White Center Now: The blog about White Center

By Patrick Sand and Tracy Record
White Center Now co-publishers

One day a few months back, the raised dividing line on 16th SW in downtown White Center all but suddenly appeared after the street was resurfaced. Many in that area wish it would suddenly, or not-so-suddenly, disappear. That was a big topic at Thursday night’s meeting of the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council.

THE DIVIDER: King County Department of Transportation’s Mark Mitchell was at the meeting to address those concerns and other traffic-related issues. He said the intent was to reduce the number of cars darting back and forth across the lanes to finish parking, and therefore to reduce crashes, which he said other tactics including “enforcement” hadn’t reduced.

What enforcement? asked Jesse Lovell of Company. Mitchell said it had been requested; Jesse and Uncle Mike’s Superlicious BBQ co-proprietor Elizabeth Gordon both insisted they had never seen any. In fact, they said, the barrier had brought new problems, especially traffic slowdowns when large trucks bring deliveries, since they can’t park in the middle of the street any more. Mitchell listened to the complaints and said that’s why he had come to the meeting – to find out about the kind of effects they couldn’t plan for. He said he would take the complaints back … but no promises.

NHUAC member Liz Giba voiced a concern about the barrier making the mid-block crosswalk less visible, and raising the chances of a crash.

ALCOHOL MEMO: The King County Sheriff’s Office is pursuing a new idea to crack down on derelict drinking, according to Storefront Deputy BJ Myers. It’s an idea that Chief Deputy Steven Strachan deployed in the Kent area, and is now pursuing in White Center. A memo to three distributors, dated February 10th, is as follows:

The King County Sheriff’s Office is seeking the cooperation of the beverage distribution companies that serve retail businesses in White Center to partner with the Sheriff’s Office in a voluntary restriction on certain alcohol sales practices that contribute to an unsafe neighborhood and poor business environment. Merchants, neighborhood councils, and citizen groups have made it clear that the problem of chronic intoxicated persons in the local business district is a primary concern, and thus, a primary concern of the Sheriff’s Office.

This problem has existed in White Center for years and is viewed as a major hindrance to the success of area businesses. The White Center Chamber of Commerce is one of many groups that has attempted a “Good Neighbor Agreement” program with retailers selling high-gravity alcohol to chronic inebriants, but none of the programs have been successful. Therefore, it is the belief of the Sheriff’s Office that a structured community partnership approach will more appropriately address the problem of chronic public intoxication in White Center.

You are being asked to participate in an alternative to a mandatory government-imposed restriction, such as the Alcohol Impact Areas enforced by the Washington State Liquor Control Board. By working with the Sheriff’s Office to identify and implement a moderate but meaningful restriction on the sale of certain products, your company will set an example of positive, community-focused, cooperation that the neighborhood will notice. The Sheriff’s Office is interested in restricting only products principal to the problem of chronic public intoxication so as to maximize benefit to the neighborhood, including beverage retailers.

As a beverage supplier to retailers that sell high gravity alcohol in White Center, your company can be an influential advocate of responsible business practices. The Sheriff’s Office hopes you will choose to be a part of this effort to encourage voluntarily restricted responsible business practices by White Center retailers.

Deputy Myers asked for NHUAC’s support, and they said “of course.” He says he hopes to go to retailers soon with distributor reps to talk about a ban on “high gravity” sales between 6 am and 1 pm; he stressed repeatedly, this is for retail outlets, not bars. The idea is to disrupt the cycle of how chronic alcoholics buy and consume. If all goes well, this could start by early April.

BURIEN UPDATES, INCLUDING ANNEXATION: City Manager Mike Martin said it’s still looking pretty good for the annexation process to proceed, since the sales-tax credit remains in the current version of the state budget (without it, the city has said it will call the process to a halt). If the budget is finalized with the credit still available, Martin says, he’ll go to the Burien council and ask them to move ahead (which would involve setting an election date). He also talked about newly hired Highline Public Schools Superintendent-to-be Dr. Susan Enfield, saying he was impressed by her and her “intelligent approach” to many of the issues where the city and school district intersect.

White Center CDA is among the community partners for this upcoming workshop at South Seattle Community College:

Families of prospective Pacific Islander students at South Seattle Community College are invited to attend a FREE workshop to will learn how to support the educational progress of their family member attending the college. Parents, grandparents, siblings, partners, children, and spouses can all positively impact the success of a college student, and this informative workshop will provide them with the tools they need to make a difference.

