West Seattle, Washington

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Spotlight Stories


  • Whales

    WHALE-WATCHING: Southern Residents at dusk

  • Fire

    CAMP LONG: Help rebuild the history

  • Holiday Guide

    WS HOLIDAY GUIDE: See what’s in it!

From SDOT: This weekend’s official list of event/traffic alerts
August 20, 2009 3:14 pm
|    Comments Off on From SDOT: This weekend’s official list of event/traffic alerts
 |   Not WS but we're mentioning it anyway | Transportation

It’s become a Thursday tradition this summer – SDOT’s roundup of where in Seattle you’ll find big events, and how they might affect traffic. (Reminder – as we reported yesterday, the King County Water Taxi will have extra runs for tonight’s Sounders match and Saturday’s Seahawks game.) Read on —Read More

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West Seattle Crime Watch: 2 suspects, at least 8 burglaries
August 20, 2009 1:35 pm
|      21 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

The Southwest Precinct says two recent arrests appear to have solved a lot of burglaries — at least eight, and potentially more. We’ve spoken with both Detective Nick Bauer and Sgt. Jeff Durden to get the details you’re about to read: It started with a burglary on August 7th, 3400 block of 47th SW (map) – the resident(s) left the house for just 15 minutes, with a window unlocked or cracked open, and that’s all it took for burglars to get in. With some description information from neighbors, and a GPS-equipped BlackBerry stolen in the break-in, police tracked two suspects – one adult, one juvenile. That led to a search warrant for a house in the 1800 block of SW Brandon (map), where police found stolen property – “tons of it,” as Det. Bauer put it. Read on for the rest of the story:Read More

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Golf in West Seattle tomorrow with Ken Griffey Jr.’s mom!
August 20, 2009 12:28 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   How to help | West Seattle news | WS & Sports

Just got word there are still a few spots left to golf tomorrow in the Seniors for Juniors benefit tournament at West Seattle Golf Course. In addition to the info you see above, there are also tickets available for dinner/auction afterward, also at WSGC (banquet room) – those tickets (no golf) are $25, same contact info. Here’s our original preview; here’s a list of the items being auctioned; even more info here.

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Also tonight: “Dark of the Moon” at ArtsWest; parking committee
August 20, 2009 11:20 am
|    Comments Off on Also tonight: “Dark of the Moon” at ArtsWest; parking committee
 |   Junction parking review | West Seattle news | WS culture/arts

(Yusef Mahmoud and Tyler Webster in “Dark of the Moon”; photo by Nichole DeMent)
Two more events on tonight’s slate, in addition to the Hiawatha concert mentioned earlier: First, tonight through Sunday, ArtsWest presents its summer Theater Conservatory production, “Dark of the Moon,” billed on the AW website as “is a dramatic stage play in the vein of Romeo and Juliet set in the Appalachian Mountains during the 1920s,” with a supernatural spin — a “witch boy” falling in love with a “human girl.” More info here.

Second: Though the city announced a month ago that it’s not recommending paid street parking for The Junction, that’s not the end of the Junction Parking Project, which may yet result in other changes. You can find out about the next steps in the process by attending the Junction Parking Project Committee meeting tonight, 6 pm, Ginomai (42nd/Genesee; map). More about tonight’s meeting in our preview from Aug. 11th.

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Fundraisers planned to help Morgan Junction salon owner recover
August 20, 2009 9:31 am
|      5 COMMENTS
 |   How to help | West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news

Here’s the news release we received from West Seattle Dawg, a WSB sponsor and one of the businesses in the Morgan Junction block that’s home to Christopher’s Salon, whose owner is recovering from surgery:

A few weeks ago, the owner of Christopher’s Hair Salon fell ill and was hospitalized and had surgery. He spent significant time in the hospital. When he was released from the hospital he had missed weeks of work, and had a mountain of hospital bills.

The neighboring businesses wanted to help Christopher out so we are beginning to do a fundraiser to help him. West Seattle is a great business community, and many business know and support one another. West Seattle Dawg, a few doors down, began contacting people to help Christopher.

“Christopher has been kind to us since day one when we opened our doors, said Rex Post, owner of West Seattle Dawg. “We wanted to do something to help our neighbor who is a kind and wonderful person. So we are asking businesses to do different things to help our neighboring business owner.”

