West Seattle, Washington
22 Tuesday
Notice the reddish water along some local beaches this weekend? Since we first reported on it Saturday morning, it’s spread. The photo above was tweeted by Russ Walker, who photographed it on Alki Point late today; next photo is from Chris Johnson, who saw it at Burien’s Seahurst Park.
Again, if you missed our Saturday story (and last year’s coverage), this is caused by single-cell organisms known as noctiluca. It’s NOT “red tide,” not toxic at all; it is described as common in Puget Sound, though last year was the first time in three years that its bloom drew a lot of attention (here’s what the state Ecology Department wrote about it in 2011; we’ll be following up with them about this year’s sightings).
As the plan for West Seattle’s new public school K-5 STEM at Boren continues to take shape, its Design Team is meeting to discuss details big and small. One potentially big item came up at the May 29th meeting: Principal Dr. Shannon McKinney‘s suggestion that the school should require uniforms, or have a uniform-like dress code. (Our coverage of that meeting reports the rationale, as well as the opinions voiced that night.) Though no decision was made at that meeting, as planned, the discussion continued at the most recent meeting this week – and Design Team member Robin Graham tells us the team decided to support the recommendation:
With understanding and appreciation of the community’s thoughts on both sides, the design team supports Dr. McKinney with our vision that STEM is a place kids should know they are doing something very important – this is their uniform for learning.
The uniform will go far to increase safety, reduce distractions; communicate to the students, staff, and the community that we are serious about learning at K-5 STEM; increase equality between sexes; reduce teasing between boys and girls; enable teachers to truly “see” the student as a student; encourage students to see beyond external attributes and get to know his/her classmates on the basis of who they are; along with many other reasons.
The uniform to be decided upon will not be something akin to “ties for the boys and only skirts for the girls.” On the contrary, students will be able to wear khaki-colored pants, shorts and/or skirts of appropriate length, along with initially, perhaps a navy blue polo shirt. After the student body and staff have together chosen school colors, a mascot and a name, then more choices will be added to the uniform. All the logistics and the support to families are details that will be addressed.
The Design Team, which includes community, school, and district representatives, is scheduled to meet again at 6:15 pm June 21st at Madison Middle School‘s library. The school’s PTA is in formation, too, and its charter membership meeting is set for 6:30 pm June 27th at the West Seattle (Admiral) branch of the Seattle Public Library (2306 42nd SW). Meantime, the Yahoo! discussion group for enrolled and interested families continues going strong – find it here.
3 updates in Crime Watch tonight, starting with these neighborhood crimefighters:
NEW SIGN: The 13th Avenue SW Block Watch in Highland Park is making its presence known with this new sign at SW Henderson. The photo is by Dina Johnson; from left in the photo are Blair, Randy, Art, Brian, & Brian. (If you’re interested in a Block Watch, here’s SPD info on how to get one going.)
SPEAKING OF BLOCK WATCHES: If you are a Block Watch captain or in an “acting BW captain” role, have you RSVP’d for the first-ever West Seattle Block Watch Captains’ Appreciation Party yet? It’s coming up in less than two weeks and it’s FREE for captains/acting captains and their guests, but the WS BW Captains’ Network needs you to hurry up and RSVP – all the details are here.
NOW, TWO THEFT REPORTS: Both involve bicycles. First, GI reports, “A good friend had his rare beach cruiser stolen from his garage on Alki. He’s retired and this is his toy and favorite mode of transportation. There is a reward. … If you could put the word out please. Again it’s a tan 1998 Felt Military Police beach cruiser.”
Second, this report comes from SODO, but since so many West Seattleites work (and play) there, maybe you can be on the lookout for this:
Jann e-mailed to say:
Our delivery bike was stolen last night from the sidewalk @ SODO Deli ( 3228 1st Ave S. ) It is a VERY unique vehicle, so we’re trying to get this photo in front of as many people as we can so we can try to bring it back home. It’s a 3 wheel, recumbent, with a hand made wooden seat on the back. It was recently repainted red, but it still has many touches of purple still on it, ’cause I bought it from Purple Perry Pedicabs. When it was stolen, it had the “SODO Deli” sidewalk sign in the back, which is red & white & black.
We’re a small family business with no $$ to spare, so having our marketing/delivery vehicle stolen is a huge blow.
