Missing Cat: Have you seen Mary Sue?


Mary Sue was last seen off of Beach Drive. She’s shy. Please keep an eye out – her human is missing her!

 

Batten Down those Sun Umbrellas!

It looks like we’re in for some gusty weather later tonight. WindAlert is currently (3:42 pm) showing gusts of 47 around 11:00 pm tonight.


Combined with lots of (much needed) rain and potential scattered thunderstorms.

Tides are predicted at 11.07 ft at 5:33 pm and 7.46 ft at 10:41 pm followed by 10.20 feet at 3:17 am Sunday.

The forecasts have been very flukey; one moment it’s showing the strong wind and when we check an hour later, it’s backed off.
We are securing anything that could become a projectile…just in case!

A Windy Welcome to June

According to Wind Alert, it’s blowing about 31 mph from the south right now and I believe it! This blustery weather is forecasted to last through tomorrow so you may want to make sure that anything that can take flight in your yard is secured.

As I write this post (7:30 am), there is a Small Craft Advisory until 5:00 am Tuesday morning.


I know I’m not the only person looking forward to the sunny weather that’s coming up this weekend!

8:00 AM UPDATE: Some Beach Drive homes are impacted by a power outage. Seattle City Light expects power to be restored by 11:00 AM.

]
10:25 AM UPDATE: A Wind Advisory has been issued:

…WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 AM PDT TUESDAY…

* WHAT…South winds 15 to 25 mph with gusts up to 40 mph.

* WHERE…Portions of northwest and west central Washington.

* WHEN…Until 11 AM PDT Tuesday.

* IMPACTS…Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects. Tree
limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…

Use extra caution when driving, especially if operating a high
profile vehicles. Secure outdoor objects.

NOTE: The Puget Sound Marine forecast has not been updated since 2:30 am.  And it looks like power may still be out to those homes along Beach Drive per Seattle City Lights outage map.

4209 Beach Drive SW

The home once located at 4209 Beach Drive SW was owned by an actress, Nancy Kilgas. Nancy was in several films, including Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and Oklahoma.

The home on Beach Drive has seemed abandoned since we’ve lived here (about 20 years). We used to walk by it and wonder about the stories the old home could have told once upon a time. I know I have more photos of it that I’ve taken…and when/if I find them, I’ll add them to this post.

It has recently been demolished and it appears there will be three homes (townhomes) put in it’s place.


With the recent changes to zoning in Washington state, you can expect more single-unit homes to be demolished for multi-unit homes.

Beach Drive Natural Gas Main Replacement

Puget Sound Energy will be replacing portions of the existing underground natural gas main along parts of Beach Drive in two weeks. This project is expected to start on May 13th and last for up to seven months from the 4800 block to Lincoln Park Way. This stretch of Beach Drive will be reduced to one lane and controlled by flaggers and portions of sidewalks may be closed.

Some PSE customers may experience an interruption of natural gas. PSE says they will notify customers prior to work if their gas is required to be temporarily shut off. Please call 1-888-225-5773 for more information.

Jeff McCoy is the PSE Project Manager. He can be reached at jeff.mccoy@pse.com; reference project #109115749.

Ready for the good news??? I’m hoping this will deter some of the speed racers down Beach Drive this summer… at least from Lincoln Park to Jacobson.

State Parks bet on Tillicum Village

A new tenant for the iconic Native American styled “village” on Blake Island has signed a multi-year lease to renovate and expand the existing vacated buildings near the state park’s marina. 

Big Fin Casinos Inc., a Klallam tribal consortium based in Tacoma is planning on keeping the nearly 60-year-old iconic name “Tillicum Village” for it’s new resort project. The onset of COVID-19 marked the end of Argosy Cruises long run of island excursions which officially ended with an announcement on December 13th 2021 with the Washington State Parks & Recreation Commission.

Billy Trimble, Project Manager for BFC, recently responded to the News Tribune “We have an agreement with the State to keep our Tillicum venue harmonious with the State Parks natural setting. This property is exclusively designed to accommodate clientele that values recreational gambling in a non-smoking and slots free environment. This is exclusively a card and dice establishment. No one needs to be concerned about multi-level flashy signage or loud Leonard Skynyrd tribute bands …. think more Blue Oyster Cult-ish acoustic type concerts.” He went on to say he was “absolutely elated of the amount of progress being made to meet our June 3rd grand opening. Nearly all 8 units reserved for our Whale level clientele are in final stages of construction and the dock renovations are well underway.”

Transportation to and from Tillicum Casino will initially be operated by TUG (Tribal Union Gill-netter Association) located at Port of Tacoma’s pier on Dock Street. Future plans include whale watching excursions to and from Blake Island when Orca are in the vicinity.

Before you plan to drum up the courage to bet the entire tent or boat on a solid blackjack hand, know that this small scale Tillicum resort is exclusively reserved for Big Fin patrons. Will the powers-to-be eventually open the village up to the general boating and camping public? I wouldn’t bet on it.

Scupper reporting for BDB

 

Hit and Run this Morning


This morning just after 6:00 am, a car was struck along the 4800 block of Beach Drive. Apparently the driver who struck the car, took off on foot heading north onto properties on the 4700 block of Beach Drive.

A person wearing a hoodie was seen on a home camera walking along seawalls heading north towards Emma Schmitz Viewpoint.

A second person wearing a light jacket was also seen on a camera on property on the 4700 block of Beach Drive near the same time.

No injuries were reported.

Beautiful Photos compliments of Patrick Robinson


You can see more of Patrick’s lovely photos here.

Windy Weather: Gale Watch and Wind Advisory starting later tonight

The US National Weather Service has issued its first Blizzard Warning for the Cascades and Olympics in over 11 years. While our neighborhood will thankfully miss that experience, it looks like we are in for some windy weather.

A Gale Warning has been issued starting later tonight for Puget Sound and a Wind Advisory is in effect from 4:00 am to 10:00 pm on Tuesday.

The current weather forecast have possible snow on Thursday.

Check out the current forecast from Wind Alert (as I write this at 5:55 am on Monday morning).

High tide for Tuesday, January 9th is estimated at 11.61 feet at 4:50 AM and 11.03 feet at 1:47 PM.

Puget Sound Marine Forecast:

Puget Sound and Hood Canal-
247 AM PST Mon Jan 8 2024

...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH
LATE TONIGHT...
...GALE WATCH IN EFFECT FROM LATE TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY
EVENING...

.TODAY...S wind 5 to 15 kt becoming 10 to 20 kt in the afternoon.
Wind waves 2 ft or less. Rain. 
.TONIGHT...S wind 15 to 25 kt rising to 20 to 30 kt after
midnight. Wind waves 3 to 5 ft. Rain. 
.TUE...SW wind 20 to 30 kt rising to 25 to 35 kt in the
afternoon. Wind waves 4 to 6 ft. Rain. 
.TUE NIGHT...SW wind 20 to 30 kt easing to 15 to 25 kt after
midnight. Wind waves 3 to 5 ft.  

National Weather Service
...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 4 AM TO 10 PM PST TUESDAY...

* WHAT...Southwest winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 45 mph
  expected.

Power Outage Along Beach Drive


145 neighbors are without power this morning. Seattle City Light is investigating the cause.