West Seattle, Washington
01 Tuesday
An update on the weekend holdup involving the owner of Yummy Teriyaki getting held up at knifepoint and robbed of the night’s take (here’s our Sunday report): The adult suspect in the case — who turned 18 in July — is out of jail; his bail was set at $25,000 at a hearing yesterday, and he posted bond hours later. (Thanks to Gatewood crimefighter “burglarbustindad” for the tip, as he continues to watch the King County Jail Register even more closely than we do.) We are not using the suspect’s name until he is formally charged (tomorrow is the deadline for that); he does not appear to have a significant past record. The status of the three other suspects – two 16-year-old boys and one 17-year-old is not known because juvenile records are not available online; next step is for charges to be filed. The paperwork we obtained from the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office reveals a few more details in the case – the victim was accosted as he walked southbound on 42nd SW, where his car was parked in the 4800 block (that would be south of Edmunds); police recovered more than $500 in cash when they arrested the four suspects in the 7100 block of 32nd SW, along with cards belonging to the victim and a “small pocket knife.” A comment in previous coverage asked if the suspects were from West Seattle; only one (not the adult) has a WS address, and it’s about half a mile north of the arrest location.
Checking on this with police, but in the meantime we’re posting it fast in case these thieves are trying to work more area businesses – read on:Read More
Random street musicians aren’t that common a sight in The Junction, so when co-publisher Patrick happened onto this one a little while ago, he snapped a photo. He tried to talk with the guy but reports, “He wouldn’t stop singing!” (’70s and ’60s oldies, at least at the time.) Meantime, Gary J shares this offshore sight, photographed from Alki:
(No need to call about offshore seals, but remember that if you spot one on the beach, Seal Sitters wants to hear from you – contact info at sealsitters.org.) Thanks as always to everyone who shares photos!
From Marybeth Turner at SDOT:
This week SDOT paving crews plan to start repairing part of a sidewalk on the western side of California Avenue SW between SW Hanford and SW Hinds streets that has been damaged by tree roots. They plan to begin work on Thursday, October 8 and expect to complete the work in approximately one week. The parking lane in the construction area will be closed while they are working, from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays, and will be used for a pedestrian walkway at other times.
You might remember a case from July that was particularly alarming because of what had happened days earlier: As covered here, a man broke into a Morgan Junction apartment early one morning and fled when its occupant screamed; this happened while police were still seeking the South Park murder suspect (who was arrested days later). The day after the break-in, police staked out another building a few blocks south of the crime scene, hoping to catch the suspect (here’s our story on that). Lt. Steve Paulsen from the Southwest Precinct promised to let us know when he was finally in custody – and we just got that news: He says the suspect was arrested yesterday in the Skyway area, on a $150,000 warrant for burglary. ADDED 11:45 PM: KCPQ has a report with photos of the suspect, Marcel Matthews. (We checked the jail register; he’s still in.)
Sharing a note from Tom Hutyler, the West Seattleite whose voice has graced hundreds of games at The Safe:
Our weekly Trivia contest at Christo’s on Alki is now on Tuesday nights, including tonight. Lots of fun, hosted by PA Announcer Tom Hutyler from Safeco Field, with prizes and great specials…Tonight and every Tuesday night at 8 pm!
Christo’s is at 2508 Alki SW.
SCHOOL ASSIGNMENT MAPS: The next major step in Seattle Public Schools‘ move to a neighborhood-based school-attendance plan (after years of focusing on “choice”) happens today, during a School Board work session, 4-8 pm: The proposed attendance-area boundaries for each school are scheduled to go public. We’re planning to cover the meeting, which is open to the public but does not have a scheduled public comment period (saveseattleschools.blogspot.com has a great breakdown of how this works), and will post “live” updates (unlike regular board meetings, these sessions usually are not shown live online or on cable TV). The district says the maps will be linked here after the meeting begins (we’ll include the links in our coverage too). Reminder, two meetings are planned in West Seattle next week (here’s the full citywide list) for feedback on the proposed boundaries.
JOB-HUNTER HELP: 6 pm tonight at the Delridge Community Center Computer Lab, check out a free workshop with resume-creation tips and online-job-search help. Just call 206-684-7423 to register.
