The Seattle Department of Transportation is asking for your opinion as the city updates its Transit Master Plan:

The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is updating Seattle’s Transit Master Plan, which will help to determine the city’s future investments in transit. As part of this process, SDOT is conducting a short survey to figure out what’s working and what isn’t in Seattle’s transit system. The survey takes less than 10 minutes and asks some basic questions about how you currently use transit and what you’d like to see improved.

Throw in your two cents at the Transit Master Plan Survey and check out the Transit Master Plan Webpage for more information about the plan.

Take the 15 question survey here.

What is the Transit Master Plan? Take it away, Seattle Transit Blog:

The transit master plan update will expand upon already identified important transit corridors and assign preferred modes to each. This will be the first time since the monorail that the city will officially take a position on what transit mode should be built in lieu of that project.

The other major purpose of the master plan is to improve existing service through small investments. The Transit Master Plan web page specifically mentions bus bulbs and signal priority as tools in the city’s purview.

An attack the victims say was an armed robbery attempt near East Columbia and MLK, sent three people to the hospital Wednesday night.

Three people arrived at the Swedish Cherry Hill emergency room Wednesday just after 9 PM saying they had been attacked at gunpoint and doused with pepper spray and hour earlier near East Columbia and MLK, according to a police radio dispatch.

The 9:16 PM callout to the hospital provided no additional detail on the attempted hold-up and no suspect information was broadcast. We’ll follow up with SPD to see what else we can learn about the incident.

CD7.jpg, originally uploaded by It Thinks It’s People.

Well, that was interesting. It was a challenging week for the new version of Central District News. We’re still coming together as a team but it was very cool to watch the way the site’s community pitched in to tell the story of SNOMG 2010. This post is a bit of catch-all as we take a Thanksgiving break and come out fighting in Round 2. Happy holiday. Have an extra helping of stuffing for us.

• The District’s food and drink providers will be mostly quiet, though Cortona Cafe is open 8a-2p as is Madrona’s Cupcake Royale — know of other spots to grab a bite or have a drink? Leave a comment.
• Grocery stores are open. Safeway never closes, apparently. Trader Joe’s Madison is closed. Still checking on Grocery Outlet. 23rd and James Red Apple? 7a to 7p.
• Friday brings the opening of Christmas tree lots in the area. Here are a few from our sister site CHS. Add the UmojaFest lot. Others we should have on the list?
• Movies? Central Cinema is playing Casablanca and Zoolander all weekend. But, as usual, they’re closed on Turkey Day.

Here’s the latest from the National Weather Service — we’re now at ‘Special Weather Statement’ status:

…SUB-FREEZING TEMPERATURES TO LAST THROUGH THANKSGIVING
MORNING…
…TRANSITION TO A MORE TYPICAL WEATHER PATTERN THANKSGIVING
AFTERNOON…

THE VERY COLD AIR MASS OVER WESTERN WASHINGTON WILL KEEP
TEMPERATURES BELOW FREEZING THROUGH THANKSGIVING MORNING. THE
COLDEST TEMPERATURES WILL OCCUR THIS MORNING WITH SOME LOCATIONS IN
THE SINGLE DIGITS. THERE IS A CHANCE WITH THE SNOW COVER THAT THE
COLDEST LOCATIONS IN WESTERN WASHINGTON COULD BE BELOW 0 THIS
MORNING. SEATTLE-TACOMA AIRPORT HAS ALREADY SET A NEW RECORD LOW
WITH 14 DEGREES.

HIGHS TODAY WILL WARM INTO THE 20S AND LOWER 30S WITH SOME MID AND
HIGH LEVEL CLOUDS MOVING THROUGH THE AREA. THE CLOUDS WILL INCREASE
TONIGHT WHICH WILL PREVENT TEMPERATURES FROM DROPPING AS LOW AS THEY
WILL THIS MORNING. MOST LOCATIONS WILL BE IN THE 20S OVERNIGHT
TONIGHT.

ICY ROADS WILL BE A PROBLEM THROUGH THANKSGIVING MORNING. WITH
TEMPERATURES REMAINING BELOW FREEZING COMPACT SNOW AND ICE WILL
REMAIN ON MANY ROADWAYS. FOR FREQUENTLY TRAVELED ROADS…FRICTION
FROM TIRES MAY TEMPORARILY MELT THE SNOW AND ICE ON THE ROAD TODAY…
ONLY TO HAVE IT RE-FREEZE AGAIN TONIGHT.

