White Center Now: The blog about White Center

Just in from WCN contributor Deanie Schwarz – More than 20 law-enforcement vehicles rushed to help a King County transit deputy after an attack attempt around 9:45 pm in White Center. A KC Sheriff’s Office supervisor told Deanie that the deputy tried to make a routine traffic stop, pulling over the vehicle in a business parking lot at 106th/16th. As the deputy approached the vehicle, the driver threw it into reverse, gunned it, and tried to run over the deputy, according to the KCSO supervisor. Deanie says the call for backup brought cars from Seattle, Burien, and Sound Transit as well as the Sheriff’s Office. The deputy wasn’t hurt; one arrest is reported, and three more people were detained for questioning.

Just in from Nhan Nguyen at WCCDA:

Please mark your calendar for our next White Center Business District Mixer meeting on Monday, June 13, 6-7:30pm at the Salvadorean Bakery (1719 SW Roxbury). Light dinner and translation will be provided. We have a packed agenda planned for this meeting:

1. Update from the May 14, 2011 Spring Clean. For the business district, our volunteers picked up litter, planted edibles, painted a mural, and planted shrubs. Does anyone want to lead a regular clean-up for our business district? The CDA can supply trash pickers, garbage bags and gloves.

2. We will have a robust discussion on a Shopper Card including a food guide that the CDA and the Chamber are working together. We need your ideas to design and promote it.

3. We have designed a resource guide for businesses to include important contact info for organizations/government entities that serve small businesses. We need your input to see if it will be useful to you. Is there other information you want to see in there?

4. We have commissioned a local artist to work with our graphic designer to paint and print an art poster. The theme of this poster is our brand: “White Center – Growing a Global Village.” We will give each of you one to hang at your business. We will have a discussion to follow on what else we can do to promote our business district brand.

5. Update on the issue of medical marijuana in White Center.

6. Anyone interested in the idea of opening a bike shop in White Center? With the impending closure of the Alaskan Way Viaduct, there will be incentives to use alternative transportation. Come hear presentations on both topics.

WCN contributor Deanie Schwarz sends in the proof – customers are in the house and burgers are being served at Zippy’s Giant Burgers (9614 14th SW), which moved from West Seattle after three years of ever-increasing popularity. They had hoped to open the new location a month sooner, but permit/inspection challenges were cited for the delays – all behind them now.

ADDED MONDAY EVENING: The dinner rush is out the door:

Earlier, Deanie caught Jon Talmadge tackling a King Lou Lou – the truly “giant” burger now on the Zippy’s menu:

The King Lou Lou is a dine-in-only option, which’ll cost you $14 and change. Four patties, eight pieces of bacon, grilled onions, quadruple cheese, chipotle mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato. Topped with a crown (Lil Zip w/cheese). The King Lou Lou is named for Luis Jimenez, one of the creative stars of Zippy’s kitchen.

Just got word from manager Joel Schweiger that the recent fire damage is repaired and the pool is open again at Evergreen Community Aquatic Center. They’re signing people up for swim lessons, too – more about that, here. Schweiger adds, “We also have lap swim, public and family swim hours available as well as senior programming and swim team.”

Two of White Center’s notable events today:

ZIPPY’S GIANT BURGERS OPENS: If you never tried them in West Seattle and aren’t sure what all the fuss is about, you get your chance to see, starting at 10:30 am. We stopped by 9614 14th SW yesterday afternoon to check on Zippy’s proprietors Blaine and Rahel Cook and team, and all signals were go.

WHITE CENTER BUSINESS OWNERS’ HAPPY HOUR: The third event organized by Aileen Sison in her White Center Business Owners of Sustainable Support happy-hour series is this afternoon/evening at Company on 16th SW, 4-7 pm (invite here).

