November 2010

Due to the potential for snow during the morning commute, King County Metro Transit will start service on Monday with buses in all areas on snow routing. Bus riders should check www.kingcounty.gov/metro/snow for the most current status of Metro service before traveling on Monday. Updates to the online information will begin at 4 a.m. _ _Metro has been monitoring the weather over the weekend and preparing for the possibility of snow. The Monday forecast from the National Weather Service indicates that cold temperatures and more moisture could cause snowfall in King County starting in the morning and lasting throughout the day. _ _While the accumulations are not expected to be deep, Metro managers want to be prepared and not have to change to snow routing during the middle of the busiest travel times. _ _"We decided Sunday night to be proactive, even though we know how unpredictable snowfall can be in King County," said Metro General Manager Kevin Desmond.

With weather forecasts calling for ice across the state and snow in the Puget Sound area, drivers should prepare for winter driving conditions overnight and into the Monday morning commute warns the Washington State Department of Transportation

“The temperatures are getting lower so any moisture will freeze overnight. We are pre-treating the roadways but drivers need to be prepared and drive for conditions," said Chris Christopher, Maintenance Director for WSDOT in a statement.

“The conditions look much better for travel later Monday and into Tuesday and Wednesday,” he said.

WSDOT is ready for the expected increased traffic for the Thanksgiving holiday. Drivers should be prepared, check travel and roadway conditions on WSDOT’s website and pack their winter weather supplies, including tire chains.

For more winter driving tips, go to www.wsdot.wa.gov/winter.

The first snowfall of the season was really just a dusting over West Seattle and White Center and people got out to get groceries, check their cars for anti-freeze and the right tire pressure, and for many, just enjoy the greeting card visuals the light snowfall created.

The National Weather Service did issue a Winter Weather Advisory just before noon.

...A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT THROUGH MONDAY EVENING...

EAST PUGET SOUND LOWLANDS-EVERETT AND VICINITY-
SEATTLE/BREMERTON AREA-TACOMA AREA-HOOD CANAL AREA-
1157 AM PST SUN NOV 21 2010

...A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT THROUGH MONDAY EVENING...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SEATTLE HAS ISSUED A
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW SHOWERS. WINDY WEATHER WILL ALSO
DEVELOP BY MONDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

* AFFECTED LOCATIONS...INCLUDE THE GREATER SEATTLE TACOMA EVERETT
METRO AREA.

* ACCUMULATIONS...SNOW ACCUMULATIONS WILL BE LOCALIZED TODAY...BUT
1 OR 2 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE...MAINLY NORTH AND EAST OF SEATTLE.
SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS OR FLURRIES ARE EXPECTED TONIGHT. 1 TO 3
INCHES OF SNOW IS FORECAST FOR MONDAY. STAY TUNED TO UPDATED

It will be business as usual at local grocery stores this holiday season.

Workers reached a tentative agreement late Saturday over benefits and pay from employers.

Allied Employers and members of the United Food and Commercial workers and two other unions were among the bargaining units.

Details of the agreement were not released and union members must still vote on the agreement.

Allied represents Fred Meyer, Safeway, QFC and Albertsons. 

Sub 40 degree weather was no hindrance to competitors in the third race of Fitness for Vitality race series, put on by personal trainer Annette Herrick on Nov. 21.

The race took place along the Alki Beach waterfront and marked the final race in Herrick’s annual series.

:”What happens is that people really do get faster and fitter, so if you do all three it really works and it’s fantastic,” Herrick said.

She said many of the runners had been competed in all three races (the other two took place mid-month in September and October).

Herrick described the Alki course as “flat and fun” on her website.

5k winners Seth O’Brien and Carrie Keith crossed the finish line with times of 20:25 and 21:48, respectively.

“It’s by far one of the easiest courses that I’ve run because I run for the University of Puget Sound, so I’m used to the 6k,” Keith said.

Keith was also impressed with the support of Herrick and the Fitness for Vitality crew.

“It’s really nice to run in one of these environments that is so supportive,” she said. “You know, to have the race director talk to you beforehand and be like, ‘OK guys, let’s just get faster!’ This is so uplifting, excellent.”

