DEVELOPMENT: Comment time for 3417 Harbor SW apartments

(WSB file photo, 3417 Harbor SW project site)

The next phase of public comment is beginning for the last project seen by the Southwest Design Review Board before in-person meetings were suspended in March (WSB coverage here). It’s 3417 Harbor SW (map), currently described as a “5-story, 115-unit apartment building (with offstreet parking) for 68 vehicles,” on a site that currently holds a house that’s been serving as a commercial office. The project’s land-use application has been formally submitted, so that opens a 2-week comment period (through June 8th); the notice explains how to comment. The project also still has to go through the second phase of Design Review – no timeline for that yet; we’ve been tracking the proposal for more than a year.

25 Replies to "DEVELOPMENT: Comment time for 3417 Harbor SW apartments"

  • Tim May 26, 2020 (11:40 am)

    Quick access-to the bridge….

    • Alki May 26, 2020 (12:48 pm)

      LOL…. in 10 years

  • West Seattle Lurker May 26, 2020 (12:24 pm)

    Are these in the evacuation zone? 

  • west sea neighbor May 26, 2020 (12:24 pm)

    Does the development plan include that parking lot? I always thought that was unbuildable due to utilities running underneath.

  • Jonah May 26, 2020 (12:29 pm)

    Short walk to already full busses…..

  • anonyme May 26, 2020 (12:37 pm)

    It would be nice if the house could be preserved and moved elsewhere, but that wouldn’t fit with the “bulldoze the old, replace asap with cheap & new” mentality that seems to rule the day.

    • WSB May 26, 2020 (1:27 pm)

      Actually if there were a buyer … but even when a firm such as Nickel Bros. offers to “rescue” a house for just the cost of moving, there’s not always a taker.

  • Leo Smith May 26, 2020 (1:18 pm)

    115 units and parking for 68 vehicles.  What could possibly go wrong?

  • Derrick May 26, 2020 (2:39 pm)

    Is that parking spot to unit ratio similar to other developments? I know there are a number of people that frequent the comments section who have a belief that cars are magically going to disappear and nobody should ever drive again, but is this a realistic number of spots? Seems that it will put a strain on the street parking situation down there. 

    • AMD May 26, 2020 (5:32 pm)

      It’s realistic if car owners behave responsibly and purchase housing that includes storage for their vehicles.  There are a lot of people who live in the city and do not own cars.  It is okay to build housing for them, that does not include the added expense of car storage they do not need.  There is still plenty of other housing WITH car storage for those who need it. At the end of the day, availability of street parking or lack thereof is determined by the number of car owners who take responsibility for their own private belongings.

    • Stevie J May 26, 2020 (9:29 pm)

      Let the market decide how much parking should be built. What would your preferred ratio be? Two parking spots per living unit? So they could maybe build 100 homes for cars and 50 homes for people with this scale of project. Sounds like what’s required by law in Los Angeles

      I recently lived in a newer apartment building that had 150 homes for people and 100 homes for cars, and I’d say no more than 70% of the spots were rented. They had to start advertising paid monthly parking to the public because no one used the parking they built. So my rent as a non driver was subsidizing the construction of parking I never used and in the case of many spots, no one used. If street parking is always full maybe we should charge market rate so there are always spots available to those who need them. I’m not sure why there’s a waiting list for public housing for people but the market is flooded with free public housing for cars. 

  • Hahaha May 26, 2020 (4:26 pm)

    This is hilarious. I live on 30th and there is no parking as it is. Bad all around. And the owner of the two modern homes you see, just put his vacant land to the south up for sale that’s up against Admiral. So more development coming to that corner. I’ve given up. Have at it developers! SMH. Lol! 

    • Kram May 26, 2020 (5:01 pm)

      What are you giving up on? Is the problem of a critical housing shortage now solved? I don’t get why people get so upset with other people building places to live. Meanwhile you live in a place someone built and that one was fine. Maybe someone objected to it? What’s funny is the hypocrisy of sitting in your own home/apartment/condo and judging these new ones.

