White Center Now: The blog about White Center

For the second time this morning, a driver has hit a White Center storefront. Earlier, it was Noble Barton; then at mid-morning, the Smoke Shop on the other side of the 9600 block of 16th SW. No injuries this time, either; it was a case of mistaking the accelerator for the brake, we were told at the scene. No interruption in shop operations.

At auction, the two Burien Haggen grocery stores on 1st Avenue South that used to be Albertsons … have just been acquired by Albertsons. That’s according to UFCW Local 21. No timeline information yet but we’ll be checking back.

Rain or shine, storm or calm, it’s Halloween, and more than 20 White Center businesses promise to have candy for trick-or-treaters starting at noon. See the list here. And at 1 pm, Kimya Dawson performs at Full Tilt Ice Cream!

Tomorrow (Saturday, September 26th) is a milestone anniversary for Mac’s Triangle Pub – 10 years! You’re invited to come celebrate, all day and all night. They’ll be open 9 am-2 am, with the day playing out like this:

Breakfast special
Introduction of the new Triangle Burger
Huskies playing Cal Bears
Live music by Mercy Mercy
New limited edition 10th Anniversary T shirt
Karaoke
Community photo op!
2005 pricing!

Go see Mac and the team at Delridge/16th/Roxbury.

(WCN photos by Patrick Sand)
Another new business in downtown White Center: “Big Barber Bobby” just moved his Sky’s Barber Shop north to 9650 16th SW from an interim spot in Burien, but it was in Top Hat for half a century before then, a spot lost when the building was sold. He says it’s a “traditional barbershop,” and the decor underscores that

Bobby says, “We are technically the only barber shop left in White Center, and being on the strip is a dream come true.”

The chairs date back to the 1940s; the newest item he has on display, he told us, is a shaving set from the ’60s. He’s open Tuesdays-Saturdays, 10 am-7 pm.

If you hit “play” on the :15 Instagram clip above, you’ll get an idea of how contentious this morning’s cannabis-crackdown announcement in downtown White Center was. While there was a full turnout of regional media, there also was a notable turnout of people from medical-marijuana establishments, furious about what’s happening.

Speaking outside the King County Sheriff’s Office downtown WC storefront were Prosecuting Attorney Dan Satterberg, Sheriff John Urquhart, and Russ Hauge from (what’s about to be renamed) the state Liquor and Cannabis Board. Satterberg wrapped it up with a message to the marijuana establishments: “You might not consider yourself illegal – we do.” A copy was provided of the letter circulated to them (starting at least two days ago, according to what sources told us). While the officials gave conflicting answers as to what kind of “timeline” they expected for stores to shut down, the letter stated flatly in the sixth paragraph, “You will need to cease operations now, even if you plan on applying in the future for a state license …” and when asked, there was one suggestion that if stores aren’t closed within a month, they would “get a visit.” (added) Here’s part of Satterberg’s opening statement:

A printed list also provided to the news media included six White Center/Top Hat establishments:

Herbal Market, 10422 16th SW
White Center Alternative Care, 9839 17th SW
Pacific Coast Natural Medicine, 9817 16th SW
WCC, 9809 16th SW
Northwest Cannabis Market, 9640 16th SW
Herban Legends, 9619 16th SW
WPMC, 11009 1st Ave. S.

After the letter was circulated earlier this week, Herban Legends had this sign on its door:

The county officials referred to the newly opened Bud Nation, a state-licensed recreational-marijuana store in downtown White Center, as an example of what they support, and what they feel is threatened by the unlicensed establishments. They also made it clear that the state was there “in support” of what was their initiative. They pointed out they are doing this under civil measures, not criminal, but also reiterated that they are serious.

The medical-marijuana advocates, meantime, continued to protest that they are offering medicine and that they believe this is just a ploy by the state because of competition – what they make MMJ available for is lower than the state-set prices.

More to come…

Two downtown White Center biznotes, both from tweets by Caffe Delia – and the first is about their own business:

Hey everybody, we are going to be closed Wednesday June 3 through Saturday June 6. Our cousin Andrea has passed away and we’re going back east to be with our family. We hope to be back open Sunday.

They also sent word that the recreational-marijuana store we mentioned here recently is now open:

We reported here a month ago that Bud Nation’s license had been approved for 9640 16th SW.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Earlier this year, a reader sent us a postal-mail letter worrying about the future of White Center’s B & D Aquarium, the only aquarium-supplies store for miles around (West Seattle, for example, has none). He asked us to do a story. Took a while, but here it is.

Story and photos by Randall Hauk
Reporting for White Center Now

“I’ve been hanging on so long, I’ll hang on as long as I can.”

Being a brick-and-mortar retailer these days can be a challenging prospect, even for businesses which have accumulated decades of expertise in their industry while serving their community.

Such is the case with White Center’s B & D Aquarium, regarded by many Puget Sound-area hobbyists as a valuable resource for serious hobbyists, who rave about the shop’s incredibly knowledgeable staff and the intense care paid to keep healthy stock available.

