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West Seattle school-closure fight: At the board meeting
January 21, 2009 6:02 pm
|      9 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle school closure | West Seattle schools

(added 10:35 pm, Cooper parent Raymond Williams and daughter facing the board)
We’re at district HQ in Sodo, where the School Board is about to start its last regular meeting before next week’s scheduled closure vote (agenda here). No action is scheduled tonight, but at least three of the 20 public speakers in the first hour are listed as speaking on behalf of Cooper Elementary, so we will post quick notes about their speeches and any other major developments regarding the West Seattle closure proposal (or the other programs, such as the citywide APP top-level-gifted program, affecting WS families). For the first time in a while, it’s NOT a standing-room-only crowd (so far). 6:04 PM UPDATE: Superintendent Dr. Maria Goodloe-Johnson is sharing a few reminiscences from her (personal, board member Cheryl Chow points out) trip to DC for the inauguration – she just returned this afternoon. She also mentioned her phone chats yesterday afternoon (WSB video coverage here) with Highland Park Elementary and Gatewood Elementary students. After that, following the Pledge of Allegiance, board president Michael DeBell – who’d noted it was the first one under the new administration – said, “That feels good.” 6:12 PM UPDATE: The presentation that will be made by Dr. Goodloe-Johnson after public comment (which has just begun) is online; it includes answers to questions raised by board members as part of the closure discussions – one is “Where would Cooper students be reassigned?” See page 12 of the presentation for the full list; highlights: the largest group, 104, would be expected to go to Gatewood, with the second largest, 65, to West Seattle Elementary. The presentation also answers a question about Cooper capacity and whether Pathfinder would fit:

Cooper has 26 homerooms and 1 PCP. After additional PCPs, Special Ed Self-Contained and Resource Room, Cooper has 21 homerooms. Pathfinder requires 2 homerooms per grade for K-8 which is 18 homerooms. This leaves 3 homerooms to expand the special program to middle school as well as provide an additional PCP for middle school and accommodates some of the
Cooper students from the Cooper reference area.

6:55 PM UPDATE: Three Cooper advocates have just spoken – Raymond Williams (video atop this post), and Molly Usry (first clip below) and Brittany Abbott (second clip below).

They reiterate the point: “Cooper does not meet the criteria for closure.” It is the main theme we have heard in meetings at and about Cooper, and on the CooperSchoolWorks.com website: Cooper is doing well academically, compared to schools with similar demographics, and shouldn’t be broken up, they say. They were preceded by a speaker who got a standing ovation, a Summit K-12 student named Jacob Looke, who testified against the proposal to close his school, struggling to get through tears, after explaining that he had been a social outcast most of his life, until he started attending that alternative school. 7:18 PM UPDATE: The superintendent is now running through her presentation, which starts with a list of actions to close “education gaps.”

8:35 PM UPDATE: The closure discussion is almost done for the night; board president DeBell says that if any board member has a change to propose to the superintendent’s final recommendations, they should get it to her in writing by noon next Tuesday, then it will be posted to the district website by noon next Wednesday. (The board vote is a week from tomorrow, during a meeting at which there will be no public testimony, since the last public hearing – with 40 speakers signed up, and the list now full – is tomorrow night, as DeBell reminds all.)

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“Multifamily Code” – including townhouse design – to council
January 21, 2009 4:53 pm
|      6 COMMENTS
 |   Development | West Seattle news

(from illustrated highlights of the new proposal; see the full version here)
6 months after it was unveiled, with a West Seattle architect on hand for the occasion, the much-watched “Multi-Family Code Update“ – centered on changes to the rules regarding townhouse design – has moved from the mayor’s office to the City Council. Here’s the official announcement:Read More

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Illusions’ “Have a Heart Day”: Get a haircut that helps … others!
January 21, 2009 4:38 pm
|    Comments Off on Illusions’ “Have a Heart Day”: Get a haircut that helps … others!
 |   How to help | West Seattle news | WS culture/arts

Our new leadership in DC is challenging us all to reach out and help each other – and we’ve got a stack of ideas to share with you – many are already on the WSB West Seattle Events calendar, but we want to shine an extra spotlight too – for starters, Illusions Hair Design (WSB sponsor) still has appointments available for its annual “Have a Heart Day” on Sunday 2/8 — here’s what it’s all about:

Illusions Hair Design is raising money for West Seattle Helpline – benefiting many families in our community – and Pencil Me in for Kids – benefiting hundreds of local grade-school kids each year – through its annual fund raiser “Have a Heart Day.” Since 1994, Illusions has opened its doors the Sunday before Valentine’s Day, donated staff time performing haircuts at reduced cost, and donated ALL monies raised to local charities. This year’s event will be on Sunday February 8th, from 12-5. Please call (206) 938-3675 to schedule an appointment, or visit www.illusionshairdesign.com to learn more.

