West Seattle, Washington
30 Saturday
Story and photo by Keri DeTore
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
How do you like your chai? Brewed with a blend of twelve different spices? How about your Chicken Shawarma? Marinated in a mixture of twenty-five different spices?
West Seattleites will get a chance to try Chef Rami Al-Jebori’s thoughtfully crafted “Middle East cuisine” when he expands his popular Mawadda Café to the Admiral District in September, in the former Museum Quality Framing storefront.
Blending Iranian, Greek, Turkish and Mediterranean flavors, Al-Jebori will feature items such as falafel, hummus, gyros and shish kebob. There will be a variety of vegetarian options and all the food will be made following the rules of Halal (Islamic dietary guidelines). Desserts will also be offered and he points out that his Baklava recipe uses pistachios instead of the usual walnuts.
Just out of the WSB inbox, from Joe in Arbor Heights:
Dex phone books are here again. After all of the opt-out hype and after three other times of contacting Dex and requesting that I not be delivered phone books, the kid (who appeared too young to even be working) attempted to deliver another archaic Dex phone book to my residence until I hollered out the window for him to go away. What do we have to do?
If you have opted out through the new service that’s officially partnered with the city, you’re advised to sign into your account and file a complaint.
10:41 AM: We mentioned this on Twitter and Councilmember Mike O’Brien tweeted that he’s interested if this happens to you.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
This afternoon at the King County Courthouse, pre-testimony proceedings in the trial of Brandon Chaney and Bryce Huber are scheduled to resume.
Huber (left) and Chaney (right), are two of the four men who were charged with gunning down 26-year-old Steve Bushaw along California north of Edmunds in The Junction on Super Bowl night in 2009. The other two, Danny O’Neal and John Sylve, already have pleaded guilty. As mentioned earlier, we were in court as proceedings began Monday afternoon.
Toplines: The case has a new prosecutor, Jeff Baird, because the one originally assigned to the case, James Konat – who won the case against South Park killer/rapist Isaiah Kalebu earlier this summer – was taken off it amid a controversy over racist remarks he made in an unrelated case in which a conviction was overturned as a result. Baird gained fame last decade for leading the Green River Killer prosecution team. His first major announcement in this case: Seeking to drop the “conspiracy to commit murder” charge against Chaney and Huber.
Chaney’s lawyer James Rowe didn’t object, so his client now is on trial for one charge – 1st-degree murder with firearm enhancement – but Huber’s lawyer Anthony Savage did object, saying the alleged conspiracy was going to figure into his defense, and dropping the charge “disarms” him of a contention he planned to pursue. Judge Joan DuBuque gave Savage until first thing this morning to cite case law to support his argument against dropping the conspiracy charge.
She also suggested the defense lawyers would want to read the trial brief that Baird had turned in – hinting that it would raise a number of issues that might take days to hash out – and when court reconvenes today, everyone will have “a better sense of what there is to argue about.”
All that means this may not get to jury selection for a while.
The trial originally was set to start in January – then suddenly, Sylve and O’Neal pleaded guilty, and that led to delays. It was pushed further back when Konat was still on the case, so as not to conflict with the South Park murder/rapes trial. Even Judge DuBuque acknowledged yesterday, “This [Bushaw murder] case has been proceeding in a piecemeal fashion.”
It’s also a complicated case – and as noted again in court yesterday, evidence will include a copious amount of cell-phone records – with the general allegation that Bushaw was killed because Huber believed he had been involved in a home-invasion robbery; Sylve and O’Neal allegedly were the triggermen, and Chaney the getaway driver.
(Photo credit: January 2011, by Christopher Boffoli for WSB)
When it’s a celebration of artists – and there’s a competition to design the official T-shirt – you know the result will be memorable. This Saturday and Sunday, the beach will be alive with art for the annual Alki Art Fair (co-sponsored by WSB), and though it’s free, you can help support it by buying a shirt. The winning design is above; the winning artist is Susan Basher, who organizers tell us is new to the fair, and will have a booth there. (You’ve probably seen the poster all around town too – it was created by Alaina Gridley, who has participated in the fair for several years.) In addition to the art you can admire and buy during the fair (10 am-6 pm both days this weekend), make plans to check out at least a few of the 29 acts slated for live musical performances – here’s our previous report with the full schedule, and help pay tribute to the Alki Bathhouse’s centennial (did you catch the Then And Now Seattle Times feature on Sunday?). More previews ahead; check out the official Alki Art Fair website here. And the forecast still tantalizes us with a suggestion of some weekend sunshine…
(Photo courtesy Steve Fuller)
We reported yesterday morning on the impending temporary move of the SBX from its Vigor Shipyard spot so the Arctic-offshore-oil-drilling rig Kulluk can be maneuvered in. MarineTraffic.com indicates the Kulluk is now off north Seattle shores, so it looks like all this is still on for later today – the plan was for the SBX to spend about six hours out in Elliott Bay doing testing this afternoon/evening. Meantime, from the WSB West Seattle Events calendar:
JOB-SEARCH SUPPORT GROUP: The long-running job-searcher-support group Notes From The Job Search meets every Tuesday at 11 am at C & P Coffee (WSB sponsor), 5612 California SW. Members have of course come and gone, as jobs have been found (and lost), and if you’re a current searcher, they welcome you to drop in.