Attendees will learn about what it is like to be a Pacific Islander college student at South; obtain information about campus resources to help students; and discover the many important ways they can help their student get the most out of the college experience. The workshop is ideal for new students and their families to encourage them to get a strong start on their college career. It is also extremely useful for current Pacific Islander students and their families as well.

Admission is free, but advance sign-up is requested.

Contact & RSVP: (206) 934-6487
e-mail: Rochelle.Fonoti@seattlecolleges.edu

Tongan and Samoan interpreters will be available.

This workshop was developed and presented by South’s AANAPISI grant; Student Outreach, Admissions and Recruitment; 13th Year Scholarship program; the Cultural Center; and TRiO Student Success Services. Community partners include U.T.O.P.I.A. Seattle, Southwest Youth and Family Services and White Center Community Development Association.

It’s not just a new month – it’s Feinstein Challenge time, which means a lot to the local folks who make sure that thousands of people in this area don’t go hungry. Here’s the announcement from the White Center Food Bank:

Today, the 2012 Feinstein Challenge begins and again this year the White Center Food Bank will be participating. For the past 14 years, the Feinstein Foundation has divided $1 million each year among over 3,000 hunger fighting agencies nationwide.

Here’s how the challenge works. For every donation the White Center Food Bank receives during March and April, the Feinstein Foundation will help contributions grow by adding to them. All cash and food donations count towards the stretch dollars.

At WCFB we continue our focus on healthy foods through our mission driven services. By actively working with our clients to minimize hunger, we nourish our community to make it stronger and healthier. We nurture self-reliance through our gardening, nutrition and Healthy Food Gift Certificate programs and embrace our rich cultural diversity each day through our bi-lingual in-take services and provision of culturally familiar foods. 2011 brought a record 66,682 individuals through our doors – and we expect 2012 to bring similar numbers of those in need through our doors.

Please help continue to ease the pain of hunger in our community and step up to the challenge by making a contribution to the White Center Food Bank today. To be eligible for the Feinstein Challenge, your gift must be received no later than April 30th. Online donations via our website: whitecenterfoodbank.org.

You’ll recognize familiar White Center faces in that photo provided by the office of Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn. On Tuesday, in Seattle’s University District, he announced $1.1 million in city grants for business districts. We followed up with his office for specifics, including $64,500 announced for White Center. According to Karin Zaugg with the city Office of Economic Development, the money is for a proposal submitted by the White Center Community Development Association and White Center Chamber of Commerce, and it is intended “to do four main things: 1) Business attraction, 2) Retail study about the mix of businesses in White Center, 3) Business Mixers to facilitate relationships among the local businesses, and 4) organizational development to strengthen their organizations.”

Just last night, Highline Public Schools announced that it had offered its superintendent job to Dr. Susan Enfield, who’s been interim superintendent for Seattle Public Schools. This morning, Enfield announced she’s accepted. Details from our partners at the Seattle Times; we’ll add Highline’s formal announcement when it arrives.

What’s up with the 16th SW divider in downtown White Center, and other road-related questions, are at the heart of the agenda for this Thursday night’s meeting of the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council. You’ll also hear about local crime/public safety concerns and trends from Storeront Deputy BJ Myers, and Burien City Manager Mike Martin is scheduled to deliver his latest briefing – which usually includes an update on the annexation process’s status. If you have something to say, there’s a public-comment period too. To see the full agenda, check it out on NHUAC’s website; the meeting starts at 7 pm, North Highline Fire District HQ, 1243 112th SW.

After public forums last week, the Highline Public Schools board has already made up its mind which of three superintendent candidates it would like to hire. It’s offered the job to Dr. Susan Enfield, interim Seattle Public Schools superintendent. Here’s the news release sent to media outlets this evening:

The Highline School Board has offered the superintendent position to Dr. Susan Enfield, pending successful contract negotiations and a background check. The board is expected to vote at its meeting Wednesday evening to formally approve Enfield for the job. She would start in Highline on July 1.

Dr. Enfield and School Board President Angelica Alvarez will be available to the news media at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow at Highline Public Schools central office. Please contact Catherine Carbone Rogers to make arrangements.

