March 2013

WABI Burien press release:

It doesn’t encourage people to ride their bikes into town to do their shopping and errands when there are few places to safely lock up their bikes when they get there! (It’s a good thing there are some small trees here and there.)

In order to foster cycling as a form of transportation, and to encourage people to bike simply for the exercise and enjoyment of it, we’ve got to support those efforts by providing abundant, secure and convenient bike racks.

Stay tuned…

By Christopher Duclos

Onto the next game on the hardwood for Ballard High School senior forward Seth Berger.

Berger, along with four other Seattle Basketball phenoms, has been selected to participate in the Inaugural West Coast All-Star Classic. The West Coast All-Star Classic Committee announced the roster on March 26. It's made up of the nation’s top 22 high school seniors in basketball.

“This event will be a first for our area,” said Mike Bethea, Rainier Beach Head Coach and West Coast All-Star Classic Committee member. “For years, West Coast kids have had to travel east to showcase their talents and play against their peers. Now, many of the country’s best basketball players will come west where we have some very good players who have flown under the national media radar.”

Burien CARES.

Love it or hate it. There doesn’t seem to be any middle ground.

Burien Community Animal Resource and Education Society (CARES) is a nonprofit group that the city contracts with for animal control and services.

Debra George, co-owner of the Mark Restaurant and Discover Burien events director, heads it. She is not paid as CARES director.

There doesn’t appear to be any softening of positions on the group even after the release of an audit report by Denise McVicker, deputy director of the Humane Society for Tacoma and Pierce County.

During a City Council study session on March 25, Burien city officials characterized the report as affirming that CARES is performing its contract with the city and treating animals in its care humanely. City Manager Mike Martin noted McVicker had given some recommendations on improvements that may cost more and expand services CARES is providing.

“This is a classic, young community-based organization that is doing everything right,” Martin declared. “It is time to get behind it. It has been through some rough times.”

Each year, vehicles release 7 million quarts of motor oil are released into the Puget Sound basin.

If you don't measure things in quarts, that would be 1.75 million gallons.

Or, if you measure in money, that's about $53 million people pour down the drain.

Earlier today at the Ballard High Road Automative, workers hoisted cars up for undercarriage inspections to check for oil leaks.

In the month of April, through the Don't Drip and Drive Campaign organized by the Stormwater Outreach for Regional Municipalities (STORM) consortium, rivers can take their vehicle to a participating repair shop for a free and easy visual inspection (a service valued at up to $80). Inspection is especially recommended for vehicles that are 2005 models and earlier.

If there is a problem, the driver will receive a coupon for 10 percent off service (up to $50) to fix the problem, for a total savings of up to $130 between inspection and service. All participating technicians are members of the Automotive Service Association (ASA) to ensure they meet ASA’s standards of quality.

by Scott McBreen

He was the mop-haired kid with the O'Dea sweatshirt and the quick
smile who picked up range balls every weekend at Seattle's Jefferson
Park driving range.

He was not exceptionally tall at age 15, but word was that he
could "play". Some of the older guys had driven him to the Tri-Cities
for a pro-am. He won... To confirm his place in golf lore he got home
in two strokes on the 600-yd par 5.

(ed note: In the 1970's most clubs were persimmon and golf balls did
not fly as far as they do today)

"I can beat this kid", I thought, as I heard the rumors
around the clubhouse. I was a somewhat seasoned player in my own
right. A 3-handicap then and capable of going low at times. I was 25.
I had recently finished college golf at the UW, playing in high level
tournaments.
"I will outchip him", "I will out think him", were thoughts
running through my head when we agreed to set up a game that Saturday
morning in May. Steve Cole, former Highline High star athlete in golf
and basketball, was the driving range pro at Jefferson Park. The kid

Washington Department of Transportation press release:
Northbound I-5 is about to get safer for drivers, but we’ll need to shut down three out of five lanes in South Seattle to get the job done.
Beginning at 8 p.m. Friday, March 29 until 5 a.m. Monday, April 1, northbound I-5 will be reduced down to two lanes between South Albro Place and the West Seattle Bridge.
During the closures, crews will replace four expansion joints that have taken a beating from 50 years of traffic. When expansion joints get old they can pop up, causing unsafe obstacles, not to mention costly emergency repairs and huge backups on I-5.
Here are a few tips to navigate around the northbound I-5 lane closures:
Buddy up. Carpool or take public transportation into Seattle from SeaTac, south King County and Pierce County.
Take an alternate route, like northbound I-405 to westbound I-90 or SR 599 to SR 99.
Be prepared for extra traffic on these alternate routes, and add extra time to your trips.

