Yesterday we reported that several women in the neighborhood have been suspiciously approached and propositioned by a strange man who was later found to be driving a stolen vehicle. Based on reports from many women who encountered this man, now referred to as the “Queen Anne Creeper”, SPD was able to locate and arrest him, and is asking any women who may have been approached by him but never reported the incident to come forward. In a letter addressed to the community yesterday, crime prevention officer Terrie Johnston wrote:
Many Block Watch captains & contacts contacted me over the past 3 days to confirm reports of a white male with a goatee driving around Queen Anne and approaching women, (some with children) and asking for directions to Magnolia. In some of the instances he made suggestive, and inappropriate sexual comments to the women. You may have read about this individual in local blogs. A patrol officer, Off. Alstrin attempted to keep the neighbors informed about this guy, and information about the incidents was shared with West Precinct personnel. Here’s the great part! I shared many of your tips (phone calls and emails) with Offs. Hockett and Warner of our Comm. Police Team. Through their excellent follow-up skills, and using your tips they were able to identify the suspect and he was arrested. Now asking for directions is not a crime, so what’s the big deal? Well, he was definitely unnerving the women he contacted, and he was acting suspiciously. But through the keen observations made by community members, it was learned that he was in a stolen vehicle. We came to find out he is under DOC [Department of Corrections] supervision, and we trust the judge will be interested in his recent activities. The CPT officers credit, in large part, the good information and tips that you called or emailed me about, as assisting them w/getting positive identification on him, witness statements about the stolen vehicle, etc.
Johnston asks anyone who recalls being approached by this individual to contact Officer David Hockett at (206) 684-7720 or email Erik Warner at erik.warner@seattle.gov and make a statement. Johnston added:
We would like to document as many of the incidents as possible for potential prosecution. Many women called to say they regretted they never called 9-1-1 when they were approached by this individual, so this is another reminder that if something feels weird, or suspicious to you-please trust your gut and call it in to 911. 911 is not only for reporting emergencies, but for reporting suspicious behaviors, people, vehicles, etc. Thanks for caring so much about your neighborhood, and for sharing info with your neighbors.
Seattle Police Crime Prevention officers can be reached at (206) 684-4741.
A memorial service for the five victims of an apartment fire in Fremont Saturday will be held at the KeyArena this Friday, June 18 at 11 a.m. Doors will open at 9:30 a.m. (The service was originally scheduled for the Exhibition Hall at but was moved to KeyArena yesterday).
The fire, which was ruled an accident, took the lives of five family members: Eyerusalem Gebregiorgis, 22, Nisreen Shamam, 6, Nyella Smith, 7, Joseph Gebregiorgis, 13, and Yaseen Shamam, 5. Two other family members made it out alive.
An account has been set up to support the family of the victims. Donations to the Seattle Children’s Fire Fund can be made at any Bank of America. Next door neighbor Allecia Clemons is working to put together a community concert to help raise money for the family. Find more information on the event and how to get involved here.
Back in January the Seattle School District announced a number of principal changes around town affecting three schools in Queen Anne, John Hay Elementary, Coe Elementary and The Center School, which will all be getting new principals for the fall 2010 year. Yesterday, Wednesday, June 16 schools Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson announced her pick for the new head of Coe, Stacey (Tate) Loftin.
In a letter to the Coe community yesterday, Goodloe-Johnson outlined Loftin’s experience and her reasoning for choosing her for the position:
Ms. Loftin comes to Coe Elementary from the Edmonds School District, where she worked as an Instructional Intervention Specialist. She served her principal internships at Maplewood K-8 in Edmonds and Dearborn Park Elementary School in Seattle, and also completed an administrative internship in the Edmonds School District.
We believe that Ms. Loftin’s extensive classroom experience – including time as an elementary teacher and physical education instructor in the Northshore School District — makes her an excellent match for the Coe Elementary learning community. She also has significant experience working with special-needs students, a desirable attribute that was identified by the Coe community for their principal.
