July 2007

Redondo Square Shopping Center is home to Des Moines' new south police station, thanks to the combined efforts of city officials, business leaders, community members and the police department.

Police Chief Roger Baker said last week that when prostitution, drugs and violence began to center around Redondo Square in south Des Moines, businesses there turned to the department for help.

At that point, the Joshua Green Corporation, a property management company located in Redondo Square, stepped forward to offer a public/private partnership that city officials couldn't refuse

Highline resident Bruce R. Kennedy, a former chief executive officer of Alaska Airlines, was killed on June 28 when his single-engine plane crashed near Wenatchee.

The Cessna 182 crashed and burned while trying to land in a Cashmere school yard around 7 p.m., according to the Chelan County Sheriff's Office.

Kennedy, 68, died at the scene.

SeaTac City Council members finally decided on June 26 to formally ask Tukwila officials if that city wants to study merging fire services.

"We've already run this by the (Tukwila) council and they've already said yes," Tukwila Mayor Steve Mullet reported in a Times/News interview.

Both councils would have to approve the consulting firm, scope of work and cost of the study.

Mullet estimated each city would contribute $20,000.

"That is an acceptable ballpark for us," Mullet added.

With gang activity increasing in the Pacific Ridge neighborhood of Des Moines and a police force stretched thin by funding cuts, Police Chief Roger Baker realized that he needed help.

This year alone there have been eight gang-related shootings along Pacific Highway South in the area around South 216th Street.

Baker's request for assistance resulted in a six-month investigation by a task force of seven local, state and federal law enforcement agencies into criminal activity in this neighborhood, including 71 officer operations.

Their efforts culminated on June

Today is America's 231st birthday, and a lot of celebrating will be going on in Highline communities.

Here's a look at what's happening.

Burien

The Fourth of July Family Days begins at 10 a.m. and continues until 8 p.m.

The downtown celebration along Southwest 152nd Street at Sixth Avenue Southwest, will feature bicycle races, kid's games, entertainment for all ages, arts and crafts booths, and food vendors.

The 84th annual Burien Independence Day Parade will loop around Southwest 152nd and 153rd streets beginning at 3 p.m.

Early roads to Burien were not much more than wagon tracks. Automobiles were expensive and scarce. Public transportation was important.

The trolley car that ran from Seattle to Burien is what opened this area to development. The rails coming through a heavily forested area terminated in Seahurst.

A proper centerpiece for Town Square should represent this history. My proposal for this is a stainless steel tree with openings and stainless steel wires so that when the wind blows, one might be reminded of the sounds of the forest.

This is a thank you letter about some valuable volunteers, starting with Dan Satterberg, King County's acting prosecuting attorney.

Many public figures show up at charity events, make speeches, and then leave. As a graduate of Highline High School, Dan came to the June 23 Relay for Life of Highline cancer fundraiser at Highline Memorial Stadium.

He gave a short and very personal, moving speech about the importance of supporting cancer research. He thanked us for our volunteer work.

I remain concerned about the fate of the Lora Lake apartment in Burien. I worry about the domino effect of losing workforce housing when our affordable housing stock is so critically low in King County. We have 8,300 homeless on any given night-thereby competing for these limited units.

When I shop at Trader Joe's or drive by parts of SR 509, I often see individuals who are homeless and in need of housing.

Editor's note: The following letter was written to Frank Blethen, publisher of the Seattle Times.

Dear Mr. Blethen,

One day just a few years ago I was in my office in the 600 block of S.W. 152nd in Burien when I heard a roar from a plane so loud it brought people out into the street.

The cause? A Russian jet tried to land on Highway 509, a half mile west of Lora Lake.

Plenty of hot and heavy political maneuvering had this city spinning on its earthly election axis from 2001 to 2005.

Now peace passes understanding when not one soul challenged this year's incumbent Des Moines City Council candidates-Mayor Bob Sheckler, Mayor Pro Tem Scott Thomasson, and Councilman Dan Sherman.

Why?

Guesses are: "Things are going smooth, don't rock the boat ... Never change horses in the middle of the stream ...