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Spotlight Stories

West Seattle Water Taxi shuttle to serve Morgan Junction part-time
March 31, 2010 11:55 am
|      10 COMMENTS
 |   King County Water Taxi | West Seattle news

Some years back, the King County (then Elliott Bay) Water Taxi shuttle bus ran all the way south to Morgan Junction, in addition to the current route between Alki and The (Alaska) Junction. This year, according to word we just received from Susan Whitmore with the King County Department of Transportation, the shuttle will run to Morgan Junction part of the time again. Specifically, she says, it will include Morgan Junction in the midday time period on weekdays – a time when ridership otherwise is low. And it’s not so much about getting to the Water Taxi itself, Whitmore explains, it’s about getting people around the area: “We were able to extend service without increasing our current budget or impacting the shuttle schedule. This extension allows us to provide midday transit service to residents around Morgan Junction. Ridership on the route extension will be evaluated during the summer.” Exact details on the schedule aren’t out yet, but the route it will follow is shown on this map (partly shown at right). As previously noted, the Water Taxi starts its season next Monday, April 5, with a new West Seattle dock, different downtown dock, new vessel, and new fare structure – note that there have been changes in the passes that will be accepted, too. The season-opening celebration is planned for the following Sunday, April 11, with free rides all day. ADDED THURSDAY: Here’s the Route 773 schedule.

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Preventing crime in Admiral: Summit sparks followup plan
March 31, 2010 10:34 am
|    Comments Off on Preventing crime in Admiral: Summit sparks followup plan
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

The Admiral Neighborhood Association‘s Crime Prevention Summit brought more than 50 people into a big circle at Hiawatha Community Center last night – among them, Southwest Precinct Crime Prevention Coordinator Benjamin Kinlow, who shared crimefighting tips you’ve heard before, and some you haven’t. One thing we learned: If you’re going away, you can put in a “Request to Watch” (call or visit the precinct) to ask that police keep an eye on your house; Kinlow says they’ll go by each day. As for how best to protect your house, he repeated over and over again, your watchful neighbors are your best weapons – form a Block Watch if you don’t have one already. Also at the meeting, Community Police Team Officers Adonis Topacio (at left, in plainclothes since he’s currently on a temporary stint with the burglary/theft team), Kevin McDaniel and Jill Vanskike (who temporarily handling Officer Topacio’s western West Seattle sectors – map at right). They explained that Community Police Team officers are the ones you call to talk about non-urgent but troubling problems – like nuisance properties, illegal dumping, recurring noise problems. (Their contact info is here.) But if it’s something happening NOW, they stressed – as police do, over and over again – CALL 911. “You guys know your neighborhoods better than anyone, so if it’s suspicious, call it in, there’s no harm in that,” said Officer Topacio. Finally, ANA president Katy Walum announced the summit’s success sparked plans for quarterly meetings of a Safety Committee – first one, June 7th (time/location TBA), with a focus on Block Watch formation and networking.

SIDE NOTE: While police handed out the list of Admiral area crimes we linked here yesterday, they said they weren’t seeing any particular trends in Admiral – but regarding comparison to other neighborhoods, they mentioned a current burglary “pattern” in Highland Park. We’re following up with SPD to find out more.

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West Seattle Wednesday: Triangle, “Sunlight,” Hi-Yu, more …
March 31, 2010 8:31 am
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

(Hummingbird photographed by Tom Kelley near 40th/Thistle)
TRIANGLE TALK: As previewed here Monday, tonight’s the first meeting of the latest advisory group to look at a vision for West Seattle’s Triangle district. 6 pm, Senior Center of West Seattle.

“JASON MC KISSACK ACT” TO BE SIGNED: The former police officer who suffered brain damage when attacked while trying to break up a fight in West Seattle is the namesake for a bill that Governor Gregoire will sign into law today with other public-safety-related bills, 3 pm at Lakewood Police HQ (Pierce County). Here’s our preview.

ALCOHOL CRACKDOWN? On the West Seattle side of the White Center business district, WC-area business owners will gather tonight for a forum on “Options for Managing Homeless, Chronic Alcoholics in White Center.” Discussion topics include “possible ban of certain alcohol brands in White Center.” 6:30 pm, Triangle Pub.

OPEN HOUSE FOR NEW TRANSFER STATION: This is in South Park, but the facility will serve our area too – a new transfer station‘s being built, starting later this year, northwest of the existing one, and the city’s having an informational open house 5-7 pm. Details on the Sustainable West Seattle website.

