December 2014

UPDATE:
Power has been restored. City Light said the cause was an underground cable failure leading from a substation.

Original post:
A power outage stretching from Delridge Way SW up to Alki Ave. SW hit at 10:55pm on Dec. 13 affecting more than 4213 City Light customers, No cause was determined but was being investigated.

It began apparently near Juneau Street on Delridge Way SW, extending north near the Delridge Playfield then west along Genesee Street where it spread north to SW Manning and south to SW Oregon Street. and then north to Alki Ave. SW.

City Light estimates a repair by 2 AM.

You can check the status of the Seattle City Light system here http://www.seattle.gov/light/sysstat/

by Paul Moseley

West Seattle High School is celebrating after winning both boys and girls varsity basketball games against Chief Sealth in a double-header at West Seattle.

The West Seattle girls team beat the Seahawks decisively 83-40. The Wildcats spread the work around the court, with three players finishing the night in double digits. Forward Lexi Loane had 21 points, Center Lydia Giomi had 20, and Emily Fiso finished with 19 points. Chief Sealth guard Oshea Walker had 20 points.

The boys game followed, and gave the crowd one of the best contests they are likely to see this year. The bigger, taller Chief Sealth Seahawks faced a fast and scrappy West Seattle team. West Seattle went out front early and carried a slim lead into the 4th quarter playing a fast paced offense. Chief Sealth kept the game close, and took the lead in the 4th quarter. West Seattle tied it up in the the last minute, and a half-court shot by Chief Sealth at the buzzer just missed. West Seattle dominated the overtime, outscoring the Seahawks 9-0 and taking home a 56-47 win.

All 4 lanes of 35th Ave SW will be closed today 4435 35th Ave. SW to erect a tower crane. The crane rolled on site at 5:30 am Saturday with work starting at 8:00 am.

They plan to come back Sunday to remove the mobile crane. They are permitted to work until 10 PM with the lane closures, the construction company said in a release "we are confident (weather permitting) we will be out of there by noon. Again, we apologize in advance for any inconveniences this may cause to your weekend commutes."

By Tim Clinton
SPORTS EDITOR

Thursday, Dec. 11
Wrestling
Renton 75, Evergreen 0
Renton 78, Tyee 9
Renton soundly defeated both Evergreen and Tyee in Thursday action in the Renton gymnasium.
Hazen 57. Foster 24
Foster fell to the Highlanders as the Seamount League season opened Thursday.
Decatur 84, Mt. Rainier 0
Mount Rainier went down to defeat at the hands of the Gators on Thursday.

Boys swimming
Mt. Rainier 110, Kentwood 73
Mount Rainier's swimmers swamped the Conquerors this past Thursday.

Wednesday, Dec. 10
Girls basketball
West Seattle 71, Nathan Hale 10
The Wildcats won big in Metro League action Wednesday.
Cleveland 81, Chief Sealth 32
Cleveland clobbered the Seahawks in Wednesday's game.
Kennedy 63, Highline 26
Kennedy Catholic got the best of the Pirates on Wednesday.
Foster 51, Tyee 31
The Bulldogs dealt the Totems a defeat Wednesday.
Evergreen 44, Hazen 39
The Wolverines were winners in Wednesday action.

Boys basketball
Hazen 64, Evergreen 53

By Amanda Knox

Callan Barth, ensemble member in this year’s 5th Avenue production of A Christmas Story, is wasting no time in assimilating as much as he can toward his professional life as an artist. Acting, singing, dancing, writing—Barth has been honing his talents and passions for the last three years—since he was seven years old.

It all started when his class went to see Broadway Bound’s production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It was his first glimpse of theater, and what he saw as a tangible, legitimate step towards his ultimate goal: film.

Much more than a fan, Barth is a film connoisseur. He studies them, every aspect of them, from the dramatic arc to the acting to the directing. He studies the careers of the artists behind the art, and has favorites who he treats as models: Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese (even if he’s still not allowed to watch the majority of his films), Will Farrell…

…Leonardo DiCaprio, “because he plays a lot of characters in a lot of different ways and started off as a child,”

…and Ray Harryhausen, “because he watched something and said, ‘I want to do that,’ like I did.”

By Ed Shepherd
Sports Correspondent

A solid core of upperclassmen, led by seniors, makes experience not a big concern for the Mount Rainier Rams swim and dive team. But depth could be an issue as they head into the 2014-15 high school swim season, hoping to improve on last year's season that did not include a top 10 finish at the 4A state meet.
"Our goal is to get to the postseason, and, I think, this is the year we can make a run," said Chris Veraya, Rams head coach.

Veraya has been around the block, so to speak, doing well in swimming, having set a couple Kentwood school records. He set the Conquerors' 100-yard backstroke mark and the 200 freestyle, too. Veraya, also, participated on the 200-yard medley, record-setting, relay with current Kennedy swim coach, Sean Prothero, as both Veraya and he graduated in the same class. Veraya's also helped coach, and, swam for, the highly successful Kent Swim Team Club through some of its past decade wins of the Seattle Summer Swim League season, and coached there, too, alongside Prothero and his sister Marley, who is a Kennedy assistant coach.

The windstorm that arrived around 7pm in Western Washington Dec. 11 proved to be more hype than hassle at least as far as West Seattle goes.

The wind speed at Alki Point reached 46 mph at around 8pm.

There were two power outages one more persistent than the other and while more than 11 thousand people lost power in the region. A tree came down near the Southwest Athletic Complex which put about 57 homes in the dark. City Light crews were on it within about 90 minutes and got it resolved quickly.

Others in the region did lose power of course with most of the problems happening in the Shoreline area.

An area of 83 homes in Burien near Maplewild Drive SW and SW 150th lost power due to a tree as well.

By Gerardo Bolong
Contributing Writer

A change of tempo unleashed Kennedy Catholic in a 70-44 drowning of Highline in a boys basketball game at Highline High School on Wed., Dec. 10.

Both teams played mainly half court offense against similar 2-3 and 2-1-2 zones in the first quarter with Highline taking advantage of missed Kennedy Catholic shots to build a 14-8 first quarter lead behind its own success at ball movement and open lay up chances.

"This is our modus operandi," said fourth year Pirate head coach Shane Steneson. "We worked our offense and had energy for a quarter and a half before a little bit of pressure makes the team forget what to do. Give Kennedy credit. They're solid, have three studs and just keep coming at you in waves because they're so deep."

The dangerous waters for HHS grew deep when the second quarter ensued.

Two quick Lancer baskets within 15 seconds of each other to open the second quarter began the game changing sequences. Kennedy ramped up its aggressiveness on offense and defense to work steals and transition baskets as the tempo quickened in the Lancers' favor.

by Erin Bosetti

A new food truck has popped up in south Ballard, near the now shuttered Two Bit Saloon (4810 17th Ave NW). Basil and Javi’s (pronounced ha-vi) is a vegan wonderland bringing delicious fresh ingredients to Ballardites on the go and those taking in the various breweries in the area looking for a bite.

Named after two of owner Evan Cox’s favorite cats, the truck is committed to sustainable practices and excellent products.

“My wife and I are vegan and wanted to see what we could do to bring it to the mainstream,” says Cox. "We want to do fresh vegan takes on classics."

Their business practices are incredibly respectable.

“The whole philosophy [behind the business] is trying to be, in general, sustainable, socially and economically, with our products”.

This means that Basil and Javi are sourcing the freshest and most local ingredients possible, reducing their carbon footprint.

They are also taking care of their employees. Starting pay at Basil and Javi’s is $15 an hour, which is not something that most Ballard restaurants and bars can also say.