West Seattle development: 5-home site on Highland Park Way; plus, ‘what’s in a name?’ x 3

| Development | West Seattle housing | West Seattle news

Haven’t had much time this week to report on development/housing, but four quick notes:

FIVE NEW HOMES REPLACING ONE ON HIGHLAND PARK WAY: Brand-new early-stage proposal just turned up for 7717 Highland Park Way (between Holden and Portland), including the vacant parcel to its west, 8,500 sf total, demolishing the 72-year-old house shown above and replacing it with what’s described as “five small 3-story single-family homes with rooftop decks.” Here’s the configuration on the preliminary site plan filed with the city. Watch for a notice at project #3022246.

Now, three projects in varying stages of completion/construction, all of which now have names:

FAUNTLEROY LOFTS: This is the name for the just-complete-and-now-renting microhousing (Small Efficiency Dwelling Units) project to open in West Seattle, 5949 California SW. Thanks to Diane for pointing out to this Craigslist listing announcing the opening, declaring the building on a “quiet street,” and listing rents from $950 (for a 200-sf unit) to $1500. That’s furnished and includes all utilities plus wi-fi, we should note. No off-street parking in the building; the ad declares, “Bike parking is available and street parking is easy to find in the surrounding neighborhood.”

SPEAKING OF PARKING … remember the kerfuffle over the 30-unit, no-offstreet-parking apartment building at 6917 California SW? Neighbors challenged it and eventually settled with the builder. Now, it’s almost done and has a name, according to the sign that went up this week: Viridian.

This is NOT microhousing – it’s self-contained studios, about 300 sf, developer Mark Knoll told neighbors in late 2013. No rental listing yet that we can see (in ’13, Knoll guessed units might go for about $700). Meantime, if you look up the word, it seems to mean either a “bluish-green pigment” – not unlike the building’s color – or a slang definition that could be paraphrased as “good-looking, cold-hearted guy.”

RALLY ROUND: We also noticed earlier this week that the townhouse/live-work development under construction since June on the site of the former Charlestown Café now has a name: Rally. The 27 units will be available for sale this winter, according to the Rally website.

Otho September 11, 2015 (7:08 pm)

Hydrated chromic oxide!

dcn September 11, 2015 (8:08 pm)

Wow, renting one the Fauntleroy Lofts will be like living out of a hotel room, except the mini-bar doesn’t come stocked.

AceMotel September 11, 2015 (8:51 pm)

WSB I love your semantics tangent. Very refreshing.

Mrs Shaw September 11, 2015 (10:02 pm)

Per their website, Fees at Fauntleroy Lofts:
$40 Application Fee per person,
$250 Holding Deposit, and
$50 upcharge for dual occupancy.
Wonder how much upcharge for triple occupancy????
Micro???

ChefJoe September 11, 2015 (11:22 pm)

I think they need a local touch with marketing the Fauntleroy Lofts. Alki you say? It’s two blocks from the “Morgan Junction” but look how it’s posted –

$950 / 200ft2 – Brand New!! California Junction Micro Studios Perfect for You!!! (West Seattle, Alki, CA Junction)

WSB September 12, 2015 (12:10 am)

Not to mention that it’s neither in nor on Fauntleroy.

dsa September 11, 2015 (11:36 pm)

Is that correct at Highland Park? They are putting Five houses on a lot sized 100 feet by just over 70 feet? Somebody has been watching HGTV and getting ideas.

WSB September 11, 2015 (11:42 pm)

8,500 square feet between the two lots, according to the site plan. The zoning, at least for the front lot, is Lowrise 1, not single family, and the plans show the calculations by which the applicant says these would be permissible. Though the comment period has not formally opened, the # I mention can be used to send comments to DPD via PRC@seattle.gov, if anyone is interested in commenting in the early going. – TR

dsa September 11, 2015 (11:45 pm)

That Craigslist ad has this bonus for those Fauntleroy Micros: “… street parking is easy to find in the surrounding neighborhood…”

dsa September 12, 2015 (1:05 am)

There is so much that slips by. I live on an 8,500 sf parcel and cannot imagine my home being replaced by five houses.
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And looking at those cooking areas in the “Fauntleroy” Micros, I cannot find a legal appliance outlet for the countertop. There is one close, but the refer is using it, and I believe that one is supposed to be dedicated for the refer. It just looks inadequately wired.