Illusions, by the way, is currently featuring a photography display that you are welcome to stop by and check out during regular salon hours Mondays-Fridays, through the end of February – the debut show of Marybeth Coghill (here’s some of her work on Flickr).

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Another Day of Service report: Blanket-making success!
January 21, 2009 3:18 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle people

Earlier today, we shared the final report on the diaper drive Katy Lloyd organized; now, we have a report on the blanket-making event Linda Tepe and Nancy Ross spearheaded on Monday at Fauntleroy Church, which also benefited the local families helped through WestSide Baby:

Our event was a huge success!

Through the USAService.org website I had allowed as many as 50 people to sign up. The event was filled by last Friday. Additionally, 8 friends told me they would attend. Instructions from USAService.org told me to expect no more than 60% of those to turn out, but incredibly 57 signed in.

People brought their friends, co-workers and children. There were people of all ages from babies on up to some in their 80’s: there were high school and college students; a group of 10 from Starbucks corporate; 3 woman brought their young daughters to help; a man and woman brought their daughters; and some young women brought their boyfriends. And 2 babies did quality control, making sure the blankets were soft enough and modeling some of the creations.

We made 130 baby blankets, 107 buntings and an unknown number of adorable hats that one of the volunteers created with the leftover remnants.

Our event was very “green”: not even the smallest scraps of that fleece were thrown away because one the volunteers, who also volunteers for the Humane Society, took those little scraps to make cat toys for her feline friends.

The 40 odd bolts of fleece fabric that we used had been donated to WestSide Baby by BlueStar. BlueStar had purchased the leftover inventory from Hancock Fabrics before the groundbreaking for the Whole Foods project and then turned around and donated the goods to a number of charities, including WestSide Baby.

Thanks again to everyone who shared their stories from Day of Service (and also, yesterday, from Inauguration Day/Night). Share your stories and/or photos with your West Seattle neighbors, whether it’s breaking news or happy news, by sending whatever you have to editor@westseattleblog.com … thanks!

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West Seattle woman scammed: Friend warns, “Be watchful”
January 21, 2009 1:40 pm
|      20 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

Desiree is not only upset about something that happened to a friend of hers, she wants to make sure it doesn’t happen to you, so she e-mailed WSB to share the story, so you know what and who to watch for – read on:Read More

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Alki/Golden Gardens beach-fire update from Parks: “No changes”
January 21, 2009 12:38 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Environment | West Seattle beaches | West Seattle news

beachfirefromhell.jpgYou probably remember the brief but fiery controversy last year when a Parks Department briefing paper posited the possibility of dramatic changes in the rules regarding beach fires at Alki and Golden Gardens. Eventually, the idea was tabled, and the Parks Board — now chaired by Alki resident Jackie Ramels — asked for a post-summer update on how things were going. That update is finally scheduled to happen at tomorrow night’s Parks Board meeting, and the briefing paper has just been posted on the Parks Department website. In short, no changes are planned/proposed for this summer at either beach – but the department is going ahead with plans to seek a vendor to sell “clean-burning firewood” so that fire-ring users will have that option. The briefing paper also includes myriad stats on how many fires and problems occurred at both beaches last summer, and includes this overview:

Certain behaviors continue to be a challenge including parking at Golden Gardens, alcohol consumption at both parks, and burning of inappropriate material that cause hazards and illegal fires. Parks staff is effective at eliminating illegal fires when they occur and report that most people are cooperative when it is pointed out that alcohol is not permitted. The Seattle Police Department (SPD) is contacted regarding incidents such as fights and significant parking issues. Overall, the beach fire program was successful in preventing illegal fires, use of illegal burn materials and enhancing the general adherence to park rules.