This Friday West Seattle Dawg will begin giving half of their baked-goods sales to Christopher. We will donate 1/2 of Friday, Saturday, and next Friday and Saturdays sales to help him. We are also coordinating a raffle that will have various items from businesses and do a raffle on August 30, 2009 at Christopher’s Salon. The tickets will be $5 each and available for purchase at Christopher’s Salon beginning this Friday August 21st.

We will also have a list in participating business that will donate items, services, and have donation jars available.

If you own a business, and would like to have something in the raffle, please contact: info@westseattledawg.com. Tickets will be for sale [starting] this Friday [tomorrow] at Christopher’s Salon at: 7009 California Ave SW.

On Sunday, August 30th, from 9 am – until ?, Caryn and Nick will be doing haircuts all day, with 100% of all sales going to Christopher.

If you have any questions please contact Rex at info@westseattledawg.com or call Caryn at 206-932-1760. West Seattle is not just a city, it’s a wonderful community that wants to help one another.

The block with Christopher’s and West Seattle Dawg is between Myrtle and Frontenac on the west side of California SW (map).

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Another bicycle accident, same spot on Delridge
August 20, 2009 9:04 am
|      8 COMMENTS
 |   Delridge | West Seattle news

We received a text and this photo a short time ago (thank you!) about another bicycle accident at almost exactly the same spot on Delridge, south of Holden (map). This one apparently involved only the bicyclist, according to Seattle Fire Department spokesperson Dana Vander Houwen (whom we called because there were no police at the scene, and the fire truck left as we were arriving, barely 15 minutes after the 911 dispatch). We saw the victim taken off in a private ambulance, also as we were arriving, which usually means not-major injuries, and the road is clear now, so this seems to have been fairly minor, but we’re mentioning it because what happened two mornings ago (which police still have not solved, according to our check with them late yesterday) is still fresh. By the way, we heard back last night from Amy, a friend of the bicyclist hurt on Tuesday, and she says her friend is “still (in) icu and she’s very broken to say the least, she had to have surgery this morning and will have to have a few more. She is still here though thankfully. but mostly right now she and her husband and extended family just need a whole bunch of prayers.”

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Tonight: Summer Concerts at Hiawatha, with Brian Waite Band
August 20, 2009 7:06 am
|    Comments Off on Tonight: Summer Concerts at Hiawatha, with Brian Waite Band
 |   Fun stuff to do | West Seattle news | WS culture/arts

That’s the Brian Waite Band – in the middle of their “20,000 Volts Under the Sea” tour and plugging into the Admiral Neighborhood Association‘s Summer Concerts at Hiawatha series tonight. 6:30 pm, east lawn of Hiawatha Community Center (map), free admission, bring your own chairs/blankets/picnic dinner. And if you’re bringing kids – there’s face-painting tonight, too! Weather looks promising, unlike last week. (This is the second-to-last concert of the first-ever series, which concludes next week with the fabulous West Seattle Big Band.)

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West Seattle’s next big festival: Arts-in-Nature this weekend
August 20, 2009 6:03 am
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Environment | Fun stuff to do | West Seattle festivals | West Seattle news

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(2008 Arts-in-Nature Festival photo by Marco, featuring Pyrosutra performing at Camp Long)
It’s the hottest ticket in West Seattle this weekend – The Nature Consortium is getting ready for its annual Arts-in-Nature Festival this Saturday and Sunday at Camp Long, and joined WSB as a sponsor this week to help get the word out. The arts at the festival span multiple disciplines, from visual to audio, from performance to participation, and the artists include musicians like now-West Seattleite Chris Ballew (from Presidents of the United States of America) performing as Caspar Babypants – here’s our video of CB at West Seattle Summer Fest last month:

He’s scheduled to perform in the Geodesic Sound Dome (one of five venues) at 2 pm Sunday; festival hours are 11 am-9 pm Saturday, 11 am-6 pm Sunday. Lots more highlights – including The Cabiri (aerial dance), plus your last chance to see Mandy Greer‘s art installation Mater Matrix Mother and Medium, a crocheted river by Polliwog Pond:

(July photo by Sharonn Meeks)
Here’s a printable version of the Arts-in-Nature Festival schedule; here’s the schedule as an online grid. Admission is by donation, $5/person. And if you haven’t been to Camp Long – here’s where to find it.

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West Seattle Crime Watch: Stolen stroller
August 19, 2009 10:57 pm
|      13 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

Just out of the WSB inbox, from Blake:

We had our jogging stroller stolen out front of our yard in broad daylight this afternoon at 34th and Othello [map]. We were standing 30 feet away when it happened but didn’t notice. We purchased it this Monday to exercise with our 13 month old child. If anybody sees a green jogging stroller for sale in the West Seattle area, please contact me at bjs210bjs@gmail.com.

