June 2012

By Karen Rathe

The Tooth Fairy sports flower-petal wings. She flits through the night sky, alights on a French-knot cherry tree and whizzes over a wishing well. She glides across a glimmering turquoise pool studded with tiny beads – all in her quest to find the right locale for her ivory load.

This particular tooth fairy, in fact, was lovingly created in a series of hand-stitched fabric panels by Jo Simonian, who lives in Loyal Heights. Earlier this year they were photographed and published in a hardcover book for children, entitled “Each Tiny Tooth.” Every scene in the 28-page volume contains a brief descriptive rhyme.

A book launch party is planned for Thursday, June 28, at 7 p.m. at Secret Garden Books.

By Jeff and Eileen Bidwell

For many passionate gardeners, there is no greater source of joy and inspiration than the sight of hummingbirds and butterflies in the summer garden. After all the digging, composting, planting and garden maintenance, the opportunity to relax, reflect and enjoy these magnificent creatures presents a welcome respite.

Anna’s Hummingbird is the most common species of hummingbird in Western Washington, and can be seen year-round. Adults grow to 4 inches in length with a 5 inch wingspan. These medium-sized hummingbirds have bronzy green backs and gray undersides. Males sport bright red heads and throats; females’ heads and throats are green.

By Patrick Robinson and David Rosen

Two portable school buildings were being moved, inch by inch down an alley adjacent to Lafayette Elementary on California Ave. s.w. on Sunday night, June 24. The 14 x 64 foot buildings contain four classrooms and had to be moved very slowly because of the tight space next to the school. When assembled the unit will be 28 feet wide by 64 feet long.

The contractor was aiming at being done by 12 midnight but that was not working out since there was a truck parked on the shoulder that prevented progress.

Chris Tyler, Operations Manager for the Washington State Division of Modern Building Systems said they were contracted by the Seattle Public Schools to install 13 of the portables throughout the school district. "To make it work with everybody's schedule we do it at night. So it's just a matter of making it fit down this little alley. We've got about six inches to spare on each side of the building so it's a matter of crawling and taking our time."

The company works in many locations on the west coast.

From the colorful mosaic bird guarding Cormorant Cove Park at 3701 Beach Drive SW to the swirling array of Swimming Stars at Whale Tail Playground, 5817 SW Lander St. and 58th Ave SW , many have happily stumbled upon the West Seattle artwork of sculptor Lezlie Jane.

The above image is an artist's rendering of what a proposed sculpture called "Luna Girls" would look like in the setting where it is intended to perch, once built, on the Alki Beach Promenade, upon that sort of cement island surrounded by 63rd and Alki Ave SW across the street from the Alki Arts Gallery. and the Cactus Restaurant

Hundreds of taxi cab operators who work Seattle and King County met Sunday, June 24, to begin forming an association with Tukwila-based Teamsters Local Union 117. It will be called Western Washington Taxicab Operatiors Association.
Because taxi drivers are legally classified as independent contractors, and not employees of the cab companies, they cannot actually form a union. Through this association they hope to influence policies they want changed.

The Highline Times reported on the April 28 march on International Blvd. in Sea Tac by airport workers, including taxi drivers, disgruntled with claims of low wages, poor treatment from management, and, in the case of cab drivers, excessive fees.

Leonard A. Smith is Organizing Director, Teamsters Local 117, and is helping to form this association. He spoke to the Highline Times today about why he and the taxi operators believe this association is a critical move.

The Remodeling Excellence (REX) Awards’ 26th anniversary celebration held on Saturday, June 23 at the Space Needle saw two West Seattle construction companies win awards from the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties.

Weitzel Construction and Ventana Construction both took home awards for their work. Dave Weitzel said, "our entry won in the Entry/Porch/ Deck over $40,000 category in which we were entered."

Ventana Construction took home an award for bath excellence and two others.

Anne Higuera of Ventana said on Facebook, "We got one, then a second and finally, an amazing third. What a fun evening at the Space Needle! And none of it would happen without our talented staff and great clients."

As Donna Sandstrom with The Whale Trail, an organization devoted to the appreciation and stewardship of whales, puts it, “Ten years ago, an orphaned orca named Springer appeared in the Puget Sound – lost, alone, and 300 miles away from home. Six months later, she was rescued, rehabilitated, and reunited with her pod near the north end of Vancouver Island. Today, she is still healthy and swimming with her extended family, returning with them each year to their summering grounds in Johnstone Straight.”

On Saturday, June 23, several of the people responsible for Springer’s rescue and reconnection with her family gathered at the Alki Bathhouse to share their story, encourage community involvement in saving the whales and protecting the waters they frequent, and dedicate four new Whale Trail signs in West Seattle.

The rescue effort was celebrated as the best in collaboration as everyday citizens, non-profit groups and government organizations worked together to get Springer back to her family in Canada.

Several blocks away and seemingly unconnected to the Barton Pump Station located on Puget Sound, the West Seattle neighborhoods of Sunrise Heights and Westwood are in for major changes in the coming years as King County plans to install a series of “bioretention swales,” similar to rain gardens, along many streets.

The need, according to county officials, comes from Washington State’s Department of Ecology mandate that King County reduce the number of combined-sewer overflows into Puget Sound from four (the current average) to one event a year. The neighborhoods were chosen because they contribute 45 percent of the water and sewage processed by the Barton station.

A series of biorention swales will be installed between sidewalks and roads, which are basically troughs meant to capture capture rain water from the roads and divert them through deep infiltration wells into the water table below West Seattle. By keeping that water out of the combined sewer system, King County intends to reduce overflows into the Sound.

Press release:

Latino Theatre Projects and Burien Little Theatre are seeking two male actors, 40s-50s, for their joint production of the 2003 Pulitzer Prize-winning “Anna in the Tropics,” written by Nilo Cruz.

One is a principal role, the other has a small speaking part and he is present throughout the play. Actors of all ethnicities are encouraged to audition, Cuban/Spanish accent not required.

Synopsis: “Anna in the Tropics” is a poignant and poetic play set in Florida in 1929 in a Cuban–American cigar factory, where cigars are still rolled by hand and "lectors" are employed to educate and entertain the workers.

The arrival of a new lector is a cause for celebration, but when he begins to read aloud from Anna Karenina, he unwittingly becomes a catalyst in the lives of his avid listeners, for whom Tolstoy, the tropics and the American dream prove a volatile combination. Winner of the 2003 Pulitzer Prize.

Performances are at Burien Little Theatre in Burien from Aug. 3 through Aug. 26, 2012. Rehearsals begin at end of June.

Stage director Roy Arauz.

$100 stipend provided.

The threat of rain didn't keep the exhibitors away from the Morgan Junction Festival on June 23 as booth after booth dutifully set up and got ready for the annual neighborhood celebration. At first it was pretty smooth sailing with people arriving to visit with folks from the West Seattle Food Bank, Animal Aid and Rescue Foundation, and many others.

The Bubbleman got off to a great start and the crowd formed at Morgan Junction Park, with toddlers and youngsters all chasing his amazing soapy displays. But the first few drops of rain began to fall shortly after 11:30 am and the light sprinkle was tolerable. Umbrellas and hooded coats appeared and people ducked into doorways and under exhibitor tents to stay dry. But by 12:30 it was clear this was not a passing rain squall and most people sought better shelter. By 1:30 booths began to come down and it was obvious the Morgan Junction Festival was a victim of the rain.