West Seattle, Washington
11 Thursday
An amazing season ended tonight for the Chief Sealth International High School boys’ soccer team – one in which they were ranked among the state’s top teams, ran up an incredible winning streak, and made it to the state playoffs. Shorewood, the state’s #1 team, edged the Seahawks 2-1 tonight at Shoreline Stadium.
At the end of the game, the team applauded and cheered those who had come to cheer for them. Toward the start, we photographed them in an on-the-road edition of the “Hawks Nest”:
The game was a draw through the first half, 0-0 at halftime – no scoring till the 49th minute, as our partners at the Seattle Times report. Led by Head Coach Ron Johnson, Sealth closes the season at 14-3-1; Shorewood is undefeated, with 20 wins.
In a comment on the WSB Facebook page, Sealth athletic director Sam Reed thanked the fans who made the trek to Shorewood, then writing, “So proud of our boys and especially the Seniors that worked so hard to build something special during their time as Seahawks.”
Tomorrow morning, Arbor Heights Elementary staff and students will be among the first community members to be able to congratulate José Banda on his new job as Seattle Public Schools Superintendent. The School Board voted 7-0 tonight to confirm him, and – as reported here Tuesday – his visit continues tomorrow with a 10 am stop at AH. Here’s the district’s announcement of tonight’s vote:Read More
Just out of the WSB inbox from Andrea, who began, “Just wanted to get the word out about a brazen solicitor who stopped by today:”Read More
(Thanks to Babs for the motorcade photo)
ORIGINAL 5:13 PM REPORT: We’ve gotten a couple messages about a motorcade in the Alki area. We’re told it’s for the president of Bulgaria, who has indeed been visiting Seattle. Earlier today, first-year President Rosen Prevneliev was on Capitol Hill. While in the area, he’s also met with Bill Gates. He’s in the area to drum up U.S. interest in Bulgarian business and is also visiting the “other” U.S. tech hub, Silicon Valley.
8:07 PM UPDATE: President Prevneliev has moved on, according to a WSB’er who called to say the motorcade had (temporarily) shut down I-5. Commenter WS says he was visiting The Pacific Institute, which is on Harbor Avenue SW between Salty’s and Seacrest; we passed by briefly en route to another story and noted the motorcycle officers were parked right across the street from the Institute.
(Event photos courtesy FOCUS News Agency, used with permission)
ADDED EARLY THURSDAY: Thanks to Bulgaria’s FOCUS News Agency for sharing photos from the West Seattle event; their correspondent reports that President Prevneliev told members of Seattle’s Bulgarian community that he is working to build trust between citizens and their political leaders, and that he is working on a long-term development plan for the country, including a proposed technology park.
FOCUS reports that about 40 people met with President Plevneliev during his West Seattle stop, including Bulgaria’s Ambassador to the United States, Elena Poptodorova, and the U.S. Ambassador to Bulgaria, James Warlick, who has been tweeting about the trip:
The #Roadshow is in #Seattle today with Pres @Plevneliev. One of the most beautiful cities in the world. twitter.com/AmbJamesWarlic…
— James Warlick (@AmbJamesWarlick) May 16, 2012
The president’s Silicon Valley itinerary Thursday includes a stop at Google HQ.
Two West Seattle Crime Watch notes this afternoon. From Todd at West Seattle Autoworks (WSB sponsor), a suggestion that it’s time to step up the extra vigilance for catalytic-converter theft and other types of metal-stealing – he says their shop (35th/Webster) has been hit by thieves going through their scrap metal (last night, it was radiators), even in a fenced, locked yard. (They already lock up the scrap catalytic converters.) He notes that Toyota pickups and 4-Runners tend to be targeted most often, and “it only takes a few minutes for an experienced thief to get (the converter) off the vehicle.”
And from Larry:
I had two packages stolen from our front door stoop on the same day. Both were supposedly delivered on May 10th from two different companies. I live on 31st between near Thistle Street.
This isn’t your usual “call for artists” – this is a request for artists to show their work where it’ll be seen by people who can’t go out to enjoy it elsewhere any more. The announcement:
Providence Mount St. Vincent is looking for Artists to display their work in our McAllister Hall Art Gallery.
