Whole lot of new “no parking” signs in the eastern section of The Junction, and part of The Triangle. Here’s what they’re about:
SW ALASKA RECHANNELIZATION FOR RAPIDRIDE: After seeing the “no parking allowed as of June 4th” signs along SW Alaska today, we checked with SDOT to confirm that they’re for the upcoming “rechannelization” related to the approaching start of RapidRide bus service. Yes, they are, said SDOT’s Marybeth Turner, but – the date on them “is now incorrect,” she said, so “they will be removed. We don’t want to restrict parking before all the elements are in place, and before we have the stretch of fair weather that we need to apply the required pavement markings, which will be sometime in June. … Starting Monday, crews plan to begin installing permanent “no parking” signs that will be hooded until the parking restriction is implemented.” She also sent this copy of a flyer handed out to area businesses. If you missed earlier coverage of the rechannelization – it will remove more than half the street parking along SW Alaska between 35th and California (60 of 107 spaces), while adding a transit lane (more explanation, here). When the work starts, SDOT’s project manager Mike Ward has said, it’ll take about four days for the restriping work.
Not related, but happening less than a block north of SW Alaska:
CONSTRUCTION IMMINENT FOR OREGON 42: Two weeks ago, we noted a fence had gone up around the future site of the mixed-use building Oregon 42 at 42nd/Oregon, and checked in with the site’s San Diego-based owners/developers, who told us (here’s our May 18th story) that demolition of the 3 homes remaining on the site (including the two in our photo) was indeed soon to start, segueing immediately into excavation and construction. Today, the fence was moved out to the edge of the sidewalk, which is now closed along the site on the east side of 42nd SW, and “No Parking Mondays-Fridays 7 am-4 pm” signs are attached; in an even more telltale sign of imminent construction, the Honey Bucket arrived today, too. We’ll be on the lookout for the start of demolition.
After an hour and 20 minutes and just four members of the public commenting, board members gave their approval for the proposal to move on to the next review round, which also means the project team can apply for a key city permit.
Two of the commenters were a resident and manager from Mural, the three-year-old building immediately east of this project’s site; the board also heard from Rich Koehler, whose thoughts on the project were featured in this WSB story, and from Rene Commons, a community advocate and Junction Neighborhood Organization member who had also been active in speaking out during the Design Review process for the ex-Conner/Equity Residential project on the boards for California/Alaska/42nd, north of this one and Mural.
Key points of discussion: Whether the building’s upper stories will be set back enough that, from the California SW streetfront, it will not appear to be a 7-story building; also, the width and character of the “midblock crossing” on the north side of the building, envisioned to connect with the passageway alongside Mural, and to the crosswalk on California.
(Developers’ preferred ‘massing’ proposal, which includes to the north the massing of the future Equity Residential development)
Since the proposal for The Junction’s ex-Petco site at 4724 California has drawn so much interest (first report here; followup with development-team leaders here; followup with prospective owner here, first look at concept/massing here), we thought some might want one more reminder that the first Southwest Design Review Board meeting is tomorrow (Thursday) night. It’s scheduled for 6:30 pm at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way SW); if you’re driving, and have never been there, note that its parking lot (accessible from just north of the historic schoolhouse) is not that huge, but there’s street parking along Delridge in front, and alongside the park across the street, with a crosswalk at SW Genesee and a pedestrian overpass further south. Public comment IS allowed and welcomed in the Design Review process, but you will hear the board remind you that it needs to stick to design aspects – to find out more about that, you can read the city’s “Community Guide to Design Review.” You can review the “early design guidance” version of the project proposal by going here (PDF).
The long-languishing, almost-complete building on the southeast corner of 35th and Avalon not only has a new contractor, as the banner says, it has a new owner.
The Daily Journal of Commerce reported today (thanks to Diane for the tip) – and online records confirm – that it was purchased a month ago by an entity of Chicago-headquartered Randolph Street Realty Capital, whose website touts its expertise in buying “distressed,” “unfinished,” and otherwise-challenged sites.
