White Center Now: The blog about White Center

Thanks to the reader who tipped us about this fire by texting that video (206-293-6302). Firefighters from North Highline and beyond have just finished putting out most of what was described in radio exchanges as a basement fire in a house on 24th SW (10300 block). Not much other information so far; they were dispatched just before 11:30 pm.

County Councilmembers have approved a new, higher minimum wage for North Highline and other unincorporated areas of the county. Our area’s Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda co-sponsored it – here’s how she announced it in her newsletter tonight:

Today, the King County Council passed a new minimum wage for the unincorporated areas of the County. This new law, which I was proud to co-sponsor, will help bring unincorporated areas of the County, like White Center, Vashon Island, Skyway and more, in line with the many and growing jurisdictions in this county that have a higher minimum wage than the state minimum. Thanks to Councilmember Zahilay who was the prime sponsor, Committee Chair Rod Dembowski who also sponsored the legislation, and their teams for leading the effort on this bill with community.

Starting on January 1, 2025, the minimum wage for businesses with 500 or more employees will start at $20.29 and increase with inflation annually starting in 2026. There is a phase in for smaller businesses: Employers with 15 or fewer employees with an annual gross revenue of less than $2 million will have an hourly minimum wage rate of $3.00 less ($17.29). The reduction would decrease annually by $0.50 until no reduction is remaining in 2030. Employers with more than 15 employees but fewer than 500 employees would have an hourly minimum wage rate of $2.00 less ($18.29). The reduction would decrease annually by $1.00 until no reduction is remaining in 2026.

Coming from the labor movement, lifting up the voices of workers, community and small businesses to raise the wage for low wage workers in Washington State and at the local level, I know it works. When low wage workers get a raise they spend that money putting it back into their local economy. One Seattle Times article literally said: “the sky is not falling from Seattle’s minimum-wage hike”. Eight years ago, I helped lead the statewide minimum wage and sick leave initiative 1433, because reports showed the minimum wage has not kept up with the cost of living – especially in this region. Study after study have shown that raising the minimum wage spurs economic growth by putting more money in our local economies – and that’s actually good for business. This is why I joined with my colleagues on the council to bring in worker advocates, small businesses and other stakeholders to craft policy raising the wage for our unincorporated areas.

With outreach and engagement done by our office, we’ve heard from workers and small businesses across District 8 that they support the new minimum wage. Many small businesses in the district are already paying wages above what the new minimum will be because they believe in paying a living wage and want to recruit and retain workers. One of the best ways to do that is to make sure workers can afford to live near their places of employment. A 2 bedroom apartment in White Center on average goes for nearly $2,000 a month, which would take up to 70% of your income before taxes if you made only the state’s minimum wage. As we work on scaling up housing and affordable units, one job really should be enough to make ends meet. I am proud to have voted yes to raise the wage for workers in District 8 and will continue to support additional strategies to grow small business, invest in equitable development, increase housing stock, and build more affordable units around our region. Raising the minimum wage is just one part of the effort to create a more equitable economy.

Love garage-saling? Tomorrow (Saturday, May 11) is the biggest day of the year – via our partner site West Seattle Blog, we present the annual West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day, and this year we have several participants in North Highline – above is a screengrab from that part of our online map; click on the locations on the “live” interactive map to see the listings and locations (that page is also where you’ll find a link to a printable PDF guide to all 500+ sales, most yet)! Official sale day hours are 9 am to 3 pm Saturday.

The White Center Library Guild is sharing words of thanks to those who made their spring sale a success:

The White Center Library Guild held their Spring Rummage and Plant Sale on April 26th and 27th at the White Center Library. The sale featured books, plants – both seedlings for the garden and houseplants – as well as an assortment of other items, from jewelry to quilting supplies to coffee mugs.

The sale was well attended, and the money raised goes to support programs at the White Center Library, mostly programs for children. We are grateful for the support from the community and hope to see everybody at our Summer Sidewalk Sale on Aug. 2nd and 3rd, 2024.

