West Seattle, Washington
29 Monday
Fans were already lined up through the produce section at West Seattle Thriftway this morning waiting for “Captain Phil” from the “Deadliest Catch” reality show — who signed autographs for about two hours on behalf of his new coffee company:
As fans had mentioned in the comments following our original WSB preview of his appearance, he’s had some health trouble, so we asked how he’s doing:
As you can tell from what he said in that video (sorry about the background noise – new mike’s on order, after a week of shooting events in very loud places), Captain Phil is proud of his “Deadliest Blend” (the name stirs memories of the triple-strength grind we made during overnight radio shifts decades ago, but thank heavens coffee’s come a long way since then) – you can read more about Captain Phil’s coffee here. We also dropped by the West Seattle Farmers’ Market to see how things were going at the Community Harvest of Southwest Seattle booth:
Mary Ellen Cunningham of CHoSS (pictured with Anthony Hardt of Left Coast Dog Walkers) hadn’t gotten any produce donations yet when we dropped by but was thrilled anyway because her group’s getting new citywide publicity – a KING5 tv crew stopped by the booth (look for the story on tonight’s newscasts). Community Harvest has other big news – as noted on its website, the fruit-tree harvest (if your tree has more than you can eat, donate its fruit and they’ll send volunteers over to harvest it) has already brought in more than A TON of fruit – more than twice last year’s total – and the season’s not over yet!
One week from today, California SW in The Junction will be closed (in segments: Edmunds/Alaska, Alaska/Oregon, Oregon to post office) for the first-ever West Seattle Junction Car Show (co-sponsored by WSB). 
Pre-registration is closed, with more than 140 signed up, but there’s room for more, says co-organizer Michael Hoffman of Liberty Bell Printing. First come, first served, on show day — pre-1975, no 4×4s, per Michael — which means be there at 6:30 am; if you really want to be prepared, you can download the registration form here – there’s a $20 fee, as this is a fundraiser for the co-presenting Maple Valley Street Rats, which has a scholarship funds for students going into the automotive field. (The T-shirts shown at left will be sold during the Junction Car Show, too, among other activities we previously reported here.) If you’re just going to view the cars, stroll The Junction 8 am-4 pm Sunday – or get there earlier for a pancake breakfast at the West Seattle Eagles (starting at 7) among other dining choices (including a special breakfast menu at Puerto Vallarta, also starting at 7). P.S. Anybody who’s entering and wants to send us a pic of your car(s) in advance, we’ll be doing more previews in the coming week and would love to show some of the cars people will be able to see: editor@westseattleblog.com
We were heading north to The Junction just before 1 pm when a Blue Angels-like roar preceded the sight of several military jets flying west. Figured it had something to do with the Seahawks game at Qwest Field; indeed, the Game Day page says “four F-15 jets” (Air Force stock photo above) were to fly over the stadium following the national anthem.
It’s been a quiet few days for crime reports but we’ve received a few today, starting with this one that came in as a comment on this three-week-old post, where it’s unlikely to be seen, so we’re republishing it here – it’s from Mike:
Well, I got hit Friday night. They cut the catalytic converter off my truck. It was parked on 41st between Dakota and Andover. I hope they catch this guy. I would also encourage all of us to contact our legislators to implement regulations on metal recyclers; that’s the only way were going to get control of this nuisance.
Legislations have passed two metal-theft bills in the past two years – the second one, which took effect this summer, specifically addressed catalytic converters; here’s an article mentioning both.
Highland Park activist Dina Johnson says she’ll be out on Alki again this afternoon in her suffragette garb — “circa 1912,” as she describes it — registering people to vote. Unless you’re new to this state, your deadline to register is October 4th — if you sign up by mail, that’s the date your form must be postmarked by; you can download the form from this page on the King County website. If you ARE new to Washington, your deadline is October 20, but you’d have to register in person to push it that far (more details here). The presidential race is only the top of a tall stack of important state/local races and ballot measures; go here to get a look at some of what you’ll be voting for – provided you’re signed up. (If you’d like to sign up with Dina’s help, look for her and husband Blair Johnson on the Alki promenade this afternoon. Lots of other local activists are busy trying to sign up voters too, with so much at stake.)