Four and a half years have passed since work started at the site that was once to be part of the eventually killed Seattle Monorail route. It was owned at the time by fugitive developer Michael Mastro; the project stalled in 2009, as Mastro’s money troubles mounted. Two years ago, a Bellevue company bought it for $4 million and announced it would finish the mixed-use building; the new owners are paying almost $7.3 million. According to a webpage for the project set up by its previous owner, the building has 60 apartments and 122 parking spaces.
It’s the second Chicago-based firm to recently buy into West Seattle development in a big way, after Equity Residential bought the former Conner site on the southeast corner of California/Alaska, and in fact, both of Randolph Street’s principals are former Equity Residential managers. Meantime, the potential completion of that building isn’t the only change ahead for that area; there are signs of work starting soon on the 120-unit 3261 Avalon Way project, and right across the street, three apartment buildings are for sale: Terrace Villa (36 units for $5.3 million), Westridge (26 units for just under $4 million), and Avalon West (same size/price as Westridge).
Though the development slowdown has meant not many Southwest Design Review Board meetings the past few years, the board now has two on the calendar.
(Sketch described as development team’s preferred ‘concept’ – click image for larger view) 4724 CALIFORNIA: We told you 3 weeks ago about the meeting date for this Junction project, so this is just a reminder – Thursday night, 6:30 pm, Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way SW), is the first design review for the proposed 100-or-so-unit development at the ex-Petco site in The Junction. Last Thursday, we brought you the first look at concept sketches that the project team has shown to community members in advance of the formal meetings, as well as the “massing” – size/shape – options in the “packet” put together for Design Review (see it here).
Today, we have two views of the ex-Petco site’s potential 7-story future. One is in a set of sketches from the development team – to whom we spoke for stories published here on April 20th and April 30th, following up first word of the plan four weeks ago, as well as the latest version of the packet for next week’s meeting (see it here). Above is the project team’s “preferred” early-concept sketch.
We also have what you might call a packet of “alternative” concepts put together by one of the community members who recently previewed the early sketches in their first round of unofficial community meetings. He wonders what you think about HIS design guidelines.
(Tuesday evening photo by WSB’s Patrick Sand)
One year after a new plan was circulated for Oregon 42 – the mixed-use building at 42nd SW/SW Oregon in The Junction that’s been in the works for four and a half years – construction is about to begin. We confirmed that this morning with Mike Mahoney from ConAm, the San Diego company that is developing the 131-unit building; we called for an update after getting word that the construction fence had gone up around the site (photo above).
It’s a four-lot site; three houses will be demolished, probably starting next week, according to Mahoney. The fourth lot formerly held the house that was moved to another site in an operation that created something of a spectacle in summer 2010. (The site also made news here in March when one of the remaining houses was used for SWAT-team training.) Here’s one of the Oregon 42 renderings circulated last year, when the number of apartments was increased and the amount of retail decreased (now 3,000 square feet):
(That’s Hope Lutheran at the lower left, Capco Plaza – QFC & Altamira – at upper right.) Mahoney says the plan hasn’t changed since the revised version was made public last year. But now they’re ready to proceed. Once demolition begins, he says, “that’s really going to kick off the full construction – we will move right into excavation and shoring work.” He expects the construction crane to go up in about two months, and the project to be complete after about 16 months of work – which would mean fall of next year. SD Deacon is the general contractor; Junction-based Nicholson Kovalchick Architects joined the project before last year’s round of publicized changes, but was not involved when the project was first proposed back in 2008. This project, by the way, is among those in West Seattle granted the city’s Multi-Family Tax Exemption (see the agreement, finalized by the City Council last year, here), for agreeing that 20 percent of the units will have what the city deems “affordable rents” accessible to people slightly below the median income.
