Recycle your household items, and bring canned food donations to benefit Highline Area Food Banks, and Rainbarrel Sale. Recycle appliances, metal, tires, oil, transmission fluid, batteries, electronics, flourescent tubes/bulbs, reusable household goods, EPS Styrofoam and more!

See additional information below for specifics items that can be recycled.

WHAT: Spring Recycle Event & Rainbarrel Sale

WHEN: 4/7/2012 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM

COST: Admission is Free; CASH only where specific fees apply

WHERE: Tyee Educational Complex Parking Lot, 4424 S 188th Street, SeaTac.

INFO: Recycle your household items; canned food donations to benefit Highline Area Food Banks, and Rainbarrel Sale. See additional information for specifics items that can be recycled.

Here’s more from the city’s website:

SeaTac is dedicated to reducing waste, encouraging recycling and promoting reuse. Mark your calendars for our Spring Event, and help make a difference in your environment!

Recycle appliances, metal, tires, oil, transmission fluid, batteries, electronics, flourescent tubes/bulbs, reusable household goods, EPS Styrofoam and more!

Styrofoam must be clean, dry and free of any plastic film. NO foam sheeting, cardboard, hard plastics, screws or metals. Packing peanuts must be bagged or boxed. Dirty and wet EPS will not be accepted. No food containers will be accepted.

Computer monitors and televisions will not be accepted. You can recycle these items for free at other locations through E-Cycle Washington. Call 1-800-RECYCLE or visit http://1800recycle.wa.gov to find authorized E-Cycle Washington collection locations.

Rain Barrel Sale
Sale will be held at the Tyee Educational Complex in conjunction with the Recycling Event.

Saturday, April 7- 9:00AM to Noon or until sold out. There is a limited number of barrels available for sale.

SeaTac Residents only – $25 ea cash only, limit TWO (2) per customer.

Food Drive for Highline Area Food Bank sponsored by SeaTac Domestic Violence Task Force
Food drive will be held during the Recycle Collection Event on April 7. Bring canned and non-perishable food, diapers, toilet paper, soap, pet food and laundry detergent. Paper bags and donations are welcome, too!

The Spring Recycling Event is produced in partnership with Washington State Department of Ecology, King County Solid Waste Division, and the Local Hazardous Waste Management Program in King County.

Missed a collection event, or have items not accepted at the event? Visit King County’s “What Do I Do With…?” website at http://your.kingcounty.gov/solidwaste/wdidw/, or the Earth911 website at http://earth911.com/ to find information on where to take your items.

Call Resource Conservation/Neighborhood Programs Coordinator Trudy Olson with any questions at 206.973.4763.

Citizen Emergency Response Team (CERT) training is intended to teach residents, community organizations or workplaces the basics of preparation and response skills between emergency services and the people they serve, and the next training session starts March 15.

Class times run Thursday evenings from 6 p.m to 9 p.m. at SeaTac City Hall, located at 4800 S. 188th Street.

Training sessions are held twice a year in the spring and fall, and require approximately 20 hours to complete. There is a minimal fee for tools supplied to students, enabling them to build their own emergency response kit.

For more information or to register, contact Community Service Officer Mechee Burnett at (206) 973-4917 or fill out an application (PDF file) and mail it to:

SeaTac Police Services
RE: CERT Training
4800 S. 188 St.
SeaTac, WA 98188

Here’s more info:

CERT Classes
The training is a Citizen Corp and FEMA supported curriculum and promotes a partnering effort between emergency services and the people they serve.The goal is for emergency personnel to train members of neighborhoods, community organizations, or workplaces in basic preparation and response skills. CERT members are then integrated into the emergency response capability for their area.

Contact Us
For more information or to register for CERT, contact Community Service Officer Mechee Burnett at (206) 973-4917 or fill out an application and mail it to:

SeaTac Police Services
RE: CERT Training
4800 S. 188 St.
SeaTac, WA 98188

Training Sessions
The training sessions are held twice a year in the spring and fall. The sessions require approximately 20 hours to complete. There is a minimal fee for tools supplied to students, enabling them to build their own emergency response kit.

The next CERT training will begin Marc 15, 2012 (schedule of classes)

SeaTac City Hall
4800 S 188th Street
SeaTac, Washington

Training Topics
Training is designed to cover the following:

• Disaster preparedness
• Fire safety
• Disaster medical operations
• Triage
• Treating life threatening injuries
• Assessment, treatment, and hygiene
• Light search and rescue
• Team organization
• Disaster psychology
• Terrorism and CERT
• Practical final exercise

We recently had the opportunity to tour the Sea-Tac Airport Consolidated Rental Car Facility being constructed on International Boulevard near State Route 518.