Next White Center Art Walk, organizers are going beyond the usual “walk around and look at stuff” plan – they’re organizing programs with films and videos, and they’re putting out an URGENT call for contributors. From Amanda:

Every month the White Center Art Walk is trying to “theme” our artwalk, and June’s theme is Film. We are trying to get together (3) film programs to show at (3) locations in White Center. One is the Southgate Skating Rink (a family-friendly program), Big Al’s Brewery (more edgy program) and Full Tilt (more music-filled program).

We are trying to put together this program wabi sabi, DIY style, without a lot of time to do it. What we are looking for are short films. Animation, music videos, power pieces, light pieces, dark pieces, etc. We are trying to get three 20 – 30 minute programs together. We can take each piece on a variety of formats, and will put it together at a location post production house in Seattle. The art walk is Saturday, June 18th.

This is an open call to locals, film organizations, film programs and schools. If interested, please send us an e-mail to whitecenterartwalk@gmail.com by next Friday, June 3rd, with your name, length of piece, subject matter and contact info. Unfortunately, there is no compensation for the use of the pieces, but there will be great exposure in Seattle’s coolest enclave.

After the usual opening round of remarks and public comment, development topics are part of the heart of next Thursday’s North Highline Unincorporated Area Council meeting, as well as an update on last week’s elections, and a decision on officers. From the agenda:

7:15 p.m. Election Report
7:20 p.m. Election of Officers
7:25 p.m. Mike Martin, Burien City Manager
7:30 p.m. KCSO Capt Joseph Hodgson – Crime Stats
7:40 p.m. Debbie Zemke, Burien Recreation Manager – Music in the Park
7:45 p.m. Derek Birnie, Executive Director, Delridge Neighborhood
Development Association
8:00 p.m. Harry Reinert – King County DDES – Updates to King County
Development Regulations

Later in the meeting, updates on library issues and Jubilee Days are on the agenda, which you can see in full here. Everyone’s welcome at the meeting, 7 pm Thursday (June 2) at North Highline Fire District HQ.

(Crossposted from partner site West Seattle Blog)

He’s only been on the job six months, but King County Councilmember Joe McDermott is already running again. Last fall, he was elected for the year remaining in what was now-County Executive Dow Constantine’s term, after Jan Drago served a year as an appointee; this time, a full four-year term is at stake. Thursday night, in bowling shoes, McDermott presided over his official campaign-kickoff party at Roxbury Lanes. Among those in attendance were County Council colleagues Julia Patterson, Larry Phillips, Larry Gossett, and Bob Ferguson, State House Rep. Eileen Cody, elected city officials from Burien and Tukwila, members of the North Highline Unincorporated Council, and community advocates from neighborhoods in the 8th District including White Center, South Park, and Vashon. And from McDermott’s home neighborhood, West Seattle – his parents Terri McDermott and Jim McDermott:

Though all at the party were exhorted to have fun and get some bowling in, there was of course the opportunity for the candidate to offer a short speech first:

McDermott spent almost a decade in the State Legislature before moving to the County Council. The other candidate in this race so far is another West Seattleite, Diana Toledo, whom he also faced in last year’s general election. We covered her kickoff party at the Admiral Theater last week.

The date is finally set, after unexpected delays – Zippy’s Giant Burgers, moving from West Seattle to White Center (9614 14th SW), will open next Tuesday, May 31st. Details on our partner site West Seattle Blog.

Received a notice indicating the monthly meeting is on tonight as usual – 6 pm, White Center DSHS building between 14th and 15th SW just south of Roxbury, second floor. No agenda mentioned so far (we’re checking).

Story and photos by Deanie Schwarz
Reporting for White Center Now

A White Center Now reader tipped us to the upcoming closure of Pony Express in White Center – concerned that WC is losing its last mailbox provider. After 22 years of operation — three at the current location, after 19 years across from McLendon Hardware on 102nd — owner Claire Denning confirms she will close the doors forever on June 30.

