West Seattle, Washington
18 Wednesday
Mayor Greg Nickels makes his re-election campaign official Monday. During our interview with him at Admiral Starbucks on Saturday morning, we asked some of the questions we solicited from WSBers, starting with the one you see answered in the top clip: Why should he get a third term? Meantime, if you’re just catching up after the weekend – we’ve already published three excerpts:
First: The park-trash-can phase out
Second: Getting hassled on Alki – can police do anything about it?
Third: (published on White Center Now) Will Seattle annex White Center (assuming the rest of North Highline goes with Burien)?
We had 25 minutes to talk with him, a blink of an eye in political interview time, but we squeezed in as many questions as we could, most of them from those offered by WSBers after we asked on Friday for suggestions. The very first one posted here on WSB also speaks to his campaign overall: Lillian suggested he and other politicians have a problem with inauthenticity, and asked how he would get people to believe in him and what he wants to do – in his answer, you will hear him acknowledge that he doesn’t always come off authentically and warmly in the media:
We’ve still got several answers to roll out, and we’re not going to jam them all into this third report, but we did ask about one West Seattle sore spot, the “Whole Foods hole” – can the city do anything to try to stop this sort of “big dig, followed by big stall” situation from happening? Go forward to see/hear his answer:Read More
We’re continuing to roll out chunks of our Saturday morning interview with Mayor Nickels, who’s doing the media rounds as he prepares to officially file his re-election campaign papers this Monday. To recap: We had about 25 minutes with him at Admiral Starbucks (they chose the spot, we chose the outdoor table); we asked WSBers (also via Facebook and Twitter) for question suggestions, and got MANY more than we could ask in that short time. The clip above is his answer to a question we asked as a followup to the recent Alki Community Council meeting following the May 1st Alki shooting – some in attendance (and, later, in WSB comments) voiced more concern about getting harassed at the beach, than about the threat of violent crime. Police in attendance noted there’s no law against, for example, standing around and saying something “vile.” So is there anything that can be done? we asked the mayor; reply above. Yet more from the interview to come (and we will be adding soundbite transcripts shortly to this story, and our 1st one – about the park trash-can issue – see that here). P.S. Ken, whose post-ACC comment we linked above, is the person who started the Alki Neighborhood Watch Facebook group – if you haven’t joined yet and you’re interested, find it here.
Going to do anything about the “fewer trash cans in parks” policy that the Parks Department is pursuing? That’s the first WSBer-suggested question we asked Mayor Nickels this morning, and the answer is in the :45 video clip above. Backstory: As noted here last night, we were offered a half-hour to interview Mayor Nickels, as he prepares to officially kick off his campaign for a third term by filing paperwork this Monday. This morning, we got about 25 minutes with him at Admiral Starbucks (they chose the location); he appeared with his wife Sharon Nickels and their dog Edgar – saying they walk there every morning – as well as the folks who helped arrange the interview, including campaign spokesperson Sandeep Kaushik. We sat outdoors on the east side of the coffee shop, and we asked some of the many questions WSBers kindly sent in response to our request for suggested questions – many more than we could squeeze in, and we hope to get a chance to ask more later in the campaign. Meantime, we’ll share more from this interview later – just wanted to get out the park/trash answer, for starters.
We get half an hour to interview Mayor Nickels tomorrow morning. We’ve got questions galore, of course. But it wouldn’t be a truly two-way news service if we didn’t ask you what YOU would ask him. (And if you don’t want to post it in a comment, editor@westseattleblog.com – thanks!)