The art gallery at Providence Mount St. Vincent displays local art on a monthly basis featuring a different artist each month. The main goal of this program is to provide enjoyment and artistic culture for our residents, since many of them are no longer physically able to visit art galleries. We offer artist the ability to sell her or his art with the request that 20 percent be donated to our Foundation. The gallery is located on the second floor entrance on the west side of the building–a high traffic area within the Mount. The art is viewed by residents, staff, families of residents, volunteers, and visitors. We insure the art while it’s on display to protect it from any possible damage and offer a reception in the artist’s honor.
The months of June, August, October, November and December are currently open in 2012. Please contact Anna Cronin at anna.cronin@providence.org or 206.938.6242 for more information.
(Tuesday evening photo by WSB’s Patrick Sand)
One year after a new plan was circulated for Oregon 42 – the mixed-use building at 42nd SW/SW Oregon in The Junction that’s been in the works for four and a half years – construction is about to begin. We confirmed that this morning with Mike Mahoney from ConAm, the San Diego company that is developing the 131-unit building; we called for an update after getting word that the construction fence had gone up around the site (photo above).
It’s a four-lot site; three houses will be demolished, probably starting next week, according to Mahoney. The fourth lot formerly held the house that was moved to another site in an operation that created something of a spectacle in summer 2010. (The site also made news here in March when one of the remaining houses was used for SWAT-team training.) Here’s one of the Oregon 42 renderings circulated last year, when the number of apartments was increased and the amount of retail decreased (now 3,000 square feet):
(That’s Hope Lutheran at the lower left, Capco Plaza – QFC & Altamira – at upper right.) Mahoney says the plan hasn’t changed since the revised version was made public last year. But now they’re ready to proceed. Once demolition begins, he says, “that’s really going to kick off the full construction – we will move right into excavation and shoring work.” He expects the construction crane to go up in about two months, and the project to be complete after about 16 months of work – which would mean fall of next year. SD Deacon is the general contractor; Junction-based Nicholson Kovalchick Architects joined the project before last year’s round of publicized changes, but was not involved when the project was first proposed back in 2008. This project, by the way, is among those in West Seattle granted the city’s Multi-Family Tax Exemption (see the agreement, finalized by the City Council last year, here), for agreeing that 20 percent of the units will have what the city deems “affordable rents” accessible to people slightly below the median income.
Two other major apartment projects are under construction in West Seattle right now – Youngstown Flats in North Delridge, and Harbor/Urban’s 62-unit Nova in The Triangle – and others are on the drawing board, including two within just a few blocks, the Equity Residential project at California/Alaska, and 4724 California, which has its first Design Review Board meeting one week from tomorrow.
Next week, through Memorial Day, events at the Museum of Flight just might make things a little noisier over West Seattle. So a community alert is being circulated by Boeing Field, which is run by King County – read on:Read More
(WSB file photo of Hiawatha’s wading pool)
Thanks to Sarah for the tip: The city has just published this summer’s wading-pool schedule, and there are some changes for West Seattle. You might recall that the city had looked for sponsors to help pick up the cost, and according to the new schedule, two wading pools get an extra day of operation each, thanks to sponsorships – Admiral Safeway, according to Parks, is making it possible for the Hiawatha pool to be open on Saturdays, while the Hiawatha Advisory Council is making it possible for the Delridge pool to be open on Sundays – both of those pools will be open 4 days a week, while Lincoln Park remains the only West Seattle wading pool open 7 days a week, and it will be the earliest to open, scheduled for June 23rd. See the full schedule here (PDF). We’re checking on one thing – Highland Park – which is being converted to a spray park – is listed on the schedule as “opening in 2013,” but at the most recent project meeting, Seattle Parks had said they hoped to get it open before this season ends. We’ll add whatever we find out.
(Butterflies are here! Photographed in West Seattle by Machel Spence)
From the WSB West Seattle Events Calendar:
EARLY DISMISSAL DAY: Seattle Public Schools are out two hours early today.
HIGH-SCHOOL POSTSEASON GAMES: The Chief Sealth International High School soccer team’s first state playoff game is today vs. Shorewood HS at Shoreline Stadium (18560 1st Ave NE). In the district softball tournament, Sealth plays Liberty at 2 pm at Lower Woodland Park (Green Lake Way and N. 50th); West Seattle High School plays Mount Si, also at 2 pm at Lower Woodland.