When Claire began operating the private mailbox shipping center, it was one of twelve original centers independently owned in the Seattle metro area known as Pony Express. She says only a few remain, as the need for shipping services, including postal services, declined in large part to the growth of Internet use. Business transactions are conducted digitally and people tend to purchase items for free shipping, which cut into the UPS service Claire had provided for years.

“I haven’t been on the main thoroughfare that everyone uses for three years, and that’s another reason why I’ve been struggling here. I never recovered financially from the move that took everything I had in retirement and savings. It was a 50% drop in business. I was never able to get a contract with the Postal Service because of cutbacks there. That might have guaranteed some income.

“But, before all that, the business was successful for all those years, in large part because of apartment dwellers who moved a lot, or for people who traveled. They wouldn’t have to change their addresses with a private mailbox and could just pick up their mail from here where everything was secure.”

The only other places in White Center which will provide mailboxes will be Stor-More (16th and 114th), though they do not provide postal services, like UPS, Federal Express, or Western Union.

The Westwood Post Office in West Seattle has mail boxes, but there is currently a waiting list for them. She is also referring customers to an independent shipping service shop, MailBox West, in West Seattle’s Morgan Junction, across from West Seattle Thriftway; it’s also a contract station for the post office. They are equipped to handle registered and international mailings.

Once Claire closes the store, the only blue mail drop box that will remain in White Center will be the box located at the Rainbow Grocery on 16th. The nearest post services will be the Westwood Post Office in the Westwood Village and the Burien Post Office on 152nd Ave. SW.

“I was the neighborhood secretary, “ Claire said proudly with a smile.

“It’s really a kind of pickle-barrel kind of place, “ chimed in the USPS letter carrier in the office, picking up and dropping off mail. “People run into each other here and know each other.”

Indeed, Claire has known the whereabouts, comings, and goings of a lot of folks over the course of 23 years. And she says that those customers have been very understanding of the necessity to close and supportive in her decision to start a new chapter in her life.

But it’s not hard to imagine how different life will be for those customers, without Claire and the White Center Pony Express.

Story and photos by Deanie Schwarz
Reporting for White Center Now

We’ve already reported that, when the King County Library Services Board of Trustees met Tuesday evening in the North Bend Library, board members voted to delay a potential vote on the Library Service Area Analysis for North Highline and related staff recommendations. Here are details of how that unfolded:

Speakers advocating for a delay in any vote to proceed with consolidation of the Boulevard Park and White Center Library’s included King County 8th District Councilmember Joe McDermott. He told the Board that the issue of potential annexation for the areas remained very much in flux, since Seattle’s councilmembers have said they will revisit the issue next February, but won’t stand in the way if Burien wants to pursue annexation sooner.

Considering that, and the indication that Burien’s council may start annexation discussion this summer, Councilmember McDermott encouraged the Board to delay any action or vote regarding the libraries for at least a year when such consideration might be more appropriate, or at least might provide enough time for the process to move forward more definitively.

Director Bill Ptacek said that the Board had already delayed a decision regarding the North Highline area and that the interim result of that delay was the Library Service Analysis recently conducted by surveying people online and over the phone. The surveys, according to Project Manager Jennifer Wiseman, provided a lot of feedback regarding much-needed improvements to the Boulevard Park and White Center Libraries which would be addressed by the now seven-year old 2004 bond funds. The survey also, she said, “tested” the consolidation idea via two questions and suggested there’s support for it – in the first question, about 65% support via the phone surveys (800 respondents) and 44% online. Then, when the second question was asked with specific details about consolidation, the support increased 5% on the phone interviews and 10% on the online questionnaires, yielding just slightly over 54% approval online). Wiseman also noted that the online respondents were not representative of the community and skewed the results because they were predominantly white female college graduates over 50.