Dr. Enfield is currently the Interim Superintendent for Seattle Public Schools. She came to Seattle as Chief Academic Officer from Evergreen Public Schools in Vancouver, WA where she served as the Deputy Superintendent from 2006 to 2009.

Before moving to Washington, she was the Director of Teaching and Learning for Portland Public Schools where she oversaw curriculum, instruction, federal programs and professional development district-wide.

Prior to coming to Portland, Dr. Enfield served as the Bureau Director for Teaching and Learning Support for the Pennsylvania Department of Education. In this role she worked with legislators, state department and district leaders to develop education policy and implement standards-based curriculum and professional development for over 500 school districts.

She began her career in education as a high school English, ESL and journalism teacher in the San Francisco Bay Area. After seven years in the classroom she joined the UC Berkeley Teaching and Learning Alliance as a high school support provider coaching principals and assisting middle and high school teachers engaged in whole-school, standards-based reform aimed at closing the achievement gap.

Dr. Enfield is a graduate of the University of California at Berkeley and earned master’s degrees in education from Stanford University and Harvard University. She also earned a doctorate in Administration, Planning and Social Policy from Harvard University with a concentration in the Urban Superintendents Program.

“The school board feels that Dr. Enfield’s skill, passion, and educational leadership will match the expectations we and our communities hold for the children of Highline Public Schools,” says School Board President Angelica Alvarez. “We made our decision after much consideration, and an extensive process involving staff, community members, business leaders and especially parents.”

In making its selection, the school board weighed input from teachers, staff, parents, and community members. Starting last fall, staff and community helped identify the characteristics the new superintendent should possess. ­­The resulting candidate profile was used to recruit and screen applicants. When the candidates were narrowed to three, staff and community had the opportunity to meet and provide feedback on all three finalists. Each candidate answered questions at a staff/community forum, which was televised and streamed on the internet to provide people with multiple opportunities to participate in the process.

Here’s the HPS link to the video of the forum event with Dr. Enfield.

Just posted on Proletariat Pizza‘s Facebook page:

We’re taking a leap of faith and will be trying out delivery tonight. Monday through Wednesday only, rough boundaries are 35th to the west, 4th to the east, Thistle to the north and 112th to the south (Arbor Heights, Highland Park, just call first, we’ll likely make an exception if you’re just outside the boundaries.) $2 delivery fee. Whole pizzas only (no halves), drinks, salad and dessert, but sadly, no beer and wine delivery. And all this is subject to change as we get it all figured out, which will likely take some time.

Artists who haven’t already signed up for this – you have just a few days to go! White Center is on a roll and your creation can be part of it, if you get in on this:

White Center Art Walk is continuing the call to artists for dynamic roller skate sculptures. Let your imagination ROLL WILD! Our first round this past summer was very successful, and there is some amazing art hung up at the rink. There’s plenty of room on the walls, and hundreds of skates just waiting for you and your ideas to be a permanent part of the Southgate Roller Rink in White Center.

Sculpture Criteria and Instructions:

– Max out your design at 4′ wide x 2′ tall
– Utilize up to (5) pairs or (10) skates
– Make it wall mountable
– Like the Native Americans with the Buffalo hunt, include as much of the roller skate as possible (ie; the boot, truck and wheels). A surplus of clay wheels are also available for use.
– Sculptures must be completed by May 9th
– Participation fee is $20 which covers skates, hanging and promotion of the May 3rd Saturday Art Walk.

The roller rink will play host to a fundraiser on May 16th benefiting WCAW to commission and install public art for White Center. This will also be an early unveiling of the art work before the Art Walk on May 19th.

Please email whitecenterartwalk@gmail.com by March 1st if you would like to participate. Skate pick up will begin on Tuesday, March 6th.

Thanks!
White Center Art Walk

Next Saturday, Republicans in our state hold precinct caucuses – with White Center a central gathering point, 10 am-noon at the Evergreen Campus – and since the presidential nomination isn’t locked up by any candidate yet, the attention is likely to be intense. Democrats have caucuses in April. Info on both can be found in this story from our partner site, West Seattle Blog.