The briefing paper says beach-fire “program” costs at Alki this past summer totaled more than $27,000, while Golden Gardens costs were more than triple that. (For comparison’s sake, Alki had five fire rings last summer, GG had 13.) Tomorrow night’s Parks Board meeting, by the way, is at 7 pm, parks HQ in Denny Park downtown; this is NOT an action item – just a briefing.

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Elvis lives! — thanks in part to West Seattle’s Bret Wiggins
January 21, 2009 12:21 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   Fun stuff to do | West Seattle people

Photo sent to us by Marlow Harris, along with this explanation:

West Seattle resident and licensed architect Bret Wiggins has had a lifelong dream to channel the King and does so at every opportunity. He’ll get a chance to do so again this Saturday at the 2009 12th Annual Elvis Invitationals.

Bret is from West Seattle, and has a wife, Judy and 3 boys. They all know about 100 Elvis songs (they have to put up with dad singing in the shower..) Bret has been doing Elvis since he was a teenager (he’s now 47) and it has just become a very fun hobby. He does a tribute show for friends and family and occasionally for special parties or events. On several occasions he has done Elvis at auctions for fundraising, but he’s not giving up the day job, so to speak. He is a licensed architect from Seattle and has been in the design field for nearly 25 years, currently working at Callison. Bret placed 3rd in this competition 2 years ago and would love to win it this time!

The Elvis Invitationals are at 8 pm Saturday, Club Motor in Sodo (map); you can get a hunka hunka burnin’ info (and then some) by going to the official website.

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West Seattle Crime Watch: Would-be mail thieves?
January 21, 2009 11:46 am
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

From the neighborhood east of Lincoln Park, an alert about two early-morning sightings of apparent would-be mail thieves:Read More

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Happening today/tonight: Ferries, buses, Delridge Council
January 21, 2009 11:20 am
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   Delridge | Fauntleroy | Transportation | West Seattle news

Three meetings in West Seattle tonight that we wanted to remind you about before the day got too old:

STATE FERRIES’ FUTURE, AND WEST SEATTLE TRAFFIC EFFECTS: 6 pm tonight, The Hall at Fauntleroy, reps from Washington State Ferries are here to hear what you think about the system’s Draft Long-Range Plan, which could mean more ferry-related traffic on West Seattle roads, among other changes.

METRO OPEN HOUSE ABOUT ROUTE 50: This is the new route we’ve been telling you about which includes a Delridge-to-The-Junction leg. Tonight you can find out more, directly from Metro, by visiting Youngstown Arts Center between 6:30 and 8:30.

DELRIDGE NEIGHBORHOODS DISTRICT COUNCIL: Reps from neighborhood and community groups in the neighborhoods that the city considers the “Delridge District” will gather as they do every month for updates and discussions, and you’re more than welcome – 7 pm, Southwest Precinct.

More of what’s happening today and tonight can be found on the WSB West Seattle Events calendar.

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West Seattle school-closure fight: Steve Sundquist’s coffee hour
January 21, 2009 9:18 am
|      7 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news | West Seattle school closure | West Seattle schools

We’re at Coffee to a Tea in The Junction, with West Seattle’s School Board rep Steve Sundquist and more than a dozen people who are listening – and talking to – him about the school-closure process that will culminate in a vote a week from tomorrow. While Sundquist opened the meeting by saying he has not made up his mind yet on the closure proposal that’s on the table now, and won’t till late next week, he also has reiterated, he believes “we need to close schools.” He also says, “We are in a financial situation where we have not yet found the bottom.” More to come.

9:28 AM UPDATE: So far, Sundquist has been asked multiple questions about the proposed breakup of APP – the district’s top-level accelerated program – no questions yet about the proposed program closure at Cooper Elementary.

9:51 AM UPDATE: Sundquist has just finished the first discussion about Cooper. He acknowledges district staff and board members are struggling with the fact that closing its program would disperse a program that appears to be doing a good job serving children of color (and those facing economic challenges). He says Boren would not work as a home for Pathfinder K-8 because, for one, it’s not available next year – and the district’s financial challenges are immediate, so they have to have a solution they could implement NOW.

