West Seattle, Washington
21 Saturday
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
The city’s proposed changes in parking rules continue to make their way through the City Council, with another briefing in the Planning, Land Use, and Zoning Committee this week.
Hours later, the Southwest District Council heard from, and talked with, the Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections staffers who wrote the proposal.
We’ve covered the proposal previously, dating back to its introduction in November by then-Mayor Tim Burgess. It had been in the works for a while, dating back to the Ed Murray administration – we mentioned before a city HALA-and-other-initiatives open house in January that parking was on the table too. SDCI’s Gordon Clowers and Mike Podowski told the SWDC at its regular March meeting on Wednesday night that it’s the first time in many years the city has addressed parking in the zoning code.
Also happening tonight in West Seattle:
That’s the trailer for “13th,” the award-winning documentary by director Ava DuVernay (who’s in the news right now as director of “A Wrinkle in Time“), which is being screened tonight at All Souls (WSB sponsor) Loft (second floor of 4138 California SW). Her film explores “the intersection of race, justice and mass incarceration in the United States” and is titled after the Constitution’s 13th Amendment. The documentary will be followed by a discussion with a local educator “discussing risk factors for young adults in our community and some data on who is in our local prison system.” It all starts at 7 pm; you’re welcome to bring your own dinner if you won’t have had it before the event.
If you pay bills at, or have other business to transact with, the city’s Southwest Customer Service Center (2801 SW Thistle), just a reminder – it will be closed for floor work next week, Monday 3/12 through Friday 3/16. This is scheduled to be concurrent with the last week of the maintenance closure at adjacent Southwest Pool; co-housed SW Teen Life Center will be closed too, per Seattle Parks.
(Bushtit on quince, photographed by Robin Sinner, shared via WSB Flickr group)
Today’s highlights are already under way!
GIGANTIC GARAGE SALE: It’s the start of sale season and West Side Presbyterian Church is first out of the gate, with its two-day sale under way already this morning. Shop until 6 pm today and again 9 am-3 pm Saturday. (3601 California SW)
CREATE YOUR OWN COMIC: Free four-part workshop for 4th- through 7th-graders at Southwest Library starts today, 3:30-5 pm. Preregistration is required, so call ASAP (see the listing) to sign yours up! (9010 35th SW)
FISH FRIDAY: Second of three dinner events at Our Lady of Guadalupe‘s Walmesley Center during Lent. 6-8 pm – prices and menu in our calendar listing. Part of the proceeds benefit charity. (35th SW/SW Myrtle)
ART LOUNGE: Bring your art project(s) to Highland Park Improvement Club and enjoy a creative, fun atmosphere during the monthly Art Lounge. Beverages available. 21+. Doors open 7 pm. (1116 SW Holden)
DOG HOUSE PRAYERS: Live music at C & P Coffee Company (WSB sponsor), 7-9 pm. (5612 California SW)
MOVIE NIGHT AND COMMUNITY CENTER PLAN REVIEW: Come help review the plan for South Park Community Center‘s future and enjoy a free showing of the Disney hit “Coco,” 7 pm at SPCC. (8319 8th Ave. S.)
FREE CONCERT: West Seattle Community Orchestras‘ first spring concert “Fate! Love! Destiny!” is at 7:30 pm, Chief Sealth International High School auditorium – see a quick video preview here. Free; donations accepted. (2600 SW Thistle)
SEE WHAT ELSE IS UP TODAY/TONIGHT … and preview your weekend, via our complete calendar.
For 5th graders at Highland Park Elementary, it’s the trip of a lifetime – traveling across Puget Sound for outdoor education. But every year, teachers and community members have to raise money to make it happen. This year’s trip is almost here and they still need help, and asked if we could let you know. From the crowdfunding page:
Highland Park is a unique place. We are a Title I school that serves an extremely diverse population with 80% of our students receiving free or reduced-price lunch. Many of our students speak more than one language and bring rich, cultural backgrounds to our community. The wide spectrum of learners creates a distinctive environment where we are happy to teach and grow with our scholars.