CAPTAIN PHIL IN WEST SEATTLE: The “Deadliest Catch” reality show co-star will be at West Seattle Thriftway 11 am-1 pm today to pitch his “Deadliest Coffee” (check this report from earlier in the week for more details and lots of fan discussion).
BRIDGE PARK: This new retirement community (which is one of our newest sponsors) is throwing open its doors for an open house 11 am-5 pm today, including guided tours and door prizes, plus a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 1:30 pm. Read more about Bridge Park (including its pet-friendliness!) here; it’s on Morgan at Lanham, just a few blocks east of 35th, across from High Point’s Commons Park.
FOOTBALL FUNDRAISER: The West Seattle Junior Wildcats junior football team will be washing cars and selling burgers/hot dogs in the West Seattle High School parking lot, 9 am-4 pm.
Three notes about today’s West Seattle Farmers’ Market: First, if you grow fruit and/or vegetables, bring some to the market today, to “Share the Bounty”> via Community Harvest of Southwest Seattle, which will donate it to the White Center Food Bank (which also serves part of West Seattle). Second – it’s tomato-tasting day, starting at 11 am (one hour after the market opens). Third – here’s our regular weekly link to the Ripe ‘n’ Ready “fresh sheet.”
We end Saturday with three beautiful photos taken close to its foggy start – that first one from WSB contributing photojournalist Matt Durham, shot from Don Armeni. (Prints of Matt’s work are available from his website, mattdurhamphotography.com.) Next two are courtesy of Creighton (who blogs at motorcyclemind.blogspot.com), taken on Alki:
Looks like Sunday morning may bring some pre-sun fog, too.
Supporters of the proposal to add a “natural playscape” to the California Place mini-park in Admiral (map) invited neighbors to an ice-cream social at the site today, funded by the smallest of two grants they’ve received from the city. At the other end of the mini-park – just yards away, a group with a different invitation:
Nearby residents who want California Place to remain unchanged waved their sign at passing drivers, and invited their supporters to sign a petition. They’ve also attended the twice-monthly meetings that the pro-playscape group has been holding (here’s our coverage from a meeting last month). Despite the proximity, the two sides avoided direct conflict today, and opponents told us they were staying low-key so as not to spoil the afternoon for the youngest partygoers, some of whom played nearby, where California Place adjoins Admiral UCC Church:
Here’s where the California Place proposal stands: As we first reported last month, the city Neighborhood Matching Fund just awarded the pro-playscape group, FANNA (Friends and Neighbors of North Admiral), $15,000 to hire an architect to come up with designs; they are continuing to schedule meetings (open to the community) twice monthly – join the FANNA Yahoo! group to find out more.
As the West Seattle Gateway Cleanup wrapped up around 3:30 this afternoon, that was the scene in the neighborhood immediately west of the cleanup zone (near the ramp to the walkover bridge) – we heard one organizer saying they had collected a HALF-TON OF TRASH. We’re hoping for official wrapup info at some point later after organizers recover (they did a heroic job pulling this all together, and thanks to everyone in WSB’land who stepped forward to donate time, treats, etc.). When we get that info, we’ll post it separately with a few more scenes from today’s big event (earlier coverage was here and here). Meantime, here’s video of the four-legged cleanup crew now on duty along 34th north of Myrtle (map), on the east edge of Our Lady of Guadalupe‘s northern lot:
As mentioned here, the goats — from Rent-A-Ruminant — are expected to be on site through Tuesday. (Just note that it’s not too safe to get up close and personal to where they’re working – no sidewalk on that side of the street – but you can admire them from across the street, along High Point Playfield.) Meantime, we couldn’t resist going back to Alki to check in on the Evergreen State Barbecue Championship competitors’ progress. As usual, some of the booths show flashes of humor (note the sign AND the yellow tape here):
And there’s a little timely solemnity too:
We noted earlier that two booths across from 62nd SW are selling food (that was a big question last year, when we happened onto the barbecue event without advance warning). Pricewise for the main courses – the salmon sandwiches at the Tom Douglas booth are $7; offerings at the other booth (whose name we forgot to write down) range from $5 “German sausage on bun” to $25 dinner with a full rack of ribs. The main competition is tomorrow, but a little bit of judging was going on late today — an appetizer contest when we sauntered by around 5 pm. (The judges were sequestered mysteriously behind four walls of tent tarp.) The whole promenade smells amazing so you might just want to go be an olfactory spectator; the competitors will be camped out all night, some in tents by their massive grilling/smoking setups, some in RVs along Alki SW.