Ms. Loftin’s professional preparation includes a Bachelor of Arts degree in Norwegian and a minor in Social Science from Pacific Lutheran University, and a Masters in Educational Administration from the University of Washington.
Coe’s outgoing principal, David Elliott, will continue to play an active role in the school district and Queen Anne community as the first head of Queen Anne Elementary, a new option school with a “technology enhanced” curriculum.
SDOT and the US Army Corps of Engineers are beginning an environmental review of the Elliott Bay seawall replacement project. There will be a public meeting tonight, Wednesday, June 16 from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Bell Harbor International Conference Center, located at 2211 Alaskan Way. The meeting will break down to include an open house from 4 to 5:30 p.m., followed by a formal presentation and time for public hearing from 5:30 to 7 p.m. From SDOT:
The seawall protects Seattle’s waterfront from wind driven storm waves and the erosive tidal forces of Elliott Bay for a distance of approximately 7,166 feet between South Washington Street and Broad Street. Major utilities, Alaskan Way and SR 99, the ferry terminal, and rail lines also are supported by the seawall. Since its construction between 1916 and 1934, the seawall has deteriorated significantly; it does not meet current earthquake standards.
As part of the environmental review process, a requirement of both the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Washington State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), a scoping period is required to collect comments from the public on alternatives, mitigation measures, probably significant adverse impacts, and permits and all other approvals that may be required.
The public are invited to comment during scoping, which SDOT says “will help set the stage for design of the new seawall,” through Monday, July 19. Those interested in making a public testimony may contact an available court reporter during the open house portion of tonight’s meeting. Comments may be made at the public meeting, or by writing to: Elliott Bay Seawall EIS Scoping Comments, c/o Tetra Tech, Inc., 1420 Fifth Avenue, Suite 550, Seattle, WA 98101 or via e-mail to seawall@seattle.gov.
Over the last few days several readers have written in reporting a number of incidents involving a suspicious man driving around the neighborhood, stopping to ask women along the streets for the time or directions to Magnolia. Last week someone shared their experience on the Queen Anne Moms and Dads Yahoo group, and since then a number of women have shared stories of similar incidents in the past few days. One reader who would like to remain nameless (we’ll call her “C”) decided to make an incident report with the Seattle Police Department, and shared the following information with us:
Over the past couple of weeks, a man has been driving around Queen Anne, pulling over and asking women for directions to Magnolia. Occasionally, he’ll proposition them – even asking them inappropriate questions or having them come a little closer so that he can hear them. It wasn’t until last week when someone posted to the QueenAnnemomsanddads yahoo group about her creepy interaction with him that other people shared that they had the same experience. Then – a stronger pattern emerged – and has gotten progressively more disconcerting.
According to C and a number of other witnesses, the man was first seen driving a dark green Ford Explorer and later in a silver Acura that, according to C, police have identified as stolen. One woman was able to snap a picture of one of the cars and has passed it on to police.
The man is described as a Caucasian male between the ages of 25 and 35, “somewhat round-faced”, with brown hair, a slightly receding hairline and a thin, pointy goatee. The man has been seen in both an older 4-door dark green Ford Explorer with silver trim details on the sides and racks on top, and a silver 2-door Acura with tan interiors. (We could not include the license plate number as this man has not yet been charged of a crime).
Another reader, who would also like to remain anonymous, said she could have crossed paths with the man as soon as yesterday, Tuesday, June 16, when she wrote:
This morning a man in an older green Ford Explorer drove slowly next to me then pulled over as I was walking alone on Boston street to ask for the time… if it was this man, then he’s using the Explorer as well as the stolen Acura again and is still around the area.
SPD recommends that anyone who has any information about this man or has encountered him call 911 to report the incident. The initial incident report to reference is #10-190357. The overseeing officer is Kurt Alstrin.