COMMUNITY FELDENKRAIS: Community Feldenkrais at Senior Center of West Seattle (4217 SW Oregon St), Erik LaSeur (WSB sponsor), Mary Morrison, & Anna Oeste, guild-certified Feldenkrais practitioners. 1st and 3rd Tuesdays, 12:30 – 1:15 group session, $5 members/$10 non-members, 1:30 – 3:30pm individual sessions with appointment (call Erik at 206-406-8154), improve balance and stability, increase flexibility, decrease pain, increase mental clarity.
KIDS’ DESIGN MEETING FOR NEW HIGH POINT PLAYGROUND: High Point is getting a playground at Bataan Park with the help of KaBOOM! and the Windermere Foundation, as first reported here last week, and this is the chance for area kids to have their say in its design. 4:30-7:30 pm, HP Neighborhood Center, 6400 Sylvan Way.
WEST SEATTLE HI-YU CONCERT IN THE PARK: Tonight’s the night! West Seattle Big Band at 7 pm, east lawn of Hiawatha Community Center, free (but bring a few dollars to buy West Seattle Hi-Yu buttons from circulating volunteers and royalty, to support the festival and Seattle’s last neighborhood parade float).
DELRIDGE PRODUCE COOPERATIVE BUYERS’ CLUB: Tonight is this new group’s every-other-Tuesday meeting, to order discounted organic produce for pickup next Sunday. You are welcome to join at any time – just look for the Delridge Produce Cooperative group at 7 pm at Delridge Community Center, 4501 Delridge Way SW.
Our most recent two coyote sightings include a reminder for pet owners – it’s in a report this morning from DRS:
A rather bold coyote tried to eat my bunny (last night) at our home on 26th by Cottage Grove Park. Thanks to our awesome neighbors she’s safe and sound. Unfortunately no pic of the pesky canine but he/she was about the size of a border collie (just skinnier and more coyoteish, obviously). If you have pets that stay outside, make sure their pens are secure enough to withstand a frontal attack.
And Anya posted this one early Monday to the WSB Facebook wall:
Another coyote sighting. Between 36th/37th and Hudson. He was huge (at least 4 1/2 feet long, a good 2 feet tall and a very long bushy tail. His ears were perked straight up and he was a golden with dark brown down his spine into his tail); he looked like he was scrounging for food but he took me by surprise. I’ve lived in this house my whole life (22 years) and parents for a year before I came along and we’ve never seen a coyote around here.
Remember, while they’re apparently everywhere, the less seen, the better, because it means less entanglement between them, pets, and people – and if you do see one, do your best to scare it off, as advised in the “coexisting with coyotes” advice from wildlife authorities.
(WSB photo from June 4th)
Last month, a small, spirited group of volunteers spent a sunny Saturday morning at Boren School on Delridge, painting the backs and sides of mural panels that will go up around the closed campus to both beautify it and discourage tagging vandalism. Now, Pete Spalding (who’s at left in our photo) says, your help is needed to finish the work so the murals can be put up. You don’t need artistic talent – just a little time to lend to the work. 9 am July 30th (one week from this Saturday); e-mail Pete at bayouwonder@comcast.net so he knows how many people might show up.
This is one of those reports that’s hard to interpret – maybe it wasn’t what it seemed – but Todd asked that we share it, just in case:Read More
(WSB photo of the West Seattle Big Band during the 2010 Hi-Yu Concert in the Park)
Might be some clouds, but no rain forecast for tomorrow (Tuesday) night – which is good news for the next big summer event, the West Seattle Hi-Yu Festival Concert in the Park. You’re invited to the east lawn at Hiawatha Community Center, 7-8:30 pm tomorrow – bring your own blanket/chair, picnic dinner if you feel like it, and enjoy the West Seattle Big Band (celebrating its 15th anniversary). If you haven’t been there before – Hiawatha’s address is 2700 California SW, just north of West Seattle High School, but the concert area is on the east side, which is bordered by Walnut. (Parking is generally plentiful in the high-school lot, entering from California SW, however.)