In the hat, it’s West Seattle writer and former “Rosie the Riveter” Georgie Bright Kunkel, who spoke briefly at Thursday’s West Seattle Democratic Women luncheon as the group paid tribute to her husband Norman Kunkel, who died earlier this year (as noted here). (Georgie revealed she’s doing open-mike comedy at Comedy Underground on June 8th, by the way.) The group also presented a check to an organization for which Mr. Kunkel did a lot of work, the Sightline Institute (whose Alan Durning is shown above with Georgie) in his honor. The centerpiece of the luncheon at the West Seattle Golf Course clubhouse, however, was a candidates’ forum – one of several in West Seattle in the coming weeks. The field won’t be set till after the filing deadline a week from today, but three candidates each for two City Council seats – the open Position 4 (which Jan Drago is leaving to run for mayor) and Position 6 (with candidates including incumbent Nick Licata) spoke to the group – read on for video highlights and a few other notes:Read More
By Jonathan Stumpf
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
In advance of this Saturday’s Seattle march and rally for health-care reform, members of the Health Care for All – Washington (HCFA-WA) organization presented a community screening of the PBS documentary “Sick Around the World” Wednesday night at Fauntleroy Church (WSB sponsor).
The hour-long Frontline documentary, hosted by former Washington Post and NPR correspondent T.R. Reid, examines the successes and problems of health care systems in five countries, looking for alternatives to what many see as a failing health-care system in America.
Twenty West Seattle residents attended the event. The discussion afterward hosted by HCFA-WA board member Chuck Rogers and committee chairs Paul and Mary Margaret Pruitt (photo above) stirred up myriad issues and concerns among attendees, ranging from emergency rooms serving as clinics for the uninsured to some residents being disgusted with insurance company’s control over America’s health-care system.
POLITICS: Before summer revs to fever pitch, time to keep examining your options in this year’s crowded elections. Next chance: 11:30 am today, West Seattle Democratic Women‘s monthly luncheon, West Seattle Golf Course, with a candidates’ forum on the program. RSVP for lunch by 10 am – contact info and more details here.
EDUCATION: College Night tonight at West Seattle’s higher-education institution, South Seattle Community College. Find out more about what SSCC has to offer, 5-7:30 pm in Brockey Center; more details here.
ENTERTAINMENT: Semi-finals of Alki Idol, Bamboo Bar and Grill, 9:30 pm.
CRIME-FIGHTING: South Delridge/White Center Community Safety Coalition meets 6 pm, St. James Place, 9421 18th SW (map).
ONE MORE CRIME-FIGHTING NOTE: If you’re in the Alki area, Ken Allen has set up a Facebook group to convene those concerned about crime. Go here to join “Alki Neighborhood Watch.”
More of today and tonight’s events — and tomorrow, and the days, weeks and months into the future – on the WSB Events calendar.
Saying not only – as you can hear in that clip — “I’m ready,” but also that she wants to be mayor of “all of Seattle,” with shoutouts including one for West Seattle (and South Park, which had an excited supporter shouting back from the sidelines), Councilmember Jan Drago has officially kicked off her not-exactly-a-surprise run for mayor. We were at the announcement outside the Seattle Art Museum earlier this afternoon; two of her fellow councilmembers were there to show their support — Council President Richard Conlin and Councilmember Bruce Harrell – while Harrell joined the group flanking Drago at the podium, Conlin stayed on the sidelines (he’s in the white shirt at right, in this next photo):
We saw Councilmember Sally Clark shortly afterward at the Endangered Historic Properties announcement event and asked her if she’s endorsed a mayoral candidate yet — her quote, “I’m hangin’ back for a bit,” at least until the June 5th filing deadline passes. The latest list of candidates who HAVE announced so far is on this frequently updated city webpage. Drago and her husband live in Pioneer Square; here’s her official campaign biography. ADDED 3:17 PM: She took a few questions after the formal announcement – the setting was noisy but here you can hear her field a couple from tv reporter Chris Daniels, regarding the snow response and how she differs from the incumbent:
City Councilmember Jan Drago is planning to officially announce her run for mayor outside the Seattle Art Museum this afternoon. But it’s already “official” online. First, independent journalist Johnathon Fitzpatrick discovered over the weekend that the Twitter account @jandrago4mayor was set up. Then, the mostly-politics website PubliCola found Drago announcing her impending announcement on Facebook. And this morning on Twitter, Lee Therriault (@leetherriault) has just pointed out that Councilmember Drago’s mayor-campaign website is fully operational now too (see it here), fronted by what may be the speech she gives this afternoon (in which, among other things, she says she’s running to be the Mayor of West Seattle, and other neighborhoods).
