West Marginal Way Southwest, which was was restricted to one lane at South Dakota Street when a truck hit a large power pole, has been reopened entirely since about 1 p.m. today after Seattle City Light crews replaced the pole.
It had been three weeks, but the Ballard High School volleyball team finally got back to what it wanted to do this season – win.
The Beavers (2-5 conference, 4-5 overall) shutout Garfield (1-6 conference, 3-7 overall) 3-0 Oct. 12 for their first win since Sept. 21.
Ballard won by scores of 25-20, 25-23 and 26-24.
Lisa Day led the team with 30 kills, Annie Allen had 10 digs and Monique Marques racked up 40 assists.
The Beavers have four matches left to bring their record above .500.
The next match is against Lake Washington at at 7 p.m on Oct. 14 at Lake Washington High School.
The ordinance that would allow backyard cottages throughout the city was voted unanimously out of the City Council's Planning, Land Use and Neighborhoods Committee Oct. 8. The ordinance is tentatively scheduled to be voted on by the full council Nov. 2.
The committee, comprised of Sally Clark, Tim Burgess and Tom Rasmussen, made a number of amendments to the ordinance before voting on it.
The citywide cap of 50 new backyard cottages per year was removed.
The height limit for cottages was lowered from 23 feet to 22 feet except on lots that are 50 feet wide or have a rear alley.
There was discussion of lowering the maximum height to 21 feet, but 22 feet yields more livable second floor, Clark said.
There is an additional height limit of 15 feet above the height of the main house.
Additional parking will not be required for cottages located within urban centers or urban villages.
Additional amendments deal with the reporting requirements for the Department of Planning and Development and language clarification.
After 29 years in Washington state education, Federal Way Schools Superintendent Tom Murphy announced today that he's retiring.
Murphy, who at 6'5" has stood tall at the helm of the Federal Way School Distirct since 1999, made the announcement at a press conference held in the FWHS library at 11 a.m. Tuesday morning.
He has been involved in the district since 1988.
Murphy told the group of journalists, elected officials, students and community members that he's ready to retire after a long career.
The Superintendent told the audience he hoped his legacy included closing the achievement gap between white and minority students. He also said he regretted his tenure never included solving the district's underperformance in math.
Suzanne Smith, District 2 School Board Member and Board President, said the search for Murphy's replacement will begin immediately.
State Representative Skip Priest was among those in attendance at Murphy's retirement announcement.
"He was a great asset to this community," Priest said, "He will be missed."
Members of the Ballard News-Tribune staff will be available to meet with Ballard area residents Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at the Ballard Neighborhood Service Center conference room.
Neighbors are welcome to show up any time to share and discuss ideas, news, coverage or anything else with the News-Tribune staff.
These meetings are being held to give the neighborhood an opportunity to meet with staff in person since the closure of the Ballard News-Tribune offices earlier this month.
The Ballard Neighborhood Service Center is located at 5604 22nd Ave. N.W.
The Northwest Design Review Board agreed to let the new Washington Federal Savings project move on to the recommendation phase after an Oct. 12 early design guidance meeting, but said they wanted to see a simpler design that fits in on Market Street and shows proper deference to the distinctive Carnegie's building next door.
The preferred design of the new Washington Federal Savings building presented by ehs Design is a two-story, 8,400-square-foot building. It is 40 feet tall instead of the maximum 65 feet. It includes surface parking and drive-up tellers on Northwest 56th Street.
The design for the building at 2020 N.W. Market St. includes a sloping roof meant to mirror that of the Ballard Public Library and Neighborhood Service Center.
The Design Review Board urged the developers to simplify the design into more of a background building, such as the Majestic Bay Theater or La Tienda building on the same block. A simpler design would allow the building to act as a bookend to the historic Carnegie's building as the current Washington Federal Savings building does and not distract from it.
The Woodland Park Zoo will allow its animals to smash pumpkins as part of the zoo's enrichment program to enhance the lives of the animals, "promote natural animal behavior, keep animals mentally stimulated and provide added enjoyment for visitors," according to a news release from the zoo.
The Pumpkin Bash is presented by Franz Bakeries and visitors can watch hippos, bears, elephants, monkeys, and other animals crunch, smash or stomp on pumpkins Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 24 and 25 from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Here is a schedule:
Jaguar, 10 a.m.
Arctic foxes, 10:30 a.m. (Saturday only)
Hippos, 10:30 a.m.
Orangutans, 10:30 a.m. (Saturday only)
Siamang, 10:30 a.m. (Saturday only)
Lion-tailed macaques, 10:30 a.m. (Sunday only)
Wolves, 11 a.m. (Sunday only)
Grizzlies, noon (Saturday only)
Sun bears, 12:15 p.m.
Gorillas, 1 p.m. (Sunday only)
Gorillas, 1:20 p.m. (Sunday only)
Ocelots, 1:30 p.m.
Tigers, 1:30 p.m. (Sunday only)
Snow leopard, 1:30 p.m. (Sunday only)
Otters, 1:30 p.m. (Sunday only)
Elephants, 2 p.m.
African wild dogs, 2 p.m. (Sunday only)
Lemurs, 2 p.m. (weather permitting)
On Saturday, Oct. 24 an international day of climate action will witness thousands of events around the world dramatizing the number 350.
Why 350? This is the number of parts per million of carbon dioxide (co2) that leading climate scientists believe is the safe upward limit in our atmosphere for the continued existence of human life.
Unfortunately, current concentrations of greenhouse gases have pushed this number to near 387 parts per million. So, is the situation hopeless? Only if we fail to act. Hence this wake up call on Oct. 24.
The goal is to alert folks to the problem, and convince them to pressure our elected leaders to pass a meaningful climate bill, something that President Obama can take to Copenhagen in December, where the 10th anniversary and redrafting of the Kyoto Protocol will take place.
Sustainable Ballard will host our own event, “Squash Global Warming” in
Bergen Square at 9:30 a.m. on Oct. 24. We will assemble 350 various
pumpkins, acorn, hubbard and winter squash to form the numbers 350.
West Seattle High's third annual college planning night for juniors and seniors will be held tonight, Tuesday, Oct. 13, from 6:15 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the school.
Students will get the chance to learn how to navigate post-high school options, said principal Bruce Bivins in a note to students.
All juniors and seniors will be offered 30-minute sessions that will include entrance exams, financial aid and scholarships, two-year and four-year college admission requirements, as well as choosing the right college and writing your own personal essay, said Bivins.
West Seattle High is located at 3000 California Ave. S.W.
While West Seattle voters learn more about Seattle’s two mayoral candidates, Mike McGinn and Joe Mallahan, some area politicians and activists say the bigger struggle is informing the public about the statewide Referendum 71, or R-71, which will also be on the Nov. 3 general election ballot.
If passed, the bill would expand rights both to same-sex domestic partners, and all Washington citizens over 62 in committed partnerships.
Gov. Christine Gregoire signed SB5688 into law May 18 that added these additional rights to domestic partners. But on July 25 the organization Protect Marriage Washington submitted enough valid signatures to the Secretary of State to challenge SB5688 by placing a referendum (R-71) on the Nov. 3 ballot.
Voting to “approve R-71” means honoring Gregoire’s SB5688 bill. Voting to “disapprove R-71” means eliminating those additional domestic partner rights, numbering about 300, in her bill.
