Hi All: This is a long post. I don't know how to make it any shorter. As many of you know, the ducky garden art over the years at 7031 Beach Drive SW developed into something that had a business side to it. The development took place primarily because visitors, friends and neighbors kept asking for me to make calendars and greeting cards using the duckies I had created. I took the ball and ran with it, so to speak starting in August 2008.
In June 2009, a one-bedroom rental came up for rent that is exactly 3 feet south of the wall of my living room at 7031A Beach Drive. It is 7035 Beach Drive SW. My wife and I thought we had a really neat plan to give my mother, who lives in a sort of ragtag way in Riverside, Calif., an opportunity to do a long stay in Seattle -- like a full test drive by renting the unit, fixing it up for her and having her come up for a long stay. She did in July 2009, but after two weeks, did not like the northwest. Long story, but, essentially too moldy for her.
We also thought it would be great as a workshop for me to create the ducky interactive art that has been slowly getting more sophisticated all the time. So, when my mom left, I converted the bedroom into a workshop and ducky photo studio, and began hanging many of my art and photographs around the unit so I could start getting them organized for shows and for selling on eBay and other sites. Also, at that time, I had just started to market John Cerminaro's art on eBay and other sites and to help him develop a plan, which included doing covers for magazines and journals. I literally bumped in Xavier Lopez on the sidewalk one night while he was carrying some of his art. It was at that time that in discussions with some artist friends that I decided to see if I could help them out by utilizing part of the unit for a gallery when it wasn't being used by guests to stay in, or by me to work in. Long story there, but essentially, the artists I have tried to help have experienced less and less space available for them. Galleries in clearly commercial areas have been closing, etc.
Along comes someone recently who has filed a zoning complaint with the DPD compliance people and they have issued a Notice of Violation (NOV) regarding the "gallery." The inspector assigned to the "case" decided it was a purely commercial operation. The NOV seeks corrective action but does not specify what would constitute corrective action, since the NOV does not specify findings of fact on which the judgment of a violation rests. It's pretty difficult to argue against a judgment on which you have no idea what the facts are on which the judgment has been made.
So far, and maybe you all know this already, a renter cannot have two residences in the city of Seattle. According to the inspector on this case, since I don't sleep at 7035 Beach Drive SW, it cannot be considered to be a home office.
Well, I have much to learn in my little endeavor to assist artist friends and neighbors. The so called "gallery" as everyone knows, is only open as a gallery 8 hours a week. Four hours on two separate days. The rest of the time it is a studio, and creative area for producing art, photographic work, and ducky displays, or a place for my daughter, my distant friends in Hood River, or my parents to stay when they visit.
So, here's my question to you all. Should I consider gathering signatures for a petition to "Save the Gallery" or do you think that would be, I don't know, stupid, useless, inappropriate, ineffective, etc. I honestly don't know a single neighbor for blocks around here who doesn't like what I have done to the unit or what is going on there and there are tons of people who enjoy and benefit from what is produced at 7035 Beach Drive SW.
Any thoughts?
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