West Seattle, Washington
18 Thursday
Not in West Seattle but one’s along a popular route (1st Ave S) and the other’s for a variety of events you might encounter elsewhere in the city this weekend:Read More
Thanks to tipsters who e-mailed about seeing huge contingent of fire crews rushing to this. Exact address is on 911 log as 4511 35th SW, our crew’s in the area and trying to pinpoint. 6:31 PM UPDATE: Finally found it – alley behind apartment/commercial buildings along 35th near Snoqualmie, south of Alaska (alley is west of 35th) (map) – smoldering electrical vault, neighbors tell WSB it started about an hour ago, some units are without power because of it. Several engines and City Light still on scene. No injuries reported. 6:39 PM UPDATE: City Light also says it’s had trouble with this vault before, because of rewiring for buildings in the area, some of which have apparently had intermittent outages. Photos to come. 6:52 PM UPDATE: Photos added. Above, the fire units; below, the vault (Friday morning addendum — City Light tells WSB repairs were completed at about 1:35 am today):
The fight over what can and can’t be built on that large lawn in the 4800 block of Beach Drive, stretching westward from the city-landmarked Satterlee House, isn’t over yet. Richard Hill, lawyer for Satterlee House owner William Conner, has just confirmed to WSB that Conner is going to court to challenge the city Hearing Examiner‘s recent ruling on his development proposal. As reported here April 28th, Hearing Examiner Sue Tanner upheld the city Landmarks Board vote against Conner’s proposal to build three 3,000-square-foot homes on the land; it’s been subdivided into three lots for potential development, and it was suggested at the extensive hearing preceding the ruling (this archive includes all WSB coverage) that the board might have looked more favorably on smaller houses. The HE ruling was the city’s final say, so court action was the only means by which it could be challenged; the 51-page appeal asks King County Superior Court to review the decision – we won’t have time to review all 51 pages till later, but we’ve uploaded the document here in case you want to read it first.
At left, you see Nick DeSantis as Charlotte von
Mahlsdorf (photo by WSB contributing photojournalist Matt Durham) in ArtsWest‘s production of “I Am My Own Wife,” making its Seattle debut. Tonight is the second night of the two-and-a-half-week ArtsWest run for this Pulitzer- and Tony-winning play. It’s one of two live-theater productions you can see in West Seattle tonight — the other one is “Other Places,” presented at Youngstown Arts Center by The Community Theatre. That’s at 8 pm (ticket info here); “I Am My Own Wife” is at 7:30 pm at ArtsWest (ticket info here)
After our bird-sighting report yesterday (haven’t solved the mystery yet), Ginny (thank you!!!!) sent us a link to the Urban Peregrines of Western Washington blog — pointing out that its newest entry, just published last night, is all about a banding effort targeting a nest that’s right underneath the West Seattle Bridge. Pictures included too. (This is peregrine-falcon-banding season, according to the previous entry.)
First, this just in from the Admiral-area branch of the city library system, announcing a seed exchange:
Do you have extra garden seeds? Don’t let them go to waste! Bring them to the West Seattle Library in a sealed, labeled envelope, and take home someone else’s extra seeds! The seed exchange is happening from now until the end of May.
And the city’s offering compost bins at reduced prices – read on for full details:Read More
A little more than a month is left before Fauntleroy Community Services Agency needs to make an official deal with Seattle Public Schools as part of the first round of negotiations to buy the 92-year-old Fauntleroy Schoolhouse, which the district is putting up for sale as “surplus property.” Meantime, landmark status is being pursued – we heard last night from Alison Swing, who is working on the landmark-nomination documentation and asking to hear from anyone who can help her with this type of information:
I’m just looking for testimonies on behalf of the community on significant impacts the school has had on the local community, whether socially, economically, politically, and any other information on the significance of the school as a historic landmark for the community.
If you have anything to say along those lines, please e-mail Alison at aswing@u.washington.edu as soon as you can.
Looks like we’re in one of those periods when the folks who change the numbers on gas-station signs are getting quite the upper-body workout. Our informal barometer of the high end of WS prices — 35th/Holden Chevron, which we noted yesterday had broken the $3.90 barrier — is up 2 cents on all grades again this morning. (According to AAA, the citywide and national average prices went up about 2 cents overnight too.)
