January 2010

UNIVERSITY PLACE - Deadly three-point shooting by Curtis dropped a game and constantly battling Decatur boys basketball team 80-75 in a South Puget Sound League Southern Division boys basketball collision at Curtis Junior High in front of a packed house.

After the battle had ended, the Class 4A third state ranked Vikings (12-1 league, 16-1 overall) were within one win of the divison title while the Gators proved they can play with the best despite falling to 9-4 and 11-6. Beamer and Puyallup both stand at 9-3 in the contest for the second place playoff position.

"We played hard, we battled and I'm proud of our guys' efforts," Decatur head coach Kevin Olson declared. "(Curtis) is a really good team, and there is a reason why they are going to win the South Division. We need to execute better and make better use of our opportunities."

Good shooting overall and good ball handling kept the game at a high level of play. Decatur only turned the ball over seven times to the 12 of Curtis and also pounded the boards for a 30-26 advantage. The Vikings' 6-of-12 from three-point land turned into the key factor.

The City of Federal Way Independent Salary Commission has established the
following 2010 Salary Schedule for the Elected Mayor. Pursuant to Federal Way
Revised Code 2.80.070, the 2010 Salary Schedule for the elected Mayor will
become effective upon certification of the election of the Mayor and the Mayor’s assumption of office.

Elected Mayor’s monthly salary: $9,400.00

Elected Mayor’s benefits: Same as non-represented employees except that the vacation schedule will be equivalent to the schedule for department directors.

The schedule of salaries will be subject to referendum in the same manner as a
city ordinance. As required by law, a referendum petition must be filed with the
City Clerk within thirty (30) days from the salary schedule’s official filing date.

If a valid referendum petition is filed, the salary increase or decrease will not go into effect unless approved at the referendum election.

Carol McNeilly, CMC
City Clerk

The West Seattle Golf Course is receiving a Customer Loyalty Award from the National Golf Foundation (NGF) in its 8th annual presentation of the awards. NGF will present the awards at the Golf Industry Show in San Diego, Calif., on February 10-11, 2010.
Customer Loyalty Awards are based on surveys fielded through NGF's Voice of Golfer Program to honor facilities with the highest customer loyalty scores and most improved facilities, as well as multi-course operators.

The Voice of Customer Operating Model (VOCOM) NGF uses enables facilities to analyze and monitor customer preferences, which in turn enables operators to provide better service.

West Seattle Golf was recognized in the “Value Category” of courses where rounds cost $40 or less, and was runner-up to Lake Spanaway Golf Course in Tacoma, also managed by Premier Golf.

After a close game, first-place Eastlake was able to close out against the Ballard High School boys basketball team for a 71-63 victory Jan. 26.

The Beavers played back from a seven point first-quarter deficit and went into the fourth quarter trailing by only one, but the team couldn't complete the comeback.

Ballard coach Billy Rodgers said he thought his team defended well for the most part but needs to do the little things – rebounding, taking care of the ball, making easy shots – to be successful.

Late-game turnovers and fouls allowed Eastlake to pull away in the end, Rodgers said.

Junior Salim Gloyd led Ballard with 21 points. Senior Kyler Korsmo had 10.

With five games left, the Beavers are in eighth-place in KingCo with a 4-7 conference record and a 5-10 overall record. The top eight teams make the playoffs.

Ballard's next game is at 8 p.m. on Jan. 29 at Ballard High School against Lake Washington.

Lake Washington handed the Beavers their worst loss of the season, 72-49, on Dec. 11.

The Whitman Middle School girls basketball team is on the verge of wrapping up a perfect regular season, its second in a row, heading into the playoffs.

The Wildcats finish up the regular season with a crossover game against TOPS at 3 p.m. on Jan. 28 at Whitman that will not count toward the final seedings for the playoffs.

Whitman made it to the city championship game last season. Seven of 12 girls on Whitman's roster this year were on that team.

Coach Mary Williams said that experience helped the team have the success it has.

She said the great programs and great coaches the players have had before coming to Whitman has been a huge factor too.

Players are coming in with great skill sets to go along with height and speed, she said.

She said this is one of the first teams she has coached where the players really push each other during practice, playing like they are in a game.

Williams said one of her goals coming into the season was to make the Whitman Wildcats a special team for the players, many of whom also play in recreation leagues and on club teams.

