West Seattle, Washington
11 Thursday
A postscript to the West Seattle shoots for “Ira Finkelstein’s Christmas” – Alki last weekend and Beach Drive yesterday – two photos just came in from Avalon proprietor Mary Palmer, who says: “We thought we would share a couple of photos with you. David DeLuise came into our restaurant to relax after a day of filming ‘Ira Finkelstein’s Christmas’ and to celebrate a crew member’s birthday.” That’s Mary at right, with Avalon partner Deborah Breuler at left. If the name sounds familiar, yes, he’s the 39-year-old son of the late comic legend Dom DeLuise, and couldn’t resist a bit of clowning at Avalon:
Avalon’s been open four months now, in the Luna Park business district. (Driving by this afternoon, we noticed it looks like their patio’s open – a few tables of diners were out in the sunshine!)
ADDED 1 AM SUNDAY: Avalon sends word another of the movie’s stars, Elliott Gould, came in Saturday night:
Maybe the sunshine has you in the mood for golf. Here’s a chance to play in a month for a local cause – reservations have just gone on sale. From the Chief Sealth International High School Athletics Department, the official announcement:
– Rainier Golf and Country Club will host the first Chief Sealth Athletics Golf Tournament on June 3, 2011 with all proceeds benefiting the student-athletes at Chief Sealth International High School. Reservations for foursomes and individuals are now on sale and can be purchased here.
More after the jump:Read More
The sun came out late this morning just in time for the Myrtle Reservoir Park dedication! Above, the ribbon was cut by an all-ages group – with acting Parks Superintendent Christopher Williams looking on from background/left, and the scissor-wielders including, at right, Terry Holme from the Seattle Parks Board, Pete Spalding (who chairs the Parks and Green Spaces Levy Oversight Committee – a different levy, Pro Parks, funded Myrtle), and Cindi Barker from the Morgan Community Association. Music was courtesy of the Jacob Lakatua Quartet – check the park’s city-skyline view in their background:
They’ll be playing tomorrow night at 8 at Locöl, a little ways south on 35th, not far from new Fire Station 37 (which itself was dedicated just last December), which sent Engine 37 to the event:
The park actually opened last October. Its creation was made possible when the once-open-air Myrtle Reservoir was covered, also includes a playground and viewpoint with interpretive features – the reservoir is near the highest spot in Seattle, 520 feet above sea level, so markers in the park point out Seattle’s other highest hills.
More of what’s happening around West Seattle this afternoon:
Inside the Alki Masonic Hall, you can pan for gold during the West Seattle Rock Club‘s annual Rock and Gem Show, admission free, continuing till 5 today and running again 10-5 tomorrow. The hall’s at 40th/Edmunds on the east edge of The Junction. Not far away, at 4540 California SW just steps north of Walk-All-Ways –
That’s metal artist Erica Gordon, presiding over a trunk show of her wearable art – handmade belts and buckles — at Click! Design That Fits (WSB sponsor) in The Junction till 5 pm. It’s also a benefit for Lettuce Link – Click! is donating 10 percent of proceeds from sales during the trunk show, in honor of the “Urban Farming” theme from Gordon’s new line.
And if you just have to be completely outside – amble over to Arbor Heights Elementary School:
An AH parent volunteer sent us that photo from their Spring Cleanup, under way right now, and says you’re still welcome to come join the folks who are working to make their campus sparkle.
Around the metro area today, Rebuilding Together Seattle has more than 1,000 volunteers out restoring and repairing more than two dozen homes whose owners are unable to do the work, or hire someone to do it, themselves. And one of the worksites is in West Seattle’s Highland Park neighborhood.
RTS’s Margie Thirlby explains that today is “National Rebuilding Day,” with hundreds of other RT affiliates around the country joining forces to fix up more than 3,000 homes in all. The volunteers at this site were so busy, they couldn’t stop to share specifics of the homeowner’s situation, but RT’s mission is to help more people stay in their own homes longer than they’d be able to do if repairs and maintenance went undone. Look at everything they’ve cleaned out at this particular site:
Thirlby says they would love to see more people apply for help from, or be referred to, RTS – their website explains how. (And if you would like to volunteer – here’s how to do that.)