SCHOOL BOARD MEETING: The final vote on hiring José Banda as superintendent is on tonight’s agenda, as is the revised proposal for changing next year’s transportation plan – one that the district says will mean little if any change in bell times, unlike the one that was withdrawn after its appearance, with no public input, sparked concern (see the new one here). The meeting’s at 6 pm, district HQ in SODO (2445 3rd Avenue S.). **added** We also have learned that the public-comment section will include speakers on behalf of Middle College High School, the public high school based at South Seattle Community College, which is facing a move to a new location, as was confirmed during last week’s BEX IV levy work session covered here.
PATHFINDER K-8 PLAYGROUND ADDITION KICKOFF: The community’s invited to this dinner meeting to talk about transforming the school playground, as explained here. 6 pm, Pathfinder cafeteria (1901 SW Genesee).
WINE AND WISDOM: The monthly “mingle” sponsored by Savvy Seattle Women is at 6 tonight, Prudential Northwest Realty offices in Jefferson Square.
DELRIDGE NEIGHBORHOODS DISTRICT COUNCIL: Tonight’s meeting (7 pm, Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, 4408 Delridge Way SW) includes a county presentation about the bioswales/raingardens proposed in parts of Sunrise Heights and Westwood to reduce combined-sewer overflows at the Barton Pump Station by the Fauntleroy ferry dock.
‘BYE BYE BIRDIE’: The second week of West Seattle High School‘s spring musical continues, 7:30 pm. Ticketing info and more on the Westside Drama website.
More on the calendar!
(UPDATED Wednesday morning with additional information from Seattle Public Utilities)
(Click to see full-size map, as PDF)
ORIGINAL 11:56 PM TUESDAY REPORT: 200 homes in Highland Park will only get trash pickup every two weeks, for six months, starting in July. You might have heard about the city’s “One Less Truck” pilot program, to see if every-other-week pickup will work (explained here); tonight, we learned that part of West Seattle will be in the program. Carl Woestwin of Seattle Public Utilities made the announcement during the WS Crime Prevention Council meeting tonight (though trash pickup has nothing to do with the group’s usual scope). The area affected is bounded by SW Barton on the north, SW Roxbury to the south, 15th SW to the west, and 11th SW to the east.
Woestwin says homes from single-family through fourplexes in the area will be required to participate, and will get a $100 stipend for their trouble. All the affected homes have been notified via letters and/or flyers, he said. They can choose to get larger trash containers, or try to see if they can make it work, and that’s what the experiment is for. Woestwin said that the city estimates changing to every-other-week pickup could save $6 million citywide. This part of Highland Park is the only test area in West Seattle and one of only four citywide; a community meeting is planned in early June (he wasn’t sure of the date – we’ll seek confirmation Wednesday) and then SPU will come back to the neighborhood in September “to find out how they’re going.”
ADDED 11:25 AM: We followed up this morning with SPU, whose Brett Stav provided some information, including the FAQ they have put together (apparently, though, it is not on their website, because, he says, “We’re trying to keep the study as scientific as possible and avoid confusing our non-participating customers, so we haven’t broadly advertised this project outside of the participating neighborhoods”) and the rate card for participants – read on:Read More
For the second consecutive Tuesday, the West Seattle Community Orchestras invited the community to the Chief Sealth International High School auditorium, to hear their musicians’ spring concerts; tonight was the 50+-member West Seattle Symphony Orchestra‘s turn. Our 7-minute video clip captures the highlight of the night, the world premiere of conductor Rob Duisberg‘s “Fantasies and Fugues.” The program also included classics – from composers including Beethoven, Copland, Haydn, and Stravinsky.
The headline from tonight’s West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting came right at the start, in the crime-trends briefing from Southwest Precinct Operations Lt. Pierre Davis: 
An “upswing” in auto theft. Lt. Davis said the most recent week tallied 19 thefts, more than double the usual average. (Apparently a regional problem, as that also is the biggest problem in White Center and environs right now, according to a King County Sheriff’s Office briefing at a public-safety forum we covered there last week.) Here’s the official SPD auto-theft-prevention advice.
Otherwise, Lt. Davis reported, burglaries and car prowls are “down to an acceptable low right now”; in response to an attendee’s question, he said there is still no new information to release in the Beach Drive murder of Greggette Guy two months ago. The group also heard from Heather Turner of Families and Friends of Violent Crime Victims; she briefly described the many resources they offer – find them all here.