That’s the updated design for Junction Plaza Park (42nd & Alaska) shown to about two dozen people last night at the Senior Center of West Seattle – or, for a somewhat more-3-D type of view:
Landscape designer Karen Kiest, who worked on the original design 3+ years ago, was back to explain how it’s evolved. And Erica Karlovits, president of the Junction Neighborhood Organization who’s also helped lead Friends of Junction Plaza Park, explained where the park-project money picture is now.
Kiest explained how the design evolved from “two (paved) plazas” to one plaza area on the small park site’s eastern half – “Your neighborhood has really changed in terms of some of its interests.”
Instead of being meant mainly as a place for performances and events, the park is now envisioned as a simple gathering place, where events are possible too – the circle at the top-center of the drawing is a “performance pad” rather than a raised stage. Some worried that the grass half of the park will be a magnet for the growing area residential population to bring their dogs to relieve themselves; others worried the park had too much pavement and too little grass.
Kiest explained the tree scheme (and underlying plantings) around the park, including a tentative plan for a “specimen tree” area front and center – maybe a Western red cedar, maybe birch, maybe even baby madrones to serve an “educational purpose.”
While project manager Gary Gibbons said the $300,000 in the budget — more than two-thirds of which came from a concentrated fundraising effort by Friends of Junction Plaza Park — will cover the “bones” of the plan, Karlovits says $40,000 more is needed to run power into the park to use for purposes including concerts and events, and to put some pole lighting in the park itself (right now the plan only calls for lighting on the streets, in the area governed by SDOT), plus to upgrade the type of “pavers” that would be used in the non-green areas – true brick-colored pavers, rather than gray concrete. (Whichever color is eventually used, the pavers are to be placed “permeably,” so water will run between them and into the ground.)
What else goes into the park? Some benches and “wall seating,” with options shown on this board:
Susan Melrose of the West Seattle Junction Association – also a leader in Friends of Junction Plaza Park – talked about standards now being outlined for “street furniture” such as benches and light poles – not just for consultation in projects like this, but also for developers.
The park won’t have an official play area, but “we do want it to be playful and friendly,” Kiest said. Its low plantings and shrubbery will come from a list of native plants, and its street trees will be “Greenspire Linden” like others in the area (including outside the new QFC) along Alaska, vine maple or serviceberry along 42nd; along the alley, in front of the existing birch trees by Alaska House north of the park, there’ll be a variant of dogwood. SDOT will be doing sidewalk work alongside the park; Friends of Junction Plaza Park got a grant for $60,000 of the $74,000 the sidewalk work will cost, and say that SDOT is looking for money to cover the remainder.
That leaves Friends of JPP with the $40,000 to raise for lighting, power and paver tone. They’ve sent out a letter to their mailing list but are also accepting donations through their website, junctionplazapark.org.
TIMELINE: Friends of Junction Plaza Park has till December to raise $40,000 more for lighting, power and brick pavers. Parks says the plan will be settled by the end of December, and the project’s likely to go out to bid early next year, with construction in the spring, done by summer.
You might have noticed that trailer just east of Lien Animal Clinic. It’s not for the construction project that Lien wrapped up recently (which by the way has an open house 10/25) – it’s for Link, the Harbor Properties mixed-unit project slated for this site on the other side of Lien (38th & Alaska; map), which formerly held West Seattle Montessori School (WSB sponsor, now with a new campus) and a Huling Brothers shop:
We checked with Harbor Properties today after a commenter asked if Link was still supposed to start construction in “early fall.” Emi Baldowin from HP says, “Exxel Pacific, the general contractor, is setting up trailers, hopeful for an anticipated start within the next few weeks,” and they’re still finishing the paperwork to get the project going. Link’s second and final Design Review meeting was one year ago (here’s our report). It’s a 200-unit apartment project with ground-level retail; Harbor is the company that built Mural (WSB sponsor) across from Jefferson Square, apartments over retail including Wallflower Custom Framing (WSB sponsor) and Fresh Bistro. 11:07 AM UPDATE: If you want to hear more from Link’s developers in person, Fairmount Community Association president Sharonn Meeks says they’re scheduled to make a presentation at her group’s next meeting, which is scheduled for 6:30 pm October 21st at Providence Mount St. Vincent (4831 35th SW). She adds that her group would like to thank Harbor having the contractor, Exxel Pacific, “tidy up, mow and (do) tree trimming” around the future construction site.
