August 2006

Port of Seattle Chief Executive Officer Mic Dinsmore has said he will leave his position early next year.

Dinsmore has been chief executive for 14 years, the longest tenure in that position in the Port's 95-year history.

Commission chairman Patricia Davis said the commission accepted Dinsmore's decision with profound regret, but understood his desire to open the next chapter in his life.

"He will be leaving an unprecedented legacy," Davis said.

The King County Council has voted to make King County the largest local jurisdiction in the nation to conduct all elections by mail.

The new system will be in effect after the infrastructure is in place. The council appropriated $1,635,446 to initiate the transition.

"(The) decision is the beginning of the process for moving to vote-by-mail - not the end - and we have much preparation work ahead to ensure a smooth transition," said Larry Phillips, council chairman.

Construction plans and ideas for keeping the viaduct open and moving during the Alaskan Way viaduct and seawall replacement project were released last week.

"Regardless of what we build, the project is located in the same dense urban area and the impacts will be similar, so we can start planning now for construction." said Project Director Ron Paananen.

should go onto the 2006 ballot

A group calling itself Seattle schools supporters says voters deserve the chance to vote on two school initiatives this fall, despite a lawsuit intended to block the measures.

The two initiatives would lift the city's property levy lid and raise money to reduce class sizes, restore art and music classes and provide all-day kindergarten in Seattle Public Schools.

Summer has arrived in the Northwest and the American Automobile Association encourages motorists to take extra precautions before leaving home that may prevent vehicle breakdowns and heat related illnesses.

"When the temperature outside reaches the mid 80s, AAA receives an increase in calls from members for dead batteries and overheated cars," said Andy Pomeroy, regional automotive manager for AAA Washington.

Even though he's been selling automobiles for nearly 60 years, Bob Ochsner still stops in midsentence at the sight of a pretty car.

"Isn't that a beautiful color?" Ochsner, 85, said admiringly of a sparkling, burnt-red vehicle waiting at a traffic signal on Fauntleroy Way in front of his business, Bob Ochsner Cars. He didn't break his gaze or continue speaking until the light turned and the car had moved on.

Ochsner (pronounced "Oh-shner") has been selling cars for 39 years at a small lot between Wardrobe Cleaners and the West Seattle Montessori School.

If you are reading this column, then you somehow survived the heat wave that baked Federal Way (and basically the rest of the country) into a m/lange of temperature-stressed people overwhelming the hardware stores for air conditioners, and cooler heads who just hung out where there was already air conditioning.

I did both, and even though I always vow never to "go without an air conditioner next year," I cannot justify the cost when, on only a couple of days a year, the heat becomes uncomfortable.

I endured it for a couple of days, then I took Mrs.

1. A woman called 911 to report a domestic dispute that she thought might turn violent. The woman told Federal Way police that her sister, who lives on the 2300 block of Southwest 333rd Street, started yelling at her and making threats to kill her. The suspect, the report states, was mad because the woman called CPS about her son. The sister had a kitchen knife in her hand while she was yelling at the victim, and the woman was afraid an assault might occur. No physical injuries were reported, but the suspect's two children were in the house when the incident occurred.

Along with the spiraling twists and turns of the Wild Thing, and the tumultuous peaks and pitfalls of the park's new Timberhawk, the bumpiest attraction in Enchanted Village has earned the name Budget Crisis. And once again, this roller coaster has taken the theme park's owners for a wild fiscal ride.

Blame it on the Pacific Northwest's short growing season for warm weather outdoor activities, or a shift in consumer trends that have left water parks out in the cold, but the future of one of Federal Way's icons appears in jeopardy.