RPZ PROPOSAL: The City Council’s Transportation Committee took a look today at the proposed changes to the Restricted (formerly Residential) Parking Zone rules – changes that have drawn concern from some West Seattle neighborhood leaders. Admiral Neighborhood Association vice president Jim Del Ciello was among those who spoke at today’s hearing, as the Seattle Post-Globe reports, while also noting that councilmembers made a few tweaks, such as lowering the percentage of non-resident cars that have to be noted in a neighborhood for RPZ consideration (the original proposal said 50%, councilmembers want 35%). A public hearing is set at City Hall next Wednesday, May 27th. Next update focuses on Junction parking of all kinds:
JUNCTION PARKING COMMITTEE MEETING: The Junction Neighborhood Organization has been hoping to get an RPZ designation for part of its area, in the city’s Junction parking review that’s under way now (photo above is from our coverage of the second “walking tour” back in March). Last night, the next step in that review took place, with the first meeting of the Junction Parking Committee. Members received the latest timeline for the parking-review process:
Meeting 1: May 2009 – Overview of parking project and committee
Meeting 2: July 2009 – Review of preliminary parking study results and on-street parking tools, including bicycle, motorcycle and scooter parking
Meeting 3: September 2009 – Review of final parking study results and off-street parking, including city policies, Junction off-street lots, park and rides
Meeting 4: November 2009 – Draft preliminary recommendations and Transit & TDM, including RapidRide, In Motion
Meeting 5: January 2010 – Draft final recommendations
Meeting 6: March 2010 – Announce final plan and prepare for implementation
This is the same process first announced more than a year ago (original February 2008 WSB report here), which could result in new parking policies for The Junction, possibly even on-street pay stations.
The King County Council has just voted unanimously (by acclamation, in a voice vote) to appoint Kurt Triplett (photo left; bio here) as interim King County Executive, serving until after this November’s election (in which he is not running for the job). He’s technically already got that job, having been elevated to it when Ron Sims left for his new federal job; he served for six years as Sims’ chief of staff. The other finalist was former Seattle mayor Charles Royer. Before this afternoon’s vote, several councilmembers said a major argument for keeping Tripllet is that continuity and stability are vital right now, since the county and region are going through “tough times,” as Councilmember Pete von Reichbauer put it, saying “we have to be united in the financial crisis that this county faces.” Right after the vote, Triplett entered the council chambers, hugged councilmembers, and began his speech by saying “I’m speechless”; he’s expected to take the oath of office tomorrow.
As we mentioned this morning, a briefing on the city’s “tree audit” was on the Seattle City Council agenda today. Here’s the council’s announcement on what happened and what’s next – starting with another discussion this Friday:Read More
First, tonight’s West Seattle highlights:
HIGHLAND PARK ACTION COMMITTEE: One week earlier than usual because of Memorial Day, HPAC meets at 7 pm at the Highland Park Improvement Club, after a 6:30 pm potluck dinner. Agenda includes reps from Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, Green Seattle Partnership and the Duwamish River Cleanup Coalition.
SUSTAINABLE WEST SEATTLE: Two weeks after the well-attended, sun-splashed Sustainable West Seattle Festival, SWS invites all to its monthly meeting at Camp Long Lodge, 7 pm, with Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association founder and former executive director Paul Fischburg as guest speaker, discussing “Volunteerism, Community and Leadership.”
Also of note, today’s county/city council toplines:
KING COUNTY COUNCIL: Today’s big agenda item is appointing an interim King County Executive to serve till a new permanent one is elected in November. Last week, a “blue-ribbon panel” recommended two finalists, Charles Royer and Kurt Triplett; this morning, the council’s Committee of the Whole will interview them and the other 2 candidates, former County Councilmembers Louise Miller and Steve Hammond, starting at 9 am (agenda here). The council then is expected to make the official appointment in its 11 am meeting (agenda here). Both meetings are scheduled to be shown live online.
SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL: During the morning “briefing” session (agenda here), councilmembers are scheduled to hear an update on the city’s tree audit, around 10:15 am. During the afternoon session, a long list of items (agenda here) includes a proposed 10-year lease extension for land north of the West Seattle (Westcrest) Reservoir that’s used by the federal government for air-traffic control communications. The council meetings will be live online here.
