city news release with details.
ADDED 5:13 PM: Video from today’s event:
You can track Be Here, Get There developments via Facebook.
(Click image for larger view)
The storm left behind a bit of snow on the Olympics! WSB contributing photojournalist Nick Adams photographed them this morning. And now … it’s sunny (new forecast!), at least as we bring you these highlights from the WSB West Seattle Events Calendar for the rest of today/tonight:
‘BE HERE, GET THERE’ AT ROXHILL: It’s not a public event but will bring a lot of excitement this morning to Roxhill Elementary as Mayor McGinn and Superintendent José Banda launch this year’s edition of the “Be Here, Get There” attendance-incentives campaign at 10 am; watch for coverage here later.
TRANSPORTATION TALK AT WEST SEATTLE ROTARY: Mike Lindblom, transportation reporter for The Seattle Times (WSB partner), is the featured speaker at today’s Rotary Club of West Seattle lunch, noon at Salty’s on Alki (WSB sponsor). With the Metro changes, Spokane Street Viaduct Widening Project, Alaskan Way Viaduct/tunnel, and more, he’s got a lot to cover, and to talk about, so come listen and bring questions.
FIREFIGHTER STORY TIME WITH THE CHIEF: Seattle Fire Chief Gregory Dean will be the guest reader at Firefighter Story Time for preschoolers at High Point Library (35th/Raymond), 1:30 pm.
OPEN HOUSE AT EXPLORER WEST: Families considering Explorer West Middle School (WSB sponsor) are invited to tonight’s open house, 6:30-8 pm (program starts in the gym @ 6:30 pm).
HEAR THE PROSECUTORS’ SIDE OF THE STORY: Tonight’s monthly West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting features not only your chance to bring neighborhood concerns to local police, but also a guest appearance by Ian Goodhew from the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. 7 pm, Southwest Precinct meeting room (lobby entrance from the parking lot on the Webster side of the building, just west of Delridge Way).
FOOD DRIVE REMINDER: Halfway through the month of October – and the group food drive by local physical-therapy clinics continues; even if you’re not a patient, you’re welcome to drop a donation off at a participating clinic. Here’s our original story with the list.
MANY more events on the calendar, including classes, story times, and nightlife – take a look here.
ORIGINAL REPORT, 7:57 AM: The big fire/police response is for a crash reported at 48th and Spokane, which is between Madison and Schmitz Park. More shortly.
8:27 AM UPDATE: From the scene and from police: Three vehicles were involved. Our crew saw two – including one on its side. (Added – here’s the other one:)
Tow trucks were already there as of about 10 minutes ago, so the scene will be clear soon if it’s not already. One person was taken to the hospital by private ambulance – which means the injuries were not believed to be major.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
West Seattle’s most populous grade school, Lafayette Elementary, is not allowing student costumes on Halloween this year, principal Shauna Heath confirms to WSB this morning.
Several upset parents e-mailed us about this over the weekend; we called and e-mailed Heath yesterday to ask for confirmation/comment. She told us yesterday afternoon, “The staff is still discussing the issue and we will have an answer for you (Tuesday).”
Early this morning, the principal e-mailed us the promised update:
This decision was made by the entire staff after two deep and detailed discussions. The initial conversation was initiated by staff members who suggested that since Halloween falls this year on a half day of school, we not allow costumes. It takes students a while to change into their costumes, and students are distracted taking away from the already limited instructional time.
The Lafayette Staff met again on Monday, revisiting and recommitting to their decision of no costumes so that we can focus on academics during the limited time we have available. The staff has committed to continuing the conversation throughout the year before deciding on what we will do in the future about Halloween celebrations.
The parents who contacted WSB (and other media) said they had heard the decision was based on concerns about cultural sensitivity; so, we asked Heath on followup this morning, since her reply did not mention that issue, was that an inaccurate perception? Her reply: “We made the decision due to instructional time. There was a thoughtful conversation about cultural as well as equity issues that we want to discuss as a staff further, but the reason for the final decision about costumes was instructional time.”
According to the Seattle Public Schools calendar, October 31st is a “two-hour early-dismissal day,” one of several that the district has through the year, usually for teachers’ professional-development time. As for Halloween costumes, district policy has historically been that the decision has been up to each school. We don’t know the policies of West Seattle’s seven other public elementaries and one public K-8, but plan to ask, and will add the answers as we get them.
(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
6:38 AM: As forecast, the wind calmed down overnight. No early reports of trouble on the main routes from/to/through West Seattle. Let us know how it’s going for you.
