May 2011

Press release:
Staff from Seattle Parks and Recreation’s Lifelong Recreation Program will be on hand at a community dinner at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, June 8 to gather input from key West Seattle leaders on programs for adults and seniors.

The dinner takes place at Delridge Community Center, 4501 Delridge Way SW.

Parks would like to hear from leaders and citizens about the types of programs they would like to see for West Seattle adults and seniors, and to talk about potential partners and challenges.

The public is invited; the simple, nutritious dinner is limited to 75 people. For more information, please call Mary Dalzell at 206-935-2162, or email her at mary.dalzell@seattle.gov.

Zippy's Giant Burgers has reopened in White Center after weeks of delays and while there were only two people in line at 10:30 the crowd quickly grew. Owner Blaine Cook and burger chef Chris Lafayette were in a virtual blur of activity filling orders by 11:00.

The first customer in line was Sara Airhart (who was also the first customer in line at their old location). "It's been over six and a half weeks since I've had a Zippy's burger and I can't wait. I cut out of work to come and get one."

Second line was Byron Oxford who said, "With things as high quality as a Zippy's burger I just didn't want to be last. People tend to line up here."

The new location at 9614 14th s.w. is very different from their former Highland Park location. This one offers seating, more display space for Cook's large collection of "Burger Americana" items and when the weather is cold or rainy, a place to stand inside.

This isn't traditional fast food in the sense that you can get it almost instantly. Quality takes time and each burger takes about 7 minutes to broil, Cook said.

On Sunday, June 5, the Port of Seattle is hosting a free Centennial Bike Ride event to celebrate the Port's centennial and to show how the ports have changed over the years.

Starting from the Shilshole Bay Marina, the 14-mile family ride will take participants across the Ballard Locks and through Interbay along the Elliott Bay Trail to Pier 66 downtown.

Registration opens at 10:30 a.m. and the event wraps up at 4:00 p.m. Participants are encouraged to stop at Port properties along the route and experience some “Then and Now” photo posters highlighting the importance of the Port and the changes over the past 100 years.

To register and for more information, visit www.portseattle.org/news/events/Bike.shtml.

Ever wonder what Ballardites are jamming to on their iPods, in their cars or in their homes?

Here's the Top 25 albums sold at Ballard's Sonic Boom Records last week compiled by owner, Jason Hughes.

Top 25 Albums at Sonic Boom Records for May 23 - 29, 2011:

1. Fleet Foxes “Helplessness Blues” (Subpop)
2. Beastie Boys “Hot Sauce Committee Pt 2” (Capitol)
3. Brandi Carlile “Live at Benaroya Hall” (Columbia)
4. Lady Gaga “Born This Way” (Interscope)
5. Thurston Moore “Demolished Thoughts” (Matador)
6. David Bazan “Strange Negotiations” (Barsuk)
7. Head & The Heart “Head & The Heart” (Subpop)
8. Foster the People “Torches” (Columbia)
9. Radiohead “King of Limbs” (TBD)
10. Adele “21” (Columbia)
11. Danger Mouse / Daniele Luppi “Rome” (Capitol)
12. Thao & Mirah “Thao & Mirah” (Kill Rock Stars)
13. Booker T Jones “Road From Memphis” (Anti)
14. Explosions In The Sky “Take Care Take Care” (Temporary Residence)
15. Queens of the Stone Age “s/t reissue” (RekordsRecords)
16. Ben Harper “Give Till It’s Gone” (Virgin)
17. Okkervil River “I Am Very Far” (Jagjaguwar)
18. Sallie Ford “Dirty Radio” (Partisan)
19. Motopony “Motopony” (Tiny Ogre)

Press release:

The management of the Evergreen Community Aquatic Center would like to announce that we are re-open for operations after the fire damage repair, which saw us closed for the month of May. We are taking signups now for the summer lesson season and they are filling fast. We also have lap swim, public and family swim hours available as well as senior programming and swim team.

Please contact me with any questions or you may call the pool directly:
Joel Schweiger
Manager ECAC
206-941-8916 cell
206-588-2297 pool

ECAC website found here.

A Seattle family has settled a lawsuit for $1.5 million in the wrongful death of a 39-year-old cyclist killed while commuting to work in Ballard.

