White Center Now: The blog about White Center

(White Center Now photos by Evan Miglorie)
“This is the biggest night in our school’s history.”

That’s what New Start High School teacher Ann Magyar told White Center Now about tonight’s graduation ceremony for New Start and Highline CHOICE Academy, the alternative programs in Highline Public Schools. You can see it in the leaping exuberance of Dewane Sauni, who’s graduating a year early (two months ago, he was chosen White Center Kiwanis Student of the Month):

Our photojournalist covering the ceremony, Evan Miglorie, reports that Dewane gave an “emotional speech,” and that another excellent speech was given by CHOICE Academy grad Megan Johnson, honored this past spring as one of America’s top youth volunteers:

The graduation filled the Log Cabin at White Center’s Steve Cox Memorial Park with xx people. Between the two schools, the grads numbered about 40 – three-fourths of them from New Start.

But according to Ann, more than 400 people showed up to cheer on those 40 grads!

“These students have worked incredibly hard and overcome a great deal to walk across that stage,” she added. Our congrats to the grads; here’s the schedule for the other graduation ceremonies coming up in the Highline district.

From one of the many fab nonprofits in WC – a great way to spend the night before Father’s Day!

Guys’ Night Out
Benefitting WestSide Baby

When was the last time you had an excuse to either have a night out with just your
friends OR to set something fun up for the guy in your life and his cronies? When
was the last time you said to your partner, “I’m sending out you for the night to
play poker, pool and horseshoes with good food and great drinks.” without being the
hero of the house? What a great Father’s Day prelude! ACT TODAY!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Date:
Saturday June 19
5:30 PM – 10 PM

Goal:
To raise funds to support WestSide Baby Programs.

Location:
10452 15th Ave. SW

Questions:
E-mail Kemp at kemp_garcia@hotmail.com
Call us at (206) 767-1662

Story and photos by Jonathan Stumpf
Reporting for White Center Now

Members of the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council met Thursday night with officials from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and King County, along with Dick Thurnau from Friends of Hicks Lake and Emery Bailey from Environmental Coalition of South Seattle (ECOSS) to discuss and identify blighted properties within White Center and other North Highline neighborhoods that could benefit from King County’s Brownfields program.

This community grant program provides the technical assistance that is needed before the cleanup of a contaminated property takes place and helps property owners understand how to prepare for the cleanup and redevelopment.

The Brownfields program provides mostly nonprofits and municipalities technical assistance in assessment of these properties, but with their ECOSS partnership, King County can extend the program to private individuals and businesses.

Lucy Auster of the King County Solid Waste Division and Joanne LaBaw of the EPA explained to the group how the grant works: first, a property is identified as potentially contaminated like the site of a former dry cleaners or gas stations. The Phase I assessment consists of a site visit, interviews, history review, and looking at old maps and aerial photos. The Phase II assessment, if needed, involves environmental sampling and lab analysis. The phases can cost anywhere from $5,000-7,000 and $20,000-60,000 respectively.

Auster said this is a three-year grant with $400,000 available and they are looking to target the White Center area. Bailey added because White Center was historically an arterial route to Seattle, there are a lot of former gas stations sites perfect for this grant.

Thurnau and other council members were curious if the Brownfields program could be used for the toxicity problems at the four-acre Hicks Lake in Lakewood Park. Auster thought because it was a green space owned by King County, that could make it problematic. She suggested that it might have to go to the state.

“I’ve been to Olympia on this thing before,” said Thurnau. “No one is in charge. That is the whole point.”

Auster said she’ll do some more research. “I’ll educate us and figure out the opportunities,” she said. “This sounds like a priority.”

Bailey presented to the group a report identifying 76 properties in the White Center area that he suggested would be a good starting point. “We don’t have a great big bag of goodies,” said Bailey, “but we do have some nice tools to help with getting traction.”

Other talk surrounded the arsenic in the planter boxes at Steve Cox Memorial Park, to which Bailey — a former geologist with Asarco — explained that it depended on the type and level of contamination.

Additionally, it was explained that this grant is not used for the actual cleanup or for the assessment of ongoing behaviors.

On July 1 at the monthly NHUAC meeting, Auster, LaBaw, and Bailey will be back to present the program and answer any questions from the full council and general public. (As always, that meeting will be at 7 pm at North Highline Fire District HQ.)