That’s West Seattle graphic designer Heather Green, who just accomplished something so amazing that Karen White e-mailed to share the news (and that photo): “(Heather) ran her FIRST marathon on Saturday in Leavenworth … She won. She beat 75% of the men runners. She qualified for the Boston Marathon. Her finish time: 3:31:14.” Amazing indeed, so we checked with Heather to find out more. She tells us she’s “pretty excited,” and adds: “I used to run cross country and track in high school (long time ago). Over the years.. I’ve done several 5k’s, 10k’s and one half marathon. For training, a good friend from West Seattle helped me put together a training program.. So for the last 2 1/2 months I’ve been running 5 out of 7 day (at least trying my best to stick to the schedule).” As for the Boston Marathon: “Having a qualifying time sure makes it tempting, but haven’t committed.” What did she get for winning the marathon in Bavarian-village-themed Leavenworth? “A stein with beer coupons to the Munchen Haus.” Here’s the page listing her results.
From Greg: “Just a heads up that my house was broken into sometime between 11:00 am and 1:45 today on Charlestown St. Looks like they used a crowbar to tear through the door. The cops came by pretty quickly but the perps did take some items including a laptop, 2 rather large jars full of coins, and a Samsung HD camcorder. Now it’s off to fix things they broke.” He didn’t want to get more specific about the location on Charlestown than “west of California.” (map) By the way, the next West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting, where you’ll hear about crime trends and get to bring up concerns to local police leadership, is two weeks from tomorrow – 7 pm October 20, Southwest Precinct meeting room.
We’re welcoming a new WSB sponsor this afternoon: Chris Thayer, Seattle personal-injury attorney (and West Seattleite). Here’s what he’d like you to know: He’s a Seattle-area native who grew up in Edmonds, currently a partner at a small law firm in downtown Seattle: Larson, Hart & Shepherd, PLLC. He’s put together three websites highlighting some of his particular practice areas and providing extensive information for consumers: www.seattle-personal-injury-attorney.net, www.seattle-wrongful-death-attorney.com, and www.seattle-medical-malpractice-attorney.com. Chris and his wife moved to West Seattle last summer, and he says, “We are growing to love our new neighborhood more and more every day. We have enjoyed going to the West Seattle Farmers’ Market, riding our bikes down to Alki, and taking our dog for walks in Lincoln Park.”
Back to business: What sets him apart from others in his field? He cites a “compassionate approach”: “This is a business for me, but it is also about helping people who have been the victim of unfortunate circumstances. I have been handling serious personal injury, wrongful death, insurance disputes, and medical malpractice claims and lawsuits in Washington since 1995. I understand that these cases are often about much more than money. I am often able to help my clients obtain closure on a difficult chapter in their lives, and, in some cases, I can help bring about changes in policy or procedure which may help prevent similar problems in the future. I am dedicated to efficiently and compassionately representing my clients to assist them in seeking resolution and compensation for their losses. My philosophy is to represent my clients aggressively to obtain a fair and just result.”
What does he hear from clients? “They appreciate my willingness to explain things to them and to answer their questions in a way that makes sense and is easy to understand without all that legal jargon. They come to me because they have found themselves in a difficult situation that is not their fault. They are often frustrated by their experiences in trying to deal with their claim on their own. I feel like I can offer a very valuable service by helping them understand their rights and to make sure they are treated fairly. I get most of my business from referrals from happy clients. I offer a free initial consultation, where I will sit down with any prospective clients and review their situation so that I can provide feedback and my assessment of whether or not they should retain a lawyer. Chris belongs to the Washington State Bar Association and Washington State Association for Justice, and has an Avvo rating of 10/10 – here’s his profile. You can reach Chris Thayer, Seattle personal-injury attorney, at 866-884-2417. We thank Chris Thayer for sponsoring independent, community-collaborative neighborhood news on WSB; the sponsor team, plus info on joining, is all here.
