June 2013

Interested in serving your community? If so, you might consider applying for the vacancy on the Valley View Sewer District’s Board of Commissioners.

Of course, you do need to be a registered voter and live in the sewer district. But you don’t need to have any technical knowledge about sewers or how they work.

The Board meets twice a month to consider policies, projects, budgets, etc. Applications are due on June 21 and are available online at www.valvue.com or at the District office.

Pam Carter
Tukwila

Jim Hughes was at the wheel of his Red 2003 Buick 4-door sedan on the afternoon of Jan. 13 on Southwest 128th Street, just west of Des Moines Way South. That is all he remembers of that winter day.

The official report tells the tale:"64-year-old male unresponsive. He had driven his car off the road and hit a house. Pt stb unc and not breathing. Driver is only one in the vehicle. The vehicle did not penetrate the house. He was extricated out the passenger side of the car."

Then medics from stations 19 and 18 assisted in trying to revive Hughes. He had suffered cardiac arrest. They rushed him to Highline Medical Center. At Highline, they recommended Jim be taken to U.W. Hospital. But when contacted, Jim said, he was told later, U.W. was full. He was taken to Swedish.

Three days passed before Jim awakened from a temporary coma at Swedish Hospital. He was unaware that he'd had a heart attack, lost control of his vehicle and crashed through a fence and into a house.

For our 24th, we chose fire. On our milestone 25th, we went with ice.

Because we couldn’t wait another year, we flew to the volcano-infused islands of Hawaii in 2012 to mark our wedding anniversary. This year, we headed north to Alaska on a seven-day cruise.

Surprisingly, we had more fun in the colder climate. Best vacation ever, we agreed.

In Hawaii, we made every rookie mistake possible. Packed onto a plane with few provisions, Hit the narrow road to prime surfing spots on a holiday, Shopped inside malls while the sun shone bright outside. Blindly followed our GPS right past Pearl Harbor. Got kidnapped by a party bus and dumped off at the luau from hell.

While it’s true we didn’t book the Alaska cruise until two weeks before the ship sailed, this time we planned and prepared.

Marge and I have tried lots of different kinds of vacations in the past quarter-century. We’ve flown to a hotel and branched out on excursions. We’ve driven from spot to spot and rented motel rooms along the way.

By Shara Wallace
HIGHLINE TIMES

Burien man pleads guilty to child pornography charges

A Burien man pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Seattle to child pornography related offenses. 53-year-old Charles Glenn Perkins of Burien has prior convictions for sex offenses.

Perkins was identified by law enforcement when he tried to enter Canada on December 29, 2012 and was denied entry due to his prior convictions for sex offenses.

Perkins is a registered sex offender in Washington state having previously been convicted of child molestation offenses in Kitsap County in 1987 and 1990. The Canadian Border agents sent Perkin’s laptop for screening and investigators noted two pictures of nude children. Agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations obtained a search warrant for Perkin’s Burien residence.

A review of his digital media revealed that he had received and possessed approximately 610 images and 10 videos of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Because of his prior convictions Perkins faces a mandatory minimum 15 years in prison

The Dodgers weren't done yet.

They came into PacWest Majors in-house championship play with one loss Saturday and were playing an Orioles team that was undefeated, meaning the Dodgers had to beat the Orioles twice to take the championship.

But the Dodgers forced a second game by outslugging the Orioles, 12-9.
The winner will advance to play in the District 7 Tournament of Champions starting with a 6 p.m. game against West Seattle at the Normandy Park City Hall fields Friday.

Winners games take place at 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. Sunday, June 16 and the T.O.C. championship is scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday, June 20.

But for the Dodgers, their first hurdle came in the first PacWest final this last Saturday.

The Orioles opened the scoring with two runs in the bottom of the first with the help of a leadoff double by Timmy Brodigan, then the Dodgers got one back in the top of the second as Mark McClean singled, went to third on a Will Roberson double and scored on a wild pitch.

Brodigan doubled and scored on a single by Noah Gordon for the Orioles in the bottom of the inning, with further runs stopped when Adrian Brown stepped on home plate while hitting an apparent double.