Annemarie Lorenzen
President, White Center Library Guild

According to a bulletin heard on the Seattle Police frequency, King County Sheriff’s Deputies are investigating a shooting at 14th SW/SW 100th. The victim is described as a man shot in the leg. Medics were dispatched at 8:44 pm, according to the South King Fire 911 log. There’s no word yet on a description of who shot the victim, but deputies are reported to be looking for two vehicles that might be involved – a red Hyundai SUV and a black sedan. Both were seen westbound on SW 100th. If you have any information, call 911.

By Tracy Record
White Center Now editor

Discussion of fun freebies from the King County Library System opened this month’s online North Highline Unincorporated Area Council meeting, facilitated by NHUAC’s Liz Giba.

FREE MUSEUM/ZOO/ETC. LIBRARY: Children’s librarian Destinee Sutton was the first guest. She showed everyone how the library offers more than just books – start with the “books and more” tab on the KCLS website, and you’ll even find access to free museum, zoo, and park passes! Just use your library card. MOHAI, the Seattle and Bellevue Art Museums, the Museum of Flight, Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle Aquarium, MoPOP, the Washington Railway Museum in Tacoma, the Rhododendron Botanical Garden in Federal Way, and many more. Tickets open daily at 2 pm for a day two weeks in the future, Sutton said. “Some of them go really really fast – by 2:05 they are gone,” she warned, so you want to be ready to start trying right at 2 pm. Most have rules such as one free pass per venue per person per 90 days. State-park Discovery Passes also can be obtained. Frequently asked questions include, what about student cards? You can use those to reserve passes too – go to kcls.org/students to find out about that.

LOCAL SERVICES: Permitting director Jim Chan and external-affairs director David Daw were the next guests. Giba asked about the ongoing noise concerns with live music at Tim’s Tavern in downtown White Center. Chan says Tim’s was cited for code violations and they’ve been working with the establishment, including “giving them options on how to address the violations” which include noise and operating late. They need to either “remove those violations or legally pursue a permit” for them, and Tim’s is finalizing a plan, Chan said. He said that the county looks at violations first in terms of whether they’re risks to life safety or doing environmental harm – but if neither is involved, the code “allows due process,” giving the business time to pursue fixing it. “So we have not taken any steps to stop (what they’re doing),” Chan said. Giba said outdoor live performances would not be eligible for a permit, according to a letter fro a county official, “so basically the sheriff needs to go there and issue tickets?” Chan said he’s not aware of what other actions KCSO could take, but he said that there are many venues in the county that pursue that nonpermitted use anyway – wedding venues, concert venues, etc. Tim’s could explore temporary permits, Chan said. Giba said it sounds like Tim’s has options but residents do not. Chan said “we know there’s impacts” but businesses are given the chance to “mitigate for them.” Those permits are good for up to 60 days a year, though permits can be granted for shorter periods of time: “We can limit them, depending on the impact.” So where is Tim’s in applying for a permit? “Ready for the pre-application process,” Daw said, any day now. “They’re looking at moving forward in making improvements to the property … related to the sound level of the music.” They’ve been promising mitigation for a year,” NHUAC’s Barbara Dobkin pointed out. Daw said they did install noise-muffling curtains. And the county is confident that further mandatory modifications could resolve the issue. “We are sympathetic to the noise, you are not alone,” Chan said. They try to work voluntarily with the property owner, which is what’s happening now – as opposed to “if both sides lawyer up, this could drag on for a very long time, with no mitigation.”

Then they moved on to other topics. One attendee wondered how to find out about special events coming up in White Center in general. Chan said they’re creating a calendar but in the meantime, if you email him, he can send the list of what they know of. The Permitting division is involved with private-property events; a special-use permit from another team would be involved in, say, a street festival.

NHUAC’s Pat Price asked about some beautification measures, like kiosks, that had been discussed for downtown WC. The county reps said they’d check on it.

They also asked about the microhousing demonstration project that was going to be allowed in WC; nobody pursued a permit, Chan said, so nothing’s happening. Dobkin recapped the potential proposal that one developer had suggested, 60 microstudios with shared kitchens/baths, and there was an “overlay” in which that could have happened on any purchased property. The allowance for this is expected to expire, unfulfilled, with the new comp plan, Chan added. Giba said the originally considered property was around 17th/106th.

