White Center Now: The blog about White Center

Thanks to Athena at Meander’s for flagging us on this – it wasn’t on the Seattle City Light outage map till a short time ago: There’s a power outage in downtown White Center. 65 customers (one customer = one business or home) affected, says SCL. Might not be back on till 4 pm. Looks like it’s affecting the north side of Roxbury around 16th, 17th too.

Mount View Elementary in White Center needs your help – and it’s really easy.

Shoshanna Cohen, the ELL Interventionist at Mount View, explains that the school “has an incredibly high Hispanic population and very limited books in Spanish for them to read,” so: “We entered a contest through Santillana where the grand prize is $5000 grant for Spanish books for the school. The entire contest is based on votes and you can vote every day.”

Here’s how:

Go to this webpage and click the lower-right link that says VOTAR/VOTE.

You’ll go to a page with the entries – look for the student in the Cat in the Hat-striped hat, and that’s for Mount View. You can watch their video – same one embedded above here – or just click “vote for this video.” It’s fast and easy – NO registration, NO signing up for anything.

Cohen adds, “I love my school and my students are amazing -there is so much research showing that by promoting the student’s first language, their growth in their second language (English) is astronomical.”

The competition runs through next weekend – so no time to waste, vote for Mount View today!

(Also posted on our partner sites West Seattle Blog and White Center Now, as this tragedy touches all three communities)

Last weekend, a one-car crash in South Park took two young lives and changed three others. We are gradually learning more about those involved – including some with White Center ties.

One of the teenagers killed in the crash has been laid to rest: After her viewing in White Center and funeral Mass at Holy Family, 13-year-old Lucie Hernandez, a Denny International Middle School student, was to be buried at a cemetery in Tukwila Friday afternoon.

Viewing is Sunday and a funeral Mass on Monday at St. Mary’s in the Central District for 16-year-old Luis Martinez, who was a student at TEC High School on the Evergreen campus in White Center.

The two boys who survived the crash are also Evergreen campus students, according to Highline Public Schools, at TEC and at the Arts and Academics Academy, while the third survivor has been identified as Lucie’s sister Karla, a ninth-grader at Chief Sealth International High School.

We had previously reported an account to help Luis’s family with expenses, accessible via any BECU branch, in the name of Victor Herrera, account number 3579847581. Donations were accepted at this past Wednesday’s Denny/Sealth concert in West Seattle (coverage here from WSB). And now, there’s a benefit planned Monday night (November 19th) to help both Luis and Lucie’s families:

The event will be at Mazatlan Mexican Restaurant in Renton from 5 pm-9 pm. There will be a $10 buffet fee and a chance to drop off additional donations. Radio Variedades radio host Mercedes Garcia will be hosting the event live on the radio and encouraging the community to come and support. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to spread the word.

The restaurant is at 540 Rainier Avenue South (here’s a map).

Just in from King County Sheriff’s Office, that sketch created from the description of the man who raped a woman in her Top Hat home during a home-invasion attack Monday night that also injured her partner. He is described as black, around 20 years old, medium complexion, 5’5 to 5’6, 170 to 180 pounds, wearing a dark gray hoodie at the time. There is no sketch of the other man sought in the incident – he was wearing a mask – but King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Sgt. Cindi West did include a description – black, medium-to-darker complexion, also around 20, six feet tall, “real slim,” wearing a black hoodie at the time and gray shoes, possibly Air Jordans. If you know anything about either one, please call 911.

The citizens who have long fought to get some water-quality help for White Center’s Hicklin Lake share word of progress at the county level. Dick Thurnau and Marcia Wollam from Friends of Hicklin Lake received this update from Kevin Brown of King County Parks:

Earlier this year we spoke with many of you about a proposal to make improvements to Lake Hicklin within Lakewood Park. With your support, enthusiasm and a tremendous amount of volunteer assistance we are going to be starting our efforts to restore Lake Hicklin to a more natural functioning wetland. As part of this process we will be working with volunteers on two occasions this coming winter to install new and more appropriate vegetation along the shores of Lake Hicklin. The first event which will take place the last week in November will result in willow stakes being planted along the shore. A second effort will be scheduled in February in which we will again work with volunteers to plant additional plant species via potted stock. These efforts will be led by Tina Miller, a wetland biologist and volunteer coordinator with the Parks Division – and we have AmeriCorps assistance as well.

