BROTHERS ON THE MAT The Blomgrens inspire, coach and have fun. Page 13
NEWS | The Rhododendron heads to Canada. [3] NONPROFITS | VYFS hopes to raft up for a good cause. [5] ARTS | Enjoy the sounds of one [10] man’s good fortune.
STRENGTHENING FAMILIES One woman gives her all to support parents. Page 4
BEACHCOMBER VASHON-MAURY ISLAND
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 6, 2013
Vol. 58, No. 10
www.vashonbeachcomber.com
Fuller Store nominated for historic designation
Crews help heal a worn landscape
Building would be the 16th structure landmarked on Vashon
After five months, thousands of Scotch broom plants have been removed
By LESLIE BROWN Staff Writer
By NATALIE JOHNSON Staff Writer
On Monday, a crew of five young adults in hard hats and work boots spent the morning balanced on a slope at the Maury Island Marine Park, yanking weeds from the steep hillside and planting native trees and shrubs in their place. From their vantage point near the popular overlook on S.W. 248th Street, the workers could see an open, undulating landscape — the result of five months of labor. “This whole place was thick with Scotch broom up to a person’s height,” said Brian Massi, who is overseeing the Puget SoundCorps
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Natalie Johnson/Staff Photo
Jessica Lange, left, and Whitney Cox plant native trees on a slope that was recently cleared of Scotch broom. project on Maury and was at the worksite earlier this week. “Now, you can see all the way across. I think it looks a lot better.” From the hillside down to the shoreline where other crews labored that morning, the brambles that once entangled this
popular county park — a 300acre expanse that features stunning views of the Puget Sound and Mount Rainier — have been largely tackled. Now native trees — cedars, firs and cottonwoods — are prominent at the park, and bright pink flags mark the outline
of a new, easier-to-navigate trail that will one day descend from the viewpoint to the beach. “I think people will really like it,” Massi said. In October the Puget SEE RESTORATION, 19
A principal finds meaning putting kids on stage By ELIZABETH SHEPHERD Staff Writer
Natalie Johnson/Staff Photo
Susan Hanson talks to the cast of “In the Heights” during a recent rehearsal.
Through her long career as an educator and high school principal on Vashon, Susan Hanson has given her students guided tours to magical worlds, including medieval castles, a German cabaret, a prohibition-era Chicago speakeasy and the ivied halls of Harvard Law School. She’s done it all through the magic of theater, directing students in Broadway musicals such as “Fiddler on the Roof,” “Camelot,” “Chicago,” “Legally Blonde” and many, many more — 32 in all, counting the school’s current production of “In the Heights,” set to open Friday. Hanson is the first to admit that it is unusual for a principal to take on the additional work of directing high school shows. “I don’t know of any other administrators who do this,” she said. SEE PRINCIPAL, 17
The Fuller Store, the oldest commercial building on Vashon, could become the island’s 16th landmarked structure should the King County Landmarks Commission approve the nomination at its March 26 meeting. Roy McMakin and Mike Jacobs nominated their property, a twostory, wood-frame structure at the crossroads in Center, last month. The designation would also protect the two black walnut trees in front of the structure, towering trees thought to be more than 100 years old. Julie Koler, who heads King County’s preservation office, said she was thrilled by the nomination. “It’s a gem,” she said of the property. “It’s a gem in its rarity, materials, association, everything.” McMakin, reached Thursday, said he and Jacobs have long wanted to get the building designated as historic. McMakin and Jacobs are the fourth owners of the building since it was built in 1884, a structure that McMakin called “insanely intact.” “I feel that it’s our responsibility to do what we can to preserve it because it’s one of the more historic buildings in all of King County,” he said. The store, which currently houses Sea Change Tattoo and some private offices, would have been protected as a historic structure had an effort to make Center a historic district won approval. SEE FULLER STORE, 12