Later in the meeting, the guests announced that a new economic development director has been hired, Jesse Reynolds, who has worked for the county in other roles. No permanent director for Local Services yet (following John Taylor’s promotion to head the Department of Natural Resources and Parks).

KING COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE: Det. Glen Brannon, guest at most NHUAC meetings, joined in. He too was asked about the Tim’s issue; “it’s been noticeably quieter [lately] – I haven’t been getting any complaints recently,” he replied. He said the operators have told him they’re ending their events at 10 pm, among other changes. … KCSO is working with Sea Mar to “toughen up” the parking lot at 15th/Roxbury that’s been a draw for troubling activities; that will include fixing the lighting. … There’ve been property cleanups at the ex-Bartell Drugs building with the help of the West Seattle-based volunteer group A Cleaner Alki … Det. Brennon said they’re also looking at a cleanup for the ex-Roxbury Auto Parts store (still for sale) site. He said he’s trying to find somebody to haul away trash when cleanups are done. Daw will look into it. … He was also asked about semitrucks parked on the street. They (and other vehicles parked on the street) have to be moved at least once every 24 hours.

WHITE CENTER KIWANIS: The Kiwanis’s annual community steak dinner is coming up May 17 (portabella mushroom if you want a vegetarian option) at the White Center Eagles, with a silent auction, raising money to help “the kids in North Highline.”

NEXT MEETING: First Thursday in June – that’ll be June 6 – online, 7 pm, last meeting before NHUAC goes on summer hiatus.

The announcement arrived in the inbox, sent by Community Roots Housing:

Saturday, May 18 at 11:30 a.m.

Dick Thurnau Memorial Park
White Center Bicycle Playground
11050 10th Ave SW

Join us on May 18 to celebrate the groundbreaking of a long-anticipated project: the White Center Community HUB! Located on the site of a former public health center, the HUB will create a place of “Hope, Unity and Belonging” where working families can find affordable housing along with essential services that nurture their stability and create greater opportunity.

Project partners White Center Community Development Association, Southwest Youth & Family Services, and Community Roots Housing have worked in partnership with King County to build a community-driven and designed campus created by and for White Center. Community members envision a center for learning with opportunities like workforce training, youth tutoring and child care; integrated physical and behavioral health services through collaboration between Southwest Youth & Family Services’ Counseling Center and an onsite HealthPoint medical clinic; and 86 quality affordable homes for individuals and families.

The site at 8th/108th also formerly held the White Center Food Bank, which has since moved into a separate new home on 16th SW.

You’re invited to this Thursday’s online meeting of the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council, which sent this preview and info of how to attend:

The Opportunity to Be Informed, Be Involved and Be Heard!

Where? North Highline Unincorporated Area Council Meeting
When? Thursday, May 2, 2024, at 7 pm

Join Zoom Meeting:
us02web.zoom.us/j/81553270155?pwd=MzdQVkxncFZXRG90ZjFTbG1LenYwZz09

Meeting ID: 841 0456 1060
Passcode: NHUAC2024 (case sensitive)

Unable to join by Zoom? Please call: 253.205.0468
Meeting ID:841 0456 1060
Passcode: 318533579
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Please join NHUAC at our meeting on Thursday, May 2nd at 7 pm. Through its “All Are Welcome!” community meetings, the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council aims to add opportunity to our community’s equation: The Opportunity to Be Informed, Be Involved and Be Heard!

Have you visited White Center’s beautiful library lately? If you are a frequent library user, you know that libraries do far more than just loan out books. Join us in welcoming White Center librarian Destinee Sutton to learn about some of the benefits you may be missing. (Hint: Been to the zoo lately? How about the Seattle Art Museum?) By meeting’s end, we think you will want to do yourself and yours a favor by visiting this great community resource behind Mt. View Elementary on the 1400 block of SW 107th.

Destinee will be followed by Jim Chan, King County’s Division Director for Permitting. In addition to issuing permits for land use and construction, the Department of Permitting’s responsibilities include Code Enforcement. Noise issues are bound to increase as the weather improves and you open your windows. Join us and learn what progress is being made to resolve these issues.