10:57 AM UPDATE: The event wrapped up just after 10:30 am as planned. We’ll add more to this shortly – including a video clip of Sundquist laying out where he believes the “West Seattle situation” stands — one thing to pass around now: Sundquist said he expects the district to do an audit on alternative education soon, like the ones that have been done for APP and other district-wide programs.

ADDED 11:52 AM: Video of Sundquist giving an overview summarizing the “West Seattle situation” — why Cooper is a candidate for closure, why Pathfinder needs a new home, and why the district/board are (as mentioned above) concerned about breaking up a good program at Cooper, plus his view on where the district assignment plan is going, all in about eight unedited minutes:

Tonight is the final regular School Board meeting before next week’s closure vote, 6 pm, district HQ in Sodo, with at least three people scheduled to speak to the board about Cooper; we will be there to cover it (and you can watch live on cable).

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West Seattle Day of Service postscript: Diaper drive success!
January 21, 2009 8:37 am
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   How to help | West Seattle news | West Seattle people

On Monday, we showed you Katy Lloyd and her daughters at Jefferson Square Safeway, kicking off a 10-hour diaper drive for WestSide Baby that Katy organized as part of National Day of Service, with other volunteers taking the baton later in the day. Late last night, she sent us word of final results (and gratitude):

Well, after a day that has been just unbelievably good in so many ways, I can add one more thing: the final count from our Westside Baby Diaper Drive on Monday brought in a grand total of 10,000 diapers! Executive Director Nancy Woodland tells me this was one of the best diaper drives they’ve ever had aside from their huge Stuff the Bus event in July. Thanks to the Diaper Drive they will be able to serve the needs of 400 children. I can’t tell you how many people told me they came by after seeing it posted on the blog.

Thank you for providing a way for our community to do what communities do best-helping one another. Thanks to Safeway Manager Dave Dupuy for supporting the drive, making announcements in the store all day long, and for being so helpful. Thanks to Liberty Bell Printing for providing free services for our effort. Thanks to the volunteers (the big ones and the little ones) who stood in the cold, handed out fliers to shoppers, and carted loads of diapers here and there. Most of all, thanks to the generous people of West Seattle, who on Martin Luther King Day helped make his vision of a just world more real by putting a smile on a baby’s face.

A diaper can’t change the world, but it can change a sad baby into a happy baby, and for families stressed by lack of affordable housing, health care, and low incomes, a happy baby can make a world of difference. So, maybe a diaper can change the world after all.

Deeply grateful,
Katy Lloyd

You of course don’t have to wait for the next diaper drive to help WestSide Baby; its website offers lots of suggestions for how to do that any time. And we’ll continue to share news of opportunities to help your West Seattle neighbors and the organizations working hard to make lives better.

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Final Inauguration Day/Night reports, from WS and DC
January 20, 2009 11:59 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   2009 Inauguration | West Seattle people | West Seattle video

That’s one of the ways Inauguration Night wrapped up in West Seattle – with revelers dancing to the sound of the West Seattle Big Band at the WS Democratic Women-presented Inaugural Gala at The Hall at Fauntleroy. West Seattleites in DC are reliving their memories – that includes Stephanie and Hans, who are sharing their take on The Big Day, along with photos:

Read on:Read More

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West Seattle Crime Prevention Council: More quick updates
January 20, 2009 11:46 pm
|      5 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | Safety | West Seattle news

As mentioned in our previous story, tonight’s WSCPC meeting at the Southwest Precinct heard additional information on last night’s “home invasion” robbery. That’s not the only case police discussed – several more updates on cases old and new, plus the council’s decision on leadership for the new year, all ahead:Read More

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West Seattle Crime Watch: More on the “home invasion” robbery
January 20, 2009 9:27 pm
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

A multitude of updates from police at tonight’s West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting – but there’s one we wanted to get to you first: A few more details about the “home invasion” robbery late last night at 12th/Myrtle. One concerned neighbor came to the meeting in hopes police would have more information to share, and they did: Southwest Precinct Lt. Steve Paulsen said they don’t believe it was random — “we think they knew what they were looking for,” possibly with some kind of drug involvement. He says the two robbers were masked, believed to be Hispanic, and “forced their way in after knocking on the door.” The two victims they attacked were men, two of the four adults who were in the home along with one child. Lt. Paulsen reiterated that the victims weren’t the ones who called the police – after they drove downtown to Harborview Medical Center to get treatment for one victim’s injuries, the hospital called SPD, and that’s when officers went to the 12th/Myrtle home. “The scene was pretty extensive,” Lt. Paulsen noted, wth some of the loot left strewn “down the block.” He says because victims and suspects aren’t believed to be totally strangers, “it might not be too difficult to follow up on,” though no one’s been arrested yet. More updates on other cases, coming up later.