That photo comes from Fauntleroy’s Ron Richardson, along with this account of what happened, and the safety reminder it sparks:
Around 3 pm Saturday there was yet another rear-end accident as a car heading up Fauntleroy Way SW ran in to a parked car. The driver of the moving car was sent to the hospital to be checked out. One of the responding police officers said that there appeared to be no serious injury.
Moving cars slamming in to parked car is a common happening along Fauntleroy Way with northbound traffic. Drivers often are distracted by action in and around the park. Drinking has been a factor in some of the incidents. [editor’s note: there is no police report available yet on what might have been to blame in this case]
Some folks do not realize that Fauntleroy Way is a two-lane road and not a four lane road so they drive along what they think is a curb lane until they run in to a parked car. Drivers also need to be aware that this area has kids crossing to the park, fast moving traffic, cars pulling out from side streets, and drivers making dangerous U turns in attempt to get in to the southbound ferry lane. This latest incident happened at Fauntleroy Way and Rose Street.
That intersection is across from central Lincoln Park; here’s a map.
These signs in the ferry-waiting lane alongside Lincoln Park may have been up for days or weeks – we’re just sayin’, we noticed them today for the first time. We had told you twice before that they were on the way — first in June, when Fauntleroy Community Association gave its support to residents’ proposal that the city install them, then in July when SDOT confirmed they were in the works.
Atlas Stringband is playing at the annual Village Green Perennial Nursery (WSB sponsor) halibut barbecue (here’s the backstory) till 3 pm. As co-publisher Patrick put it after shooting that video, “They’re GOOD!” Meantime, here’s nursery owner Vera Johnson and halibut-catching husband Bill Curtin cooking, followed by a photo of the mid-barbecue crowd:
One more event under way till 3 pm — at High Point Library, you can meet one of the architects who helped design it, Brad Miller of Miller Hayashi Architects, and enjoy free coffee/snacks. This is part of a daylong, citywide celebration of Seattle Public Libraries (some other branches around Seattle have architects on hand too) — and at any library, till 6 pm, you can get a free “passport” that you can take to any and all libraries between now and January 2nd to get stamped (read more about it here).
Lady Liberty isn’t the only one at Alki with a torch today – that’s Home on the Range barbecue (whose MySpace site declares the team “… is gonna win at Alki”) cleaning off the grill in dramatic style (go here for a few seconds of video including the roaring torch), just one of the sights late this morning as the competitors in the Evergreen State Barbecue Championships revved up for the first of two days. Two vendors are selling food – they’re both along the walkway that’s across the street from Pegasus (62nd/Alki):
Also happening right now (till 2 pm), the Neighborhood Matching Fund 20th-anniversary open house at Youngstown Arts Center. Scrapbook-making is under way; we caught Ron Angeles, Delridge Neighborhood Services coordinator (left), and Pete Spalding (Delridge District Council president, among other roles) making entries for Delridge:
You’re also invited to make sure any local NMF project you are or have been involved with is represented on this map:
Free treats too and reusable shopping bags while they last. That’s what the mayor also was supposed to be handing out at the West Seattle Gateway Cleanup, continuing till about 3:30 – we caught him as he posed for pix near the Fauntleroy walkover around 10:30:
After that, we walked onto the pedestrian bridge (an interesting experience for an acrophobe) to get an aerial perspective of what the history-making volunteers are up to:
As we mentioned earlier, more than 200 had signed up, including representatives of a variety of local groups – among those we spotted this morning, Mars Hill Church-West Seattle, local LDS church members, the Morgan Community Association (later we’ll show you a photo of their cute T-shirts) and more.
