June 2009

Dear Editor,

As a concerned taxpayer, a West Seattle resident and a city tax payer, it appears that the city has improved private properties, increased personal property boundaries and done excessive improvements to private property with public funds. 

The property improvements certainly go far beyond fixing the street and infrastructure.  I sure wish the city would pave my driveway, fix my slightly irregular sidewalk and increase my property value with such apparent disregard for violating property lines and vehicle right-of-ways as is demonstrated at Alki Point. 

It is my sincerest hope that the general public will help me demonstrate my disappointment with the current elected officials at the polls in the next election. 
 
Jacob E Chavey
West Seattle

Dear Editor,

As a new Ballard resident, I was delighted to discover Golden Gardens. It’s got a gorgeous view of the sound, sandy beaches, the smell of salt air, and the Olympics beaming down on you. It also has a mountain of trash the morning after a beautiful day.

I dropped by early one morning and found out just what the park workers have to contend with. Beer cans and bottles littered the beach. The ruins of a whole Thai feast sat out on the ground in front of a park bench. It was a bit nauseating to watch the crows pick at the rotting food.

Some trash cans had enough garbage next to them to fill an extra can and a half, but a number of people did not bother walking the five to 10 steps to dispose of their trash.

In late May, the parks department supervisor, Tim Gallagher, decided getting rid of trash cans would save money on the absurd theory that if the public have to walk more than ten steps to the nearest garbage can, they’ll just take their trash home with them. According to park workers, Golden Gardens has had its cans reduced since then from about 80 to 50 cans, with more on the chopping block.

Dear Editor,

I wanted to add a note to your “Dying Trees on Eighth Avenue” June 3 story. It is important to know that the Arbutus trees on Eighth Avenue are Arbutus x marina, which is not a reliably hardy species of Arbutus in our area.

Although I recently chatted with a lady who, due to this winter, lost one she had in her garden for fifteen years. We still have to think of it as a “marginal” tree and agree to take our chances.

Planting Arbutus unedo or the smaller form, Arbutus unedo ‘Compacta’ is a better choice since they are both hardy to Zone 4 (0 degrees at its worst), while Arbutus x marina is hardy only at the “upper end” of Zone 8.

With fewer and fewer trees in Seattle’s urban canopy due to continued topping of trees for power lines and views and removal for new construction, it is important that the City of Seattle only choose the hardiest species for street plantings. I hope they will do so in future.

Toni Cross, CPH
Seasonal Color Pots
Beauty in Small Spaces

Dear Editor,

Great bit about Ballard Corners Park (click here to read it), a true success story for the neighborhood.

I’m glad also that you mentioned the Pro Parks Levy. We are just starting to see the final neighborhood park improvements from these projects, and luckily similar improvements will take place during the next six-year thanks to the 2008 Parks and Green Spaces Levy.

Seattle Parks Foundation advocated strongly for this levy because these extra funds are essential to make the parks we have even better. Already the first projects are underway.

One in particular, the Seward Park playground, is just the kind of park improvement project you’re hoping to find - one that involves the neighborhood coming together to create a unique and spectacular design. The Seward Park Playground Improvement Project worked hard to create a design that integrates with the new Audubon Center and the adjacent old growth forest.

You can learn more about the Seward Park project at www.seattleparksfoundation.org/project_Seward.html

This new Boeing 737 fuselage was transported on the Burlington Northern Santa Fe rail as seen here on the bridge above Seaview Avenue Northwest just west of the Ballard Locks Sunday afternoon.

According to Boeing spokespersons, the fuselage, and two others like it on the same train, were enroute from Spirit Aerosystems in Wichita, Kansas to the Boeing plant in Renton.

Gus Melonas is spokesperson for BNSF. He said the fuselages are bulkier than most other loads on freight cars, but not necessarily greater in weight than most other loads.

"Because of the fuselages' large dimensions, our trains are specially equipped and designed to transport them here from Wichita," Melonas said.