We would greatly appreciate it if you could ask people to call 911 and let them know (if they see it). Incident # 12-180485. Thanks for any help you can give in this!
ORIGINAL 3:21 PM REPORT: Thanks to Michael for sharing the photo of the Marlins. They’re the winners of the West Seattle Little League end-of-season tournament minor-league championship after beating the Nationals 13-4 on Saturday.
ADDED 6:05 PM: And congratulations to the Cubs, who won the WSLL EOS major-league championship this afternoon, per this report, winning 10-1 over the Cardinals.
Till 4 pm, you are welcome to check out the Paddle From Seattle support event at the Duwamish Longhouse, co-sponsored by CARW, whose members posed for us when we stopped by just before the event began. Donations welcome, including traditional Longhouse treats such as frybread and Indian tacos, so the kitchen is busy:
More info on the event here; the Longhouse is at 4705 West Marginal Way SW, and its calendar of upcoming events is here – including the gala on June 30th.
Thanks to the tipster who texted us (206-293-6302 any time!) to say it appeared the westbound Spokane Street Viaduct had reopened early. Just drove the bridge to verify it, since SDOT hasn’t sent an announcement, and yes, it has reopened. More closures ahead this week – including some on Highway 99 – and we’re putting together a comprehensive list to publish here later.
ADDED 2:16 PM: SDOT’s Marybeth Turner confirms via e-mail that crews are totally done with the work for which this weekend closure was planned, so that’s the last closure until a partial eastbound closure this Wednesday night (explained here).
(Mallard in a field of wild mini-daisies at Lincoln Park, photographed by Machel Spence)
Some of what’s up today/tonight, from the WSB West Seattle Events Calendar:
PLAYDATE FOR K-5 STEM AT BOREN FAMILIES: Whether you’re already enrolled in West Seattle’s new public school, or you’re on the waitlist, or you’re just thinking about it, you’re welcome – 10 am at Lincoln Park, meet by the zipline that’s just north of the park’s south parking lot off Fauntleroy Way SW.
WEST SEATTLE FARMERS’ MARKET: 10 am-2 pm, 44th/Alaska – strawberries, cherries, and other summer fruit continue to arrive!
SHOE DRIVE: As previewed here last night, Clementine (4447 California SW) is launching its weeklong shoe drive for Jubilee Women’s Center – bring gently used women’s shoes to donate, and you’re eligible for discounts on new shoes.
LOVING DAY CELEBRATION: At Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way SW), noon-4 pm, the annual celebration of the court decision that ended laws against interracial marriage. Details here.
PB&J TEXTILES OPEN HOUSE: 1-4 pm at their headquarters next to Skylark in North Delridge, 3805 Delridge Way SW – details here.
TOUR THE LIGHTHOUSE: Alki Point Lighthouse is open for tours 1-4 pm Saturdays and Sundays, June through August.
‘PADDLE FROM SEATTLE’ SUPPORT @ DUWAMISH LONGHOUSE: Native American canoe culture is reviving, and the Duwamish Longhouse in West Seattle is celebrating it with a benefit event this afternoon, 2-4 pm. Details here. (4705 W. Marginal Way SW)
NATURE WALK: West Seattle naturalist Stewart Wechsler is leading a nature walk at Camp Long (5200 35th SW) that’ll focus on butterflies or salamanders, depending on the weather! Starts at 2:30 pm; more info here.
BENEFIT CLASS AT BIKRAM YOGA SEATTLE: As previewed here last night, proceeds from the 5 pm class at Bikram Yoga Seattle (WSB sponsor; 4747 California SW) benefit Run of Hope, raising money for childhood-brain-tumor research.
CHOIR CONCERT: South Seattle Community College Community Choir‘s concert “Beauty and Bounty” is tonight at 7, and you are welcome! They will perform in Olympic Hall, which is the building at the southeastern end of campus (6000 16th SW, use the south entrance to SSCC).
BENEFIT YOGA CLASS: 5 pm on Sunday, Bikram Yoga Seattle (WSB sponsor) invites you to a special class to benefit Run of Hope, fighting childhood brain tumors. (4747 California SW)
SHOE DRIVE: Sunday is day 1 of a week-long shoe drive at Clementine (4447 California SW). Bring in “gently used” women’s shoes to donate to Jubilee Women’s Center. Here’s the Facebook event page. Donors get a discount on new shoes if interested, as pointed out in this update on the Clementine website.