Blake says they don’t have a photo. Which leads us to a point police made when we were talking with them this afternoon (working on a story about a burglary bust, which you’ll see here tomorrow) – be sure to keep identifying information so that if your stolen property is found, it can be returned to you more easily – that means serial numbers, photos, or etch an identifier into the item.

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Don’t let the fruit rot – help pick it with Community Harvest!
August 19, 2009 8:57 pm
|      4 COMMENTS
 |   Gardening | How to help | West Seattle news

This morning, Steve wrote to share this story:

> So, we have this gigantic plum tree in our yard. Way more than we could ever eat on our own. Way more.

Typically we spend the end of the summer wiping smashed plum off our shoes and depositing plums into the yard waste bin. This year, we got in contact with a cool organization called Community Harvest of Southwest Seattle (in West Seattle). You call them or fill out an online form about your fruit trees. They show up with a bunch of volunteers, pick the ripe fruit, deliver it to local food banks that night. You can help pick or not. Really nice people, super easy to work with. They came and harvested the plums last night, they left us as many as we wanted for ourselves and took the rest. Might be cool to let people know about this — I was vaguely aware of the idea, but finally remembered to track them down this year.

Shortly after Steve’s note, we coincidentally heard from Aviva at Community Harvest, who says they’ve got more trees waiting to be picked – 10 new tree donors this week alone! – but they need a hand – more than one hand, actually:

This year has been an amazing year for plums, and it is hard to keep up with the calls and e-mails. We are looking for more volunteers to help pick plums, figs, apples, and pears, and supply our food banks with fresh local fruit. Volunteers can pick standing or from a ladder and are welcome to take home a small bag of fruit. If you are interested, you can contact Aviva at 206-762-0604 or info@gleanit.org. You can sign up directly from the website: www.gleanit.org . Help your community with a fun evening picking fruit.

And if you have friends in other neighborhoods – a citywide tree-mapping effort has just begun at cityfruit.org (recently featured by our fellow independent neighborhood-based news-service providers at Rainier Valley Post).

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Water Taxi will run late tomorrow for Sounders match
August 19, 2009 6:07 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   King County Water Taxi | Transportation | West Seattle news

Someone asked us to check into this – we can’t find the original note but we did find the answer on the King County Water Taxi site: there WILL be late runs after the Sounders game tomorrow (as well as Sept. 3 Seahawks, and extra-late this Saturday night post-Seahawks if necessary). The schedule’s here.

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The Kenney’s Seaview Building becomes an official city landmark
August 19, 2009 5:00 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   The Kenney | West Seattle history | West Seattle news

We’re at the Municipal Tower downtown, where the Landmarks Preservation Board has just made its decision: The century-old, cupola-topped Seaview Building at The Kenney will be designated as an official city landmark. Much discussion centered on whether the site itself (with the stipulated exclusion of four other buildings) should be included in the landmark designation, which would mean the Landmarks Board will have more of a role in decisions to be made regarding The Kenney’s redevelopment project. Board members expressed particular interest in the “west gardens” outside The Seaview. In the vote, they decided the site WILL be part of the landmark designation too. (This is the second meeting in a row at which the Landmarks Board has voted to designate a West Seattle facility as a landmark – two weeks ago, The Sanctuary at Admiral, formerly Sixth Church of Christ, Scientist, was designated.)

ADDED 5:17 PM: A few more notes: The Kenney was the work of Graham and Myers; one of the partners, John Graham Sr., is credited with designing many of Seattle’s best-known commercial buildings. The buildings excluded in the site designation were listed as Sunrise, Ballymena, Lincoln Vista and a collection of sheds; some features of the Seaview Building itself also are excluded, including its interior – which is proposed for renovation as part of The Kenney’s redevelopment – and a few other features added in the ’50s and ’60s, including an enclosed exterior staircase.

