August 2011

On Tuesday night, Aug. 2, residents from throughout the Highline area gathered together with their neighbors for block parties to celebrate National Night Out.

City officials, police officers and firefighters also attended some of the neighborhood gatherings. As a special treat, the King County Sheriff Office's helicopter did flyovers at some events.

National Night Out is a nationwide program promoting community spirit and police-community partnerships and safer neighborhoods. This year's National Night Out campaign involved citizens, law enforcement agencies, civic groups, businesses, neighborhood organizations and local officials from over 15,000 communities from all 50 states, U.S. territories, Canadian cities, and military bases worldwide.

In all, over 37 million people participated in National Night Out. More information is available at www.nationalnightout.org.

I love living in West Seattle. We have the Junction, Alki, Lincoln Park, and our community feels like a small town. The Viaduct and solid bus service enable West Seattle to remain connected to jobs and conveniences in the city. But that apparently wasn’t on the minds of local politicians when they gamed the process and cut a deal to replace the Viaduct with a $4.2 Billion tunnel.

Of course, everyone has seen the nice watercolors of downtown Seattle without the Viaduct, and downtown boosters threaten that a tolled tunnel is the only alternative. But something we just can’t afford isn’t a real alternative, especially when it makes our transportation problems worse.

High School or College-age Mentors Needed for Summer Science Club
High Point Neighborhood House
6400 Sylvan Way S.W.
Contact Shuby at 206-588-4900 ext. 613

Summer Science at High Point Neighborhood House
6400 Sylvan Way S.W.
This is a free summer science club for 4th-7th graders that will give students a chance to be creative and make friends while conducting their own experiments. There will be three two-week sessions. Students can participate in one, two, or all of the sessions.
Session 3: August 9, 11, 16 and 18, 10 a.m.-noon. Students will work with mentors on group and individual projects and will show off their creations at a science fair August 23. Information or to register contact Shuby at 206-588-4900 ext. 613.

Chief Sealth High School Class of 1971 Plans 40th Reunion
Aug. 5 - 7, 2011. Contact the reunion committee at: cshs71_reunion@hotmail.com

Friends of Lincoln Park
North parking lot across from S.W. Rose St.
206-464-1068

When Seattle Department of Transportation recently dug up a nearby intersection for a traffic circle they dug up a lot more than concrete and dirt. No time capsule beneath the pavement, but given the reminiscences inspired by the sight of the old trolley line on NW 64th the result was the same, except more interesting.

Passers-by took turns gazing into the pile of broken concrete and splintered rail ties resting on yet another slab of concrete. Slow digging, just as Seattle Department of Transportation veteran John Olsen knew it would be on top of an old trolley line. In Ballard it’s usually a fair guess that wider streets were served by Seattle Electric Street Car Line, but deciphering which route is a bit trickier.

In 2009 Jana Wright from King County METRO gave a talk at Ballard Historical Society called “Where’s My Trolley? The History of Transportation in Ballard 1851-2008.” Although it was well attended it probably lacked the visual quality that people on NW 64th have been able to experience since the dig.

By Chris Foster, Intern.

Over 200 were in attendance at the ninth annual “Night Out at Shilshole Bay Marina” on Tuesday, a barbecue potluck that allows members of the Shilshole Bay community to meet with neighboring businesses and community police.

The purpose of the event was to raise awareness about crime prevention and celebrate the partnership between the marina and the Port of Seattle Police, who provided the food and cooking for the event.

“The primary defense [against crime] is getting the community involved,” Port of Seattle police chief Colleen Wilson said. “It’s the most beautiful place in the world, and by working together, we keep it that way.”

The relationship between the community and the police is an important one. According to Rosie Courtney, the outreach coordinator for the Port of Seattle, the Shilshole Bay marina is home to one of the largest live-aboard communities on the west coast.

“Over 300 boats have liveaboards,” said Michael Humpston, president of the Washington Liveaboard Association.

