West Seattle, Washington
25 Thursday
Sunday’s the big day – celebrate fall – the weather certainly is reminding us that it’s here – 2-6 pm Sunday in the heart of Fauntleroy! But first, work to help our greenspaces and watersheds at tomorrow’s Duwamish Alive! volunteer day, and then there’s tomorrow night’s Harvest Dinner/Auction to benefit the White Center Food Bank – wait, did we mention the performing pigs tomorrow morning at High Point Community Center? And if you’re ready to drive a bit, you can take the Remodeled Homes Tour either day this weekend to see the home for which Weitzel Construction (WSB sponsor) won an award! More than 50 events/activities in all in the West Seattle Weekend Lineup, brought to you by Skylark Cafe and Club:Read More
When SDOT confirmed the extended Fauntleroy Way bike-lane work one week ago, you may recall they also mentioned Sylvan Way. Just got this from Stacy, who’s concerned about the Sylvan work:
I wanted to share with you correspondence I received from SDOT regarding the road work on SW Sylvan Way. I sent SDOT an e-mail regarding my concerns about the recent work on Sylvan Way SW.
While I am very excited that they’ve added a long overdue bike lane and much needed re-striping (especially with bad weather approaching), I expressed my disappointment that this work was completed on a street which desperately needs resurfacing and/or at a minimum urgent pothole repairs – which I believe are dangerous to both bicyclists and motorists. I also found it interesting that in light of the lack of funds, most of this work was completed last Sunday, which has to cost SDOT an arm and a leg (have they never heard of time and a half on Sunday)?
As Mr. Hathaway pointed out, I plan on contacting the pothole hotline until the problem is addressed. With the increased number of condominiums and homes in the area, I can’t be the only person who uses this street on a daily basis. Hopefully more community members will also call this hotline.
*********
(reply that Stacy received from SDOT)Thank you for contacting the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) regarding the bike facilities being laid down on Sylvan Way SW from Delridge Way SW to 35th Ave SW & SW Morgan St.
SDOT recognizes that portions of Sylvan Way SW are in poor condition. Let me provide some background on how Seattle prioritizes its paving needs, and then directly address where Sylvan Way SW stands in the queue.
On November 7th, 2006, voters passed the Bridge the Gap Levy (BTG), which provides new funding to address Seattle’s basic transportation maintenance needs. BTG is designed to address a backlog that has over $300 million in deferred street maintenance. These are streets like Sylvan Way SW and others nearby, where the road conditions indicates a need, but no funds have been available for years to provide re-pavement.
Unfortunately, it has taken a long time to accumulate this maintenance backlog, and it will take some time to work it off. SDOT cannot meet all the needs immediately, so work is prioritized. We recognize Sylvan Way SW as a need; however, it is prioritized below other major arterials which have higher traffic volumes. In 2009, SDOT has rehabilitated First Avenue South, Second Avenue South and Fourth Avenue South, as well as Fauntleroy Way SW. Major corridors on the list from 2008 include Boren Avenue, 15th Avenue West, and First Avenue South. To make sure we get the most benefit out of the funds available, we focus on repairing the busiest streets first, taking into account condition, cost, transit, volume of traffic, and several other criteria. Our goal is to deliver the greatest area of improvement to the highest number of users.
Even though Sylvan Way SW is not in optimal condition, it is an important connection and there is still a benefit to cyclists by providing the facilities. Installing bicycle lanes and sharrows on Sylvan Way SW is part of a larger effort to implement the Seattle Bicycle Master Plan which was adopted in the fall of 2007. The plan calls for installing over 400 miles of new bicycle facilities. There are many bicyclists who prefer to use Sylvan Way SW since it provides a very direct east/west connection. These new bike lanes & sharrows will benefit these bicyclists.
If you are a cyclist considering the use of Sylvan Way SW, we recognize that there are many different types of bicyclists with varying skill and comfort levels. If you do not feel comfortable riding on Sylvan Way SW, there are alternative routes. You may want to look at our bicycling guide map which can be found on our web site at http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/bikemaps.htm.