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Inauguration Day: West Seattle students watch, discuss history
January 20, 2009 8:58 pm
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   2009 Inauguration | West Seattle schools | West Seattle video

Thanks to Mark Ahlness for sharing that photo of his Arbor Heights Elementary third-grade class, “spontaneously ris(ing) for the moment. Some raise their hands with their new president, some hold their hands over their hearts.” Hours later, media crews were invited to two other West Seattle elementary schools where students were expecting phone calls from Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Maria Goodloe-Johnson, to talk about her experiences in D.C. at The Big Event. We were at both – first, our video from Clarissa Resendez‘s 5th-grade classroom at Highland Park Elementary:

HP principal Ann Gray was on hand for the event too. Minutes after the HP call ended, Dr. Goodloe-Johnson was on the line in Room 18 at Gatewood Elementary, where Jeffrey Case‘s 4th- and 5th-graders had gathered – this video allows you to listen in on their first four minutes of listening, and talking, to the superintendent:

That’s Gatewood principal Rhonda Claytor at right in this next photo, looking on proudly during the interaction:

Dr. Goodloe-Johnson made both phone calls from the offices of the Council of Great City Schools in D.C.; the council is a coalition of more than 60 big-city school districts from around the U.S. Both classes chosen for today’s chats have been working on relevant study units — Ms. Resendez’s Highland Park students have been “studying the role of the President of the United States,” according to info provided by the district communications team, and Mr. Case’s Gatewood students have been “studying … U.S. history and the civil-rights movement.”

All WSB coverage of the 2009 Inauguration — including pre-inauguration reports from West Seattleites in D.C. — is archived here, newest to oldest.

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West Seattle snow aftermath: Stepping up sand-clearing
January 20, 2009 7:48 pm
|      1 COMMENT
 |   Transportation | West Seattle news | West Seattle weather

(added 1:48 am: the sweeper that’s been patroling our corner for 1 hr+, though we have no bike lanes)
Funny thing, someone just brought up the continuing street-sand troubles at the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting we’re covering right now – at the exact moment we checked our e-mail, and found this:

The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is devoting additional resources to cleaning bike lanes starting tonight. Mechanical street cleaners and crews with hand sweepers will clear bike routes throughout the city.

The department has nearly completed its initial sweeping of sand from 1,531 lane miles of Seattle’s main streets and will continue its cleaning work with additional runs along the same major streets and will focus aggressively over the next several days on bike lanes.

SDOT deployed ten sweepers to clean up more quickly from the storms of December and early January, nearly double the normal number used. SDOT staff will be inspecting roadways throughout the city this evening to assess where additional emphasis is needed.

If citizens have concerns about streets still requiring sand removal or where additional sweeping would be beneficial, they can call SDOT at (206) 684-ROAD. The public is asked to heed “No Parking” signs placed to support sweeping. By doing so, they allow sweeping crews to clean as close to the curb as possible, removing the bulk of the sand on the roadway.

In particular, tonight’s concerned citizen was worried about conditions on 16th SW. If you don’t see cleaning on a street you’re concerned about – do call that hotline number. WEDNESDAY 12:46 AM UPDATE: Big loud street sweeper just swept through our nearest arterial-meets-arterial intersection in Upper Fauntleroy.

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Inauguration “sea of people”: From Carter and Dan in D.C.
January 20, 2009 6:09 pm
|      3 COMMENTS
 |   2009 Inauguration | West Seattle people

You saw the massive crowd in national-media video. What was it like to be part of it – not just during the ceremony, but for hours before?

Our first report comes from Carter and Dan, the Fauntleroy residents who’ve been sharing their stories from DC the past few days:

We’re expecting quite a bit from our new President. As he said, we need to sacrifice, and we felt like we did today. We celebrated with a record two million other ice cubes.

