July 2010

The Seafair Pirates burried treasure on Alki Beach was in jeopardy of being stolen by King Neptune’s minions. Just when all hope seemed lost, a young pirate's apprentice by the name of Joseph Rackham of Ellensburg, Washington arrived on the beach accompanied by a Seattle Police motorcycle escort amid sirens and horns.

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His skill as a swordsman was put to the test, and in an historic battle he defeated the blue clad army of King Neptune and saved the treasure.

For his bravery and courage he was awarded the highest honor that can be bestowed by the great Seafair Pirates….To be made a ship mate, a brethren of the high seas, A Pirate!

And so it was on July 9th 2010, Joseph Rackham became Happy Jack the Pirate with many thanks to the Make A Wish Foundation, The City of Seattle, in recognition of his derring do declared July 9th "Happy Jack Rackham Day."

So impressed with Happy Jack’s bravery even the defeated minions cheered his triumphant ascension.

For Lori Ann Reinhall and Jim Nelson, Scandinavian culture is an integral part of who they are. Despite growing up thousands of miles away from each other, these grandchildren of Scandinavian immigrants share a love of that culture's music that reconnected them after a quarter of a century.

"It's sort of in our blood, so to speak," Reinhall said.

Growing up in Seattle, Reinhall heard Swedish spoken around the house and studied music, including the old Scandinavian-American cliche – the accordion.

Nelson grew up in Wisconsin. He learned to speak Norwegian at 6 and became a professional musician when he was 14.

When he was young, Nelson's father would take him to the river and teach him how to make willow flutes. He now plays more than a dozen folk instruments, and said it is in his nature to learn instruments and play music.

"The driving force for me has been the phrase, 'Know Thyself,'" Nelson said. "For me, it would be denying myself part of who I am [to not play music]."

The West Seattle Herald took a stroll through the 2010 edition of the West Seattle Summer Fest on Friday and went looking for booths or attractions that are worth your time to seek out. Out of the 170 vendors at this year's event we think these are noteworthy:

Uzura- Featuring eco-friendly hemp and organic products like shirts and bags. Talk to Shino.

Revival Ink: Featuring Bamboo fabric T-shirts, skirts, dresses and bags. Speak to Tara Smith

West Seattle Natural Energy: Solar hot water heaters and vertical axis wind turbines. Talk to Amy Beaudoin.

B(earth): Features organic baby clothes, with water based inks. Talk to Luke Wilson or Nathanial Duris.

NCompass Construction: This West Seattle Company makes backyard cottages (and has been doing remodeling for the last eight years here). Talk to Drew Foster.

Fresh Bistro: The restaurant has a booth featuring a "Guess the herb" contest with $10,000 in prizes. They are sharing space with the Mural Apartments. Talk to Rocky Friesz or Eliott Peacock.

The Port of Seattle is reminding area residents the center runway of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport will be closed for concrete panel replacement from July 13 to Sept. 11.
All air traffic will be directed to the outer two runways during the project. Construction work will be done during daytime hours to reduce noise impacts to area neighborhoods during the evening.

During the closure, airport neighbors may notice increased noise associated with changes in runway use. Most departures are expected to be on the runway closest to the terminal and most arrivals on the third runway.
The 60-day project will replace deteriorating concrete surface panels on the second runway to allow the continued safe operation of the runway until full reconstruction slated in 2016. The closure is scheduled to begin at 6 a.m. on Tuesday.

Approximately 150 panels will be replaced to address degradation such as cracking, spalling, and faulting which can result in concrete debris that can break loose and be hazardous to aircraft. This number represents less than four percent of the approximately 4,000 concrete panels that make up the center runway.

The economic downturn has claimed another car dealership along Burien's Auto Row.
Millennium Ford at the northeast corner of 1st Avenue South and South 146th Street has been put up for sale or lease. The dealership had stopped selling new cars but is now going out of business unless another buyer is found.

BBC Dodge and Burien Nissan, both along the 1st Avenue auto row, have gone out of business. Auto dealerships are Burien's top source of sales tax revenue.

