TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Thursday watch; weekend reminders
(SDOT MAP with travel times/video links; is the ‘low bridge’ closed? LOOK HERE)
7:06 AM: Good morning! No incidents reported in/from West Seattle so far.
HIGHWAY 99 CLOSURE REMINDER: WSDOT now plans to start the SB 99 closure (between the Battery St. Tunnel and West Seattle Bridge) at 11:59 pm Friday night and end it at 11:59 pm Sunday.
8:10 AM: WSDOT reiterates that the SB 99 closure is still on but a lot of work it planned on other routes is off, including the ramp/lane closures on NB I-5.
COUNTDOWN: Looking for work? West Side Job Fair next week
The second-ever West Side Job Fair is now less than a week away – next Tuesday (September 18th), 10 am-1 pm in The Junction. It’s co-presented by the West Seattle Junction Association and Chamber of Commerce, with co-sponsors including WSB (home of year-round free WS job listings). WSJA’s Lora Radford tells WSB that 32 employers will be there, interviewing for more than 110 jobs: “Positions range from RN, office, banking, restaurant, teachers. It’s quite the mix this year. Job seekers should be prepared to be interviewed on the spot – please bring multiple copies of your resume.” Most of the employers and positions are listed here. The West Side Job Fair is happening again this year at Great American Diner and Bar (4752 California SW).
VIDEO: Conversation with 34th District State Senate candidate Joe Nguyen
EDITOR’S NOTE: A month has passed since the August primary, and general-election voting is a little more than a month away. Our election coverage continues with a closeup look at both candidates running for the open 34th District State Senate seat. We interviewed Shannon Braddock and Joe Nguyen separately before Labor Day; after featuring our conversation with her last night, tonight we’re reporting on our conversation with him.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Joe Nguyen‘s 34th District State Senate campaign is his first try for public office – and while he says that “I knew we worked harder than anyone else” in the primary field of 11 contenders, he was still “shocked” to have ended up with the most votes.
Though he hasn’t run for office before, Nguyen says he has “been involved with politics for a long time … I actually paged for (now County Executive) Dow Constantine when he was in the Legislature.”
Our opening question in our conversation (which you can see above, in its entirety, in unedited video): Why do you want this job?
Read More
CLOSURE: New hours for southbound Highway 99 shutdown this weekend
The SB Highway 99 closure for this weekend, first noted here last weekend has new hours. From WSDOT:
The contractor working for the Washington State Department of Transportation has shortened the amount of time needed for paving work this coming weekend, so the closure of southbound State Route 99 through Seattle will start a little later and end a little earlier. The southbound viaduct will close at 11:59 (pm) Friday, Sept. 14 and run through 11:59 (pm) Sunday, Sept. 16.
Southbound SR 99 will be closed between the south end of the Battery Street Tunnel and South Spokane Street so crews can pour concrete near Atlantic Street. This will help advance some of the work needed to open the new SR 99 tunnel.
Looking ahead: Before the new SR 99 tunnel can open, WSDOT will have to close the viaduct for approximately three weeks. The lengthy closure is unavoidable as it is the only way crews can #realign99 into the tunnel and complete eight new entrance and exit ramps.
WSDOT does not yet have a date for the start of the three-week closure, but will give a minimum of one month’s advance notice to help travelers plan ahead as much as possible.
Back to this weekend – WSDOT has just postponed plans for lane/ramp closures on NB I-5. But the 99 work is still on as of right now.
DEVELOPMENT: Microapartments proposed for Junction 7-11 site
(King County Assessor website photo)
Thanks to Scott for spotting this early-stage proposal in city files: We reported back in late July that the Junction 7-11 site (4800 Erskine Way) was for sale. No sale on record yet, but now there’s a redevelopment proposal, summarized on the city website as “a six-story apartment building with approximately 65 small efficiency dwelling units. No parking provided.” The site plan shows prolific Blueprint Capital, headquartered a few blocks north, as the prospective developer, with Cone Architecture designing the project. Again, this is an early-stage proposal, so there’s no formal application yet, and official comment periods are some ways out.
Bring diapers to Holy Rosary School’s WestFest ‘carnival of community’ Friday and Saturday
Your next chance to help WestSide Baby amass diapers for local babies/toddlers in need is just days away. This year Holy Rosary School is holding a diaper drive throughout its WestFest festival – 6-10 pm Friday, 10 am-10 pm Saturday at the school, off SW Genesee north of 42nd SW. From organizers:
Did you know you can’t use food stamps to buy diapers and most day cares require you bring your own? An undiapered child is a health and safety concern that affects our entire community. That’s why we’re holding a diaper drive in support of WestSide Baby.
You’ll find collection bins all around the festival grounds. (Not familiar with WS Baby? Here’s what they do.) While you’re there, enjoy WestFest – games, rides, entertainment, food!