Last but not least, we will be joined by Detective Glen Brannon. Don’t miss this opportunity to share your concerns and learn what the King County Sheriff’s Office has been doing in our area.

Knowledge Is Power.
Learn, share, and help make North Highline a healthier community.
Thursday, May 2 at 7 pm – Invite Your Neighbors!

(Also published on partner site West Seattle Blog)

Thomas J. Garrett, known to those who loved him as “Tommy Joe,” was the 81-year-old man killed by a hit-run driver this past Monday night at 15th/Roxbury. Family members gathered there for a vigil this afternoon.

His daughter told us Mr. Garrett lived on Capitol Hill much of his life and went to Garfield High School with Jimi Hendrix. He himself was a musician and his career included many achievements including work as a TV-news photographer. His nephew talked more about Mr. Garrett’s life as traffic roared by on Roxbury:

His family says they don’t know why Mr. Garrett was in this area Monday night. They do know King County Sheriff’s Office deputies have yet to find his killer and are still seeking information on this vehicle (as reported Thursday):

Call 800-222-TIPS if you have any information. Meantime, they are planning a memorial for him at a Buddhist temple in the Central District. And they want to ensure no one forgets him, or what happened here.

ADDED: Sili Savusa and Aaron Garcia from the White Center Community Development Association were there and promised to work to make the area safer:

15th/Roxbury has of course had other trouble over the years – including last October’s shooting death of 21-year-old Marcell Wagner aboard a Metro bus just south of the intersection.

The White Center Library Guild‘s spring sale continues today, 11 am-3 pm at the library. Thanks to Gill Loring for photos from day 1 on Friday – if you’re a gardener, remember this sale offers plants too – vegetable starts!

The library is at 1409 SW 107th.

Proceeds go to the guild’s mission – helping fund library programs.

Have you seen this cat?

Pumpkin, our large orange cat, has been missing since 4/24 @ 1040 am. He was last seen outside our home, 10200 block of 11th Ave SW in White Center. We live north of Steve Cox Memorial Park.

Danielle
425-343-5780

2:52 PM: The King County Sheriff’s Office says that’s the vehicle whose driver hit and killed an 81-year-old man at 15th/Roxbury on Monday night; the crash was first reported on our partner site West Seattle Blog.. Today KCSO released the photo with this request for help:

Case#: C24013796

On Monday, April 22nd, just after 10:00 PM, the King County Sheriff’s Office received 911 calls reporting a hit and run just south of the intersection of SW Roxbury Street and 15th Ave SW in unincorporated White Center.

On arrival, deputies located the victim, an adult male in his 80s. The victim was transported to Harborview Medical Center, where he later was pronounced deceased.

KCSO’s Major Accident Response & Reconstruction (MARR) detectives are asking for the community’s help in locating the fleeing vehicle. The suspected vehicle (picture attached) is described as a silver, 2007-2016 Jeep Compass with front-end damage to the grill and hood.

If you have any information about the incident or were in the area and may have dash camera footage, call 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), visit P3Tips.com, or use the P3 Tip App. Tips are anonymous.

4:12 PM: The King County Medical Examiner’s Office released the victim’s name this afternoon: Thomas J. Garrett.

We just checked with King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Sgt. Eric White for an update on the carjacking we reported Friday night. He tells us it actually happened in the O’Reilly Auto Parts lot while the victim was sleeping inside the car. Then on Sunday, Seattle Police found the car in the 9700 block of Myers Way South and arrested one person, according to Sgt. White, who had no further details on the circumstances of the arrest. We’ll be following up with Seattle Police.

(Also published on partner site West Seattle Blog)

This alert was just relayed over Seattle Police radio – King County Sheriff’s Office deputies are investigating a reported carjacking outside Domino’s Pizza at 17th/Roxbury. Three armed carjackers are reported to have arrived in a white pickup and taken off in both that vehicle and the newly stolen white Toyota Camry, westbound on SW Roxbury. The only description of the carjackers so far: white men in their 20s with goatees and black hats. If you have any info for investigators, call 911.