Read More

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Our Lady of Guadalupe students’ Inauguration Day tribute to MLK
January 20, 2009 4:27 pm
|      7 COMMENTS
 |   2009 Inauguration | West Seattle news | West Seattle religion | West Seattle schools | West Seattle video

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

That “unity wreath” — cutouts of hundreds of handprints — is one of the ways students at West Seattle’s Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic School paid tribute this afternoon to Dr. King, one day after his official holiday, on the day a dream came true in D.C. The entire OLG student body, preschool through 8th grade, gathered in the church sanctuary at 35th/Myrtle (map) to read, sing, and pray, and the spirit of their words and music, on this historic day, could not help but move even the most hard-hearted onlooker. Third-graders read short tributes to people in their lives who they believe exemplified some of Dr. King’s values; one student honored her mom — “In my family, she is the peacekeeper”; another, his big brother — “He stands up for me”; and another student, President Obama, saying he and Dr. King “both want peace.” After reinforcing that by praying a Litany of Peace, students went out to the campus’s north grounds to release dozens of doves:

OLG school staff told us the doves are more like homing pigeons — after releases like this, they fly back to their keeper’s home. Side note: The school has an open house this Sunday – 9:30 am-1 pm.

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Followup: West Seattle mailbox removal is part of regional purge
January 20, 2009 3:38 pm
|      9 COMMENTS
 |   West Seattle news


View Larger Map

We published an item 10 days ago about two U.S. Postal Service dropboxes, on Alki Ave and Beach Drive (shown above via Google Street View), flagged with notices of upcoming removal (they may even be gone already – we haven’t had time to check in person). As promised, we contacted the local USPS HQ to follow up. Spokesperson Ernie Swanson says he doesn’t have a full list of marked mailboxes, but “about 70 boxes … might be removed this month from the area considered the Seattle Post Office which covers ZIP Codes from 98101 thru 98199, which, besides the City of Seattle, includes the cities of Des Moines, Burien, Shoreline and Bainbridge Island.” Pre-removal, he says, that area has about 600 mailboxes – so that means more than 10 percent are likely to go away. Overall, he explained the reason for the removal as follows:

The Postal Service periodically conducts density tests on mail collection boxes. Those boxes that have fewer than 25 pieces of mail in them per day over a two-week period are considered for removal. Nation-wide, First-Class mail volume has been decreasing significantly over the last few years, some eight billion pieces a year since 2001. We have stepped up the pace on doing density tests. Currently, we are removing collection boxes throughout the City of Seattle. In fact, collection boxes around the country are being removed as a cost-cutting measure. The U.S. Postal Service is instituating other cost-cutting measures as well. We lost about $2.8 billion in FY 2008 and expect to perhaps lose that much again this FY.

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Inauguration Day: Don’t throw shoes, donate them!
January 20, 2009 12:27 pm
|      2 COMMENTS
 |   2009 Inauguration | How to help | West Seattle news

That’s the donation box at Hotwire Coffee (WSB sponsor) as part of the inauguration-honoring shoe drive hatched by Bob Loblaw in the WSB Forums — through tonight you can take new (or gently used) shoes, at the Hotwire box or at Full Tilt Ice Cream in White Center. They’re going to Soles4Souls. (This is the second fill-up for the box at Hotwire, by the way.) Still need a call to action? Here’s the full video clip of this morning’s Inaugural Address (after the Oath of Office; speech starts 3 minutes into the clip):

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West Seattle Crime Watch: “Home invasion” robbery, victims hurt
January 20, 2009 11:28 am
|      12 COMMENTS
 |   Crime | West Seattle news

Posted at SPDBlotter: Two people broke into a home in the 1200 block of SW Myrtle (near Riverview Playfield; map) late last night and held residents at gunpoint, beating two of them before getting away. Police say they first found out about it when one of the victims was driven to Harborview Medical Center for treatment. We’ll be checking for more info on this beyond what’s in the blotter entry. We’re also likely to hear more at tonight’s West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting (7 pm, Southwest Precinct, all welcome). ADDED 12:37 PM: A few more details from Lt. Steve Paulsen at the precinct: “4 adult and 1 child victims were inside. There was an assault on two of the male victims which required hospitalization.. Some of the stolen items were recovered a short distance from the home. No suspects have been arrested yet.”