Photos and story by Patrick Sand and Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog co-publishers
Curving over 1st Avenue South, that’s the ramp West Seattleites have been waiting for since SDOT closed and demolished its predecessor two years ago, as part of the Spokane Street Viaduct Widening Project. The new combination on-and-off-ramp for the westbound SSV isn’t expected to be ready for you to use until summer’s end – one year longer than estimated back in 2010 – but it’s getting closer:
That’s the view we had from halfway up the ramp during a tour with the project team on Friday afternoon. We saw what’s happening now and talked about what’s happening next – including the reason why the westbound SSV is now (as of 6 pm Saturday 6/9) CLOSED for the remainder of the weekend. Read on for details, including 18 more photos from our tour:
Sister the cat is helping greet visitors at the Cooper Artist Housing loft of Liv Browning, during the open house that continues till 9 tonight. We met Sister and Liv during a quick mid-afternoon visit. The artists really are opening their homes, as well as showing their work. Liv and Sister are on the third floor, as is the stairwell where music and spoken-word performances are scheduled throughout the event:
You’ll see art in many media lining the old Cooper School’s hallways:
And you can visit the nonprofits on the ground floor (like Nature Consortium) or check out demonstrations in the Movement Studio. It’s all happening inside Youngstown Cultural Arts Center, 4408 Delridge Way SW.
Out of the WSB inbox, from Chris:
We had a delivered package containing some hard-to-replace valuables taken from our front porch on the corner of 27th and Holden at some point between 2 and 9 pm yesterday. Wrapping material (which I’m assuming is) from the package were strewn down the hill from our house.
He’s wondering if anyone saw someone in the area “carrying a big, 15-20 pound box during that time.”
Almost four weeks after an early-morning dumpster fire that spread to the exterior of Poggie Tavern in The Junction – here’s our coverage from May 14th – the Poggie is finally open again, as of about an hour ago. In our photograph, that’s bartender Amy, who explains that in addition to repairs required by smoke damage, they also took the opportunity to do some other work inside. (Thanks to Deborra for the tip!)
A productive morning around West Seattle so far – here’s just a few reasons why:
Thanks to Admiral Neighborhood Association vice president Karl de Jong for the photo of ANA president Katy Walum and children Olivia and Henry at this morning’s Adopt-A-Street cleanup (as previewed here). They were among the volunteers who spent three hours out cleaning up Admiral District streets – just one of ANA’s community-enhancing activities; if you live in the area, check out their next monthly meeting, this Tuesday, June 12, 7 pm, at Admiral Congregational Church (California/Hill).
Not far away, at Alki Bathhouse:
Thanks to Anita Lavine for sharing that photo from the Junior Carpenters’ Workshop presented by Niederberger Contracting this morning. Anita says the kids built birdhouses for chickadees to nest in! Anita explains, “The guys are doing it as a way to say ‘thank you’ to the supportive community here in the neighborhood, and provide all the materials and instruction free of charge.”
Janel sent that photo early this morning from her neighborhood in The Arroyos, the southwesternmost area of West Seattle, wondering if the red water was a sign of an algae bloom. If it’s the same stuff that did the same thing in June of last year, it’s a “bloom,” but NOT algae – single-cell microorganisms known as “noctiluca.” Here’s one of our stories from last year. It is also NOT TOXIC, according to experts, and not uncommon, though the sight of it last year was enough to startle a sizable number of people. So far, we’ve only heard from The Arroyos – let us know if you see it anywhere else.
11:33 AM: Via a Twitter inquiry mediated by our friend Evonne from KING5.com, we hear this has shown up at Lincoln Park, too.
(Photo by Paul Swortz, via the WSB Flickr group pool)
Happy weekend! Some sunshine predicted (per the WSB Weather page). Here are some highlights:
TRAFFIC REMINDERS: The westbound Spokane Street Viaduct closes at 6 pm tonight – meaning NO I-5/BEACON HILL ACCESS TO THE BRIDGE – and is scheduled to stay closed for ongoing construction/repairs till 5 am Monday … If you are going to be out and about this afternoon, remember that two major events are happening in SODO, as detailed in the weekly citywide weekend-alerts list.