LAST DAY OF “OPEN ENROLLMENT”: If you are enrolling a first-time student in Seattle Public Schools, or if you want to ask that a student attend a school different than the one to which she/he has been assigned, today’s the deadline – more info on the district’s website.

FINAL WEEK FOR “SUNLIGHT”: Tonight’s the first night of the final week for “Sunlight” at ArtsWest (WSB sponsor), with 7:30 pm performances nightly through Saturday, 3 pm matinee concluding the run Sunday.

DEADLINE TO APPLY FOR MISS WEST SEATTLE HI-YU: $2,000 scholarship money for the Queen, $1,000 for Princesses, and you get to represent West Seattle all over the region. Here’s info on eligibility and how to apply.

TWO WAYS TO HELP: This is the last day of the eyewear-collection drive at Keller Williams in The Junction (details here); also, as noted in this WestSide Baby report yesterday, they need donated boys’ clothes sizes 8 and 10 TODAY.

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West Seattle Crime Watch: More cars targeted; gate vandalized
March 31, 2010 12:47 am
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

Three West Seattle Crime Watch reports to share tonight – one neighborhood with at least three car break-ins in recent days, another car-prowl victim who wants to remind you of the lesson too many learn too late, and a case of gate vandalism – read on:Read More

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Turn Lowman Beach into a “utility site”? Overflow options draw ire
March 30, 2010 11:56 pm
|      39 COMMENTS
 |   Environment | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

For the second time in two weeks, King County Wastewater Treatment brought a team to West Seattle to explain and discuss proposed solutions for a problem that sends more than a million gallons of untreated wastewater and stormwater into this part of Puget Sound in the average year.

This time, at Monday night’s meeting about proposals for the area feeding the Murray pump station at Lowman Beach, the proposed trio of solutions drew even more concern than the trio explained earlier this month for the area served by the Barton pump station by the Fauntleroy ferry dock. (The entire meeting presentation, by the way, is now online – see it here.)

One of them would involve digging up most of Lowman Beach Park, including its unique beachfront tennis court and two century-old trees. Another would involve acquiring homes across the street from Lowman, through eminent domain if necessary. Read on for a look at all three and what the crowd of about 40 at the Southwest Community Center meeting heard and said about them:Read More

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If we had a WSB Photo of the Day, this would certainly be it
March 30, 2010 9:07 pm
|      18 COMMENTS
 |   Fun stuff to do | Pets | West Seattle news

Catherine e-mailed that photo, saying:

I don’t know if you ever publish simple photos of the good life on Alki – but I took this on Saturday and thought you might have a chance to share it.

How could we resist?

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West Seattle Crime Watch: Car break-in at the park, and more
March 30, 2010 7:41 pm
|      9 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

We’re writing this as the Admiral Neighborhood Association Crime Prevention Summit wraps up – no big headlines but more than 50 people are here, connecting with each other to talk about Block Watches, and hearing police share lots of good prevention info you can’t hear often enough. There’s also a plan for quarterly meetings to keep the focus on crimefighting (separate from the regular monthly ANA meetings). More details later. First, we have several Crime Watch reports to share from around the area – starting with a vehicle break-in at a popular park – read on:Read More

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Shining stairs: North Delridge light request finally fulfilled
March 30, 2010 4:30 pm
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   Delridge | Safety | Utilities | West Seattle news

That Seattle City Light crew was a welcome, and long-awaited, sight in North Delridge today. In addition to sharing that photo, Betsy explains why:

One year ago, we submitted our first report to Seattle City Light asking them to fix the light on the stairwell from High Point down to 26th ave SW. This is a major thoroughfare, with folks walking down from High Point through to the bus at Delridge Way and to the High School. At least twice, a young woman stopped at our house after midnight, too frightened to walk up the stairs to her mom’s house. With dark falling at 4:30 in the afternoon in winter, many young folks heading home from school faced a very long steep slog in pitch darkness.

After one year of complaining and multiple reports lodged, today the nice folks at City Light came out and installed the first of two light poles. We’re somewhat mystified why they installed one of the poles at the bottom of the walkway at the street, when there’s already a streetlight on that exact corner. But we’re grateful for a new streetlight. The other pole is due to be installed soon to light up the rest of the street. These photos may be boring, but we are excited to light up the staircase safely!

Betsy,
North Delridge Neighborhood Council

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Trash trouble ahead? Here’s the latest on the possible strike
March 30, 2010 4:00 pm
|      12 COMMENTS
 |   Utilities | West Seattle news

10:19 PM UPDATE: Here’s the latest from the Times, saying WM is now advertising for replacement workers.