(WSB photo from 2010 West Seattle Junction Car Show)
From West Seattle Junction Car Show organizer Michael Hoffman, we get word that this year’s show will have four special guests from the cast of Discovery Channel’s “Deadliest Catch.” Which four? Not set yet – stay tuned. Michael also says the website is updated at wsjunctioncarshow.com – if you’d like to enter a car in the show, you’ll find applications there. The Last Resort Fire Department‘s scheduled to bring back its antique fire trucks, and a charity raffle is again scheduled, with Junction True Value already stepping up to donate a $350 Weber Gas Grill. The Junction Car Show – with co-sponsors including WSB – will be on Sunday, September 18th, 8 am-4 pm, in the heart of The Junction. (P.S. In case you missed earlier word, no Alki car show this year – so this is your next big chance!)
The City Council has just approved a change in the city rules that have required food trucks to find private lots to set up on: Now they’ll be allowed to get permits to park on streets, with some restrictions, as detailed by our partners at the Seattle Times. (To read the full text of what the council approved, here’s the ordinance, and here’s a related resolution.)
Heads up for Wednesday night: The Seattle Sounders-Manchester United soccer game at 7 pm Wednesday will bring an estimated 66,000 people to the stadium zone. But the good news is that you can take the West Seattle Water Taxi – it’s running Wednesday night between Pier 50 and Seacrest every half hour from 7:30 to 10:30 pm, the county says. (Thanks to Jissy for the tip!) There’s also a series of bus reroutes – read on:Read More
STEVE BUSHAW MURDER TRIAL BEGINS: We’re at the King County Courthouse courtroom of Superior Court Judge Joan DuBuque, where the rescheduled murder trial is starting this afternoon for the two remaining defendants in the February 2009 Junction shooting death of 26-year-old Steve Bushaw (two have already pleaded guilty). A jury has to be chosen before testimony can begin; right now, various motions are being brought up, including the prosecution’s proposal to drop the “conspiracy to commit murder” charge and leave the two defendants, Brandon Chaney and Bryce Huber, charged with first-degree murder/firearm enhancement. We’ll have a separate report on today’s proceedings later. (2:42 pm note – court has already recessed for the day.)
GATEWOOD ARSON: John C. Siegel, charged with arson and domestic violence in the June 28th fire at the Gatewood home he owned with his ex-wife, is scheduled to return to court tomorrow for a case-setting hearing, after pleading guilty last week. He remains in jail, status listed as “bail denied” (though a $1 million bail amount remains on the books for the arson charge).
FAIRMOUNT SPRINGS BURGLARY/ASSAULT: Monty Richardson, arrested two weeks ago and charged with breaking into a neighbor’s house and attacking her, was in court last week to answer the burglary, assault, and unlawful-imprisonment charges against him. He pleaded not guilty and remains in jail, with his bail still $250,000, due back in court for a case-setting hearing on July 25th.
STOLEN CAR/CAR-THEFT-TOOLS CASE: Repeat offender Skyelar Hailey remains in the Regional Justice Center jail in Kent, with bail set at $65,000, in a possession-of-stolen-vehicle/vehicle-theft-tools case we detailed here last month. He too was in court last week to plead guilty, and has a case-setting hearing set this Wednesday.
Two voting-related notes regarding the Highway 99 tunnel: First, according to a news release from the Seattle City Attorney’s Office, King County Superior Court Judge Joan DuBuque has ruled that anti-tunnel Initiative 101 should not be on the fall ballot because it “is beyond the scope of the initiative power because it purports to exercise a power that was directly delegated to the City Council and Mayor.” So, the news release adds, “Unless Judge DuBuque’s decision is appealed and overturned, I-101 in its entirety will not appear on the November ballot. The initiative was designed to prohibit the City of Seattle from using city streets to aid in the construction of a deep-bore tunnel to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct, a project of the Washington State Department of Transportation.”
What IS going before voters is Seattle Referendum 1, asking them to approve or reject a section of a city ordinance related to Seattle’s role in the 99 tunnel project. The “section” is what remains after a separate court fight. Referendum 1 is on the August 16th ballot, and if you would like to hear from both sides, in one place, before making up your mind, the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce presents a public forum, moderated by your WSB editor, this Thursday night, 6 pm, West Seattle High School Theater.
