West Seattle, Washington
04 Wednesday
Looks like at least one of the big east-of-Junction mixed-use projects is about to accelerate: Got an e-mail tip that Hollywood Video at Alaska and 41st had announced it would be closing Feb. 11; went over to check it out, and before we could even approach the counter to inquire, we heard the clerk say it loud and clear to three different sets of customers. Apparently they expected more warning, but then suddenly, this weekend, the owner gave them two weeks’ notice — or so went the clerk’s version. This is the project that supposedly will include a QFC, just a few blocks west of the future Whole Foods, practically across the street from Safeway … wonder how soon the wrecking ball will show up?
The Huling/Gee sightings below aren’t the only notable sign activity under way. In The Junction, Jak’s Grill seems to be in transition between awnings; if you look really close at where the awning used to be, you’ll see the old KRESS AND CO. name in the masonry (city historic link here). And a bit further north, the Garlic Jim’s sign is up:
For those of us who gaze at the waterfront homes on Beach Drive and dream of living in one, the Times’ Pacific Magazine today takes us inside the mansion of Scott Lipsky, the GalleryPlayer chair also described as having “retired” from Amazon (despite his apparently young age). Good to hear that at least one dot-com $$$-holder has enough taste to live on Puget Sound instead of clustering with the others near Gatesland on Lake Washington!
As of a few hours ago, the Thistle/Northrop sinkhole has a bridge over it, which means (a) the stairway down to Lincoln Park is fully usable again, and (b) you can get one heck of a view directly into the sinkhole (most amazing is the sidewalk along the west side of Northrop, just suspended in mid-air, nothing beneath it). We’ll have to go back later for a picture of that, but we did catch the bridge-building SDOT crew there this morning:
The car lots’ new owners seem to have accelerated their signage program in the past few days … first the electronic signboard at Alaska/Fauntleroy, now these banners:
As computer-glued homebodies, we haven’t followed the simmering fight over the Seattle “nightlife premises ordinance.” But perhaps we should. One WSB reader forwarded us an urgent e-mail from a club in another part of town and suggests several WS establishments have a lot at stake in this too; check the e-mail out (after the jump), take action if you are interested, and please let us know if there’s another point of view on this to spotlight as well:Read More
Along with updates on menu items and special events, the latest e-mail newsletter from West 5 features a warning about being careful where you park behind that block of Junction businesses (excerpted in full after the jump):Read More
We couldn’t go to last night’s Design Review Board meeting but WSB reader Sage Wilson did and offers this detailed report (thanks, Sage!), after the jump:Read More
A friend of ours who grew up in a mountain state told us that you know you’ve REALLY gotten some snow when, days or weeks after it melts, dirty slushy piles of it are still lingering in parking lots and similar places. So, we can now officially declare our Snow-n-Ice-mare ’07 a REAL event, upon discovery today of the official Dirty Slushy Leftover Pile near the southwest edge of Westwood Village:
If you tend to hang around the homefront in the evenings, as we do, you may not be aware that West Seattle’s nightlife goes far beyond, oh, say, “which band’s playing Poggie’s tonight.” For example — after discovering that C and P Coffee, south of The Junction, has just applied for a beer/wine license, we went to the C and P website and realized that makes sense, since the coffeehouse offers live music several nights a week (here’s the calendar).
According to a construction permit just issued for the former Bobby’s Hobbies (across from Pagliacci/Clementine), a bakery is taking over the site. The permit lists only a fancy architect as “applicant.” Seems like The Junction is already bakery-laden enough that perhaps a flour wholesaler should be moving in next.
Doesn’t appear to be on the Seattle Public Schools website yet, but the P-I says the dates are set for making up 4 of the 5 days SPS was closed because of bad weather (the district wants the state to waive the fifth): February 2, March 16, June 21-22.