Each year, we have the pleasure of taking our fifth graders on a trip to IslandWood – a school in the woods on Bainbridge Island, a short ferry ride from downtown Seattle. During the four-day excursion, students are exposed to many things that they have never seen or done before, beginning with the ferry ride across Puget Sound and extending throughout their time on site. The staff at IslandWood provides an authentic, engaging learning experience. Every year, we get to watch our students learn in a way that cannot be provided inside the four walls of a classroom. To see the transformation under which many students go when they step beyond the world they live in is nothing short of inspirational. We love seeing those ‘lightbulb’ moments when our scholars click with learning in new, indescribable ways. Not only is the trip to IslandWood a fun-packed adventure, but it shapes the fifth-grade community upon our return as well. We create a close bond and build deeper relationships that greatly improve our ability to rise to the demands of fifth grade.
We want every student to be able to take this trip and have the opportunity to do something completely outside of their normal routine. However, while all the benefits of IslandWood are impossible to quantify, they do come with a price tag. This is where we need your help.
As teachers of Highland Park Elementary, we want to raise money to subsidize the cost of IslandWood so that every student can afford to come, and the only way we can do that is with your support. The last two years, generous donations helped pave the way for our students to have this powerful experience and we want nothing more than for this year’s scholars to receive the same opportunity.
Please consider donating to this trip and help us change the lives of these fifty-eight scholars.
Here again is the link.
Family and friends will gather one week from today to remember Susan M. Stiller. Here’s the remembrance being shared with the community:
Susan Mary (Thomas) Stiller
Sue passed away unexpectedly on February 26 at age 67. She is survived by Thomas, her husband of 48 years, daughter Mary, and brothers Paul (Pam) Thomas and Richard (Barbara) Thomas.
She was raised in West Seattle, graduated WSHS in ’68, and retired from the VAMC, where she worked as a nurse. She had been a Hospice volunteer, member of US Coast Guard Auxiliary, and an altar server at Holy Rosary.
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday, March 16, at Holy Rosary in West Seattle.
In lieu of flowers, remembrances can be made to seattlehumane.org or American Diabetes Association.
(WSB publishes West Seattle obituaries by request, free of charge. Please e-mail the text, and a photo if available, to editor@wsb.blackfin.biz)
(SDOT MAP with travel times/video links; is the ‘low bridge’ closed? LOOK HERE)
6:53 AM: Good morning. Metro has sent out a multitude of transit alerts so far this morning. Two are for this area – the 7:15 am Route 55 from Admiral will not run, and the 7:39 am Route 113 from Shorewood will not run (that one skipped its 6:27 am run too).
This is all one day before Metro’s periodic “service change,” which includes some changes to local routes – here’s our original preview with details.
Also this weekend, Daylight Saving Time arrives early Sunday – at 2 am, we “spring forward” an hour to 3 am.
Otherwise – we’ve just checked around, and no traffic incidents are reported in/from West Seattle so far.
7:23 AM: Add to the bus list, the 8:22 am Route 56 won’t run, Metro says.
Whether you’re seeing this as you end your day or as you get it started … maybe you can spare a few minutes for a good deed, if you haven’t done this already: Nominate someone for this year’s Westside Awards! Today is the final day to get your nomination(s) to the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce, which will again this year present awards for:
Business of the Year
Emerging Business of the Year
Not-for-Profit of the Year
Westsider of the Year
Criteria for the awards include:
-Nominees will have made a major or visible contribution in the past year that reflects commercial growth and achievement, innovation, creativity or community involvement.
-Contributes and promotes the economic growth, stability and improvement of West Seattle.
-Gives generously of themselves and/or staff in time and resources to community activities.
-Consistently excels in customer service and business conduct.
Here’s the nomination form. See the lists of past winners by going here; this year’s awards will be presented at a breakfast event May 1st.