In the mean time, SDOT will continue to make spot repairs along Sylvan Way SW as requested and identified. You can request pothole repairs to specific locations by calling the SDOT hotline 206-684-ROAD (7623) or visiting www.seattle.gov/transportation.
Sincerely,
James Hathaway, Manager
Street Maintenance Division
Seattle Department of Transportation
This afternoon we’re welcoming our newest sponsor, Sold Home Décor Furniture Consignment, which just opened a retail store in West Seattle. Here’s what Sold Home Décor proprietor Maria Groen would like you to know about her business: Sold Home Décor Furniture Consignment is a budget- and planet-friendly way to shop. Customers get great pieces for their home at low prices, along with the satisfaction of being part of the recycling movement. We really live our motto, “Reuse, recycle, redesign.” Maria says, “My clients love the quality and variety of home furnishings. Buyers come back for the prices, and people consigning their furniture with me love the convenience and way that I market to customers.” You can find out how the consignment process works – and what’s in the Sold Home Décor store right now – by checking out the Sold Home Décor website. Sold Home Décor Furniture Consignment is at 9003 35th SW, across the street from the Southwest Branch Library, open noon-6 Wednesdays-Friday, noon-5 Saturdays, 1-4 pm Sundays. Thanks to Sold Home Décor Furniture Consignment for sponsoring independent, community-collaborative neighborhood news on WSB; the sponsor team, with info on joining, is all here!
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
As Seattle’s most populous peninsula, West Seattle has transportation challenges that are widely known.
Right?
Not necessarily widely known by all the candidates who showed up at the West Seattle Candidates’ Forum at Youngstown Arts Center last night, co-sponsored by the Delridge Neighborhoods and Southwest District Councils (whose members represent most of the major community groups/organizations around the peninsula).
As noted in our first “toplines” report last night, neither candidate for mayor showed up (explained as “due to a series of events”), so the forum was focused on the four council races, from which six of the eight candidates appeared.
Reminder that what we now know (thanks to the SDOT news release) to be Seattle’s largest collection of European Hornbeam trees is getting trimmed today along 35th SW between Roxbury and Raymond, till about mid-afternoon, thanks to private arborists donating their services. (We took that photo a short time ago.) That means the outside lane is closed wherever crews are working. Meantime, another sighting – the bus stop in front of the new QFC in The Junction is finally officially back!
Thanks to Celeste for spotting it yesterday and tipping us overnight. It was gone for months during construction of Capco Plaza.
When the Southwest Healthy Youth Partnership meets next Tuesday, one of the agenda items centers on the planned new location of a liquor store in Westwood Village (as first reported here a month ago, it’s intended to replace the one that closed in Morgan Junction last year). Donn DeVore of the Westwood Neighborhood Council is concerned about the location’s proximity to Sealth/Denny playfields and the Southwest Athletic Complex, just across SW Trenton from the back of the store, which is supposed to take over part of the Famous Footwear space on the north side of the shopping center – in Google Street View above, you can see the southern stairs from the SWAC field at left, the back of the liquor store’s future home at right. (Coincidentally, info about the Healthy Youth Partnership, which focuses primarily on underage drinking, is to be handed out at SWAC tonight before/during the Sealth homecoming game.) Tuesday night’s meeting is at Madison Middle School, 6 pm.
Two alerts (and two quick mentions) to share this morning – not necessarily sellers, though (ADDED 3:13 PM – a solicitor report) – read on:Read More
(Chief Sealth’s Daniel Davis explains why the team’s Oregon trip last week [Clatskanie 21, Sealth 14] was fun)
By Patrick Sand
West Seattle Blog co-publisher
When Chief Sealth High School varsity-football captain Daniel Davis was a freshman, he thought the best way to go about the first week of football practice was to not say much and get the lay of the land.
That changed a couple of days into that week, when he and another player decided to throw the ball around. Near the end of practice, Daniel launched a pass to a friend that covered almost 40 yards. “Coach ran over to me, ” he said, “and asked, ‘Freshman, did you throw that ball?'” After he said he did, the coach asked, without hesitating, “You want to play quarterback?”
