October 2010

King County and Alliance Wasatch I, LLC, a joint venture between Alliance Property Group Inc. and Wasatch Advantage Group, LLC ("Alliance"), are joining Sound Transit, the City of Burien, and Pankow Builders to host a groundbreaking Saturday, Oct. 23 for the park-and-ride expansion project at the Burien Transit Center.
The ceremony, scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. at the Burien park-and-ride lot, will kick off construction of a multi-level, 462-stall garage and an adjoining 43-space surface lot that will add 164 spaces to the transit center's parking capacity.
King County Executive Dow Constantine, King County Councilwoman and Sound Transit Board member Jan Drago, U.S. Congressman Jim McDermott, Burien Mayor Joan McGilton, and Alliance representatives will be among those speaking at the event.
A key element of the county's effort to create a sustainable transportation hub in Burien, and the city's overall vision for downtown, the $20.5 million project represents the second phase of the county's three-phase redevelopment of the transit center.

About 25 people from the Genesee Schmitz Neighborhood Council met for their 2nd general meeting on Oct. 21 to discuss crime prevention, emergency preparedness and the future of the vacant Genesee Hill School property.

First to the podium at the West Side Presbyterian Church was Benjamin Kinlow, crime prevention coordinator for the Seattle Police Department.

“I encourage each of you to think about safety as your responsibility,” Kinlow said in reference to neighborhood crime prevention. “One thing that you can do about safety is start in your own home. We encourage everyone to take a look at their home to make sure its secure and make sure you don’t let your guard down because there are burglaries happening every single day.”

Kinlow said the best approach for reducing burglaries and car prowls is to set up a block watch program, whether it be formal or informal. He encouraged Genesee Schmitz neighbors to share phone numbers and emails and become Facebook friends – any steps that can be taken to keep each other informed of suspicious activity on their blocks.

News Release:

Contact: Teresa Wippel, Media Relations, 206-252-0203

Seattle- Superintendent Maria L. Goodloe-Johnson, Ph.D., is continuing her series of Community Coffee Chats for all parents, grandparents and caregivers of Seattle Public Schools students. The remaining meetings are scheduled on Monday, October 25; Monday, Nov. 1 and Tuesday, Nov. 2.

“I am eager to listen and learn from our families, and to hear more about the educational issues that matter to them,” Dr. Goodloe-Johnson said.

The dates, times and locations of the remaining Coffee Chats are as follows:

*Monday, October 25
Languages: Somali, Spanish and Vietnamese 6-7 p.m. West Seattle Elementary
6760 34th Ave. S.W.

*Monday, November 1
Languages: Chinese, Somali, Spanish, Tagalog and Vietnamese 6-7 p.m. Mercer Middle School
1600 S. Columbian Way
Seattle, WA 98108

Tuesday, November 2 8:10-10 a.m. North Beach Elementary
9018 24th Ave. N.W.
Seattle, WA 98117

* Interpretation services will be provided at these meetings (October 25 at West Seattle Elementary; and November 1 at Mercer Middle School).

Burien had its early pioneers like Mike Kelly, who homesteaded the Sunnydale area, and Gottlieb Van Boorian, who settled by his namesake lake.

The city still has its modern day pioneers like Renna Pierce.

And like Kelly and Von Boorian found out, pioneers can get lonely when there are not a lot of other people around.

Renna Pierce was the first person to move into the Burien Town Square condominiums. And thanks to a financial housing crisis that hit after she relocated, there are only five other condos occupied in the 125-unit building.

Pierce admits that when she first arrived in May 2008 and was the only occupant for about a week, she felt a little funny.

"I thought if something happened to me, maybe they wouldn't know there was someone living in Town Square," Pierce said.
She had the whole top floor to herself for five months until another retired woman moved in.

Pierce outlined how she became Burien's newest pioneer.

She and her husband had lived in Gregory Heights sine 1970 and when his health began to decline they decided it was time to downsize.

Poetry Bridge Poetry & Storytelling Readings

NEXT READING

(Updated with both bio's.)

The October 27th the Poetry Bridge sponsored storytelling and poetry reading will feature two regulars at C&P Open Mic, Steve Shay and Kathleen Baginski. They will start at 7:00PM followed by Open Mic at 8:00 PM.
The monthly event features one or two speakers the first hour, then offers open mic to anyone who wants to share a story or poem. The public is welcome to this, and every monthly Poetry Bridge event.