Another update just in from the city regarding what started as 3 (projected) weeks of federally mandated drain-upgrade work at Southwest Pool and now has turned into 2+ months including repairs for a previously undetected problem – read on:Read More
Thanks to Diane for pointing this out, since door-to-door “legit or not?” reports are a recurring topic among WSB’ers: The state Attorney General has issued an alert about magazine solicitors working for “Fresh Start Opportunities”; read it here. The AG also points to a search page you can use to see whether a purported charity is legit. (No “Fresh Start” mentions in our door-to-door alert archives, but remember that solicitors are required to show you their license/ID – so always ask.)
If you have an instrument gathering dust in the closet or on a shelf, here’s a chance to get it into the hands of someone who can put it to good use: WSB’er Eliza is organizing a music-instrument-donation drive for White Center Heights Elementary (just a few blocks over the line from WS – here’s a map). Eliza says the school (where her mom works) “just got a really amazing music teacher” but doesn’t have enough instruments to accommodate all the kids now interested in studying with her. Eliza explains, “The school doesn’t have the budget to buy new instruments and the parents can’t afford to rent them or buy them for the kids.” So, she says, “If you have any old/used/formerly loved instruments you could donate that would be so much appreciated!! I will pick them up, I will come to you, I would just like to get these kids a chance to learn a skill they might otherwise miss out on. Please feel free to e-mail me at egjunkerman@yahoo.com or give me a call, 206.818.7376.”
USED CAR LOT MOVES TO THE JUNCTION: The sign’s not up and only a few cars are in the lot, but Automotive Solutions of Seattle has taken over the space at 3925 SW Alaska (map). We discovered this via Twitter, when @WestSeattleCars “followed” us over the weekend. This marks the first car business to open in West Seattle since WS Motors closed on Fauntleroy. The business, which mostly brokers cars online, moved from North Seattle. We asked for a little more info, and here’s the reply:
The owner of Auto Solutions is a West Seattle resident with a daughter at Holy Rosary so the location is very convenient for him. Also, one of our managers is a lifelong West Seattle resident. We hope to eventually have 25-30 cars on the lot. We have access to over 30,000 cars online across the country through dealer auctions so we can find any car a customer is looking for. Our business model is a bit different from a traditional dealer. We have no secrets from our customers, a Carfax is always available as well as a current Blue Book value, we welcome mechanics’ checks on our vehicles and we will always be the most competitive in pricing. We also sell warranties to cover your current vehicle for a huge discount over traditional warranty quotes. We will have a sign up by mid week and will have a grand opening around the 1st of November. We have signed a 7-year lease on the property so we will be around for a while.
FURNITURE CONSIGNMENT BUSINESS: Sold Home Décor Furniture Consignment — offering, according to its announcement, “high-quality pre-owned furniture and eye-catching accessories” — has its grand opening this Saturday, noon-5 pm, at 9003 35th (map), former home of West Seattle Karate (which moved south, as noted here). Owner Maria Groen has been working in “staging” of homes/condos as well as design consulting, and is now expanding into retail. There’s more info online at soldhomedecor.com – about the consignment process as well as the operation in general.
From the Parks Department:
Come celebrate with John Hermann, Recreation Coordinator at Alki Community Center, as he retires from Seattle Parks and Recreation after 36 years of service. John has served the West Seattle area at Hiawatha and Alki Community Centers from 1978-2009. The retirement party will take place at the Alki Bathhouse, 2701 Alki Ave. SW, from 6 – 8 p.m. on Tuesday, October 13. For more information, please call Mary Pat Byington at 206-684-7430.
JUNCTION PLAZA PARK: Within months, groundbreaking is expected for the long-in-the-works construction of this park at 42nd/Alaska. But first – one last public meeting – discuss the current design plan tonight at 6:30, Senior Center of West Seattle (southeast corner of California/Oregon).
VOTER-REGISTRATION DEADLINE: With Election Day four weeks from tomorrow, today’s the deadline to either postmark a by-mail registration form or register online – or to update your information. Here’s a link for form printout and online registration. (If you haven’t been registered in WA before, you can do it in person at the Elections Office up till 10/26.)
The first full week of the month means the start of the calendar of monthly recurring community-group meetings – starting with two this Wednesday, North Delridge Neighborhood Council (6:30 pm, Delridge Library) and Southwest District Council (7 pm, South Seattle Community College [WSB sponsor] board room). One of West Seattle’s neighborhood councils recently regrouped – here’s the story of how, and what’s next:
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Donn DeVore just moved to Westwood last year, but didn’t want to just sit back and see what happened with his neighborhood and its community group.