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Election 2009: Mallahan leads in new vote totals, Nickels still 3rd
August 19, 2009 4:19 pm
|      13 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle politics

checkbox.jpgKing County Elections has just published results of today’s vote count – first one since just before 10 pm last night – and the first of what will be mostly daily updates over the next two weeks. In the most closely watched race, the mayoral results are now Mallahan, McGinn, Nickels; see those vote totals here (scroll down the page a bit); we’ll add a few more notes here shortly, but in the meantime, all the results are linked here. ADDED 4:25 PM: In the King County Executive race, the Hutchison-Constantine gap is a little narrower – she has 36 percent, he now has 23 percent. Nothing else has changed significantly – for City Council, it still looks like Bagshaw/Bloom, Licata/Israel and O’Brien/Rosencrantz; the “No” votes are still way ahead on the bag fee, 57 percent against; for Port Commission, it remains Holland/Doud and Albro/Vekich. Back to the mayor’s race – here are the vote totals and exact percentages from the King County site:

Joe Mallahan 21101 26.76%
Mike McGinn 20880 26.48%
Greg Nickels 19864 25.19%

Next vote count around 4:30 pm tomorrow. 9:06 PM NOTE: The county’s released its nightly count of how many ballots have been received. The County Council district that includes West Seattle, 8, has the highest percentage – more than 34 percent – here are all the breakouts.

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Followup: More on the California/Ferry slope-stabilization project
August 19, 2009 4:09 pm
|    Comments Off on Followup: More on the California/Ferry slope-stabilization project
 |   Environment | Transportation | West Seattle news

Following up on last night’s report about the work that’s closed Ferry Avenue near Seacrest (map), we checked with SDOT today to get details on the schedule and the scope of the work. They’ve replied with two things: First, they created an update on the relatively new (and frequently updated!) SDOT Blog; second, they shared this official construction-update flyer, which explains that this is actually a two-part project, with the work expected to last at least two months, and the north end of Ferry remaining closed for the duration. (Thanks again to WSB’er JayDee for the original tip and photos including the one at left.)

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Pencil Me In For Kids adds another dropoff spot for donations
August 19, 2009 3:58 pm
|    Comments Off on Pencil Me In For Kids adds another dropoff spot for donations
 |   How to help | West Seattle news


View Larger Map

Three weeks from today, it’s the first day of school for most area kids. Local businesses and nonprofits are working to help make sure they all go back to school with the supplies they need – among them, the volunteers at Pencil Me In For Kids. Gipsie Gitane at Washington Federal Savings in Morgan Junction just sent an announcement to get the word out that they’re now a dropoff spot – and they have another program they’d like to tell you about, too:

The local branch of Washington Federal Savings is now a drop off point for “Pencil Me in For Kids” donations to benefit West Seattle-area schools. This school supply drive helps students of all ages with donations from local residents. Please take a moment of your time to donate new school supplies to West Seattle students in need. Washington Federal is located at the corner of California and Faunterloy at 6428 California Ave SW.

In addition to participating in “Pencil Me in for Kids,” Washington Federal Savings is also launching a new “Save at School” program designed to teach elementary-aged kids good financial habits with regular deposits to a savings account. PTAs or school administrators interested in having their school participate should contact Washington Federal. The bank will match the first $5 each student deposits.

Find out more about Pencil Me In For Kids at pencilmeinforkids.org – other dropoff spots are Illusions Hair Design (WSB sponsor) at 5619 California SW (map) and Edward Jones at 7354 35th SW (map).

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West Seattle Crime Watch: Car break-in; vanishing trash can
August 19, 2009 2:39 pm
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | Gatewood | Sunrise Heights | West Seattle news

Reports this afternoon from Sunrise Heights and Gatewood – read on:Read More

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WS business news: West Seattle Karate Academy is moving
August 19, 2009 12:47 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   West Seattle businesses | West Seattle news | WS & Sports

(Longtime WSKA student Christopher Nuñez shows off the new sign, right below his mother’s salon, Daysi’s Salon de Belleza)
Another West Seattle business on the move – just got this announcement from Laura Vanderpool, who wrote it on behalf of the dojo to which she belongs:

After nine years in its location across from the Southwest Library, West Seattle Karate Academy is moving to a new location just down the street.

The new dojo will be four blocks south at 9455 35th Avenue SW, on the Northwest corner of the intersection of 35th SW and SW Roxbury [map], next to 35th Avenue Chiropractic.

“The building we were leasing went up for sale so I decided to look for a new space in the neighborhood,” noted owner and lead instructor Kris Wilder. “The new location was a great find – it’s bigger with higher ceilings, just a really comfortable space.”