STEVE SHAY of Alki has been a photographer and reporter for 27 years, working the past three years full time for the Robinson Newspapers, including the West Seattle Herald. He also freelances. He spontaneously moved from Chicago to La Conner, 65 miles north of Seattle, five years ago to live aboard a 34-foot wooden diesel tugboat named the Otter after seeing the quaint 1942 craft for sale online. It served as a vessel for meeting the love of his life, Laura Wold, a Ballardite with a legacy of brave fishermen in her Nordic heritage.

Press Release:
A contractor working for the Seattle Department of Transportation has began work to install a new traffic signal at the intersection of First Avenue S and S Massachusetts Street. The signal will help manage traffic changes for the construction of the Alaskan Way Viaduct and Seawall Replacement Program.

Traffic restrictions include intermittent travel and parking lane closures (one travel lane in each direction) approaching the intersection 7:00 AM to 3:30 PM daily.

During the week of October 25-29, night work will occur 7:00 PM to 4:00 AM. For night time span wire work, right lanes will be closed with flaggers assisting traffic; for night time traffic signal loops right then left lanes will be closed.

For more information, please visit SDOT’s website at:
http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/firstave_mass_signal.htm

At a time when major charities are seeing a decline in contributions (major charities reported an 11% decline in donations last year) the success of one local agency is remarkable since it is not only thriving but actually expanding.

WestSide Baby at 10032 15th Ave. s.w., founded by Donna Pierce in 2001, is based on the simple concept of sharing no longer needed baby items with those who need them. Over its ten year history the agency has filled more than 50,000 orders for clothing, equipment, and diapers totaling more than $6 million in goods to people in need.

But since it began, the organization has been challenged by the small space it occupies. That's changing now with an expansion into a newly remodeled space just behind their existing one going from 1600 square feet to more than 3200 for the primary functions they perform.

"We haven't really named it yet," said Executive Director Nancy Woodland, " We're kind of calling it an 'Operations Center.'" The former space is being retained as office space and a training area.

The Nordic Heritage Museum invites everyone to begin the holiday season at this year’s Yulefest on November 20 and 21. This Nordic Christmas celebration offers hundreds of hand-crafted gifts, a jubilee of Scandinavian musical performances and traditional Nordic cuisine that will inspire holiday cheer. Santa will also be visiting the museum.

Traditional Scandinavian entertainment will feature fiddlers, singers, folk dancers and more. Shop hand-crafted gifts from many Nordic-inspired vendors and enjoy Scandinavian food and drink available at several locations in the Museum.

The Nordic Café offers open-faced Scandinavian sandwiches, Æbleskiver, krumkake, and lefse, among many other traditional foods. At Goodies to Go where you can purchase Scandinavian treats by the dozen!

In the Bodega, enjoy Scandinavian beverages such as glögg—hot spiced wine, a traditional beverage of the holiday season—and a selection of Nordic beers. The Kaffestuga offers coffee, cookies, and pastries for sale. Free children’s crafts and activities as well as Santa photos will also be found at Yulefest.

Seattle Parks and Recreation dishes up some ghoulish fun for Halloween. Here's where to celebrate around Ballard.

Ballard Community Center
6020 28th Ave. N.W.
206-684-4093
Halloween Carnival
Join us for a fright fest of activities games and challenges, including an area for tots. Complementary refreshments will be available. This event is for children 10 years old and younger. High school students can get volunteer community service hours by helping at this event.
Friday, Oct. 29, 6 - 8 p.m.
Activity Fee: $3 per person; $10 per Family

Green Lake Community Center
E. Green Lake Drive N.
206-684-0780
Pumpkin Flashlight Hunt
Rain or shine, come and hunt for coins and candy outside near the Green Lake Community Center! Arrive no later than 6:45 p.m. at the gym. Bring your own bag to collect goodies and a flashlight to hunt with. Please wear appropriate clothing for the weather. Come in costume, and bring a friend! Kids will be separated into age-appropriate groups. This event is for ages children ages 4 - 11
Friday, Oct. 22, 7 - 8p.m.
Activity Fee: Free

Loyal Heights Community Center
2101 N.W. 77th St.
206-684-4052
KUBE 93 Haunted House

Ballard has been ranked second-best neighborhood in Seattle for trick-or-treating this Halloween, as reported by Zillow, a real-estate website.

According to Zillow, Ballard doesn’t hold back to pull off a spook-tacular Halloween.

“Downtown businesses pass out candy to hoards of little ghosts and goblins, and the community center hosts a Halloween carnival with a fright-fest of games and activities,” Whitney Tyner of Zillow wrote on their website.

Zillow used the Zillow Trick-or-Treat Housing Index to calculate the top neighborhoods for trick-or-treating. This methodology weighed Zillow Home Value Index, population density, Walk Score and local crime data. Ballard has a good combination of a high Walk Score and low crime.