Kevin Black, a molecular research scientist at the University of Washington and father of two, was killed by a van as he rode his bicycle to work in Ballard on Feb. 4, 2009. The collision occurred at 24th Avenue Northwest and Northwest 65th Street as Black was riding southbound in the bicycle lane.

A driver of a van owned by Ambient Control Company, a refrigeration and HVAC company, made an abrupt U-turn, causing Black to strike the van; the van’s tire then rolled over him. Black is survived by his daughters Megan, 15 and Emily, 12.

“Kevin was an experienced cyclist and commuted daily on his bicycle,” said Seattle attorney James S. Rogers, who represented the estate of Kevin Black.
“It’s clear that the driver of the van did not see Kevin. But as more and more people choose to commute by bicycle, it is critical that drivers understand they share our roadways with cyclists. This was a preventable tragedy.”

“This is Swedish women’s imaging center calling. Our radiologist needs to meet with you to conduct more exams due to the findings on your mammogram from last week. Please call us to set up an appointment at your earliest convenience.”
My heart sank as soon as I heard the word “Swedish.” I had glibly ignored the technician when she explained that they would only call me if they had concerns. I was sure I would receive the form letter stating everything was fine, just as I had last year. Apparently, everything wasn’t fine.
My second response was to mutter, “I don’t have time for this.” I ignored the call and tried to return my focus back to the residency application I was working on. That worked for about two minutes and then I burst into tears.

The Ballard Chamber of Commerce announced the dates for some of the summer's biggest Ballard events.

On July 9 and 10, Ballard will host its 37th Annual Ballard Seafoodfest and a Sidewalk Sale will follow later in the month on July 28 though 31.

The Ballard URban Picnic (BURP) is back this year. Last year, the first-ever BURP was held on a grey and drizzly May 1 but it was a well-attended event regardless. The Ballard Chamber of Commerce created BURP, which featured mobile food vendors, a beer garden, live music, inflatable bouncers, community booths and more, as a way to bring more community activity to Ballard Commons Park. This year, it looks like organizers are banking on better weather as BURP is scheduled for September 10.

More information will be provided once it's known but until then, save the date:

July 9 & 10, 2011: 37th Annual Ballard Seafoodfest
July 28 - 31, 2011: Sidewalk Sale
August 18, 2011: Golf Tournament
September 10, 2011: Ballard Urban Picnic (BURP)

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The June 2 meeting of the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council will cover a wide range of topics from recent crime stats offered by KCSO Capt Joseph Hodgson plus an appearance by Burien City Manager Mike Martin, a report from Burien Recreation Manager, Debbie Zemke about Music in the Park, comments from Executive Director, Derek Birnie of the Delridge Neighborhood Development Association, and an update on King County development regulations from Harry Reinert of King County DDES.

The meeting will be at the North Highline Fire Station 1243 s.w. 112th St. starting at 7:00 pm.

AGENDA

June 2, 2011

7:00 p.m. Call to order

Flag salute

Roll call

Approval of agenda

Approval of minutes

7:05 p.m. Public announcements

7:10 p.m. Public comment – 3 minutes for individuals

5 minutes for groups

7:15 p.m. Election Report

7:20 p.m. Election of Officers

7:25 p.m. Mike Martin, Burien City Manager

By David Rosen

In support of education for St. John’s Mission to Kenya, Books and Bricks Memorial Day barbecue kicked off on May 30. This event was a fundraiser to help raise money for schools in Mulundi, Kenya, which is the hometown of Janet Johnson, along with her husband Michael Johnson, who are the founders of Books and Bricks.

It all started about 10 years ago when Janet first moved to the United States from Kenya. This is the first year that Janet took locals back with her to visit Kenya and for them to get a first hand experience of the help that they are providing.

Amber Strehle, who went to Kenya with Janet and a small group of people to assist in the Books and Bricks scholarship program this past year stated “The villages are located in central Kenya and have approximately 800 families. When it comes to schooling for the children in rural Kenya, school fees and supplies from elementary to 8th grade are provided. In high school, it’s an additional expense that the students and their families have to pay, but due to the location of the high school and lack of funds it’s very hard to afford the tuition and many are unable to attend.”