January 2009

Dow Constantine, who represents West Seattle on the King County Council, has come out in support of the plan to replce the Alaskan Way Viaduct with a deep bored tunnel because of the value to West Seattle commuters.

"Every other proposal held the possibility of significant disruption for West Seattle commuters," said Constantine. "This deep bore tunnel creates the possibility of uninterupted traffic flow if we can figure out how to keep the viaduct safe for travelers until the tunnel is ready."

Since Gov.

Seattle Department of Transportation and Seattle City Light are working today (Thursday, Jan. 15) on the West Seattle Bridge to replace missing lane striping in the eastbound direction and overhead lighting in the westbound direction.

A transportation department crew is blocking off the curb lane while a City Light crew is replacing the lighting.

At 12:30 p.m. the crews will switch directions and the striping crews will be working in the westbound direction while the City Light crew will work in the curb lanes eastbound. The work will wrap up at 3 p.m.

I grew up with a small town newspaper that had an annual tradition. The longtime editor started each New Year with a montage of photos culled from the previous 12 months. As a member of the League of Women Voters and founder of the town's recycling program my mother always "made the front page" as we called it.

I remembered that photo montage while supposedly listening to my breath sounds in a yoga class at Ballard Health Club in December. I'd dashed down the stairs (late) and panted that I didn't have my member card because my life was in chaos. "What's going on?" Jade asked.

Gov. Chris Gregoire recently announced that she prefers the tunnel option to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct. This tunnel, as it is currently being planned, does not have an exit to Western Avenue, thereby cutting off a key access point to and from Ballard.

The tunnel idea, which was specifically voted down in 2007, and was not one of the options that was going to originally be discussed by the Viaduct stakeholder group, is now the plan going forward for replacing the earthquake-damamged roadway.

For the second time in three months, a major transportation initiative that is going to affect Seattle in the 21st Century is going to bypass Ballard, or in this case, remove a transportation option to Ballard. While I have a lot of concerns with this tunnel, at least a decision has been made, and that is the important thing.

There's not a whole lot to like about this tunnel idea. It seems ridiculous to have only two lanes each way. If it is only two lanes, can you imagine what the traffic will look like when the Mariners or Seahawks are playing?

If it is tolled, are they going to put in a tollbooth?

Ballard residents and business owners are speaking out against state, city and county officials' plan to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct with a deep-bored tunnel.

"I don't think it's the best decision for the public in the long term," said Warren Aakervik, owner of Ballard Oil and member of the North Seattle Industrial Association Board.

Federal Way Police issued a statement late Tuesday night indicating that Maria Lopez-De-Guardado was found and returned home to her family unharmed.

According to police, Guardado, who was missing for more than 24 hours, was found at a friend's residence in the same mobile home park in which she lives.

The woman told officers that she didn't know anyone was looking for her.

Here is the original story about this missing person:

On January 12, the Federal Way Police Department received information regarding a missing person, last seen at her home at app

More details have been released, including a projected four to five year construction period, on state elected leaders plan to replace the ailing Alaskan Way Viaduct with a deep bore tunnel, however, opposers have filed an initiative to stop them.

About 18,000 valid signatures will have to be gathered within 180 days to put it on a city ballot.

Dow Constantine, who represents West Seattle on the King County Council, has come out in support of the tunnel plan because of the value to West Seattle commuters.

"Every other proposal held the possibility of significa

This is perhaps the most mis-understood issue facing the auto repair industry today. The term diagnostics or diagnostic time refers to the time needed to find the cause of a problem or warning light.

The problem may be found quickly, or it may take up to several hours. As technology has advanced, so has the strategy of diagnosing automotive systems. Today's cars are extremely complex vehicles with on-board networks of computers that interface with each other. The computers, or control modules, use a variety of sensors that perform specific tasks like measurement of engine or air temp, vehicle speed, and oxygen content of exhaust gas.

When any symptom or warning light becomes present and service is required for your vehicle, the first step will be providing a good description of the symptom to the service writer at the desk. Next, a technician will begin diagnosing the problem.

If it is found quickly, as in the case of a coolant leak (which may be the cause of overheating, strange smells, improper heat delivery, rough engine operation, etc.), the charges will be less (usually a shop has a minimum charge).

More details have been released, including a projected four to five year construction period, on state elected leaders plan to replace the ailing Alaskan Way Viaduct with a deep bore tunnel.

About $2.8 billion has been set-aside by the state in gas taxes and federal bridge funds to pay for the project. The price-tag; $4.25 billion.

Most of the funding would have to come from the state, with some help from the county and city.

Community members working to create a natural playscape for children in the Admiral neighborhood have selected a landscape architect to help design the space at California Place Park.

The area being developed is a small triangle of land on California Avenue Southwest and Southwest Hill Street. Supporters of the project say that all elements used will be natural, such as logs or native plants, and that no trees would be removed.