Mayor Mike McGinn announced June 11 that five new locations for future school zone speed cameras have been selected for school zones around the city. Two of them are in West Seattle on SW Roxbury Street.

The cameras already in place have, "led to a combined 16 percent reduction in citations for speeding across the four schools," the city said in a press release.

“The public has been clear that we need to do more to protect children as they travel to and from school,” said Mayor Mike McGinn. “The data shows that the existing cameras are helping improve safety near schools by reducing travel speed and cameras should be installed at additional schools.”

“Increasing safety in our school zone and beyond continues to be a high priority for me and for our school community,” said Sherri Kokx, principal of Nathan Eckstein Middle School, a potential location for future school zone traffic cameras. “School zone cameras are one more tool that can help increase safety.”

Broadview-Thomson K-8, Olympic View, Gatewood, and Thurgood Marshall Elementary Schools were the first locations chosen last fall for camera installation.

Construction is progressing for the Ballard Greenways, which will make residential roads along NW 58th St safer for bicyclists and pedestrians. The Seattle Department of Transportation sent along the following note giving an update on the various projects taking place:

Speed Humps

Weather permitting construction starts mid-week to install 18 speed humps along the corridor. This work will have significant short-term on-street parking impacts. On-street parking must be restricted in the work zone during construction. Speed hump construction requires parking restrictions for a minimum of two days and may include additional time for prep. Construction notices will be delivered to impacted properties prior to work starting, as well as ‘no park’ signs placed.

We understand that on-street parking is in high demand and appreciate your patience while we make this safety improvement. Once complete, speed humps will not interfere with on-street parking, because it is okay to park over them.

Rectangular Rapid Flash Beacons

The flashing beacons are on order and scheduled for installation at 24th Avenue NW this July.

News release:

With construction completed on 14 schools resulting from bonds approved by voters, the Highline School Board is considering a bond next spring to continue replacing aging schools.

The 2002 and 2006 bonds paid to replace 10 elementary schools and one high school. Replacement of three additional elementary schools was funded through state match and the district's good stewardship of capital dollars.

Aviation High Schools is being completed this summer with funding through a public/private partnership that includes significant support from aviation businesses and the Port of Seattle.


While all but one elementary school are now in good shape, most of the district's secondary schools are in need of significant improvements or replacement. In many cases, replacing the building is more cost-effective than renovation.


At a recent study session, the school board discussed the possibility of putting a bond before voters in 2014. The community will be asked for feedback in the coming months.

The board will decide early this fall whether to run a bond and what specific projects would be in it.

Tempting passersby since Zak's Burgers mysteriously closed, the new Li'l Woody's (2040 NW Market St) is finally just about ready to let loose on Ballard, with an opening date set for next Monday, June 17.

Marcus Lalario, owner of Li'l Woody's and who has had a location in Capitol Hill for about 5 years, said he had been eyeing Ballard for a little while now. Curious about what Zak's was doing -- which had gone into noticeable decline after it was bought by the folks of neighboring Yozen -- Lalario asked them what was going on. They said it was about time for them to move on, they worked out a deal, and now the rest is (almost) history.

According to Lalario, Li'l Woody's delivers hamburgers in the style of a backyard barbeque -- only, well, probably fresher than your typical Costco frozen patty and with more ingredients.

"We make everything in house ... everything's fresh, natural, nothing's frozen. We try to keep everything (ingredients) from the Northwest," Lolario said.

Update for June 12
Nickelsville responds to plan

During the public comment period of a Seattle City Council Housing, Human Services and Health and Culture Committee meeting on June 12, Diane Fillmore, Nickelsville resident for two years, said she was disappointed that multiple media outlets arrived at their camp on Monday to ask for Nickelsville's reaction to a letter they had not seen.

“Finally we saw what the seven of you had signed (the letter is available for download at the top of the story), and it was a shocking thing to see this letter from city leaders that pretty much talked about us like dogs in a kennel.”

Fillmore then read a response to the letter from Nickelsville leadership, which included the following passages: