March 2017

By Jean Godden

The Ramps to Nowhere, deserted highway interchanges, have overshadowed Union Bay and the Arboretum since Methuselah was a small child -- or at least since the 1960s. Now those soaring, never-connected ramps are the heart of a controversy between the state Department of Transportation and citizens working to preserve a piece of the structures as a memorial.

The forgotten ramps were long used by students for sun-bathing, diving and other sundry activities. They date from a very different time and mindset. Today it's hard to imagine the superheated freeway ambitions of the 1960s. State and city transportation planners envisioned three north-south freeways cutting through the narrow city: a widened SR-99, Interstate-5 (then under construction) and a new highway, the Empire Way Expressway -- later renamed the R. H. Thomson.

Sleeping suspect arrested

By Lindsay Peyton

The race is on for the “Unofficial Official Mayor of White Center” – a position that’s part April Fools spoof and part serious fun.

There are already five opponents running for the position – Donnie McDermott, Christine Spencer, Justin Cline, Brian Cooper and canine candidate Floyd Dog. Nominations will be accepted through Saturday, April 1.

The candidates are campaigning with serious promises like Cooper’s intentions to add murals to the neighborhood and Spencer’s desire to bring a needle exchange program to the area to reduce transmission of disease.

There are also more fanciful campaigns, like McDermott’s pledge to build a monorail from the Triangle Tavern to Taradise and create floating bubble cars for White Center residents. Cline says he will pave the streets with ice cream and replace traffic lights with pinball machines, returning “Rat City to the former glory it never had.”

It’s hard to get a word out of Floyd Dog – but is an active member of the community – and a regular participant of the White Center 5K.

By Pat Cashman

I was stocking the shelves at “Three Boys Market” in my hometown of Bend, Oregon---a city whose population at the time practically could have fit onto the Cathlamet and Issaquah ferries (although there wouldn’t have been enough beer to go around.)

A man walked up behind me and said in a movie voice, “Hey, kid. Where can I find the buttermilk?” I wheeled around and immediately knew why it sounded like a movie---Kirk Douglas was standing there. He was easy to recognize---that distinctive chin dimple could have held a full quart of buttermilk.
Afterwards, I couldn’t wait to race home so I could tell my parents that I’d shown Kirk Douglas where the buttermilk was. It was my first brush with greatness.

Douglas was in town to shoot a western---The Way West---along with another big time actor, Robert Mitchum. I never saw Mitchum though. He didn’t seem like the buttermilk type.

GriefShare Recovery
Support Group
Grace Church
10323 28th Ave. S.W.
Every Sat., Now–May 20, 10 a.m.–Noon. Grace Church in West Seattle will be hosting a 13-week GriefShare recovery support group for those that have lost a loved one by death. You are free to join at any time. A one time $15 charge will cover the cost of your workbook. For more information please contact Grace Church at 206.937.8400 or Barb at 206.932.7459.

Resource Open House For Business Owners
And Entrepreneurs
Seattle Public Library–Delridge
5423 Delridge Way S.W.,
Thurs., March 16, 4–6 p.m. The Seattle Public Library will host an open house where business owners and entrepreneurs can meet with community lenders and providers of free business consulting. The event will gather together local experts who provide technical and financial assistance to new and growing businesses. Attendees will receive free advice on next steps, business ideas and financial assistance. Registration not required. For more information, call 206.733.9125.

Evergreen Tang Soo Do Academy Open House
2701 California Ave. S.W.

By Carol Smith

Although when he says Tenacious Belligerent is what you hear
Although when he says Refined Uncouth rings in your ear
Although when he says United Limits are what you fear
Although when he says Many Little is what he’ll premier
It’s not until he says President You can see how very clear

It is that no matter whatever he says, a Bully he’ll always appear!

By Tim Gruver
WNPA Olympia News Bureau

OLYMPIA, Mar. 8 –– In floor action Mar. 3, the House of Representatives passed two measures that affect the cost of providing digitized public records to requesters, and managing access to records via a statewide Internet portal.

Public records are one of the most important tools citizens use to keep tabs on government, but emerging technologies have made maintaining their accessibility in the digital age for government agencies a costly challenge.

HB 1594 passed the House 79-18 while HB 1595 earned 75-22 approval. Both measures now head to the Senate for consideration starting Mar. 15 with public hearings before the State Government Committee.

SDOT conducted two Walking Tours last week to inform people and collect feedback on the Fauntleroy Boulevard Project that is set to transform the “gateway to the neighborhood” starting later this year.

About 35 to 40 people showed up for each tour which took people from the corner of Fauntleroy Way SW and Alaska Street SW down to West Seattle Brewing on 36th Avenue SW to give them a ground level look at the changes coming and complete what is said to be a project about 60 percent complete in design.

SDOT’s project page describes it this way:
“Fauntleroy Way SW serves many purposes; it is a key entrance to West Seattle, a major truck street, a bike route, and is home to numerous retail businesses and new residential developments. Today, this area presents several challenges that impact mobility for users, including: poorly defined sidewalks, significant distances between marked pedestrian crossings, no dedicated space for people riding bikes, and minimal landscaping.

How do you make a restaurant stand out these days? Perhaps by doing something no one else is doing.

When Arthur's opens in the former Angelina's space in the Admiral District at 2311 California Ave SW, later this month diners will probably notice that owners Rebecca Rice and Sara Levin are very hands on, and that first they join the very few places in West Seattle that are open for breakfast. But the The foundational idea behind the restaurant is to provide a neighborhood friendly and destination driven restaurant and bar that offers a place for friends, neighbors, and guests from all walks to gather over good food in a beautiful and entertaining space. One aspect of the concept for Arthur’s is the idea of “clean eating” which suggests that whole foods, those that are un- or minimally processed, refined, and handled is not only better for you but delicious. So many foods brought to you by giant corporations have been "flavor profiled" and focus group tested to maximize the profits not their health benefits or natural unprocessed taste.

Arthur’s is named after Rice's father whose picture will be behind the bar and whose lineage is Australian.

Following the publication of the story of Shi Qiu Chen and her family at the New Leaf Bistro in the Admiral District many in the West Seattle/White Center restaurant community came together to help the struggling family.

Shi lost her husband January 29, after a sudden discovery of advanced lung cancer, which led to his death.

A GoFundMe page was set up to help collect donations and raise $30,000 to offset funeral costs and get the family back on solid ground. That page shows the total close to $20,000 and local restaurants set up an evening in which 10 percent of all dinners sold was donated to the cause. That total came to $2272.

The restaurants that took part were:

• Noble Barton (White Center)
• Peel and Press
• Itto's
• Mission Cantina
• Circa
• Baked Custom Cakes
• Westy Sports and Spirits

Shi expressed her gratitude to the whole group saying "I can't say thank you enough."