March 2009

The volunteer organization Habitat for Humanity is currently building eight new housing units in High Point. Twenty-six volunteers, if you include Mayor Greg Nickels, were on site.

"We're in tough times right now, and I think there is a real basic urge to try to reach out and help each other," said the mayor, sporting a hard hat and grasping a crowbar. "I ask that people go to my Web site and see 'Call for volunteers.' That may be picking up a hammer, working with senior citizens or at a food bank. Get connected to get through these tough times. I was at Family Services of King County's Baby Boutique, sorting baby clothes, which has been a long time for me."

"The eight units, on what we now call 'Block 26,' will be two single family houses, one at each end, and three duplexes in the middle," said Ben Hines, construction manager for Seattle Habitat for Humanity. "The mayor is here to highlight the importance of volunteering in our society. In this day and age we are seeing an increase in numbers of volunteers, and they're working longer hours. I think it is extremely important that people are able to donate a piece of their lives to help others."

The sky was gray but the spirit was green, as were the sweaters, buttons and headgear worn by nearly 50 guests in a cluster of three area homes partying together on St. Patrick’s Day.

The O’Brien family was first to host, with appetizers and drinks. The Wilson’s across the street served the main course, and those still with room in their bellies sauntered next door to the Lemmon’s for homemade cookies , mint chocolate chip ice cream pie and other sweets.

The three homes are on South 197th Street near Second Avenue South, in the heart of Normandy Park.

And heart they had. The gathering was bittersweet, as Patrick O’Brien, who started the tradition there five years ago, died in January of pancreatic cancer.

His wife, Donna, son Sean and daughters Kaci and Megan said they wanted to continue the tradition in the spirit of Patrick.

“This is a celebration to my dad,”Kaci Tingley said. “He brought everybody together for the sixth year now.”

Prior to moving to Normandy Park, the O’Briens lived on Southwest 51st Street in West Seattle, where this St. Patrick party tradition originated.

The Ballard and Queen Anne District Councils along with the Ballard Interbay Northend Manufacturing and Industrial Center Action Committee are co-sponsoring a community forum Monday, March 23, to discuss how the deep bored tunnel option to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct will impact and serve the northwest Seattle neighborhoods.

The forum takes place from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Ballard High School Auditorium.

In December 2008, Gov. Chris Gregoire, King County Executive Ron Sims and Mayor Greg Nickels proposed to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct with a deep bored tunnel. The proposal calls for a deep bored tunnel, and improvements to surface streets and to transit to move people and goods through Seattle.

Questions that will be discussed at Monday's forum include:

How will we access south end destinations as well as downtown Seattle?
What kind of access will we have to the northern entrance of the tunnel?
Will trucks be able to use the tunnel or will they use surface streets?
How will travel times through the corridor be affected?
Why is an economic impact study so important to decisions affecting the Alaskan Way Viaduct?

The Seattle City Council will hold a public hearing on Thursday, March 26 at 5:30 p.m. in council chambers to hear from citizens their priorities for city government, including programs and services that they would like to see preserved as the city faces a budget gap of more than $25 million.

“Designing a city budget works best when there is thoughtful and constructive input from citizens,” said council member Jean Godden, chair of the council’s budget committee. “It’s going to take all of us to make the difficult choices and steer us in the right direction."

Since the budget was passed just about three months ago, the city’s sales tax and other revenues have significantly declined and are continuing to do so. This steep drop mirrors what is happening across the country, according to the city.

As a result, the City finds itself facing an estimated budget gap of more than $25 million dollars - and growing - for 2009.

The Seattle City Council will host a panel on the state of the regional economy with local experts to discuss jobs, housing and other issues.

Monday, March 23, from 10 a.m to noon, council president Richard Conlin will chair this special edition of a council briefing titled, “The State of the Regional Economy:  A Panel Discussion Among Local Experts."