We published this report early today at partner site West Seattle Blog – but you’ll want to know, because you’ll be voting on them in August too: Two local races have candidates who hadn’t previously gone public – a South Park man is the fourth contender for King County Council District 8, and a West Seattle man is challenging Rep. Eileen Cody (34th District House Position 1). Full story here.

From our partners at the Seattle Times: A convicted rapist who hadn’t registered as a sex offender, as the law requires, has been found volunteering with the Evergreen High School football team. The man is now in the King County Jail, the Times reports, and Highline Public Schools says it’s taken back a job offer to the prospective head football coach, who as acting coach should have made sure the volunteer passed a background check; they also say the volunteer had only been to the school twice before he was Full story here.

From Full Tilt Ice Cream‘s Facebook page: “MOUNT VIEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL NEEDS YOUR HELP!!! The funding for their library has been cut this year. No new books. Get down to Barnes and Noble this Friday between 6:30 and 8 pm and buy something. A percentage of the sales will go to the school. Make sure to pick up the voucher from the kids that will be manning the booth there, or come get one at FT.” (Barnes and Noble is close to White Center – Westwood Village in south West Seattle.)

Just reported by the King County Sheriff’s Office – the driver involved in an early morning crash didn’t survive:

A 23 year-old Des Moines man died this morning when his car left the roadway and struck a tree. He died shortly after he was taken to Harborview Medical Center.

The incident happening this morning (June 10th) about 1:15 AM. Witnesses reported seeing the man leave the Mt. View Elementary parking lot at a high rate of speed. The school is located in White Center at SW 108th and 12th Ave SW.

When the vehicle got to the 800 block of SW 108th it crossed over into the westbound land of travel then struck a raised curb and a large tree. The collision caused massive damage to the left front of the car, a 1995 Ford Explorer.

No other vehicles were involved in the collision. Detectives believe alcohol was a contributing factor.

Last night at the 34th District Democrats‘ meeting in West Seattle, White Center Food Bank executive director Rick Jump was one of the community leaders who posed questions to Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, City Council President Richard Conlin, and Councilmember Bruce Harrell. It was a question that he and others have asked for a long time: Since a third of the White Center Food Bank’s service area is within the Seattle city limits, shouldn’t the organization get some funding from the city? Bottom line – none of the three disagreed; they promised to see what they could do. This won thunderous applause from the 100-plus in attendance, since the WC Food Bank is a major beneficiary of volunteer time/donations from the 34th DDs. More from the meeting coming up later today.

We get this in e-mail every week – but it’s not worth anything unless we share. So from hereon out – at least for as long as White Center remains an unincorporated area! (though county legislation also tends to affect those in cities, too) – we’ll bring you “This Week at the County Council,” as e-mailed on Fridays, for the week starting the following Monday. Click ahead to read the latest edition – take note of the parks item on Tuesday: Read the rest of this entry »

White Center’s Steve Cox Memorial Park will look brighter and more colorful if you drop by this week- that’s thanks to the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council members who spent time planting flowers there on Saturday morning: Christine Waldman, Stephen Porter, Barbara Dobkin, and Rebecca Lopez were joined by White Center residents Gill and Alex Loring, reports Barbara, who shared the photos and the report – thank you!

(North Highline council members Barbara Dobkin, Rebecca Lopes, Christine Waldman, Jessica Stoneback, Ron Johnson, Patrick Mosley, Richard Miller, Pat Price, Stephen Porter [not pictured: Heidi Johnson])
Story and photos by Jonathan Stumpf
Reporting for White Center Now

First up from last night’s North Highline Unincorporated Area Council meeting at North Highline Fire District HQ: The seven winners of the May 20 election (District 1: Pat Price, District 2: Stephen Porter, District 3: Jessica Stoneback, District 4: Christine Waldman, At Large: Rebecca Lopes, Barbara Dobkin and Richard Miller) were seated for the first time as active council members.

But those who previously served got a moment of recognition too: King County Councilmember Jan Drago‘s executive assistant Holly Krejci recognized, on behalf of Drago, past members for their “timeless work on behalf of the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council,” collectively serving 12 years.

