White Center Now: The blog about White Center

If you haven’t left yet – we have a report from the road that while it’s cloudy, it’s dry! There are two “commute stations” in White Center for Bike to Work Day 2012 – Caffé Delia on 16th and Dubsea Coffee on 8th. Full Tilt Ice Cream’s ice-cream bike is part of the festivities at nearby CD. We’ve got a crew out for photos and will add them later. Bicyclists are welcome to stop by till 9 am.

ADDED 8:19 AM: Adding photos – top, if you don’t recognize him out of uniform, it’s Storefront Deputy BJ Myers, with Full Tilt’s Justin and Caffé Delia’s Matt and Delia. Next, a bicycling family that stopped at Caffé D – Alicia, Tom, and daughter Trixie:

More Bike to Work Day info can be found on the Cascade Bicycle Club‘s website.

As noted here and on partner site West Seattle Blog, this past Sunday was the latest edition of free minor bike repairs via DubSea Bikes at the White Center Food Bank – and tonight, Helen Weiss shared an update that it was the “biggest yet.” From that update:

… Seven kids got their bikes worked on. At least one had *major* issues, and we failed on parts ($3 brake pad, anyone?), but the bikes were all running when our mechanics were done. When clients could pump tires themselves, it expedited the work mechanics could do. Paul, a regular food bank volunteer, worked steadily on many bikes that day, even sustaining an injury in the line of duty. One of the DubSea clients, an acupuncturist, quickly stepped in to provide healing. Brian, aka DJ GoBriGo, brought smooth tunes and a can-do attitude. Aaron, a late arrival, was not fazed by the fact that we had 3 mechanics and only 2 stands – he produced a device designed to suspend a bike from a door frame and quickly got up to speed. Sixteen people total signed up but two got turned away due to time. One guy, a former auto mechanic, raided the West Seattle Tool Library’s Bike Tool Kit for allen wrenches and did the work himself.

Thanks to our awesome mechanics who worked wonders and to all who just came by to give moral support. And thanks to the White Center Food Bank for supporting our mission to promote safe cycling in White Center! We collected 6 cans for the food bank. One client brought a case of water bottles and offered them to all. That parking lot takes up half of a dead-end street and backs up against the trails of Lakewood Park. When the weather is good, it is a lot of space to spread out in. Executive Director Rick Jump confided that it would be a great location for a Food Truck Roundup, with proceeds going to the Food Bank, of course. It made us wonder what else could happen in that open White Center space while bikes are getting some love?

Look for DubSea Bikes at Cambodian New Year, Saturday, April 28th, 10:30 am – 5pm, on SW 98th Street at a table sponsored by Noise w/o Sound. In 1 month we’ll be greeting AM cycle commuters at Dubsea Coffee *and * Caffè Delia on Bike To Work Day, Friday, May 18th and celebrating their return to the neighborhood with a massive Afterparty at Proletariat Pizza.

You know them for bike repair … now join them for a ride! Today’s ride starts at 3 pm from Caffé Delia in downtown White Center. Check out the WCN White Center Events Calendar listing for more details.

Got a bike that needs a boost to get going – or keep going? DubSea Bikes is back in session Sunday (March 11th), with another free bike-repair event at White Center Food Bank. 2-4 pm, 8th and 108th, and as organizers remind you, “This free event will focus on minor repairs only to get more bikes on the street in White Center and beyond. More complex jobs may be referred out to a full bike shop.” Next two editions are on April 15th and May 20th.

5:50 AM: The now-famous White Center bike racks are spotlighted in that King County TV video (along with storefront Sheriff’s Deputy BJ Myers) published online a few days ago. But they aren’t the only evidence of the push toward a biking boom in WC and vicinity. DubSea Bikes is in action again today – this time at White Center Food Bank HQ, 10829 8th SW, 2-4 pm. As per the announcement on DubSea Bikes’ new Facebook page – which you can “like” by going here – it’s all about “providing free minor bike repair to White Center families. Fixing flats, chain lube and brake repair are some of the services offered by our volunteer mechanics. More extensive repairs may be referred to some of the fine bike shops in West Seattle or Burien.”

ADDED 3:30 PM: We dropped by in the first hour of DubSea Bikes – photo added above.

