DEVELOPMENT: Land-use approval for second Harbor Avenue self-storage facility

| Development | West Seattle news

Two weeks after a new self-storage facility opened on Harbor Avenue, the land-use approval is in for another one blocks away. This one, now carrying the address 2328 Harbor SW, is for a 3-story facility at the site where fire gutted a vacant building back in June:

(WSB photo, June)

The entity that bought the industrial-zoned site for $3.5 million last November is associated with an investment group that owns self-storage facilities in multiple states; some are under the brand Extra Space Storage. The city land-use approval opens a 2-week period for appeals; this notice explains how.

SIDE NOTE: Eleven years ago, this site got land-use approval for a different kind of project, a mixed-use complex that was to be called West Bay.

JOHN August 17, 2020 (3:57 pm)

I guess that is a sign of changing times in West Seattle. Redevelopment for storage facilities is a wasteful use of our limited space in a time of homelessness and housing shortage. It has become a national investment strategy for out of state firms that are cashing in on Seattleites consumption of things (after their garages are full). Please think of donating, rather than paying to store.

RCS August 17, 2020 (5:15 pm)

A housing shortage? Do you have a neck disability that prevents you from looking up at the dozens of construction cranes all over the city?
- JOHN August 17, 2020 (6:51 pm)
  
  Last reported the crane boom in Seattle collapsed. None in West Seattle to whiplash my neck. They also largely disappeared from South Lake Union and Capitol Hill. Nevertheless there is indeed a housing shortage that is driving up the cost of housing in Seattle’s already unaffordable market. I assume RCS to be a homeowner like me riding the rising tide of home prices, I got mine and I want more attitude. I also assume RCS has the ability to see all of the homeless sites and RVs ‘camping’ in or city. Can we please agree that they need housing?
  - WSB August 17, 2020 (8:39 pm)
    
    Unless 4722 Fauntleroy removed theirs since last I looked a week or so ago, we have two.
    - JOHN August 18, 2020 (8:53 am)
      
      As Yogi said, “It’s like deja vu all over again.” –https://wsb.blackfin.biz/2018/12/development-west-seattle-now-down-to-2-tower-cranes/
  - wscommuter August 18, 2020 (10:33 am)
    
    John – I suggest you go develop some affordable housing. Or donate yours for the cause. Otherwise, I don’t much understand your point – a private developer is allowed to build whatever he/she wants to build, ’cause, ya know, it’s their money. Unless you’re advocating for some sort of moronic Kshama Sawant-type dystopian socialism, lamenting the fact that private money can build what private money wants to build strikes me as pointless. Your position would be better articulated in support of subsidizing low-income housing development through governmental action. I’m down with that; you can raise my taxes to pay for that. I fully agree we need to deal with our very complicated and serious affordable housing shortage. But you lose me in whining about private development because you think people have too much stuff.
- Stevie J August 17, 2020 (6:59 pm)
  
  Seattle is one of the only cities that is building enough housing to even get close to closing the gap between supply and demand for housing. However the building of housing has still not reached the demand or capacity of the city. The more people who can live in Seattle, the fewer forests in the outlying areas we have to bulldoze to build new single-family-only neighborhoods out there. Keep in mind that many SFH-only (i.e. it is illegal to build apartments) have had net losses in housing over the past few decades.
bolo August 18, 2020 (11:28 am)

George Carlin could see this coming. My stuff is good stuff, everybody else’s is junk!

Jonah August 17, 2020 (4:05 pm)

WSB. Any updates on the sale of the Phonecia(sp)site on Alki? I did hear the owner of a lot of apartments in WS had looked at it but the size made it unappealing to build on.

WSB August 17, 2020 (8:49 pm)

Sold in March to an LLC with a West Seattle residential address.

KM August 17, 2020 (4:23 pm)

Gross.

N August 17, 2020 (4:38 pm)

Interesting timing given the national trend of over capacity in the self storage industry and ultra competition driving prices down for consumers.

GF August 17, 2020 (4:49 pm)

I agree with John. Waste of precious space.

Wsea August 17, 2020 (5:05 pm)

That location is prime for just about anything other the storage or warehouses. How often do people visit storage that it needs to be so close? I’d rather see a gym, restaurant, or retail. Great walking path and close to transit. I guess I’m not a storage user to understand it’s full use.

Anne August 17, 2020 (5:58 pm)

Really?? Tons of new builds in & around WS-but many may not really have enough storage space -so having storage facilities close by seems pretty convenient.
rmkensington August 18, 2020 (7:05 am)

Its because these storage facilities are crazy profitable. You build it once, maintain heating, elevator, and lights. Staff it with one person to change locks. Then watch the money roll in.

Judy August 17, 2020 (6:36 pm)

I agree it’s a wasteful use of space. Many of the construction cranes are for office space, not for reasonably priced housing, which is what is needed.

Anne August 17, 2020 (9:27 pm)

So all these new builds in WS-are for office buildings?? I don’t think so. What is reasonably priced housing- really what would a reasonable monthly rent/lease be?

Duffy August 17, 2020 (6:51 pm)

Storage facilities are the worst. Literally the worst.

JOHN August 17, 2020 (7:18 pm)

A glut of office space might be the housing shortage relief needed when the overage is multiplied by the acceptance, massive transition and unprecedented work at home movement.If the tall buildings built for office space go vacant for long their owners will convert them to dwelling units.

TJ August 17, 2020 (9:44 pm)

Somebody bought the property and is building something that is badly needed here. Some of the comments here are comical, complaining that more housing isn’t being built. Well then buy the property. And Stevie, you do realize there is a big exodus to the suburbs now, and only predicted to grow? People are sick of the cities politics. Not just here, but all over the country. So your desire that people should live in the city won’t be coming to fruition. My business is tied in with new sfh construction, and I can tell you that there are plans for thousands of new houses in north east king and Snohomish counties alone in the next 2 years. Most young people still want a house.

JOHN August 18, 2020 (8:47 am)

True ‘bread and butter’ issues for TJ who is exercising his right to clear cut forests to make commuting suburbs with no commuting infrastructure, all because “most young people still want a house’ according to TJ. TJ fails to mention that although some young people may want a house in the suburbs, many others are concerned about sustainability and environmental damage of such expansion into our forestlands. Many concerned are renters, now Seattle’s majority, who chose to lead a less impactful life without the grass lawn front yard fronting the house and garage so full of ‘life style’ equipment that they rent a separate space to store the unused accumulation of stuff.
Stevie J August 18, 2020 (10:35 am)

As the article states, this parcel is zoned for industrial use only, so it is illegal to build housing there. We have set aside huge swaths of the city (Sodo, Interbay, waterfront Ballard, Harbor Island) for industrial use, to keep our economy diverse and not drive away local blue collar industry, but I don’t see how an out-of-state-owned storage facility fits that goal.