Update 3:49 p.m.: According to SPD Officer David Hockett, this man (whose name we cannot disclose as he has not yet been charged with any crimes) was arrested at approximately 11 p.m. last night, Tuesday, June 15. We’ll keep you posted if we hear any more.
6 p.m. – Cooking Demo with Patricia and John Eddy from Cook Local
The featured nonprofit at the market this week is Sustainable Queen Anne. As always the market will be from 3 to 7 p.m. on W Crockett St. at Queen Anne Ave N.
Windermere’s Queen Anne office will be donating a day of service to McClure Middle School and the Queen Anne Community Center this Friday, June 18, as part of an annual program dedicated to “making a positive change” in the neighborhoods and communities Windermere serves through a workday devoted to “local service projects and volunteerism.”
All day on Friday agents and staff from the Windermere Queen Anne office will be working outside, landscaping and reconstructing the entrances to both McClure and the community center, including painting of all the doors and entryways and planting of 40+ native plants.
Many neighbors and local organizations have made contributions that make the project possible, including Leanne Goulding from Terra Design, Dan Soria from Soria Structural Steel, Candi Nicholson and Gretchen DeDecker from the Seattle School District, Cedar Grove Composting, Swansons Nursery, and Amber Soria and Rene Stern from the Windermere Queen Anne office.
Work on the controversial Nickerson Street rechannelization, better known as the “road diet,” will soon get underway. Today, SDOT awarded the contract for the paving part of the project. They don’t expect to see a schedule from the contractor until after Independence Day, so work will probably begin in early to mid July.
Before any restriping of the road is done, crews will repave a section of Nickerson between Etruria Street and 4th Avenue North. After that, the “diet” work begins between 13th Ave. West and Etruria to reduce the number of traffic lanes to one in each direction. A bike lane will be added on the uphill direction, bike sharrows will be added to the downhill direction, and a new two-way left turn lane will also be added.
The project has been the subject of spirited debate for the past few months. A recent reader poll found the community almost evenly split on whether they support or oppose the diet.
(Photo courtesy of Neil B. Waller via his Flickr page).
The mural was originally build for the 1962 World’s Fair, and has served as a gathering place on the Center grounds for the past five decades. However the Venetian glass mosaic mural is showing signs of age and funds needed to restore the wall and keep pieces of the mosaic from falling off.
The community was asked to vote on which sites they would like to see restored, and though the Horiuchi Mural did not come in the top slot (the top two sites as voted by the public were the Schooner Adverturess and Seattle’s Town hall, which will each receive $125,000 for restoration purposes), American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation did award the mural a $5,000 grant to go towards its preservation. The mural was one of 14 of the original 25 historic sites up for funds to receive this award; the other 11 sites were awarded more sizable grants of $50,000 and up.
Though the Horiuchi Mural did not take home the restoration gold, it was one of ten sites named city landmarks by the Seattle City Council last month. Read more about the top 11 Partners in Preservation grant winners here.
Seattle Center’s Theater Commons, one of the earlier Century 21 Master Plan projects, will be celebrating its grand opening this afternoon, Tuesday, June 15 from 4 to 6 p.m. on the Seattle Center campus.
In an effort to “open and beautify” the north entry to the campus, the Center, the Seattle Repertory Theatre and Intiman Theatre teamed up to redevelop the 1.6 acre parcel of land that had been previously used as a parking lot and service access route to the main grounds. The new design provides more open public space, and creates a welcome home between the two theaters on each side.
The project embraces new campus-wide planning and design goals by improving pedestrian access to and through the campus, adding open space and promoting sustainable site development.
A tree lined pedestrian corridor runs the length of the Theater Commons between the Seattle Repertory Theatre and Intiman Theatre. Gardens flank the corridor creating an engaging natural experience for passersby. A terraced seating area at the south end of the site replaces a steeply sloping lawn and can be used for small everyday gatherings, theater receptions, or public events and performances. An attractive vehicle turnaround and small accessible parking court at the north end offer a more hospitable welcome for theater patrons.