B & D’s owner, who prefers to be identified only as P.D. (“That’s what all my friends call me.”), started his business in 1972, originally located at 35th SW & Roxbury. Listen to P.D. tell his story:

The current location at 10450 15th Ave SW (next to the White Center Eagles, with a large Clown Loach painted on the north-facing side) is the fourth iteration of the store.

Between P.D. and his two employees, B & D Aquarium staff offer knowledge compiled through more than 100 years collectively in the business, which started and has been maintained all through the passion of a true hobbyist. In addition to all the advice and equipment needed to start and maintain your home aquarium, B&D Aquarium’s 70 tanks offer a variety of fish from “all over the world . . . except Antarctica.”

A year after quitting his aquarium-shop job, P.D. found himself missing the atmosphere of being surrounded by fish, especially after having had to get rid of most of his 52 tanks at home due to the expense. In an early ’70s version of crowdfunding, P.D. opened a shop with “the help of friends and donated tanks.”

When the shop found itself in need of a new home, “customers and ex-employees all came in to help move,” says P.D. And though he also says he was “lucky to find this place,” four years later, B & D hasn’t entirely recovered fiscally from that move, as his humble business has struggled to compete with larger pet shops and online retailers.

“I’ve seen (chain pet stores) selling equipment for less than our wholesale cost,” says P.D. of the challenges in staying competitive. “People tell me, ‘We bought our stuff somewhere else because it was cheaper, but we come to you for advice because you know what you’re talking about.”

The loss of revenue from that segment of their potential customers already forced B & D to get out of the saltwater side of the aquarium business several years ago. Advising people who were not spending money in their shop was also taking too much time away from the time needed to properly care for the fish they have on hand.

And for P.D. and his colleagues, all dedicated hobbyists themselves, taking shortcuts to create time and reduce operating costs is simply never a consideration.

In order to assure the fish he sells leave the shop in good health, P.D. says, “they have to be treated, quarantined, and watched. We make sure they’re 100% healthy, which takes ten times as much work as making sure they’re even 99% healthy.”

His love for the hobby and the fish themselves also can get in the way of cynically taking every dollar that presents itself at his cash register.

“I spent far too much time talking people out of buying things to be profitable!”

That level of dedication is precisely what draws hobbyists from throughout the greater Puget Sound region for their aquarium needs. It also speaks to why B & D has such a loyal, if small, customer base. Spending the extra money on the fish initially saves them later on the cost of chemicals and other treatments that follow fish not properly prepared for the move to a home-aquarium environment.

But how do people get drawn so strongly to a hobby that requires significant expense and effort to maintain? Perhaps even to the point of running a struggling shop for forty-plus years?

“It’s a spiritual experience,” explains P.D.. “It can lower your blood pressure. They prescribe it for hyperactive children. It can really open your eyes . . . (one gets a) completely different understanding of the whole universe.”

“It can be wonderful.”

Been to Star Palace Boutique and Lounge yet? Proprietor Prisilla wrote to let us know she’s having a grand-opening party today (though it’s been open for a few weeks):

I just opened a new eclectic, local, art boutique in White Center. It is located directly across the street from Proletariat Pizza and is called Star Palace. I opened the store with hopes to give all of the amazing artists and designers in Seattle a place to showcase their work.

I am having a grand opening party on Wednesday, April 1st, from 12-8 and would love to
see some local south side faces.

Star Palace is at 9617 16th SW, right next to Herban Legends.

OCTOBER 28: In case you don’t use Twitter – downtown White Center’s espresso shop, Caffé Delia, announced there that they’ll be closed today (October 28th) because of illness.

OCTOBER 30: After two days of closure, Caffé Delia was scheduled to reopen today.

While out covering the United Way Day of Caring this morning, we stopped by Caffé Delia for coffee, and learned big news from their neighbors at Proletariat Pizza – Mike and Stefanie Albaeck told us they have just marked five years of serving “the pizza that made White Center famous.” In August 2009, we showed a photo of the sign going up outside their restaurant on 16th SW in the heart of the main WC business district; a few weeks later, they were open and have been drawing crowds ever since. By the way, see those artistically decorated pizza peels behind Stefanie and Mike? We’re told they are up for silent auction for a few more weeks, with proceeds going to the White Center Food Bank. Go in and make a bid! And congratulate the Albaecks, while you’re there.

Bikes parked outside the King County Sheriff’s Office White Center Storefront tonight hinted at what was happening inside – the community meeting about more bicycle parking in downtown WC.

Katie Meyer was there for WCN. She reports that it was a full house, at least 40 people.

She reports that bike parking stations in several locations were proposed as an alternative to the “bike corral” planned on the street in front of Proletariat Pizza and Caffé Delia, both of which support it. This alternative could result in even more bike parking than the corral, and it apparently still would qualify for the King County grant money that was planned for the corral. So a new plan will be crafted and discussed.

