West Seattle development: Groundbreaking soon for Nova

| Development | Triangle | West Seattle news

A rainbow appeared over The Triangle just as a walking tour preceding tonight’s zoning-change public hearing began.

Also as the tour began, Harbor Properties‘ Denny Onslow revealed that groundbreaking will happen soon for their new development, all-residential Nova, at 36th/Snoqualmie (if our rainbow photo atop this story were wider, Nova’s site would be on the left, north of The Grove). According to Onslow, if all goes as planned, construction will start around Halloween. Here’s the design shown at its second and final Design Review meeting last summer:

Nova is planned as 62 apartments, no retail. Right now, City Councilmembers Sally Clark and Sally Bagshaw are at another Harbor building, the 5-month-old mixed-use building Link (WSB sponsor), in a casual conversation with community/business reps preceding the hearing.

More notes to come – with full coverage of that hearing later. If you have something to say about the Triangle’s future – should some areas be upzoned to 85-foot buildings? for example – be at the Senior Center of West Seattle, 6 pm.

transplantella October 11, 2011 (8:20 pm)

The Nova design looks identical to the other new building that just went up next to Lien animal clinic, yes?

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Since there is already a building in the same area that looks just like it, should sail right through the Design review.

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Like Walmart or Bestbuy or Mattress Warehouse, build the same thing over and over again, you know it will get past all the permits and reviews.

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McConstruction+McArchitecture=numbing generic sameness.

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But hey, we could use another nail salon and pizza parlor here too. :-/

WSB October 11, 2011 (8:57 pm)

No retail in this one, so no salon or pizza parlor. Nova is less than a third the size of Link (the building you’re referring to) – 62 units, to about 200. But it is the same developer; not sure in terms of architect.

LongTimer WS October 11, 2011 (9:13 pm)

That’s awful. Please, please make these projects beautiful and interesting. You are right, if they get one project through, then we have many, many of them. Can’t the developers and government think their way out of this?

ltfd October 11, 2011 (9:17 pm)

Lovely boxes to live in. I like the red lines in the artist’s rendering, adding interest where there would otherwise be nothing of architectural/visual interest.

Juno October 11, 2011 (11:44 pm)

They’re missing an obvious design opportunity by changing those square cut-outs in the red portion into circles or more circular shaped cut-outs… “Nova” anyone?

transplantella October 12, 2011 (12:55 am)

@Juno

Tiny circular window instead of tiny square ones? Genius! Should be worth architectural millions. Why wasn’t it thought of before?! Groundbreaking vision.

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But will City Hall buy tiny round windows over tiny square ones? Is there a precedent? Has the City of Seattle approved little round windows? Have any hearings been held? Has the issue been voted on? Has anyone done seismic studies on round vs square? What is the opinion of native wildlife, has anyone surveyed the local crows on their opinion? Perhaps round windows have urban wastewater runoff issues?

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These pressing concerns must be addressed before window size and configuration can be altered from the accepted approved norm. More studies are necessary.

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And of course as it is widely know, windows are a hazard to children who may be tempted to throw a Lego block through them and accidentally fall to the city-owned sidewalk below which could engender municipal liability.

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How bout we just sick to the tried and true ugliness of contemporary development for chrissakes?!

Dude Ranch October 12, 2011 (2:07 am)

Yay! More apartments!

DF October 12, 2011 (7:37 am)

This is bastardization of West Seattle pure and simple. Do you think 85 ft buildings would be good for WS TRI? Please vote no!

4thGenWS October 12, 2011 (10:34 am)

Too bad for WS. It is soon time to move on from this once lovely area of Seattle.

Jsv October 12, 2011 (10:43 am)

Good lord that’s ugly. So they know The Link is only 1/4th full?

WSB October 12, 2011 (11:33 am)

JSV – Actually, I just checked with Harbor’s Emi McKittrick. Link is currently 92 percent leased. Whomever told you a fourth, please let them know they have erroneous “information” – TR

Juno October 12, 2011 (11:25 am)

DF, if we’re going to be environmentally responsible CITY/METRO/Region:

WS/Ballard/Roosevelt are going to have to have buildings up to 85ft tall in the core.

Capitol Hill/First Hill will also have to have buildings 150-300 ft tall.

The Univ. District and Northgate will have to have buildings 85 – 200 ft tall.

JN October 12, 2011 (1:39 pm)

Awesome! More people living here=more dependable, localized clients and customers for the businesses here in West Seattle. How is that bad? And btw, we don’t live in the country. We live in one of the largest urban/metropolitan areas in the country. If you want single-level ranch homes, go on out to Eastern Washington. Plenty of room on the range out there!