A WEAK WARM FRONT WILL MOVE BY TO THE NORTH ON THANKSGIVING…
BEGINNING THE TRANSITION TO WARMER WEATHER. THERE IS A CHANCE OF
PRECIPITATION ON THANKSGIVING…BUT THERE IS STILL SOME UNCERTAINTY
AT THIS POINT HOW EARLY ANY PRECIPITATION WILL REACH THE AREA.
PRECIPITATION FALLING DURING THE MORNING WILL MOST LIKELY BE
SNOW…BUT ACCUMULATIONS WILL BE VERY LIGHT. TEMPERATURES WILL RISE
TO ABOVE FREEZING BY THANKSGIVING AFTERNOON CHANGING THE
PRECIPITATION TYPE BACK TO RAIN.

A COLD FRONT WILL BRING RAIN AND MOUNTAIN SNOW TO THE AREA THURSDAY
NIGHT WITH SNOW EXPECTED IN ALL OF THE PASSES.

FOR AREAS THAT HAVE SEVERAL INCHES OR MORE SNOW ON THE
GROUND…THE RAIN THURSDAY NIGHT WILL MAKE ROAD CONDITIONS RATHER
MESSY. PONDING OF WATER ON THE ROADS AS THE SNOW MELTS MAY CAUSE
HYDRO-PLANING PROBLEMS FOR VEHICLES.

A SHOWERY WEATHER PATTERN WILL PERSIST THE REST OF THE
THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY WEEKEND. RAIN SHOWERS OVER THE LOWLANDS WITH
SNOW SHOWERS AFFECTING THE CASCADE PASSES.

• CHS posted a long list of Seattle city service updates including notes on SDOT’s continued efforts in last night’s update. Here’s an abbreviated version from their Twitter account this morning: “SDOT continues working roads w/ snow fleet. Today will work to prevent refreezing and address trouble spots on Level 3 routes.”
• Here’s the map Andrew Taylor shared with us last night of SDOT street closures:


View Street closures 11/23/10 in a larger map

• Metro is again on snow route status but says there will be fewer canceled routes today. Check for updates and find your snow route here http://metro.kingcounty.gov/up/rr/adverseweather.html
• Seattle public schools are closed.
• Sidewalks: SDOT is reminding everybody of the need to clear your sidewalk.
• Airport: From reports, sounds like Sea-Tac is running well and airlines have the staff they need to maintain full service. Getting there still requires patience. Bus service is a more consistent experience at this point if you are headed for light rail. Driving? You can but if you’ve never dealt with icy conditions, you might want to splurge on a cab. Residential streets are still ice and snow covered but the main arteries are fully navigable and in decent shape except for the closures noted above. I-5 to the airport is open and moving but continuing icy temperatures mean you’ll need to keep it slow and steady.

With forecasting models indicating an icy — if not a snowy — Seattle morning, Metro is planning to start Monday with snow routes in effect as SDOT has been out on the streets of the city preparing for freezing conditions.

Here’s the latest from University of Washington’s Cliff Mass:

Again, my conclusion….no snow in or north of Seattle. But if you are driving south, particularly south of Olympia, the chances go way up. Also snow in the mountains and foothills and along the coast. SDOT and Metro can probably rest easy.

But it will be cold..tonight the temps will dip into the 20s in many locations and the winds will pick up. Really strong NE winds over NW WA and northerlies pushing down the Sound. Temperatures dropping into the low 20s and teens on the west side of the State on Tuesday AM…it will be brutal. And east of the Cascades them combination of strong wind and temperatures in the single digits will produce extreme, dangerous conditions on Tuesday.

Metro’s Route 90 is slated to roll out for the first time on Monday.

Even with the potential for a snow-less freezing morning, Metro has decided to roll out the snow plans:

Here’s the Sunday night update from Metro:

Please note that there are no changes to transit service on Sunday night.
The following service revisions take effect with the start of service Monday
morning, November 22.

Due to the potential for snow during the morning commute, King County
Metro Transit will start service on Monday with buses in all areas on snow
routing. Note that not every bus route has snow routing, but many do.

Bus riders should check www.kingcounty.gov/metro/snow for the most current
status of Metro service before traveling on Monday. Updates to the online information
will begin at 4 a.m.

Metro has been monitoring the weather over the weekend and preparing
for the possibility of snow. The Monday forecast from the National Weather
Service indicates that cold temperatures and more moisture could cause
snowfall in King County starting in the morning and lasting throughout the day.

