DEVELOPMENT: 3084 Avalon Way microapartments approved

(From December 2018 design packet by Cone Architecture)

From today’s city-circulated Land Use Information Bulletin, notice of final approval for the 35-microapartment (“small efficiency dwelling units”) project planned at 3084 SW Avalon Way [map]. It’s planned as a 7-story building with no offstreet parking. We’ve been tracking this project through the system since fall 2017; today’s notice opens a 2-week appeal period and explains how to file one (see the notice here; see the full decision here).

37 Replies to "DEVELOPMENT: 3084 Avalon Way microapartments approved"

  • Vanessa July 22, 2019 (12:46 pm)

    Groundhog Day.

  • hj July 22, 2019 (12:50 pm)

    I will save us some time and summarize the discussion that’s about to happen:A: Microapartments are inhumane, who would ever use them?B: Well sometimes people don’t need their own private kitchen so it’s pointless for them to pay for oneC: But won’t someone think about the parking?D: Just commute by bike, it works for me therefore it will work for youE: This building style is ugly, only buildings imitating the craftsman style from 1895-1932 should ever be allowedF: This is the last straw, I’m leaving West Seattle, bye!

    • Airwolf July 22, 2019 (1:46 pm)

      HJ – Brilliant

    • KM July 22, 2019 (1:56 pm)

      You forgot to use “greedy developers!” Does anyone know what’s going on with The Hydrant? ;-)

    • sw July 22, 2019 (2:30 pm)

      You also forgot how much we love the viaduct and how it should be retrofitted.

    • HappyCamper July 22, 2019 (2:32 pm)

      HA! Bravo! Well done. 

    • Peter July 22, 2019 (2:37 pm)

      Yep. The usual discussion of any housing built in Seattle.  

    • HS July 22, 2019 (3:14 pm)

      chuckle chuckle chuckle

      • Mike R July 22, 2019 (4:21 pm)

        Wow way to take the wind out of a bunch of conplainer’s sails. /s thanks for the afternoon laugh. I needed it. :)

    • Chris d July 22, 2019 (8:25 pm)

      Thank you for this. So true.

  • Nolan July 22, 2019 (1:04 pm)

    I’m glad to see more micro-apartments springing up. The only way to fix the housing crisis is to build more housing — or intentionally tank the city’s economy, but weirdly, you don’t see anyone proposing that — and they’re a fantastic way of serving the people that would rather have lower rent than space they don’t actually need.

    • Just wondering July 22, 2019 (2:03 pm)

      Would that be 2 people in 150 sq. feet?

    • D July 22, 2019 (3:04 pm)

      I agree Nolan! I think it’s awesome to have microapartments available at cheaper prices than a regular size apartment that would need roommates to afford. I’ve used them when I was in Japan and it’s practical, and humane to live independently.

    • coffeedude July 22, 2019 (4:03 pm)

      However has anyone looked at the cost of micro housing?  The majority of homeless people cannot 1. pass a credit check, 2. afford the rent, most rent well over 1k a month.  I agree they serve a purpose, however, they are generally ugly as is this one, and they still are not serving any purpose for lower income people.

    • ITotallyAgreeWithYou July 22, 2019 (4:11 pm)

      Don’t fool yourself. Per square foot, SEDUs are the most expensive way to live in Seattle.

      • Nolan July 22, 2019 (7:22 pm)

        Why do you think price “per square foot” is at all relevant to micro-apartments? Who rents apartments by the square foot? (Who leases apartments by the square foot?)

      • Erithan July 22, 2019 (7:36 pm)

        They cost so much more to make With things like the custom furniture needed.A senior or disabled person wouldn’t not be able to afford them either aside from homeless.

  • ARPigeonPoint July 22, 2019 (2:00 pm)

    HJ, that was perfect!

  • Tomas July 22, 2019 (2:39 pm)

    I’m not sure that a $1,200 per month micro apartment is going to help anyone but the landlords.    We’ve already built micro apartments in Ballard, Capital Hill, etc…..tell me if those neighborhoods are drastically more affordable because those units were built there.

    • Nolan July 22, 2019 (3:03 pm)

      Ah, the old “we built 30 units and demand increased by 100 units, therefore the 30 units were a waste” argument.

    • WSB July 22, 2019 (3:05 pm)

      For the record, West Seattle has pre-existing microapartments as well. Further west on Avalon (two buildings by the 7-11), one on Delridge, one on California north of Morgan Junction, to name a few. Also another in progress on Avalon, at 3050.

  • HS July 22, 2019 (3:17 pm)

    I found this interesting. It’s taken from an article in the NTY today. I thought the “average living space per person” in various cities might be appropriate.