11:02 AM: Per the Orca Network‘s e-mail and Facebook alerts, several orcas have been seen this past hour in Elliott Bay – the sighting reports are closer to downtown, but that still means you might spot them from Alki/Harbor Avenues. Let us know if you do! Since the residents don’t usually come this far south this time of year, it’s believed these would be the “transients” that have been in the area.
1:25 PM UPDATE: Sounds like they have headed back out of the bay, according to comments on the Orca Network FB page.
Story and photos by Keri DeTore
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
Meander’s owner and chef Miranda Krone is expanding her tiny, but increasingly popular, breakfast/lunch café into the vacant former law office next door.
“Waits (for a seat) are getting longer even on Tuesdays and Wednesdays!” said Miranda, who started considering expansion plans shortly after opening Meander’s three months ago (WSB coverage here) in the former Jade West Café space at 6032 California SW.
Her plan is to cut an eight-foot doorway in the wall separating the two spaces so that it will “feel like a dining room off of the kitchen.” The additional space will add 26 chairs to the current nine stools and one table in the café.
Books are another passion of Miranda’s and with the expansion, she’s planning to install bookshelves along the walls and sell used books.
While the permitting process will take a while, she says “the drawings have been submitted!” and she’s hoping to get started sometime this summer.
P.S. Meander’s is now on Facebook – “like” the page here.
(Steller’s Jay vs. immature Bald Eagle at Alki Point madrona snag, by Danny McMillin)
Here’s hoping the sky will be blue again later today! From the WSB West Seattle Events calendar (where you’ll find even more of what’s up today):
WEST SEATTLE ROCK AND GEM SHOW: 47th annual show by the West Seattle Rock Club (WSB sponsor), Alki Masonic Hall, 40th/Edmunds, 10-5 today and tomorrow, lots of activities for all ages, full details here – this year’s theme is “Gold Rush”; come pan for gold!
CELEBRATE MYRTLE RESERVOIR PARK: Myrtle Reservoir Park dedication, 10:30 am, including live music and more, 35th and Myrtle.
NEW PARK IN WESTWOOD? 1 pm today, come to Southwest Community Center to talk about the possibility of a new park site, with the use of Parks and Green Spaces Levy money. Suggest a site, and/or what you would like to see in a site. (Meeting preview here.)
BARTON P-PATCH MEET-AND-GREET: Barton Street P-Patch is hosting a meet-n-greet at the future P-Patch site from 10 am – 2 pm. Anyone interested in the development of the garden, volunteer and garden opportunities is welcome to stop by (34th/Barton) for information.
2 DRUG TAKE-BACK DROPOFF SPOTS IN WEST SEATTLE: National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day has two locations in West Seattle, drive-through at Admiral Way Viewpoint and Southwest Precinct, 10 am-2 pm. No questions asked, no ID required, take your old prescription drugs and drop them off. (More details here.)
HAPPY 2ND BIRTHDAY, FEEDBACK LOUNGE! Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor, 6451 California Ave SW) is holding a “We’re Turning Two” party, 6 pm until closing. Food and drink specials and “the balloons of mystery.”
KENNEY BRUNCH: 10:30 am, it’s The Kenney Foundation‘s spring fundraiser brunch/auction, which raises money to help residents stay at The Kenney after outliving their financial resources. Champagne bar and silent auction in the lobby, brunch in the community rooms, with guest speaker, former mayor Greg Nickels.
TOTAL EXPERIENCE GOSPEL CHOIR AT MERRILL GARDENS The famed choir performs at 2 pm at Merrill Gardens at Admiral Heights (WSB sponsor; 2326 California Ave SW). RSVP to 206-938-3964 to see if there’s still room.
FREE YOGA: Free yoga at Sound Yoga (WSB sponsor), 10:30 am (details from the WSB Forums)
NEW YEAR CELEBRATION: Cambodian New Year celebration in White Center all day; SW 98th will be closed east of 16th SW. Details here.
TRUNK SHOW AT CLICK! Seattle blacksmith artist Erica Gordon of Steel Toe Studios will show you how to keep your pants on with her handmade belts and buckles during her trunk show at Click! Design That Fits (WSB sponsor, 4540 California Ave SW), 11 am — 5 pm.