Up next, King County Sheriff’s Deputy Jeff Hancock shared the monthly crime report that included:

* three felony assaults
* 10 misdemeanor assaults
* one stabbing
* two shooting calls
* one homicide
* two robberies
* 25 burglaries, of which two were commercial
* 20 auto thefts

These statistics were alarming to council members and residents, considering just months ago Hancock’s crime report was significantly less. Hancock attributes this to fewer police on patrol, because the Weed and Seed and Byrne grants have finished funding and assisting with a higher police presence. Presently, this unincorporated area of King County has only two officers on patrol, and Hancock agrees that the numbers reflect this.

“We can’t do proactive police work,” said Hancock. “The best thing you can do as residents is be a good neighbor.” However, he did emphasize that should a high priority crime take place, backup is only minutes away from the Seatac or Burien police departments.

Council Member Patrick Mosley did ask about a new drug on the streets called ‘wet’–marijuana cigarettes dipped in embalming fluid — to which Hancock did say they had seen an increase in its abuse.

Also visiting from King County was Paulette Norman from the Roads Division of the Transportation Department, to distribute and discuss the South Park Bridge Final Closure Plan, also found here. Norman emphasized that even if funding was secured tomorrow, the bridge would still close as currently scheduled at 7 pm June 30th, because it would take almost three years to dismantle and rebuild a new one.

She did agree with most in the audience that the area around the bridge won’t look aesthetically pleasing for a while, and she also emphasized they are doing everything possible to help with the traffic diversions, including the installation of new digital message signs to help with communications of any traffic issues to commuters. These are going up along 1st Ave South, Highway 99, 509 and 599, hopefully she said, right around June 30, the day the bridge closes.

The North Highline Unincorporated Area Council meets the first Thursday of every month at the North Highline Fire District Office. Visit www.northhighlineuac.org for more info.

Mark your calendar! From the e-mailbox:

They honk, they squawk and they are back in their hometown in time to give Father’s Day a new sound. Fresh off the heels of a national tour, internationally acclaimed alt-jazz sextet, Reptet, will be performing six new compositions, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on June 20, at Big Al’s Brewery Tasting Room at 9832 14th Ave SW, White Center. The show is outdoors, appropriate for all ages, free, and open to the public. Funding for composing the six songs and the performance was provided in part by a grant from 4Culture, King County’s cultural services agency. The compositions will be released on the group’s third CD in the fall.

Seattle-based Reptet is an atypical modern jazz sextet consisting of bass, drums and horns. These six dynamic multi-instrumentalists are Samantha Boshnack (trumpet, slide trumpet, piccolo trumpet, flugelhorn), Nelson Bell (trombone, euphonium, tuba), Izaak Mills (tenor sax, bass clarinet, flute), Chris Credit (baritone sax, alto sax, tenor sax, clarinet), Tim Carey (electric & upright bass), John Ewing (drums & percussion). They play all original, kid-friendly music that challenges the discerning fan, while entertaining the casual listener. Reptet gained international recognition with their 2006 release, Do This! (Monktail Records), which was a 2006 Independent Music Awards finalist for Best Jazz Record of the Year, was chosen top jazz CD of 2006 by Jazziz Magazine’s Alex Gelfand, and made the top ten lists of many other writers and critics across the globe. They gained further recognition by winning two Earshot Jazz 2007 Golden Ear Awards – Best Outside Jazz Group and Best Live Performance (as part of the Monktail Raymond Scott Project). In 2008 they released their second full length CD, Chicken or Beef?, which further solidified their presence on the American music scene. Their most recent release is a red vinyl 45 RPM single/digital download entitled Agendacide.

In organizing the show, West Seattle resident and Reptet drummer, John Ewing, was looking for a way to give back to the community he calls home. Knowing that 4Culture is always on the look out to enable special events in underserved neighborhoods, he applied for a grant with White Center in mind. The idea for a Father’s Day performance was a natural because his 5-year-old son attends preschool in White Center. This has made the neighborhood a backdrop for both the development of his son and their relationship.