HELP CLEAN UP THE ADMIRAL DISTRICT: Be at Metropolitan Market (WSB sponsor) at 9 am – just to the south of the front door – to meet up with the Admiral Neighborhood Association for one of its periodic Adopt-A-Street cleanups. There will be free breakfast treats (and usually sack lunches afterward), and you’ll be provided with what you need to get out and clean up. Just a few hours will make a big difference.
27TH ANNIVERSARY SALE: All weekend, at CAPERS in The Junction.
TECHSTART EXPO: Come see what the elementary and middle-school students involved with this STEM program are up to – 10 am-2 pm at Brockey Center, South Seattle Community College, 6000 16th SW.
(added) TICKETS STILL AVAILABLE FOR MORNING GLORY DRAG BRUNCH: As of just before 11 am, Skylark Café and Club reported via Facebook that today’s Morning Glory Drag Brunch at noon still has room – so we’re adding it here.
SPRING WINE RELEASE EVENTS CONTINUE … at Northwest Wine Academy on the SSCC campus, 12-5 pm, including a food/wine pairing event 3-5 pm.
(added) AND MORE WINE: West Seattle Wine Cellars is pouring Walla Walla wines 3-5 pm today.
ANNETTE COTTRELL AT VILLAGE GREEN: The author of “The Urban Farm Handbook” will be at Village Green Perennial Nursery (WSB sponsor) to sign books today, 1 pm. Here’s the Facebook event page.
COOPER ARTIST HOUSING OPEN HOUSE: Demonstrations of movement, music, dance, and more are on the schedule for this event at the artist housing atop Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way SW), 3-9 pm.
(added) SALSA ON ALKI: Debuting for the season tonight, according to a tip via Twitter that included this Facebook event link – 6 pm.
LIVE MUSIC: Willow and The Embers (along with Nicole Hardy‘s poetry) headline “Angels on the Radio: An Evening of Wine, Wit and Song” at Mind Unwind (2206 California SW), 5:30-11 pm … Gary Benson at C & P Coffee Company (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor), 6-8 pm … Ever, Little Red Long, Fey Moth at Skylark Café and Club (3803 Delridge Way SW), 8 pm… The Fuzz at Feedback Lounge (6451 California SW; WSB sponsor), 8:30 pm … (Anybody else? Send us a quick note sooner rather than later, so we can help get the word out!)
WEST SEATTLE GARDEN TOUR TICKETS: With five weeks to go till the July 15th tour, the ticket books are on sale starting this weekend – locations listed here.
Even MORE for today/tonight – and beyond – on the calendar!
(Screen grab of what City Light showed at the peak of this morning’s outage)
2:16 AM, FIRST REPORT: After seeing a “wires down” call on 31st SW turn up on the 911 log, we started checking the Seattle City Light system-status map to see if anyone was out of power. Nothing has ever shown on the map, but we’ve received a few scattered reports of power having been out for an indeterminate amount of time – California/Juneau, High Point, Fairmount. If you happened to notice yours go out, let us know where and for how long – thanks!
2:26 AM UPDATE: We have a Beach Drive outage report via Twitter. Our power has not gone out, not even a flicker, here in Upper Fauntleroy, for what it’s worth. (One minute later) It’s now on the map – City Light says 1,340+ customers (homes/businesses) affected but that may be an underestimate, since their map isn’t showing areas in Alki where we’re hearing from people.
2:38 AM UPDATE: Now we’re getting reports it’s back on, at least for some. Thanks to everybody for the comments, texts (206-293-6302 any time, which is also our 24/7 voice line), tweets, Facebook posts, etc. – since the SCL map lagged on this one, your alerts are how we got the word AND that in turn helped inform everyone else out there that it wasn’t just them. Whenever we find out what caused this, we’ll add the info – not sure if that info will be available over the weekend, but we’ll try.
3:10 AM UPDATE: High Point and vicinity reports being back on. City Light map, meantime, is definitely lagging, because now it shows what must have been the peak of the outage – more than 4,700 homes/businesses out – a bit earlier. We’re taking a screengrab and will add it atop this story, for posterity’s sake.
3:20 AM UPDATE: City Light news release confirms the peak tally of 4,700+ and indeed blames it on the “wires down” incident, now described as a “pole fire” near SW Findlay/30th SW.