      • Drew May 26, 2020 (7:45 pm)

        There’s not adaquate infrastructure to support additional building and increase in human/car population there, pretty sure that’s all people are getting at. If you’re familiar with that teeny tiny residential pocket it’s not that hard to understand neighboring concerns. 

      • Hahahahaha May 26, 2020 (9:54 pm)

        *Yawn* yep. You don’t live in this neighborhood do you. Thought so! Super quick to try and shame me. Bet you my life you wouldn’t want this next to you in your home. Oh and BTW My house has been here since the dawn of time so nah, no hypocrisy here. Smell ya later tater! 

      • Jason May 27, 2020 (7:00 am)

        This solves nothing. There will ALWAYS be a “critical housing” shortage because traffic is horrible in the region, and no one wants to have to commute because of that.  Not because they feel good about the environment and don’t want to own a car. Guaranteed 95% of the people who live there will have vehicles. 115 units? That’s going to be at least 180 people living there.  So 171 vehicles.  For 68 parking spots.  😐 This is the city’s own nightmare they are contributing to. 

        • Kram May 27, 2020 (12:56 pm)

          Are you implying that we stop building apartments? You do realize how many people are moving to Seattle every year right? 15k-20k depending on the year. Where in the world are those people supposed to move? Traffic is terrible but the way it gets better is to continue to grow as a city and fund large infrastructure and better public transit solutions.  People will take light rail from West Seattle, it will happen. In the meantime people need places to go. These are private projects. If the demand was not there it they wouldn’t get built.

          • Ice May 27, 2020 (1:44 pm)

            Also de-incentivizing people from owning a car will definitely reduce traffic, and not having a dedicated parking spot is definitely a disincentive. Bad traffic and and an abundance of free parking go hand in hand. Look at LA.

        • John May 27, 2020 (1:01 pm)

          Jason might want to correlate his guarantee to the facts.  “study done by Capitol Hill Housing found in the Capitol Hill neighborhood the residential overnight vacancy rate was as high as 33% in some buildings. That figure is similar to the findings of a Metro parking study, which found that approximately 35% of residential parking spaces were not in use in the 95 Seattle buildings the transit agency sampled.”Forcing parking place construction adds millions to construction costs that renters without cars do not want to pay for.  If they drive, they are in the same boat as everyone else that does not use their garage and parks on the street for free.  The solution is to monetize all street parking.  

    • Eddie May 26, 2020 (6:05 pm)

      if there’s such a demand for parking, why don’t you buy the lot and put in paid parking,  you’d make a mint!

  • Js May 26, 2020 (4:30 pm)

    Bridges? ? We dont need no stinkin bridges!

  • Bradley May 26, 2020 (8:35 pm)

    COMING SOON: at least 47 more vehicles parked on Harbor SW.

  • anonyme May 27, 2020 (7:30 am)

    WSB, point taken.  I suppose that the house move might be almost affordable, but purchasing a lot to place it on might not be.

  • I. Ponder May 27, 2020 (12:06 pm)

    Perfect place for people to live who want to commute by bus, ebike, or human powered bicycle. Bike shop right across the street. Not everyone wants to drive, wants to own a car, is able to drive. People who must own a car won’t live there.

  • Laura B June 6, 2020 (8:37 am)

    Hi Neighbors! Please leave your comments on the City’s public response page! These need to be heard officially by the city and the city planner!Here’s how to find information about the proposed 5-story apartment building on the corner of Harbor Ave & 30th street: http://web6.seattle.gov/dpd/edms/?fbclid=IwAR0rpIpp7VkwPbrkstH4CfE4wMutINBl8Cdvv0ElLnkg65–KZO8_r_4JY8Enter Record number: 3035986-LUHere’s the folks to email:PRC@seattle.gov*City Planner for project– crystal.torres@seattle.govLead architect– michelle@atelierdrome.com

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