Two other major apartment projects are under construction in West Seattle right now – Youngstown Flats in North Delridge, and Harbor/Urban’s 62-unit Nova in The Triangle – and others are on the drawing board, including two within just a few blocks, the Equity Residential project at California/Alaska, and 4724 California, which has its first Design Review Board meeting one week from tomorrow.
(2011 WSB photo of ‘The Hole’)
Once Trader Joe’s opened on the northeast corner of 39th/Fauntleroy/Alaska, the “what will we all talk about NOW?” attention turned, for some, to the northwest side of the intersection, home to “The Hole,” the project known as Fauntleroy Place when it was excavated and then entangled in a court fight. That battle ended with a settlement that resulted in a foreclosure auction last October, with 3922 SW Alaska LLC as the only bidder – an entity of Madison Development. Since then, though, nary a word about what Madison – which recently completed the Element 42 apartments east of Admiral Safeway – intends to do with “The Hole.”
For quite some time, we tried to find out through the PR agency that had been speaking for Madison. They said they’d see what they could find out – but no updates ensued. Finally today, while working on various followups, we tried contacting Madison’s Tom Lee directly. His reply was short, but full of promise:
We are still working very hard on the project and hope to have an update for you soon.
In our Monday followup on 4724 California, the 7-story, 100-unit mixed-use project proposed for the ex-Petco site in The Junction, we reported that the development team hoped to have its first Southwest Design Review Board session on May 24th. Today, the city’s online schedule has been updated, and that is indeed the date set for the meeting – 6:30 pm Thursday, May 24th, at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way SW).
Most significantly, the development/ownership team continues to circulate for conversations with community leaders, as they were doing before we even found out about the proposal. West Seattle business-community members met with the development team last week. This time in addition to the “on the ground” Seattle team members from Urban Evolution (who talked with us for an April 20th followup), the group included Peter Wolff of The Wolff Company, the privately held firm that’s buying the site and funding the development.
The morning after that meeting, he sat down for an interview with WSB, in which he explained, among other things, why he believes his company is “the right firm to do this”:
So insist Chris Rossman and Matt Corsi of Urban Evolution, who spent almost an hour and a half talking with WSB this afternoon as a followup to our Thursday story breaking the news that this development is in the works – albeit in the very early stages, with the city webpages we mentioned last night little more than placeholders..
In every story we’ve published about the ex-Petco site in The Junction (4700 block of California), it’s been noted that the quirky Sound Advertising Group setup there – an office staff and ex-pizza-place animatronics! – isn’t there for the long haul. So why didn’t the owner seek someone who is? many have asked. Here’s the likely reason: A development proposal.
New construction of a 7-story mixed-use building with approximately 80 residential apartment units, 18 L/W units, approximately 5,000 gsf of commercial space at ground level, and two level subgrade parking.
L/W is “live/work,” an increasingly popular development component – dozens of live/work units are open now on the north side of Morgan Junction, for example, with a variety of small businesses at ground level (some have moved there from elsewhere in West Seattle, like longtime WSB sponsor John Moore and his Northwest Insurance Group). Other details on the DPD page note that this is for “Lots 10-14,” which county records identify specifically as the ex-Petco building, so – pending further research – it doesn’t appear other parts of the block are involved, but we’re investigating further.
There’s not much other detail on the DPD webpages yet – not unusual for an early-stage proposal, and it should be noted that sometimes proposals appear and never come to fruition. There is an architect listed – Weber Thompson (which worked on the California/Alaska project) – and “ownership” is listed as The Wolff Company, an Arizona-based, Spokane-founded firm whose website is currently down but does have a cached description: “Acquiring, developing and managing investment real estate with a focus on multi-family properties.” They’re not currently listed in county records as owning the site, but we’ll be contacting them to try to find out more. (Looks like they have a sizable project going in Snohomish County.) Followups to come.