Classes will begin at the new space Monday, August 24th. West Seattle Karate offers traditional goju-ryu karate classes for adults and children, including a “Tiny Tigers” class for kids ages 4-6. www.westseattlekarate.com

Business moving? Opening? Closing? Changing? Let us know – so we can share the news with tens of thousands of West Seattleites – editor@westseattleblog.com (or via Facebook at facebook.com/westseattleblog – and/or Twitter at @westseattleblog)

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West Seattle’s Art Lending Library to open Friday night
August 19, 2009 12:18 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   Delridge | West Seattle news | WS culture/arts

paintbrush.jpg

We first told you last year about the Art Lending Library at Youngstown Arts Center – and we just got word they’re planning to open it again this Friday, for “all who may have heard about the Art Lending Library and … those who have already joined up.” Be there between 6-9 pm this Friday night, south classroom at Youngstown (which is at 4408 Delridge Way – here’s a map). If you missed earlier reports or didn’t get around to investigating, here’s how they explain the ALL:

Mission: The Art Lending Library is a system of lending and borrowing artwork to the public for free. It is a trust-based program where artists provide artwork to be checked out by any member of the public, and patrons allow artwork and artists into their homes; all in the spirit of sharing.

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West Seattle soccer team takes tournament title
August 19, 2009 11:55 am
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle people | WS & Sports

Thanks to proud coach Howard Chilcott for sharing that photo and this news:

West Seattle Jets ’97, Boys U12 soccer team won the 2009 Shoreline Classic Soccer Tournmant this past weekend. Playing one year up, didn’t prove enough to hold down this group of young soccer stars. Coach Howard noted, “We had 3 beautiful games, and a hard-fought championship game that was a battle of will, fatigue and desire.” As preparation for their upcoming fall season, the Jets recently spent 5 days in Wenatchee practicing twice a day in over 100 degree weather. It looks like this hard work has already begun paying off. “Effort, Solid, Go Jets!” (Missing but not forgotten from picture: Chrismon Nofsinger, Ed Horn, Nikolaus Horn)

The Jets are associated with the West Seattle Soccer Club, which is wrapping up fall registration – get the latest info here.

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Followup: Why Skyelar Hailey faces three burglary charges
August 19, 2009 11:18 am
|      27 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

Update on the arrest of repeat offender Skyelar Hailey after a foot chase in Admiral yesterday: Our first information from police (reported here) indicated that he is accused of stealing a purse from a West Seattle High School teacher. Then when he was booked into jail last night, the register showed he is facing three burglary charges (the decision on actual charges is up to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, which has three days to decide). We asked police about that this morning; Southwest Precinct Lt. Steve Paulsen says the other two potential charges have to do with “two residential burglaries.” Hailey, who turned 19 last week, remains in jail as of last check; checking online court records, we found he also has a case pending from late July in Seattle Municipal Court, with charges including reckless endangerment, refusal to stop, no valid driver’s license, obstructing a public officer, and 1st degree property destruction – we are checking to see if that incident actually happened in late July or whether the charges stem from something earlier. 5:32 PM UPDATE: No answer on that yet but we can tell you that his bail’s now been set at $25,000, according to the King County Jail Register (he’s still there right now). THURSDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE: The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office expects to file charges against Hailey tomorrow. FRIDAY MORNING: He is formally charged now with two counts of burglary. We are working on the story, which includes the full tale of what preceded his arrest this week.

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2 closures coming up soon: Southwest Pool and city libraries
August 19, 2009 10:14 am
|    Comments Off on 2 closures coming up soon: Southwest Pool and city libraries
 |   West Seattle news

As the sign says, a three-week closure is coming up at Southwest Pool. It was just last year that the pool closed for major systems work, but this time it’s different: Crews will work to upgrade its main drain per the safety requirements of the Virginia Baker Graeme Act (explained here), the same type of work that still needs to be done at almost half the city’s wading pools (those that weren’t upgraded, including Highland Park, stayed closed this summer as a result). Southwest Pool’s closure is scheduled to start August 22 (this Friday), ending with a planned Sept. 14 reopening. City-run Colman Pool (outdoors) is open daily till Aug. 30, then open again for Labor Day weekend, Sept. 5-7, before closing for the year. If you’re seeking indoor swimming alternatives during the SW Pool closure, our area has several private pools, including the West Seattle YMCA (WSB sponsor), which does sell day passes to non-members, at the following rates:

Youth (under 14) $5
Teen (14-20) $7
Adult $10
Senior (65+) $9
Adult Couple $15
Single Parent Family (1 Adult w/up to 3 kids) $12
Family (2 adults w/up to 3 kids) $20

Another major city-facility closure coming up with potential effects on West Seattleites: The budget-related one-week closure of all city libraries is almost here: August 31 through September 6th (followed immediately by the holiday closure for Labor Day, September 7). If you are a library user, take a look at the long version of the announcement on the Seattle Public Library website – it explains in detail what the closure means, regarding everything from book-due dates to book drops.