    • ITotallyAgreeWithYou July 22, 2019 (5:11 pm)

      When you read the entire article, it mirrors what’s happening here. Cost of living too high, wages too low, not enough affordable housing because the government caters to the elite, people unable to move out of the parent’s home or having to share housing or live in too tiny apartments. Residents of Hong Kong are no more accepting of living in 160sq than we are. 

  • Rick July 22, 2019 (3:56 pm)

    Motorhomes for all!

  • The King July 22, 2019 (4:05 pm)

    This makes me want to partition the basement. I could make 10 grand a month. 

  • Michael Waldo July 22, 2019 (4:43 pm)

    These policies completely ignore the working class/blue collar folks who need a vehicle to do their jobs. If you are a carpenter, house painter, drywaller, plumber, landscaper, roofer, house cleaner and so on, you need a vehicle. It is like saying no working class people need to live in Seattle. Reducing cars in the city is not a solution to climate change. Not when we have cargo ships belching out exhaust, Seatac airplanes, UPS trucks, the cement plant in Southpark (a major polluter) and delivery trucks of all kinds. 

    • Nolan July 22, 2019 (5:17 pm)

      You’re going to be in for a treat when you discover that we can have (at least) two different types of housing and work on two different solutions to one problem, all at the same time. It’s a world full of opportunity.

    • Jort July 22, 2019 (6:43 pm)

      Incorrect, Michael Waldo! If we took every passenger vehicle off the road right now, we would IMMEDIATELY see a 53 percent decrease in carbon emissions in the city.  Your car — yes! Yours! — is directly responsible for being part of Seattle’s largest contributor to carbon emissions, which is private passenger automobiles. I know how much easier it is to blame everything else (boats, airplanes, cows, etc.) for carbon emissions, but all you’re doing is shifting your personal responsibility for destroying the planet onto things you don’t think you can control. If you’d like to learn more about this topic, please visit this link and read: https://www.seattle.gov/Documents/Departments/OSE/ClimateDocs/2016_SEA_GHG_Inventory_FINAL.pdfAlso, I want to clear something up about the Southpark cement plant. Emissions related to cement have dropped 27 percent since 2014. Yet personal, private automobile emissions INCREASED during the same amount of time. In any case, cement is responsible for 6 percent of our emissions. You and your neighbors cars and SUVs are responsible for 53 percent. 

    • KM July 22, 2019 (9:27 pm)

      Thank you for pointing out that not only do we need to get out of cars to address climate change, but we need to consume less stuff too. 

  • Bradley July 22, 2019 (5:34 pm)

    It should be illegal to build apartment buildings without one off-street parking space per unit.

  • MJ July 22, 2019 (6:38 pm)

    Micro housing rents are typically less than a grand a month.  A frugal person working FT should be able to afford to live in one of these facilites.  

  • second that July 22, 2019 (7:03 pm)

    It seems apparent that none of the commenters here actually live on Avalon. No skin in the game – perhaps you should keep your condesention to yourself. Those of us that do live here are not interested in your self-righteous opinions.

    • Nolan July 23, 2019 (2:37 pm)

      Then what are you doing in the comment section?

  • TJ July 22, 2019 (7:30 pm)

    These boxes are only acceptable to a small percentage of people, and for a short term solution. It appears to be hard for some to realize that living in the city isn’t possible for everyone. The bar has been set for developers on return, so understand they will never build housing to drive down prices. Anyone hoping for a new 2 bedroom apartment (which are hardly being built now I might add) at $1500 are living in a dream. City government never was meant to build housing, yet trying to get involved only makes it worse. And the cars and carbon emissions thing is getting old. My 3 vehicles all run cleaner than what my parents drove in the 1970’s, and they are only getting cleaner with electric technology. Cars aren’t going away 

    • Tsurly July 23, 2019 (11:20 am)

      No, cars are not going away. They cannot because they are, by choice, perpetually stuck in traffic!

  • michael Waldo July 23, 2019 (10:50 am)

    It is nice that all you radical car shamers can bike or bus to your work. Tell me how someone gets their extension ladder, lawn mower, air compressor for their nail gun, 6×8 foot piece of sheetrock and other work supplies on a bike or bus. You are basically saying stay out of Seattle, you are not welcome to live here. Or tell me, who uses a cane to walk, and has badly functioning knees should give up my car and just stay home.

    • Nolan July 23, 2019 (1:55 pm)

      Your argument is exactly the same as it was yesterday (and on this same article!), which is a shame because it hasn’t aged well. Are you really not capable of understanding that different people have different needs, and different kinds of housing serve different groups of people?

Sorry, comment time is over.