Excitement and maybe a few nerves were evident – as you’d expect! – as the Seattle Lutheran High School Class of 2012 entered the school’s Menashe Family Gymnasium for their graduation ceremony last night. The 43 seniors comprise the school’s 32nd graduating class; Keegan White was this year’s valedictorian; Valerie Reid, the salutatorian. 15 of this year’s graduates qualified for the National Honor Society; this night also represented a milestone for their NHS advisor (among her many other roles), Shirley Vradenburgh, photographed pre-ceremony with SLHS principal Mark Henderson:
She is retiring after 32 years during which, as the school newsletter noted, she has “worked with every student who has graduated from SLHS.” A celebration is planned next week, but on this night, the spotlight was on the students moving to the next phase of their lives. Congratulations to them all!
Madison Middle School‘s Senior Orchestra performed together one last time Thursday night at the school’s second concert of the week, and our first clip begins with music director Clark Bathum‘s explanation preceding Rimsky-Korsakov‘s “Capriccio Espagnol.” (The music begins about a minute and a quarter in.) The concert also featured the Junior Orchestra, Combined Orchestra, and the Jazz Band, which is in our next clip with one of the numbers from their division-winning performance at a recent music festival:
Our coverage from Tuesday night’s concert is here.
Since there had been utility work in the Barton Pump Station (right) vicinity not long before last Sunday’s power problem led to a 46,000-gallon overflow into Puget Sound, we’ve been following up to see if that work had anything to do with it. Apparently not, according to both King County Wastewater Treatment Division and Seattle City Light.
While they have not pinpointed the problem’s cause and may never be able to – it apparently was triggered by a short power surge – here’s the likeliest scenario, according to SCL’s Scott Thomsen: Last Sunday at 3:18 pm, about 15 minutes before they got a call from the county about the pump-station problem, they had “a brief interruption on a (major) transmission line” – an osprey flew into a wire. Thomsen says that’s unusual for an osprey, and SCL wildlife biologists were sorry to hear about it, as the utility has been working to accommodate ospreys, which think utility poles are great places to nest, reminiscent of the tree snags they prefer in the wild. Meantime, as reported here last night, health authorities gave the county the all-clear to reopen the overflow-affected beaches after four days.
Gatewood Elementary principal Rhonda Claytor shared the photo, explaining:
This is a picture of Gatewood Elementary teacher Dana Bogel and fifth-grade student Claire Palmer-Paige, at Camp Warm Beach in Stanwood, conquering the wall challenge. Our 4th and 5th grade students have been at camp since Wednesday and many have challenged themselves to climb the wall, ride horses and row canoes for the first time in their lives. Additionally, they do many cooperative challenges and work together in groups. They also seem to enjoy the food and swimming pool!
Checking out the Gatewood website, we noted other special offerings – including four days this summer that the school library will be open for summer-reading checkout.
That photo is from a tour of the Spokane Street Viaduct construction zone this afternoon, just as the city gets ready for another major closure. While our full tour report will have to wait till this evening, we wanted to issue a closure reminder before everyone heads out for the weekend: The closure is WESTBOUND ONLY, on the bridge between I-5 and Highway 99, and the time is unusual: 6 pm Saturday till 5 am Monday. (Remember, as noted here yesterday, there’s a lot going on Saturday afternoon in SODO, so the city didn’t want to start the shutdown till all that lightened up.) You will NOT be able to get onto the bridge from I-5 during the closure, but you WILL be able to get to it from Highway 99. Meantime, more later on what we saw, and learned about the project, during our tour.
Just shared by Ed Pottharst from the Department of Neighborhoods: An announcement from the city that SDOT wants to put new bike racks in south-of-downtown neighborhoods “to help encourage cycling as a form of transportation to our business districts. We would like your help with finding places to install them where they will be most useful …” and the local neighborhoods where they’re seeking ideas are Delridge and South Park. This is NOT for private property, but for “public right-of-way” (sidewalks, for example), and the installation would likely happen late this year or early next year. Got an idea? Contact Doug Cox at SDOT, 206-684-8264 or doug.cox@seattle.gov.
Just heard thunder here at WSB HQ in Upper Fauntleroy; the National Weather Service called for a chance of thunderstorms in this “short-term forecast” (possibly even “small hail”).
| Comments Off on Followup: ‘Red water’ noctiluca bloom spreading, outside West Seattle too