Koni September 12, 2015 (3:16 am)

Boy, looking at those micro apartments…they really cheesed out on the finishes for $950/month…the cheapest ugly shelving from home depot and a curtain instead of a closet door…for that much money per month they could have done better! Plus…how much easy street parking will be available after everyone moves in? What a joke!

Jayjay September 12, 2015 (5:13 am)

For those Highland Park neighbors, not sure what the zoning is or if there is interest, but here’s a helpful website about ways neighbors can try to confront developers shoe horning homes into lots: http://www.onehomeperlot.com/avoid-it/

WSobserver September 12, 2015 (6:35 am)

Yes, I was walking home from Thriftway this evening and noticed that the apartment building looked finished and that some of the inside lights were on – so I peeked through the windows to see what was there.

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The space seemed so teeny tiny – is there a kitchen in these units? I couldn’t see one.

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I have seen first hand Soviet housing. These units on California look much like it, but with better shelving. The Russians hated them completely and the shared soviet apartments are a problem to this very day. And they do still exist.

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What a strange world we live in. Everything that goes around comes around again.

Mark schletty September 12, 2015 (7:19 am)

A suggestion for those neighbors, in close proximity to the “no parking” buildings, who will lose the onstreet parking spaces to these “carless” new tenants— get together and develop a schedule for picketting the sites when rent-up begins. “If you have a car, please don’t rent here” might produce some interesting results, from both the prospective tenants and the developers.

Parking Jester September 12, 2015 (8:16 am)

Fooled you all: “They won’t need parking.” Deal done, pemit secured. “Oh, you can park on the street.” Bait and switch, blatant lie or business as usual? Hmmm.

CandrewB September 12, 2015 (8:24 am)

“street parking is easy to find in the surrounding neighborhood” Totally unnecessary as we all know all these millennials moving in do not have cars.

Community Member September 12, 2015 (8:34 am)

@-dcn said that 200 square feet will be like living out of an hotel room. Not really. Hotel rooms are typically quite a bit larger than that.

old timer September 12, 2015 (8:35 am)

The advertising for the Fauntleroy micros keeps referring to the “California Junction”, but pictures the Alaska Junction which is, I assume, the one they say is a 10 to 15 minute walk away. Anyone know where the California Junction is?
Maybe it’s Morgan Junction they’re wanting to say? But Morgan is just a 3 minute walk.
Confusing nomenclature from a “local” developer.

G September 12, 2015 (9:11 am)

More snark from “neighborly, small-town” West Seattle. I’m on the count-down to my closing and I can’t wait, frankly.

jissy September 12, 2015 (9:52 am)

LOVE your suggestion, Mark schletty!

Alan September 12, 2015 (10:34 am)

The average hotel room size is about 325 sq ft, according to my quick search.
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“Think 13′ wide x 25′ door-to-window as the average 325 square feet room. Within the space is the bathroom.”
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So, it will be like living in a small hotel room.

Dawn September 12, 2015 (10:48 am)

Er…is that little sink in the “kitchen area” of the Fauntleroy lofts the *only* sink in the unit?

Sunuva September 12, 2015 (10:55 am)

JayJay, Thanks for that link! I wish I had that information a year ago to provide to my neighbors before developers came in and ruined the property across the street. It upset all of the surrounding neighbors but I think we all felt powerless to do anything to stop it. I will keep this handy for future use, because I’m quite sure I’ll need it again someday.