Thursday-night highlights from the frequently updated WSB Events page:
“TASTE OF WEST SEATTLE”: Tonight at The Hall @ Fauntleroy, it’s the annual Taste of West Seattle benefiting West Seattle Helpline. On the menu: dishes from restaurants around West Seattle. 6-8:30 pm; check with Helpline (website here) for ticket availability.
SEATTLE PUBLIC SCHOOLS’ STRATEGIC PLAN: The district’s working on one and asking for your help. A round of public meetings is part of the process, and there’s one tonight in the West Seattle High School Commons, 7 pm.
ALKI COMMUNITY COUNCIL: Tonight’s ACC agenda (7 pm, Alki Community Center) includes two hot topics — the forthcoming proposal to change the city’s rules for multifamily developments (as previewed in WSB coverage here) and the 59th/Stevens development proposal across from Alki Elementary (that proposal also will be the subject of its own meeting a week from tonight).
As is our tradition when a new sponsor joins WSB, we offer them a chance here on the home page to tell you something about themselves and their business. This morning, we’re welcoming Dightman Capital Group, an independent Registered Investment Advisor; here’s what they want you to know: “Dightman Capital was founded in 2007 by West Seattle resident Brian Dightman after nearly 6 years at RBC Dain Rauscher. Brian and his wife Michelle settled in West Seattle 8 years ago and shortly thereafter welcomed their two sons, Maxwell and Owen. Brian summarizes his feelings for West Seattle this way: ‘We love this community, its people, and look forward to continuing to build a rich history here for our family.’ Brian is a 3rd-generation West Seattleite; Grandma Ann and Mom Mitzie have many stories about their time at the Luna Park amusement center and saltwater pool on the pier back in the early 1900’s! Brian founded Dightman Capital when he realized that the best form of investment management and planning was going to come from an independent, fee-only source. The goal at Dightman Capital is to deliver a unique and focused portfolio-management approach to individual and institutional investors within a comprehensive planning environment. The firm emphasizes services in money management, financial planning, wealth management, generating retirement income, college cost evaluations and concentrated stock strategies.” You can reach Dightman Capital Group through its website at www.dightmancapital.com. Thanks to Dightman Capital Group for sponsoring WSB — and thanks to our other sponsors, all of whom you will find on this page, which also has info for anybody interested in joining them to grow their business and reach more customers while helping WSB be a sustainable source of 24/7 community news, information, and discussion for West Seattle.
From Cass:
Just wanted to alert the neighborhood that there have been a few car break-ins in the neighborhood of Fauntleroy and Cloverdale (map), near Lincoln Park. The neighbors have seen a guy who is supposedly selling magazine subscriptions hanging around, and have reported the break-in and sighting to the Seattle Police. No big damage done, but a reminder to keep your eyes open and your cars locked.
This gives us the opportunity to mention that you can get your questions answered about “casing” — what should you consider suspicious, what should you not worry about, when to call the police, when not to — during a Q&A with local police leadership at next Tuesday’s West Seattle Community Safety Partnership meeting (Southwest Precinct meeting room, 7 pm). And if you have any other crime/safety concerns in your neighborhood, that meeting’s also the place to be.
From our latest look at the commercial-real-estate listings: Strata on California (California & Graham, north edge of Morgan Junction) has just been put up for sale, $15,250,000. It was just last June that, after buying the then-Graham Street Apartments for almost $9 million, Mosaic announced the conversion plan (WSB coverage here); the sales pitch started in October (WSB coverage here); Mosaic canceled the conversion in late November (along with its plans to turn the West Ridge Park apartments on Delridge into “Gables” and sell them as condos too). The listing describes Strata as “luxury multi-family” and also notes, “The neighborhood is made up of mostly new townhomes, exciting newer restaurants, and upscale home and clothing retailers.” (And the ex-Chuck and Sally’s across the street.) Listing agent is McQuaid, which has sold a boatload of WS buildings in the past year or so (scroll here). THURSDAY AFTERNOON ADDENDUM: Thanks to Di for the tip that Strata’s having a “model furniture sale” this Saturday, according to this CL ad.