WSHS BASEBALL AT THE SAFE: West Seattle Wildcats baseball vs. Highline Pirates at Safeco Field – free! 4 pm. Enter on the home-plate side
COME HELP RESTORE THE FOREST: Green Seattle Partnership project at Schmitz Park. See complete event info here.
READY TO GET OUT ON THE WATER? Alki Kayak Tours says they’re “so stoked the weather is finally getting warmer,” they’re offering 2-for-1 kayak tours and Stand-Up Paddleboarding classes this weekend.> (Tell them you saw it on WSB.)
As first reported here last Monday, Zippy’s Giant Burgers had to push back their plans of opening their new White Center location that day – but they may have just a few days left to go. Their exterior signs finally went up Friday, and West Seattle Blog/White Center Now contributor Deanie Schwarz was there.
Deanie says Zippy’s is expecting two key inspections on Monday and (probably) Tuesday, and whenever they get word they’ve passed, they’ll get ready to open the doors. She says they’ve also received their temporary liquor license, so they’ll have “classic, old-school canned and bottled beers, as well as wine” when they open at 9614 14th SW. Here are new interior photos:
Deanie adds, “The big booth is a refurbished 1970’s booth with attached slide-away table.”
(Photos by Ellen Cedergreen for WSB)
A few hours of work, with potentially centuries of benefits. That’s what Explorer West Middle School students contributed on Friday at the Community Orchard of West Seattle site on the northeast side of the South Seattle Community College campus. COWS’s Laura Sweeney told them the orchard will be around for 200 years – so their grandkids, and their grandkids’ grandkids, will be able to come to it.
Students worked on the orchard’s blueberry bog, as well as planting apple trees from varieties including Elstar, Jonagold, Liberty, Williams Pride, and Hudson’s Golden Gem. The orchard also eventually will grow pears and may bear fruit as son as next year, with a ton and a half of fruit expected as soon as three to five years from now.
The orchard site was one of several stops for Explorer West students on Friday morning; other groups worked in the Seola greenbelt on the south end of West Seattle (with Roxhill Elementary students joining them), and at the White Center Food Bank.
Story and photos by Wendy Hughes-Jelen
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
Girls were giggling and having fun Friday night trying on fancy dresses, dreaming about prom and other events where a formal gown is needed.
Neighborhood House High Point Center‘s YELS program (Youth Empowerment Leadership Strengths) held a prom dress donation drive this last month in an effort to gather together dresses for girls middle and high school age living in the High Point neighborhood. A donation solicitation here on WSB helped bring in a total of more than 100 dresses in West Seattle.
A dressing room was set up in the corner using rolling white boards. Dresses were pre-sorted for appropriateness, and some have been set aside to donate to the Ruby Room, which holds boutique days for girls to come in and work with a Personal Shopper to get ready for a special event, like prom. This is a chance for girls getting ready for prom to pick up a free dress and some accessories.
Aparna Rae, the YELS coordinator, said it started with just a couple of dresses being donated by someone. Somehow it then flowered into this huge room being filled with silk and taffeta and lace. Since many of the youth in High Point lack transportation, the YELS program essentially brought a dress boutique to them.
Anything leftover from the giveaway will be given to the nonprofit Ruby Room for its collection. And don’t worry, ladies, there’s still a chance for you to find something fancy for yourself! Ruby Room is holding a Dresses for Divas (D4D) $10 dress sale at Cherry Consignment as part of West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day. Dresses that were too mature or too casual for prom-age girls are available, first come first served, 9 am to 3 pm May 14th, cash or check only. (It’ll be on the map, which will be available in a week – giving you seven days lead time to plan shopping!)
EDITOR’S NOTE: With a performance at Admiral Congregational Church this Sunday, the West Seattle Big Band celebrates 15 years on the local music scene. One of its mainstays, Jim Edwards, writes the story here of its history, and invites you to the concert.
(WSBB promotional video)
By Jim Edwards
Special to West Seattle Blog
The West Seattle Big Band celebrates 15 years.
In 1996, the Admiral neighborhood surrounding West Seattle High School decided to put together a fundraising event in cooperation with the music department at the high school, and the West Seattle High School Alumni Association<. It was to be a black tie affair with talented alumni returning to their alma mater, displaying their musical skills, and helping to raise funds to get the Foundation for the performing arts off the ground. Some members of the alumni association also mentioned that one of their class reps had put together an alumni band, and that it should be included in the concert.