With the help of Port Townsend artist Thaddeus Jurczynski and the Artist in Residence program, Loyal Heights Elementary School students will soon be in control of an army of hellhounds, serpents, squirrels, ice giants and other figures from Norse mythology.

For this year's program, third, fourth and fifth-grade classes are working with Jurczynski to create giant puppets to be part of the annual Syttende Mai parade May 17 in Ballard. First and second-graders are creating troll masks for the parade.

To create the puppets, many of which are large enough to fit at least one student inside them, reeds and bamboo are formed into a skeleton and covered with paper mache.

After research at the Nordic Heritage Museum, students drew two-dimensional representations of their creatures and used math and science to turn them into three-dimensional models, said Lauren Molloy-Johnson, co-chair of the Artist in Residence program.

Debi Mandell, a fifth-grade teacher at Loyal Heights, said the puppet project is a way for students to put the geometry skills they are learning to use, and because it is a hands-on activity, the students remain more focused than usual.

About two dozen friends and family gathered Jan. 22 where 28th Avenue Northwest meets the water to say goodbye to longtime Ballard resident Anna Moore.

Moore's body was found in the water near McGinnis Marina Jan. 18 in what police are calling an accidental death. She was 42.

Phyllis Delorme met Moore 15 years ago at the Ballard Food Bank. She said Moore, the mother of four children, lived most of her life in Ballard after moving here from Alaska.

Delorme said Moore was epileptic, which may have led to her accident.

Despite spending much of her life cold, homeless and looking for shelter, Moore always had a smile on her face, Delorme said.

"She was a kind, quiet, wonderful lady," said Emma Starrsh, Moore's cousin. "I'm going to miss her a lot.

The other memorial attendees had fond memories of Moore, whether they had known her for years or just a few months.

"She never harmed a person," one man said. "People harmed her more than anything."

"We all loved her," said another attendee.

At the memorial service, mourners released balloons, threw roses and pinches of tobacco into the water, and burned sage.

As expected, SeaTac lawmakers rescinded Tuesday night, a controversial condemnation proceeding against a parking lot next to the airport light-rail station.

The action passed on a voice vote. Former Mayor Ralph Shape, who blocked the action two weeks ago, did not speak during debate on the motion by Deputy Mayor Gene Fisher.

The original condemnation received national and regional attention from property rights advocates. Property rights groups attended the Jan. 26 council meeting to photograph and record their victory.

Scott Roberts from the Evergreen Freedom Foundation urged the council to rescind the eminent domain action.
Newly-elected SeaTac Councilman Rick Forschler spoke against his city's eminent domain action at a recent forum in Houston. Mayor Terry Anderson complained that newspaper headlines from the Houston forum painted SeaTac in an unfavorable light. Forschler said he had attended property rights meetings before he was elected to the council and would continue to do so.

The totem pole stolen from Rotary Viewpoint Park on Dec. 1st and recovered near Salem, Oregon last month is back in West Seattle and members of the West Seattle Rotary Club paid it a visit on Tuesday. It's being stored at the Seattle Parks and Recreation facility on West Marginal Way, kept dry and waiting for restoration.

The pole was not apparently damaged during the theft. Bud Connaughton, Carpenter Crew Chief for Seattle Parks and Recreation was on hand and said, "I'm surprised they were able to lift it out of there without breaking the totem pole itself."

Rotary Club past president Josh Sutton said, "We're filing some reports with Parks and Rec. and we should have some answers in the next few weeks as to the E.T.A. (the restoration and reinstallation) is but we don't have anything right now. Parks doesn't have any money, we're trying to help secure some of that and we've got some information about restoring the pole. Parks owns the pole and we don't know anything about prosecution. That's really what we know. We just wanted to take a look today at our baby and she looks like she's in good shape."

When the Washington Department of Transportation dropped the bomb Jan. 19 about charging up to a $5 toll to commute one way through the proposed Deep Bore Tunnel project, some West Seattle residents and realtors became concerned that this price tag, added to the melee of construction around the West Seattle Bridge, is layering obstacle upon obstacle for potential commuters and home buyers here to reach downtown Seattle.

“When I think ‘toll’ I think 80- cents or a dollar,” said Jessica Lander, an Arbor Heights resident who commutes three times a week to visit her grandmother in Ballard. “They expect me to spend 10 bucks each visit? No way.”

Richard Conlin, Seattle City Council president, told the West Seattle Herald that the tunnel toll idea “has been around for about a year,” but acknowledged that he was surprised by the $5 amount, and will work to get that figure down.