West Seattle development notes: 4730 California begins; Charlestown Café site followup; this week’s design reviews

| Development | West Seattle news

Four West Seattle development notes tonight:

4730 CALIFORNIA: Thanks to Heidi for the tip that a fence was up and the awning was coming down at the site of 4730 California, the 88-apartment project formerly known as 4724 California, aka “the former Petco site.” We’d noticed the re-branding recently when sponsor logos (including ours) went up on the West Seattle Summer Fest website. This project’s website’s not up yet – you can find a mention here – and we’re working to get more information about the demolition schedule.

CHARLESTOWN CAFE SITE FOLLOWUP: Since we first reported one week ago on a development proposal for the former Charlestown Café site, we’ve finally heard back from a rep for the prospective developer, Intracorp. Right now, the rep tells us, the proposal for six 5-unit townhouse buildings is in spec mode – the site has not been purchased and no official application to the city has been made. Intracorp is focused right now, we’re told, on getting its biggest West Seattle proposal, 3210 California SW, through Design Review; its second round of Early Design Guidance is scheduled for 6:30 pm June 27th on the second floor of the Senior Center of West Seattle at California/Oregon.

SPEAKING OF DESIGN REVIEW: Before that meeting, two projects are on the Southwest Design Review Board agenda for this Thursday night (June 13th), and the “packets” are available online for both. The 6:30 pm meeting is for 4435 35th SW, the re-activated proposal for the site that currently includes a vacant lot and the building that’s home to The Bridge (which, as reported here last month, is already preparing its new home at the former Chuck and Sally’s Tavern site in Morgan Junction). The project has changed since its first Design Review meeting in 2009, so it’s going back through Early Design Guidance. The current version proposes a six-story building with 170 apartments and 187 parking spaces; see the “packet” here. The 8 pm meeting is the second “recommendations” session – in other words, possibly the final meeting – for 3829 California SW, 29 apartments with 30 parking spaces; see its “packet” here. Both meetings are open to the public and will be held on the second floor of the Senior Center of West Seattle at California/Oregon.

ROWHOUSES IN FAIRMOUNT SPRINGS: The newly popular form of townhouses known as “rowhouses” are popping up in neighborhoods all over. One of the newest applications proposes a 5-unit rowhouse building, with attached garages, for 5457 Fauntleroy Way SW in Fairmount Springs, on the site of a 103-year-old home sold in April.

Hutch June 11, 2013 (7:23 pm)

How the hell are we going to get in and out of WS?

hj June 11, 2013 (7:28 pm)

You can’t see it from the street, but the roof of the old Petco is halfway gone. Looks like this is really happening.

Alki Area June 11, 2013 (8:06 pm)

ROTFLMAO
How are you going to get out of West Seattle? By car. Or bus. Or bike. Or car pool. My god it’s not MILLIONS of people, just a few hundred, not all of whom go to work at the same time, or even downtown (I for one work from home). West Seattle has grown from population 0 to 50,000+, and the world hasn’t ended, relax, you’ll be ok. People even get in and out of Chicago, Des Moines Iowa and St. Louis….it can be done. We’ve grown from old growth forest, to log cabins, to single family estates, to modern home lots, to apartment buildings, and all continues. Yeah we had to build a new high bridge, with more lanes just a few decades ago. And we’ll have to have rail/transit in here within another decade or two. And the folks 25 years from now will pine about how GREAT we had it in 2015 and what a magic time it used to be back then.

NW June 11, 2013 (10:12 pm)

My hometown is being invaded and destroyed and I dislike it.

Rick June 11, 2013 (10:18 pm)

And you’ll get used to it. Trust me, you’ll get used to it. Used to it. Used to it. Isn’t that better now?

george June 11, 2013 (10:44 pm)

To bad they can’t wait until after the street fair. Demo work will sure leave a dusty taste to a great street party.
Oh yeah, build a 6 lane replacement for the defective West Seattle viaduct.

West Seattle Since 1979 June 11, 2013 (10:59 pm)

Invaded? Really?

Charles Town June 11, 2013 (11:35 pm)

So the Charlestown isn’t sold? Can we try to make it a park?

Gene June 12, 2013 (6:48 am)

The logistics of entering & exiting from the 4435 35th structure
could be a nightmare!!!

robespierre June 12, 2013 (7:08 am)

You’ll get over it.

NW June 12, 2013 (7:13 am)

Yes invaded by clueless drivers on smartphones that buy $5 coffees and $4 cupcakes and live pigeoned up with others in the same boat

yo June 12, 2013 (8:30 am)

The combined population of the Delridge and Southwest Districts is over 70,000.

WSB June 12, 2013 (8:37 am)

West Seattle’s current population is ~85,000, per the 2010 Census.