June 8, 2009- Clarification: It's stated in this piece that thieves "held up" the Skylark Club. The club was burglarized in the past, however, it has never been robbed while customers, or employees were there.

(Editor's note: The following article appears originally in Seattle City Council member Sally Clark's newsletter "Seattle View.")

In early April council member Tim Burgess and I toured abandoned homes in the Delridge neighborhood with Mike Dady and other fed up neighbors.

Abandoned homes prove to be trouble magnets in many neighborhoods as anyone who has lived next door or across the street from one knows. At best you have an eyesore. At worst, your own home may be endangered if squatters lose control of a fire inside a boarded up house.

The tour with Mike and others started near the Skylark Café where a nearby eyesore likely harbored the thieves who held up the bar late one night recently. We then looked at three other houses moving south through the neighborhood. All had a slightly different story.

This summer, through the efforts and contributions of the community and the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods, Delridge Produce Cooperative will present a 16-part series of moving informational produce-collection-and-distribution centers.

The project was made possible, in part, due to a $15,000 Neighborhood Matching Fund grant.

At each of four locations along Delridge Way Southwest, a regular day will be chosen to host the project for all four consecutive weeks. For example, the Delridge P-Patch might host the 'Market' every Monday from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., from August 17 to Sept. 7.

The 'Market' will serve as a collection point for donations of produce from backyard growers, P-Patchers, Washington farmers, and local contributing businesses. Produce will be given away as it is collected to demonstrate how a community can work together to ensure food resiliency, food security, food diversity and food prosperity.

Norwegians from all over the area convened on Ballard's Leif Erikson Lodge June 7 to witness the opening of a time capsule recovered from the former site of the Norway Center.

The capsule was found by demolition crews at the Mountaineers Club, formerly the Norway Center, at 300 Third Ave. W. It was given to Russ Oberg, president of Leif Erikson Lodge, and Tom Stang, retired consul of the Royal Norwegian Consulate.

It was unclear whether the capsule was sealed during the 1950 dedication of the Norway Center or was transferred to the center from the 1915 dedication of the Norway Hall.

Before the capsule was opened, tribute was paid to the old Norway Center, which was sold to the Mountaineers Club in 1983, and was recently demolished.

"It was a beautiful building and held many happy memories," said Karin Gorud Scovill, representing the Daughters of Norway.

Stang said he drove by the site, now just a hole in the ground, and was overwhelmed, not necessarily by sadness, but by a lot of feelings.

"What most of my generation will remember about the center are the Saturday night dances," he said. "It was truly a center for young Norwegians in Seattle."

How people felt about the big spruce tree that was higher than the electrical lines at the southeast corner of 32nd Northwest and Northwest 61st varied from person to person but everyone agrees that the tree came down on Jan. 21, 1993 during the Inaugural Day storm. It was 90 to 110 feet; some people loved it, the homeowner hated it.

The tree took down power lines that sparked on the ground until overwhelmed Seattle City Light crews could at least cut the power. Then the street stayed without power for three days, between just 28th and 32nd on 61st.

Duane Rakowski didn’t have electricity, but his father next door did, so Duane ran extension cords over to the family home. When the homeowner had the offending tree taken down he had them leave 25 feet of trunk. Robert Gallegos wasn’t sure what he wanted to do with trunk, but he knew it was something.

The schedule for this year's summer series of Movies on the Wall has been announced and will include six weeks of family-friendly films and games.

July 18: "The Princess Bride," rated PG

July 25: "King Kong," 1933, not rated

August 1: "Footloose," rated PG

August 8: "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," rated PG

August 15: "Pirates of the Caribbean Curse of the Black Pearl," rated PG-13

August 22: "Disney Cars," rated G

Movies will be shown in the courtyard between Dr. Wolff and Hotwire Coffee. If it rains, the event will move indoors at the West Seattle Christian Church’s activity center at 4400 42nd Ave. S.W. Doors will open at 6 p.m. with movies starting at dusk.

Attendees are invited to bring your blankets and chairs. Concessions will be available as well as charity raffles.