A new stairway and canopied walkway provide a more dignified entry from Mercer Street to the Seattle Rep box office and main lobby. Secondary entrances for the Intiman Theatre are highlighted on the east side of the Commons. Creative lighting at night evokes a moonlit garden as patrons enter and leave the theaters.
The central garden at Theater Commons will be dedicated as the Donnelly Gardens, after the late civic arts leader Peter Donnelly, at a ceremony this afternoon. A temporary art installation by artists Annie Han and Daniel Mihalyo will also be unveiled at the opening. The sound and visual installation will cover the entire main walkway of the Commons and will remain in place through the rest of the summer.
The project, entitled Windfall, places thousands of small bells in the street trees along the main pedestrian corridor, enclosing it in sounds and significantly altering the experience of walking through the long passage way. The fluttering lightweight bells/chimes, also known as Furin, will add a sea of color to the green landscape, mimicking a large flock of small birds weaving through the tree canopy.
The opening will begin with a musical procession to the site at 4 p.m. There will also be street performances, site tours and a ceremony acknowledging and thanking project participants. Opening speakers will include Seattle Center Director Robert Nellams, City of Seattle Deputy Mayor Darryl Smith, Seattle Repertory Theatre Managing Director Benjamin Moore and Intiman Theatre Managing Director Brian Colburn. The speaking portion of the program will be held from 4:30 to 5 p.m. Site tours will begin at 5 p.m.
Attendees are invited to gather on the Seattle Center campus at the intersection of 2nd Ave N and August Wilson Way (right between the Seattle Repertory and Intiman) at 4 p.m., where the procession will begin. If it’s raining, the program will move into the lobby of the Seattle Rep. Read up on the Theater Commons project here.
Seattle Center will also be officially opening and dedicating Center Square, the former site of the north Fun Forest, from 3 to 4 p.m. today. The 3-acre space has recently been transformed to include a saddle span tent for outdoor performances and shade from the summer sun, children’s straw maze, basketball court, labyrinth, free play equipment, picnic tables and an outdoor kid’s exhibit from The Children’s Museum on organic container gardening. Swing by and check it out!
The Combined Queen Anne Magnolia Senior Little League team is in the Wood Bat Tournament Championship Game today, Tuesday, June 15 at 6 p.m. at Field 1 in Magnolia (the baseball field closest to The Village).
Team manager Todd Hyatt tells us that on the way to the championship pitcher Michael Day threw a no hitter through six full innings before retiring due to pitch count limit. QA-Mag won 9-2 on Saturday. And on Sunday a solid team effort and a long-ball RBI by David DeGraff broke a 2-2 tie in the 6th inning allowing QA-Mag to advance to the finals on a 3-2 win over Northeast.
SDOT announced plans to break ground on the east phase of the Mercer Corridor Improvements Project later this summer, in either late July or early August. The two-phase project aims to fix what SDOT aptly calls the “Mercer Mess”–the bottleneck where South Lake Union meets Lower Queen Anne, and major commuting thoroughfare providing access to surrounding neighborhoods, downtown and I5. The project is estimated to cost a total of $295 million, and plans widen Mercer Street to become a tw0-way boulevard, reconstruct Valley Street for local access, improve transit connections, install bicycle lanes and widen sidewalks for alternative commuters.
Phase 1, which is scheduled for completion by 2013, involves the east phase of construction from I5 to Dexter Ave. The $161 million needed for this phase of the project (which was originally slated to cost $190 million) has been put together by a number of public and private organizations, including $30 million in federal stimulus funds awarded by the US Department of Transportation back in February. Another $9.5 million came in the form of a federal grant from the Puget Sound Regional Council.
SDOT had been waiting on legislative approval from Seattle City Council, which recently came through, before it could award a construction contract and break ground.
“The Council and the community have intensely studied this issue and we have an excellent plan that benefits motorists, freight, pedestrians and bicyclists,” SDOT Director Peter Hahn said Monday. “Thanks to our federal funding partner, the South Lake Union community, and SDOT planners and engineers, we can now start on a project that will be the pride of Seattle for generations.”