15 years old at the time, Davis found it to be a pretty daunting question. But after talking to cousins who had played not only high school but college ball, he decided to give it a try. At his very first game as the freshman starting quarterback he remembers his first series as being nothing to write home about, but the next time he got the ball he found a receiver on the sideline and managed to put together an 80-yard pass play that led to a touchdown. Near the end of that same game he threw another touchdown pass to his friend and fellow freshman, Greg Wilson.
He’s never looked back … though his high-school accomplishments overall are worth reviewing and celebrating!Read More
Quick notes on 6 more upcoming West Seattle events just announced: The West Seattle Eagles have just announced their first-ever Oktoberfest, coming up on October 24th, including beer/brats/sauerkraut, flag football, and kid/adult Ms. Oktoberfest costume contests … The West Seattle High School Radio Players open “Invasion from Mars, featuring The Shadow” on October 29th … Also that night, Alki Idol starts a new competition season at Bamboo … Keller Williams Realty in The Junction is having a chili cookoff and carved-pumpkin contest at noon October 30th … Furry Faces Foundation is presenting its 2nd annual Catsino at Beveridge Place Pub 2-6 pm Nov. 14 (flyer), followed by the Morgan Junction Pet Adoption Stroll the next day (flyer) … More details on these events and TONS of others are on the WSB Events Calendar page.
From Thursday night’s Alki Community Council meeting: Three major topics – a followup to the Alki Homestead proposal presentation that anchored the last meeting; a report on how an airline’s proposal to change flight patterns would affect the area; and accountability for Statue of Liberty Plaza now that the Plaza Project Committee has phased itself out. Read on for details on all three:Read More
By Jonathan Stumpf
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
Thursday night’s West Seattle Q/A session for Seattle Public Schools‘ proposed school-attendance boundaries was the first of two chances for families to publicly air any concerns, problems and issues they might have with the proposal (the second chance is at Denny International Middle School tonight, 6:30 pm)
Following up on the big news from Monday night’s meeting at Schmitz Park Elementary with School Board rep Steve Sundquist — the West Seattle map error (now officially acknowledged here) — the hot issue at Thursday night’s meeting surrounded the factors that are influencing the boundaries within the district.
Just got a text and phone call that the eastbound bridge is blocked, all traffic stopped, around the Nucor plant. The 911 log shows a crash report a while ago, but the Fire Department involvement in it was “closed” – checking to see what more we can find out, but in the meantime, if you have to head east, don’t try to get on The Bridge before Delridge. 12:33 AM UPDATE: In comments, Diane says it now looks like things are cleared up. 7:46 AM NOTE: Unrelated crash that we didn’t get to before the call “closed” – a car went down an embankment on Pigeon Point in the 1 am hour – there’s a bit about it here.
Long-form story’s in progress, but here are a couple toplines from tonight’s West Seattle Candidates’ Forum at Youngstown Arts Center: 
Six of the potential 10 total candidates (mayor plus four City Council races) showed up – the no-shows were both would-be mayors (Joe Mallahan and Mike McGinn), incumbent Council President Richard Conlin (who’d been invited to spend the evening with the governor in Olympia) and council hopeful Sally Bagshaw (whose campaign manager said she had committed to a “public-safety walk” in North Seattle long before getting this invitation). The most West Seattle-specific question posed by moderators Chas Redmond (photo right) and Pete Spalding (photo left) — of the co-sponsoring Southwest and Delridge Neighborhoods District Councils, respectively — involved how to tackle West Seattle’s transportation challenges – and it was clear few had closely studied the peninsula’s unique problems. No moments of major disagreement – the two opponents with the sharpest contrasts were council candidates Mike O’Brien and Robert Rosencrantz. We have short clips of all six participants plus highlights of their answers to the night’s questions, coming up in the long report. P.S. This seattlepi.com report says Joe Mallahan skipped a forum earlier today too, on short notice.