That’s a group shot taken just before the first group of volunteers in the West Seattle Gateway Cleanup left the staging area (ex-Huling Buick lot, future Gateway Center) about half an hour ago and headed off to start tackling the task. Kimberlee Archie from the city Department of Neighborhoods had just noted that this not only is the 89th cleanup under the umbrella of the Clean and Green Program, she thinks the 200-plus volunteers represent the biggest group EVER in a C&G cleanup. Archie also read a proclamation from the mayor (who’s visiting the cleanup crews later this morning) declaring today to be Earl Cruzen Day, and Earl himself was on hand to accept the honor:
(ADDED SATURDAY AFTERNOON – here’s video of the proclamation being read)
You probably see the results of Earl’s work every day. He’s the guy who hatched the idea for the West Seattle Murals, for one; the story of how that happened, and who else helped, is told nicely on this page of the Fauntleroy Church website; you can also read about it in this West Seattle 101 chapter. Cruzen and the murals group then went on to come up with Walking on Logs – the starting point for today’s cleanup. Those two lines barely scratch the surface of what he’s given to the West Seattle community (and continues to give, well into his 80s), but we’ve got to get back out to see how the cleanup’s going; volunteers will be at work from Walking on Logs to 35th/Fauntleroy until about 3:30 this afternoon, and that means a westbound lane closure on the Fauntleroy end of The Bridge, so if you’re going to be driving that way, PLEASE be careful – hundreds of your neighbors are giving up part of their Saturday to make that stretch less of an eyesore, so help them stay safe. More updates later, on this and other big events happening around West Seattle today.
LAST WEEKEND TO GO TO COSTCO THE USUAL WAY: By Tuesday morning, the sign beneath the sheeting should be unmasked, to point you toward the detour that will kick in from the 1st Avenue South exit on the eastbound West Seattle Bridge – because that’s when eastbound lower Spokane Street will close 1st-5th to all but local (deliveries etc.) traffic. You’ll have to turn left on 1st at the bottom of the offramp, head to Lander, then up to 4th, and then to Costco (etc.). It’s the very first phase of work that in 3 years will result in a double-the-current-width Spokane Street Viaduct (archived WSB coverage here).
PARKING ALERT: Long stretches of California SW between Alaska and Morgan Junctions are marked by “no parking” signs in effect for today; we’ll be checking shortly on exactly what sort of road work this is for.
ANOTHER TRAFFIC NOTE: Another reminder, the eastbound Fauntleroy end of The Bridge will have the outside lane blocked off for the West Seattle Gateway Cleanup most of the day today (hundreds of volunteers; not too late to join them, here’s how).
SPEAKING OF VOLUNTEERS: The volunteer hours and donated $ that communities contribute to city Neighborhood Matching Fund-assisted projects are celebrated today in an NMF 20th-anniversary open house at Youngstown Arts Center, 10 am-2 pm.
IT’S COOKIN’ ON ALKI: Only a couple tents were set up as of late last night but lots more should be showing up this morning for the weekend-long Evergreen State Barbecue Championships along the Alki promenade. More here (including a famous food-seller!).
CLEAN CARS FOR A CAUSE: Latest fundraising car wash – West Seattle High School girls’ volleyball team, 10 am-2 pm at the WSHS parking lot.
BONAFIDE BELL-RINGING: With a month and a half to go till the election, your doorbell’s going to start ringing a lot. Today, it just might be the folks trying to rev up support for the Sound Transit ballot measure, “Mass Transit Now”; they’re gathering at midmorning in Morgan Junction to launch a round of West Seattle canvassing.