In a press release sent out Monday Hahn said the project will:
Improve access to Seattle Center and Uptown, and the freight route to Fremont/Interbay
Improve traffic flow off of I-5
Provide improved access for bicyclists, pedestrians and transit
Reduce collision risks throughout the corridor
Support at least 22,000 new jobs and 10,000 new housing units
Enhance the environment around Lake Union Park
According to SDOT, the project proposal from the lowest bidder, Gary Merlino Construction Company, came in well under the preliminary cost estimate, savings approximately 23 percent on demolition and construction than originally estimated. SDOT also says the project will create 1,200 direct construction jobs, as well as a number of opportunities of apprentices and minority contractors.
Phase II of the project is currently in the midst of environmental review and design planning. An overview of the entire Mercer Corridor Improvements Project can be found here (.pdf). Follow the progress of the project on the SDOT dedicated website.
Ever since the owners of the Space Needle announced plans to build a 44,000-square-foot “glass house” and Dale Chihuly exhibit space on the north half of the Seattle Center Fun Forest site back in March, lines have been drawn between supporters who believe the project would bring an attractive economic stimulus to the campus, and opponents who would rather see the Center’s public space (as it is on public land) used for more free and public purposes.
The original proposal outlined the use of the 44,000-square-foot parcel of land directly below the Space Needle for a “glass house” with 3,800 square feet dedicated as an indoor exhibit space for Dale Chihuly’s art, an outdoor public garden and plaza, and a cafe/bookstore/retail space.
In an attempt to make the proposal more appealing to community members citywide, the Space Needle Corp. last week announced a proposal to fold art education and resources into the project, including an art-inspired playground and a new partnership that would bring greater arts programming to Seattle Public Schools, according to our news partner, The Seattle Times.
A detailed proposal released Thursday in response to a public records request says the Chihuly exhibit would return $24 million over 20 years to the city in lease money and taxes.
The Chihuly project is up against eight other proposals–including a Native Cultural Center for the First Peoples of Seattle, a Seattle Museum of Mysteries, a new home for KEXP’s studio, and a public space called “Center Park,” to name a few–sought by the Center after backlash from the public regarding a lack of options for the site. Other concerns from the public revolved around a hesitation to add another paid admission exhibition at the Center, and the need for a more kid-friendly use of the space. From the Times:
On the defensive, the new Chihuly proposal seeks to address those concerns. Its proposal includes a letter of support from Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson for a plan to develop an 8th-grade science and art curriculum about glass that would culminate with a field trip to the exhibit, all funded by the Space Needle Corp.
Supporters, however, have stood by the belief that a Chihuly-centered exhibit would bring a lot of tourism money from around the world and would help stimulate traffic to other local sites in Seattle. The Space Needle (which is owned by the Wright family) and Chihuly himself have also committed to supporting other local arts organizations through the project, including ArtsFund and the Pilchuck Glass School, which Chihuly founded.
The Wright family has also offered $2 million to fund and maintain an “Art Playground.” They would invite local artists to design playground equipment inspired by the Seattle Center or the 1962 World’s Fair that was held there. They would select four or five winners, build their designs and maintain the structures for 20 years, according to the proposal.
The Queen Anne Community Center and Pool will stay open as normal for the rest of this year, but the East Queen Anne wading pool is being cut back to only 3 days a week. That news came down this morning as the mayor announced his mid-year budget cuts. The only areas that took a big hit in the Parks budget were wading pools and park maintenance. The East Queen Anne wading pool will be open Sundays, Mondays, and Tuesdays from noon to 7pm (June 27 – August 22).
The mayor also decided against any cuts to the fire department budget in the wake of the deadly weekend fire in Fremont. You can see the complete list of cuts here.
36th District Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles has been honored by Seattle Against Slavery with the Lincoln Freedom Award for her efforts and accomplishments in preventing human trafficking.