A week and a half ago, Eliza Junkerman, daughter of a staffer at White Center Heights Elementary School, shared the story of her campaign to get more musical instruments donated so more of its students could take music classes from a promising new teacher. Tonight, she shares a followup, and an invitation to those who donated:
We have had an amazing turnout and some extremely generous people from West Seattle, White Center and beyond. I just wanted to give you a quick recap of what we have collected so far (or have set a time to pick up):
26 recorders
1 flute
1 piccolo
2 oboes
1 Cello
4 guitars
1 set of Congo drums
1 Clarinet
1 Alto Saxophone
1 Violin
1 TromboneThis is really way more than we could have ever expected! Thank you to everyone who helped – spreading the word, donating, and just supporting!!
White Center Heights will be holding an Assembly to honor the donors and talk about what encompasses a community, on October 30th from 1:20-1:55. All donors are invited to attend!!
Thank you so much for your help!
White Center Heights Elementary is at 10015 6th Avenue SW; here’s a map.
By Charla Mustard-Foote
Special to West Seattle Blog
More than 60 people braved a damp West Seattle fall evening to attend a benefit to help the family of Café Revo owner and Chef Sean “Chano” Goff – who died a month ago at age 43 – and to help maintain his dream of opening a great Italian restaurant in West Seattle.
At last night’s event at The Sanctuary at Admiral, Sean’s wife, Sofia Zadra Goff (left), and children, Forrest and Maya, mixed with the crowd of friends and family, and never stopped smiling (at least, publicly). The event was the celebration of a life and a dream — it gave people a taste of what drew Sean and Sofia to the town and food and culture of her family’s ancestral home, Revo, Italy.
The menu included a rich creamy Gnocchi (rumored to be a staple of the menu at Café Revo [a WSB sponsor]), Papperdelle (a tangy noodle dish), and topped off by an exquisite tiramisu, and generous amounts of an excellent Café Revo house red wine. The elegant and leisurely meal stretched over 2 hours. (Photos ahead!)
Tonight’s the first of 2 official Seattle Public Schools meetings in West Seattle to offer briefings and take questions/comments regarding the new proposed school-attendance boundaries – 6:30 pm at West Seattle High School tonight, 6:30 pm at Denny International Middle School tomorrow. This past Monday, West Seattle school-board rep Steve Sundquist acknowledged at a meeting at Schmitz Park Elementary that the Denny/Chief Sealth HS boundaries on the proposed maps were wrong and will be fixed (WSB coverage here). We asked him and the district how this would be communicated; just got word from SPS spokesperson Patti Spencer that it’s acknowledged in the FAQ regarding the proposed maps – see the short blurb here.
Update and new photos from David Hutchinson regarding the sailboat situation he reported this morning:
The sailboat grounded yesterday on the rocks south of the Don Armeni boat ramps was successfully refloated a little after 2 PM. The rising tide and the assistance of a number of concerned passers-by who offered their advice, equipment, and a willingness to get personally involved led to this happy outcome. The owner of the boat seemed like a nice young man doing his best in a difficult situation.
These are for Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, all from SDOT. For the weekend:
Saturday and Sunday, October 17 and 18, The Seattle Department of Transportation will be removing and replacing markings in the bus lane eastbound on the West Seattle Bridge from the Avalon Way on-ramp, adjacent to the old steel mill, to the First Avenue S off-ramp, just past the SR99 exit. In conjunction with the pavement marking work, the crews will also be installing signs.
The work will be carried out between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. each day. Motorists should use caution and be watchful for buses needing to pull out of the bus lane in the work zone.
And for Monday – the westbound left lane will be closed 9 am-3 pm so the Seattle Fire Department can check the fire-suppression system – here’s that alert. Reminders will be on the WSB Events calendar page in case you need to check those dates again.
First, an update on the recurring homophobic graffiti in the Morgan Junction/Lincoln Park area (same 3-word phrase that is too vile to post here). We reported its reappearance last month; then in the past few days, we’ve received three more reports, including the tennis courts near Lincoln Park and a business sign in south Morgan Junction. 