(NOTE: That’s the archived video of this afternoon’s meeting – below are notes as we published them during the meeting)
2:25 PM: Happening right now: Click the “play” button to watch live video of the Seattle City Council Economic Resiliency and Regional Relations Committee meeting, which will include a discussion of North Highline annexation status, and whether Seattle should retain or end the remaining unincorporated area’s status as a “potential annexation area.” Here’s the memo council staff has written about the issue, as a briefing for today’s meeting (agenda here). In the public comment period at the start of the meeting, only one person spoke about the annexation issue, North Highline Fire District Commissioner Liz Giba.

3:57 PM UPDATE: The committee is finally getting to the annexation agenda item, two hours into the meeting. City staffer Kenny Pittman is starting with a background briefing on how things have proceeded up till now. Council staffer Rebecca Herzfeld is noting that the recommendation, as per the briefing document linked above, is to leave “Area Y” designated as a potential Seattle annexation area just in case. They do suggest that a letter be sent to Burien reiterating that this does NOT mean they are changing their mind about not standing in the way of their annexation process at this point. “That sounds good to me,” said committee chair Council President Sally Clark – and, with a mention that the full council will talk about the Duwamish Triangle and Sliver by the River on March 5th, the discussion ends after barely 10 minutes.

5:34 PM: We’ve added the archived video from this afternoon’s meeting. (Again, the annexation discussion was at the very end.)

Concerned about safety in your community, your neighborhood? Tonight the White Center/South Delridge Community Safety Coalition invites you to be part of its next meeting:

The next Community Safety Meeting will be held this Thursday, February 23rd from 6 pm – 8 pm at the Joe Wiley Room in Greenbridge, located at 9800 8th Ave SW. We want to continue looking at ways to build our group and strengthen our community and we would love to get your input and/or suggestions.

A light meal and other refreshments will be provided.

Ted e-mailed us this morning:

I received a notice in the mail yesterday from White Center Albertsons Sav-On Pharmacy saying that they were closing tomorrow, Feb 23, and my prescription records were being transferred to their Burien store. I heard that the grocery store was closing too. Do you know anything about it? Why are they closing? Is another grocery store going to take over the building. What’s happening to the employees?

We’ve since talked to both an Albertsons corporate spokesperson – after going to the store and being told that only corporate HQ could comment – and an executive from the company that’s buying the store, and here’s what we have found out:

*The Albertsons on 16th SW has been sold to the locally based Saar’s Market Place chain, according to Albertsons spokesperson Lilia Rodriguez. She told WCN by phone that the company continually evaluates stores, and this one was “not meeting its goals.”

*The pharmacy’s last day is indeed tomorrow – as per the sign in the store (photo above) – and prescriptions are being transferred to the Albertsons at 128th and 1st in Burien.

*Saar’s, which takes over the store on March 22nd, does not plan to have a pharmacy in the store, corporate general manager John Hames told us by phone. It plans to rebrand the store as “Super Saver Foods” when it takes over on March 22nd, with remodeling work ensuing and a grand-opening celebration planned for May 2nd. He says the company plans to add “extensive Asian and Hispanic sections” along with other grocery basics.

*Rodriguez says the store has 50 employees (“associates”) who will be affected by the closure. She says Saar’s indicated they were all welcome to apply, and says some may be transferring within the company because all are union-represented and have “bumping rights.”

Here’s where else Saar’s has stores.

Last year, when a Seattle City Council committee reiterated that it didn’t plan to pursue annexation of White Center (and other parts of mostly north North Highline), even though their city had dibs on the area, and gave Burien their blessing to move forward if desired – which of course Burien did – they also committed to make a once-and-for-all “is Seattle interested, or not?” decision by the end of February 2012. (Here’s our coverage of that meeting from March 2011.)

Now, with February 2012 almost over, an annexation discussion is finally coming back before a Seattle City Council committee. This Friday, 2 pm, the Economic Resiliency and Regional Relations Committee, chaired by Council President Sally Clark, has this item on the agenda:

Annexation Policy-Consideration of Council’s options regarding potential annexation of portions of North Highline, South Park and the Duwamish Triangle.

BRIEFING AND DISCUSSION (20 minutes)

Presenters: Kenny Pittman, Office of Intergovernmental Relations; Rebecca Herzfeld, Council Central Staff

The meeting is at Seattle City Hall, viewable live online via seattlechannel.org. We will be checking with Council President Clark’s office to ask about specifics of the discussion.

