August 2009

Cal Wiseman turned 80 on Tuesday, Aug. 4.

The popular West Seattle icon started Wiseman's Appliance near the Admiral Junction in 1960. He moved to 4525 California Avenue in the Alaska Junction, then back to its current location at 2619 California Ave. S.W. in 1976 His son Dan then purchased his business when he retired in 1981.

Cal could be seen grinning ear to ear at his birthday party with his wife of 59 years, Joyce, their five sons, Dan, Scott, Steve, Mark, and Craig, and daughter, Paula by his side.

About 20 other family members and friends also congregated in his Harbor Avenue home, spilling out onto his balcony facing the Sound.

“Dad’s first name was Austin, and that’s my real first name,” Cal revealed. “Calvin is my middle name. So to avoid confusion people have called me Cal.”

Cal said he learned appliances from Earle (and Barb) Addis.

“Earl worked for General Electric and hired me,” Cal recalled. “Then I went into business myself. There used to be nine appliance stores in West Seattle like Penny’s and Montgomery Wards.”

Wiseman keeps active managing his properties and investments, and loves to travel.

On Monday, July 27, a large Douglas fir tree, estimated to be 45 feet high, was cut down at an apartment building on 9th Avenue Northwest. Onlooker John Faith, a 14-year Ballard resident, witnessed the incident with skepticism.

“In the neighborhood, it seemed like one of the largest trees, so that’s why it seemed kind of unusual to me,” said Faith.

Faith spoke with many of the tenants in the apartment building about it.

“They were in shock,” said Faith, “I know that others [in the apartment] weren’t informed.”

The landlord of the apartment complex, who wished to remain nameless, arranged for the tree to be taken down.

“The tree was causing problems with my building for a long time,” said the landlord, “I loved the tree, but every winter, it floods.”

According to the landlord, the tree had been causing damage for some time. Parts of the tree would fall off and build up in the gutter, causing drainage issues, especially during the high rain season.

A collision between a bicyclist and a mini cooper occurred at about 7 p.m. last night at the intersection of 14th Avenue Northwest and Northwest 58th Street. The cyclist sustained minor injuries.

The 14th Avenue Northwest Visioning Project has been working on improvements to the street for the past several years. Curb bulbs and a rain garden were installed at the same intersection of the accident last winter.

In the case of last night's collision, the bicyclist was at fault because he failed to yield to the vehicle, said Mark Jamieson, a Seattle Police spokesperson.

“The cyclist did sustain some minor injuries, an injured knee and maybe had a hurt hand or finger,”Jamieson said. “They were checked out of the hospital as a precaution."

“We’ve made improvements on 14th Avenue and 58th Street Northwest and we’ve been maintaining the vegetation in the medians,” said Dawn Hemminger, member of the steering committee and East Ballard Community Association.

Hemminger said they have also asked the Seattle Department of Transportation to move the parking on 14th Avenue Northwest and Northwest 60th Street further back to improve visibility for crossing.

(Editor's note: Dave Kannas writes a regular column for the Ballard News-Tribune's sister publication, the West Seattle Herald.)

The jungles of the Amazon can be threatening to those of us who live in Seattle. Some of us carry around the thoughts of an anaconda wrapped around our bodies as we sleep; flesh devouring ants on the march, leaving nothing but the skeletons of those unfortunate enough to be caught napping; cooling our feet in a stream and finding that we have nothing remaining from the ankle down because a small fish has seen fit to lunch on them.

Oh, the horror!

I think of these jungles as I pedal across the vast waists of Ballard, Howler monkeys screaming in the distance, the smell of rotting vegetation clogging my nose. But wait, this is Ballard, not the Amazon. So why the hallucinations?

Could it be that Ballard is known for its Aboriginal Tribes who hunt the illusive Howler disguised as bicyclists? Could it be that these Aboriginals hunt with blow guns that are tipped with poisonous darts? Could be. Or it could be just because recently there have two bicyclists attacked with blow guns while pedaling in Ballard.

The jungles of the Amazon can be threatening to those of us who live in Seattle. Some of us carry around the thoughts of an anaconda wrapped around our bodies as we sleep; flesh devouring ants on the march, leaving nothing but the skeletons of those unfortunate enough to be caught napping; cooling our feet in a stream and finding that we have nothing remaining from the ankle down because a small fish has seen fit to lunch on them.

Oh, the horror!

I think of these jungles as I pedal across the vast wastes of Ballard, Howler monkeys screaming in the distance, the smell of rotting vegetation clogging my nose. But wait, this is Ballard, not the Amazon. So why the hallucinations?