An additional project aimed at improving water quality in the lake will install floating islands planted with native wetland vegetation in several areas around the lake during the spring and summer of 2013. Although new to this area, such islands have been used throughout the world to control algae blooms and to reduce pollutants. Two to four islands will be installed, depending on the success of a grant proposal to the Washington Department of Ecology. The island project will be managed by Sally Abella, a senior engineer with the Water and Land Resources Division.

We look forward to implementing this community project with your support and we would greatly appreciate your letting others within your organization know about the upcoming work being done. Should you have additional questions or want to see how your organization can get involved please contact Tina, Sally or myself.

The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has announced that it’s charged 42-year-old Brodie Lamb with first-degree murder in the stabbing death of his mother, White Center writer/community advocate Margaret Ryan. He is in jail, bail now set at $2 million, with arraignment scheduled on November 29th at the King County Courthouse downtown.

Court documents say that after he called 911 to say he had killed his mother, the operator told him to put the knife in the freezer – and that’s where deputies found it. He is reported to have told detectives that he became frustrated when his mother would not let him in her apartment – from which he had been “trespassed,” in other words, officially ordered not to return, months earlier. So he kicked in the door, got a large kitchen knife, and killed her. Deputies say the door frame was broken completely away. Autopsy results show that Ms. Ryan, 69 years old, was stabbed 18 times, and had wounds on her hands and arms from trying to protect herself against the attack. Court documents say Lamb was found guilty of assaulting his mother in 2008, punching her in the face while she was driving him home. He also, as we reported earlier, has a record of other attacks, with victims including a jail guard and an elderly landlady.

As reported here earlier today, a gathering is planned Monday night for community members to start planning a tribute to Ms. Ryan – details are here.

Monday night, you’re invited to a meeting to help plan a tribute and memorial for Margaret Ryan, the local writer and community advocate murdered at her apartment earlier this week.

On Monday, November 19th at 6:30 pm we are meeting at Mago Signs on 16th SW to begin planning a dedication and memorial planting in honor of Margaret Ryan, who was murdered this week.

This week we lost a very passionate active member of our community. Please join us. Share with us any ideas, suggestions or contributions to honor one of our active members of this community. Potluck dinner. Please bring an item to share. …

This kind of violence happens randomly, in no particular demographic, and to no particular single type of person. This is the result of a disease/illness of the mind and spirit, not a reflection of the community.

Please help us to build strong community by coming together again to honor one of our local fallen heroes who was a victim of violence and say no-we will not let this go by unnoticed and we will unite, standing up against judgement and criticism.

The meeting is at 10032 16th SW. You can RSVP via the Facebook event page, here. Meantime, Ms. Ryan’s 42-year-old son remains jailed in connection with the killing; prosecutors are expected to decide today whether to charge him.

ORIGINAL REPORT, 12:26 PM THURSDAY: Quick update, longer story to come – the King County Library System’s Planning Committee has just been briefed by staff on its recommendations on what to do with White Center library services now that annexation to Burien has been turned down by voters. The recommendation: Find a new site slightly to the north, still on 16th/Ambaum, and build a new library for White Center. They believe they have the money and that they can be under construction by 2014 on a yet-to-be-determined site. The new library would be about 10,000 square feet – up from the current 6,000 square foot branch, which could remain open while the new one is under construction, since it won’t be torn down for a rebuild. Many details to be worked out, but planning committee members expressed initial support for the idea. They also wanted to hear more from the jurisdictions that have interest in that area – King County and potential future annexers Seattle and Burien. More to come.

ADDED EARLY FRIDAY: More details from the meeting, though this was only one item on the agenda and it lasted less than 20 minutes: Read the rest of this entry »

Just announced by the Washington State Housing Finance Commission:

Green Canopy Homes, a Seattle company, purchased three existing homes today to be rebuilt with quality, energy efficiency, and today’s lifestyles in mind. The company has the tradition of naming their homes upon purchase. Clara, Zelda, and Louise are neighboring homes which were up for sale at the same time in White Center.