8:05 AM UPDATE: Big backup on the bridge, and we’re hearing that it’s slower than usual getting to the bridge too. Only major call we know of is a car fire on northbound I-5 at Mercer. Let us know if you see something else. In West Seattle, there is a heavy-rescue call for a crash at 48th/Spokane, which is near both Madison and Schmitz Park schools – we are on the way to find out what’s going on.
9:17 AM UPDATE: Here’s our full report on that 48th/Spokane crash, which has cleared. Still don’t know exactly what the problem was with Avalon. There’s a report being checked out right now of a possible semitruck stalled at West Marginal/Highland Park Way, so if you head that way and encounter trouble, let us know. Sometimes we’ll hear dispatches on the scanner to possible problems – and not always hear the upshot.
10:01 AM UPDATE: From Washington State Ferries – the Fauntleroy/Vashon/Southworth run is down a boat:
The Klahowya will be temporarily out of service for necessary repairs to the vessel. This cancels the following sailings: 9:30 a.m. Vashon>Southworth, 9:50 a.m. SW>Vashon, 10:10 a.m. Vason>Fauntleroy, and 10:40 a.m. Fauntleroy>Vashon. Updates will occur when more information becomes available.
11:04 AM UPDATE: If you’re driving through the White Center area, note that there is an incident at 16th/Delridge/Roxbury right now – a man reportedly hit by a bus. We’re there checking it out and our coverage is on our partner site White Center Now.
11:43 AM UPDATE: Route 120 is being routed off eastbound Roxbury because of the aforementioned incident, according to a Metro text alert. Meantime, Terminal 5 tech problems are still slowing truck traffic there, per an SDOT alert and a comment on this thread. Thanks again to everybody for getting in the spirit of this and providing ongoing updates!
ORIGINAL REPORT, 11:46 PM MONDAY: While we upload video and put together the full story, we did want to share a few toplines from tonight’s well-attended Sustainable West Seattle Community Forum, focused on transportation.
We estimate around 60 people filled the upstairs hall at the Senior Center of West Seattle, surprising one panelist, City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, who had brought only 20 copies of a handout he wanted to circulate. Though the panel was prepared to discuss a wide range of transportation topics, the Metro changes/RapidRide C Line debut dominated, and when one attendee asked everyone from Arbor Heights to stand up, that covered about half the room. Metro planner Victor Obeso acknowledged the transition had been rocky and when asked by one attendee to apologize, did so. Later he also confirmed they expect to make some changes to address problems like Arbor Heights’ dramatic reduction in service, and that they are trying to get the RapidRide service to the promised 10-minute spacing, rather than multiple buses in a row after longer gaps. The forum ran the full two hours, and we have it all on video:
ADDED 6:57 AM TUESDAY: Video added. Text to come later this morning today.
ADDED 6:40 PM: Our full story, after the jump:
(October 10th photo by WSB co-publisher Patrick Sand)
Just in from King County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Cindi West:
30-year-old Emanuel Kozma was arrested tonight around 6:30 pm in the Denny’s parking lot at S170sth and Pacific Hwy in SeaTac. He was the subject that King County Sheriff detectives chased on the 10th in the White Center area.
Detectives said he will be booked for investigation of Eluding, Assault 1, and Unlawful Possession of Firearm. The case will be forwarded to the prosecutor’s office for review. He was caught due to persistent work from detectives!
Here’s our coverage from last Wednesday. Kozma had just gotten out of jail three hours before the chase/search, after a White Center drug arrest. Deputies started pursuing him in WC, and then he ran after the car he was driving flipped at 17th and Trenton.
(Photos by Christopher Boffoli for WSB)
5:33 PM: Now there’s a new incident – someone reported to have fallen or jumped off the south side of the lower West Seattle Bridge. Needless to say, the entire area below the bridges is a mess, with emergency equipment everywhere.
5:35 PM UPDATE: The person is reported to be in the water, hanging onto a piling. They’re sending divers into the water to help.
5:57 PM: Fire/rescue crews are on both sides of the surface beneath the bridge, but they aren’t seeing the person right now, and are still saying he (that’s the pronoun they are using) is believed to have jumped off the lower bridge’s south side.
6:11 PM: Per the scanner, a bicycle helmet and vest were found, not in the water, possibly linked to the person they’re looking for.
The low bridge is still closed both ways because of this.
6:33 PM UPDATE: From the scanner, police and fire have agreed the low bridge can be reopened. But the search continues.
A Coast Guard vessel is reported to be joining the search.