Editor’s note: 3 months till our state’s primary – and while that sounds like a long time, we’ve got many more candidates to introduce you to, so — after kicking off with two County Executive candidate interviews (Dow Constantine and Larry Phillips) earlier this spring — we’re continuing the profiles now, with veteran West Seattle journalist Jack Mayne on the WSB politics-reporting team — starting with his story about one of the West Seattleites running for City Council, David Ginsberg:
(David Ginsberg at left, photographed after becoming the 34th District Democrats’ 2nd vice chair in January; note that the group has not yet made its endorsement in City Council races)
By Jack Mayne
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
West Seattle’s David Ginsberg has been phased out of his technology job with Washington Mutual and now wants to displace Seattle City Council President Richard Conlin as the Position 2 councilmember.
Why three-term incumbent Conlin, when there are open seats?
“I understand this is the toughest seat I could have chosen,” Ginsberg said during a recent interview at Coffee to a Tea with Sugar in The Junction.
(Sen. Joe McDermott at left, Rep. Eileen Cody at right)
By Kathy Mulady
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
After a particularly brutal legislative session, lawmakers meeting with a friendly and appreciative audience at Jim Wiley Community Center in White Center said this morning they were really happy to be home from Olympia.
Lawmakers from the 34th District — Sen. Joe McDermott (D-West Seattle), Rep. Eileen Cody (D-West Seattle) and Rep. Sharon Nelson (D-Maury Island) — invited their constituents to a Town Hall meeting to review the wins and losses of the session, some of which they had also discussed at the 34th District Democrats‘ meeting last Wednesday (WSB coverage here).
While budget cuts were the theme for most of the session, there were some wins, including $1.4 million for the Greenbridge Early Learning Center project, and $2 million for the High Point Neighborhood Center.
That’s what 34th District Rep. Sharon Nelson‘s legislative assistant Joe Fitzgibbon just told WSB, when we called/e-mailed to check before publishing a news release announcing Governor Gregoire had signed her payday-lending bill (HB 1709; history, info, documents here). As we reported yesterday, with video, Rep. Nelson had told the 34th District Democrats on Wednesday night that she was waiting to hear if the governor would sign her bill in its entirety. Fitzgibbon just replied to our inquiry with, “In the end, she did sign the whole bill as it passed the Legislature, and we are thrilled.” Here’s the news release, which explains what the bill does:Read More
That’s one of your two State House members, Rep. Sharon Nelson, briefing last night’s 34th District Democrats meeting about the legislative session just concluded – note that she explained she is expecting word sometime today about the ultimate fate of her “payday lending” legislation. With her, the 34th District’s other two legislators – State Sen. Joe McDermott gave the longest briefing, including updates on education-related legislation:
And since health care issues are a focus for Rep. Eileen Cody, that’s where her briefing focused:
The 34th DDs also heard last night from a long list of people running for local office this year, primarily Seattle City Council candidates (all of whom we will be profiling here on WSB in the weeks ahead) – although mayoral candidate James Donaldson was there too. The meeting ran nearly three hours and included a somewhat contentious vote (background here) on the group’s rules for candidate endorsements – which they plan to make at their meeting in July. Announcements at the meeting included a reminder of the June 1st King County Executive candidates’ forum, sponsored by inSPIRE, to be held at Fauntleroy Church (more info here).
Just in from King County – tonight’s “blue ribbon panel” meeting resulted in two candidates – as per plan – recommended for the position of interim County Executive, till a new one’s elected this fall. Here’s the official announcement:
Blue-Ribbon Committee recommends Royer and Triplett for appointment as King County Executive
King County Council will interview all four candidates on Monday and may make final appointmentA Blue-Ribbon Selection Committee empanelled by the King County Council tonight interviewed four candidates for King County Executive and recommended two for the short-term appointment — former Seattle Mayor Charles Royer and interim County Executive and former Executive Chief of Staff Kurt Triplett.
