Occidental Ave South, White Center

For some reason, First Pl. S. shares its name with Occidental Ave. South. It's not that part of the street is known as one name and part by another, the entire street has two names, though it's mainly known by Occidental. Primarily a residential street, it travels from White Center to John F. Kennedy High School on 138th St. in Burien. Ever one for consistency, the residences are just alright. Not somewhere that you'd want to live unless it's the best you can afford. Since it parallels the main arterial (1st Ave. S.), many commuters use the street to bypass rush hour traffic. Therefore, a few neighborhoods have added speed bumps, making the neighborhood that much less appealing. Many businesses line 1st Ave. South, meaning that there's quite a bit of traffic noise in many resident's back yards. While there are trees on the street, they do little to aleviate the dirty, desolate feeling the street projects. Some of the neighborhoods along the street, especially at the north end, are in close proximity to a couple of parks and Arbor Lake, though they're seldom used by kids for playing. The nicest thing about the area is it's access to Hwy 509, providing a 15-minute trip to downtown Seattle, and Hwy 518, where you can zip to the airport in under 10 minutes without the overhead air traffic noise.