Big Al’s Tasting Room offers an outdoor, all-ages venue that encourages patrons to bring whatever prepared food they like, or take advantage of the two public grills on site – you can even bring along the family pooch. It has worked with other local businesses and agencies, to help transform a once neglected and economically challenged area of the county into a burgeoning artist’s community that takes pride in having one of the area’s greatest concentrations of cultural diversity and community pride.

For the first time since the May 20 election, the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council meets Thursday night. From its website, here’s the agenda:

7:00 p.m. Call to order
Flag salute
Roll call
Approval of agenda
Approval of minutes
7:10 p.m. Public announcements
7:15 p.m. Public Comment – 3 minutes individuals
5 minutes groups
7:20 p.m. Election Report
7:25 p.m. Linda Robson, KC Council Jan Drago’s Office
7:30 p.m. Elect officers
7:35 p.m. Deputy Jeff Hancock, KCSO
7:40 p.m. Mike Martin, Burien City Manager
7:50 p.m. Sam Whitman, KC Parks
8:00 p.m. Jerry Robison, NHUAC Attorney
8:05 p.m. Paulette Norman, KC Roads – South Park Bridge
8:20 p.m. Committee Reports
1. Governance
2. Arts and Parks
3. Public Safety
4. Housing and Human Services
5. Public Outreach
6. Transportation
7. Steve Cox Memorial
8:30 p.m. Old business
Renew SCM artist contract
8:40p.m. New Business

The council meets 7 pm Thursday at North Highline Fire District HQ, 1243 SW 112th.

Just a few things – No school, no mail, no government offices (with a few exceptions), no banks; trash pickup is normal; Metro is on a Sunday schedule and Sound Transit Express buses are also on a Sunday schedule; libraries are closed; state liquor stores are open.

In addition to the Shorewood multi-sale event next Saturday, we also have these notes from the White Center Chamber of Commerce: The White Center Library Guild‘s annual yard sale is on Saturday, June 5, 1110 SW 116th Street, 10 am to 3 pm. … Then the White Center Kiwanis has its annual yard sale a week later – Saturday, June 12 — in the parking lot at 9826 14th Avenue SW.

In nearby Shorewood on the Sound, next Saturday is a day much like our recent West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day – dozens of residents are having yard/garage sales. A couple folks in Shorewood have e-mailed to call our attention to this so we can share with you. They say the map’s not available online, but printed copies will be available in the neighborhood that day, and hopefully we will get a list to sales to share with you before then. Sale hours on Saturday are 10 am-4 pm.

With a Bartell Drugs location at 15th/Roxbury, you’ve got a chance to participate in this:

Bartell Drugs launches its “Stock the Pantry” food drive for Northwest Harvest by accepting nonperishable food items and cash donations at all 57 Bartell Drug locations from June 1 to June 13.

This two-week food drive, now in its second year, is especially important to help Northwest Harvest replenish food stocks during summer months–when families that normally depend on free or reduced-price school meals may struggle to provide those meals at home.

Last year the two-week drive generated more than 16,767 pounds of food donations as well as cash contributions for food banks in King, Pierce and Snohomish counties. The company also donated 1,500 reusable bags for use by food bank clients.

Thanks to Stefanie at White Center’s celebrated Proletariat Pizza for the tip and the photo – The King County Fire Marshal posted that big green DO NOT OCCUPY notice at Evo, formerly Evolucion, today. We got word of this after 4:30 pm and tried half a dozen different county offices – all of which had already shut down, in most cases with the voice mail saying to call back Tuesday (or later). However, as noted earlier, tonight happens to be the White Center/South Delridge Community Safety Coalition meeting, at which the former Evolucion has been a topic of discussion many a time, so we hope to find out more within a few hours. (The notice mentions a violation of the International Fire Code, but we’re having trouble finding the section it appears to cross-reference.) 7:13 PM UPDATE: 1st word from the meeting is that the violation reportedly involves sprinklers that aren’t hooked up, while alleged occupancy violations remain under investigation.

From White Center/South Delridge Community Safety Coalition leader Sean Healy, the agenda for tonight’s meeting:

Its highlights – including the newest changes planned for Metro Route 60, which serves White Center – were discussed as part of a wide-ranging public meeting last night. Here’s the detailed report published on our partner site West Seattle Blog. Bottom line remains, the bridge closes 7 pm June 30th, and the money to replace it hasn’t been rounded up yet.