According to an advertisement by Colliers International, "In the heart of Burien's business district, an incredible opportunity awaits.
"Former Millennium Ford's showroom, service department and body shop are offered for sale, for sale with leaseback, or for lease along with a 24,500 square-foot paved yard and a 25,700 square-foot vacant parcel.

"Each site has excellent visibility and can be used for auto related uses, other uses, or as a future development opportunity."
The showroom at 14500 1st Ave. S. is 6,700 square feet with a paved 1.7-acre paved sales lot.

The service department at 14600 Ambaum Boulevard Southwest is fully equipped in a 21,000 square-foot building on a 45,700 square-foot parcel of land.

If you have a neighborhood project you want funded, your time is almost up to get it funded by the Matching Fund program. The $20,000 limit can accomplish a lot in your part of town. So, if you have something you've been thinking about or wish someone would do, it might be up to you. Is there a wall that could use a mural, a playground that could benefit from a sandbox, or a youth program that might need a boost?

Here's the press release from the City of Seattle:
The deadline for applications to the Small and Simple Projects Fund, a fund of the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods Matching Fund Program, is Monday, July 12. This is a great opportunity for any neighborhood or community based group that has an idea for a community project to receive matching funds of up to $20,000.

Past Small and Simple projects have included creation of murals, playground improvements, and youth programs, to name a few. To learn more about the funds or to apply, visit http://seattle.gov/neighborhoods/nmf/smallandsimple.htm.

At approximately 11:20 Thursday evening Sheriffs Deputies were called to White Center Heights Park because of a reported fight between several individuals. It was also reported that one or more individuals may be armed. When police arrived a number of people ran into the park and were pursued by Sheriffs deputies. Some of the suspected individuals evaded capture, but police did detain an unknown number of people in the park as well as several people from a house at the end of the street. One individual was arrested for drug possession, however no gun has found.

Local resident John G. said “The house in question has been a problem since we moved into the neighborhood a couple of years ago”. Excessive drinking and suspected gang activity were some of his concerns.

The park is better than some say

Last night the West Seattle Junction got ready for the opening of West Seattle Summer Fest with vans and pick-up trucks emptying, tents lifting, arts, crafts, and some food items getting organized for what promises to be a hot 3-day weekend of fun in the sun. Sunday may be the coolest day of the three.

Some pre-Fest activities were already set in motion with music outside West-5 and Elliott Bay, and the coinciding Thursday night Art Walk.

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The 91st Annual Seattle Senior Open Swim Meet is underway at Colman Pool in West Seattle’s Lincoln Park. The event is hosted by the Cascade Swim Club and sponsored by Subway Athletics’ and the Greater Seattle Swim Association.

Swimmers from all over Washington and a team from British Columbia are competing for awards and bragging rights in the realm of competitive swimming.

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Swim meet director, Rene Folk, says the swimmers range in age from 14 to over 30 years old and compete in several different classes.

Races start at 11:00 am. The event will continue through Saturday with an awards ceremony after the final races on Saturday.
For more information about this event go to www.cascadeswimclub.com

The event is sponsored by USA Swimming and Pacific Northwest Swimming.

The 28th Annual West Seattle Summer Fest is here again July 9-11, hosted by the West Seattle Junction Association.

Summer Fest is host to dozens of bands (see the lineup below or download a printable schedule at the link above), hundreds of merchants and artists, and over 30,000 attendees. This year people attending will enjoy a food court, beer gardens and plenty of family activities.

Live music on two stages, a skateboard exhibition, and a large kid friendly family activity area are all part of the show this year.

Closing out the show on Sunday July 11 are The School Of Rock All Stars (performing Live Aid Remade, with songs by David Bowie, Queen, Judas Priest, U2 and more) and the Polyrithmics an all original, 8-piece Funk and Afrobeat Orchestra comprised of some of Seattles finest rhythmic and melodic musicians.

The West Seattle Summer Fest started as the West Seattle Sidewalk Sale. Over time more and more activities were added, and more people began attending until it grew into what is now the West Seattle Summer Fest, voted “favorite annual event” by West Seattle Herald readers and attracting visitors from the entire Puget Sound region.