(July 2007 WSB photo taken along Barton near Westwood Village)
The forecast still suggests it could get into the 70s and maybe approach 80 tomorrow. So by this time tomorrow night, we may all be pulling the cobwebbed fans out of the basement and so forth. For a refresher course (pun not intended) on heat-wave survival, we need only look back to some of what we wrote last July (Colman Pool tip not applicable yet, though; it opens for the weekends-only preseason on May 24).
Just starting to check this out now. 911 log says it’s in the 6000 block of 21st SW, which is near the Croft Place intersection east of Delridge. Team member heading that way, will update here when we get info. King County property records describe the address listed on the 911 log for this call, 6025 21st SW, as a single-family home owned by the city. 6:58 PM UPDATE: Neighbors tell us at the scene that this was a domestic dispute – a woman reportedly stabbed a man and he’s gone to the hospital. “It’s all over now,” says our reporter at the scene. Checking with police to find out more. 7:37 PM UPDATE: Police media-info line tells the story as following: 18-year-old woman under arrest, suspected of stabbing boyfriend “in his 20s” in the front yard of the house, with a “large kitchen knife.” First 911 call came from a neighbor at 6:12 pm. The victim is at Harborview Medical Center with what police describe as “life-threatening injuries.” The woman is expected to be booked into county jail, facing a possible charge of felony domestic-violence assault. No one else hurt, no one else involved or being sought, according to police spokesperson Jeff Kappel (who also adds there’s NO new information on last night’s Delridge shootings).
Three notes to share, loosely related in that they have something to do with health care. First, student nurses from the Seattle University College of Nursing are inviting you to a health fair this Saturday – 10 am-4 pm @ High Point Community Center. They’re organizing it as a school-related project and they are really excited about the chance to come help people be healthier; they’re offering blood-sugar testing and blood-pressure checks for adults, mouth-care demos and face painting for kids, as well as information on a variety of health challenges and conditions. Here’s the flyer. Second – On Saturday afternoon 5/31, West Seattle acupuncture practitioner and community activist Miranda Taylor will be offering “community-style acupuncture” at the CommuniChi clinic on Beacon Hill; fees are sliding scale and proceeds on this particular day are going toward West Seattle community activist Maria Ramirez‘s School Board campaign from last fall. Appointments can be made online at the CommuniChi website. Last but not least, the date is now set for a Junction drugstore transition — new information (including plans for grand-opening freebies such as massages!) and a video interview, ahead:Read More
We’ve received more than a few inquiries about this and finally got to check with U.S. Coast Guard Public Affairs: Whatever that helicopter was doing off Alki Point last night, it wasn’t a search/rescue. Possibly training, is the best they could tell us.
If you haven’t already sent in a suggestion via our handy online form — “ballot boxes” like the one shown above are at 6 West Seattle locations awaiting your suggestions for what to show during Movies on the Wall this July and August in the courtyard next to Hotwire Coffee (WSB sponsor). As a co-sponsor of this summer’s series, we’ve been offering you the chance for about 2 weeks now to have a say in what’s shown this year — Hotwire’s Lora Lewis says Friday’s the deadline, so time’s running out. Lora says these are some of the frontrunners so far:
The Muppet Movie
Footloose
Original Batman movie
Spaceballs
Sleepless in Seattle
So I Married an Axe Murderer
Jurassic Park
As previously noted, Monty Python and the Holy Grail — repeatedly rained out late last summer (boo!) — will be the kickoff flick on July 19th. Again: Vote online here (or follow the Cinema tab atop this page), or by dropping a suggestion into the “ballot boxes” set up at these West Seattle locations: Hotwire Coffee (WSB sponsor), Click! Design that Fits (WSB sponsor), West 5, Capers, Curious Kidstuff, Square 1 Books.
Couldn’t get the camera fast enough but a bird that just appeared in our wildlife-habitat (aka overgrown) backyard is something we’ve never seen around our house before — very large, cocoa-brown, some white trim around the throat, smallish head. Not sure if it was a Cooper’s Hawk (WSB reader sightings here), some other kind of hawk, or falcon; even osprey came to mind but it doesn’t seem to match online photos. Whatever it was, the regular backyard birds are way upset about it (perhaps fearing imminent consumption); they are chattering up a storm.