That class rep was Jim Edwards from the class of 1979, and he had put the word out about forming an alumni band, in the alumni edition of the Chinook newspaper two years prior, only to have it cut by the editor. So no band had ever been formed. Now with 10 weeks to go he finds the band has been scheduled to play at this concert. After 3 weeks of phone calls, including a call to his former West Seattle high school band director, Donn Weaver, the band met for a rehearsal.
Thanks to Guy for the sighting and Tracy for the ID (both via Facebook), and JayDee for the photo via e-mail: That’s the USS John C. Stennis, CVN-74, heading northbound in Puget Sound, past West Seattle, on the way to Southern California. The Kitsap Sun reports this seven-week trip will provide the Stennis crew and members of its strike group with training for an upcoming deployment to the Middle East.
5:12 PM: Thanks to the WSB’ers who sent word of a big police response in the 37th/38th/Barton vicinity this afternoon. According to Lt. Ron Smith at the Southwest Precinct, the initial report was “burglary in progress” – he adds, “Officers arrived and observed numerous items belonging to the residence on the driveway.” However, no one was inside. They’ve since reached the resident, who will be figuring out what if anything is missing, so they can update the report.
ADDED 5:48 PM: We also received multiple calls in the past hour about a large police response in the 46th/Lander vicinity. The original call was about possible gunshots; police have determined, according to Lt. Smith, that NO shots were fired. They believe the sound that people heard was a bottle hitting a window – related to a dispute at a house. Apparently a man was trying to get into a house, and a woman inside – apparently NOT a stranger to him – didn’t want to let him in. Police tried to help her but say she didn’t want to cooperate with them. The bottle-throwing had something to do with their dispute.
Today we welcome a new WSB sponsor, Jim Monson, who owns and operates JGM Technical Services. 
Jim’s a full-service electrical contractor, which means he can handle all the high-voltage jobs in your home, like installing new breakers, plugs, or rewiring, as well as the low-voltage work like installing security systems, CATV and HDTV hookups, along with computer networking, phones,entertainment and media centers, or even programming your smart home. As Jim says, “There’s no need for multiple electrical contractors and the potential headaches that come from trying to coordinate when you need multiple contractors in your home. We make customer service a priority. We try to stay out of your way the best we can, we are very polite, and we meticulously clean up after ourselves when we are finished. We receive compliments about our work on almost every job! Electricity is a basic necessity. When some part of the electrical system fails, we are there to make it right, at an affordable price, and with our business/work ethic.”
Jim volunteers at the Museum of Flight as an electrician and general laborer on the 727 restoration project. He’s also volunteered at local community centers as an electrician, and he works with a couple of organizations that perform electrical work at at a reduced rate for seniors and disabled people. Jim is also a volunteer member of Seattle Emergency Communications. You can contact JGM Technical Services by e-mail or phone; all the info’s here.
We thank JGM Technical Services for sponsoring independent, community-collaborative neighborhood news on WSB; find our current sponsor team listed in directory format here, and find info on joining the team by going here.
(Updated 4:50 pm with addition of Mayor McGinn’s statement)
Governor Gregoire has vetoed parts of SB 5073, the medical-marijuana regulation/licensing bill, and reaction is starting to roll in. Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes‘ statement says in part, “A rational regulatory framework, which the Legislature’s bill would have brought us, is even more necessary with the proliferation of dispensaries we’ve seen in recent years. Because of the governor’s actions today, these dispensaries will remain mired in a legal gray area …” Two dispensaries are promoting their operations in West Seattle right now, with a third on the way, and two medical-marijuana operations are opening in White Center. Read on for Holmes’ statement; we’ll add any more information/reaction that comes in:Read More
Ah, springtime. The time to clean up the yard, with the mower … the weed-whacker … the hand tools … and/or … the goats! Robin in Fauntlee Hills sent word that he was bringing in the munching machines, through a goatkeeper with Amazin’ Grazers, which is affiliated with Rent-a-Ruminant, but offers smaller-scale goat services. They arrived at midday and got down to work on Robin’s overgrowth. We’re sorry to say you can’t really see them from the street – and given the electric fencing (note the sign in our photo), you’re not going to want to wander around looking, either.