It also was noted during the meeting that concerns about the bike corral seemed tied to other local issues, so Elizabeth Gordon, co-proprietor of Uncle Mike’s Barbecue and a North Highline Unincorporated Area Council member, urged everyone to attend NHUAC’s next meeting on September 4th (7 pm, North Highline Fire District HQ), so those issues can be raised and addressed there.

One week from Friday – on August 29th – Center Studio in downtown White Center will have its final classes. Proprietor Lonjina Verdugo announced via Facebook that she’s closing up shop after two years. Equipment and fixtures from the fitness business are listed for sale in a CL ad. Though yoga/fitness has been the core of Center Studio’s business, the space also had spotlighted artists and guest vendors, plus multiple editions of the pop-up “Cattywampus Kids” shop with retro kid stuff.

A “grand reopening” is planned next month for a longtime West Seattle martial-arts practice that has relocated to White Center.

Until fall 2012, Restita DeJesus operated the Seattle Wushu Center in a West Seattle facility that now is home to a CrossFit studio. She moved classes to another nearby location while looking for a new facility and found it in White Center, across from Southgate Roller Rink, at what’s now known as Body Movement Arts (9627 17th SW). She says:

The new location has a totally new look, 3000 square feet of studio space, and offers classes in Filipino Martial Arts and self-defense, Kung Fu, Wushu, and Tai Chi. A Personal Trainer on site not only teaches some of the classes but also offers personal training sessions. Classes run from as early as 7:00 am all the way through to 8:30 pm.

The “grand reopening” open house on September 14th will feature a Lion Dance performance as well as free short introductory classes for all ages (4 and up).

Something to shred? Get it done for free – up to four boxes’ worth – during today’s open house at newly opened PBJ Textiles (in the former South End Florist storefront just south of 16th/107th). It’s on until 1 pm and they’re offering free ice cream too (White Center’s own Full Tilt, of course).

If you have something to shred, you’ll be able to do that for free June 7th at PB&J Textiles, now open at the former South End Florist location at 10728 16th SW. They’re offering free shredding 9 am-1 pm that day in honor of White Center Spring Clean Day, and as part of an open-house event:

Bring (up to 4 boxes per person) of paper you would like to have securely shredded. In addition to the shredding, we’ll be open to show the community all the great things PB&J brings to White Center. Plus, stop in for a special PB&J ice cream cone from Full Tilt Ice Cream. We’ll have goodie bags, drawings and other fun activities.

Here’s a Facebook event you can join if you’ll need a reminder!

Got another question on Friday about what’s going into the former White Center Blockbuster Video at 16th/107th, which closed back in February 2013. County records bring the answer: A dental company from Eastern Washington plans to open a clinic with eight chairs. We’ll be contacting the company to see if we can find out more about the timetable; they just had a “pre-construction conference” with the county three weeks ago.

From Lonjina at Center Studio – the monthly pop-up shop in her storefront at 9611 16th SW, Cattywampus Kids, is back today:

From Fisher Price and Strawberry Shortcake to shorts and dress, Cattywampus Kids is popping up, featuring new and resale clothing for children and toys with a vintage twist.

Most of the time you can find us located inside of Center Studio in White Center on the 1st Saturday of the month.

Saturday, May 3rd
12:30-6:30 pm

We have everything from your childhood! Your favorite vintage books and board games, Tonka trucks, Star Wars, classic Strawberry Shortcake, vintage Barbie, tons of Fisher Price stuff and more! This weekend we are clearing out our Winter Apparel – 25% OFF select items!

Find us on Facebook and Instagram (above) or our website: CattywampusKids.com

Cattywampus Kids
9611 16th Ave SW, White Center
1st Saturdays of the Month

Note: See something you want, but can’t make it to the pop-up? Just e-mail us and we will work something out.

The state Liquor Control Board went public today with its list of how applicants for recreational-marijuana stores placed in the license lottery. Of 44 applicants in the unincorporated area, which is reported to be getting 11 stores, the highest-placing White Center applicants were OSK Enterprises, 9616 16th SW (the Smoke Town storefront), placing #6, and Sound THC, 9640 16th SW #D (site of Northwest Cannabis Market), placing #21. They were followed by Kronic, 9823 15th SW #D, at #33, and right behind that, Green Leaf Care, 9625 16th SW, at #34.

You can download the full statewide list, which has a tab for each area/city, from this page on the state Liquor Control Board website. Licenses are expected to be issued by early July, according to this state FAQ.

Maybe you’ve seen the sign on the old South End Florist – it has a new tenant: PB&J Textiles, which has been in business for more than seven years in West Seattle. Its new storefront at 10728 16th SW will more than double their space. Their offerings include paper printing, banners, promotional products, embroidery, and screen printing, as well as copiers if you need to make quick photocopies. They’re planning to move Friday, April 4th, through Sunday, April 6th, reopening in the new space on Monday, April 7th, and will be tracking the move via Tumblr.