Read on to see what happens next, and who else was involved with this phase of the process:Read More
All three of our area’s state legislators are speaking here tonight, so we’re opening a post to add any news nuggets pending further coverage later. First reminder – June 1st King County Executive candidates’ forum sponsored by Inspire, happening at Fauntleroy Church (right across the street from where the 34th DDs are meeting right now at The Hall at Fauntleroy) – here are full details. More to come as it happens. 7:44 PM UPDATE: The legislators have just given their briefings – most interesting tidbit, Rep. Sharon Nelson says she’ll know by tomorrow night if a major part of her payday-lending bill is going to be stricken before it’s signed. (She didn’t elaborate further, will be checking into that.) She also had the most notable behind-the-scenes tidbit, about the “underground” group of Dems called the “Blue Greens.” 8:05 PM UPDATE: Nobody asked about the viaduct/tunnel bill. LATER NOTE: We’ll publish a separate item in the morning including video of the legislators’ remarks, plus a few other news notes from the meeting.
TONIGHT: West Seattle’s three state legislators – Sen. Joe McDermott, Rep. Eileen Cody and Rep. Sharon Nelson – will brief the 34th District Democrats on the just-completed legislative session – call it a sneak preview of their town hall in White Center this Saturday morning. Other hot topics on the 34th DDs’ agenda too (see it here) – they meet at 7 pm, The Hall at Fauntleroy.
TOMORROW: It’ll be the second Thursday of the month (already!), and that means time to get out and enjoy the monthly West Seattle Art Walk. Browse the WSAW website to get a look at some of what you can see around the peninsula 6-9 pm Thursday – from the Seattle Lutheran High School students showing at Hotwire Coffee (WSB sponsor) to black-and-white infrared photos on display at 8 Limbs Yoga (WSB sponsor) and much more (those examples are both in The Junction, but the Art Walk stretches from Admiral and Alki to Fauntleroy). Many venues offer refreshments, too. Here’s the official map to everyone who’s participating.
(looking through the aquarium’s front hall, back at the crowd gathering to watch)
ORIGINAL 2 PM REPORT: We’re at the Seattle Aquarium along with a few hundred political, business and community leaders to watch Governor Gregoire sign the Alaskan Way Viaduct deep-bored tunnel bill into law. The event’s scheduled to start in a few minutes; West Seattle-residing political leaders scheduled to be here include King County Council Chair Dow Constantine (who we’ve already seen) and Mayor Nickels; political theater outside included anti-tunnel mayoral challenger Michael McGinn talking with reporters, calling this a multibillion-dollar boondoggle and saying it’s not too late for the city to pull out. More as it happens.
2:23 PM UPDATE: The speeches are under way before the actual signing. After the mayor spoke (iPhone photo above), the governor said it took “guts” for legislators to approve this. To those who say it can’t be done, she said bluntly — “Watch us.” She opened by declaring, the era of The Viaduct “is over.” For emphasis, she repeated it: “It’s over. It’s over.” And she went on to say it would have been hard to anticipate a year ago that this history-making day would arrive. She stood at a podium next to the aquarium’s fish-filled wall, with about 20 political leaders surrounding her, and acknowledged many others, including members of the Stakeholders’ Advisory Committee who reviewed options over more than a year (though ultimately, their process ended with a recommendation different than the one proceeding now, West Seattle’s SAC reps Vlad Oustimovitch and Pete Spalding both support the deep-bored tunnel).
(WSB video of the bill-signing, added 2:46 pm)
2:31 PM UPDATE: The governor just signed SB 5768 – the tunnel bill – into law. A long round of applause followed. Everyone here has just been invited to a champagne reception – as for us, we’re catching the 3:20 King County Water Taxi back to West Seattle. Looks like more bill signings are ensuing here at the Aquarium as well. Meantime, the state hopes to start building the tunnel next year – to finish it in 2015 – and to keep The Viaduct up, as long as it’s deemed safe, until after the tunnel opens, at which time it would be torn down.
3:02 PM UPDATE: Official statement from Council Chair Constantine, just e-mailed (note he’s in our video):
“I was honored to join Governor Chris Gregoire for today’s signing of Senate Bill 5768, the legislation to fund the replacement of the Alaskan Way Viaduct with a deep-bore tunnel and surface roadway improvements.