(King County rendering from March community meeting in Sunrise Heights)
Wednesday night’s Delridge Neighborhoods District Council includes an update on one of the most vigorously debated public-works projects planned for West Seattle, the Barton Pump Station basin combined-sewer-overflow-control project – “bioswales” (raingardens) in planting strips along multiple streets in the Sunrise Heights/Westwood area, to reduce the water going into the system and downhill to the pump station. The presentation, including project manager Mary Wohleb, is scheduled for around 7:20 pm during the DNDC meeting, which begins at 7 pm at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way SW). The county’s most recent community presentations were in March; here’s our coverage.
At Steve Cox Memorial Field in White Center tonight, West Seattle High School and Liberty HS faced off for a berth in the state tournament – and WSHS came out on top, 2-1.
Here’s the box score from our partners at the Seattle Times.
WHAT’S NEXT: The Wildcats play Timberline at 10 am at Bannerwood Park in Bellevue this Saturday.
If this warm weather puts you in the mood for outdoor swimming, wondering when Colman Pool on the Lincoln Park shoreline will be open – here’s another reminder that it’ll be late this year, June 30th. The renovation work has been under way for 4 months now, and we just got two new photos today from Jim Edwards (thank you!), so we checked in with Seattle Parks project manager Garrett Farrell, to see where the project is at. He tells WSB that the last of the pool-wall sections were to be put in place today, and “we have already started pour-back of the pool decks, which will go much faster than the walls.” Now, it gets tricky, according to Farrell, as they work on “installing the pool-water piping in the tunnel that runs around the pool deck and connects to the walls as we work to pour the lid over the top of it, a few pieces at a time.”
Crews are also working to remove the existing plaster, he said, while prepping “every square
inch of the interior shell for a much needed new plaster liner.” That’s still a lot of work, he said, but they are on track for the expected opening date of June 30th. (To plan ahead, you can check out the schedule here.)
Till 7 pm, West Seattle Chamber of Commerce‘s monthly ‘After-Hours’ mixer is happening at Dream Dinners (longtime WSB sponsor), on 41st just south of Alaska (east side of Jefferson Square‘s main building, fronting on 41st). From left, we photographed Nancy Woodland from WestSide Baby – which has its big Shake, Rattle & Roll cocktail-party event this Friday night (ticket info here) and the Stuff the Bus diaper drive on July 22nd – with Dream Dinners proprietor Leslie Thomson and Rob Shiras from PC Mobile Help. Dream Dinners facilitates home cooking while taking away some of the time-consuming tasks like shopping and prepping – they have monthly menus, you choose what sounds good and assemble dinners in three- or six-serving sizes to take home and keep till you’re ready to cook them. After-Hours events rotate among various locations, offering Chamber members a chance to learn more about one of their fellow local businesses – in recent months, hosts have included Easy Street Records and Global Diving and Salvage.
The city has just announced the latest round of Small and Simple grants – for which organizations apply, promising matching funds/volunteer labor, and three West Seattle events/projects are on the list:
(WSB photo from 2011 Alki Art Fair)
*Alki Art Fair – Volunteer-run since city cutbacks made city-staff resources unavailable. $20,000 grant. (This year’s fair is July 28-29.)
*Castle Park at Roxhill Park – To enhance the city Parks and Green Spaces Levy-funded playground project, $20,000 extra for “a climbing and physical challenge course.” (After getting the city announcement, we checked with project manager Kelly Davidson, who says that the playground/skatepark plans just went to the general contractor yesterday and are in a review period. The playground itself is still on target for a public build, probably in September.)
*West Seattle Community Fruit Harvest – City Fruit gets $6,295 to “organize the harvest of fruit from residential fruit trees to distribute to partner organizations like food banks, women’s shelters, and senior centers within Delridge and West Seattle.”
Just under four months till the first day of school, and families signed up for K-5 STEM at Boren are already organizing a PTA. The first meeting is set for 6:30 pm this Thursday (May 17th) at the Southwest Library, 35th and Henderson, and the topic is whether to form an organization associated with the PTSA network or “an independent PTO,” as Kathleen Voss puts it, adding:
All parents of students currently enrolled at STEM for the 2012-13 school year, families on the wait list, and families interested in learning more about the K-5 STEM at Boren program are encouraged to attend. For those who are interested but cannot attend, questions and comments will be collected on the community forum groups.yahoo.com/group/k5stem for discussion at the meeting.
A representative from the state PTA network will be there to help facilitate discussion of what kind of organization to form. Also, tasks will be identified and assigned.