7:18 PM UPDATE: As pointed out in comments and by SFD via Twitter, this is now considered to be a “recovery” effort, with Seattle Police taking the lead (its divers have been searching along with SFD divers).
That means they don’t have much hope they’ll find the person alive.
7:24 PM UPDATE: WSB’s Christopher Boffoli at the search scene says the effort is winding up – nothing’s been found in the water.
MONDAY MORNING, 9 AM: We checked with Seattle Police spokesperson Det. Mark Jamieson this morning. He says that police found a wallet and cell phone at the spot on the bridge where the person was reported to have gone into the river, but he doesn’t know yet what followup has been done to see if the person to whom they belong is missing.
(Photo shared by John Douglas via Facebook)
5:05 PM: Fire and police crews have rushed to a rollover crash that’s on the north end of Delridge near Fire Station 36. At least one person is reported to be trapped in the wreckage. More as we get it.
5:13 PM: Traffic trouble if you’re getting off bridge at Delridge, per a bus rider in comments. Also, per the scanner, the person has just been rescued from the wreckage.
5:26 PM: TV helicopter over the scene. The person who was trapped in the car has been extricated. She is described as the driver, about 28 years old, going to Harborview Medical Center. A 30-year-old man got out of the car on his own and is not described as being seriously hurt but he’s going to the hospital in a private ambulance to be checked out. The TV chopper over the area is here because of the crash.
3:25 PM ORIGINAL REPORT: Three break-ins to report in West Seattle Crime Watch – first, one announced in a news release just received from The Nature Consortium:
Late Thursday night, thieves broke into the boiler room at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center and attempted to steal data servers belonging to Nature Consortium and Southwest Interagency Academy. Nature Consortium employees discovered the break-in when servers were not operational on Friday morning.
This is the fifth break-in at the Youngstown building this year, and tenants have urged the need for increased security. The historic school building is owned by the Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association, which has significantly reduced staff support for the building in recent years due to budget problems.
The thieves entered the boiler room though a manhole in the sewer, removed several data servers from the room and abandoned them nearby. Two of the units were discovered the next morning in the Delridge Park across the street. Both Nature Consortium and the Interagency Academy were able to recover their servers and no data was lost.
“We’re really fortunate that we were able to recover everything,” says Development Coordinator Lindsay von Marbod, who discovered the break-in Friday morning. “We could have lost all of our files, not to mention the dollar value of those servers. We’re really lucky.”
Two other reader reports about burglaries, ahead (PLUS, ADDED 4 PM, 2 OTHER NEW CRIME WATCH REPORTS):Read More
West Seattle’s first wind advisory of fall takes effect at 5 pm tonight, according to the National Weather Service, and will remain in effect till 5 tomorrow morning. We could get gusts up to 45 mph tonight, according to the alert. Separate from the alert, the forecast says we might see thunderstorms, too.
Two more high-profile visitors will be in West Seattle tomorrow, we have just confirmed. Mayor McGinn and Superintendent José Banda will be at Roxhill Elementary tomorrow morning for the 2012-2013 launch of “Be Here, Get There,” the incentives/education campaign to boost attendance in Seattle Public Schools. When we interviewed Roxhill principal Sahnica Washington recently, she talked about attendance as a challenge, even in elementary grades. It’s a citywide priority, and it’ll be discussed at tomorrow’s event by not only McGinn and Banda but also community organizations like the YMCA (WSB sponsor).
(2011 SFD photo)
We often feature the Seattle Public Library‘s story times on the WSB West Seattle Events Calendar – and once in a while, they feature special guests. Tomorrow “Firefighter Story Time” is scheduled at the High Point Library branch – and we’ve just learned that Fire Chief Gregory Dean will be the special guest, promoting fire safety and literacy. An SFD announcement says the chief “will read ‘No Dragons for Tea‘ to dozens of preschool children … Important safety messages include ‘Firefighters are your friend,’ ‘Crawl low under smoke’ and ‘Get out and stay out’.” You’re welcome to bring your preschooler – 1:30 pm tomorrow (Tuesday, October 16th). The library is at 35th/Raymond.
Welcome to a new week! Half a dozen Monday highlights, from the WSB West Seattle Events Calendar:
WEST SEATTLE COOKING CLUB: Fennel and carrot – those are the ingredients for the WSCC’s meeting this afternoon, 3 pm, Beveridge Place Pub. Details here.
MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL: Now that the Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor; 6451 California SW) has a big screen, they’re showing the weekly big game too. 5 pm tonight.