May not be the only one by now but it’s the first one we’ve seen on our morning rounds: 35th/Holden Chevron (often, but not always, West Seattle’s highest price for regular, as noted in our archived coverage of West Seattle gas prices). According to AAA, the citywide average is $3.83/gallon, up 28 cents in the past month, 37 cents in the past year, though this particular station/grade is 43 cents over the price we noted this time last year. (One last data point for fellow numbers fans: The Seattle average is 8 cents over the national average.)
From this morning’s official police update on last night’s double shooting in the 5600 block of Delridge (WSB late-night and overnight coverage here): The woman is 28, her son is 10. Both are expected to fully recover. Police spokesperson Renee Witt says the woman “was in her kitchen cooking when someone fired multiple rounds through the kitchen window,” hitting her several times in the chest and leg. That was on the north side of the residence; then on the south side, someone – police aren’t sure if it was the same person – fired multiple times into the residence from the south, hitting the boy once in the shoulder. Still no arrests and no suspect description (beyond the possible “burgundy SUV” involvement mentioned last night) — but Witt says that detectives from the homicide and gang units are investigating and “talking to possible suspects” as well as looking into a possible motive. 12:03 PM UPDATE: Side note – two noontime tv updates included interviews with the owner of the future Olympia Pizza location we’ve been telling you about (former Pacino’s Coffee) less than a block north, and reported that it’s opening in two days.
And another major scheduled event from Tuesday night: The JuNO meeting with updates from two major Junction-area developers who had some new info to share:Read More
Busy Tuesday night in West Seattle. Among the scheduled events, the Viaduct open house; thanks to West Seattle writer Charla Mustard-Foote for covering it for WSB:Read More
(scroll down for latest updates – newest update, 2:08 am)
(photo of Delridge/Juneau roadblock taken by Sage K, added 11:53 pm)
Helicopter and many police involved right now in search centering on the 5600 block of Delridge. The call is “assault with weapons 14” which usually means multiple patients known or suspected. Trying to find out more. Thanks to those who e-mailed us with first word. 11:03 PM UPDATE: Whoever they’re looking for in this, scanner traffic indicates they’re not in custody yet, so if you’re in that area, be safe and be sure to call 911 if you see/hear anything/anyone suspicious. 11:05 PM UPDATE: One TV report says woman and boy shot. We heard scanner traffic talking about a 12-year-old male gunshot victim so we believe that’s from this incident. We’re also hearing that police may be looking for two suspects. 11:10 PM UPDATE: Victims taken to Harborview Medical Center, which indicates serious wounds. According to King County records, 5625 Delridge is a duplex. 11:17 PM UPDATE: According to the police media-info line, this started with a 911 call around 10:30 pm from a woman reporting hearing 10 to 12 gunshots. The media-info line describes the victims’ wounds as “non-life-threatening” and also says a third person was believed to have been shot at, but not hit. 11:36 PM UPDATE: Nearby residents say the helicopter has left the area, but we are not hearing any scanner indications of any arrests so far. Sage K does report northbound traffic is still being rerouted at Delridge/Juneau, where police have the road blocked. Sage also sent photos; stand by. 12:01 AM UPDATE: Lots of new info in update we just got from the Seattle Police media-info line. Most important: “Tentative” description of the vehicle police are seeking – a burgundy SUV. That’s ALL the information they have on possible suspects. Also, they identify the victims as a mother and her 12-year-old child. She was shot twice in the chest; he was shot in the back of the shoulder. Both are expected to survive, according to police. They say the search and investigation currently involves: Guardian 1 (helicopter), K-9, CSI, homicide, and gang units. Nobody in custody as of this report filed moments ago. 12:47 AM UPDATE: Sage K reports in comments that Delridge is now fully open again. No notable scanner activity in the case for a while, meantime. (We’ll keep monitoring till at least 2 am and will post whatever we hear/learn …) 2:08 AM UPDATE: For anybody still awake and wondering, no new developments reported. We’ll continue to monitor for a while longer, as we’re still working on an unrelated article that has to be done before the WSB newsroom shuts down for the night.
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