Beacon Hill Blog

Celebration of “our champion” Chuck Caddey’s life at ice cream social, July 4

Willie Weir writes:

On Father’s Day, June 21st, we lost a dear friend.

Chuck Caddey died on Sunday, surrounded by his family.

Jefferson Park Lawn Bowling Club would not be the thriving, healthy organization it is today without Chuck Caddey. He served as the club’s president from 1999 through 2007. For many of us, Chuck was our first introduction to the club–a warm handshake and a smile. Everyone felt welcome when Chuck was on the greens.

When Chuck came on as president, the club was in trouble. Membership had dwindled and many people thought the club was destined to close. But Chuck was determined to introduce a new generation to the sport and place he loved. Every Wednesday night (Fridays later on) Chuck hosted free nights open to the public. One by one he built a new core group.

Many of those people (and I am one of them) were drawn first to the spirit and kindness of Chuck, and only later embraced the sport of lawn bowling.

Chuck’s joy came from seeing “young people” out on the greens. He had the uncanny ability to teach you to bowl, convince you to join the club and ask if you’d like to be on the board… all in one night.

He wasn’t much for competition. He never played in a national championship. But he will always be our champion.

July 4th is the Chuck Caddey Independence Day Ice Cream Social & Open Bowling (7pm). Marge (Chuck’s wife) thought that would be the best time for us to honor Chuck’s life. It just so happens that Chuck and Marge met on July 4, 1952.

Come on out and celebrate the life of our president, friend, and champion.

– Willie Weir
Jefferson Park Lawn Bowling Club

Tags: jefferson park lawn bowling club, jefferson park lawn bowling clubhouse, obituaries

Images of June on Beacon Hill

Photos from the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr:

Thanks to everyone who posted photos in the pool! We love seeing all of your amazing views of the Hill.

Tags: bicycles, jefferson park, sunset

More about Link light rail opening festivities

We mentioned the Link Light Rail opening weekend festivities the other day. Here’s some more information about the celebration. Opening Day is Saturday, July 18, with free rides from 10:00 am – 8:00 pm. There will also be free rides on Sunday, July 19, from 10:00 am – 6:00 pm. (After opening weekend, Link will be on its normal schedule.) There will be a Welcome Portal located on South Lander Street, just north of the station plaza. Staff will be on hand there to answer questions.

Sound Transit tells us that there will be lines, and you should be prepared to wait. They expect from 50,000 to 100,000 riders to ride Link that weekend. (To give you an idea of how big that number is — the population of Seattle is 602,000. So potentially one in six Seattleites will ride Link on opening weekend.) Because of the large crowds, South Lander Street will be closed to vehicle traffic between Beacon and 17th; it’s been closed for several years already for construction, so we should be used to it.

If you need to ride the bus somewhere during that weekend, be aware that buses will not be using the tunnel, and tunnel buses will be on their surface routes instead.

Though rides opening weekend are free, after that you will need to pay. Consider getting an ORCA Card soon. You can use the ORCA on the bus, train, and ferry. (You can still pay with cash, but you’ll have to buy tickets in the train station. There won’t be fareboxes on the trains.)

A bit of station trivia: Each station has an icon, or “pictogram” that represents the station and its area, visually. Beacon Hill Station’s pictograph is a kite, representing “a sense of light and air, as well as community spaces and summer picnics, items that play prominent roles in Beacon Hill’s neighborhood plan and history.” See more about the pictograms and their meanings in this PDF from Sound Transit.

Tags: light rail, light rail station

County Council adopts Metro route changes

The changes to southeast Seattle bus routes that have been discussed for the past several months have now been adopted by the Metropolitan King County Council and will be in effect September 19, 2009.

The changes include: (emphasis mine)

• Revise routing on ten routes (8, 9 Express, 14, 36, 38, 39, 42, 48, 106, 107).
• Provide more frequent service on six routes (8, 38, 39 [Sundays], 48, 106, 107).
• Expand the hours of service on two routes (8, 60).
• Discontinue routes 32 and 42 Express and provide fewer trips on routes 7 Express, 34 Express, 39, and 42.

Tags: metro, service changes

Man killed in late-night shooting in the Jungle

At around 11:30pm Friday night in the wooded area on the west side of the hill by the freeway known as “the Jungle”, a man in his 50s was shot. He died in surgery after being transported to Harborview.

Additional details from the SPDBlotter:

Preliminary information at the scene indicates that the shooting might have stemmed from an argument between the victim and another individual who camps in the same area.

The suspects, two or three males, ran southbound underneath the freeway. Officers set up containment, the King County Sheriff’s helicopter, Guardian One, was called in, and K9 tracked for while, but officers did not locate the suspects. Detectives from Homicide and CSI responded to process the scene. The Homicide Unit will be responsible for the follow up investigation.