Press release:

After conducting a three-month search period, the Southwest King County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors is pleased to announce their selection of a new President/CEO. Carol Kolson will assume the role on Monday, April 8, 2013. She was selected out of more than 40 applicants. 


Carol has been involved with the Southwest King County Chamber for the last 6 years and is excited to help lead the Chamber. She has a 28-year banking career, most recently at HomeStreet Bank for 13 years. She has also worked in Marysville, Camano Island, Everett and Bellevue as a banker. Most of her banking career has focused on building meaningful relationship with clients.

Carol has served on the Southwest King County Chamber Board of Directors in the Chair position, Golf Tournament Chair, Funding and Events Committee and the Ambassador Committee. She believes being an active member at the Southwest King County Chamber resulted in new and long lasting client relationships.

The list of items for the Art Ehrmann Cancer Benefit at the West Seattle Eagles is now very extensive. People have donated a range of items that may surprise you.

• Tee times (multiple courses)
• Spa treatments (facials, massages etc)
• Manicure
• Pedicures
• Harbor Cruise
• Rug Doctor Shampooer
• Juicers
• Custom putter
• Women's fairway wood & balls
• Seahawks & Sounders fan packages
• Restaurant Gift Cards/Certificates
• Doggy day spa
• Jewelry
• Auto services
• Landscaping consultation

Original Post March 28
The 4th annual Art Ehrmann Cancer Benefit is being presented by the West Seattle Eagles April, 20 and they are seeking donations for silent and live auctions.

The event is a dinner first, followed by the auction.

Dinner starts at 5:30pm featuring an All You Can Eat Taco bar for only $6!
The silent auction will run from 5:30pm on and the live auction will begin at 7pm

The 7-11 by the Ballard Locks on 32nd Ave NW and NW 54th St was robbed at gunpoint, according to the Seattle Police Blotter.

Shortly after midnight, the suspect pointed a handgun at the clerk, demanded cash and fled after the clerk handed some over.

Police and a King County Gardian One helicopter came to the scene quickly, but not quick enough. Police detained someone on the south end of the Ballard Locks, but both the clerk and a witness could not positively identify him as the suspect.

According to police, the suspect is Middle Eastern male, unknown age, 5'8" tall, skinny and wearing a green jacket with stripes, black track pants and tennis shoes. He was armed with a black semi-automatic handgun.

The Robbery Unit is handling the followup investigation. Anyone with information on the crime or the suspect should contact Seattle Police by calling 911.

Zachariah Bryan can be reached at zachb@robinsonnews.com

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Coach Kyle Gray might be a successful head basketball coach at Edmonds Community College, but he's also a tried and true, lifelong Ballardite.

Gray, 33, grew up in Ballard. He graduated from Ballard High School. He coaches girls fastpitch at Ballard High School, where is his sister is a senior on the team. And he teaches P.E. at Viewlands Elementary on Holman Rd.

"What I like is all the families around here are pretty tight knit, it’s a great community," he said. "... I always stayed in touch with Ballard throughout the years. Ballard was always home."

Earlier this year, he was named coach of the year for the Northwest Athletic Association of Community College's North Division. His basketball team in Edmonds finished first in the league with the best overall NWAACC record and came just one game short of winning the tournament.

"When we first started, we felt like we had a good team, and as we went on we had surpassed some expectations we had. But at that point we just wanted to win," he said. "It was heartbreaking to fall a little bit short. It was a heckuva season."