PREVIOUS REPORT, 4 PM: For the first time, Seattle Public Utilities has sent a news release alluding to the possibility of a solid-waste-pickup strike that would affect West Seattleites and hundreds of thousands of others. They’re not a party to the talks, though; Waste Management is in talks with Teamsters Local 174, whose members’ contract expires Wednesday night. No updates on the union site (though there’s related coverage on the site for Local 117, which represents Allied Waste drivers) nor on the WM site, but the latest update from our citywide-news partners at the Seattle Times says talks are continuing, with the help of a federal mediator; the company has said previously it would arrange for replacement workers if there’s a walkout. Meantime, the city’s news release boils down to “just keep doing what you’re doing” – read on for the full text:Read More

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“Closed” WS schools: Genesee Hill, Fairmount Park, Boren updates
March 30, 2010 2:20 pm
|      7 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

Following up on our weekend report that Westside School has reached a lease agreement with Seattle Public Schools to move into the former EC Hughes building in Sunrise Heights, we have updates on three other “closed” schools in West Seattle: First, SPS communications manager Patti Spencer says the district did not receive any lease proposals for either the former Genesee Hill or former Fairmount Park elementary campuses, which were offered in the same round as Hughes; Fairmount has been vacant since summer 2007 (photo left). As for the Westside lease terms at Hughes, in its second year of vacancy after two years of temporarily housing South Lake High School, Spencer says they’ll be made public when the agreement is signed and finalized. Meantime, we also asked about the Boren building‘s status once Chief Sealth High School moves out at the end of this school year – will anyone be moving in this fall? Nothing planned, but this is the future vision for the site, she says:

We are asking the School Board to designate BOREN as our Essential – Interim / Emergency building for the district – in case of a catastrophic failure at any secondary school (larger K-8 also) that we could move into with minimal costs.

The board’s next meeting is April 7th, but the agenda’s not posted yet.

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From WestSide Baby: Donation arrives – plus, what they need now
March 30, 2010 1:41 pm
|      4 COMMENTS
 |   How to help | West Seattle news | White Center

Just in from WestSide Baby‘s Nancy Woodland – who will be honored next week as the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce‘s Community Hero of the Year – these photos and the following report came with the subject line, “A good thing happened in White Center today too!”

While helicopters were hovering overhead, WestSide Baby was receiving a generous donation from Huggies! A truck loaded up with 288 bottles of Huggies Body Wash AND 158 New Baby Gift Baskets arrived at our facility this morning. WestSide Baby receives hundreds of requests each week and we can’t wait to provide brand new items to local kids. The Huggies Body Wash is particularly great because the older children we serve (up to size 12), rarely have anything here in that category. The Huggies Gift Baskets have diapers, lotion, wipes and wash too. We were even lucky enough to have a volunteer services offered for the truck!

If you happen to be a family with boys… Our shelves for both Size 8 and Size 10 boys clothes are completely empty for order fillers volunteering tomorrow. We’re open 9-1pm if you have time for a quick cleanout and drop off!!

WestSide Baby is at 10032 15th SW.

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Ready, set, hunt! Toddler Eggstravaganza at High Point CC
March 30, 2010 12:30 pm
|      15 COMMENTS
 |   Fun stuff to do | West Seattle news | West Seattle parks

That’s Rebecca Hall, assistant coordinator at High Point Community Center, getting ready to give the starting signal to dozens of little ones (and parents) during the week’s 1st West Seattle egg hunt, part of the annual Toddler Eggstravaganza. So what did it look like when the toddlers (and parents) descended?

More egg hunts are coming up starting Friday (nighttime events for tweens/teens) and Saturday – see the list on our West Seattle Easter page.

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What the helicopters are doing: White Center burglary search
March 30, 2010 11:19 am
|      9 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | Helicopter | West Seattle news | White Center

ORIGINAL 11:19 A REPORT: We’ve received a few calls about the chopper over SE West Seattle/White Center. Officers are after a woman described on the scanner as having a shotgun; it started in the 10700 block of 18th. More to come. NOON UPDATE: We’ve just talked at the scene with King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Sgt. John Urquhart. He tells us this began when residents interrupted a burglary in progress. They’re OK but three suspects — including the aforementioned armed woman – are being sought. 12:45 PM UPDATE: Our video of Sgt. Urquhart’s media briefing is back in house; uploading now, but in the meantime, the newest details – one suspect was caught, two on the loose. He says all three are believed to be teenagers. (added) Here’s the video (you can hear the helicopter/s in the background):

ADDED 11:14 PM: Two more suspects have been arrested, after a raid on a South Seattle motel, according to this KING 5 report.