12:34 PM UPDATE: According to Dan Nolte from Council President Clark’s office, the entirety of this discussion will be focused on the White Center/Boulevard Park/etc. portion of North Highline – “sliver by the river” and “Delta Marine” will be addressed at a later meeting. Here’s the agenda for Friday.

For Highline Public Schools, it’s mid-winter break all week till classes resume Wednesday. Most if not all others have at least today off. … Metro is on a “weekday/no UW” schedule. … Sound Transit services’ plans are here … No U.S. Postal Service delivery … The King County Library System is closed today (including the website, which is scheduled to be down 8 am-5 pm for maintenance).

Dick Thurnau from Friends of Hicklin Lake says there’s a new chance at grant funding to “clean up Hicklin Lake’s water condition.” He’s announced a February 28th meeting, 7 pm at North Highline Fire Department HQ, featuring “a discussion on a potential grant opportunity from Puget Soundkeepers Alliance. … This grant, if awarded, may help us in our efforts to clean up Hicklin Lake’s water condition.” Whether you can go or not, he’s also asking community members to fill out this survey by the 23rd.

(Added 7:51 pm – “The Solace of a Wounded Heart” by James C. Bassett at Dubsea Coffee)
More than a dozen venues participating this time around – and the full lineup of venues and artists can be found on the White Center Art Walk‘s website. This includes what you might call a pre-funk at the Mutant Bicycle Building – first on the list. Have fun!

This was mostly a formality – but nonetheless, it’s a formality worth noting. From the City of Burien’s weekly newsletter, word that the Boundary Review Board finalized its approval of the annexation proposal this week:

Boundary Review Board Gives Annexation Final OK

On Feb. 16, the Washington State Boundary Review Board for King County reached a final decision approving Burien’s annexation request of the North Highline. The next step is for the City Council to pass a resolution confirming the Board’s decision and requesting that King County set an election date, which could be in August or November 2012. The City Council is waiting for the state Legislature to approve a state budget before requesting an election. The Council has indicated it will not proceed with the annexation if the current state tax credit that helps cities provide services to newly annexed areas tax credit is reduced or eliminated from the state budget.

We’re checking to find out where that stands.

(Crossposted from partner site West Seattle Blog)
The man charged with second-degree murder in last August’s White Center murder of 23-year-old Sweetheart Failautusi has just admitted in court that he did it. The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office confirms that Anthony Haroldlee Smith pleaded guilty this morning as charged, acknowledging he is to blame for the deadly shooting at 15th and Roxbury in the early-morning hours of August 16th. Sentencing range is 134-234 months; KCPAO spokesperson Ian Goodhew says the “agreed recommendation” for sentencing will be 15 years. He adds, “Sweetheart’s family felt the agreement was the right thing to do to assure a conviction and have the certainty of the mid-range recommendation as opposed to him possibly receiving a lower sentence.” Smith is scheduled to be sentenced March 23rd at 1:45 pm by King County Superior Court Mary Yu.

Taco Time Northwest has announced its 50th-anniversary celebration this month – and in case you somehow didn’t know this, this branch of the restaurant chain’s first location was right here in White Center, same site where it operates now. It’s still owned by the Tonkin family, and planning on new programs/initiatives in honor of the half-century milestone. From the news release:

In 2012 and moving forward, Taco Time NW will continue to increase the number of products sourced from northwest suppliers and will purchase local ingredients whenever possible, including tortillas baked fresh daily from La Mexicana, a local family-owned company that Taco Time has worked with for almost 40 years. Taco Time NW’s beef is sourced from local family-owned Petschl’s Quality Meats, which delivers fresh, northwest beef to the restaurants. Taco Time NW’s famous Mexi-Fries will be made in Washington from Washington state potatoes and northwest-based Darigold provides Taco Time NW’s 60-day aged Cheddar cheese.

…Additionally, Taco Time NW is introducing new green initiatives, including investing in many compostable packaging options. At over half of its restaurants where hauling compost to a commercial compost facility is possible, Taco Time has designed a program that allows all compostable items to be disposed of in one bin, eliminating the need for guests to separate out the compostables. When possible, the compostables will be transported to local composting company Cedar Grove.

Taco Time NW will also celebrate its 50th anniversary with the introduction of a traveling taco truck, which will visit 50 community events and block parties between Memorial Day and Labor Day.

Besides White Center, Taco Time Northwest operates 72 other restaurants “from Lynden to Longview,” points out the announcement.