After finding out that the Westwood Neighborhood Council hadn’t met in months, DeVore coordinated a regrouping meeting of sorts a week and a half ago.
With him were members and leaders, old and new. In the photo above, that’s Donn; to his left, Pablo Lambinicio, the first person to lead the WNC; not pictured but sitting on his other side were Ron Angeles, longtime Delridge Neighborhoods District coordinator for the city, and Steven Fischer, longtime WNC leader, particularly through the months of struggle to get Seattle Public Schools to pay attention to neighborhood concerns over the Denny Middle School-Chief Sealth High School co-located campus project.
DeVore and Lambinicio both told their stories as the meeting began.
Over the weekend, Beach Drive Blog published a note from someone trying to find out what happened to a house they remember from decades ago. Maybe you can help – read the note here.
It’s been almost two months since the sudden death of Phoenecia at Alki proprietor Hussein Khazaal (here’s our original report; here’s coverage of his Alki memorial). His family said at the time that they would take a while to decide the fate of the restaurant that he had so lovingly operated for so many years. Now, they’ve made the decision. We talked today with Hussein’s son William Khazaal, after many people had e-mailed us to ask if the exterior work at the restaurant (the photo at right was taken yesterday) was an indication a decision had been made. William says yes – they’ve decided to reopen, so that’s why they’re doing some work, inside as well as outside. He says they spent a lot of time considering what might be the right course of action; they talked about selling the restaurant, but came to the conclusion they just didn’t want to see the space turned into something else. William says the staff remains, and a chef who left a few months back is returning to help out. According to William, he and his sisters plan to be there to manage each night. He says they will bring back the same menu, along with several dishes his dad had been experimenting with in the months before his death. They believe they can provide customers with good food and great service, but the atmosphere will be a bit more casual, he said, and a bit more affordable. Most of all, William told us, they want to thank the hundreds of people who sent e-mail and other messages of sympathy and well-wishes after their father’s death. They currently hope to reopen the restaurant in early December.
In our coverage last night of the Seattle Lutheran High School Homecoming, we included video of the Chief Sealth High School Band‘s appearance and mentioned a WSB’er had reported they brought home a big prize at the Issaquah Salmon Days Parade earlier in the day. Tonight, we have a detailed report from Chief Sealth (and Denny Middle School) band director Marcus Pimpleton, along with the photo above:
Congratulations are in order for the Chief Sealth High School Marching Band for their outstanding performance at the Issaquah Salmon Days Parade on Saturday October 3rd. The band took 1st place in the band division, besting regional favorites Interlake, Skyline, Liberty and Issaquah. The band received an average score of 97 from the three judge panel with one judge commenting “Wow… just wow!” and another commenting “Great! Just great!”. The Seahawk Band was praised for their lines, uniformity, footwork, music choices, intonation, dynamics, and choreography.
Earlier this month the Sealth Band also won the Music Award from the Fiestas Patrias Parade in South Park, and joined forces with students from the Seattle All-City Band to help kick off the Light the Night Walk at Greenlake raising funds to fight blood borne cancers. The Chief Sealth Band is under the direction of Marcus Pimpleton, who is in his first year as band director at Sealth and his eighth year at Denny Middle School. It has been eleven years since the Sealth band has managed to upset the eastside schools at Salmon Days.
Congrats indeed! P.S. The Chief Sealth Performing Arts Department and PTSA are co-presenting a big fundraising dinner next month – here’s our previous report with details on how to get tickets.
Thanks to Gary J and Desiree, who both sent news/photos of that big tree limb down at Alki, on this windy afternoon (that’s Gary’s pic, above). Forecast says we could see wind up to 25 mph at times tonight. ADDED 5:58 PM: One other weather note – Jenny says her family lost a kite, and her 7-year-old thought WSB’ers might be able to help find it:
What a great day to fly a kite, and lose one! My husband and sons were flying kites up on Genesee Hill near 55th and Bradford, and one got loose. It’s rainbow with a fluorescent orange tail. It was last seen headed south around Dakota and 55th. [map] … If they find it, please ask them to call Jenny at 935-7389.
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