Participants will include Dick Conway, of Dick Conway and Associates; Desiree Phair, Employment Security; Eileen O'Grady, Elliott Bay Associates; Susan Greenwald, with Homestreet Bank; Dr. Stan Humphries, Zillow.

The council has established a special Economic Recovery Strategy Committee of the Whole in order to better understand existing opportunities and what local government can do to improve the regional economy. As the City develops strategies to address economic recovery opportunities in a recessionary economy and beyond, experts will discuss the jobs outlook in the region, real estate financing, mortgage lending, and capital markets.

The city is facing a $30 million cut in its general fund and city departments have been asked by Mayor Greg Nickels to make cuts by about 3 percent.

At tonight's School Board Meeting proposed improvement projects to Alki Elementary as well as Gatewood and Sanislo Elementary schools will be introduced.

Concerning Alki Elementary, the proposed contract to Western Ventures Construction, Inc., as general contractor, would amount to $596,000. The project would include reroofing and several interior renovations to the school building.

A new roofing membrane would improve student indoor air quality by preventing water from leaking inside. Worn flooring would also be replaced with new carpet and resilient composition tile. Aging HVAC equipment would be replaced or refurbished and a large single glazed window in the lunchroom would be replaced with a new double glazed window system to conserve energy.

Today, March 18, at about 4:50 a.m., North Precinct officers responded to a call of a possible burglary inprogress inside a building in the 5400 Block of Leary Ave. N.W., according to a Seattle Police report.

Witnesses called 911 to report that a man was inside the building’s secure parking garage. Officers arrived and confronted two suspects inside the lobby.

The suspect’s fled from the scene, but were chased by the officers. One suspect was caught about a block away. The other suspect continued to run.

Officers set up containment and a K-9 unit was called in. Despite the quick response by officers, the second suspect remains at large.

The arrested suspect was later booked into King County Jail for Investigation of Burglary and Investigation of VUCSA (drugs). This remains an active and on-going investigation.

The Ballard High School boys soccer team scratched out a 2-1 non-league victory over O'Dea March 17.

The Beavers are now 1-1 overall with their first league match against Roosevelt at 7:30 p.m., March 20 at Interbay Stadium.

The Ballard High School girls lacrosse team started off their debut season right with a 9-8 win over Auburn Mountainside March 17.

Coach Lise Martin said the team played the best opener she's seen from a new program.

"They were phenomenal for their first fame," Martin said. "And, I don't usually say that."

The Beavers had a balanced offensive attack with five different players scoring.

Haley Jackson had three goals for Ballard while Amanda Bryan and Maddie Soukup had two apiece. India Posner and Katie Kennedy chipped in one a piece.

Martin said the team played real lacrosse against Auburn, keeping the ball off the ground and moving it around on offense.

Ballard showed good play in the face of adversity, coming back from a 4-1 deficit in the first half, and locked down on defense when Auburn had the ball in scoring position with seconds left on the clock.

Goalie Hannah Breton, who had 13 saves, deserves credit for preserving the win, Martin said.

The girls lacrosse team faces off against Bainbridge at 5:30 p.m., March 20 at Ballard High School.

According to a release from the the King County Ombudsman, there are findings concerning the activities of King County employee Jessie Israel, a Ballard resident who is running for Seattle City Council.

The complaint was filed by a citizen on Jan. 30 and says that Israel violated sections of the King County Employee Code of Ethics, which specifically prohibit employee use of County resources for personal convenience or profit, and in election campaigns.

Israel has been an employee in the county's Department of Natural Resources and Parks since March 2003.

After a thorough investigation, the Ombudsman found reasonable cause to believe that Ms. Israel violated the Ethics Code by using county resources to promote her election campaign, according to the release.

The complaint alleges that Israel sent an email from her personal computer to the King County email addresses of fellow employees, soliciting campaign support in the form of personal endorsements, financial contributions and a request that recipients of the email forward the message to additional people.

Of the 1,800 people the email was sent to, 210 were county employees.