West Seattle, Washington
31 Thursday
Stacey shared the photo and this report of spotting one of West Seattle’s most-famous residents in an unexpected place:
Chris from Caspar Babypants was the Special Dancy Dance Guest at the Yo Gabba Gabba (Nick Jr.) show today at the Tacoma Dome! It was very cool! He did the Peanut Butter Smash Dance (I think that’s what it was called). My daughter was very excited and kept screaming, “I know him…I know him!” (not personally…we’ve just seen them enough so she “knows” him).
Of course, Chris (Ballew) is no stranger to arena appearances, through his other project … P.S. If you haven’t heard of Yo Gabba Gabba (without a little one in the family, we hadn’t), here’s its home page.
3 work parties to mention tonight – one coming up on Monday, two that happened today. First, from Nancy Whitlock at the Nature Consortium, if you have some time to spare midday Monday:
Habitat Restoration Work Party at the College Street Ravine!
Join Nature Consortium in celebrating Dow Constantine’s birthday by helping us conduct restoration activities in the College Street Ravine (Dow’s favorite greenspace) from 10 am-1 pm on Mon. 11/15. Tools, gloves & snacks provided. Bring a filled water bottle. RSVP to nancy@naturec.org or 206.923.0853 and directions will be sent to you.
Meantime, thanks to a different group of volunteers, one of West Seattle’s most visible greenspaces got a little cleaner:
If your pathway to the West Seattle Bridge is via Fauntleroy, you see “Walking on Logs” every day. The overgrowth and litter stack up pretty quick, and it’s been more than seven months now since Fairmount’s Nancy Driver helped organize a new stewardship effort, since longtime West Seattle community advocate/volunteer Earl Cruzen couldn’t do it singlehandedly any more; they were out today cleaning and trimming. There’s still more work to be done, and we will pass along the word from Nancy when we get it.
Also out today: The Rotary Club of West Seattle was along the Duwamish River, sprucing things up at the Port of Seattle-owned Terminal 105 Viewpoint (which is just east of the Duwamish Longhouse). Just three weeks from today, it’s one of the Rotarians’ biggest service events of the year – the 37th annual Children’s Holiday Shopping Spree (more details on their website).
Thanks to West Seattle writer (and world-traveling volunteer!) Lori Hinton for sharing this photo taken this afternoon at the Westwood Village Bank of America. We’ve seen teams from the West Seattle-headquartered Seattle Police Mounted Patrol at Westwood before – Becky shared a photo last February; a year earlier, we caught a photo at Westwood’s then-WaMu. SPD has told us they bring the horses to areas like this to get used to working in traffic. But now, as reported here more than a month ago, the Mounted Patrol is slated to be disbanded as part of the new budget – and while not all the fine print is finalized, we haven’t seen/heard anything indicating the mayor’s original proposal will change.
This year’s holiday bazaar at the Southwest Community Center is in the lobby shared by the community center and adjacent Southwest Pool. And there we found Tiffany Tomcal and Ryan Daley from the Chief Sealth International High School Honor Choir, selling “Carnegie Cakes” – cupcakes as part of their fundraiser for the choir to travel back east to sing at Carnegie Hall next Easter (you can see/hear the choir in a video clip from our coverage of the Sealth Veterans Day assembly). The SWCC bazaar continues till 4 pm at 2801 SW Thistle. Marion Lisko is there too, with Cookie Lee Jewelry:
The biggest bazaar we’ve visited today is the craft fair at Bridge Park Retirement Community (WSB sponsor) in High Point (3204 SW Morgan) – where the vendors include Bella and her dad, with their Funsies baby clothes:
At Bridge Park, you can also get a chair massage from Betty Lewis of Unwind Today:
And of course, Christmasy offerings abound – be sure to poke around all the corners of the lobby/dining level at Bridge Park to find them:
Like the SWCC bazaar, the Bridge Park event is also continuing till 4 pm, as is one we haven’t made to yet, at Providence Mount St. Vincent (4831 35th SW).