Much more – live music! live theater! plant sale! rummage sale! fish-b-q! — in the West Seattle Weekend Lineup; here’s a quicklink to today’s events.
After months of organizing, the big cleanup along the Fauntleroy end of The Bridge, from Walking on Logs to 35th/Fauntleroy (where Department of Corrections crews have just done some pre-clearing, as per photo above) is finally here. From organizer Nancy Driver:
It’s looking like we are going to have a really beautiful day for a cleanup. Thanks to the terrific response from the community, we will have well over 200 volunteers at the cleanup tomorrow. I’m really excited to see what it will look like after we’ve finished. Here’s what you need to know for tomorrow:
Where to check in: 4545 Fauntleroy Ave SW – in the parking lot of the former Huling showroom at the corner of Fauntleroy and 38th SW. There will be some parking available here but please consider arriving by foot, bicycle, bus or carpool.
What time: Welcoming ceremony starts at 9:00 a.m. and hopefully shouldn’t run more than 20 minutes. There will be a special declaration read tomorrow morning but we’ll let it be a surprise. Shifts run 9:30 – 11:30; 11:30 – 1:30; 1:30 – 3:30. All volunteers should check in at least 20 minutes before their shift so they can sign and be issued a safety vest. Everyone will be required to wear a safety vest at the clean up site. Right now we have an overabundance of volunteers for the 9:30 shift so if you haven’t already signed up as a volunteer and want to help out, please arrive for either the 11:30 or 1:30 shifts.
What to wear: I recommend long pants and shoes that will protect your feet. I know it’s going to be warm tomorrow but you’ll want to protect your feet and legs from getting scratched up from blackberries and other scratchy debris on site. We’ll have gloves available except for children – unfortunately, we will not be able to provide gloves for small hands. Just adult sizes small, medium and large. If you have your own favorite gloves – feel free to bring them but just be sure to hang onto them.
We’ll have water and other beverages as well as light refreshments available in the staging area. Water will also be available at the clean up site. We’ll also have a port-a-potty at both the clean up site and the staging area.
The City is providing all tools necessary so no need to bring tools.
The Mayor will be showing up around 10:30 at the clean up site and will be handing out reusable grocery bags to volunteers after they finish their shift.
Thanks again to everyone who has volunteered to help with this project.
Nancy / Fairmount Community Association
Six quick West Seattle business notes:
FRESHY’S: Got a note from owner Amber that her shop across from Hiawatha is now serving beer/wine and will expand to a later closing time (9 pm) starting Monday.
THE BOHEMIAN: After one daytime-only week, next Monday, The Bohemian adds dinner and cocktails; proprietor Jason Rice says Sunday brunch will join the lineup October 5th.
HOTWIRE COFFEE: Tomorrow’s another installment of the 6th anniversary celebration for WSB’s inaugural sponsor – latte/chair massage combos for $15 between 9 and 3.
SKYLARK CAFE AND CLUB: The lively Delridge venue just announced a new “open turntable” night, last Tuesday of each month (next one 9/30), sign up for a half-hour between 9 pm-2 am when you can play your records (yes, vinyl!) onstage (signups start at 9).
SNAP FITNESS: The new Jefferson Square fitness center co-owned by longtime WSB’er Jim Flynn will have an info/membership table 4-7 pm daily next Monday-Thursday and 11 am-3 pm Saturday 9/20.
FRIENDS AND COMPANY: The crafts store in The Junction marks its 11th anniversary with special events and demonstrations tomorrow.
