By Ken Robinson
Managing Editor, Westside Seattle
A friend, a local businessman. called today to ask if there was a news story in the fact that his friend and client at his hair dressing salon was the victim of a crime in the Fred Meyer parking lot in Burien.
On the cover of this paper last week we ran a photo of people walking their dogs on Alki Beach at low tide. We received a note from a former subscriber who points out that this activity is against the law. Here is his note:
“Dogs on the beach are a $500 fine. Your photo is encouraging bad behavior. Be responsible. Your next edition should have a segment on why dogs are not allowed on city beaches and playfields and a picture of the signage stating this. “
“Attached are a couple of pictures of “No Dogs on Beach” signs. The problem with some of these signs is they are either poorly placed and/or aren’t readable. Sign on the light pole is 8 ft up and sun faded. There are some newer signs at a more readable height posted on the stairways as you move towards the east along Alki, but these seem to be routinely ignored.
information from Seattle Police Blotter
Officers arrested a woman and recovered a stolen vehicle in West Seattle Dec. 4 after it struck another motorist while trying to flee from police.
Around 10:45 AM officers responded to the 800 block of SW Trenton Street for a report of two people passed out in a gray Honda, which was partially blocking traffic.
Officers approached the car— which had no license plates—saw a man and a woman asleep inside, and knocked on the female driver’s window.
The driver awoke and quickly sped away, colliding with another driver in the 6800 block of Highland Park Drive SouthWest. The female suspect then fled on foot into a wooded area nearby, where police found her a short time later.
Police learned the Honda had been stolen in Renton and its driver was in possession of a modified key, commonly used by auto thieves.
information from Seattle Police Blotter
Officers arrested a drug dealer in Ballard early Thursday, Dec. 3 and recovered a significant amount of methamphetamine and other narcotics.
Police met the man shortly after midnight after setting up a deal to buy drugs from the 45-year-old suspect. Officers arrested the man and recovered 176 grams of meth,10 grams of heroin, five grams of mushrooms, and 66 doses of Suboxone, a prescription drug used in opioid addiction treatment, sometimes sold by street dealers in place of heroin. The man was also in possession of more than $1,300 cash and multiple debit cards in another person’s name.
Police then booked the suspect into the King County Jail for narcotics possession with intent to distribute.
SDOT recently launched a new project status dashboard to show the status and progress of the many Reconnect West Seattle projects designed to help mitigate the effects of the High-Rise Bridge closure. The map uses the Google Maps interface, and has “pins” in three different colors to differentiate between projects:
information from Seattle Department of Transportation
Starting on December 9, the Port of Seattle will conduct live load testing for the Terminal 5 (T5) bridge. Live load testing entails installing sensors on the bridge and running a truck (with a known weight and axle spacing) across the bridge. The information the Port receives from the sensors can be used to understand how the bridge responds to vehicle loads and ultimately to determine the bridge load rating.
Upcoming short-term T5 Bridge closure
information from Seattle Department of Transportation
We’re close to concluding the emergency measures that we’ve been constructing since May to stabilize the bridge and prevent further cracking. This was necessary whether we chose to repair or replace the bridge. In the past two weeks, we installed the new lateral bearings at Pier 18 and continued to install carbon fiber wrapping.
Pier 18 bearing replacement
Torie Rynning, King County Metro
If you are planning to travel by water taxi to or from West Seattle on Friday, Dec. 4, please note that afternoon service will be canceled so that Seacrest Park can receive a brand-new, stronger float. The pier at Seacrest Park will also be closed when construction crews are onsite.