The treats and decorated trees are inside at West Seattle Nursery, where the annual holiday open house continues till 3 pm, but you’ll want to venture outside too – wreath-making is under way, with a seminar coming up at the top of the hour …
Also outside: Free espresso! And the barista’s been busy …
West Seattle Nursery is at California/Brandon; the official open-house info is here; and note that West Seattle Nursery will be selling Christmas trees again this year too. (Not there yet – unless you take note of the beautiful potted Norfolk pine indoors!)
Still two and a half hours to bring your tote bag(s) to the Fauntleroy Church fellowship hall and stock up on gently used toys as the annual CoolMom Toy Swap ‘n’ Sale continues – they’re spotlighting some items that are too big for your tote bag, too – toddler-size cars on the stage in the background, and baby/child furniture in the foreground:
Fauntleroy Church is across from the historic schoolhouse, at 9140 California SW – that’s not a continuation of the long stretch of California, but rather a bend in the road if you are either heading up Wildwood south of the ferry dock, or heading down Barton west of 35th. The sale continues till 1 pm, with proceeds benefiting WestSide Baby as well as CoolMom. Never know who might just jump into your tote bag!
12:57 PM: Got a text that in the waning moments, everything is half price.
Out of the WSB inbox, from Marian:
A pair of fluffy, well fed individuals were sniffing around our neighbors’ drive at the 1900 dead-end block of Walnut [map] this morning about 9:00. They didn’t seem to mind us gaping at them a bit!
We publish coyote sightings not as a warning, but as a reminder that they are more or less everywhere, even if you are somehow sure they can’t be in YOUR neighborhood. Here’s important advice about coexisting with them, and here’s our archive of previous reports you can scroll through (some with photos).
(Photo by Danny McMillin, taken last Wednesday)
Why wait for “Black Friday” when you have Shopping Saturday? Multiple major events today, starting with CoolMom’s Toy Swap ‘n’ Sale, 9 am-1 pm at Fauntleroy Church (9140 California SW). Remember that if you donated pre-sale, and put your name in the bag, you should have a $5 credit waiting … Go Natives! Nursery has a plant sale today benefiting the West Seattle Backyard Wildlife Habitat program, 10 am-4 pm at 3225 47th SW (near PCC Natural Markets [WSB sponsor]) – follow the signs from California/Admiral … West Seattle Nursery‘s holiday open house is 11 am-3 pm today, with three seminars on chickens, wreaths, and cooking (details on the official flyer) … Bridge Park (WSB sponsor) offers a craft fair today, 9:30 am-4 pm (3204 SW Morgan) … Southwest Community Center‘s Holiday Bazaar is today, with entertainment, craft activities for kids, and more, 10 am-4 pm (2801 SW Thistle) … Providence Mount St. Vincent‘s holiday bazaar continues today (4831 35th SW) …The Shorewood Elementary Bazaar is also 10 am-4 pm, lots of handmade goods (2725 SW 116th) … In The Junction, knows perfume celebrates its six-month “anniversary” 11 am-6 pm with a sale/celebration … And after all that shopping, how about dancing? 7 pm at Hiawatha Community Center, it’s the 2nd Saturday Dance Series (with lessons too) … You might even leave the kids (6-12) at Hootenanny Creative Kids Classes’ Parents’ Night Out Workshop, 5:30-8:30 pm at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center … Lots of other events on the WSB West Seattle Events calendar!
(L to R: Quentin “L.J.” Burns, Maia Jordan-Griffin, Michelle Steele, Justice Burwell, Sam Orlin, Brady Crane)
The first schoolwide Read-a-Thon is under way at Denny International Middle School – to raise money for books for Denny’s literacy program, and “to inspire reading among all Denny students,” according to Susan McLain, one of the organizers. And you can support them by using a special voucher at Barnes and Noble later this month (more on that in a moment). “Denny International Middle School needs books. We have a diverse population of kids who read in several different languages. We need books that are geared to each child’s reading level,” McLain explains. “We also need books that inspire kids to keep reading because the subject matter is interesting. Often, a child will pick up one book in a series, and then they are pulled into reading the entire series because the books are so compelling to them.”
