On Monday, about 40 officers from the Seattle Police Department and the Department of Corrections searched the “Jungle,” the greenbelt on northwest Beacon Hill, looking for possible weapons and shooting victims after nearby neighbors reported the sounds of gunfire within the greenbelt. Jonah Spangenthal-Lee (formerly with The Stranger, Seattle Crime, and Publicola, now with the SPD) wrote an interesting post (with photos) on the search at the SPD Blotter blog:
After a day of crisscrossing overgrown, muddy pathways along the west side of Beacon Hill Monday, three South Precinct officers stand on a leaf-covered hillside just below Holgate Street, digging up a patch of dirt.
They’re looking for a body.
The officers, along with dogs trained to find weapons or human remains, spent seven hours trekking through the woods and interviewing more than 150 people living in and around the greenbelt. No weapons were found, and the only remains found turned out to belong to an animal.
The Community Police Team will revisit the greenbelt with social workers and representatives of the Department of Neighborhoods over the next week to assist those living in the “Jungle” in connecting with needed social services.
The North Beacon Hill Council meeting, usually the first Thursday of the month, was delayed until this week because of the library’s closure. This month’s meeting will be held on Thursday, September 8, at 7 p.m. at the Beacon Hill Library meeting room. As always, NBHC meetings are open to all interested neighbors. The Beacon Hill Library is located at 2821 Beacon Ave. S.
As mentioned previously on the Beacon Hill Blog, a major topic of discussion at this month’s meeting will be proposed changes to the Jose Rizal Park off-leash area. However, the city is also looking for community feedback and ideas for the Duwamish Greenbelt Area and the Mountains to Sound Trail.
Here is this month’s agenda:
7:00 Welcomes and introductions
7:05 Deputy Mayor Darryl Smith, and other city officials, will ask for community input and ideas for the Duwamish Greenbelt Area, which includes the newly finished Mountain to Sound Trail, and the off leash area at Jose Rizal Park
Don’t forget to keep your eye on the BHB Events page to see what’s coming up on the Hill. We’d like to draw your attention to a few of this week’s events listed there.
Tonight is El Centro de la Raza’s DÃa de los Muertos Opening Ceremony. This year’s theme is “A Tribute to Las Adelitas: Revolutionary Women of Strength and Courage.” Dinner is served at 5:30 pm, and the reception ceremony begins at 6:30. Admission and food are free. The Ofrenda exhibit will continue from November 2 through November 19, open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm, and on Wednesday from noon to 8:00 pm. El Centro is located at 2524 16th Avenue South.
At 6:00 pm tonight, Asa Mercer Middle School is hosting a School Superintendent Coffee Chat, one of a series of chats with Superintendent Maria L. Goodloe-Johnson, open to all parents, grandparents and caregivers of Seattle Public Schools students. Mercer is located at 1600 South Columbian Way.
Splinter Dance Company performed at Beacon Rocks! this summer, an event organized by Beacon Hill Music. Photo by Erika Warner-Court in the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr. Then at 7:00 pm, Beacon Hill Music is holding an organizing meeting. They say “There are a lot of possibilities for music on Beacon Hill, including the brand new Jefferson Park with a beautiful amphitheater just waiting for musicians, possibly a beat walk, possibly almost anything. During the next few months Beacon Hill Music will need to pick what opportunities to pursue and determine the steps to turn those ideas into actual events. We are asking you to join in and make stuff happen on Beacon Hill.” The meeting is at 2900 22nd Avenue South (the green house on the corner of 22nd and Forest). For more information email beaconrocks@gmail.com or call Paul at 206-658-3622.
On Thursday evening at 5:00 pm, there is an Art in International Education fundraising event at Fisher Pavilion, 305 Harrison Street (Seattle Center), for Beacon Hill International School and the four other International Schools in the city. The event will feature silent and live auctions, as well as a dinner prepared by chef Kaspar Donier. Tickets start at $35; for more information, contact Dick Lee at rjlee@seattleschools.org or 206-252-0476.
Also Thursday night is North Beacon Hill Council‘s monthly meeting at the Beacon Hill Library. Watch this blog for the agenda when we have it.
The Beacon Hill Merchants group will meet on Friday morning, November 5, at 10:00 am at Inay’s, 2503 Beacon Avenue South. The group reports:
“At our last meeting we approved our bylaws, and as we approach the end of the year we must complete the work that is being paid for by our city grant. One large part of this is being primarily done by our graphic designer Nityia Przewlocki, as she finishes the logo design we’ll continue with the development of a brochure with a walking map, and then a website as well. Another portion of our grant is going for board development and training, and our board trainer Angela Powell should be attending this meeting. While we do have the minimum of five committed potential board members, having seven (or more!) would put us in a stronger position, so please step forward if you think could bring skills or resources to the table and help the Beacon Hill business community. The bylaws and some of the bios are up on the Google group site here. Anyone can join the Google group right now and we encourage members to do just that.”
Finally, Saturday is the Fifth Annual Green Seattle Day. Three forest restoration sites on the Hill will be hosting work parties that day from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm: Lewis Park, Cheasty Greenspace, and the Maple School Ravine. Register at the greenseattle.org website.
If you would like to help, please meet at the base of the stairs at South Lucile Street and 18th Avenue South at 10:00 am on January 19 (MLK Jr. Day). Wear work clothes. Tools, gloves, snacks and instruction will be provided.
The Jungle and the East Duwamish greenbelt have a notable (one might say infamous) impact on public safety in the west Beacon Hill area. Interested in the future of this area? Plan to attend a meeting this coming Tuesday to discuss creating a permanent public safety solution for the area. The meeting is October 21, 7:00 pm, at Quarters 1, PacMed Campus, on the northwest corner of 14th Avenue South and South Judkins Street .
Those attending will include Washington State Representative Sharon Tomiko-Santos, Lorena Eng of the Washington State Department of Transportation, and representatives from the City of Seattle Department of Transportation, Department of Neighborhoods, and the Mayor’s office, as well as directors from the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust and others.
