ROAD WORK: Crew at Westwood Village’s ‘Starbucks sinkhole’

| West Seattle news | Westwood

Thanks for texting the photo! A crew is at work today on what the texter dubbed the “Starbucks sinkhole,” a spot in the parking-lot street surface by Westwood Village‘s standalone Starbucks that we recently described as “undulating.”

(Added: Photo sent by Chris Frankovich)

Some preliminary work was apparently done sometime in the past week, because a few days ago it had a small asphalt patch and was a little less, well, undulating. The center also had sinkhole troubles toward its southwest end, near the J.Crew Factory store. The entire area – including the park to the south – is on a historic peat bog, and the public street between the center and park (SW Barton) is slated for peat removal and repaving sometime soon, as announced earlier this year.

Friend O'Dinghus October 7, 2025 (12:45 pm)

I believe there was a recent hydrology report regarding the health of the peet bog at Roxhill Park, but I haven’t heard anything about the progress or the conclusions of the report itself. Will the SW Barton work incorporate mitigation strategies developed from the hydrology report??

WSB October 7, 2025 (12:52 pm)

Reply

That’s a separate project we’ve been covering for years. I hope to have the next update shortly – there’s an action that’ll be taken at the park later this month.

Rhonda October 7, 2025 (1:10 pm)

Last week my husband and I hiked to the bottom of the crater.

CW October 7, 2025 (1:46 pm)

Related question: just before you get to the 4-way stop sign east of Target in Westwood Village there is a “hole” by the drain in the road that is always wet or has running water. Anyone know where that water is coming from?

WSB October 7, 2025 (1:57 pm)

Reply

That’s the one I mentioned, by J. Crew.

Jethro Marx October 7, 2025 (3:30 pm)

This is the earth telling you to stop covering bogs with impermeable surfaces you’d like to keep flat and stop destroying our urban creek ecology by stuffing them in pipes.

If this mallish commercial village were in a less-poor neighborhood and had a non-sucky design team it could have a creek running through it; investing in the cost associated with that would bring in more shoppers and fill the empty storefronts.

But on the bright side, only about 15% of the parking spots have ever been occupied at once, so there’s plenty of empty, undulating asphalt and that’s something everyone can enjoy!