(WCN photos)

Volunteers of all ages pitched in during today’s first installment of this year’s White Center Spring Clean. We caught up with a few of them doing some painting at 98th/15th.

As previewed here, next Saturday is the second installment of the cleanup – you can meet up with other volunteers in the Saar’s Super Saver Foods parking lot at 9 am (April 27). Organizers would especially like some help from muralists – there’s a lot that need touching up in WC, including the student work on Saar’s north side.

Ready for Friday night revelry on wheels? Southgate Roller Rink hosts live music every Friday night, 9 pm-midnight, $18 cover and $5 skate rental. The rink at 9646 17th SW has multiple bands every week – tonight it’s Megadose, Nug, and Sneaker Wave.

From the White Center Teen Program:

King County Job Launch for ages 16 – 24 is coming up on Wednesday, April 17th.

The Fall Job Launch Program features Pathways to Working in Healthcare. Ages 16 – 24 are encouraged to join virtually on zoom or in person at the White Center Teen Program (1321 SW 102nd St) or the Skyway Library (12601 76th Ave S ) on Wednesday, April 17, 2024 from 3:30 pm-5:30 pm. Scheduled presenters include:

IHAP (Introduction to Healthcare Employment and Mentorship Program)
Multicare
Career Work$ Medical Free Job Training Program
Walgreens
Insider Panel of careers in Healthcare

For additional Information, please contact Vana Danh, King County Parks @ 206.477.2105 or visit Job Launch & PNTH Job Fair – White Center Teen Program (wcteenprogram.org)

From Public Health – Seattle & King County this morning, word that Tacos de Canastafo at 16th/104th has been closed again as of last Friday (April 12) for allegedly “operating without a valid permit.” According to the Public Health webpage for food-establishment closures, they were supposed to still be closed from an order in February, for being an “unpermitted food vendor.”

3:01 PM: Much of White Center is without power in an outage affecting more than 11,000 Seattle City Light customers, from southeast West Seattle east to South Park and south into Burien. No word yet on the cause. Updates to come. (Remember that intersections where traffic signals have gone dark are all-way stops.)

4:13 PM: Now down to just under 5,000. White Center is one of the areas where it’s back on. No word yet on the cause.

5:09 PM: Under 3,000 still out.

8:33 PM: Down to under 500, mostly in the Boulevard Park area. The exact cause hasn’t been disclosed yet – “equipment” problem of some kind, SCL says.

12:30 PM MONDAY: We followed up today with SCL spokesperson Jenn Strang, who says, “The exact cause of (this) outage in still under investigation but there is a possibility that it was caused by a bird. The resulting fault caused two lines to wrap together, resulting in the larger impact of the outage.”

8:41 PM: An air and ground search is under way in north Burien right now after a pursuing following a carjacking in West Seattle. The pursuit went through White Center, south West Seattle, and other parts of Burien before two suspects were reported to have abandoned a stolen car – not the car taken in the carjacking – near 18th/116th. Police pursued two suspects through south West Seattle, White Center, and Burien after a carjacking. While the stolen vehicle is reported to be a white Audi, officers pursued another vehicle believed to be related, a dark gray Hyundai Tucson reported stolen from Federal Way. The Guardian One helicopter has been assisting; the suspects reportedly abandoned the Hyundai in north Burien, with a ground search ensuing too.

8:46 PM: They’ve taken one suspect into custody in the Salmon Creek Ravine area and are still searching for the other. The original armed carjacking happened in an alley off 35th SW in West Seattle just north of SW Roxbury.

9:14 PM: While the search continues, officers have just radioed that they’re closing streets in the area of 18th/116th.

11:03 PM: We weren’t able to monitor the end of the search live but here’s what we have since gleaned from archived audio: The second suspect apparently was bitten by a police dog and taken for treatment. Police have found various items of evidence in the area where the suspects ran, including a stolen gun, a backpack, and ski masks. The originally carjacked white Audi has been impounded (found thanks to a tracking device). We’ll be following up with police and prosecutors Monday and will add any other information that emerges sooner.