Another big weekend ahead, rain or shine – including the West Seattle Grand Parade‘s 2011 edition, presented by American Legion Post 160, Saturday (July 23) at 11 am, from California/Lander to California/Edmunds. We’ll be previewing it all week long, starting this morning with parade organizers’ announcement of two of the special honorees you’ll see toward the start of the parade – the Grand Marshals, Art and Gloria Peters:
(2007 West Seattle Grand Parade photo by Creighton)
Art and Gloria have been parade favorites for close to a decade now – a long-married couple who are U.S. Navy veterans from World War II and the Korean War. We talked to them along the pre-parade sidelines three years ago. Adding three years to what they told us then, they’ve been married for 64 years, and the longevity of their union is what their parade vehicle usually pays homage to, “Art and Gloria, still married” (as seen here). Cheer them on – along with the 70-plus other entries/participants – this Saturday, all along this route, following the West Seattle Rotary Kiddie Parade at 10 am on a shorter route southbound from California/Genesee (all kids invited to join in, more info here).
For those who commute via human power between West Seattle and downtown (or beyond): As announced last week, the new Alaskan Way bicycle/pedestrian path opened today. Bob Anderton, who shared the photo, says he saw more than a few bicyclists this morning who didn’t get the word, still using the old detour. WSDOT explains the new route here, and also invites bikers/walkers to stop by and celebrate near the north end of the new trail (S. King Street) – 4-6 pm.
(June 24 WSB photo of SBX, taken from Jack Block Park)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
It’s dominated the Harbor Island view for two months, and while it’s not scheduled to leave Vigor (formerly Todd) Shipyard for another month or so, you will see the SBX (military Sea-Based X-Band missile-detecting radar, aka “that thing that looks like a giant golf/ping-pong ball”) move around a bit this week.
That’s because, according to a marine-industry advisory obtained by WSB, a floating offshore-oil-drilling platform is coming into the shipyard, so SBX must move temporarily while the drilling rig is maneuvered into place. That rig is a story unto itself:
(2010 photo of Kulluk by Flickr member Anyaku2419)
It’s “an Arctic-class drill ship” called the Kulluk, owned by Shell, which is getting it into shape in hopes of obtaining Arctic offshore-drilling permits that, according to reports like this, it’s been trying to get for six years.
The 1983-built Kulluk had been idle for more than a decade, after years of Arctic drilling, before being reactivated; it has most recently been based in Dutch Harbor, Alaska, and left there July 1st for the journey here.
According to the advisory about Kulluk’s arrival and SBX’s temporary move, Shell is expected to issue a news release about the Kulluk sometime today. As of very early this morning, marinetraffic.com showed its accompanying tugs – Kulluk itself was not providing a signal – in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and it’s expected in Elliott Bay by Tuesday morning.
Meantime, SBX is expected to move to an anchorage area in west Elliott Bay by early afternoon Tuesday, and to conduct various tests before returning to Vigor sometime Tuesday evening, once the Kulluk is in place. The advisory says the 500-yard security zone around SBX will be maintained wherever it is, so that could make for some varied ferry/Water Taxi routing on Tuesday.
ADDED 11:32 AM: Shell’s statement, received by e-mail:
In anticipation of a 2012 offshore Alaska drilling season, Shell will move the Kulluk drilling unit from Dutch Harbor, Alaska to the shipyard in Seattle, Washington for ongoing maintenance and planned, technical upgrades. The Kulluk is identified as a primary drilling unit in Shell’s 2012 Beaufort Sea Plan of Exploration. Once the upgrades are complete, Dutch Harbor will remain a staging ground for the Kulluk and other Shell vessels as we pursue exploration drilling on our leases in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas.
(One more pic from the West Seattle Garden Tour – others here – lettuce in the Whirligig Garden)
A few highlights from the WSB West Seattle Events calendar:
URBAN FORAGING: Sustainable West Seattle‘s monthly community event is outdoors this time around – meet at 7 pm, Lincoln Park‘s north parking lot (Fauntleroy and Monroe), for “Urban Foraging in West Seattle.” Not a lecture! Here’s the SWS description:
Ever wondered which “weeds” were safe to eat? Ready to take eating locally to the next level? Join us for an Urban Foraging Walk with Stewart Wechsler, local plant expert. You’ll be introduced to the growing urban harvesting movement while we tour through beautiful Lincoln Park, learning which plants make a great snack and which plants to avoid. The walk will focus on respectful and safe harvesting. Be sure to arrive on time to ensure you can find the tour group!