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West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day: Signups start Thursday
March 30, 2010 10:23 am
|      5 COMMENTS
 |   Community Garage Sale Day | West Seattle news

Just a quick note to say that we will open registration for West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day at 8 am this Thursday, and it’ll be open for three weeks, till April 22nd. The big day is Saturday, May 8, second Saturday in May as usual, 9 am-3 pm – if you haven’t heard about this before, it’s one day with individual, group, organization sales all over the peninsula – last year we set a record with almost 200! The event was founded in the mid-’00s by a nonprofit called Megawatt; when they disbanded, they looked for someone to take over their most successful creations – we took on West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day, and Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association took on Gathering of Neighbors (which is set for November this year). Stand by for full details about WSCGSD registration – just wanted to let you know Thursday’s Day 1. (A few eager garage-salers have already tried to sign up through last year’s form – please don’t, we’ll have a brand-new one Thursday. Thanks!)

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Today/tonight: Egg hunt, crime prevention, Fun Forest future
March 30, 2010 7:56 am
|    Comments Off on Today/tonight: Egg hunt, crime prevention, Fun Forest future
 |   West Seattle news | WS miscellaneous

TODDLER EGGSTRAVAGANZA: From the WSB Easter page: The first egg hunt of the pre-Easter week is for toddlers, during this morning’s Spring Eggstravaganza at High Point Community Center (map). Activities at 10 am, egg hunt at 11 am, activity fee $5.

PREVENTING CRIME: 6:30 tonight at Hiawatha Community Center (map), the Admiral Neighborhood Association-organized Crime Prevention Summit. Here’s our preview from last night.

FUN FOREST FUTURE: Not West Seattle-specific, but City Councilmember Sally Bagshaw mentioned it when Seattle Center‘s future – specifically, whether a Dale Chihuly museum might take over part of the phasing-out Fun Forest – came up at Delridge District Council earlier this month: The facility’s future is the topic of a public meeting tonight at 6:30 at Seattle Center House.

BREW DEBUT: Before tonight’s regular weekly 6 pm “Spin Your Wax” open turntables at Skylark Cafe and Club (WSB sponsor), Northwest brewery Ninkasi will be at Skylark at 5 pm to debut a new brew (details here).

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HONK Fest West in The Junction: Less than 2 weeks away
March 30, 2010 4:09 am
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Fun stuff to do | West Seattle news | WS culture/arts


View HONK! Fest West Seattle in a larger map

That’s the official venue map, organizer David Stern tells us, for the West Seattle leg of HONK Fest West, the marching-band festival that will toot, honk and, well, march its way around the city April 9-10-11. The final day is when it’ll be here on the peninsula, with multiple venues in The Junction noon-5 pm Sunday 4/11, as the map shows – here’s the full schedule in text form (or click a marker on the map, and you’ll see the full slate for that particular venue). Part of California SW will be closed for the occasion.

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West Seattle students’ success at FIRST Robotics
March 30, 2010 2:09 am
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle schools

On this second day of spring break (for most), hundreds of students are no doubt still buzzing about last weekend’s FIRST Robotics regional competition at KeyArena. West Seattleite Jim Edwards was there both days, Friday and Saturday, and provided these photos and info; he was there as proud dad to Kyle Edwards, an Aviation High School student who led the systems-integration team for Skunkworks, which competed:

Jim says Kyle “designed the scouting system for this year’s game.” The game, he explained, is not disclosed by FIRST until six weeks before the competition – that’s how long teams have to design and build their robot: “Once built, the robot is crated up and travels to events the team specifies. Other than limited pit times at regional events, no further work can be done on the robots.” This is animation of the game they had to play this year:

The competition’s workings are pretty complicated, but it all started with 66 teams playing 96 qualification matches all day Friday and early Saturday, Jim says; then Aviation was chosen to be part of the finals – as was the one West Seattle-based team that was there, Seattle Lutheran High School:

The Saints had a great run, making it to the semifinals, Jim reports; Aviation, meantime, got the prestigious Regional Chairman’s Award:

AHS also is going to the finals in Atlanta next month and was featured in this article from our citywide-news partners at the Seattle Times. And watch closely for an orange-shirted Seattle Lutheran team member’s soundbite in this KING5 story:

FIRST’s Washington chapter has a website too – see it here.