(2011 WSB photo of ex-Fire Station 37)
When we checked in with Colliers International vice president Arvin Vander Veen last week regarding the sale of 87-year-old ex-Fire Station 37 in Sunrise Heights, he told us the deal would close this week, and to watch the public records. We did, and while checking online records last night, we noted that the sale was registered. The former fire station’s new owner also owns a business in The Junction, where WSB contributor Katie Meyer went this morning to see if she would talk with us about her plans for it. She told Katie that she does not want to comment, nor does she want to be identified. We have a request out to the city to ask about the purchase price, as it was not part of the public document; as reported previously, minimum bid was $250,000, and Colliers requested a second round of offers from the highest bidders in the original round. Since the former fire station is a city landmark, its new owner would have to get city Landmarks Board approval before altering any of its landmarked features; it’s in a single-family residential zone. The city gave final authorization to the sale plan last fall, one year after the new Station 37 opened a few blocks south.
1:03 PM UPDATE: The city says the ex-station sold for $613,000. Minus commission and closing costs, that means $579,807 into the city’s Fire Levy Fund. (added) City spokesperson Katherine Schubert-Knapp explains, “Levy proceeds and other funding, such as the sale of former fire stations, are being used to upgrade, renovate and replace 32 neighborhood fire stations, among other things. Seattle voters approved the levy in November 2003. (It will be funding future WS upgrades at other stations including 32 and 36.)
(WSB photo from October 2011, when Uptown’s “pod” launched)
Another chapter in the ongoing saga of West Seattle’s food-truck scene. The owner of Uptown Espresso, who gave permission for a “pod” of trucks in his Junction lot 7 months ago, is no longer allowing food trucks there before 5 pm. The folks from SeattleFoodTruck.com first mentioned this in a WSB comment last week, after Lucky Devil Doughnut Co.’s short-lived Uptown run; at least one truck, Contigo, alluded to it via Twitter; and we just confirmed it in a phone conversation with Uptown partner Pete Noble. He told us it’s strictly a decision about keeping the parking available for Uptown customers in the morning and afternoon. (Back when launched in October, the pod was described as an “experiment” anyway.)
The website wseattleeats.com had been posting the Uptown-lot schedule, and after the change, it only has one truck on the schedule right now, Rainy Day Gourmet for Thursday nights. That was the only Junction-area “pod”; on weekends, Marination (Saturdays) and Snout and Co. (Sundays) have continued to frequent the Hans VW lot at 35th/Graham, while the Highland Park Improvement Club lot at 12th/Holden has Lumpia World and Sweet Wheels visiting at lunchtime on Saturdays, according to its website sidebar. West Seattle has a few every-day trucks, too – Beloved Mexico at West Seattle Produce (Fauntleroy south of Alaska), and taco trucks El Rey del Taco on SW Orchard north of Home Depot as well as La Playita at Alki Auto. As SeattleFoodTruck.com mentioned in its comment, they’re open to helping find a new site for the trucks that used to be at Uptown.
10:38 PM UPDATE: As noted in comments: Since we published this story, Snout and Co. has told us they’re not planning to return to 35th/Graham on Sundays, and Lucky Devil Doughnut Company has announced via Facebook that they have a new West Seattle spot for Tuesdays. More to come.
Just announced by Seattle Public Schools in a media advisory, José Banda – scheduled to be confirmed as the district’s next superintendent on Wednesday night – will visit Arbor Heights Elementary on Thursday. Banda has been leading a school district in Anaheim, California, but is coming back to Seattle for the board vote Wednesday night, and the AH visit has been announced as one of his two media availabilities for the visit (a photo op rather than a public event, in case you’re wondering) – the other will include interviews after the board vote.
About two blocks of the bumpiest stretch of Beach Drive, in the 6200 block and further south, will get fixed starting today. Our photo’s from about half an hour ago, when we went over to check that the crews were indeed getting going as announced last week by SDOT. The work is scheduled to continue daily, 7 am-7 pm, for the rest of this week, and SDOT says traffic will be allowed through the area (police are scheduled to be there to help). As first reported here a week ago, the stretch that’s being fixed does NOT include the also-rutted lanes alongside the disputed slide zone to the north; that’s been tied up in court for a year-plus, but the City Attorney’s Office tells WSB that mediation is scheduled later this month in hopes of resolving it.
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