You don’t even have to set out (on foot) to find one – it might turn up on your doorstep! The announcement:

Look out, White Center! On February 11th, 2012, Feet First will be distributing 1000 free Neighborhoods on Foot White Center walking maps door-to-door throughout the community. The maps have been known to increase foot traffic in business districts, build understanding of walking and transit routes, bolster neighborhood identity, and raise awareness of vital community resources.

White Center Free Map Distribution
Saturday, February 11th, 2012
12:00 pm to 2:00 pm

If you do not receive a map and would like one, please contact Feet First by calling 206-652-2310 ext. 5 to have one mailed directly to you. This distribution is made possible by community partners Seattle Works, King County Parks and Recreation, and the White Center Community Development Association.

Help get White Center on two wheels! DubSea Bikes organizers invite you to their next planning meeting – tomorrow:

Please come to our planning meeting for DubSea Bikes at noon this Thursday, February 2nd, at Caffe Delia, 9622 16th Ave SW (in Proletariat Pizza). We’ll be talking about our four-month run at Full Tilt Ice Cream, looking forward to a partnership with the White Center Food Bank, and planning events in the Spring & Summer.

P.S. It’s already on our calendar, but another reminder, WC Food Bank is where you’ll find the next DubSea Bikes “bring yours to get it fixed up and on the road” event, 2-4 pm February 12th.

From Metro:

While King County Metro Transit bus routes remain on snow routing through the end of Friday, the agency hopes to begin returning to normal operations over the weekend.

People riding the bus Saturday and Sunday should check the Metro website before traveling, and do not expect all routes to return to regular service at the same time. Some parts of the county are still dealing with slushy and tree-covered roads, and snow routes or detours for the buses may be necessary for a few days in those areas.

It continues to be very important for Metro customers to watch for updated information online or through Transit Alerts.

Metro uses an online color-coded map to keep riders informed of the status of its bus service during storms. All bus routes are assigned into one or more of seven geographic areas within King County. When there is snow or ice on the roads, the service status of each area will be color coded and displayed on the online map.

Green indicates buses are operating on normal routes; yellow that some – but not all – routes in the area are on snow routes; and red tells you that all bus routes in the entire geographic area are on snow routing.

People can also call the Customer Information Office at (206) 553-3000 from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Due to the volume of calls, there may be longer-than-normal waits on the phone.

Once again, Metro would like to thank its customer for their patience in dealing with service disruptions and delays caused by this week’s series of storms.

This might affect you, heading eastward toward Highway 509 the next few days. Announced today by the Seattle Department of Transportation:

Crews from the Seattle Department of Transportation plan to repair a hand rail this week on First Avenue (South) and Olson Place [map]. They will close the right lane of both streets at this location from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on January 11, 12 and 13. This work is subject to change in the event they are called to respond to an emergency at another location.

As mentioned earlier – today was another edition of Dubsea Bikes. We were in downtown WC checking out something else (story to come) and caught Stu Hennessey on camera just as things were getting under way. No rain, mild temperature, so a great day for 2-wheeling.

Don’t let the need for bicycle repairs keep you off the road. Here’s free help, coming up Sunday:

Is your bike out of commission? Bring it to DubSea Bikes at Full Tilt Ice Cream, 9629 16th Ave SW, downtown White Center, on Sunday, November 13th, from 2 – 4 pm.

This free event will focus on minor repairs to get more bikes on the street in White Center and beyond.

If you haven’t noticed already, road work is under way on 16th SW in White Center, and Mark Ufkes from the WC Chamber of Commerce is getting out the word about the latest schedule. He says the west/southbound half of the road, starting from Roxbury and working south, is scheduled for paving starting Friday, and that the contractor will start work at 6:30 am (instead of the originally scheduled 8 am) “in an effort to minimize the disruption to businesses and on-street parking along 16th Avenue SW.” The other half of the road is scheduled to be paved on Monday (August 29th), according to Ufkes, “again starting at Roxbury at 6:30 am and working their way south.” It’s all supposed to be finished before Thursday, weather permitting.

We had checked with King County DOT about the work, and spokesperson Linda Thielke had said, “Traffic and transit will be allowed through while the crews are working, but people should expect some delays.” So don’t let it keep you away from your favorite businesses!

Big event at Greenbridge next Wednesday!

Want to have a more cycle-centric White Center and South Park? We do too! Many organizations partnered to plan this FREE event for families in our neighborhood. Hope you can come to TUNES & TUNE-UPS & pass on the word.