WEST SEATTLE COOKING CLUB: Featured here in a recent story, the club meets again today, 2:30 pm, Beveridge Place Pub. Theme ingredient this time around is “eggs.”
THIS WEEK’S WEST SEATTLE IN MOTION DEAL: Signed up for In Motion yet? You commit to driving a little bit less here and there, and you get free bus tickets plus a card that’ll get you new deals each week – this week, it’s a half-price Zipcar membership. Go here to sign up. (WSB is the media sponsor for West Seattle In Motion.)
Village Green Perennial Nursery owner Vera Johnson says more than 35 people showed up Sunday for the first meeting of a group she convened to help others going through what she’s experiencing – battling with banks over loan trouble. (We first reported on her story last Tuesday; the Seattle Times [WSB partner] followed up on Friday.) Vera tells WSB that those who showed up were at “all levels of default/foreclosure, some only months/some over 2 years in the quagmire. … We discussed our options, walk away, willing to do a loan mod[ification] or sue the banks for fraud? We plan to meet regularly, and plan to participate in regular protests with Working Washington, Washington CAN, US Uncut. So many people are facing foreclosure and these folks need to get involved with organizations who are already protesting banks.” (Which Vera did on Saturday – she joined a protest by Washington CAN, as reported on our partner site White Center Now.) She says the group will meet regularly, though the next date is not yet set. They plan to start a blog-format website too. And they’ll invite more people to participate: “We will be inviting anyone who wants to stand up and say NO MORE!”
No arrests yet in connection with the stabbing of two men Saturday night near Hamilton Viewpoint Park in North Admiral (original WSB coverage here). But friends of the victims say the initial police report at the scene – that the men were believed to be transients living in the park – is wrong, that the two men are Admiral residents who were “out for a walk.” Bob identified them in this comment as 25-year-old Zach and 52-year-old Glen. We don’t know their conditions, and there is no new official police information regarding the circumstances; that, we hope to get tomorrow. But to another point that has come up in the comments following last night’s coverage, “officers do check Hamilton Viewpoint regularly,” according to Southwest Precinct Lt. Alan Williams, who says computer logs show “an officer who works the district had logged out to the park and checked it an hour before this incident happened … The officer would have been very visible to anyone who was actually in the park.” One last point: The incident, he says, happened before the park’s 11:30 closing time – it was reported to SPD at 11:28, a few minutes after it happened (the Fire Department’s online log shows medics dispatched at 11:31).
Just one week till WestSide Baby‘s big Stuff the Bus diaper-donating day – but two big differences this year: For one, you’ll find the bus at Viking Bank (40th/Alaska) on the east side of The Junction next Sunday, rather than at the West Seattle Farmers’ Market as in years past. Second, WS Baby supporters have been having dozens of smaller drives all leading up to Stuff the Bus Day – so be on the lookout for additional places to donate diapers. But mark your calendar for 10 am-2 pm next Sunday (July 24) – there’s more room in the Viking Bank lot to get in, drop off, and get going – this page on the WestSide Baby website has all the details, including the sizes of diapers currently needed the most.
Thanks to the anonymous WSB’er who caught a photo as that boater got assistance from Seattle Police off the 1600 block of Alki SW this afternoon. We don’t know the circumstances, but that did happen to be less than an hour after low tide. That reminded us of photos Jordan shared back on Friday, with what appeared to be more of a high-tide problem by the Harbor West over-the-water complex on Beach Drive:
A tow truck came in to help:
Now, back to today. Back on shore, it may not be surprising we got two sort-of-related photos of the type you wouldn’t expect in mid-July:
That’s from Anne of Ventana Construction (WSB sponsor) – who wrote “it’s officially NOT summer” after finding mushrooms in what’s usually a dormant, brown lawn by this time of summer. And it’s not just her – Machel Spence, famed for fungus photography, sent us a photo today for the first time in months:
Machel says that’s from one of her favorite image-hunting grounds, Lincoln Park. So, is there any hope for sun? Tomorrow’s forecast says “partly sunny” …
West Seattle High School girls’ basketball coach Sonya Elliott shared that photo from Friday’s Hiawatha Fun Fest – where some of her players volunteered for a dunk tank. Next up, some WSHS players are scheduled to join Elliott and fellow coach Ashley Ioane for Westside Basketball Camp for Girls, July 25-28, at WSHS – and it’s open to girls going into third through eighth grades. Sessions are 9 am-1 pm each of those four days, and the cost is $65. Registration is under way – contact Coach Elliott at sonya@sonyaelliott.com.
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