“This was a great opportunity for us,” says Aaron Fairchild, CEO of Green Canopy, “and our first opportunity to save the character of a neighborhood by purchasing three homes side by side. We will make these homes more efficient, more livable and comfortable as well as lower the carbon footprint.” Green Canopy re-uses and remodels homes in local neighborhoods using leading efficiency methods and materials, while keeping the original charm and character intact. Even though these homes will use 50% less energy, the prices will be at market with no “premium in price” for the energy costs savings.

Green Canopy Homes was able to borrow funds from the Sustainable Energy Trust (“SET”) at an interest rate well below market. “We are glad that Green Canopy Homes was able to borrow from this fund,” explains Karen Miller, Chair of the Washington State Housing Finance Commission. “The legislature created the authority for the Commission to create and administer the SET; however, we received no state or tax-payer money. The Commission was able to raise dollars for the fund to meet the legislative directive ‘to provide financing for qualified improvement projects.’ This is the first of hopefully many projects that will demonstrate the economic benefits of energy efficiencies and renewables.”

The homes to be retrofitted currently average 850 sq. ft. In addition to the improvements of ductless heat pumps, water efficiencies, new windows, and upgraded insulation, all three homes will have “great” rooms added bringing them in line with life-style expectations. Mr. Fairchild adds, “We think long-term about our work’s impact on the environment, and seek to create a community of urban dwellers who care about their neighborhood and their footprint within it. We are happy to partner with the Commission and SET to bring better and more efficient homes to Seattle.”

The Washington State Housing Finance Commission is a publicly accountable, self-supporting team, dedicated to increasing housing access and affordability, and to expanding the availability of quality community services for the people of Washington. The Commission accomplishes this by working with the investment community, nonprofit organizations, developers, first-time homebuyers, and beginning farmers and ranchers to bring private investment dollars to benefit families and achieve public goals in Washington, including energy efficient development and renewable energy resources.

We’re checking to see if we can find out more about where these homes are located.

(Recent aerial view of bridge construction, by Long Bach Nguyen)
If you are among those waiting eagerly for the new South Park Bridge to reopen, you have probably heard that it’s months behind the original schedule, and now not expected to open before early 2014. (The news first came to light during this month’s meeting of the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council, when president Barbara Dobkin asked a county roads rep about the bridge timeline during a briefing on other topics; we subsequently highlighted it on partner site The South Park News, and the county made a formal announcement the next day.) Tonight, you can find out more directly from King County reps during a community meeting at the South Park Neighborhood Center, 8201 10th Avenue South, 7 pm.

3:23 PM: The 42-year-old suspect in last night’s White Center stabbing death did not appear in court for his bail hearing this afternoon – he waived the right to be present. King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office spokesperson Dan Donohoe says the judge found probable cause to hold him for investigation of second-degree murder; the victim was the suspect’s 69-year-old mother. His bail is set at $1 million, and KCPAO will have to decide by Friday whether to charge him. As we reported here earlier today, the suspect – who we will not identify until and unless he is charged – has a criminal record including assaults on a jail guard and on a 75-year-old then-landlord.

Last night, it was reported the suspect was visiting his mother when this happened, but documents from the investigation say they actually live together. For reasons not listed, police say, she would not let him into the apartment; he kicked open the door, got a “large knife” from the kitchen, and stabbed her multiple times in the neck.

6:11 PM UPDATE: The victim was identified online earlier today in a story published by a website identifying itself as her employer; that story has since been taken down, and there is no independent corroboration from authorities, so we are removing the reference here, until and unless it reappears.

THURSDAY, 7:42 AM: The report identifying the victim as Margaret Ryan has been republished.