Awardees for the Department of Neighborhood’s Large Projects Fund were celebrated at City Hall on Monday. Among the twelve recipients was Robin Wise Lofstrom to represent her Salmon Bay School Playground Renovation project.

Large Projects Fund awards are designed to support community members in building community relationships around a project and can be as large as $100,000. As a requirement, projects should demonstrate capacity to build a stronger and healthier community. They also should provide a public benefit and be free and open to all members of the public, emphasize self-help, with project ideas initiated, planned and implemented by the neighbors and community members who will themselves be impacted by the project; and match the requested monetary amount.

Lofstrom and the Friends of Salmon Bay were awarded $100,000 for renovating the Salmon Bay School playground into an autism spectrum disorder-friendly playspace which also serves the needs of younger children, enhance the site so that it is a neighborhood asset, and educate the public about the importance of early intervention for children with ASD.

The local West Seattle Night Out parties were by all reports well attended and accomplished their purpose: To make people more familiar with their neighbors fostering greater connections between them to help curb crime, provide assistance and possible aid in the event of an emergency.

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Seattle Police Southwest Precinct Commander, Captain Steve Paulsen got out and attended, "Ten to fifteen block parties," where he had a chance to introduce himself personally, interact with kids and hear neighborhood concerns. "Those relationships really help to make people feel safer. It's that intimacy that you have with your neighbors. That neighbor is going to know what your regular habits are and they're going to be watching out for you and likewise back. It's invaluable as far as crime."

Captain Paulsen estimated there were more than 280 parties across West Seattle.

Press release:

The well-known magazine/website Popular Mechanics, which is devoted to everything from DIY home tips, gadget news, test drives of new cars and science breakthroughs, featured the West Seattle Tool Library in its “10 Ways to Change the World” story.

“Pretty much whenever you explain the concept of a tool library to someone who isn’t familiar with the idea, they respond with ‘wow, that’s a great idea,’” said Patrick Dunn, West Seattle Tool Library Director. “I think that’s why it’s getting so much interest.”

The idea is a simple one. Collect some tools that might just be gathering dust in local basements or garages and then allow neighbors to have easy access to them. As The West Seattle Tool Library can attest, these formerly unappreciated tools then tend to spring to life. They're loaned out as-needed for home projects or sometimes borrowed in-bulk for community projects. They can even help reinforce a community's disaster preparedness.

Jack came into Lucia Robinson's life nine years ago. "He's part Blue Heeler and part Australian Shepherd and I got him from a man who owned both parents, down in Bonney Lake," said Robinson.

She liked Blue Heelers but didn't want that intense a dog and Jack was the "mellowest one in the whole litter."
Jack is not an "Alpha dog, he gets along with everybody and he likes to run, though he's slowing down. At nine, I zig zag through the park and all the way along the beach and by the end he's just trotting along."

Jack gets senior dog food now, "Whatever they sell at the Morgan Thriftway that's the senior brand."

He enjoys treats of all kinds," even Mike and Ike jelly beans," Robinson said laughing.

Jack is an amazing jumper according to Robinson. "He can jump so high. If you are holding some food up, he jumps straight up with all four feet and can grab whatever you're holding as high as you're holding it. Or he used to be able to."

"Whenever we would have people over, he'd be out on the back porch and the window is about this high (four feet) and he would just keep jumping up to see who was inside. Over and over, spy hopping like whales do."

By Brian Allen

I love living in West Seattle. We have the Junction, Alki, Lincoln Park, and our community feels like a small town. The Viaduct and solid bus service enable West Seattle to remain connected to jobs and conveniences in the city. But that apparently wasn’t on the minds of local politicians when they gamed the process and cut a deal to replace the Viaduct with a $4.2 Billion tunnel.

Of course, everyone has seen the nice watercolors of downtown Seattle without the Viaduct, and downtown boosters threaten that a tolled tunnel is the only alternative. But something we just can’t afford isn’t a real alternative, especially when it makes our transportation problems worse.