West Seattle, Washington
26 Tuesday
We told you last week about the first testimony in the hearing about whether the owner of the Satterlee House, aka the “Painted Lady” of Beach Drive, can build three houses on its expansive front lawn. Since the property is a city landmark, the Landmarks Board had to grant a Certificate of Approval – but last December said no, and this hearing is about the property owner’s appeal of that ruling. Last week’s testimony involved the previous owner of the property, David Satterlee. Today, both sides are presenting the bulk of their case, with time scheduled on Thursday for continuation. The major witness so far this morning has been the staffer for the Landmarks Board, who revealed one reason this is significant beyond West Seattle:Read More
On the same date (4/10) that the newly revealed California/Alaska megaproject gets a Southwest Design Review Board hearing, the project on the site of those old Beach Drive waterfront homes will also get an “administrative” design review. The proposal calls for two new single-family homes and one duplex townhouse. The project pages are filed on the city site under the street numbers 4143, 4145, and 4147. (The architects listed for the project built this, next door at 4141 Beach Drive, as well as this Alki house and these Alki condos.)
Just talked with Alison Conner from Conner Homes, the company that — as we reported last night here and here — is now going forward, again, with plans to redevelop close to half the east side of California and west side of 42nd between Alaska and Edmunds in The Junction. No renderings yet – but she did supply many other details that the bare-bones city online filings don’t get into:Read More
WSB contributing photojournalist Matt Durham sent that photo — showing spectators looking up at the crane that’s on the 41st/42nd/Alaska megaproject — just before we turned up details of the new proposal kitty-corner to this site. As promised atop the original post below, we’re ending the night summarizing what we’ve learned (pending attempts on Friday to find out more from project participants):
*An “early design guidance” Southwest Design Review Board meeting is set for April 10 for two projects proposed to span roughly half the Alaska-to-Edmunds block in The Junction, from California to 42nd
*The west-side project, with the parcel stretching from 4700 California (Super Supplements) southward to 4710 California (Rubato), is described as 12,000 square feet of ground-level retail with 5 floors of apartments and 2 underground levels of parking
*The east-side project, stretching from the current Rocksport/Neighborhood Services Center frontage south to the site where Harbor Properties is building Mural, is described as 21,500 sf of ground-level retail with 6 floors of apartments and 2 underground levels of parking
*Both filings list Weber Thompson (architects) and Conner Homes (builders)
*The Design Review Board meeting on April 10 will be at 6:30 pm, location not yet listed online (meetings are usually at Denny Middle School or the Southwest Precinct)
*City records show previous proposals here in 2002
*The current owner bought the 1925-built west-side site for $1.4 million in 2000, the 1922-built east-side site for $2.1 million that same year
*Side note: Nothing in The Junction business core is on the list of official city landmarks, though the city Department of Neighborhoods has signaled some interest in certain sites like the Campbell Building (Cupcake Royale/Swee Swee, etc.), the Hamm Building (Easy Street et al), and the the former Kress building (Matador/JaK’s) – you can search the DON survey archives for any property (WS or not) here
(this post is a work in progress, as we continue to research details available online on this major Junction project that’s just gone public; we’ll put it all together into a more coherent update once we think we’ve found everything there is to find online tonight)
Twice a week, the city sends out its Land Use Information Bulletin, Mondays and Thursdays. Today’s came fairly early. It did not include a rather newsworthy project that made its debut later in the day on the Design Review Upcoming city page (maybe just a coincidence, but we notice this sort of thing every so often — major new proposal appears on the city website hours AFTER the latest biweekly bulletin goes out). Anyway, enough backstory. This one, scheduled for an Early Design Guidance meeting of the Southwest Design Review Board on April 10, is listed for 4706 California SW, which is the address currently held by Funky Jane’s. It’s described as a building with 12,000 square feet of ground-level retail and 5 floors of apartments above , two floors of parking beneath – so that would be a dramatic change for the block (though Mural will be rising high almost directly behind it). County records show the parcel stretches all the way north to Alaska (Super Supplements corner) and south to 4710 California (Rubato). The same owners, “4700 California LLC,” also own the neighboring parcel (Rocksport etc.). According to a project number on the Design Review Upcoming page, a proposal for that site will be discussed at the April 10 hearing too; this page for the project at that address, 4203 Alaska, mentions a building with 21,500 sf of retail and 6 floors of apartments over that. We are still researching right now to find out more online, since it’s after business hours and we won’t be able to get ahold of any of the listed contacts before tomorrow. Contacts listed on the official city project page include Weber Thompson (architects) and Conner Homes. This obviously has been in the works a while, as the history on the “fees and receipts” tab of this page goes back to August.