Could it be that Ballard is known for its Aboriginal Tribes who hunt the illusive Howler disguised as bicyclists? Could it be that these Aboriginals hunt with blow guns that are tipped with poisonous darts? Could be. Or it could be just because recently there have two bicyclists attacked with blow guns while pedaling in Ballard.

I just got through reading a host of candidate ratings, questionnaires, blogs and endorsements from various group's around town.  It's enough to make George Orwell (and me) laugh and cry. 

You've got groups who make up "FUSE" a self proclaimed "progressive" coalition endorsing corporate candidates like Sally Bagshaw and Jesse Israel. Both candidates, especially Bagshaw are bankrolled by downtown, Paul Allen and real estate interests. Given who they've ignored, FUSE has only demonstrated with their listing just how out of touch they are with the Seattle political scene.

Then you've got the Cascade Bicycle Club (CBC) endorsing Greg Nickels, Israel and Bagshaw simply because they blindly support Paul Allen's agenda including the Mayor's Mercer Corridor Plan. Maybe one one-hundredth of the $200 million Mercer plan will go toward bike and pedestrian improvements, the rest to pour concrete for cars and make congestion worse in that area especially for bikes.

With those dollars we could add bike lanes to every city arterial with enough left to paint the lanes in gold leaf. Yet, mysteriously, to these folks, it's a litmus test.  

The Dream: Taking my kids downtown to peruse Pike Place Market, window shop along Fifth Avenue, and then having an elegant dinner.

The Reality: My kids act like bats out of hell downtown and it’s 95 degrees outside. I don’t even think about chasing them for fear of passing out due to heat exhaustion. They leave a pile of tourists, homeless people and a few elderly in their wake. When not apologizing profusely and picking old ladies off of the ground, I try to keep on eye on my kids so they don’t get run over by downtown rush-hour traffic. Within 20 minutes of my supposedly sweet and relaxing fantasy, I am staring longingly into every bar I pass. And it’s not merely for the air conditioning.

The Dream: Downtown restaurants are kid friendly.

This month, one of Ballard’s most venerable music venues hits the 15-year mark.

The Tractor Tavern on Ballard Avenue is the kind of venue that seems timeless. It may as well have been around for 30 years.

Its country-western decor belies the fact that over the years, the Tractor has played host to a wide range of the best music the city, and the world, has to offer.

The Drive-By Truckers, John Wesley Harding, the Supersuckers, and Emmylou Harris have all played there. But, so have many young local bands trying to make a name for themselves.

The venue even hosts a twice-monthly square dance.

Dita Vox, lead singer of Seattle band Thee Emergency, said the Tractor always has great shows. And, Mike Jaworski, of the now defunct Cops, said the venue represents Ballard well.

The Tractor will celebrate its 15th anniversary with three shows headlined by local country-rock band the Maldives.

The Seattle Times says the Maldives “create a gripping sound, drifting between alt-country and Crazy Horse-era Neil Young.”

The Seattle City Council Aug. 3 unanimously passed two measures aimed at improving the management of the city’s trees and strengthening protections to ensure the health, quality, and overall coverage of Seattle’s tree canopy.

Resolution 31138 asks the Department of Planning and Development to write a new tree protection ordinance. It outlines specific policy initiatives that the council believes critical to successful urban forest management.

Council Bill 116557 establishes a nine-member Urban Forestry Commission to advise the mayor and council and help educate the public on urban forestry issues.

"Our urban trees are an incredibly valuable resource -- and we must act if we want to keep them,” said Council President Richard Conlin. “The review by the City Auditor told us that the city must improve our system for protecting and managing trees.  We need updated code that recognizes the economic, environmental, and social values that trees offer."

Some considered the old Lien Animal Clinic a West Seattle landmark. Today it was demolished. Behind the 3710 SW Alaska St. location just to the north is the new clinic, half again as large, with the latest equipment.

A parking lot will be placed where the old clinic stood.

"We're very excited about the new place, but it's really sad to watch the demolition," said veterinarian Tim Kraabel who owns Lien Animal clinic with his wife, Elizabeth Fritzler, who also practices there.

"We practiced a lot of good medicine in this (older) facility," he said. "It outlived its usefulness. Our new facility is a lot more modern and thought out."

Kraabel bought the clinic in 1999 from Larry King.

"I worked for Larry, then he worked for me when he was semi-retired," said Kraabel. William Lien, now retired, owned it before that, in 1951.

"I worked here for about 10 years, right in that office," said a melancholy Verna Lumbert, pointing to a chunk of cinderblock, plaster, and wood cascading down after a one-two punch from the demolition truck's wide-open jaws.