Tags: fatal, jungle, shooting

Piñata Party cancelled; ride Link instead

We apologize for the lack of posts recently. We had some technical difficulties after our server move a couple of days ago. (Incidentally, if you mailed us in the last couple of days, you may need to resend.)

We wanted to mention something we missed posting about earlier. The Piñata Party, held for the last few years in Stevens Place Park (or Triangle Park) on Beacon Avenue in mid-July has been cancelled for this year. Jon Gould wrote to the mailing list:

Hi Neighbors,

We’ve decided to skip the annual Piñata Party in Triangle Park (Stevens and Beacon) this year.

We had originally planned the event for July 18th. Now that’s Link Light Rail’s first day. After thinking about it, we decided to take this year off and come back with a great party in 2010. The tentative date we set is Saturday, July 10, 2010.

If you want to help organize the 2010 Piñata Party, let me know and we’ll connect closer to the event.

Happy summer!

Jon Gould, for the Piñata Party Organizing Committee
jongould@cablespeed.com

Though there won’t be a Piñata Party that day, Sound Transit promises that “stations from Westlake to Tukwila will include a Welcome Portal and family-friendly entertainment.” Train rides will also be free. So visiting the Beacon Hill light rail station and riding to the other stations should be a fun alternative, though — as far as we know — there won’t be any piñatas there.

Tags: beacon hill station, light rail, piñata party, stevens place park, triangle park

The RPZ is coming soon

In the last couple of weeks, new signs have been posted around the light rail station areas, with parking limitations “except by zone permit.” New Restricted Parking Zones (RPZs) are going into effect in July, to prevent people from using the neighborhoods immediately around each light rail station as unofficial park-and-rides. Park too long in an RPZ without the official city sticker declaring you as a resident, and you’ll get a ticket. (No, your “BeHi” sticker won’t help.)

The zones are in effect from 7:00 am until 6:00 pm on weekdays, limiting parking to two hours unless you have an RPZ pass. General information on the RPZ passes and how to apply may be found here, along with specific information for the zones at Beacon Hill, Mount Baker (McClellan), Columbia City, Othello, and Rainier Beach.

Pass fees are waived until spring 2011 for residents near the light rail stations, limited to two free resident passes and one free guest pass per household. There is a cost for additional permits.

Tags: beacon hill station, columbia city station, light rail station, mid-beacon, mt baker station, north beacon, othello station, parking, rainier beach station, rpz, south beacon

On the BHB Forum: Burglary on Beacon Avenue

If you haven’t browsed the Beacon Hill Blog site much, you might have missed the link to the Forum. The Forum is an area where readers of this blog can post questions, ask for recommendations, and participate in discussions.

Recently, a neighbor reported the following crime in the Open Line Time section of the Forum:

“I live at 3026 Beacon Ave. S. #101, on Beacon Ave. between Stevens and Hanford. Between 2:30 PM and 3:15 PM on Sunday, June 21st, in broad daylight, my apartment was broken into and numerous items were taken. A civilian’s camera in the back parking lot showed no activity during those times. Since one of the items taken was a large, heavy television, the burglars must have had a vehicle parked in front of the building on Beacon Ave. Did anyone see/hear anything suspicious or unusual in this area during those times?”

Please post in the Forum discussion if you can help.

Tags: burglary

Art underground

What is this? Is it a microscopic view of a virus, or pollen? Nope, it’s some of the gorgeous artwork in the Beacon Hill Light Rail Station. Barbara Luecke, the art program manager for Sound Transit, has posted a series of wonderful photos of the station artwork (along with other Link light rail art) on Flickr. The Beacon Hill pictures are on page 2 of the photo set.

In other station news, the Seattle Times’ Mike Lindblom discusses Mount Baker Station just down the hill, in the latest of an ongoing series about the rail stations.

Tags: art, beacon hill station, light rail, public art

Charges filed against two attackers of Beacon Hill man

Charges have been filed against two men accused of the recent attack on Beacon Hill resident Dawit Alemu. Kenneth Anthony Fisher Jr., 19, and Justin Lee Phillips, 20, have been charged with first-degree assault and first-degree attempted robbery, and remain in jail on $200,000 bail and $250,000 bail respectively.

Alemu suffered severe brain injuries in the June 18 attack, in which five men beat and kicked him in the 1900 block of 13th Avenue South, then ran, leaving him for dead.

The Seattle Times and Seattle P-I both have further information on this case.

Tags: assault

BHB changing servers to reduce outages

You may have noticed periodic outages of the blog in the last couple of weeks. We do know about it, and we have been struggling trying to solve the problem. At this point we believe it is a problem with the server itself and so we are moving to a new server at our ISP. You may see some more down time while the move is occurring, but we hope that will be the last of it. Cross your fingers!