It wasn’t criminal court, but at times it felt almost that contentious — with occasional interjections of OBJECTION! — as the city Hearing Examiner heard the first witness today in the fight over whether homebuilding will be allowed on the expansive front lawn of Beach Drive’s “Painted Lady.” The home — an official city landmark — is also known as the Satterlee House, and its former owner David Satterlee was the first witness to testify, several days before lawyers on both sides will present the bulk of their cases. We went to the Hearing Examiner’s windowless room on the 40th floor of the Municipal Tower downtown to see how this would unfold:Read More
The removal of a whole row of big evergreens along two lots lining the east side of 41st between Rose and Southern (take your pick whether this is south Gatewood or north Upper Fauntleroy) had several people e-mailing us today — one calling it a “tree massacre” — to ask “can they DO that?” We checked it out and the answer appears to be “yes,” since the trees were on private, already-developed property with older houses – if that defines your property, you can cut down trees without a permit. Both lots on the block appear to be real-estate listings no longer on the market; the site shown in the photo still has an aerial-photo map that gives you an idea of how many trees were there before. The parcel now likely has a major view, as it’s on the west-facing slope, looking toward the Sound, Blake, Vashon, Olympics, etc. No development permits filed for either lot so far.
For everyone who wonders when construction will finally start on Fauntleroy Place, aka “the Whole Foods development” at the current east-of-Junction site of Schuck’s/Hancock Fabrics, we check in periodically with its developer, BlueStar Management. Today, BlueStar’s Eric Radovich told WSB it’s looking now like groundbreaking will be in “late April or early May” — a little later than last estimate — “due to a handful of minor details being wrapped up this month.”
Thanks to Bob for the tip that the design/construction firm Pb Elemental is re-selling the above-pictured Alki house that it bought along with the neighboring Shoremont, $875,000. (Most recent WSB coverage here; we checked with Pb after Bob’s note, and they say the re-sale was part of the plan, and that they will share renderings of the Shoremont-site plan shortly.) Also notable: The building going up at 35th/Avalon (most recent WSB coverage here) appears to have a name – we came across this space-leasing listing referring to it as Avalon Square. The listing says it has two rentable retail spaces of about 1,300 sf each. (That’s in addition to 60 apartments, per the city permit files.)
More future West Seattle development news, this time from Admiral Neighborhood Association president Mark Wainwright: He says a representative from Safeway has contacted the ANA because, according to Mark, “They would like to start the process of redeveloping the Admiral store, and want to talk to the community. … No specifics at all right now, but it’s great that they’ve reached out to us early on.” It is indeed considered ideal for neighborhood associations to get first word of something major like that, and it’s another good reason to be involved with the association that represents your neighborhood — to see if there is one, check the WEST SEATTLE NEIGHBORHOOD GROUPS list in our sidebar.
As we briefly reported yesterday afternoon, Harbor Properties not only is building Mural in The Junction and proposing a residential/commercial building on the ex-Huling land it’s just bought at 38th/Alaska, it’s also “under contract” to buy West Seattle’s only motel — the former Travelodge, now Seattle West Inn and Suites. This morning, we have more details — on all three — after talking with a Harbor Properties executive:Read More
At left is design option D for 5020 California, aka Spring Hill (not the restaurant), which got the best reviews from the Southwest Design Review Board tonight at Denny Middle School during a semi-rare second round of “early design guidance,” mandated because the first round didn’t go well (WSB coverage here). One of the main concerns that architect David Hewitt was asked to address with this 6-story, 90-unit apartments-and-retail building was the fear it would leave the single-family neighborhood behind it with their alley-facing back yards staring at a big hulking wall. Board members’ consensus tonight was that the revised proposals removed that concern, and also moved more of the building’s “mass” onto the California SW street front, as they also had asked. The dozen or so neighbors who attended tonight’s meeting voiced fewer concerns than the larger group who showed up last month; one outspoken neighbor, Nancy Woodland, noted that reps from the developer, BlueStar (which is also handling Fauntleroy Place, aka the Whole Foods project), had even come to her house for a first-hand survey. Next step for Spring Hill will be the “recommendations” Design Review meeting. Before re-reviewing Spring Hill tonight, the SWDRB got its first look at 9030 35th SW, smaller but not without controversy:Read More
5 months after we reported townhouses are planned for the site of that 95-year-old house at 5232 California (across from West Seattle Nursery), the demolition permit has just been granted.
