West Seattle, Washington
08 Thursday
Though this is from the King County Sheriff, whose crimefighting turf starts just over the line in White Center, it’s part of a larger county criminal-justice-funding concern that in the end could affect us all – since, for example, it’s county prosecutors who handle city crimes too – so we wanted to share this announcement of an upcoming public meeting you might want to attend:Read More
The WSB inbox has been devoid of first-person crime reports lately, so when we dropped by the Southwest Precinct this afternoon to check the latest police reports, we asked Lt. Steve Paulsen if things are indeed as quiet as they seem. Not entirely crime-free, as you’ll see in this report, but yes (knock wood), it’s been relatively quiet. After more than a dozen burglary arrests, for example, they think the word’s starting to get out on the street that you’re not so likely to get away with it in West Seattle. That said, we’ve got some summaries to share, including burglaries and car break-ins as well as the search for a man who tried to lure a girl into his car, gang-affiliated squatters getting the boot, more cases of alert witnesses helping foil crimes, and more – all from a full week’s worth of reports:Read More
You’ll hear about this in citywide media but with so much park land and other city property in West Seattle, it seems important to link here too — Mayor Nickels just announced a proposal “to prohibit firearms on all property owned by the city of Seattle, including parks and community centers,” according to the official city news release; read it here. The announcement says a public hearing is planned, but also notes that City Council approval is not required for the rules the mayor wants to put in place. You can send comments to the mayor’s office here.
Caught this photo around noon while heading to the West Seattle YMCA (WSB sponsor), where we had the chance to chat with a great group of seniors interested in hearing the latest on WS development and other happenings. (When we headed back the other way, the lights themselves were back under wraps.) Previous WSB coverage of the Fauntleroy/Dawson signal is here and here.
Tree branches, a street sign, and an SUV door are among the items which didn’t make out well in some of the more unusual crime reports from the latest round we reviewed at the Southwest Precinct — they were publicly released for review within the past few days, but some are from older incidents. Here are the toplines on 16 incidents of note:Read More
Just went through a couple more days worth of police reports – this list is nowhere as long as the one we posted the other day, but a few unusual incidents — five, to be exact — starting with the case of the defiant shoplifter:Read More
Thanks to the person who cameraphoned us with that photo of the Denny Middle School band serenading West Seattle Elementary School about an hour ago, as the Feet First walk-to-school month of Fast Feet Fridays finished up. (Our coverage of the first one is here.)
West Seattle Crime Watch has been long on reader reports and short on police reports for a while because of a change in how we access those reports, related to Seattle Police switching to a new computerized report system. But now we’re getting back into the rhythm of things, so those who are interested in these roundups can see what’s been going on. Keep those reader reports coming, though. Meantime, here are some West Seattle notes from the past four days worth of reports, plus one reader report:Read More
Just got a call from Sgt. Jeff Durden at the Southwest Precinct with the latest – and a clarification – on the Friday night attack that injured a woman walking her dog in west Admiral. First of all, Sgt. Durden wanted to clarify part of what was reported in a tv story last night (as we mentioned here) – he says police do NOT have anyone in custody, and do NOT know of any similar attacks in West Seattle. In addition, he says, they are NOT certain that the man was trying to steal the woman’s purebred Siberian Husky – Sgt. Durden notes that the man did not say anything to the victim; that was simply her speculation that theft might have been his motive. Here’s the description information they have so far: Black man in his 30s or 40s, about 6-1 and 180 pounds, wearing a red sweatshirt and dark-colored jeans, and one final descriptive detail from the report, “(the suspect) did not smell very good.” Southwest Precinct detectives are continuing to work on the case and promise to let us know of any new developments.
