With the current school year about to end, it’s time to start looking forward to the 2010-2011 school year. If you’re a parent in the area, here’s your chance to check out Madrona K-8 and meet the new principal.

This Thursday, June 3, there will be a meet-and-greet in the library for new families joining Madrona K-8. The mingling runs from 5-6pm.

Outgoing principal Kaaren Andrews and incoming principal Farah Thaxton (whose appointment was announced last month) will both be on hand to talk with parents. 

Update via Rita Sheckler: The talent show has been postponed until June 10, but the meet-and-greet is still on this Thursday.

I’m just putting this out for input to the Central District News Blog community:

My community is struggling with a recycling business in our neighborhood. Since they began collecting metal and paying people for it, we’ve seen a spike in theft. Its a pretty clear cause/effect – even down to the increase in number of abandoned shopping carts (currently the count is at 6-8) in our 2 block radius. 

I’ve read over the state law regarding proper procedure that businesses are supposed to follow upon accepting metal to be recycled, and I’m pretty sure that these people aren’t doing their jobs. They take metal from people with loaded shopping carts, and I haven’t witnessed them taking ID or getting signatures. 

My question is: Who do I go to to report my concerns, and does anyone else have a similar problem? I’m all about recycling, but only if its encouraging legal activity!

Long-time readers may recall the scary home invasion robbery that occurred in the 600 block of 26th Avenue last May. The victim in that case emailed us to let us know that the wheels of justice have turned, resulting in sentences ranging from 6-10 years for the three people who were charged:

• Shayne Rochester, 34, was sentenced to 73 months
• Penny Green, 37, was sentenced to 120 months
• Carla Smith, 32, was sentenced to 72 months as part of a plea deal

While those may seem like stiff terms, the victim tells us that Rochester was put into community custody instead of prison. He and Green are also appealing their convictions.

According to prosecutors, Rochester was the mastermind behind the scheme, and set up the two females to conduct the robbery. He was acquainted with the victim and drove the two women to Seattle from Yakima and showed them the victim’s house, instructing them to commit the crime.

All three convicted suspects have multiple previous felony convictions for drugs, theft, and financial fraud.

A fourth man was in the car with the other three, but maintained that he wasn’t involved in the crimes. He worked with police to identify the two women involved and was not charged by prosecutors.

A group of Garfield High students are collecting computers, functional or broken, this Saturday from 10-3 at the 76 station in Montlake. While a little north of the CD, the computer drive is in preparation for a service learning trip to Nicaragua at the end of the month and all donations are tax deductible. As part of the group Technology Services Corps, the Bulldogs will take a set of computers to an underprivileged school in Nicaragua, and teach the students there how to type, word process, and connect to the internet. Call 206-963-1004 with any questions.

to the 900 block of MLK early this morning (Mon.) between 1:45 am and 2:00 am? Anyone know what this was? 2 fire trucks, one fire aid truck, 3-4 police cars blocking MLK in both directions. Looked like one lone woman being loaded onto the board and in to the fire aid truck. One fire fighter loaded a bicycle, that did not appear to be damaged at all, into the fire truck. No damaged vehicles, no investigation, just a huge response to what appeared to be an injured person in the middle of MLK. Didn’t show up on the 911 log, anyone know what this was?

What do you get for $1,275,000? The Madrona house overlooking Lake Washington that got some ink in the New York Times this weekend in the Property Values column of the Great Homes and Destinations section.

The 5 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath Tudor, located at 724 36th Ave, was built in 1925. The price doesn’t seem too steep when you consider that includes amenities like a 204-bottle wine cellar.

Other properties profiled in the piece are a 6-bedroom house in Winchester, Mass., and a 3-bedroom in the Hollywood Hills.

Last week we were out on a walk when a woman pulled over to ask us for directions. She was in the 500 block of 21st, but was looking for something in the 500 block of 21st East. Luckily after two and a half years of scanner duty, the particulars of street addresses is something we can speak pretty authoritatively on.

Here’s how it works:

• All direction prefixes and suffixes on addresses change when a street crosses a way, such as Denny Way, Yesler Way, and Broadway
• The named streets that run east/west become “East” when they cross east of Broadway, such as Cherry becoming East Cherry
• The north/south streets become suffixed with “South” when they are south of Yesler Way
• North/south streets become “East” when they cross Denny Way to the north
• East/west streets that are south of Yesler Way are prefixed with “South”

There’s lots of directions there, so here’s a graphical aid to help sort it out:

Here’s a few concrete examples:

• The McDonalds at 1300 Madison is west of Broadway
• The Bank of America at 1300 E. Madison is east of Broadway
• Garfield High School is at 400 23rd Ave (plain), which is north of Yesler and south of Denny Way
• The Washington Mutual near Jackson is at 400 23rd Ave S., which south of Yesler
• The Miller Park Community Center is at 400 19th Ave E., which is north of Denny

And finally, if you’re calling 911 and you live on a street without directions, make it clear to the operator by telling them you live on [street name] “Plain”, such as “23rd Avenue Plain”.

Found on 21st and Marion. Chocolate lab

Update: Thanks! Dog is now home :)

We got a note today from Metro that announces a new program of stop consolidation for the #3 & #4 bus routes, eliminating 12 stops here in the Central District.

Metro says the changes will improve service times and reduce operating costs on the routes.

The following stops would be cut under the plan:

• 26th S. & S. Judkins (northbound)
• 26th S. & S. Charles (northbound)
• 23rd S. & S. King (northbound & southbound)
• 33rd & E. Cherry (eastbound)
• 34th & E. Cherry (southbound)
• 29th & E. Cherry (eastbound)
• 30th & E. Cherry (westbound)
• 26th & E. Cherry (westbound)
• 21st & E. Cherry (eastbound)
• 16th & Jefferson (eastbound)
• 14th & Jefferson (westbound)

If there’s one of those that you can’t do without, you’ve got until June 11th to leave a comment. You can do it online at Metro’s site at http://metro.kingcounty.gov/up/sc/plans/2010/053010-03-04.ht

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