The construction project kicked off in June 2008 and will hit a major milestone in February 2012 when construction of the main structure is complete and the contractor — Turner Construction — will turn the facility over so the car rental companies can begin building out their counters and office space.

The public grand opening is expected to happen in April of 2012.

When the new car rental facility is completed, the five-level building will span approximately 2.1 million square feet and accomodate up to 5,400 vehicles. This will free up 3,200 parking spaces in the airport garage as rental car companies move their operations to the new location.

The Port of Seattle is pursuing LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for the facility. To reach this goal the building design includes measures to be sustainable and meet green initiatives. Examples include quick turn-around facilities onsite that feature car washes that capture, filter and reuse 85% of the water used. This includes even small details such as coating garage ceilings with a light, glossy finish to reduce the amount of lighting required.

Besides providing a more efficient way for Sea-Tac passengers to gain access to rental cars, the project is also intended to reduce traffic into and around the airport itself. Changes to ramps to and from SR-518 will streamline the flow of traffic and the introduction of a shared bus service that will transport passengers between the airport and the top level of the car rental facility are all part of the plan.

Photographer Michael Brunk recently joined Port of Seattle Public Affairs Manager Perry Cooper and Senior Inspector Ernie Padua for a behind-the-scenes tour of the construction project and shot the following photos. You can click individual thumbnails to view full-sized photos.

Here’s more from an email:

Calling all gardeners and their rakes!

This upcoming Tuesday 12/6 is our last Highline SeaTac Botanical Garden Care Patrol for 2011. The leaves have fallen all around, and we’ve been working to get them into manageable piles for YOU to come and help pick up.  There is raking for skilled and unskilled alike – no one will be turned away for lack of experience.  If raking is not your bag, we’ve got weeding, too – it’s been dry enough that we can still work the soil without worrying about compaction.  Such a dry November!

Also, you may be the first folks to see the new Rose Garden walls!  The concrete pour should happen on Monday, as long as the temps are above 40 degrees.

So bring your gloves, warm tea and a rain slicker (just in case!). We’ll be working from 12 noon to 4PM, and we’ll be delighted to see you there for as long as you can stay.

The Highline SeaTac Botanical Garden is located just west of the intersection of S. 138th & 24th Ave. S. in SeaTac, WA, and just south of the North SeaTac Park Community Center. The community center’s street address is 13735 24th Ave S., SeaTac WA.

For more info, contact Laura Sweany at (206) 391 4003.

For directions to the garden, click here.

Seasons’ Greetings!

1932 Highline High School Championship basketball team. Photo courtesy Highline Historical Society.

The Highline Historical Society is inviting the public to a free program celebrating memories of sports teams in the Highline area from 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 20th at SeaTac City Hall.

Retired Tyee varsity baseball coach Walt Edmiston will be on a special guest panel that also will include Kaija Lietuvietis (who taught PE at both Highline and Tyee High Schools and coached girls swimming at Tyee), Phyllis Mitchell (who has written extensively about church league basketball in the Highline area), and Gordie Shaw (who was involved with Highline Little League). The program will be moderated by former Highline School District Superintendent Kent Matheson.

Former players, coaches, and fans are warmly welcomed to come ask questions of the panelists, and share their own memories and memorabilia.

The program will take place Sunday, November 20, from 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. at SeaTac City Hall, located at 4800 S 188th Street in SeaTac.

A short annual meeting will precede the program.

For more information on the Highline Historical Society and its activities, visit www.highlinehistory.org.

SATURDAY, NOV. 5th:

• Help The Highline Botanical Garden – See “GIANTS,” A Film About Pumpkins!
• Over 40 Vendors Will Be At Shorewood Holiday Bazaar On Saturday, Nov. 5th
• Memorial Service for Lauretta M. Gatto, 78, Grew Up In Burien
• Free Recycling Event Coming To Des Moines Marina This Saturday, Nov. 5th
• Des Moines Yacht Club’s ‘Evening With Joey Jewell’ Is Saturday, Nov. 5
• Enjoy ‘Music Without Borders’ At Des Moines United Methodist Church Sat.
• Holiday Bazaar in SeaTac

SUNDAY, NOV. 6th:

• 2 a.m.: SET YOUR CLOCK BACK – return to Pacific Standard Time
• Get Groovy At Des Moines Legacy Foundation’s ‘Woodstock’ Fundraiser Sunday, Nov. 6th
• Break Out Your Walking Shoes B-Town – Next ‘Walk-N-Talk’ Is This Sunday
• This Week’s Prudential NW Open House: Great Starter Home At Just $162,500!