THURSDAY 11:27 AM: Jasmine Brown, Unity Village’s site manager, has posted a clarification in comments:

Margaret Ryan lived alone. Brodie Lamb was NOT a resident at this building. He was trespassed off the property by KC sheriff deputy Duran on 8/29 for public intoxication and unruly conduct. That case number is 12-203108. Lamb was not legally allowed back on the property to visit his mother for a year. All the residents at Unity Village have passed a complete background check. Given Lamb’s criminal history, he would not have met our screening criteria. Now that Ryan’s family has been notified, if you have any more questions, please feel free to contact me at: unityvillage@live.com

The King County Public Health clinic that has been next door to the White Center Food Bank has moved to Greenbridge and will open tomorrow. Here’s the formal announcement:

Seattle & King County’s White Center Public Health Center will move to a new location in the nearby Greenbridge housing community on Thursday, Nov. 15. The cost-effective move is expected to save $250,000 a year, while providing better service to patients.

“By moving the clinic less than one mile, we are bringing essential health services in a more comfortable setting closer to the people who need them, on a bus line for more convenient access, while also helping to create more of a business district for the Greenbridge community,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine.

“We’re excited to have Public Health – Seattle & King County as a partner in the Greenbridge community. They’re a great addition to the services available for both our residents and families living throughout White Center,” said Stephen Norman, Executive Director of the King County Housing Authority.

The new center is located at 9934 8th Avenue SW in Seattle, and will continue to offer the same services for low-income and uninsured clients — WIC nutrition services, maternity support for new and expectant mothers, and family planning.

Improvements at the new center include:

Patient rooms specially designed for client care,
Waiting areas with computers with self-care and health information for clients and their families, and

Behind-the-scenes changes to improve workflow to increase efficiency and make better use of space.

“We built this new center from the floor up with a focus on serving clients and improving the community’s health,” said Dr. David Fleming, Director and Health Officer for Public Health – Seattle & King County.

Public Health will host an open house with tours of the new facility on Tuesday, Dec. 4 from 4:30-5:30 p.m.

Remember the furor over the White Center and Boulevard Park libraries, and whether they would be closed, merged, or … The King County Library System Board put a decision on hold, to see how annexation turned out. Now, annexation has gone down to defeat, and this item is back on the front burner. Tomorrow (Thursday) at noon, the KCLS Planning Committee meets at the Burien Library (4th/156th), and the North Highline libraries are at the top of the agenda. Public welcome.

(STORY UPDATED WEDNESDAY with information on suspect’s record)

ORIGINAL REPORT, 5:58 PM: A helicopter’s been seen over the area, and we believe it’s linked to a stabbing reported at 13th/100th in White Center. According to King County Sheriff’s Office via Twitter, the suspect is the victim’s son.

6:14 PM: Lots of officers – and media – there, our crew reports, including KCSO media liaison Sgt. Cindi West, so we will have updates from her shortly. She had reported originally that the victim was undergoing CPR. This is at the Unity Village complex that opened a year ago.

6:18 PM: Sgt. West (above) says the victim is dead. She is 69 years old and lived at the complex. Her 42-year-old son is the suspect; he reportedly was visiting, and Sgt. West says he is the one who called 911 to report he had stabbed his mother.

11:59 PM: The suspect has been booked into the King County Jail. A quick check of court records shows that his background includes assault and domestic-violence cases. Court paperwork is not available at this hour, though, so we don’t know if any prior cases involved his mother.

ADDED WEDNESDAY MORNING: So far, the cases we have reviewed included guilty pleas to assaults on a jail guard and a 75-year-old landlady – these in the past few years. In the court documents for the latter case, a girlfriend was quoted as describing the suspect as “paranoid schizophrenic,” and there are other documents mentioning mental-health commitment situations.

Just received from King County Sheriff’s Office media liaison Sgt. Cindi West, an update on last night’s attack in Top Hat, including descriptions of the men deputies are looking for:

A man was pistol whipped and his girlfriend sexually assaulted during a home invasion robbery that occurred overnight in the Top Hat area of King County.

Last night around 8:40 deputies responded to a report of a home invasion robbery in the 10800 block of 6 Ave S. When deputies arrived they contacted a 23 year old man who said when he got home he saw two men near his apartment. He said the men pulled handguns and forced him into his apartment.

Once inside the apartment the suspects ordered the victim and his 23 year old girlfriend, who was home with her young son, to get on the ground. One of the suspects pistol whipped the male on the back of the head. One of the suspects sexually assaulted the female at gunpoint while the other suspect ransacked the house.