Diane September 12, 2015 (11:49 am)

here’s the previous website for this project; by the infamous Footprint; this project used to be called a more appropriate name based on the location:
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http://liveatfootprint.com/properties/california/
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Footprint California
5949 California Ave SW
Footprint California provides a great location in the heart of West Seattle. With a central location to Lincoln Park, Morgan Junction, the ferry docks, and much more there will be plenty around you to enjoy. Available Spring 2015.

Diane September 12, 2015 (12:15 pm)

another CL ad for “Your oasis in the city at Fauntleroy”:
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more accurate “Square Footage: 161 – 316”
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so the $950 for one person, $1000 for 2 persons; only 161 sf
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http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/apa/5209094200.html
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“$950 Your oasis in the city at Fauntleroy (West Seattle, Alki, CA Junction, SLU)”

Diane September 12, 2015 (12:17 pm)

“Current pricing starts at $950 for ground level units up to $1500 for top floor corner view units”
~
that $950 is likely for the worst location in the building, and likely the income qualified MFTE rate (for which the developer is exempt from paying property taxes for 12 yrs); $1500 for a micro-unit, without a real kitchen, is OUTRAGEOUS; these developers pushed apodments/microhousing through DPD & City Council, based on the premise of being affordable; write to DPD; write to City Council; write to the Mayor; these are NOT affordable
~
and as pointed out, if you go to “Visit our website fauntleroylofts.com”; you’ll see more fees, including the OUTRAGEOUS “upcharge” of $50 added to the rent for each extra person

Diane September 12, 2015 (12:20 pm)

yep; just one sink provided, because these were permitted under the old apodment/microhousing rules; the new rules require a sink also in the bathroom

Diane September 12, 2015 (12:22 pm)

they are also advertising these falsely on hotpads, as “apartments”, “studios”; these are not real apartments or real studios; these are micro-units, with supposedly “common kitchens” among several “pods” or “rooms”; but ever since these apodments/micros started to proliferate in Seattle, the developers have been falsely advertising them as apartments or studios; and advertising rents comparable to real apts/studios; such a huge scam
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http://hotpads.com/rentals/5949-California-Avenue-SW-Seattle-WA-98136–2cun1kcwqpqec

dcn September 12, 2015 (1:13 pm)

@Dawn, I checked their website, and it looks like there is no sink in the bathroom for either of the 2 floor plans they showed. http://fauntleroylofts.com/features/
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None of us should care, really, about the interiors–it’s only the parking issue that affects the community. But I find I’m fascinated by this, since I can’t believe people will pay ~$1,000 in rent for these. They do offer 6 month leases and the units come completely furnished, so I can see this as a place for people new to Seattle and/or just starting out in the job market who need a place to live until they can move somewhere more permanent.
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Maybe there are those who view this as a long-term home too. I just have a hard time seeing it. When I was new to Seattle and poor, though, I shared a house with 5 people for cheap rent. Many would never do that either.

WSB September 12, 2015 (1:24 pm)

As we reported here https://westseattleblog.com/2014/11/west-seattle-development-microhousing-on-the-move/ (scroll down toward the end) sinks became an issue regarding whether a microhousing unit would or would not be considered a standalone apartment, for purposes of requiring design review, among other things, as the result of a legal fight. This project, however, was grandfathered in under previous code; we first found it in the city online files in May 2013 – https://westseattleblog.com/2013/05/west-seattle-development-1st-microhousing-project-on-california-sw … TR

Baffled September 12, 2015 (3:31 pm)

These are nothing more than permanent dormitory living quarters for permanently indebted recent graduates.

@G – this is happening everywhere, not just West Seattle. Ciao.

WS since '66 September 12, 2015 (4:06 pm)

Been here in WS for 50 years. I am not getting fed up with the people moving here as much as I am with the “locals” bitching about it endlessly. Get over yourselves. The world does not revolve around those who have been her longer.

Sorry, comment time is over.