Kohl-Welles has been working on the issue since 2002 with the enactment of her bill regulating the mail-order-bride industry. She most recently sponsored a bill, which was signed into law, which authorizes the Department of Transportation to work with human trafficking advocates to place informational posters on trafficking at rest areas throughout out state. Another bill which she sponsored, and also signed into law, strengthens 2009 legislation that required international labor recruiters and domestic employers of foreign workers to disclose federal and state labor laws to non-immigrant workers.
“The legislative accomplishments we have made over the years would have never come about without the tireless work from advocates and community organizations,” Kohl-Welles said. “The fact that this award comes from them, makes it even more special.”
One of our readers, Antony Thompson, helped run down a bike thief who he says was then arrested by SPD at the top of Queen Anne hill yesterday, Sunday, June 12. He wrote:
The perp was caught in the act stealing a bike out of Eden Hill Apts. He was confronted by a 10 year old and he gave the bike back. After which I followed him to Galer and 4th were the SPD arrested him. This is one of several breaking and entering thefts at the Queen Anne and Crockett area since Christmas. There seems to be a pattern of break ins at Eden Hill Apts.
Thompson also says there is video of the incident, but he’s waiting on SPD to release the footage.
The 6th annual Northwest Pinball and Gameroom Show, held at the Seattle Center this weekend, will be for many the only chance to see (and play) over 280 arcade and pinball machines all in one place in the Northwest. And the best part? There’s unlimited free play!
Last year the event drew over 4,000 attendees who packed the three-day exhibit to play unique and rare machines, many of which are being lent out from private collectors for the weekend. Our news partner, The Seattle Times, wrote up a preview of the event, including info on different seminars and–for the competitive type–the Northwest Pinball Championship. Read the full story here.
Curious what’s in store? Check out this review from the 2009 show:
Admission is $20 on Friday and Saturday, $15 Sunday, or $50 for the weekend. For more information, check out the show website.
The film follows a Canadian town that was able to successfully ban the use of pesticides, inciting a province-wide movement:
Dr. Irwin’s persuasive arguments and data to back her findings eventually led the town of Hudson to enact a by-law that banned the use of all chemical pesticides and herbicides. The most mighty chemical companies in North America put their full legal weight on the tiny town and eventually the case made it to the Supreme Court.
The town’s right to protect its citizens was upheld, and — like a row of dominos — other municipalities followed suit. The movement spread so far and wide that the entire province of Quebec enacted a ban and Home Depot stopped putting the dangerous pesticide products on their shelves.
Paul Tukey, one of the nation’s leading experts on organic lawn care has been following this story for years. After becoming seriously ill with acute pesticide sensitivity from applying chemical lawn products in his own lawn care business, he became an outspoken advocate for alternatives to chemical lawn care. He travels across the country lecturing on the subject and has written the nation’s leading book on organic lawn care titled, The Organic Lawn Care Manual.
This documentary follows his journey that leads to the doorstep of Hudson, Quebec. It’s an inspiring story of overcoming great odds and demonstrates the power of people coming together to effect great change in our society.
On Saturday, June 12 expect to see a hundred or so people running from through and around Queen Anne from bar to bar in Hawaiian attire. The ‘June Pub Run’ starts at noon in the South Lake Union neighborhood, ending in Ballard around 5 p.m. “For you first timers, we typically get 100 percent participation in the theme. Get out there and find yourself a costume! Hawaiian shirts, hula skirts, coconut tops, leis, etc.” the event Facebook page states. The group will hit seven pubs over five hours and about five miles. We’re told that meeting location information will be added Thursday night.
Coordinators ask for a $10 to $20 donation from each participant which will be donated for the educational programs at the Seattle Repertory Theatre. (Thanks Kelly for the tip!)
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36th District Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles has been honored by Seattle Against Slavery with the Lincoln Freedom Award for her efforts and accomplishments in preventing human trafficking.