The victim’s 18 month old son was asleep on the couch and did not wake up during the incident.

The suspects are described as;

#1. Black male, approximately 5’9, 195 lbs with a “buzz” haircut. He was last seen wearing a mask over the bottom half of his face and gray shoes. (no age yet)

#2. Black male, approximately 5’5”, 180, last seen wearing a gray zip up shirt, with a black shirt underneath, blue jeans, and a black belt. (no age yet)

Detectives said there appears to be no relationship between the victims and suspects. Investigators are trying to determine why this house was targeted and what items were taken from the residence.

Just in from the White Center Food Bank:

Do you have time next week to pass out food to clients at the White Center Food Bank at 10829 8th Ave SW? We need volunteers on the following shifts:

Monday, November 19 (9:30 to 12:30)
Tuesday, November 20 (9:30-12:30, 12:30-3:30 & 3:30-6:30)
Wednesday, November 21 (12:30-3:30 & 4:00 to 8:00)
If you can help, contact Audrey Zemke at audrey@whitecenterfoodbank.org or 762-2848. Families and kids welcome.

The Food Bank also needs donations of the following foods or money to buy them:

Turkeys
Canned Pumpkin
Canned Sweet Potatoes or Yams
Pickles
Cake Mixes
Crackers

Donations are accepted Mondays through Fridays from 8:30 to 5:00 at 10829 8th Ave SW.

If you are in West Seattle: Turkeys can be dropped off on Sunday, November 18 at Fauntleroy UCC [9140 California SW] starting at 11 am. We will be onsite with our refrigerated van to accept donations.

Two men are being sought for a robbery, rape, and assault reported at a home in Top Hat, according to our partners at The Seattle Times. The two are reported to have attacked a man outside the home, then forced their way in, raped a woman, and ransacked the house before getting away. No word on the victims’ conditions; we’ll be following up with the King County Sheriff’s Office, which is investigating. This is reported to have happened in the 10800 block of 6th S., which is part of unincorporated North Highline (though it was widely and erroneously reported by regional media last night as being in Burien).

Have some music with your mocha! The Tallboys are playing at Caffé Delia in downtown White Center right now (with the coffee shop’s co-owner Matt on bass) till 2 pm, as CD celebrates its first birthday. Here’s our preview story from Friday. Caffé Delia is co-housed with Proletariat Pizza – 9622 16th SW.

Just in from the King County Sheriff’s Office:

Following a change in filing by the King County prosecutor’s office, King County Sheriff’s Office deputies will not be directed to arrest or charge individuals caught with one ounce or less of marijuana following of the passage of I-502.

Earlier today the King County Prosecutor’s Office made a prosecutorial decision to dismiss several cases of marijuana possess. “Now that the initiative has passed, and now that the Prosecutor’s Office won’t be charging the individuals, we will also not focus on behavior that will be legal under Washington State law after Dec. 6th” said King County Sheriff Steve Strachan.

There are 12 municipalities that contract with the Sheriff’s Office for police services. It remains the policy decision of the municipal attorneys and policy makers of those cities to determine how they will proceed between now and Dec. 6th. This decision only affects the deputies working in unincorporated King County.

(This story also appears on our partner site West Seattle Blog)

(Matt, Delia, and Eric – photo by WCN co-publisher Patrick Sand)
By Tracy Record
White Center Now editor

You could call Caffé Delia “White Center’s first co-housed coffee shop.”

Or, pop-up coffee shop, as its proprietors dubbed it.

It opened one year ago in the downtown White Center space that, by night, is Proletariat Pizza.

As with Proletariat, Caffé Delia’s proprietors are a married couple – Delia and Matt. And they say Proletariat’s Stefanie and Mike had the coffee-cohousing idea in the first place – stemming from a mutual-admiration society when Delia worked at Bird on a Wire Espresso and referred people to “the fun pizza place in White Center.”

We sat down with Delia and Matt to talk about their shop and its milestone anniversary, which will be marked with a party during Caffé Delia’s regular hours tomorrow (8 am-2 pm Saturday).

Read the rest of this entry »