A few blocks north, 5020 California — the “Spring Hill” mixed-use proposal — gets its next Design Review Board hearing, featuring the new design options shown above (full details reported here), 8 pm tonight @ Denny Middle School Library (after the 6:30 pm review of 9030 35th).
1 month after that new paint job went onto Slices on Alki – it’s applied for a new liquor license; the applicant is “Cocktails Inc.” and the category is “snack bar.”
Harbor Properties — currently developing Mural on land including the ex-Petco lot along 42nd, across from Jefferson Square — is going public today with more info about its Junction-area plans. First, as reported here earlier this month, it’s proposing a 6-story mixed-use building (mostly residential) along 38th, south of Fauntleroy, on parcels including a former Huling Bros. service facility and West Seattle Montessori School, and Harbor Properties has now closed the deal for the Huling-owned portion of that land. The other bit of new info: Harbor is also “under contract” for the site of West Seattle’s only motel, the ex-Travelodge, now Seattle West Inn and Suites (site of a headline-making crash last week), and other nearby sites. What will go there? We’re scheduled to talk with a Harbor Properties executive a little bit later this afternoon, and you’ll see a full report here later tonight.
Two nights before the second Design Review Board meeting for the “Spring Hill” mixed-use building at 5020 California, south of The Junction, you can now take a look at its revised design proposal, just posted online. Check it out here; its highlights are three new options (first three drawings below), labeled C2, D, and E:
The courtyard placement in the last two renderings seem to address concerns of neighbors to the east that their back yards (on the alley at the right side of each sketch) would face little more than a big flat wall at Spring Hill’s rear. Compare those to the original three options (angled, California at front, alley behind):
Our coverage of the first DRB meeting for this project is here; Thursday’s meeting is at 8 pm, Denny Middle School Library, after the DRB meets at 6:30 pm for its first look at 9030 35th SW.
Almost three months have passed since the big public meeting on the proposed “upzoning” of both sides of California Ave between Hanford and Hinds (plus a bit further south on the west side of the street), and two months since we talked to major property owners Mike Gain and Roger Cayce about it, so it seemed high time to check in with city planners. The lead planner on the proposal, Malli Anderson, just told us by phone that the official recommendation isn’t likely to be out for at least another month — two main reasons: 1. it’s an especially important proposal and they don’t want to rush, and 2. they’re swamped with other concurrent projects. She says she has “a ton” of citizen feedback to review as she works toward a recommendation, which will also have to go through Department of Planning and Development management; once that recommendation is out, several steps will remain, including a public hearing before the city Hearing Examiner, and then a City Council vote would be required before any zoning change could be approved. (Previous WSB coverage is archived here.)
FIRST, THE REAL ESTATE: Yet another West Seattle apartment building is up for sale, with listing copy suggesting it might make a good condo conversion (though the pace of those seems to have slowed in the wake of the Strata and West Ridge conversion reversions). The photo above is from the listing, which is for the Siberay Apartments west of The Junction at 4546 45th SW (map), 17 units, $2,100,000.
LAND-USE UPDATE – 4502 42ND: The preliminary plan for this 7-story project on the site of several old houses (photo above) at 42nd and Oregon didn’t get a good reception at its first Design Review Board meeting in October (WSB coverage here). Developers have now applied for the official land-use permit to build it, and the city webpage says they’ve paid for the notice and public-room rental required for the next Design Review meeting — but that’s not listed on the city website anywhere, yet. Keep an eye out for that to be scheduled shortly; we’ll let you know when we see it.
