February 2026

Sports Watch 2-23-26

Sporting events worth keeping an eye on

By Tim Clinton

SPORTS EDITOR

 

High schools

Boys basketball

*Saturday, Feb. 28

*Foster vs. Bainbridge, 4 p.m.

*Venue:  University of Puget Sound.

 

Girls basketball

*Saturday, Feb. 28

*Kennedy Catholic vs. Redmond, noon.

*Venue:  Auburn High School.

 

Pros

Kraken

*Wednesday, Feb. 25

*Seattle at Dallas, 5 p.m.

 

*Thursday, Feb. 26

*Seattle at St. Louis, 5 p.m.

 

*Saturday, Feb. 28

*Vancouver at Seattle, 7 p.m.

*Venue:  Climate Pledge Arena.

 

*Monday, March 2

*Carolina at Seattle, 7 p.m.

*Venue:  Climate Pledge Arena.

 

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Sweeney Blocks redevelopment edges toward construction as final permits advance

The long‑anticipated redevelopment of the former Alki Lumber site is entering its final pre‑construction phase, marking the most significant movement on the project since the Sweeney family sold the lumber business in 2021 but retained the land for redevelopment.

City records show that the two‑building mixed‑use project — now branded collectively as the Sweeney Blocks — has cleared its major design hurdles and is awaiting final construction approvals. The eastern building, located at 4406 36th Ave SW, received its land‑use approval late last year, while the western building along Fauntleroy Way SW is in the final stages of technical review.

Together, the projects will replace the century‑old lumberyard with roughly 300+ apartments, 10,000–12,000 square feet of retail, and 150+ underground parking stalls, reshaping a key gateway into the West Seattle Triangle.

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Sports Roundup 2-21-26

By Tim Clinton

SPORTS EDITOR

 

Boys basketball

Foster 66, Cedarcrest 37

Foster prevailed in a winner-to-state, loser-out playoff game played Wednesday.

The Bullogs will play at the regional level of the Class 2A state tournament next Saturday at a site and time to be determined at a Sunday morning seeding meeting.

 

Union 57, Kennedy Catholic 49

The Lancers' season ended with Tuesday's defeat.

 

Foster 91, Evergreen 44

Foster eliminated the Wolverines in a Monday playoff game.

 

Girls basketball

Union 77, Kennedy Catholic 46

The Lancers lost in Saturday evening District 3/4 championship action but they will still advance to state Class 4A regional play next Saturday.

 

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From 1920 to the AI boom: BAT Theatre resurrects the sci-fi classic 'R.U.R.'

More than a century before chatbots and automation became household topics, Czech playwright Karel Čapek envisioned a world transformed by artificial beings. This winter, BAT Theatre brings this prescient masterpiece to the stage with a production of R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots), running from February 13 through March 8, 2026.

Performing at the Little Theatre at Kennedy Catholic High School in Burien, this adaptation breathes new life into the 1920 satire that first introduced the word "robot" to the world. Derived from the Old Church Slavonic word robota, meaning "forced labor" or "servitude," the term was a deliberate choice by Čapek to describe artificial biological organisms mass-produced to free humanity from "toiling long days just for bread".

A Cautionary Tale for the Modern Age

Seattle's oldest community center reopens: A $7.5 Million green modernization for West Seattle landmark

On February 21, 2026, the Hiawatha Community Center in West Seattle celebrated its grand reopening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, marking the end of a nearly six-year closure. The event signaled the completion of a comprehensive $7.5 million modernization project that transformed the historic facility into a model for urban sustainability.

A Historic Legacy Restored

Originally constructed between 1910 and 1911, Hiawatha is Seattle's oldest community center. Designed by the prominent firm Bebb & Gould, the center and its surrounding playfield were a key part of the 1908 Olmsted Brothers Supplemental Plan.

 

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Bridge deck concerns close two lanes of First Avenue South bridge in Seattle

Information from Washington State Department of Transportation

Two lanes of the northbound State Route 99 First Avenue South bridge over the Duwamish River are closed until further notice following a bridge inspection on Wednesday, Feb. 18, that identified concerns with the steel grid deck.

In addition to the lane closures, out of an abundance of caution, the Washington State Department of Transportation Wednesday night reduced the speed on the bridge to 25 mph to limit additional stress on the deck. The HOV lane is open to all traffic until further notice to help with traffic flow, and traffic can exit at Michigan Street.

The bridge remains open and operational, including for maritime traffic. Vessel openings will continue as needed.

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Washington lawmakers meet to extend transit bond terms to 75 years amid funding crunch

Bill cleared the Senate in January and will now go through the reading process

Washington state legislators are considering a significant shift in infrastructure financing that would allow regional transit authorities to issue bonds with terms of up to 75 years. The proposal, Senate Bill 6148, aims to help agencies like Sound Transit manage rising construction costs and align state law with recent changes in federal lending programs.

Addressing the "2030s Pinch"

The bill, which has already cleared the Senate Transportation Committee and is currently on its Second Reading, seeks to provide financial flexibility as major light rail expansions to Everett and Tacoma face inflationary pressures. Under current law, the maximum term for these bonds is 40 years.

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Community gathers for "Peat Party" to celebrate major restoration milestone at Roxhill Bog

On a classic Pacific Northwest day, local advocates, scientists, and city officials gathered at Roxhill Park to celebrate a "major milestone" in the restoration of the Roxhill Bog. The event marked the successful completion of a pilot project designed to rehydrate one of Seattle's last remaining peat wetlands, which had been slowly drying out for decades.

The Power of Peat

Peat bogs are rare, ancient ecosystems that take millennia to form. Created from Sphagnum moss, sedges, and grasses in oxygen-deficient (anaerobic) conditions, peat develops into a dark, sponge-like material that can consist of up to 90% water.

These wetlands are ecological powerhouses that serve several vital functions:

Carbon Sequestration: Bogs are "huge key carbon" sinks, collecting more carbon than forests.

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West Seattle Nursery’s "Little Free Library" Garden Wins Best in Show for Hardscape at Seattle Flower and Garden Show

The West Seattle Nursery has been awarded the Display Garden Founders Cup – Best in Show award for Best Hardscape at the Northwest Flower and Garden Festival. The show is on now through February 22.

 

Founders Cup award
Photo by Kimberly Robinson

 

The winning display was a collaborative achievement led by owner Marcia Bruno and visual merchandiser Carmen Leslie, who worked with a dedicated team of approximately ten people to bring the vision to life.

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