WSDOT won’t send out a notice until it’s closer, but for your advance planning, we’ve confirmed that – as listed on the city’s weekly Construction Lookahead – the next Alaskan Way Viaduct inspection closure is set for Saturday, March 24th, 6 am-6 pm. The state also reserves the right to close it again the same hours on Sunday, March 25th, but recent closures haven’t needed that second day. In confirming this with AWV spokesperson Laura Newborn, we noted that many people are likely to be on the road on March 24th getting to and from the March For Our Lives; she says they set the date before the march was planned, but hope it won’t be too much of an impact since the march route is from Capitol Hill to Seattle Center.
P.S. The most recent estimate for the permanent closure of the AWV is September – that’s what County Councilmember Joe McDermott told the West Seattle Transportation Coalition last month.
(Though the live event is over, it’s archived already, so you can replay it above)
6:44 PM: Click “play” and that should get you into the Seattle Channel live stream of an event that just started in the auditorium at Chief Sealth International High School right now – Mayor Jenny Durkan hosting a town hall on the topic “Students Stopping Gun Violence.” We’ll be chronicling it as it goes, and will substitute archived video when it’s over.
West Seattle/South Park school-board director Leslie Harris opened the town hall – she is president of the board, which passed a gun-violence resolution unanimously last week. (She is also parent of a Chief Sealth IHS graduate, as she noted.) She introduced TV journalist Natalie Brand and radio veteran Ross Reynolds, who are moderating the event. “This violence has to stop,” Harris declared in closing. The moderators note that they are using an interactive platform for this, and you can access it – pigeonhole.at – enter passcode ENDGUNVIOLENCE. Panelists along with Mayor Durkan include a principal, a student, a gun-violence researcher, and a leader from the Duwamish Valley Youth Corps.
(From left, Mayor Durkan, Nyla Fritz, Gregory Pleasant, Dr. Frederick Rivara, Carmen Martinez)
Also introduced as being in the audience are dignitaries including City Councilmember Lisa Herbold, County Councilmember Joe McDermott, SPS superintendent Dr. Larry Nyland. SPD Chief Carmen Best is here too (below with Harris).
First question seeks elaboration on the SPS gun-violence resolution. Harris says it also underscores the importance of services for students. Second, “will Seattle be taking an interest in preventive legislation as well as retroactive legislation?” Durkan says, “We will do what we can and will continue to press Olympia to give us power to protect our communities.” She adds, “I personally believe we need an assault-weapons ban.” And she mentions those killed in shootings that are suicide or accidents, and that she wants to address that too. She asks the student on the panel for his thoughts; gun availability is a key issue, Rainier Beach HS student Gregory Pleasant says.
“If I leave my house every day and I feel like if I don’t have a gun on me, I can’t walk back out that door, that’s going to change the way I live.” The mayor asks about his T-shirt, which reads WHO’S NEXT? That question can apply to positive answers as well as negative, he said.
Today is Mayor Jenny Durkan‘s 100th day in office. (And she’ll be back in West Seattle tonight.) Her office sent a long list of what she’s done in those first 100 days – and one section of the list caught our eye, touting hundreds of new street signs:
Maintaining and Preserving Our Roads, and Responding to Winter Weather: Under Mayor Durkan’s first 100 days, the City has made important strides in maintaining and preserving our City’s roadway infrastructure. In the last 100 days, the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) filled 7,200 potholes, installed 128 new crosswalks, 360 new directional signs (like speed limit signs), and replaced 62 street signs. In addition, SDOT teams worked approximately 32 shifts over 16 days to respond to the threat of snow and ice from late December to early March.
Though a breakdown wasn’t provided, anecdotally we’ve seen a fair number of new “no parking” signs around the area, mostly the kind meant to warn you from parking too close to a corner or driveway. A few of them have also removed parking spaces.
With the intent of a story about the signage – even before today’s mayoral list – we asked SDOT recently about the sign additions, and spokesperson Karen Westing shared the explanation from the Transportation Operations team:
Projects that install parking restrictions can generally be grouped into three categories:
-projects where parking restrictions are part of a larger operational change
-projects signing the existing legal restrictions
-projects that restrict otherwise legal parking to reduce collision risk or improve roadway function
Seven signs – including the ones in our photos – placed recently here in Upper Fauntleroy, SDOT says, were “examples of the second and third types,” as were signs placed in a north Morgan Junction neighborhood that was the original reason for our inquiry. In that neighborhood, near 41st/Graham, she told us, “we restricted two parking spaces to improve sight lines between drivers on Graham coming over the crest of the hill and pedestrians crossing the street.”