White Center Library Guild President Rachel Levine and North Highline Unincorporated Area Council members Pat Price (a Boulevard Park resident) and Barbara Dobkin (a White Center resident) also spoke. Price pointed out to the Board that White Center has a high percentage of people without vehicles, as well as little east-west bus service, so the walking distance from schools and homes to libraries is important. Dobkin told the Board that she and other voters who supported the 2004 bond did so with the understanding that bond funds would be put toward improvements as designated within the bonds, not a closure or consolidation. “This isn’t what we voted for.”

Ptacek, in addressing the reallocation of the 2004 bond funds, said that the recommendation to reallocate the bond funds to a new library are based on the “good bids we’ve been getting” for construction. The Library Guild’s Levine expressed her concerns about the impartiality of the agency that conducted the surveys, but also read a letter on behalf of the Guild vowing to continue to work together with the KCLS Board.

A community member and retired teacher who now volunteers at Cascade and works with White Center youth in service projects held up a photograph of the kids “to whom we have a moral responsibility.” Kids in the Highline area are out of school on Fridays early and they need a safe place to study, away from crowded, noisy homes and where they have access to resources, she said, imploring the Board not to forget the children of White Center.

Board Trustee Bill Spitzer moved that any decision be postponed until the next Board meeting in June (to be held in Issaquah at the Library Services Center). He said that he was reluctant to vote with only three of the five Board members present. He also said he was sensitive to the logistical dilemma for White Center residents who might not have been able to attend a meeting 45 miles away, even though more than a dozen community meetings have been held on the matter.

With that, the motion was seconded, and the action item to address the North Highline Library Service recommendations was delayed until at least next month’s meeting. Board President Eadie asked the staff to provide the Board a list of potential sites, if any are known, for a new North Highline location at that meeting.

Greg Duff had to leave the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council when annexation put his home inside Burien boundaries, but he continued public service by joining the Burien Planning Commission. And now, according to a news release we received this morning, he is running for Burien City Council Position 2. Read on for the announcement in its entirety: Read the rest of this entry »

From WCN contributor Deanie Schwarz in North Bend: The King County Library Board has decided tonight to put off consideration of White Center/Boulevard Park library consolidation till next month’s meeting. Details to come.

Will the King County Library Board vote to consolidate the White Center and Boulevard Park libraries? It’s on the agenda today for their 5 pm meeting – at the North Bend Library. Find the agenda linked here. White Center Now will be there and we’ll let you know what happens.

Story and photos by Deanie Schwarz
Reporting for White Center Now

Southgate Roller Rink hosted the Rat City Rollergirls All Stars‘ bout vs. the visiting Texacutioners today – a fast and furious sport spectacle which ended with the All Stars slamming to victory in their namesake neighborhood’s recently reopened rink, 132-110.

This was the first bout that the All Stars have held at Southgate in a number of years. RCRG told WCN that White Center holds a special place in the hearts of the team members. This morning’s bout was scheduled quickly and was a trial run for future bouts for the All Star team, which is composed of members from all four Rat City teams. RCRG held the bout for their season ticket holders (also known as the Rat Pack) – it was not open to the general public.

Southgate Roller Rink will continue to host bouts with an emphasis on Junior teams, but also with adult teams on the horizon. More information about the All Stars and tickets for Rat City Roller Girls public bouts at KeyArena can be found at ratcityrollergirls.com and general skating hours and upcoming Southgate bout announcements can be found at southgaterollerrink.com.

The winners of last Thursday’s North Highline Unincorporated Area Council elections are now announced on the NHUAC website – the four incumbents:

Congratulations to the winners of the May 19th Election.
District 3: Liz Giba
District 4: Ron Johnson
At Large: Doug Harrell and Patrick Mosley

(Work by Jimmy Gersen, who’s showing at Salvadorean Bakery)
Tonight! Here’s the announcement of the highlights:

White Center 3rd Saturday Art Walk
May 21st, 2011 6 PM to 9 PM

Company (9608 16th SW): Eric Edwards -Collages from found material. This man-rocks-the-k(c)asbah! While we would never outlaw his goods or wall him in, he definitely pushes the envelope in an awe-inspiring package. Using found goods to make inventive, funky creatures; Eric takes collage to a higher level. Never uninteresting, never underwhelming, his art is much like his personality. Come check out his creations and enjoy wine specials until 10pm!