Camping updates: Myers Way cleanup promised; Delridge hillside encampment
Two camping-related updates:
MYERS WAY CLEANUP: As mentioned here in this report last Sunday, parking and dumping along Myers Way has been on the rise again. Last night, while at the Fauntleroy Community Association meeting to discuss other topics, Southwest Precinct Operations Lt. Steve Strand said a big cleanup of the area is planned in the next few weeks, with “heavy equipment” already booked. We’re checking with the city’s homelessness-related-info point person to see if we can find out more.
DELRIDGE HILLSIDE ENCAMPMENT: A nearby resident e-mailed us about an encampment growing on a hillside off Croft Place, upslope from Louisa Boren STEM K-8. County records suggest the camping is on school property, which stretches upslope to the side of the road. We asked Seattle Public Schools about their policy regarding camping on school property and how to report it. Spokesperson Carri Campbell says, “Encampments are not allowed on our property … when the district becomes aware we follow our regular procedure; our safety and security office report it to SPD.” Here’s how to report camping on school grounds, Campbell says: “Please report directly to the district’s safety and security office, 206-252-0707 or securityoff@seattleschools.org.”
You can help, quickly! West Seattle Helpline’s up for something big
While people bicker over what should be done to alleviate homelessness, you don’t hear as much about people working to prevent it. That’s a big part of what the West Seattle Helpline does – emergency assistance to help people stay in their homes. Every dollar counts toward that work, and that’s why the Helpline is so excited about being in the HomeStreet Bank (WSB sponsor) Vote Your Heart final three – they’re guaranteed to get at least $3,000 from HomeStreet, but if they get enough votes, that could grow to as much as $10,000. Take a moment and vote by going here. (You’ll be asked for your email address but it will not be shared nor used for marketing – it’s just used to enforce one vote per person.) Voting continues until September 23rd, but go get yours in now.
TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Wednesday watch; alerts ahead
(SDOT MAP with travel times/video links; is the ‘low bridge’ closed? LOOK HERE)
7:29 AM: Getting a late start on the traffic report because other news has been breaking. We start with word of a stalled semitruck blocking a lane on NB I-5 on the south end of downtown, so if you’re headed for 5, be forewarned.
WATER TAXI: The smaller Spirit of Kingston continues on the West Seattle run, per WT alert, until this evening.
STADIUM ZONE: Mariners host the Padres at (corrected) 3:40 pm.
99 CLOSURE REMINDER: Remember that southbound Highway 99 is scheduled to close between the Battery St. Tunnel and West Seattle Bridge from late Friday night until early Monday.
ALKI ALERT FOR SUNDAY MORNING: The Cosmo 7K run on Sunday morning will close Alki Avenue for a while. The run starts at 9:30 am.
7:38 AM: Transit alert from Metro:
8:31 AM: Now reporting “live” from bridge traffic while headed on an errand. More backed up than usual from the Fauntleroy end (at least compared to our other departures in the same timeframe) – the near-stop started close to the bridge entrance.
8:51 AM: 20 minutes to cross the bridge to the I-5 exit. Things moved a bit faster starting around the crest.
New sixgill shark mystery, and how you can help Diver Laura sleuth it
“Diver Laura” James needs some research help. She’s looking into recent sixgill-shark strandings around Puget Sound – at least five confirmed in the past few months, she says. One happened recently near Alki Point Lighthouse, but “the tide came in and washed the carcass away before the scientists could get to it.”
What you see above is the remains of a six-gill found stranded in Sequim with a mesh crab-bait bag clearly visible. Laura says they want to check other strandings for something similar.
So if you happen onto a stranded/dead shark, she requests that you get in contact with her. Even better – take a picture and send it with the location. Better still, grab and freeze a tissue sample. She adds, “I’m also very interested in any old carcasses that might be around, as I can still get a DNA sample from them.” Laura is reachable at info@diverlaura.com.
P.S. Not familiar with six-gills? Laura points us to this:
Police searching for missing person in West Seattle
8:34 PM: From SPD via Twitter:
The Guardian One helicopter is currently over Lincoln Park and we believe it’s related (added – or a different missing-person case for which no alert has been issued so far).
8:37 PM: The helicopter’s moved on to another incident by the bridge.
VIDEO: Conversation with 34th District State Senate candidate Shannon Braddock
EDITOR’S NOTE: A month has passed since the August primary, and general-election voting is a little more than a month away. Our election coverage continues with a closeup look at both candidates running for the open 34th District State Senate seat. We interviewed Shannon Braddock and Joe Nguyen separately before Labor Day, and are presenting the stories tonight and tomorrow.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Of the 11 candidates who were on the primary-election ballot for the 34th District State Senate seat, Shannon Braddock was the only one who had run for office before.
Three years ago, she finished a very close second in the first-ever District 1 City Council election, losing to Lisa Herbold by just 39 votes.
Now, Braddock is campaigning again, this time to represent a larger area – the 34th Legislative District, which includes West Seattle (where she lives), Vashon and Maury Islands, White Center and part of the rest of North Highline, and part of Burien. Its senator is one of three legislators for the district; the two State House Reps., Eileen Cody and Joe Fitzgibbon, both ran for re-election this year, both unopposed. Sen. Sharon Nelson, the outgoing Senate Majority Leader, chose to retire.