“First, I think we have crafted a creative solution to a longstanding problem. A new elevated freeway would not have been an acceptable solution. I am glad we have moved beyond the antiquated practice of forcing freeways through cities. The Alaskan Way Viaduct has long been an ugly, noisy wall separating downtown from the waterfront. Its removal is a first, necessary step in reconnecting our central city.
“Secondly, I am proud to have been involved in helping to negotiate this solution. I made many trips to Olympia over the last year to meet with Governor Gregoire, former County Executive Ron Sims, Mayor Greg Nickels and legislative leaders as part of the Viaduct Oversight Committee. The deep-bore tunnel and a surface boulevard—combined with improvements to the Spokane Street Viaduct and the creation of a new stadium interchange for State Route 99—will maintain access for West Seattle and South King County residents to and through downtown Seattle. And, critically, because the tunnel will not share the alignment of the old viaduct structure, we also have the opportunity to maintain traffic on the SR 99 corridor during construction.
“I support this solution and will work to implement it.
“The challenge to Seattle and King County is to provide the other surface and transit improvements needed to make local transportation work. We now must consider how this work will be funded, how quickly it can be implemented, and how we will be able to sustain the needed transit service in the future.”
Adding one other clip from the event – the governor’s message to tunnel skeptics – may still be processing so please be patient:
One such skeptic, mayoral candidate Michael McGinn – we talked with him outside the event – will add that later.
Here’s our second video report on the big candidates’ forum at Washington Athletic Club this morning, presented by the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce-affiliated Alki Foundation. In our first one (see it here), we brought you the one-minute pitches made by the four Seattle Mayor candidates present; this time, it’s the 2 1/2-minute pitches allowed from the four King County Executive candidates who were on hand. At top, it’s King County Council Chair Dow Constantine; below, State Rep. Ross Hunter, State Sen. Fred Jarrett, and King County Councilmember Larry Phillips (absent: former TV news anchor Susan Hutchison):
As with the mayoral candidates, the KCE candidates had a “lightning round” in which yes/no questions were asked by the audience and moderator, with the candidates holding up a paddle displaying either yes or no; several questions were relevant to White Center annexation, and we’ll write up a separate report for partner site White Center Now, but among the others, a highlight included the question of whether King County Metro Transit and Sound Transit should merge – all said “no” except Hunter. We’ll be covering other forums, and presenting more close-up looks at the candidates, as the August primary gets ever-closer. (Note – The 34th District Democrats plan a candidates’ forum, with mayoral, County Executive, and other candidates, coming up June 10.)
This morning, the campaign season kicked into a higher gear – with a little more than three months to go till the primary — as the first major campaign forum of the season, sponsored by the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce-affiliated Alki Foundation, brought movers and shakers from the worlds of business and politics to the Washington Athletic Club. We will be covering the major citywide/countywide races here in the months ahead, so we went for a closeup look at participating candidates, and video to share with you. We’re breaking this story into two parts, four clips each – in this one, the one-minute opening pitches each Seattle Mayor candidate made. Four of the five who are officially running participated (Joe Mallahan wasn’t there). The top clip is James Donaldson; the next three, in order, are Michael McGinn, incumbent Greg Nickels, and Norman Sigler:
Each candidate’s name above is linked to his campaign website. This morning’s event also included a “lightning round” in which a yes/no question was asked and each candidate had to hold up a paddle showing his answer – one notable question regarding West Seattle concerns, “Do you support building park-ride garages in Seattle?” – McGinn and Nickels said no, Donaldson and Sigler said yes. In a separate story later tonight, we’ll have our clips of the four County Executive candidates who appeared. The Seattle Chamber’s photos from this morning are posted on its Flickr site; for a different style of as-it-happened coverage, see what we wrote via Twitter on our @wsblive account (which we use to cover live events like this, so as not to clutter our other streams) – our main Twitter account is @westseattleblog, and our automated feed of links to WSB stories is @westseattlenews.
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