DTK June 12, 2013 (8:51 am)

@Alki Area – First of all, it’s thousands of people, possibly as many as 5,000. And you have the audacity to laugh at us (ROTFLMAO) who work downtown and have to stand on overcrowded buses everyday as you “work from home.” Your comment shows a naivety as to the major impact that this spontaneous crush of new residents will have on our transit, infrastructure and quality of life. I live in the real world and can easily connect the dots which show a picture of the future of West Seattle that will be negatively affected by uncontrolled density.

Jason June 12, 2013 (9:04 am)

Goodbye Petco building :(

WSB June 12, 2013 (10:20 am)

Good job making it fun for a while there, Jason.

West Seattle since 1979 June 12, 2013 (9:55 am)

We don’t know what the work scheduled of the people coming here will be like–some will work from home, some will have different hours, some may even bike to work or rideshare. There won’t be 5,000 cars or 5,000 more people on the bus from 7-9 am or 4-6 in the afternoon. At some point Metro will need to get more funding anyway, and when they see that West Seattle is growing they will need to add more buses. Maybe with more people here, if people are vocal Metro and the city will pay more attention to us.

You don’t know who might be moving here–might be someone or some people who are vocal activists who will fight to get the best for West Seattle.

derrick June 12, 2013 (10:34 am)

Waaah, never build anything!!! Please all of you who hate living in the city, move to buckley or somewhere else. I for one welcome new development, especially along main streets like California ave

Diane June 12, 2013 (11:02 am)

the redesign for 4435 35th SW is maybe the best I’ve ever seen for West Seattle, with stair-climbs and public plaza; so much better than the old design; GGLO does fabulous work

Gene June 12, 2013 (11:09 am)

Robespierre– not a nightmare for me — but for those who will be living there– good luck- just remember Sir Robespierre’s words– say it like a mantra”you’ll get over it– you’ll get over it”-!!

wsn00b June 12, 2013 (2:17 pm)

RE: @NW: “My hometown is being invaded and destroyed and I dislike it.”

That’s also what the Duwamish Tribe said :)

I welcome all the new buildings in empty dirt/weed lots that will bring more interesting and diverse populations, businesses and life to our relatively sleepy city ‘burb.

Sincerely
Recent new West Seattle (City) Resident who enjoy stuffing his face with $5 lattes and $6 cakes from several local West Seattle coffee shops.

jiggers June 12, 2013 (2:28 pm)

Is the former site where the Rocksport was, is that going to be empty for two years now?

WSB June 12, 2013 (2:46 pm)

Jiggers – its owners have clammed up. We continue to seek alternate ways of finding out what’s happening there, or not happening.

NW June 12, 2013 (3:46 pm)

Well wsnoob my family has been here for well over half a century and my family also use to visit tribes out on our washington coast just visiting and learning from them peacefully. I am seeing a lot more traffic, shady characters (crime) and pollution like garbage. I sometimes go to Capitol Hill and with the density there it upsets me and frankly scares me that that is what’s comming here. I will most likely move within ten years. You people are strangers to me and frankly seems to only way some of you now communicate is by these phones and tablets. I know you not.

Hutch June 12, 2013 (8:38 pm)

Progress is one thing reality is other. It is not just WS that will be affected by the continuation of over building and over population. Without the building of additional roads that it will take to handle the increased population in what is already an island and very over crowded. You have Vashon Island, SouthBremerton and Port Orchard already over loading the crowed roads. When are we going to figure out how to build roads instead of building more buildings? We are living in a baby boom reality not all of us can ride bikes. For those of you that work from home good for you, but the reality is vast majority have to drive to work and have you heard they are cutting bus services.

jiggers June 13, 2013 (7:03 am)

It should be illegal to do what’s happening where the Rocksport was. Other than putting people out of work, the empty lot is also devaluing the immediate community.

enough June 13, 2013 (9:42 am)

I’ve seen my commute times double in the last 10 years. I am afraid of where we are heading with this density mentality. I’d be more inclined to support it if we had mass transit (more than just Crapid Ride and a few water taxi’s .. too little too late for an area that has 10% of Seattle’s population). We’re way behind on transportation according to the Mayor. Not saying it’s his fault but seems like this should be a wake up call as far as future development proceeds.

dawsonct June 13, 2013 (4:25 pm)

Transit is underfunded because we are all still waiting on the incredible rain of wealth that apparently will shower down upon all of us once our Nations corporatist trickle-down economic policies start to work.
It’s only been 32+ years, why so impatient?
—
Transit works best in densely populated neighborhoods. I’m with the person who mentioned Buckley for those city-dwellers out there who are suddenly waking up to the reality that they live in a city. Republic? Asotin?
Also, whenever you build more POV transit capacity (roads), it is OVER capacity almost as soon as capacity is added (I am not making this up, transportation engineers who spend their lives studying the subject have observed this fact over and over again). The solution that really WILL work is increased transit OPTIONS.
—
Ultimately though, get over yourselves NIMBY’s, you ALL where once new here. Got a problem with all the “newcomers?” Blame Jeanette Williams.
-Signed, I wasn’t born here, get over it.

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