Tags: down time

Further details emerge about last night’s assault at 13th and Holgate

KING5 News has posted more information and a video report about the victim in last night’s attack in North Beacon Hill. 25-year-old Sudanese immigrant Dawit Alemu, who was celebrating his upcoming graduation from Seattle Central Community College, was attacked by a group of men, knocked unconscious, robbed, and left for dead on the sidewalk in broad daylight. At least one witness took photos, which led the police to two suspects, aged 19 and 20, who are being held on $200,000 and $250,000 bail on suspicion of robbery pending the filing of charges. The other attackers remain at large. Alemu would have walked in his graduation ceremony tomorrow; instead, he remains in Harborview, unconscious with life-threatening injuries.

Police currently believe the attackers did not know Alemu.

(Post edited at 7:40 pm to add additional information about the bail, the age of the attackers, and that the attackers did not know the victim.)

Tags: assault, north beacon, robbery

Beacon Bits: A parade, a market, and a change

• This weekend, our neighbors in the Central District are celebrating Juneteenth with a festival at Pratt Park (all weekend) and a parade Saturday afternoon! The Juneteenth Celebration Parade startes at 12:00 noon. The parade route begins at 25th Avenue and East Alder Street, and continues along East Alder, 23rd Avenue, East Yesler, and 20th Avenue South to Pratt Park where the parade ends. The parade will include a Kiddies’ Parade, a Dogs on Parade Fashion Show, and much more! Be aware that there will be street closures in the area around the parade route.
• While we on Beacon Hill are still waiting for our own farmers’ market, the new Market on Wheels is opening this weekend for our neighbors in South Park. Annie Farber writes to tell us, “South Park residents will be selling a great variety of products ranging from food products and plant starts grown in the neighborhood (more local than any farmer’s market!) to tamales and enchiladas made fresh on site to art, clothing and jewelry they make. Come buy from local Seattle residents working to make an impact on their community through encouraging a local economy!” It’s from 10:00 am – 3:00 pm tomorrow and every third Saturday each month through September 19. The location is 14th Avenue South and South Cloverdale Street, in the Napoli’s Pizzeria parking lot.
• A land use application has been completed for 4878 Beacon Avenue South, the Grown Folks Coffee site, “to allow a four story, 15 unit residential building above 2,970 sq. ft. of retail located at grade. Parking for 15 vehicles to be located within the structure. Existing structure to be demolished.” Comments may be submitted through July 1 at the site linked above. There have also been some land use decisions in the North Beacon area recently, including two parcel subdivisions in the Urban Village Overlay area: here and here.

Tags: cd, farmers market, grown folks, juneteenth, land use, parades, south park

Assault near Beacon Hill International School

Around 6:30 this evening, as many as seven individuals assaulted a man in the 1900 block of 13th Avenue South, on the sidewalk near Beacon Hill International School, leaving him unconscious.

Via the Seattle Police Department’s SPDBlotter:

Preliminary investigation indicates that the victim, a male in his 20s, was assaulted and robbed by a group of males who then fled the scene on foot. Responding patrol officers apprehended two suspects and turned them over to Homicide Detectives for further investigation. There are several suspects still at large. SFD Medics responded to the scene and transported the victim to Harborview Medical Center with life-threatening injuries. The two suspects in custody, a 19-year-old male and a 21-year-old male, will be booked into the King County Jail for Investigation of Robbery. Homicide Detectives continue to actively investigate.

Scanner reports from Beacon Hill Neighborhood Watch indicated a witness photographed the assault taking place and identified one of the suspects in custody.

Tags: assault, bhis

Beacon Bits: Another farewell, walking, and pizza

• Craig Thompson brings more sad news via the BAN list: Flinnor “Papa” Kimmons passed away June 9th. Mr. and Mrs. Kimmons were said to be the first African Americans to own a home on North Beacon Hill.
• Walkable community advocacy organization Feet First is looking for Neighborhood Walking Ambassadors: engaged, passionate community members interested in leading walks through their neighborhoods.
• Not walked-out and like to take photos? Scott Kelby’s Adobe-sponsored Worldwide Photo Walk coming up on July 18th is a two-hour social event where photographers get together to walk around, shoot photos, and generally have fun with other photographers. Neighbor Amanda Potter has signed up to lead the Beacon Hill Photowalk around Jefferson Park. Email Amanda for details.
• After all that walking, you’re sure to be hungry. In the recent story about Amazon Fresh deliveries coming to Beacon Hill, the comment thread picked up on the final sentence about pizza delivery. Pagliacci co-owner Matt Galvin addresses the local pizza chain’s distinct absence in Southeast Seattle.

Tags: obituaries, photography, pizza, walking

School Board approves new student assignment plan; Cleveland to be science option school?