LAND USE REMINDER — 5020 CALIFORNIA (AND 9030 35th): The California Ave project is Spring Hill, the mixed-use building, not to be confused with Spring Hill, the restaurant. Its next Design Review meeting is coming up this Thursday, 8 pm, Denny Middle School (following a 6:30 meeting about 9030 35th SW, a smaller project first reported here). Recent WSB coverage is here (first Design Review meeting) and here (follow-up “open house”).
(photo by WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli)
First time we’d ever gone to a city Landmarks Preservation Board meeting. Had no idea it would take four hours for them to get to 3811 California (aka Charlestown Court). Four fascinating hours, though, considering the first three were mostly devoted to the Ballard Denny’s nomination (as you may have read elsewhere, perhaps at our hyperlocal counterparts MyBallard.com, it was approved, shocking many members of the capacity crowd). Once all the dust settled from that, and the capacity crowd cleared (before/after photos coming up), it was time for the West Seattle presentation (most of which you can read here), which was interrupted briefly so everyone could view the lunar eclipse through the meeting room’s huge windows (south-facing, 40th floor of the Municipal Tower downtown). Anyway, we’ll add more detail shortly, but the headline – Landmarks Board members voted in favor of city staff’s recommendation to consider the exterior of Charlestown Court for potential landmark status. Next step in the process – a public hearing April 2. ADDED 10:10 PM: Here are the details from tonight’s vote —Read More
This afternoon, the city Landmarks Board considers 3811 California, aka Charlestown Court (historic King County Assessor photo above), the brick Tudor four-plex across from Charlestown Cafe that otherwise is proposed for demolition and replacement with a mixed-use building. Its history is told, with copious photos, in the 46-page landmark-nomination document by West Seattle-based Nicholson Kovalchick Architects (you can read it here), with details such as “this was one of many apartment buildings for which the architect William H. Whiteley was well-known locally”; the document also includes a summary of West Seattle history and the background of the “bungalow court” type of apartment building this is considered to be, with an addendum cataloging some of West Seattle’s “bungalow courts” (such as the “Green Ghetto” whose ex-residents eulogized it in comments here after its demolition, and the 3400-block California buildings torn down recently, before/after photos here) The Landmarks Board meeting (3:30 this afternoon, 40th floor of the Seattle Municipal Building downtown) should be lively – also on the agenda, the much-discussed Ballard Denny’s.
That’s 2312-2314 44th SW in North Admiral, with applications just filed for demolition of this building and replacement with five townhomes split between two buildings. According to county property records, the doomed duplex is exactly a century old, and sold last month for $750,000. The multiplex immediately south is an ex-apartment building that converted to condos last year.
Just spotted the listing for 2514 57th SW (map), 9 units, $3,200,000. Here’s the official listing page. If the address doesn’t sound familiar, it’s the condo-conversion building (with failed inspections listed on this city page), right next door to the Shoremont and the adjacent “Mediterranean home” that just changed hands to a different construction company (latest WSB update here). APRIL 7 UPDATE: The owner of The Sidney e-mailed WSB to point out that, as per the same city page in the original report, the building has since passed its inspections. Mackenzie Pinch says one unit in the building has just been purchased, and has a second sale pending, after doing a lot of work on the building: “It was once owned by my late great Uncle Sidney Pinch in the ’70s, bought by my father; now I have purchased it with a business partner. It is with pride and history that I have chosen to keep the name the Sidney there, and I have kept him in mind when making this property hugely improved than the way it was when he passed. I believe he would be proud to see how I have entirely remodeled the building.”
When West Seattle’s first big construction crane in years started taking shape on New Year’s Eve at Capco Plaza (along Alaska between 41st and 42nd), it was a big deal with reader photos and all sorts of hoopla. Today (photo above), we happened onto West Seattle’s SECOND big construction crane in years taking shape one block south at Mural (aka “the former Petco parking lot”) and while there were a few spectators, pretty much zero hoopla. (Although now we do recall a Harbor Properties exec saying at the West Seattle Chamber lunch the other day that excavation at the Mural site had almost “bottomed out.”) Anyway, for crane fans, we’re making note of the occasion; here’s another pic:
We were actually in The Junction to take a look at this site on the SW corner of 41st and Edmunds (kitty-corner from the south side of Jefferson Square):
An application’s just been filed this week to tear down that house and build a 5-unit townhouse project.
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