Why does Braddock want the job? was our opening question when we sat down to talk at Fauntleroy Schoolhouse. (You can see and hear our entire conversation, unedited, in the video above.)
Read More
UPDATE: Seattle Fire full response in 6000 block of Lanham
6:03 PM: A “full response” from Seattle Fire is arriving in High Point, at an apartment building in the 6000 block of Lanham [map]. More to come.
6:06 PM: Firefighters say it’s a kitchen fire; they’ll be ventilating.
6:19 PM: Added a photo from our crew at the scene, where they’ve confirmed the fire’s out. No one hurt.
BIZNOTE: Spa Phoebe opens, with three upcoming opportunities to visit
Another of the new businesses on the ground floor of the 4801 Fauntleroy Apartments (WSB sponsor) is open. Proprietor Phoebe Lind sent word that she is planning three open houses for her newly opened Spa Phoebe. For starters, she is open by appointment only, offering “massage (Swedish, Treatment/Sports, Prenatal, and Oncology), manual lymph drainage, facials, waxing/tinting, body scrubs/wraps, infrared treatments, and detox foot soaks.” She also has Franklin the therapy dog on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays (other days by request). Her drop-in open houses are planned for Saturday, September 15th from 7-9 pm, Saturday September 22nd from 3-6 pm, and Tuesday, September 25th, from 5-8 pm.
West Seattle Crime Watch, bicycle edition: 3 stolen, 2 found
Five bicycles in this West Seattle Crime Watch roundup:
THREE BIKES STOLEN: Emily hopes you will be on the lookout for three bicycles stolen from her in the 4400 block of 46th SW:
1. Giant Intrigue
2. Giant Trance X1
3. Felt ZW95
The frames are all light-colored. SPD incident # is 2018-338047.
FOUND IN LINCOLN PARK: Lorraine sent the photo:
She saw the bicycle in “a small clearing 100 yards north of south parking lot, next to large fallen tree, also very close to Fauntleroy Way.”
PREVIOUSLY FOUND, NOW WITH PHOTO: We mentioned before that Diane had foun a FELT Z80, blue with white handles, in the bushes near her house. Now, she has a photo:
If thieves take your bicycle – and/or anything else – please be sure to file a police report, to increase the chance of a reunion if someone finds it! Then let us know too.
DEVELOPMENT: Transitional Resources proceeding with SW Yancy project; 3014 SW Charlestown; 5917 California SW
Three (re)development notes:
TRANSITIONAL RESOURCES PROJECT PROCEEDING: We first reported back in February that nonprofit Transitional Resources had an early-stage proposal to replace three houses in the 2800 block of SW Yancy with more than 40 microapartments. TR CEO Darcell Slovek-Walker has an update on the project, which has the official address 2821 SW Yancy: “Transitional Resources will soon be submitting funding applications to develop up to 44 studio units in two buildings (three stories each) that closely mirrors surrounding development scale. The buildings will have a single common entry with staffing 24 hours per day/7 days per week. Like our other projects, this housing will serve adults in need of behavioral health treatment and support to live independently in permanent housing.” Currently TR provides housing for 85 people in what Slovek-Walker describes as “a mix of owned and leased properties,” including buildings on SW Avalon Way near this site.
5 UNITS FOR 3014 CHARLESTOWN SW: Also in the Luna Park area, this site is proposed for four townhouses and one live-work unit, with four off-street-parking spaces. It will go through the Streamlined Design Review process; watch here for the comment period and design documents. The century-old house on the site, sold for $825,000 in May, will be demolished.
DEMOLITION SOON FOR 5917 CALIFORNIA: A demolition permit has been issued for the boarded-up Charmann Apartments, with a long history of complaints.
We reported back in February that an early-stage plan was in city files for eight townhouses at the site; that appears to still be the plan, making its way through the system. The property was sold in July for $1.3 million.
ELECTION 2018: 34th District State Senate campaign revs up with Wednesday debate
The hottest local race on the November ballot, 34th District State Senator, is revving up. Tomorrow night (Wednesday, September 12th), candidates Joe Nguyen and Shannon Braddock will debate at the monthly meeting of the 34th District Democrats, who endorsed both before the 11-candidate August primary. According to an advisory from the Nguyen campaign, it will be a “Lincoln-Douglas style debate,” not the standard Q&A forum; the advisory explains, “Lincoln Douglas style debates are similar to the format used in high school debate competitions. Candidates will have the opportunity to cross examine one another and respond to claims made during the debate.” The 34th DDs’ meeting starts at 7 pm Wednesday at The Hall at Fauntleroy (9131 California SW).
P.S. We recently interviewed both candidates, recording a half-hour conversation with each one, and will be publishing those stories – text with video – here on WSB tonight and tomorrow.
We’ve shared news of many kinds of school fundraisers – but this is the first time we can recall one involving mattresses. It’s set for this Saturday (September 15th) at
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