Westing says the signs are installed in batches “because our layout and maintenance/installation crews group nearby projects to avoid unnecessary travel-time.” And she says they often are the result of “constituent correspondence” – such as complaints – that result in a review by SDOT engineering staff. Side note: While researching this, we realized that the little flags we had seen placed in planting strips, marking utility lines, seemed to be the precursors to sign installation, so if you see them, new signage might be on the way.
“Sadly, there has been an increase in false threats, all of which require and receive police attention,” Seattle Public Schools spokesperson Kim Schmanke told WSB today after we contacted her about a reader tip. 
She was talking about the district as a whole; we had asked her about one specific instance mentioned to us today. The reader had heard of a possible threat and police presence at Madison Middle School. Schmanke hadn’t heard about it when we checked in, so we went to the school to ask. Assistant principal Ronnie Belle told us that a police officer had stopped by the school earlier today to take a report on an incident earlier this week. Belle said a student had made remarks that concerned other students enough to report it to administrators. The student was “counseled,” Belle said, without going into specifics of the counseling or what the student had said.
ORIGINAL STORY, 1:17 PM: Thanks to everybody who has tipped us on this. We’ve been checking into the mysterious closure of Tully’s Coffee on Alki Beach since this “temporarily closed” sign went up yesterday afternoon:
Though the sign says they “look forward” to reopening, some who have contacted us are skeptical that will happen, given the recent travails of what’s left of the chain, and someone even put a memorial by the door with “RIP” and flowers, spotted when we went back today to check if it was still closed:
According to the city business-license database, the shop is owned by Global Baristas, as are other remaining Tully’s shops, bought by the group in 2013 after Tully’s itself filed for bankruptcy. Online court records show the state is seeking back taxes from Global Baristas, with a court filing dated this past Monday citing more than $180,000. And records list multiple “unlawful detainer” – potential eviction – filings since mid-October, most recently for a location in Bellevue. Three shops closed last fall, including one on Capitol Hill, where our friends at capitolhillseattle.com investigated extensively. But we haven’t yet found documents mentioning anything specific about this location (2676 Alki SW). We have a message out to the “media contact” listed on the Tully’s website. We’re also trying to find the Alki property’s owners; property records carry both the name of an accountant in Federal Way and the name of the former owner of the Taco Time that was on the site before it became a Tully’s shop in 2000. We’ll update if and when we find out more.
8:25 PM: We never did hear back from the company. But The Seattle Times inquired and reports tonight that a company memo says the stores closed because they were out of coffee. (Thanks to commenter David for spotting that.)
We start your Thursday highlights with a big event that will get a regional spotlight:
MAYOR’S TOWN HALL ON GUN VIOLENCE: Mayor Jenny Durkan hosts a “town hall” in West Seattle for the second time in less than two weeks. This one, however, has a very specific topic: Gun violence, and students’ advocacy to stop it. Here’s the announcement from last week. It’s set for 6:30-7:30 pm in the auditorium at Chief Sealth International High School, and all are welcome. (2600 SW Thistle)
Tonight’s other big event – the monthly West Seattle Art Walk! 5 pm until late. Here’s the venue list/map:
This month’s highlights – including art previews – are here. Perhaps the most unusual from that extensive list – free painting classes at 5:20 and 6:40 pm at Graystone Mortgage in Jefferson Square! Also scroll through the preview list for a sneak peek at these: WSB sponsor Canna West Seattle (5453 California SW) features work by Machel Spence starting at 4 pm; WSB sponsor Viscon Cellars (5910 California SW) is showcasing the work of Greta Musland (and tasting fees are waived for Art Walk-ers).And we’ve heard from a few others:
ZEKE BRUCKER: Showing at Locöl (7902 35th Ave SW) and will be there – beer specials, too.