While the accumulations are not expected to be deep, Metro managers want
to be prepared and not have to change to snow routing during the middle of
the busiest travel times.

Metro is urging bus riders to make preparations for winter travel.

Know the snow routing for your bus route and other routes in your area.

Check the timetables at www.kingcounty.gov/metro for snow route maps for each
route. Not every bus route has snow routing, but most do. Two routes – 38 and
45 – don’t operate in these conditions. Special bus service between downtown and
First Hill, the Route 90, will be operating on Monday.

When buses are on snow routing, some streets and bus stops may be missed and
there are often delays due to travel conditions. There is new snow routing in many
areas that is different from past years, so be sure to check the snow routes for all the
routes you use most often.

Metro will be using a new online color-coded map to keep riders informed of the status
of its bus service. All bus routes are assigned into one or more of seven King County
geographic areas. Green indicates buses are operating on normal routes in that area;
yellow that some – but not all – routes in the area are on snow routes, and red indicates
that all bus routes in that area are on snow routing.

People without online access can call the Customer Information Office at (206) 553-3000.
General information about service will also be sent out via the kcmetrobus Twitter account.

Here are some other additional tips for Metro customers:

• Be patient. Buses are not always on schedule in snowy or icy conditions, and increased
ridership during bad weather can result in crowded buses and a longer-than-usual wait on
the phone for the Customer Information Office;

• Expect delays. Dress warmly and wear appropriate footwear for the weather;

• Head for bus stops on flat portions of main arterials or at major transfer points such as
park-and-ride lots, transit centers, or shopping centers.

Metro encourages everyone to travel safely.

Thanks for your patience and for using Metro’s services.

In many ways, it looks like the city and the county are gearing up for a trial run for the city as they prepare to battle snowy conditions in the south. We’ll even see the first trial of Metro’s Route 90 designed to circulate riders in a wide loop around central Seattle.

A warm meal on a cold day might be one of the foundation stones of humanity. Here’s a roster of food banks and hot meal programs in the central Seattle area. We don’t know that each has Thanksgiving plans and need for volunteers vary. Please post a comment if you have any information to share or if we missed a group that should be included.

For more details and information about equally important home delivery services, see Seattle.gov’s Emergency Food info page

We also should note that Madison’s Piecora’s has offered a free Thanksgiving day meal — last year’s ran from 11:30 AM to 1 PM. We’ll check in with them to make sure they’re still on for 2010 and see if they need any help for this generous gift to the community.

Central Seattle Hot Meal Programs

COMMUNITY LUNCH on CAPITOL HILL

1710 11thAve. (on the corner of 11th & East Olive)

In the Parish Hall of Central Lutheran Church

Seattle, WA 98122

Contact: Don Jensen

Phone: 206-322-7500

Lunch (Hot Meal): Tuesday and Friday (12noon – 1:00PM)

DOWNTOWN EMERGENCY SERVICES CENTER

517 3rd

Seattle, WA 98104 Avenue

Contact: Lisa Hilton

Phone: 206-329-1570

Breakfast: Daily (8:30AM) must register with DESC first.

Dinner: Daily (6:00PM) only if you have a bed

Criteria: Overnight shelter residents only – Homeless men and women 18 yrs. or older. Priority Categories: Mentally ill, chemically dependent, single women, men 60 and older, physically or developmentally disabled or medically compromised (must be able to get in/out of wheelchair).

EL CENTRO DE LA RAZA

2524 16th Ave South

Seattle, WA 98144 Ave. So

Contact: Graciela Gonzalez

Phone: 206-957-4609

Lunch: Monday – Friday (12noon – 1PM)

Criteria: No restrictions; open to all

IMMANUEL LUTHERAN CHURCH

1215 Thomas Street

Seattle, WA 98109

Contact: Patty Turnberg

Phone: 206-622-1930

Lunch: Last Sunday of the month (12noon – 2PM)

Criteria: No restrictions; open to all.

Food Bank

1215 Thomas Street

Seattle, WA 98109

Contact: Patty Turnberg

Phone: 206-622-1930

Last 2 Fridays of the month (9:30AM – 11:30AM)

OUR LADY OF MT. CARMEL

508 Broadway

Seattle, WA 98122

Contact: Stacia Ratcliss

Phone: 206-325-0871

Pastries: Tuesday – Sunday (6:30AM – 12noon) serve coffee and pastries in day room

Lunch: Tuesday – Sunday (9:00AM – 11:00AM); closed the 1st

Criteria: Open to all; must be sober.