Dubsea (9910 8th Ave SW): Eric Edwards– – Collage out of found material—the family friendly version. Didn’t see enough of Eric at Company? Oh, good- me either. Dubsea will be sporting his animal-esque goodies for the May Art Walk.

Big Al Brewing (9832 14th Avenue SW): Christina Thomas- Acrylic paintings on Toilet Paper. Must see. You may not recognize the mediums for what they are. Christina takes a super fragile item and manipulates into something bold and unrecognizable. Come in and enjoy the new Summer Ale on tap and un-doubt your doubting eyes.

Salvadorean Bakery (1719 SW Roxbury): Jimmy Gersen–Reproductions of large scale paintings. Loud, bright, bold-lined figures that are mainly made during live-painting performances. These edgy prints are well balanced and will definitely draw you in for another take. Take down some pastry goodness while you’re there.

Café Rozella (9434 Delridge Way SW): Renee Bazino – Landscape Photography & Paintings. Re-visit the beautiful places you’ve never been. Perhaps you do it over a hot cup of delicious coffee while sitting in a cozy café place. Repeat from last month stop in if you haven’t had a chance to see what’s gracing their walls.

Dzul Tattoo (9622-B 16th Ave SW): Katie & Alex- Black & White Photography. Drop in for funky grooves and an eye-full of new body ink. Updated B&W photos of the newest generation of ink, dripping with permanence. This shop has spirit and enough eye-candy to chew on for days.

3.14 Bakery (9602 16th Ave SW): Anna Hoychuck– . Anna does the three P’s: People, Pet and Product photography and she’s good at it. She pulls together relevant colors and subject matter into a crisp well-lit photo. Anna volunteers at the Seattle Humane Society taking photos of the newbies looking for homes, so she definitely scores in the cute-pup-photo-taking department. Come on down for a dollar ‘cakeball’ and some scrumptious photos!

Full Tilt Ice Cream (9629 16th Ave SW): Megan Thorberg- Prints. Boldlined B&W prints with an interesting twist. Blast from last month! This bold lined goddess will be gracing our visual ‘ceptors for another month. If you missed her last month, stop by for a waffle cone of Mexican Chocolate and a pint of delicious bubbly beer and soak in her graphic awesomeness.

Proletariat Pizza – (9622-A 16th Ave SW)- Mike Hipple. Pictures with a story. I’m not usually one for portrait photography but I have to say, Mike makes even me enjoy looking at pictures of strangers. He manages to make it all about the people, and not about the people at all. Each photo pulls you in through its composition and intense lighting. It’s almost like a free ticket out of here for as long as you wish to gaze. Oh, and do yourself a favor and order the ‘Ham and Egg’ Pie. It will make your life better.

ALSO! Please Welcome the Southgate Roller Rink to White Center!! (9646 17th Ave SW). They will soon be rolling into our growing artwalk family with rotating shows and a possibility for projected visual scrumptiousness! Stay tuned to see how they keep us groovy…

Last month, at the annual auction for West Seattle’s Holy Rosary Catholic School, attendees not only raised money for their own school’s needs, they also reached deep to help out White Center’s Holy Family School – as we reported in this story on West Seattle Blog, courtesy of journalist Gregg Hersholt, who emceed the HR auction that night. A followup: In WS last night, HF’s principal Frank Cantwell was invited to the Holy Rosary Parents Club‘s meeting for a check presentation. And it turned out to be not just the $20,000 announced the night of the auction – but a total of $25,000.

Just published the latest early today on West Seattle Blog. Zippy’s Giant Burgers thinks they’re down to one last inspection before they can open at 9614 14th SW – read the details here.