September 2009

The Puyallup Vikings (5-1) volleyball team met the Todd Beamer Titans (3-2) in a conference match held at TBHS last Wednesday, Sept. 23. The match featured young talent on both sides of the net.

Sophomore heavy hitter, 6-4 Megan Stumpf, the outside hitter and middle blocker for the Titans, found her role that night being primarily in the middle of the net. She faced the onslaught of attacks from a dominant Viking team. Senior hitter, Alex Lavorato, and sophomore sensation, Allie Schumacher, were relentless. Puyallup finished the match with three straight wins (25-15, 25-8, 25-12).

Puyallup ead coach Tony Batinovich, in his 23rd year, feels he has another strong team. “Success gives purpose. We are young in spots, but with good senior leadership skill prevails,” says coach Batinovich.

His team was very quick and the Beamer Titans had a hard time finding open spots. Viking setter, Ariel Fralick, was a main reason for this.
“Dig or die,” she responds. “We are not just one person. We trust the coach and work together. It’s a team,” she adds. Fralick had 28 assists which fed Lavorato and Schumacher for six kills each.

Indoor tennis and outdoor model-aircraft flying are among the new activities coming to SeaTac parks following action by SeaTac lawmakers on Sept. 22.

Council members approved a plan to build a 12-court indoor tennis facility on a baseball field at Valley Ridge Park.

The Tennis Outreach Program would manage the facility. Parks director Kit Ledbetter said the facility could provide lessons for up to 192 at-risk youth per day.

Valley Ridge is located next to the Tyee High educational complex and Chinook Middle School. Bow Lake Elementary is also nearby.

With the three schools and a new YMCA building opening to the general public on Saturday, that stretch along South 188th Street could become "SeaTac's athletic corridor," council members were told.

Lawmakers also approved a one-year trial period that would allow electric-powered model aircraft to be flown at the former Riverton Heights school site.

The aircraft, called park flyers, weigh two pounds or less.

Ledbetter noted the Federal Aviation Administration has given approval for the model flights near Sea-Tac International Airport. The planes fly at 400 feet or less, according to Ledbetter.

SeaTac lawmakers decided Sept. 22 to authorize the possible condemnation of a park 'n fly lot next to the SeaTac City Center/Sea-Tac Airport light rail station in order to build a public parking garage.

James and Doris Cassan have operated the rental car and parking facility at 17400 International Boulevard for almost 50 years.

The eminent domain action declares the property is needed for a public use and authorizes city attorney Mary Mirante Bartolo to file a petition for condemnation in King County Superior Court, if deemed necessary.

In testimony before the council, James Cassan said SeaTac officials have offered $8.6 million for the property. Cassan said the offer is about $2 million less than the Cassans paid for the property about two years ago when they converted a long-term lease into a full ownership interest.

Assistant City Manager Todd Cutts said the offer equals the property's appraised value.

Dennis Dunphy, an attorney for the Cassans, warned lawmakers that Washington state courts ban the condemnation of private property for economic development.

Thanks to Hannah Cross-Karras' first goal of the season, the Ballard High School girls soccer team avoided a conference loss to Newport Sept. 25.

Newport (0-1-1 conference, 1-2-4 overall) scored first with a goal in the 35th minute. Cross-Karras salvaged the tie in the 69th minute with an unassisted score.

Ballard is 1-0-1 in conference play and 2-3-2 overall.

The Beavers take on a tough opponent in Skyline (2-0-0 conference, 6-1-0 overall) at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 29 at Ingraham High School.

Fans hoping the Beavers could turn around a darkening football season when conference play started Sept. 25 against Inglemoor will have to wait at least another week for something positive.

The Ballard High School football team dropped its conference-opener 35-0 to Inglemoor (2-2).

The Beavers are 0-4 on the year and have been shutout three times. They have been outscored 160-12.

Ballard, which is coming off a 1-8 season, has four games remaining to turn things around.

But, things won't get any easier for the Beavers. They have a match up with Bothell looming at 7 p.m. on Oct. 1 at Memorial Stadium.

Bothell is 4-0 and coming off a 60-0 dismantling of Lake Washington.

Council member Tim Burgess, chair of the city council’s Public Safety, Human Services and Education Committee said that he would urge the council to continue funding innovative crime prevention programs as it has since 2006.

The council established the Court Specialized Treatment and Access to Recovery Services (CO-STARS), Get Off The Streets (GOTS), and Communities Uniting Rainier Beach (CURB) programs to reduce street crime by providing services to individuals with a history of chronic criminal offending or who are at risk to offend due to homelessness, chemical dependency or mental illness.

University of Washington Professor Steve Herbert and a team of researchers recently completed an independent evaluation of the programs. Overall, jail bookings among CO-STARS clients fell 30 percent after program entry, among GOTS clients bookings dropped 26 percent, while bookings of CURB clients increased 11 percent.

Delancey
1415 N.W. 70th St., 838-1960
Wednesday - Sunday 5 - 10 p.m.

Delancey's pizza is a labor of love chronicled on the owner's, Molly Wizenberg, award-winning food blog, Orangette.

For several weeks they've been inventing, conceiving, tweaking, experimenting, adding, subtracting and polishing. Intriguing from the beginning, Delancey continues to fascinate us.

Local ingredients are key here, and they know the guys who grind their flour (Shepherd's Grain, an alliance of Pacific Northwest farmers).

Most among us have a personal relationship with pizza. The Ballard Food Police remember our first taste -- at Shakey's in Salem, Ore. The crisp crust, the flavor of the tomato sauce (with spices mom didn't use at home) combined with melted cheese, the novelty of pepperoni -- heavenly.

Passengers cruise toward Alki and the Duwamish River on an Argosy boat.

The annual Duwamish River 101 Tour departed Pier 66 at Bell Harbor Marina Wednesday, Sept. 23. The tour was part of the Port of Seattle's 101 series.

The two-and-a-half hour cruise on the Argosy's Lady Mary took 166 passengers across the calm Elliott Bay and up the Duwamish River just beyond the First Avenue Bridge to highlight potential future green habitat sites amid industrial sites that pollute the waterway daily.

Tour guides also pointed out companies and sites they deem "the offenders," including a business with a large riverfront lot that grinds cars down for their metal. They are recycling, yes, but where does the gas, oil and rubber go?

Tour sponsors included the Environmental Protection Agency, Duwamish River Clean Up Coalition, Environmental Coalition of South Seattle, and the Muckleshoot Tribe.

Seattle Parks and Recreation invites the community to a flea market at Ballard Community Center, 6020 28th Ave. N.W., on Saturday, Oct. 3, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

There will be 15 vendors selling a variety of new and/or gently used items. Proceeds from the event will be used to pay for 4-H enrollment fees for low income youth and purchase supplies for the 4-H program.

More than six million youth throughout the United States participate in 4-H, which centers on four-fold learning: head, heart, hands and health.

The program empowers youth to reach their full potential, working and learning in partnership with caring adults. Participants in the Ballard 4-H Club explore nature, the environment, and government; get involved in the community; and develop valuable life skills.