VIETNAMESE SENIOR ASSOCIATION

2323 E. Cherry St.

Seattle, WA 98122

Contact: Miguel Saldin

Phone: 206-695-7606

Lunch: Tuesdays and Fridays (10:30AM – 12:30PM)

Criteria: They must be 60 yrs. old and their spouses and adults over 18 with disabilities are welcome to enjoy nutritious meals.

1828 Yale Avenue

YOUTHCARE’S ORION CENTER

Seattle, WA 98101

Contact: Drew Le

Phone: 206-622-5555

Breakfast: Monday – Friday (8:30PM – 9:00PM)

Lunch: Monday – Friday (12:30PM – 1:00PM)

Dinner: Monday – Friday (6:00PM – 6:30PM)

Criteria: Serve only youth 13 – 22 yrs old)

Central Seattle Food Banks

CDN has learned that a family that has been part of the Central District’s car culture for more than 50 years is also connected to the latest change in automotive commerce in the neighborhood. According to people close to the situation, the sudden closure of the Union 76 service station was brought about by a decision to part ways with the existing tenants who have been operating the service station and the market.

Messages to landowner Merle Richlen asking her to confirm these details have not yet been responded to. We will update this post if we are able to speak with her about the situation and her plans for the property.

According to the sources, Richlen and the members of her family with a stake in the property are looking for a new tenant to take over the gas station. We’re also looking into details on how that kind of transaction works with Union 76 parent company Conoco Phillips.

We have not been able to reach Ki Chang Park, the listed head of East Union Food, LLC that operated the station.

We did, however, have a conversation with Saul Hernandez who is involved with the Taco City USA business that has been operating on the lot. Hernandez says the truck — which was the first concern for many commenters on the initial post — needs a new home now that the people they had an agreement with are out of the picture.

Some were quick to see the closure as a sign of decay at the corner of 23rd and Union where, tonight, three of four corners will be unused for any legal commerce. The empty lot across Union to the south of the station is in development limbo. Across 23rd, the Philly’s space stands empty despite recent work to upgrade it for potential tenants. The southeast corner is home to a Seattle Police drop-in station and the state liquor store.

The Richlen family’s connection to the gasoline business in the Central District goes way back. From the CDN comments,  seakaypenner tells the tale:

Back in the day, when Jack Richlen owned it…..and then his son in law….although we never actually bought any, my (now grown) kids still use “the Kickin’ Chicken place” as a way to identify that intersection.

And yeah, it costs a fortune to redevelop a site formerly used as a gas station due to the haz mat situation…..I suspect if another station (or the same one) doesn’t go in there it will sit empty for a long, long time.

Hopefully you’re right, and they’ll get it all figured out and re-open, either the same owners or new ones.

Good history. And likely good analysis.

We’re still gathering details on what is happening but can report that the Union 76 gas station at 23rd and Union has its pumps taped off and is closed. Thanks to Ian for sending the tip about the darkened service station last night.

The shelves of the quick market have been emptied. No information or signs are posted but we’re tracking down more details from Union 76 and attempting to reach the Kenmore-based owner of the licensed business at the location.

Know or see anything? Send mail to [email protected] or call/text (206) 399-5959.

The 100-year-old Horace Mann building at 2410 East Cherry is preparing to begin a new life as home for an education pilot project for Seattle teens who have dropped out of school but want to get back on track. When starting new things, it’s always nice to fix yourself up a little. This weekend, a small Pacific Northwest army of volunteers will report for duty on East Cherry to lend their elbow grease to a $100,000 Seattle Department of Neighborhoods grant awarded for cleaning up the mothballed school.

Details on the weekend’s work are below. We received this update on volunteer enthusiasm from organizers: “We have received an amazing outpouring of local volunteers sign ups, and as of tonight (11/15), nearly 60 volunteers from all around Seattle – and as far away as Portland, Ore. – are expected to participate.”

“EXTREME MAKEOVER: SCHOOLHOUSE EDITION”

WHEN: Saturday, Nov. 20 & Sunday, Nov. 21, 10am – 5pm each day

WHERE: Horace Mann School Building, 2410 E Cherry St, Seattle, WA 98122

What do you get when you combine a 100-year old school building, community volunteers and handyman, Chris Stevens?

We call it, “Extreme Makeover: Schoolhouse Edition” and you can call it the most rewarding weekend in Seattle.

On Nov. 20 and 21, the volunteer forces of local nonprofit, BEAN Seattle, with the community forces of the Central District, and helping transform the historic Horace Mann school building into a refuge for the vulnerable youth of Seattle.