TUESDAY, NOV. 8th:

• BALLOTS DUE: Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 8th
• Kennedy Catholic High School’s ‘Passport To Your Future’ Open House Is Nov. 8
• White Center Chamber Of Commerce’s November Luncheon Is Nov. 8th

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 9th:

• Learn Local Aviation History At Des Moines Historical Society Event Nov. 9th

Read the full story here.

Here’s an excerpt from Greg Wright’s ongoing coverage:

In closing comments to Tuesday night’s Regular Council Meeting, Council Member Pam Fernald read from a lengthy prepared statement regarding the lack of official City response to public disclosure of e-mails exchanged between Council Member Mia Gregerson, City Human Services Manager Colleen Brandt-Schluter, and others.

The e-mails, dating from 2009 and 2010, were obtained through a public records request filed by SeaTac citizen Mike Siefkes in 2010. At that time, City Manager Todd Cutts initiated an independent investigation resulting in a formal reprimand to Brandt-Schluter. The City’s legal department completed the disclosure of the requested records in September of this year.

Read the full story, including a transcript of Council Member Fernald’s statement, here.

A local group called the ‘Southend Gamers‘ wants our Readers to know that they’re looking for more people to well…play around with.

The group, which meets every Saturday, has been active for over seven years, and currently has 60 members – a 60/30 mix of men and women, with the average age of 32.

“We have over 190 games to choose from – classics, party and Eurogames,” reads an email we received. “We do NOT play wargames nor do we play card games (as in poker or Hearts).  There is no fee or charge for gaming.”

Here’s more from Organizer Dave Christensen:

We hold sessions every week on Saturdays at my home with sessions occasionally hosted by other members at their homes. Members can arrive anytime after NOON and may stay till midnight should they choose to. You are never obligated to attend any session tho I ask that you come to a game session at least once every six months to maintain a membership. Our average group size is about eight with a limit of twenty.  The group newsletter that I occasionally produce contains photos of each session that has new members and a brief synopsis of the events and players attending to help members get to know one another better.

In 2006, Southend gamers introduced dayhikes, offroad exploration, picnics and potluck barbecues that include indoor and outdoor games that have been popular. Outdoor games include Bocce ball, Croquet, Lawn darts (original!), Badminton, Bean bag baseball, Snake ball and Washerboard.

We are participating members of the Millionminute organization (which promotes game play within families) and finished in 4th place Nationwide last year.

We try to host an annual potluck barbecue in July that includes both indoor and outdoor games that have been very popular. We try to host other smaller picnics as weather permits during the summer.

If you are allergic to cats, be warned – I have two.  My home is no smoking ‘cept outside.

If you’d like to stop in for a visit to see what’s up first, feel free to do so, game night or not. Just email and arrange a meeting.

– Dave
Host/Moderator
keel131@comcast.net

Click image to see larger version.

Click image to see larger version.

Sound Transit will be holding an Open House for their South 200th Street light rail extension from 5 p.m. – 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 5th at SeaTac City Hall (4800 S. 188th St., SeaTac).

At this event, you’ll be able to:

• Review the station, guideway and parking design elements
• Review proposed public art elements
• Review bicycle and pedestrian access improvements
• Talk to project staff

“Learn more about extending light rail south of the SeaTac/Airport Station to South 200th Street in the City of SeaTac,” reads a press release, which continues:

On July 28, 2011, the Sound Transit Board of Directors approved the extension of Link light rail between Sea-Tac Airport and South 200th Street by 2016.

This project will extend Link light rail service about 1.6 miles from Sea-Tac Airport to South 200th Street, where a station and park-and-ride lot will be located.

Keep up to date about the project – sign up for email updates at www.soundtransit.org/subscribe.

Sound Transit plans, builds and operates regional transit systems and services to improve mobility for Central Puget Sound.

For more information, contact Jennifer Lemus, Community Outreach at 206-398-5314 or jennifer.lemus@soundtransit.org. Web: www.soundtransit.org/S200thStreet

To request accommodations for persons with disabilities, call 1-800-201-4900 / TTY Relay: 711 or email accessibility@soundtransit.org.

Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2011 5 – 8 p.m. Presentation at 6 p.m. SeaTac City Hall, Council Chambers 4800 S. 188th St., SeaTac

Light rail is coming to your neighborhood in 2016!