Big weekend for the West Seattle High School baseball team. Tomorrow afternoon, they play Highline High School at Safeco Field – the game is free and you’re invited, 4 pm. As a fundraiser related to the game, they’re still selling Mariners’ tickets, as noted here recently, and now they’re offering an alternative way to get them: This Sunday, 10 am-3 pm at Swedish Automotive (WSB sponsor), 7901 35th SW, the team will wash your car, and for every $10 donated, you get a ticket to the M’s game for which the team’s been selling tickets, next Thursday (May 5th) vs. the Texas Rangers.
Who’s taking home part of what’s left from the now-closed Charlestown Street Café? Above, that’s Donna from Giannoni’s Pizzeria in Westwood Village, with son LJ – who picked up several items, including tables and a huge salad spinner – and they weren’t the only local restaurateurs we spotted. There also were souvenir-seekers, like one West Seattleite who told us she was hoping to find something small, maybe a menu, though after wandering around the offerings during the preview time, she hadn’t found anything fitting that bill just yet.
By 10 am, the restaurant was fairly full, and as scheduled, the auction began, legendary local auctioneer James G. Murphy himself led the calling, with Ron Hannon at his side:
Here’s a wider look at their portable-podium-with-PA setup, plus the assistant who has to go find each item that’s being bid on, lifting it aloft till the bidding ends:
As of about quarter past twelve, the auction had moved into the kitchen. We’re going back shortly to check on whether it’s still going. Backstory in case you missed it: The café closed April 3rd, with its owner citing economic reasons (as well as the difficulty of operating without a long-term lease). There’s a development proposal in progress for the site; we reported last Monday on the plan.
2:30 PM UPDATE: Just stopped by. The remaining Murphy personnel on the site say the auction finished about an hour ago, and everything went except for a few countertops.
Just out of the WSB inbox, two reports, one that’s definitely a crime, the other, might or might not be:Read More
Often in the realm of hiring, an organization will say it’s conducting a “nationwide search.” On Thursday afternoon, Westside School (WSB sponsor) invited families and interested community members to come meet the faculty for its new Middle School – and the team (listed here) displayed international flair, with Mandarin Chinese teacher Su-Chen Wang, who originally hails from Taiwan, and humanities/drama teacher Glyn Jenkins, with British roots. The Middle School will launch with sixth grade when the new school year starts this September; more on the faculty’s meet-and-greet ahead:Read More
Another event-packed weekend in West Seattle, particularly tomorrow, as you can tell with a look at the WSB Events calendar – but one of the biggest events is lasting all day, both days this weekend, 
so no matter what else you’re up to, you can make time to drop in. It’s the West Seattle Rock Club‘s annual Rock and Gem Show, which is sponsoring WSB this week to make sure everybody gets the news about how things are going to pan out – pun intended, because this year’s theme is “Gold Rush.” The club promises demonstrations by “real gold prospectors” – and a chance to “pan your own gold.” Other demos include jewelry and lapidary techniques, and as always, there are activities for kids.
While the show does have displays of rock and mineral specimens you can ooh and aah over, it’s far from a “just come have a look” kind of event (rocks, minerals, jewelry, and supplies are on sale too). It’s 10 am-5 pm both days this weekend at the Alki Masonic Temple, 40th/Edmunds.
A sight seen before at other notable shuttered businesses – the Corner Inn (2008 coverage here), the Gee/ex-Huling auto enterprises (2007 coverage here) – is outside the former Charlestown Street Café right now: The truck carrying equipment for James G. Murphy Auctioneers. In about half an hour, they’ll be taking bids on hundreds of items left over from the café operation, which shut down on April 3rd. The auction site opened for “previewing” at 8 this morning, and a few people were wandering through when we stopped by a little while ago:
The nearly 400 “lots” are cataloged online, too. As for the Charlestown site’s future – we reported Monday on a developer’s plan for a mixed-use building and zoning change.
12:49 PM UPDATE: We’re working on a separate story about the auction itself – which is still under way as of about 20 minutes ago (we went back to check)!
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