(L to R: Sophie Strongman, Anne Jorgenson, Gavin Garcia Penor, Aisaya Corbray, Brady Crane, Nicole Roes, and Abdirisaq Diriye Abdi)
For the Read-a-Thon, Denny students are asking friends and family members for pledges, based on how many books or pages the students read up until December 3. You are also encouraged to shop at Barnes and Noble in Westwood Village on November 20 using the voucher found here, or you can use that same voucher number online between November 20 – November 27. Part of the proceeds from each purchase will benefit Denny International Middle School PTSA. And if you’d like to buy a book for Denny as part of this – here’s the wish list.
Val shared that photo of what just materialized in a Westwood alley:
Attached is a picture of some more illegal dumping in the alley between Cloverdale and Trenton between 34th Ave SW and 35th Ave SW [map]. Only a dishwasher this time. GE was willing to give me the name attached to the serial number but it had never been registered with them. A report is being filed with the City.
Here’s the appropriate Seattle Municipal Code chapter, in case you’re curious. And if you need to report illegal dumping, there’s a hotline and an online report form – both available here.
They work like crazy to make our peninsula a better place – and they don’t get a cent for it – “just” the knowledge that they’re making a difference. A big difference. In hopes of spotlighting more wonderful West Seattle volunteers, the Southwest District Council and Delridge Neighborhoods District Council co-sponsor the WS Volunteer Recognition Awards twice yearly with WSB – and you have three more days to nominate a person or group for the next round! Tell the judges (who are from the district councils – we only co-sponsor, we don’t judge) all about your nominee(s) by using this online nomination form; the deadline’s Monday night, 11:59 pm. Thanks – and join us in The Junction (time TBA) for the honors during the first Hometown Holidays Sunday on December 5th!
It’s a party that was a century in the making. All week, West Seattle Democratic Women have been celebrating the 100th anniversary of women’s voting rights in our state. Tonight, a gala at the West Seattle Golf Course is wrapping up the weeklong party that also included a film/discussion last Sunday (WSB coverage here) and the Day of Jubilation last Monday in Olympia. From left at tonight’s event – Seattle Port Commissioner Gael Tarleton and WSDW’s Beth Grieser, Lynne Ingalls, and Karen Chilcutt; Lynne and Karen co-chaired the event. Along the wall in the banquet room – photos of women currently serving this area and our state in elected office:
(Recognize everyone? From left, 34th District State Rep. and Sen.-elect Sharon Nelson, U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, Gov. Chris Gregoire, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, and 34th District State Rep. Eileen Cody. The display on the table beneath the photos is headed, WE’VE COME A LONG WAY, the event’s theme.)
As the week comes to an end, SDOT has just sent a raft of traffic alertsL
THIS WEEKEND: Viaduct work will lead to closures on parts of Alaskan Way and Royal Brougham – which might affect you if you’re attending the Dave Niehaus tribute – here are details.
BATTERY STREET TUNNEL LANE CLOSURE MONDAY MORNING: Southbound lane, 9 am-noon Monday, details here.
VIADUCT REPAIRS NEXT 2 WEEKS: Southbound lane closures are scheduled to fix guardrail damaged in a recent crash – days may change but here’s what’s expected as of right now.
Stars of that video are Team Trev, one of four teams currently in the Zero Race, an 80-day around-the-world renewable-energy-car race that’s officially stopping in Seattle tomorrow – but this team is due in West Seattle tonight, since participants are being hosted by local residents, as explained by Leah LaCivita via e-mail:
Founded by Louis Palmer, the first person to drive a solar-powered car around the world, the goal of Zero Race is to generate popular enthusiasm for the use of renewable energy sources for vehicles. In order to compete in Zero Race, vehicles must be propelled by an electric motor, drive approximately 156 miles at an average speed of 50 miles/hour, and carry at least two passengers. Vehicles are judged according to their speed, reliability, energy efficiency, design, safety, and utility to everyday life.