Meg e-mailed us an alert she thought her fellow bicycle commuters would want to hear:Read More
We’ve followed up from time to time on the aftermath of the February 26th Westwood incident in which two pit bulls attacked a man and his Chihuahua, and then were shot by police (original WSB report here; followup with police-report narrative here). One pit bull died that night; the other was seized by the Seattle Animal Shelter. During our followup calls, SAS executive director Don Jordan had told us the dogs’ owner faced citations and possibly a criminal charge (March 3 update here; April 10 update here). The second dog’s fate depended on what happened with those cases. Jordan just called WSB to let us know the case is closed because the owner agreed to have the second dog euthanized. “We wanted to make sure that dog was off the street,” Jordan said. The civil citations and possible criminal charge are not being pursued, according to Jordan, because of that agreement, and also because the victim did not want to press charges or even give a written statement. Jordan had told us previously that this owner had a history of trouble involving other dogs, not these; we asked, so does that mean any restrictions can be put on his right to own or license dogs in the future? Not in this case, he said, noting that even in cases where people are found guilty of crimes involving animals and judges decide to impose such restrictions, they can never be prohibited from ownership for a period longer than 2 years. “That can be frustrating for us,” he acknowledged.
That’s Alki resident Steve Cuddy, explaining to city planning reps tonight why a fence in front of the proposed 5-unit development at 59th/Stevens (city project page here) would dangerously limit visibility for people crossing 59th to Alki Playfield or Elementary. Neighbors gathered at the Admiral library branch for a meeting called because they gathered signatures to demand one.
We’ve told you before about the controversy over this development, most recently when it was discussed at last week’s Alki Community Council meeting (WSB coverage here). The lot is about 7500 square feet, with one single-family home on it now, and a plan to tear that down to make way for two houses plus a three-unit townhouse building:
Most neighbors say they’re not opposed to development at the site, but they have concerns about this plan. In addition to the visibility concerns discussed by Cuddy in the video clip above, they are worried about the shadows they say the 3-story buildings will cast on Alki Playfield and Playground, and they believe those shadows might be a violation of city codes. (See the codes by scrolling to section Q here; also, here’s a gallery of diagrams and photos collected by neighbors at this site, including photos showing how narrow the street can be; neighbor Laura Chassagne says it’s in effect a one-way street at many times of the day.) The alley to the west also is a concern (same one where we showed you then-newly installed speed-limit signs in January), with beach cruisers often using it as a shortcut, and fears that added housing units will mean added clutter with trash, recycling, and yard-waste containers. Another area resident, Steve Turpin, expressed further concerns about whether the existing house, built in 1925, has been assessed for possible toxics concerns when it’s torn down, given its proximity to the playground, playfield, and school. City planners will review this input before ruling on the proposal — you can send them comments by clicking the link next to “Public Involvement” atop this page. (Also worth noting again, the house and land, currently owned by West Seattle-based Cobb Construction, is back on the market.)
Good turnout last night for the monthly West Seattle Community Safety Partnership meeting at the Southwest Precinct — including folks who took advantage of the opportunity to directly ask local police leadership about issues in their neighborhood (one attendee was looking for followup on a burglary at his house; the Community Police Team is putting him in touch with detectives). We already reported one update from the meeting last night; here’s what else was discussed, including the briefing on “casing”:Read More
First of at least two reports from tonight’s West Seattle Community Safety Partnership meeting — Southwest Precinct Lt. Steve Paulsen had a little information about the mother and son shot in their Delridge duplex last week. He said both are doing OK; no one in custody right now but a possible “person of interest” was detained, then released pending further investigation. He also said the shooting was not random – the mother was definitely targeted, not sure about the 10-year-old son. Other news from tonight’s meeting included the promised briefing on “casing” (no revelations but good reminders) and plans for WSCSP’s first Officer Appreciation Day at the precinct. More on all that in the morning.
From two people who want you to know what happened to them – read on:Read More
We’ve said this before and we’ll say it again: If you are concerned about crime and safety in your neighborhood — the kind of response that we get for our crime/safety coverage indicates that thousands of people in West Seattle are — there is one monthly meeting you shouldn’t miss: Send a family member, send a neighbor, just make sure you’re represented, to hear the latest information for yourself. It’s happening tonight: West Seattle Community Safety Partnership, 7 pm, Southwest Precinct public meeting room (Delridge/Webster, just east of the south side of Home Depot). Local police leadership (including Community Police Team members) is always there, not only to present updates, but also to answer your questions and address your concerns. And it’s not just about crime – the Seattle Neighborhood Group provides a staff member to this group (which has a new slate of volunteer leaders) to share information about fighting any blight in your neighborhood, including so-called “nuisance properties.” We always cover this meeting to report highlights here, but that’s no substitute for getting some of this practical how-to information – and getting questions answered – in person. On the agenda tonight — “casing” — maybe that’ll help us all sort out some of those door-to-door dilemmas. See you there.