GRAHAM VITTUM: Showing at Freshy’s (2735 California Ave SW)
Also tonight:
AERONAUTICAL TECHNOLOGY OPEN HOUSE: Want to find out about studying for a career in these fields? 6-7 pm, stop by this open house at South Seattle College (WSB sponsor) – full details in our calendar listing. And check our calendar for other SSC programs’ upcoming info sessions, too. (6000 16th SW)
WORDS, WRITERS, WEST SEATTLE: This month’s featured writer is David B. Williams, talking about “Seattle Walks,” in this free monthly author series at Southwest Library, presented by the Southwest Seattle Historical Society. (9010 35th SW)
SECOND THURSDAY OUT! This monthly Senior Center of West Seattle-organized gathering for LGBTQ people, friends, and allies starts at 6 pm at Great American Diner and Bar for dinner, followed by an optional trip over to ArtsWest for tonight’s 7:30 pm performance of “Hir” – see the calendar listing for a special ticket code. (4752 California SW)
THERE’S A LOT MORE – just browse our complete-calendar page to see!
After a successful first year in Green Lake, The Inc. Community Coworking + Playschool is expanding to West Seattle. The nonprofit explains what it does as “community-driven, neighborhood-centric workspaces for parents which include onsite flexible drop-in care for their young children.” Its West Seattle location will be at St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church in Admiral (3050 California SW), and starting April 2nd, it will be open 9 am-1 pm Mondays-Fridays, with drop-in care for ages 1-5. That’s just the Phase 1 plan; future potential phases are explained here, which is also where you can buy a membership, or just donate if it’s something you want to support but can’t or won’t use. But first – The Inc. is hosting an informal Meet-N-Greet Open House 10 am-noon next Monday (March 12th) with coffee, doughnuts, and a chance to see the space and meet the team.
(SDOT MAP with travel times/video links; is the ‘low bridge’ closed? LOOK HERE)
7:14 AM: Good morning. Rain’s back. No traffic incidents or transit alerts for our area so far.
METRO SERVICE CHANGE SATURDAY: Another reminder that Saturday is when Metro’s next “service change” kicks in. Here’s our preview with West Seattle-specific changes.
(UPDATED 11:28 AM with more info from SPD)
3:34 AM: SPD and SFD are investigating that car fire, reported about an hour ago in the Southwest Athletic Complex area. In radio discussion, the car was described as having been found fully engulfed in flames – as shown in the photo tweeted by Pat – with no one inside and no one around.
11:29 AM: SPD confirms that its arson detectives are handling the investigation. The car was a 1996 Toyota Corolla – not reported as stolen, in case you wondered (we did). But given the circumstances, it was impounded after the fire was out.
ADDED TUESDAY: In a West Seattle crime discussion at the Fauntleroy Community Association meeting, Southwest Precinct Lt. Ron Smith mentioned that investigators believe an accelerant was used in this fire.
(UPDATED 11:23 AM with more info from SPD)
3:25 AM: The High Point incident wasn’t the only confirmed gunfire in West Seattle on Wednesday night – about an hour earlier, someone shot at this car at 23rd SW and SW Andover on Pigeon Point. Its owner posted in the WSB Forums and shared the photo by request. “Looks like three rounds went through; two through the window and another through the hatch under the right of the Legacy tag,” he reported. Other cars reportedly were hit too. We’ll also be seeking followup information on this later in the morning.
11:23 AM: The full report isn’t yet available but SPD media-relations Det. Mark Jamieson confirms that three cars were damaged, the Subaru (in the photo) most seriously. “No known suspect description,” he adds. So far there is no indication of any link to the evening’s other gunfire event.
8:57 PM: Thanks for the tips – police are investigating what, according to scanner traffic, is confirmed gunfire in High Point; they have found shell casings. We’re off to find out more.
9:09 PM: Police are on Lanham Place SW, just north of SW Graham, investigating, but not commenting.
10 PM: Police are still there, trying to make contact with someone possibly connected to the incident, and they will be blocking off streets nearby to keep people away until this is resolved.
