July 2011

Those with a curiosity about West Seattle’s watershed and ecosystem have an upcoming chance to join a free Rain Water Walking Tour on August 13, put on by People for Puget Sound, Sustainable West Seattle, Stewardship Partners and the City of Seattle.

"Polluted runoff is the single biggest unaddressed source of pollution for Puget Sound and we organize these neighborhood walking tours to show people how the polluted runoff gets into our local creeks, and what people can do to reduce the runoff," Franziska McKay, community educator for People for Puget Sound said.

"We are going to tour the Highpoint neighborhood to show solutions, what can people do as a citizen and in their communities to help reduce this runoff," McKay continued. "The Highpoint neighborhood is a great example. It's created by the City of Seattle and they incorporated some of those low-impact development techniques ... for example rain gardens which are great ... for reducing runoff."

Here is the itinerary from the People for Puget Sound website:

Jason Hughes, owner of Sonic Boom Records announced that he's closing the Capitol Hill store by the end of August and bringing its inventory to the Ballard location.

"It was a tough decision but to ensure the future of the store it became necessary," Hughes said.

Originally located on 15th Avenue, the Capitol Hill store moved to a bigger space with more traffic on Melrose.

"We took a gamble on a bigger space with higher traffic.  Obviously, the gamble did not pay off.  After 16 months of consistent losses I decided to pull the plug," Hughes said.

Hughes added that the Sonic Boom Records store in Ballard has always been a solid store and has been supporting the Capitol Hill locations for the last four years. 

"It will continue to be strong way into the future with a great staff,  awesome customers and an ideal location," he assured.

Hughes said one of the reason why Ballard continues to have good sales is due to a different and slightly older demographic that appreciates physical product and buys CD’s and LP’s more regularly. 
 
In general vinyl sales have gone up in recent years, Hughes said.

Press release:

Celebrate summer evenings, the great American automobile and night cruising at the Burien Town Square Summer Nights Car Show on Saturday, Aug. 6.

Beginning at 5 p.m. take in some beguiling vehicles in this free car show in Burien Town Square Park while a DJ spins tunes of the '50s and '60s. Presented by the nonprofit Discover Burien Association, the event wraps up when the cars head out at 10 p.m. for a night ride through Three Tree Point and Normandy Park.

Vehicles will compete for awards in the following categories: Best Car to See the Stars In, Best Headlights, Most Likely To Go On A Date In, People's Choice, Best Interior, and Best Night Cruiser.

Register to participate either in advance or on the day of the event. Registration forms and details are available at www.discoverburien.com. Preregistration is $15. Registration on Aug. 6 is $20 and takes place beginning at 3 p.m. at Southwest 150th Street and Fifth Place Southwest.

Discover Burien is a nonprofit organization that works on the economic development, promotion and marketing of the city. Proceeds from the event go toward operation of the event and Discover Burien.

Fulfilling a promise, Kimberly Clark, makers of Huggies brand disposable diapers delivered 100,000 diapers to WestSide Baby in White Center on July 27. The company had promised to match 2 to 1, the number of diapers collected by WestSide Baby in their Stuff the Bus diaper drive held July 24.

Press release:

Primary election ballots will be mailed on Wednesday, July 27 to all King County voters. Voters' pamphlets will also be mailed this week, and will arrive separately from your ballot. The Election Day deadline to return ballots is Aug. 16.

Voting begins this week, and you can vote and return your ballot as soon as you receive it. Ballots can be returned at a ballot drop box or through the mail, which requires a first class stamp. Ballots must be postmarked by Aug. 16 or returned to a ballot drop box by 8 p.m. on that day. Eleven drop boxes will open on July 28, and locations are listed on the Elections website and in the voters' pamphlet.

"Voters who vote and return their ballots before the Election Day deadline really help us process ballots more efficiently," said Sherril Huff, Elections Director. "If you don't receive your ballot within about 10 days, or have any questions, call the Voter Hotline. It's a convenient and easy way for us to help you."

If you do not receive your ballot by Aug. 6, contact King County Elections for a replacement. The Voter Hotline is available weekdays from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., 206-296-VOTE (8683).

UPDATE: Meeting tonight to be held in JSCEE auditorium

Press release

Chief Sealth International High School staff, students, parents, alums, and community members are invited to a community meeting on Monday, August 1, from 6:00-8:00 p.m. to give input into the qualities you would like to see in the new principal of Chief Sealth International High School. The meeting will be held at the John Stanford Center for Educational Excellence (JSCEE) auditorium. The John Stanford Center for Educational Excellence is located at 2445 3rd Avenue South.

If you are unable to attend the community meeting, you are welcome to fill out a short survey to provide input:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/WMMMT5L

You are also welcome to e-mail Aurora Lora, Executive Director for West Seattle Schools at aalora@seattleschools.org to provide additional feedback.

Thank you.

Aurora Lora
Executive Director, PK-12 Schools
Seattle Public Schools

10 farmers markets including West Seattle will be invited by the Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSCLB) to participate in a pilot program that allows wine and beer tastings at farmers markets beginning in Sept.

As directed in Substitute House Bill 1172, which created the pilot program, the markets were selected in a manner to ensure geographic representation.

The pilot runs from Sept. 1, 2011 to Nov. 1, 2012. The WSLCB will provide guidance and oversight for the pilot, and will submit a report on the pilot to the Legislature in December 2012.

“This pilot is another avenue for Washington’s breweries and wineries to educate customers about their products,” said Sharon Foster, WSLCB Chair. “Because farmers markets take place in a community setting, there are safeguards in place to ensure tastings are conducted with public safety in mind.”

Participating farmers markets

SLIDESHOW: Click the above image to see plenty more top-drawer exposures by Kurt Howard.

Des Moines hosted its Waterland Festival Friday and Saturday.

City officials took advantage of the celebration to do a ribbon cutting and dedication for the renovated marina.
A BBQ was held Friday night followed by a classic car show and wooden boat show.

Times/News columnist Earline Byers and attorney Clark Snure served as grand marshals of the parade.
Photographer Kurt Howard loves taking summer festival photos and shot some good ones.

From:

Rev. Dr. Donald Schmidt, pastor
Admiral Congregational Church

Gigantic Yard Sale - July 30 - 8a.m. to 3p.m. Admiral Church is having a fun-raiser (that's not a typo!)and parishioners are off-loading a ton of stuff, from furniture (some antiques) to housewares, books, craft materials, and plenty of odds and ends. You do NOT want to miss it!

Everything must go - and there's a lot of it.

Hundreds of people came out to the Nordic Heritage Museum on Tuesday, July 26, to mourn and pray for the many killed in the twin terrorist attacks in Norway and to stand with Norway in solidarity against terrorism.

In the auditorium, red, white and blue candles flickered as people crowded in, each candle marking an innocent life lost in Friday's terrorist attacks in Oslo and the island of Utoeya.

After an opening prayer and the singing of the Norwegian National Anthem, Kim Nesselquist, Consul of Norway, thanked the people of Seattle for their support and numerous letters, flowers and phone calls received over the last few days.

"One hundred and ten hours ago, a bomb went off by the government building in downtown Oslo... eight innocent people were killed and many more seriously injury," Nesselquist said as he recalled the horrific events.

"The blast was strong and broke storefront windows as far as 1,000 meters away and permanently ruined several of the office buildings occupied by the government," Nesselquist continued.