Leased by Work It Out Seattle – a collaboration of Central District activists and education leaders – the Horace Mann building will soon be a grassroots alternative school, drawing in 16 – 21 year-olds from the CD and beyond, who have dropped out of high school and are hovering on the edge of poverty and homelessness.  

But before it can open its doors, this centurion schoolhouse needs a little TLC. Work It Out Seattle has already received a City of Seattle $100,000 Neighborhood Matching grant for the first year of the project, but its relying on community volunteers – like those of BEAN Seattle and its partner groups – to help fix up Horace Mann and successfully integrate the city’s at-risk youth back into society.

Under the guidance and direction of Stevens, a long-time BEAN Seattle member, the community volunteers will be stripping, sanding and refinishing the school’s vast hardwood floors. These floors show decades of wear and decay, but BEAN Seattle’s team of volunteers is dedicated to making them shine once more – all 11,000 square feet of them!

This project will be divided over Saturday and Sunday, with two shifts each day – 10am to 1pm, and 1pm to 5pm.

“Of all the service events BEAN does, this is probably the most hands-on and meaningful project we’ve had the opportunity to be a part of,” said Lisa Smith, BEAN Seattle’s VP of Service.  “When almost half of all minority youth in Seattle fail to graduate high school, this is our chance to make a difference the entire city will benefit from.”

With a blustery storm already blowing in, the National Weather Service has issued a ‘special weather statement’ for western Washington that includes — WA Niña style — “a risk of snow.”

COLD AIR IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP OVER WESTERN CANADA DURING THE UPCOMING WEEK. THERE ARE STRONG INDICATIONS THAT CHANGES IN THE WIND FLOW ALOFT TOWARD THE END OF THE WEEK WILL ALLOW SOME OF THIS COLDER AIR OVER WESTERN CANADA TO FILTER INTO WESTERN WASHINGTON FRIDAY OR SATURDAY.

WEATHER GUIDANCE ALSO SUGGESTS THAT THERE IS A RISK OF SNOW…OR MIXED RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS OVER PORTIONS OF THE AREA FRIDAY OR SATURDAY. THE HIGHEST RISK WILL BE WHERE THE AIR IS COLDER…OVER THE NORTH INTERIOR.

WHILE WEATHER GUIDANCE HAS BEEN CONSISTENT IN SHOWING A CHANGE TO A COLDER WEATHER PATTERN…THEY HAVE BEEN UNEVEN IN SHOWING HOW COLD IT WILL GET AND HOW MUCH…IF ANY…SNOW WILL FALL.

We’ve already posted about Metro’s plans for what is expected to be a colder and possibly more snowy winter than usual around Seattle. Here’s the summary of online tools to help you catch your bus:

• Sign up to receive Transit Alerts for the routes you use most often;
(www.kingcounty.gov/metro/signup)

• Check the print and online timetables for snow route maps;
(www.kingcounty.gov/metro)

• If the weather is bad, check the color-coded status map on Metro Online before you travel;
(www.kingcounty.gov/metro/snow)

SDOT is also facing winter 2010/2011 with a fresh plan including a tiered plan to clear Seattle streets of snow. In SDOT’s maps, you can check out your area to see what will be plowed and what won’t. SDOT snow service tiers are below.

SDOT explanation for route selection:

Routes were selected using criteria that include the busiest streets that connect our neighborhoods with downtown or within the greater Puget Sound region; streets used by the transit agencies even in harsh weather; streets used most frequently by public safety agencies; and streets deemed important to public institutions such as schools, universities and hospitals, and also Seattle’s major employers.

University of Washington meteorologist Cliff Mass says SDOT should focus its snow removal on fewer, more critical streets. We’re with Mass. We’d gladly trade a few blues and greens away so that Madison and more of 23rd could go orange.

Now the city has 30 plows. Lets say that 25 are available at any one time (which would be very good I would think). And lets assume that they plow at 20 mph. So they could cover at best roughly 500 miles of roadway an hour. How many miles of roadway lanes are included in the routes outlined in the map…my rough estimate is 1200 lane miles. So it would take 2.5 hours to cover the city–and that is optimistic. If the snowfall is relatively light (.5-1 inch an hour) this might be ok, but if the snow is heavy (several inches per hour) there is going to be trouble. My suggestion: have a smaller core set of major streets that get priority in heavy snow. Get those clear, keep them clear, and steer the buses to those streets.