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Ongoing Inauguration Day coverage, with West Seattle photos
January 20, 2009 8:28 am
|      12 COMMENTS
 |   2009 Inauguration | West Seattle people | West Seattle video

(Will be updated with more photos/video from West Seattleites, as we get them)

Click the player to watch MSNBC ongoing Inauguration Day coverage live right now. (The Inauguration page also has a Hulu player where FOX coverage is streaming. To watch the live Twitter feed, go here.)

To see the new look of the official WhiteHouse.gov presidential website, go here. Here’s a notable excerpt from the first entry on its “blog”:

One significant addition to WhiteHouse.gov reflects a campaign promise from the President: we will publish all non-emergency legislation to the website for five days, and allow the public to review and comment before the President signs it.

We’ll add local photos/video of inauguration-watching moments as we get them. Here’s the Chelan Cafe, from Bob Loblaw:

Here’s the swearing-in, as watched and cheered by the West Seattle Democratic Women’s breakfast gathering at the WS Golf Course:

From Alki, this photo of Michael Adams‘ party:

(Michael’s caption: From left, Rachelle Kauffman, Estevan Mazariegos, Michael Adams, Alex Siao, Ryan Trail, Lacey Watson. Breakfast: Blueberry Pancakes, apple smoked bacon, scrambled eggs w/ green onions, buttermilk toast and Mimosas! Michael & Ryan’s place- photo by Rachelle Kauffman)
As we post this, the inaugural lunch is kicking off (10:33 am PT) and Sen. Dianne Feinstein just mentioned the population of the recipe page on the inaugural website; the site seems to be overloaded at the moment but if you want to try it later, here’s the link.

(Added 11:23 am) Molly sent this video clip of her inauguration decorations:

(Added 12:55 pm) Paul Dieter sent this video shot while watching at Seattle Center with a group from The Center School (a Seattle Public Schools high school attended by more than a few West Seattleites):

(Added 1:21 pm) Cami McNamara from Alki sends this clip from where she watched this morning’s historic events — The Paramount Theater downtown:

Here’s Cami (right) with Jackie Ramels (Alki resident who chairs the city Parks Board):

And the Paramount marquee:

(added 1:30 pm) Kathleen from Highland Park sends more photos from the Chelan Cafe by The Bridge:

I just returned from a fantastic inauguration breakfast at the Chelan cafe. About 15 or so people sat and ate comfortably in the Ebb Tide Room watching the inauguration on 4 large plasma TVs. The atmosphere was festive including decorations, inauguration food specials, and just a general feeling of a small slice of the community coming together to share their happiness and joy. The owners (1st pic) couldn’t have been more hospitable! A great morning!

(added 3:55 pm) Barbara watched the ceremonies at Town Hall downtown:

(added 8:05 pm) From Arbor Heights, this group watched the inauguration together: Melissa, Tappi, Derek, Jake, and Maria:

(added 8:16 pm) Two sets of Obama cupcakes – first one from Trophy Cupcakes, photo sent by Lisa; second photo from Emily:

Got an Inauguration Day photo? We’ll add to this, for the record, till they stop coming in; editor@westseattleblog.com – we also will report separately on other events later today including two West Seattle schools where students will talk by phone with Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Maria Goodloe-Johnson, who’s in DC, and some of tonight’s West Seattle celebrations.

Meantime, click ahead to read a poem just sent by West Seattle poet Carol Smith:Read More

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Jack Block Park coyote followup: Animal-control officer rescued it
January 20, 2009 8:23 am
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 |   West Seattle news | Wildlife

Quick followup on the coyote marooned atop a concrete post at Jack Block Park last Saturday (as reported by Chris, who sent us photos including the one above): Seattle Animal Shelter director Don Jordan confirmed this morning that it’s the same coyote brought to Schmitz Park that day by an animal-control officer. He tells WSB, “The Officer felt that it was stuck on the pier and needed some assistance, so he captured it and felt that Schmitz Park was the best option in the area for release. This is the first time that we have done this.” Jordan adds, “We are happy to field all animal related calls so we can assess the situation and take appropriate action.”

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