Zero Race began in Geneva, Switzerland on August 15 and will end when the teams reach Geneva again in January 2011. The race route covers a distance of 30,000 km, approximately 18,600 miles, across 16 countries. The North American leg began in Vancouver, Canada, and follows the West Coast until Los Angeles, where the route turns southeast and eventually enters Mexico. The race will also visit the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Cancun at the end of November before returning to the European continent.
There are currently four teams in the race, hailing from Germany, Switzerland, South Korea and Australia. Team members and race organizers will spend the evening in private home throughout Seattle. Hosting them are members of the Seattle Electric Vehicle Association, (SEVA) a volunteer led educational organization that promotes the advancement and adoption of electric vehicles.
SEVA member Matt Schneider will be hosting Zero Race’s Team Trev at his Gatewood home this evening. In 2008, Schneider converted a VW Vanagon to electric power and has been commuting in it since then. He is looking forward to the visit as a chance to talk shop, but also to “check out a really cool car.”
Leah says their arrival time isn’t set yet – they’re heading down from Canada. She also says that from there, the Zero Race cars will continue to head south, stopping in Portland on Sunday. If you explore Team Trev’s website – you’ll see Trev is the car, and they’re the team from Australia.
Got that cameraphone photo from Jean Lange of Cucina Fresca – after team members at the company surprised its owner, Chef Brad Glaberson of West Seattle, with a seventh-anniversary cake today. It’s not his seventh anniversary of owning it, but rather 7 years since he joined the company in 2003. He bought it three years later, and now it produces 30 pasta and sauce products sold in 400 stores in 10 states. According to Jean, not only has Cucina Fresca moved to bigger production facilities twice, Glaberson now employs 40 people and is focusing on “green” business practices. He’s been a chef since age 19. This afternoon, his staff surprised him with his favorite kind of cake (yellow with chocolate frosting), to mark the anniversary. (Cucina Fresca is headquartered near Boeing Field.)
If you are concerned about reports that tens of thousands of grocery workers around the region have voted to authorize a strike – you’ll be interested to hear that another round of contract talks has just been set by the workers’ unions and the companies with which they’re negotiating: Safeway, Albertsons, QFC, and Fred Meyer (represented together by Allied Employers). One of the unions, UFCW 21, says the two sides have agreed to sit down and talk again next week, on Thursday and Friday. They’ve been negotiating now for eight months and they say the sticking points include pay, health-benefit, and pension-cut proposals.
Today we welcome a new WSB sponsor, West Seattle Autoworks, owned and operated by Todd Ainsworth and Chris Christensen, both longtime West Seattle residents.
(Todd and Chris with team member Nathan Huie)
West Seattle Autoworks has been open for a little over a month, but the staff brings more than 60 years of combined experience. Todd and Chris say they are working to earn each customer’s trust by giving straight, honest assessments of what work needs to be done. The shop is ASA-certified and the staff all have obtained ASE Master certifications. The work on all domestic makes, German, Japanese, and some select European makes. They also specialize in working on hybrid vehicles.
West Seattle Autoworks is the first garage in the neighborhood to offer oil changes using re-refined oil from Universal Lubes. Todd says that by using a re-refined product, we can cut down our use of imported oil by two barrels per oil change, and the re-refined oil only adds $10 to the cost of the average oil change. West Seattle Autoworks is open Monday through Friday from 8 to 5:30. You can make an appointment by phoning 206-257-5344 or you can book an appointment online by going to this page on their website. West Seattle Autoworks is at 7501 35th SW (here’s a map), and you can find them on Facebook too.
We thank West Seattle Autoworks for sponsoring independent, community-collaborative neighborhood news on WSB; find our sponsor team listed in directory format here, and find info on joining the team by going here!