10:35 PM: Not resolved yet. Meantime, we got a phone call from a neighbor who said she wanted to publicly thank police for their rapid response when she called after hearing the gunfire.
11:08 PM: Officers are still working strategically and deliberately to resolve the standoff.
MIDNIGHT: Standoff continues. We’re monitoring for the duration.
1:08 AM: Standoff continues.
2:13 AM: Five and a half hours now since the original call.
3:01 AM: As best we can tell from monitoring radio, this is wrapping up – an ambulance has been brought in to transport the person police had been working to take into custody. We’ll seek the official report for followup information later this morning.
ADDED 10:53 AM: That followup info just arrived via SPD Blotter:
A 26-year-old man is in custody and several guns have been recovered following an extended call Wednesday night into Thursday morning in the High Point neighborhood in West Seattle.
On March 7th, just before 9:00 pm, officers responded to several reports of shots fired in the 6000 block of Lanham Place Southwest. Officers located bullet damage to a parked vehicle in front of an apartment building. Additionally, it appeared that several items had been thrown from a third-floor apartment onto the ground below. As officers were containing the building, someone threw two handguns out of the window. Officers attempted to make contact with the occupants but to little avail. Officers believed the male suspect inside the apartment was in crisis.
After a prolonged standoff, officers obtained a search warrant for the apartment. With the assistance of SWAT, Gang Unit detectives, and K9, officers made entry into the apartment where the 26-year-old suspect was arrested without incident. Inside the apartment, several additional handgun magazines and ammunition was located and collected for evidence. One of the handguns that was tossed out the window was reported as stolen, while the other had been reported as missing.
The suspect, a convicted felon, was booked into the King County Jail for weapons violation. Detectives will handle the follow-up investigation.
We’ll be checking on the suspect’s background and will add more when we have i.
(WSB photo: Stakeholder Advisory Group at its first meeting last month)
Monday, as we reminded you, was the last day in the first phase of commenting on Sound Transit‘s West Seattle (and Ballard) light-rail plan. We now have confirmation about the time and place of the second meeting of the Stakeholder Advisory Group – which has a major role in considering your comments and making recommendations. It’s one week from tonight, 5-8 pm Wednesday, March 14th, at the Sound Transit board room in (corrected) Union Station downtown. The public’s welcome – but as we learned during the first meeting (WSB coverage here), no spoken comments will be taken, just written. Meantime, there’s a new estimated time frame for the start of “neighborhood forums” – ST spokesperson Kimberly Reason says they’re now expecting these to start in late April, a month later than was tentatively planned. This is all meant to lead to a decision on a “preferred alternative” plan in about a year.
Until 7:30 pm, you’re invited to stop by Southwest Teen Life Center (2801 SW Thistle) and talk with city reps about Mayor Jenny Durkan‘s search for the next Seattle Police Chief. Just a few people were there when we stopped by in the early going, so your comment(s) will certainly be heard. You can read more about the search process here; there’s a quick online survey here; see who’s on the selection committee here.
(WSB photos)
Morgan Junction has joined the ranks of West Seattle neighborhoods with signal-box art. After spotting this work in progress while passing through California/Fauntleroy earlier today, we went back for a photo. The artist is Desmond Hansen; he described the project on Instagram as “donating my time to the community.” In addition to the Jimi Hendrix portrait, he also painted this box one block north:
Delridge signal boxes were painted in 2013; signal boxes in The Junction were wrapped in 2014.
2:52 PM: Apparently just a coincidence, but on the same day that U.S. Coast Guard buoy-tenders showed up in West Seattle waters, this King County-owned buoy has just shown up on shore. The photos are from a reader who spotted it on the beach at Lincoln Park, by Colman Pool (thanks for sending!).
We recognized it immediately from past stories including this one after it was launched in 2013 to monitor marine water quality, and this one from a beaching the following year. We just contacted Diane McElhany at the King County lab, and she confirms it’s theirs, adding, “We will be dealing with it today.”
5:51 PM: And deal with it they did:
Thanks to Mike Mahanay for that photo!
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