On one of the e-mail lists where we lurk, list members were forwarded a plea from the folks who oversee farmers’ markets citywide. Please get the word out about the West Seattle Winter Farmers’ Markets (10 am-1 pm on Sunday), was the main point. Fine, we’ll do our part. But here’s the startling part of the e-mail:
We have little yard signs out about the community and sandwich boards that we put out on Sundays – but we can no longer put any banners on the Fauntleroy overpass because the City of Seattle forbids it.
So is that what happened to the big yellow banner, clearly well-maintained, and taken down soon after each week’s WSFM? Not even OK for advertising this type of city-condoned event? Seems kind of grinchy, at the very least.
Several people e-mailed us to ask if anyone knew why a chopper buzzed part of this side of WS (M-Junction, H-Point, etc.) for a good long while last night. We can’t find any info (though this is jumpstarting us to find a way to get more police scoop); King County is the only local police agency with a chopper, and it does assist others including Seattle PD, Port of Seattle PD, etc., when necessary. (Live Seattle police scanner here, if you have WMV.) Toward the water, if you hear chopper action, it could be the Coast Guard.
A tv news report tonight (video link here) revealed that Beveridge Place Pub lets people bring in their dogs. Certainly they’re not alone; we were startled when we dropped into C & P Coffee for the first time, back during our Post-Windstorm Wi-Fi Fest, and discovered dogs wandering around from patron to patron. Now, we love all God’s creatures and all that, but not enough to have them sniffing our toes (or worse) while we’re out just trying to enjoy a beverage. (People in the tv story were quoted as saying, “Well, it’s better than leaving the dogs out in the cold.” To which we say, “Why not leave them back in your warm cozy home, then? They’re not like kids — they don’t require a babysitter in order for you to go out without them.”) What do you think?
Maybe it’s the prospect of Garlic Jim’s breathing (aromatically) down their necks. Seems Pagliacci might reconsider the issue of expanding its ridiculously small West Seattle delivery area. The lively discussion in comments on this post led at least one WSB reader to e-mail Pagliacci, and they replied by telling her they’re “getting together” to discuss it. (We e-mailed them about the same thing months ago and got a noncommittal e-mail with no followup. Hmph.) So she suggests anybody and everybody who would like to see Pagliacci deliver to more of WS, post comments to that effect. Where are you? Do you, like us, get other pizza instead because Pagliacci won’t deliver to your place? Leave a comment on this post. (No worries, you can be entirely anonymous.)
… is in the Letters to the Editor section: The Charlestown Cafe folks say they may be staying months longer than they thought. (Their letter includes a reminder of tomorrow night’s Design Review Board meeting on the site’s future project, reportedly the relocated Petco.)
A brief item at BoingBoing tipped us to the fact that West Seattle author/radio guy John Moe (who snagged the national spotlight last fall with his book “Conservatize Me”) is moving from KUOW to National Public Radio. (The move is confirmed on John’s blog, which is one of the growing list of links on our Other Blogs in WS page.)
According to the site for Endolyne Joe’s, tomorrow is “Sing for Your Supper Night” — you stand up and start singing, the staff decides if your performance is worth comping part of your tab. (Their big chance to play Paula/Simon/Randy, we s’pose.)
A WSB reader at the Seattle Symphony wants everyone to know that not only is the orchestra appearing for free at West Seattle HS Thursday night (as we’ve been mentioning on our WS Events page), you can also catch a free concert tonight in South Park (not that far east of WS). Here’s the scoop on both.
Some kind of accident had Fauntleroy blocked off most of the way between Cali and Alaska when we headed out a bit earlier this morning. Not sure if it’s cleared yet, but wanted to pass this along just in case.
Yet another historic West Seattle house is on the market — a side note on this article reveals that this is your big chance to buy the “Hainsworth House” (our WS History page has a link to its backstory). And as far as we can tell, nobody’s ponied up yet for Beach Drive’s historic Satterlee House or its acreage-riffic front yard — but there’s been a price cut; the SH listing is now down to $995K, from $1.2m, where it had been since splitting off from the no-price-cut-yet front yard (originally last summer the two were bundled for $3m).
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