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Suspect arrested in Admiral Jack in the Box heist – an employee
March 29, 2010 11:11 pm
|      10 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

KING 5 broke the story tonight: An assistant manager at the Admiral Jack in the Box is now charged with robbery in connection with the early-morning holdup at the restaurant last February. The station reports that police say 33-year-old Michelle Miesner confessed to having the robbery staged but claimed the “robbers” then made off with all the money, though she reportedly admitted she’d stolen more than $2,000 from the restaurant before. According to the King County Jail Register, Miesner was arrested last Tuesday afternoon and released from jail 25 hours later. (Thanks to Diane for the tip about the KING story.) ADDED 8:56 AM TUESDAY: We have the charging documents now. Read on for a few more details: Read More

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West Seattle Triangle planning process about to enter new phase
March 29, 2010 10:49 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Development | Triangle | West Seattle news

Last fall, we reported that the city was moving toward an official planning process for the West Seattle area east of The Junction known as The Triangle, bounded by Fauntleroy/35th/Alaska. A senior planner is now assigned to the project and an advisory group has been assembled, with its first meeting planned this Wednesday, 6 pm, at the Senior Center of West Seattle. According to the meeting information sent by planner Susan McLain, the first gathering will include an introduction to the project and discussion of “land uses, connections, public-realm designs.” This is the first major city-facilitated Triangle discussion since the one at Merrill Gardens-West Seattle (WSB sponsor) in November 2008 (WSB coverage here). The Triangle planning process has a city webpage, which also includes notes from that November 2008 meeting. A lot has changed in The Triangle since then, including the start of construction on Link and the arrival of new businesses including Mountain to Sound Outfitters (WSB sponsor), Cycle University, 37th Shoe Repair, and The Wax Bar. But it hasn’t been an idle time – last fall, leaders of the neighboring Fairmount Community Association led walking tours of the area, including this one we covered in November with City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen. Meantime, the new advisory group is expected to meet at least four times between now and June.

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West Seattle Crime Watch: Admiral summit tomorrow, stats tonight
March 29, 2010 8:42 pm
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | Safety | West Seattle news

admiralogo.jpgThe Admiral Neighborhood Association has just sent out one more reminder about its Crime Prevention Summit tomorrow night, with two Southwest Precinct reps in attendance – Community Police Team Officer Adonis Topacio and Crime Prevention Coordinator Benjamin Kinlow. In preparation for the meeting, ANA president Katy Walum has just sent out a document police sent in advance – a list of notable crimes in the area so far this year (through March 15th). Here’s that document; as for what area it covers, here’s a map. Tomorrow night’s event is at 6:30 pm at Hiawatha Community Center (map).

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Truck crash on West Marginal SW sends driver to hospital
March 29, 2010 5:43 pm
|      4 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | WS breaking news

Northbound West Marginal Way SW near Terminal 107 Park should be clear soon, now that a tow truck is moving that wrecked semi cab. Police tell us the semi hit a utility pole. Its driver has been taken to the hospital.

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Followup: Signing ceremony Wednesday for “Jason McKissack Act”
March 29, 2010 3:51 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle police | West Seattle politics

With so much support having come from West Seattle, we thought you’d like to know that the official signing ceremony for HB 1679 – the “Jason McKissack Act” – is now set. Law-enforcement advocate Renee Maher sent word that it will be one of more than a dozen public-safety-related bills that Governor Gregoire will sign at Lakewood (Pierce County) Police HQ starting at 3 pm Wednesday. A version of the bill stalled in the Legislature last year, but this year, it was renamed for, and supported by, the former West Seattle police officer who was seriously injured in an attack while on duty in June 2008 but lost his (and his family’s) health coverage when the city ended his employment. He testified before the House Ways and Means Committee in January (WSB video coverage here), as did his wife Kim McKissack, who then testified again when the bill was heard in the same Senate committee four weeks later (here’s our story). We are told the bill’s provisions will cover the McKissack family, as well as a Seattle firefighter critically injured on the job several years ago.

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King County Water Taxi’s parent agency gets a new boss
March 29, 2010 3:25 pm
|    Comments Off on King County Water Taxi’s parent agency gets a new boss
 |   King County Water Taxi | West Seattle news

From the King County Ferry District, which runs the Water Taxi (whose West Seattle-to-downtown run resumes a week from today, April 5, with a celebration on April 11) – a new KCFD executive director has been chosen. Read on for the official announcement:Read More

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