That’s Pigeon Point/Delridge uber-advocate/activist/volunteer Pete Spalding at left, with Delridge Neighborhood District Coordinator Ron Angeles, after Pete accepted a Seattle CityClub Community Matters Campaign “People’s Choice Award” last night at City Hall downtown. We were glad to be there to cheer him on; as you can hear in this clip, he has a long list of accomplishments –
But they didn’t even list everything he’s involved with right now in West Seattle – off the top of our head, we know of the West Seattle Food Bank, Southwest Precinct Advisory Council, Pigeon Point Neighborhood Council, Delridge Neighborhoods District Council, and on a city/regional basis, the Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement Project‘s South Portal Working Group and the Seattle Parks and Green Spaces Levy Oversight Committee … Congratulations to Pete; we also thank CityClub for naming your WSB co-publisher team as one of the three other citywide People’s Choice Award winners. The CityClub event also unveiled the Greater Seattle Civic Health Index – showing that people in Seattle volunteer more than the national average, for example; relevant to our business, the report also shows that Seattleites trust neighborhood and national news sources more than those inbetween. The event also included a panel discussion on civic involvement with Pete and West Seattleite Lola Peters among the panelists. (Not familiar with CityClub? Read about it here.)
Another West Seattle winner to tell you about today:
Manuela Slye of bilingual Cometa Playschool in the Admiral District is being honored by KCTS 9 with the Washington State Exceptional Caregiver Award. KCTS says the awards “honor the practices of exceptional caregivers” and are “judged by professionals and experts in the field of early childhood development.” Manuela and the five other statewide recipients will be honored during a professional-development conference tomorrow, and they’ll receive on-air recognition from the public-TV station too. She is Cometa’s owner and lead teacher.
Also in the education department – South Seattle Community College made the finalists’ list for Top Education and Training Company as chosen during NWJobs.com People’s Picks 2010. Congratulations to all!
The Seattle City Council Budget Committee (essentially the entire council) is about to launch into another round of votes on changes to the mayor’s budget proposal, leading up to a final vote that’s a little more than a week away. Among them, the issues that many West Seattleites have watched closely (mentioned again last night in our coverage of what Councilmember Sally Clark told the 34th District Democrats) – including canceling the closure of the Neighborhood Service Center in The Junction (budget doc here) and adding 15 more weekly drop-in hours back to Alki Community Center, explained here (for Alki and others) in an excerpt from that budget doc:
The increased Community Center drop in hours shall be in addition to the 15 – 20 hours of drop-in time included in the Mayor’s proposed 2011 and 2012 budget. Council intends that this additional funding will be supplemented by drop- in fees and class surcharges, in order to maximize the additional drop-in hours at these five Limited-Use Community Centers. These additional hours will permit these five Community Centers to be open for public use that includes access to gyms, classrooms, and other appropriate spaces at these centers.
Staffing effects of the Neighborhoods and Parks changes are not yet clear. You can follow along live in the video stream above (click “play”); the full agenda, with document links, is online here. We’ll add notes here as the morning goes on.
10:34 AM UPDATE: The community-center item has just passed – 8-1 with West Seattle-residing Councilmember Tom Rasmussen opposed, stopping the otherwise-fast-moving proceedings to express concern that the Parks Department did not work closely enough with communities and staffers before these changes were proposed – he expressed particular concern about a since-amended plan to move office workers into some non-WS facilities.
10:39 AM UPDATE: They have just voted to cancel the proposed closure of the Junction NSC, to only cut 3 Neighborhood District Coordinators instead of 7, and to restore $300,000 to the Neighborhood Matching Fund. Those were the last of the items we were closely watching, but the votes continue – then the council plans to meet the media at 1 this afternoon, with the mayor doing the same at 3.
10:56 AM UPDATE: West Seattle isn’t directly affected by this, but of note – the council has also just voted to cancel the mayor’s proposal for paid parking on Sundays (where it’s pay-station or meter-controlled).