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Today/tonight: More vote-counting; heat; The Kenney; Camp Long
August 19, 2009 6:30 am
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   The Kenney | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks | West Seattle weather

checkbox.jpgWHAT’S NEXT FOR ELECTION RESULTS: Our previous five reports focused on last night’s first round of election results, and candidate reaction. But many more votes remain to be counted. Next step: 4:30 pm today, King County goes public with its next count. This will be a daily affair for a while (here’s the official schedule), with final certification expected two weeks from today.

HEAT: Could hit 90 today, and that would be a record for this date.

THE KENNEY: One air-conditioned place to be at mid-afternoon: The Landmarks Preservation Board‘s meeting, 3:30 pm, Municipal Tower downtown. They’ll decide whether to designate The Kenney‘s Seaview Building as an official city landmark. (Here’s our preview.)

CAMP LONG PUBLIC MEETING: From last year’s Parks Levy, a million bucks is earmarked for renovations at Camp Long Lodge. You can find out about the plan at a public meeting tonight, 5:30.

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Election 2009: King County Executive, Hutchison vs. Constantine
August 18, 2009 8:04 pm
|      11 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle politics

(WSB video added 9:17 pm, the first minute of Dow Constantine’s speech)
Latest results here – Susan Hutchison in first at 37 percent, Dow Constantine is in second with 22 percent.

(Constantine party, just before the first results were announced)
8:04 PM: We’re covering all tonight’s key results, but this is the marquee race – so your editor here is at King County Council Chair Dow Constantine‘s event at Kells Irish Pub in Pike Place.

8:17 PM: The first results are in – as you see at the top of this post – huge cheers as Constantine is in second place (top 2 advance to November). Fred Jarrett is a distant third. Constantine is scheduled to speak in about half an hour.

8:44 PM UPDATE: Constantine entered a few minutes ago to a hero’s welcome. He says the early results are positive but the “campaign has just begun.” He says King County residents deserve a government “as innovative as they are.” He says the message is stand up for what’s right, persevere and good things are going to happen. He says he got this far because of “grass-roots momentum … 2,000 volunteers .. a small army of volunteers that broke all records” for voter contact. “We are headed for the general election!” he just shouted exuberantly. And he thanked people including his girlfriend Shirley, “who has been my rock.” He also says he wants to thank the other candidates – “the ones who showed up at every debate” in a clear jab at the person it appears he will face in the general, Susan Hutchison, who drew fire for not showing up at early campaign forums. “Tomorrow we begin Phase 2 of this campaign,” he says, “bringing our vision, our ideas, our passion to the hundreds of thousands of King County voters who did not vote in this election – who need to know the stark choice they face over the future of King County .. Susan Hutchison is too conservative, too out of step with the mainstream values of King County.” He adds, “This election is about who is best qualified. I have a track record of public service … I understand the enormity of the challenges … We must do what it takes to make government work better. My opponent has not had to make the tough choices, has not had to stand up and be counted, and has offered little of substance during this campaign.”

8:56 PM UPDATE: Constantine has just wrapped up his speech, saying he’s giving his supporters 12 hours to celebrate, and then it’s time to start work on the general election campaign. His last dig at likely general-election opponent Susan Hutchison: “You are nothing but platitudes … Celebrity is not a qualification for King County Executive.” (We will link to coverage from her party once we have it.)

9:39 PM UPDATE: Here’s the Publicola report from Susan Hutchison’s party, where she is reported to have vowed to win the support of those who voted for Larry Phillips, Ross Hunter and Fred Jarrett, with what she promised would be a “nonpartisan” campaign. (Voters decided last year to make the County Executive and County Council positions officially nonpartisan.)

9:59 PM UPDATE: The second and final vote-count update of the night is now posted. Nothing’s changed – 37 percent Hutchison, 22 percent Constantine, 12 percent Jarrett, 11.7 percent Phillips, 10 percent Hunter. (Though the candidate himself seems to have moved on, or at least isn’t in the main room right now, his parents are still here – dad John just came and looked over our shoulder at those new results.)

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