The Seattle School Board voted this week to approve final recommendations for a new student assignment plan. Under the new plan, students will have initial school assignments based on their home address. They will still have the option to apply to other schools, and open choice seats will be available at all high schools.

Assignment area boundaries have not yet been defined; the assignment maps will be made available for public comment this fall.

A separate motion relevant to Beacon Hill proposed that Cleveland High School be designated as an “option school” under the new assignment plan. Cleveland’s STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) program would then be open to applications from students throughout the District. According to the District, STEM high schools “offer a four-year course of study with a focus on preparing students for academing and professional futures in science, technology, engineering and math.”

Since a STEM school would not necessarily be the right choice for all students living in the Cleveland attendance area, designating it as an Option would allow these students to have a comprehensive attendance-area high school option while still having access to Cleveland’s STEM program if they wish.

The Board is scheduled to vote on the Cleveland motion on July 1.

Tags: cleveland hs, school board, schools

Beacon Bits: Tunnel views, golf memories, and closed wading pools

• The Times is all about the Hill lately. A couple of days ago, transportation reporter Mike Lindblom gave us a glimpse inside the new Beacon Hill tunnel as part of a series about light rail stations. Today, Marc Ramirez reports on the wave of Beacon Hill plant thefts discussed last month in this very blog — Seattle Times
• Tiger Woods played golf right here on Beacon Hill in 1992, and there are pictures to prove it — Seattle P-I
• The wading pool at the Beacon Hill Playground will be one of 11 wading pools closed this summer, as the result of a new federal law mandating safety improvements to the drains. The improvements cannot be completed for all pools by the end of the summer. The Georgetown pool is also closed, but the Van Asselt pool will be open. — Rainier Valley Post

Tags: golf, jefferson park, light rail station, plants, pools, theft, tunnel

Have you seen Zoe?

There’s another lost tabby cat in North Beacon. Erin writes “We’ve lost our female cat Zoe. She is almost 2 years old, is a medium hair tabby, has black, grey and light brown coloring with a white chest and white paws. She was last seen with a multi-colored collar on with a purple heart tag. She has distinctive mackerel markings and a very fluffy tail. We last saw her near 13th Avenue South and Walker Street (near Beacon Ave before it heads down to Holgate).” If you think you’ve seen Zoe, please email meespanola@hotmail.com.

Tags: cats, lost pets, north beacon

Beacon Bits: Language classes, math classes, and a class reunion

• Garfield High School Class of 1969 is celebrating its 40th class reunion August 7-9, including bowling at Imperial Lanes, food and entertainment at Yesler Community Center, and a family picnic and potluck at Othello Park. The registration fee is $69 per person for the weekend. For further information, see the reunion website, and RSVP to (206) 499-9624 by July 15.
• A.C.E. Summer Language Camps in Arabic, Urdu, and Persian language for kids 10-14 are being held on July 13-24 at Northgate Elementary School in Northeast Seattle. Classes are free (with a $25 registration fee), and all teachers are native speakers. For more information, contact Maka Janikashvili by email at makaj@cultural.org, call (206) 217-9644 ext 201, or visit www.cultural.org/wlp/camp.php.
• The comment period for Seattle’s draft Pedestrian Master Plan has been extended to Friday, June 26. You can view the plan on the web, here. Comments on the plan may be made through an online form, via email to mostwalkablecity@seattle.gov, by phone (206-733-9970), or by mail (Pedestrian Master Plan Comments, Seattle Department of Transportation, P.O. Box 34996, Seattle, WA 98124-4996). There will also be a public hearing on the draft plan on Tuesday, July 21, from 5:00-6:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 600 Fourth Avenue.
• Atlantic Street Center is partnering with Seattle Public Schools in offering a Class of 2013 Math Academy this summer. The Academy will be at Aki Kurose Middle School, July 6-July 30, and is intended for “8th graders-rising-to-9th who struggle in math.” It will include morning math-focused academics, and afternoon enrichment activities. Cost is free to families. For more information, contact Samara Louton, Education/Activities Coordinator, 723-4073 x108 or samaral@atlanticstreet.org.
• 

  Is this your kitty?

  Are you missing a cat? This cute tabby was spotted at 13th Avenue South and South Spokane Street at around 11:15pm last night hanging out on a front porch. The neighbor who saw him didn’t bring him inside, but just wanted to get the word out where this cat is hanging out, in case someone’s missing their kitty. (Thanks, Robert!)

Tags: garfield, language, lost pets, math, pedestrians, summer camp, summer school

Congratulations to a Beacon Hill graduate!

Congratulations and best wishes to Alison Reese, a Beacon Hill neighbor who graduated this year from Seattle University School of Law with a J.D. degree!

The Beacon Hill Blog would also like to congratulate all of the other Hill neighbors who graduated from high school, college, and beyond. Good work and may you have much success ahead of you!

Tags: graduation