(Leaves along Harbor Avenue SW; photo by David Hutchinson)
It’s an unpaid-furlough day for many Seattle Parks workers, and that means most community-center programs aren’t in operation today, nor are swimming pools including Southwest Pool or environmental-learning centers including Camp Long … Interested in “green jobs”? There’s a forum today at Greenbridge presented by the Got Green? project, as a possible prelude to job training – noon-2 pm … Tonight’s the big event for West Seattle Democratic Women‘s weeklong celebration of the centennial of Washington women’s right to vote, 6 pm at West Seattle Golf Course (history-evoking costumes welcome!), tickets $25, contact WSDW at 206-935-3216 or wsdwomen@yahoo.com … Also tonight: Second-to-last performance of the West Seattle High School student presentation “12 Angry People,” 7:30 pm, same time as the first of two performances for Seattle Lutheran High School‘s fall drama “The Odd Couple” … Two holiday events, the Bella Nouveau European Day & Medical Spa open house 4-7 pm, 4204 SW Oregon, and a holiday bazaar at Providence Mount St. Vincent, 10 am-4 pm – details in this WSB Forums post … And tonight at 9, Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor) hosts the CD listening party for Post-Modern Heroes, kickoff to an event-filled weekend (more here) …
West Seattle-based food writer Kim O’Donnel not only autographed her new “Meat Lover’s Meatless Cookbook” at Click! Design That Fits (WSB sponsor) during the November West Seattle Art Walk last night – she made snacks, too, and shows/explains them all in our video clip. Among them: Kale chips. From Click!’s new Junction location, we headed over to see the guest artists featured by two more WSB sponsors, who are both along 42nd SW just north of SW Edmunds:
Filmmaker Leah Warshawski guested at Mural; the photo’s from her work in Rwanda, subject of a documentary-in-progress; steps away at Wallflower Custom Framing and The Shooting Gallery, you’ll find the photos of Sara Tro (at right, with Wallflower proprietor Courtney Sievertson):
From there, it was across the peninsula to Westwood’s Barton Street Lofts. This is artist and author David Bloomfield (aka Starheadboy) posing with his art:
(This photo, and those that follow unless otherwise credited, by Ellen Cedergreen)
Bloomfield told WSB contributor Ellen Cedergreen that his work is a mixture of realism and characters; he’s working on a children’s book in that style (available soon at Blurb.com) to help young children with their self-esteem. Speaking of kids, they came out to the Barton Street Lofts show too: Artist and illustrator Brandon Baker poses with young patron Zoe, who shows off her newest purchase (one of Brandon’s).
Hopping back to The Junction, Twilight opened Northwest Anvil 2, Survey of Contemporary NW Ironwork.: Its curators are Lisa Geertsen and Andy Blakney. The Caveman pictured between the two belongs to Andy:
The West Seattle-based wife and husband team teach, too, and their work is hanging alongside their students’ through 12/4 at Twilight – here’s “Peacock” by student Kayla Blincow:
The forged pieces drew attention from all ages:
Some of the artists explained to Ellen that the metal-smithing community readily shares craft and techniques, creating a strong sense of camaraderie.
One more Junction note – we found West Seattle Hi-Yu‘s Carol Winston with Hi-Yu fundraising ornaments on sale during the West Seattle Family Zone-sponsored show upstairs at the Senior Center of West Seattle:
Next West Seattle Art Walk, December 9th – keep an eye on wsartwalk.com for previews.
5 notes tonight – no relation except that they’re all West Seattle, of course:
BRIGHT HORIZONS TO LINK: When we took you on a sneak peek tour of Link (38th/Alaska/Fauntleroy) earlier this fall, we noted that 12,500 square feet of the building’s commercial space is slated for a day-care center, though its operator had not yet been publicly identified. Now, as Diane posted in the WSB Forums, the national/international Bright Horizons is acknowledging that they’re the tenant. Emi McKittrick of Harbor Properties (developer of Link) confirms it and says the official media announcement is yet to come – we’ll publish more details when they’re available. The building is expected to be ready to occupy early next spring. Meantime, a few miles south:
35TH AND GRAHAM: Several people have e-mailed to ask about “the construction” at this High Point corner. It’s not construction. As first reported here back in June, it’s a “petroleum contamination” cleanup – there’s still a development proposal for the site, but nothing’s advanced with it lately.