The new date is Wed Aug 24th, 4pm – 6pm, Greenbridge Music in the Plaza Outdoor Concerts. Chain lube, brakes, flat tire repair.

Also, look for a monthly bike repair clinic on Sunday afternoons at Full Tilt Ice Cream, planned for September 2011.

We published this Friday on partner site West Seattle Blog and it turned out to be a hot topic. If you take the bus between downtown and White Center, you might want to speak out while the county is taking comments:

King County Metro Transit and the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) are evaluating options to improve traffic flow and transit operations on Columbia Street near the Alaskan Viaduct onramp.

One suggestion is to close the bus stop located on Columbia just east of Second Avenue. It currently serves as the last stop for passengers leaving downtown on Metro routes 21 Express, 54, 55, 56 Express, 113, 120, 121, 122, and 125. If this bus stop closes, riders will need to walk four blocks to Third Avenue just south of Seneca Street to board or exit.

This closure is one of several concepts being considered, and Metro and SDOT are seeking initial feedback on the potential impacts to riders and the general public. They are asking people to provide comments about the possible closure of this stop by Friday, Aug. 12. Send email to: customer.comments@kingcounty.gov with Columbia/2nd Ave in the subject line , or call 206-553-3000.

Even if this bus stop remains open, it may be necessary to temporarily close it without prior notice due to traffic conditions. If that happens, Metro staff and signage will direct bus riders to board buses at the stop on Third Avenue south of Seneca Street.

Quite the crowd down the hill in South Park this afternoon as a Cinco de Mayo festival was combined with the celebration for the start of South Park Bridge construction. The bridge that for a long time was no sure thing is now exactly that and is scheduled to be open in about two years. Our video captures the entire 40-minute ceremony with political speeches and at the end, the trap-door opening on the giant piñata!

From WCN contributor Deanie Schwarz: You might have noticed the recent addition at the midway crosswalk on 16th SW in the north block of the heart of the White Center business district. King County recently installed the small rack after Proletariat Pizza co-owner Stefanie Albaeck got proactive with an appeal to the county requesting the purchase and installation. The first rack will serve shoppers and visitors to the business core on 16th. But according to Stefanie, the County will provide additional racks to the larger community if this rack is well-used. If the change in the weather prompts you to take a ride to 16th, you now have a centrally located place to park your wheels!

Though we haven’t had any new snow in the past 24-plus hours, everyone’s still in snow/ice mode for one more day, because of the way-below-freezing temperatures. Metro’s again on snow routing. Schools are closed (Highline and the private schools we’ve heard from). Stay safe! The weather’s expected to “warm up” – back to the more-normal highs in the 40s – sometime Thanksgiving Day. P.S. If you are in an area served by Seattle trash pickup and have Wednesday collection – it’s postponed again today, as it was on Tuesday; put out double next week for no extra charge.

Right now on cable channel 22 or online (kingcounty.gov/council), you can watch a briefing by King County Department of Transportation leaders – both roads and transit – regarding their preparations in case of bad-weather road trouble this winter. (KCDOT director Harold Taniguchi opened by joking that they ordered today’s heavy rain to coincide with the briefing.) One thing they’re stressing, particularly for bus riders, is to sign up for alerts – details on that, and links, are in a news release posted this morning on the county website – find it here.

Writer Chad Newton makes the proposal on his website: What about a new South Park Bridge that’s aligned along South Cloverdale rather than 14th Avenue South? He made the Google Map above to illustrate his idea. You can read about it here. (Of course, as he notes, this would cost a few hundred million dollars more, but his main point is the west-east disconnect in the south sections of Seattle.)

We’ve been covering it at partner site West Seattle Blog but it’s big news for White Center and environs too: It was announced this afternoon that the South Park Bridge has full replacement funding – since the federal government has given a $34 million TIGER II grant. (The first TIGER was the round of funding in which King County had sought $99 million and been rejected; this time around, funding pledges were sought from a variety of regional sources, and that means the $35 million is only about 1/4 of the tab, instead of 3/4.) Sen. Patty Murray, U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott, County Executive Dow Constantine and Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn were among the many dignitaries on hand for the midafternoon announcement by the south end of the old bridge, closed 3 1/2 months ago for safety concerns. The county says that if all goes as expected, construction will start next year and the new bridge is projected to open around May 2013 (we confirmed that date with the county, though the official news release says “late” 2013).