Communal bowling shoes were laced up and pint glasses were filled to the brim with Beer Church Pale Ale as 250 bowlers hit the lanes at West Seattle Bowl on Nov. 20 to raise funds and food for the West Seattle Food Bank.

Bowlers filtered into the alley one after another, carrying bags full of food and wallets full of cash to purchase raffle tickets and beer, all for the sake of the food bank.

“Over the 12 years it just keeps getting bigger and bigger and now we sell out the entire bowling alley pretty much the moment we announce it,” Kendall Jones, a founding member of Beer Church said at the event.

The competition was comprised of 26 teams, a mixture of private groups, various businesses and a large showing of area breweries including Pike Brewing, Elliot Bay Brewing, Emerald City Beer Co., Georgetown Brewing, Naked City Brewing, Two Beers Brewing and Big Al Brewing out of White Center.

“It’s a good charity event and it’s fun to bowl,” Pike brewer Adam Palmer said as he mentally prepared to roll. “All the breweries come out and have fun doing it.”

Happy Thanksgiving Week! Here's what is available this week November 22 - 28, 2010 at the Seattle area Farmers Markets.

• Print this list out and bring it with you to the West Seattle Farmers Market for reference.

Neighborhood Farmers Market Alliance Markets:
University District (UD) – Saturdays, 9 am – 2 pm, YEAR ROUND
West Seattle (WS) – Sundays, 10 am – 2 pm, YEAR ROUND
Broadway Sunday (BW) – Sundays, 11 am – 3 pm, 5/9/10 – 12/19/10

Locations, Hours, Vendor and Event Info: www.seattlefarmersmarkets.org

New this Week:

Three Tree Farms – Nobel Firs and Spruce trees for the holidays. All sizes from Maple Valley. At UD and Broadway beginning this weekend.

Wreaths and Swags – Holiday décor fresh from the farm. Beautiful local ingredients can also brighten up your home, office and entryways. Greens, pine cones, peppers.

Hot Peppers – fresh and loads of varieties are still available from Tonnemaker Family Orchards and Alvarez Farms – at all markets: U-District, West Seattle, Broadway.

Schmitz Park Elementary held their annual Holiday Craft Fair and had a decent turnout of neighbors and holiday craft shoppers.

Selling at the Fair was Team Go For it, part of the American Cancer Society Relay for Life who crafted gift items out of pine cones including reindeer and a turkey. At the table were Elise Mackley, Shanilla Morgan, and Natalie Bumgardner. This was their first time at the fair.

Fiona Preedy, President of the Schmitz Park PTSA was on hand selling school logo mugs raising money for Island Web, an environmental education program on Whidbey Island, where the Schmitz Park fourth grade class will visit in February for full week.

Crafty Clementine was at the fair selling dessert pedestals by Brittany VonSpreecken and pen and pencil pots by Joyce Shoemaker.

Long lines and happy faces filled the sidewalk on 39th Ave s.w. leading up to Eastridge Christian Assembly church on the morning of Nov. 20.

Several hundred people were waiting in line for a free turkey and bag full of Thanksgiving essentials including stuffing, cranberry, gravy and potato mix, courtesy of the church and funded by donations from their members.

“For our family, we understand right now with the way the economy is, families have had to make huge sacrifices and have suffered losses and this is just our way to be able to support those families and take care of them and spread the love of Jesus,” said church member John Coovert.

Lead pastor Steve Jamison said the lines this year were longer than they have seen in the eight years the church has given away turkeys, both at their West Seattle location and their church in Issaquah (they plan to give away 1000 turkeys and 1000 bags of groceries at each church).

On Nov. 10, King County prosecutors filed charges of first degree theft, improperly obtaining financial information and first and second degree identity theft against two men, one of them from White Center, for a card skimming operation targeted at BECU ATMs.

Charging documents against Claudiu Flaviu Tudor and Mihai Podaru aka Gvidiv Mateescu came down after a several month long investigation involving officers and detectives from the Kirkland and Renton police departments.

Video surveillance footage and BECU transaction data was used to identify the suspects and catch them in the act of collecting card data, then allegedly using counterfeit cards to withdraw money, documents said.

The documents allege the operation went like this: Tudor and Podaru rigged ATMs in Renton and Puyallup with card skimmers and cameras that obtained card and pin numbers from anyone using the ATM.