Several reader reports from people who want to alert neighbors to recent break-ins/thefts, plus weekend followup notes, all ahead:Read More
As reported here last week, the construction schedule has moved way up for the Fauntleroy/Dawson (map) pedestrian signal. We spotted pole work under way a short time ago (shown in photo above, taken from the west side of Fauntleroy, facing south).
If you live in the Fairmount area – should disaster strike, that spot by the flagpole in the southeast Providence Mount St. Vincent parking lot is your neighborhood gathering spot for information. Sunday afternoon, Fairmount Community representatives (led by Sharonn Meeks, center in shades) set up this table there …
… for the latest West Seattle drop-in event to get out the word about neighborhood gathering places and disaster-readiness info. (Read more here, and see the map of other neighborhood spots that have been designated so far.)
Meantime, the West Seattle Hi-Yu Festival crew coped this weekend with the semi-disastrous float woes, by riding instead in convertibles so they could represent West Seattle in the Port Townsend Rhododendron Festival parade:
That’s Carol Winston driving Queen Danica and Queen Sivona. A few more photos shared by Hi-Yu president Tim Winston, including a young court member showing off a tiny friend, ahead:Read More
“WALK WITH US TO CURE LUPUS”: Hundreds of people will walk a 5K route on Alki this morning to raise money to fight lupus. Registration starts @ 9, the walk @ 10. Teams are walking as well as individuals; check out the team list here.
PLANT SALE FOR FURRY FACES FOUNDATION: Second day of this animal-rescue group’s big annual two-day sale – we dropped by for this photo on day one:
The sale’s 10 am-4 pm at 3809 46th SW (map).
SPINNING TO FIGHT LEUKEMIA: West Seattleites Kerry Murphy and Megan Jasper will be spinning — riding bicycle-training equipment — 11:30 am-4:30 pm today in front of West 5, raising $ for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and getting ready for one of its Team in Training triathlons next month. (Kerry’s raising $ online here; Megan’s raising $ online here.)
ENTREPRENEURS: Want to help young people strategize small for-profit businesses in Alki this summer? Come to a meeting @ the Homestead (61st south of Alki Ave) at 11:30 today. (Previous coverage here.)
BE A “MASTER OF DISASTER”: The neighborhood-readiness campaign around West Seattle continues today with an event for Fairmount-area residents, noon-2 pm on the southeast side of the Providence Mount St. Vincent parking lot. (Previous coverage, including a map, here.)
SHOPPING AT THE FARMERS’ MARKET? We always post the weekly fresh sheet, so here’s today’s edition:Read More
Tthe West Seattle neighborhood readiness campaign we’ve been telling you about is still under way: To refresh your memory, the map above shows the West Seattle locations already designated as neighborhood gathering places for information and help in case of disaster — somewhere you’d be able to go, if the regular lines of communication weren’t working — and it’s important to memorize where your nearest one is, and to make sure your loved ones know too. (Some areas of south West Seattle are still a work in progress.) To help make it easier for you to know your gathering place, and to get info about how to be ready for the unthinkable, each area has set up a time for a drop-in event — Alki, (Alaska) Junction, Morgan Junction, Pigeon Point, Olympic Heights and Admiral have had theirs; the Fairmount event is noon-2 pm Sunday in the southeast parking lot of Providence Mt. St. Vincent. One more important thing we want to mention again: a checklist of supplies you can purchase right now to have on hand “just in case” – it has helpful specifics, not just the generalized lists you often see. We’ve uploaded it here so you can take a look and print it out for yourself for use in building a kit you can get to if you need it (and if you don’t have MS Word — here’s a PDF version).
(updated Friday morning with attachments/images re: 59th/Stevens project “shadow” concerns)
Steps away from the busy beachfront, Alki Community Council members gathered tonight for updates on several topics – most notably, police plans for helping Alki stay safe, and two hot development-related issues — read on:Read More
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.
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