JUNEAU STREET MARKET: So much for the people who told us they were “remodeling” —
Thanks to multiple WSB’ers who sent word of spotting the “For Lease” signs in the past two days. This store was closed for 8 months after a fire in the apartment above it – then reopened this past spring, but apparently couldn’t make a go of it. Now, to the water …
FISHING IN WEST SEATTLE WATERS: For the third consecutive autumn, someone has sent a photo after spotting the Quandary seine-fishing off our shores. This one’s from Bob Bollen, shared this morning. Bikehugger‘s DL Byron posted a photo on Flickr showing two boats in action, including the Quandary on the right. (The 2009 photo is here; 2008 is here.)
Last but by no means least:
SOUTH SEATTLE CC PRESIDENT @ WEST SEATTLE CHAMBER LUNCH: Took the photo at lunchtime Wednesday, as South Seattle Community College president Gary Oertli (left, with Chamber board president and fellow Chief Sealth graduate Jerome Cohen) talked to the WS Chamber’s monthly lunch meeting at Salty’s on Alki. We also covered his appearance at last week’s Southwest District Council meeting, and he shared many of the same SSCC datapoints with the Chamber membership. But what’s important to note here is the Chamber’s growing collaboration with SSCC – what it sees as one of West Seattle’s key resources. P.S. Big event coming up next Monday at the college’s main campus on Puget Ridge – the fall wine release – 5-7 pm, you can taste, you can buy, you can see where SSCC’s famous wines are made. Then next Wednesday, Oertli speaks to the Kiwanis Club of West Seattle‘s weekly meeting (7 am November 17th, Be’s Restaurant).
Tonight, we’re at a CityClub event downtown where Councilmember Sally Clark is speaking. More on that event later, but last night, she was in West Seattle, talking with the 34th District Democrats about the city budget – including the latest developments regarding two matters of intense interest in West Seattle: Proposed cuts in the Department of Neighborhoods budget, and big changes at Alki Community Center. We recorded the entire 34th DDs meeting on video – Councilmember Clark speaks for about 16 minutes at the start of the 2nd clip below (if you want to see any clip fullscreen, just click on the lower-third of the video image):
Councilmember Clark briefed the group on the newest developments in both major West Seattle-related budget issues, discussed at the City Council Budget Committee hearing hours earlier: While the council already had discussed dropping the mayor’s proposal to close the city Neighborhood Service Center in The Junction, they are expected to make further changes in the fate of the Neighborhood District Coordinators: The mayor planned to cut six positions (including the one held by Stan Lock, who works out of the Junction NSC); the council now is expected to cut three, keeping 10 to serve 13 districts citywide (West Seattle is split into 2 districts by the city for this purpose – eastern WS is considered the Delridge Neighborhoods District), and has not yet sorted out how that will be allotted. Regarding Alki Community Center, which was to be cut to 15 drop-in hours a week, the council now has signaled its intent to add back 15 hours, for a total of 30 hours a week; whether that means more hope for fewer program cuts (the Alki Art Fair is considered to be in jeopardy, for example) remains to be seen.
Another major part of the 34th District Democrats’ program; in the first segment of our video above, the group heard from State Sen. and County Councilmember-elect Joe McDermott; about 10 minutes into the third segment of video, you’ll hear from State Rep. Eileen Cody – just re-elected last week – and State Rep.-elect Joe Fitzgibbon. Rep. Cody said it’s going to be a tough year; she also noted she is now the most-senior member of the House, which, she added, lost 4 Democratic seats. Rep.-elect Fitzgibbon talked about the initiatives’ effect, saying he’s pleased about most of the results except for the income-tax measure’s failure and I-1053 (requiring a higher level of approval for tax increases); programs have to be moved closer to paying for themselves. The legislators also answered audience questions, with transportation one of the hottest topics.
For more of the meeting, check out the videos; the 34th District Democrats usually meet the second Wednesday of the month, 7 pm, The Hall at Fauntleroy.
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