COPPER COIN OPENS: As reported here last week, the new restaurant in The Admiral District (2329 California SW) plans its “soft open” at 5 pm tonight. Besides food, they’ll be big on beer – here’s the West Seattle-published Washington Beer Blog preview on that. P.S. Their menu is here.
DELRIDGE PRODUCE COOPERATIVE: The announcement we received over the weekend:
Calling all West Seattleites and White Centerists! Neighborhood organizers, Chatty Cathies, pretty brochure makers, graphic designers, t-shirt printers, healthy eaters, gardeners, grocery workers, co-op believers, good people and the persnickety detail-oriented! Join us for our monthly public meeting, (tonight) at 6:30 pm at the Delridge Library. We need our community’s support to make this co-op happen!
Agenda items:
– pumpkin walk at the West Seattle Harvest Festival – Can you help?
– community representation at neighborhood meetings
– timing update – DESC site
– board development and bylaws
– market survey
– business plan
– co-op conference report-back
– next steps!
TALK TRANSIT/TRANSPORTATION @ SUSTAINABLE WEST SEATTLE COMMUNITY FORUM: We’ve been talking about it for a week and a half – and tonight’s the night. Metro, SDOT, at least one elected official, all joining SWS to talk about transportation/transit issues – not just bus changes but also what’s up with local roads/bridges. Bring your questions. 7 pm, Senior Center of West Seattle (WSB sponsor; California/Oregon, enter from the Oregon side).
FLAT EARTH SOCIETY AT WEST 5: Guest DJs on Mondays at West 5 in The Junction – tonight at 9 pm, it’s Rosemary Otero.
More highlights for tonight, and days/weeks/months ahead, on our calendar!
(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
6:09 AM OVERVIEW: We’re continuing our new series of weekday reports providing a dedicated place each day to talk about traffic and transit – from road/bridge/highway/bus/bike-path (etc.) happenings, to big-picture issues, including what you’re seeing while riding Metro in the third week of RapidRide C Line and other changes (if you’re catching up, here are our Friday reports and yours). We’ll post updates as needed throughout the day; if you have something to report, you can comment here OR contact us any way that works for you. Speaking of issues – TONIGHT’s the night for the Sustainable West Seattle forum on transportation, with Metro, SDOT, city government leaders among others – 7 pm at the Senior Center of West Seattle in The Junction.
WEATHER OUTLOOK: The rain is taking a break as the morning commute begins. Breezy and wet is the outlook for afternoon.
5:01 PM UPDATE: Crash reported, with heavy-rescue response, on the westbound West Seattle Bridge, at or near the Delridge offramp. Separate story to come.
5:07 PM UPDATE: The crash is on Delridge itself, at the north end, by Station 36, according to scanner traffic, NOT on the bridge.
The Fauntleroy Fall Festival is always an indoor-outdoor celebration – but the overdue arrival of fall rain put a little more emphasis on the indoor for Sunday’s 10th-anniversary edition. We reported on the festival as it began (WSB coverage here) – and then WSB contributing photojournalist Nick Adams roamed to capture more of the memory-making scenes, such as, above, Marcus Wiatr, left, setting up his umbrella on the meditation labyrinth inside The Hall at Fauntleroy – and back outside, Audrey Maffeo, 3, seeking creative inspiration before painting a pumpkin:
Back inside, the annual Cake Walk delighted participants: Carolyn Tucker drew another number for a lucky winner:
School-fundraiser dinner/auction season is beginning, and one of the first on the schedule is Chief Sealth International High School‘s “Passport to Excellence” event on November 9th at The Hall at Fauntleroy. Not only are they selling tickets and taking donations, they’re also looking for business sponsors:
Sponsorship levels start at $50; having our event expenses underwritten by sponsors helps us direct the proceeds from the auction to the many programs and activities that Chief Sealth PTSA, Chief Sealth Athletics, and Denny-Sealth Performing Arts support throughout the year. We are expecting more than 200 attendees and will provide visibility to our sponsors at the event and via our website and messages out to our 1300 families! Of course we’d love community members to come join us at the event and/or donate items and services, too. Ticket sales and item donations can be handled online as well.
Detailed information can be found at chiefsealthptsa.org/auction.html
(Photos by Nick Adams for WSB)
Another spirited game closed out the high-school-football weekend in West Seattle – Seattle Lutheran High School was ahead much of the way but ended up losing to Orcas Island in their Saturday afternoon game at WS Stadium, 27-19. More photos and toplines ahead:
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