First word comes from Chris Monsos – it’s on the 911 log too. Adding a cameraphone photo in a moment. Not sure yet about details of the incident. 4:39 PM UPDATE: Added photo. Heading that way to find out more, now that the 39th/Holden drug raid is wrapped up (see previous post). Chris says whatever it was must have been small – nothing’s visible but he could smell smoke when he pulled up, and he sees the fire crew “squeegee-ing up water from the lobby.” 4:46 PM UPDATE: Our crew is there now – fire alarms can still be heard, and water can still be seen coming out of the lobby. We’ll let you know as soon as we find out what happened and whether it’s affecting club operations for the rest of today/tonight. 4:50 PM UPDATE: Two sources – the fire commander at the scene, and Cami from Alki (quoting the owner) – say it was a laundry-room fire; the commander says it started in the lint trap; out now, no injuries reported. Employees tell WSB the owner hasn’t decided how the rest of the night will go – first concern is getting people who were inside the club when this happened, back inside now to get their stuff. (Later note: Still no official word, so just call before you go.)
(more photos added to the bottom of this post late Friday night – scroll down)
Thanks to Rebecca for the tip. Holden is blocked for a few blocks starting at 41st and heading east; the first officer we saw at the scene said simply, “Drug raid.” We’re gathering more information; stand by. 4:14 PM UPDATE: Added photo of police vehicles near the scene; cropped it closely because we have no idea whether there is some sort of standoff involved, and it’s always been SOP not to publish anything during a standoff that might alert someone to the position of police at the scene. 4:21 PM UPDATE: Witnesses tell us one person was “taken away” by officers shortly after this all started 45 minutes or so ago. 4:32 PM UPDATE: The street’s open again now, though there are still officers outside the house where the “raid” apparently happened. We’re checking for additional information. 4:37 PM UPDATE: Lt. Norm James confirms one suspect arrested, but can’t elaborate beyond the fact this is a drug case; he says police are just wrapping up administrative-type details on scene now. ADDED LATE FRIDAY NIGHT: Thanks to Brian Hartman from photoelan.com for these photos taken as police moved in:
The autumnal equinox isn’t till a week from Monday, so you actually have two more summer weekends left, counting this one (and the weather sure looks semi-summery) – events include the first weekend of “The Vertical Hour” at ArtsWest (photo above by Matthew Durham), the Barbecue Championships at Alki, the huge West Seattle Gateway Cleanup, and a whole lot more – 47 West Seattle events for tonight through Sunday night, listed ahead:Read More
Tim Winston, best known lately for West Seattle Hi-Yu but serving this time around as a “Chief Sealth band fan,” sent the above photo with the following info:
Chief Sealth High Band has been raising money for new uniforms for several years and is closing in on the goal. They are trying to raise the last bit that will push them over the top.
The band members in the picture are wearing their current, difficult to fit & maintain, uniforms and holding a picture of the new uniforms. The new design has been a collaborative effort by band members, led by their director, Deborah Meyer.
If you can help out, please send your tax deductable donation to:
Chief Sealth Performing Arts
PMB #249
1606 SW 104th St
Seattle, WA 98146
Our Lady of Guadalupe School tells WSB its students are getting an environmental lesson by cleaning up the overgrown corner at 34th/Myrtle (north of the school, east of its playground) – and they’re going to get some help starting tomorrow from a herd of goats! The goats will be on site Saturday through Tuesday. OLG development director Chantille Henry adds, “Our Lady of Guadalupe School believes in teaching children the importance of stewardship and each class is assigned a different project to better the world around them. One class cleans Longfellow Creek, and another collects clothing and visits WestSide Baby, helping sort clothing and cleans the grounds, to name a few.” Meantime, tomorrow’s also the day for the huge West Seattle Gateway Cleanup along the Fauntleroy end of The Bridge, from 35th/Fauntleroy to Walking on Logs, where some clearing’s already been done in preparation for what hundreds of volunteers will do tomorrow:
Goats didn’t work out for this cleanup, but organizer Nancy Driver has reported previously that she and fellow organizers are very grateful to the state Department of Corrections for lending people-power to the pre-clearing project. Also a traffic reminder – the outside lane along the cleanup site will be closed tomorrow, 8 am-4 pm-ish, so if you’re coming back to West Seattle via The Bridge at some point, either take the Admiral exit or just remember to go slow!
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