To recap – there was an arrest after the first wave of this vandalism last May, and a suspect was charged in Seattle Municipal Court, but the charges were dismissed because he was found mentally incompetent; an evaluation was recommended. What happened after that is not a matter of public record, for medical privacy reasons. Lt. Steve Paulsen of the Southwest Precinct tells us today that SWP officers are on alert to watch for the same suspect, to question him; their best bet (whether the vandal is indeed him or someone else) will be if someone catches and reports this vandalism as it happens.
Meantime, in a separate case, we also received a report of extensive tagging on benches, rocks and other facilities at Constellation Park south of Alki Point; no arrests reported. Investigators reiterate that if you see graffiti, please make sure that it IS reported: Graffiti at city facilities (such as parks) can be reported through this form. If you want to paint it out immediately, take a photo first – they are keeping a database in hopes of matching more crimes to suspects when arrests are made. Graffiti also is often discussed at the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council‘s meetings; next one is next Tuesday, 7 pm, at the SW Precinct meeting room (Webster/Delridge).
Just got word from SDOT that the location’s now set for the ceremony to give the West Seattle Bridge the name “Jeanette Williams Memorial Bridge” at 12:30 pm Friday, October 23: It’ll be at 3682 West Marginal Way (west side of the waterfront under the bridge). SDOT says Councilmember Tom Rasmussen and the family of Jeanette Williams — the former councilmember who died a year ago — will be there, and you are invited to be there too.
Update on one effect of last night’s up-to-3-hours West Seattle power outage (WSB as-it-happened coverage here) – a spill at the Lowman Beach pump station, where WSB contributing journalist Christopher Boffoli took that photo last night (the light in the background was from a county truck at the pump station). This news release is just in from King County:
A power failure in West Seattle last night knocked out electricity at King County’s Murray Avenue Pump Station, causing a small sewage overflow near Lowman Beach Park.
County employees responded quickly Wednesday night and installed a portable generator to provide back up power during the outage. Crews stopped the overflow within 30 minutes.
It’s estimated that about 65,000 gallons of wastewater was discharged through the pump station’s emergency outfall into Puget Sound.
County staff took water quality samples and notified health and regulatory agencies about the overflow.
Utility power was back online within two hours and the facility is again operating normally.
We have followup questions out to Seattle City Light regarding the cause of the “underground cable failure” blamed for last night’s outage, which affected almost 2,800 homes and businesses at its peak.
West Seattle Helpline director Anna Fern sends news their Clothesline clothing bank is expanding its services:
The West Seattle Helpline is taking the Clothesline to Seniors. We have partnered with the West Seattle Food Bank to bring some clothing items to their waiting room on Tuesdays just before their distribution. Last Tuesday and yesterday, we gave away sweaters. (Photo above shows Liz, a Helpline volunteer, with the sweaters before we took them down to the Food Bank. Photo below shows a picture of the rack in the Food Bank waiting room after sweaters were selected by Seniors yesterday.)
Then next Tuesday we are going to give away coats. We need extra winter coats in order to have enough for next Tuesday the 20th and the following Tuesday the 27th . … We could use help gathering extra coats. They can drop off coats at the Helpline (6516 35th Ave. SW) during office hours Monday – Friday 7:00 to 8:30 AM or Monday – Thursday 4:30 to 6:30. For other arrangements, call 206.932.4357.
P.S.: As noted earlier today, West Seattle Helpline is the beneficiary of one of the upcoming WS Halloween events – Nightmare on Morgan Street at Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor) Oct. 29 (here’s the poster).
Photo and info from David Hutchinson:
Noticed this sailboat aground just south of the Don Armeni boat ramp yesterday afternoon. I think it broke loose from where it was moored during the recent stormy weather. It was still there this morning. The owner was on site trying to free it from the rocks so it could be refloated at high tide (3:32 PM). I believe he was originally contacted by the Coast Guard and he could probably use some assistance if anyone has any expertise in this type of situation.
4:51 PM UPDATE: David sends word (with new photos) that the boat is off the rocks. Posting a separate followup shortly.
| Comments Off on West Seattle Weekend Lineup: Fauntleroy Fall Festival edition