4:47 PM: Thanks to Peter, in comments, for pointing out that The Wolff Company is in the early stages of a Capitol Hill project, and actively seeking neighborhood feedback there. Here’s the story from our fellow community-collaborative neighborhood-news site, Capitol Hill Seattle.::minutes later:: Taking cues from something mentioned in the CHS story, we have found a fledgling website for this project – 4724California.com – which includes a contact link and the slogan, “West Seattle Authentic.”
About 5 months into construction, we have a few updates from the developers of Youngstown Flats – the almost-200-unit building going up at 26th/Dakota in North Delridge, the biggest project under construction in West Seattle right now. For one, their design for turning the “right of way” across 26th (newest version here) into a parklet of sorts won Seattle Design Commission approval, required because they need a Street Use Permit from the city. For two, the sculpture above has been chosen for installation along 26th near the building’s main-lobby entrance (it’s “Continuity” by Jan Hoy), and another RFP for more art is going out. Last but not least, if you’re interested in more info before they open in a year or so, the project finally has an official website.
(A design rendering shown at the March 8th SW Design Review Board meeting)
Tomorrow’s the day the Washington State Housing Finance Commission will look at the tax-credit financing proposed to comprise most of the money for DESC‘s 66-unit Delridge Supportive Housing project. Full details are on the Delridge Community Forum website, but to summarize it: This funding would allow private investment in the project, with the private investor(s) getting Low-Income Housing Tax Credits in exchange. The project (5444 Delridge Way SW) already has been approved for public funding from the city, county, and state. The Thursday meeting, which includes a public-comment period (other ways to comment are explained on the DCF site), is at 1 pm, downtown at 1000 Second Avenue (28th floor).
In advance of the meeting, the anonymous “Concerned Delridge Neighbor” who has been diving into some of the issues the project has raised – such as, is Delridge already bearing more than its share of very-low-income housing? – published an open letter to the WSHFC, with data about the area’s poverty. (If you have already been following this via the North Delridge mailing list, where questions were raised about the data’s accuracy/source, note that “Concerned Delridge Neighbor” has published a postscript citing the source.)
(WSB photo of Mural, completed and opened in 2009) By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
The new combined entity that includes what was Harbor Properties, developer/owner of the Link and Mural mixed-use buildings in West Seattle (both WSB sponsors), confirms they’re in talks to sell both buildings.
Since that time, at least two citywide publications have reported that Mural had been sold – but in reality, it was a transfer to one of the entities with which Harbor is now merged, as part of the deal.
Our conference-call interview this afternoon – following the circulation of an official news release – included Harbor Properties president/CEO Doug Daley, as well as Matt Burton of Urban Partners and Jim Atkins, managing director of the newly named Harbor Urban LLC.
They say the deal, a purchase of Harbor more than a merger, is virtually complete.
“We started evaluating a couple years ago ways to provide a return to our shareholders,” Daley explained. “The new, combined company (will) be able to do more of the same thing Harbor’s been doing” – primarily mixed-use “infill” development on lots within urban areas, as was the case on Link (4550 38th SW) and Mural (4727 42nd SW).
(Click for larger image)
The date is finally set for the Seattle Design Commission to hear from the developers of Youngstown Flats (the almost-200-unit project under construction at 26th/Dakota in North Delridge). But when they make their presentation to the SDC at 9 am this Thursday (in the Boards and Commissions Room at City Hall downtown), it won’t be about the building – it’s about the greenspace across 26th SW, which is actually a city-owned “street end.” The rendering above is what they hope to do to change it from a grassy lot, which you might not realize leads to a stairway down to Longfellow Creek, into a “green, inviting space,” as they explained earlier in the project. They are seeking a street-use permit to enable that, and that’s why the project is going before the Design Commission, which is required to review proposals for using city right-of-way as something other than traditional streets/sidewalks. P.S. The public is welcome at commission meetings, and is offered a chance to comment, too.
Quick topline as a 3 3/4-hour Southwest Design Review Board meeting wraps up: DESC‘s Delridge Supportive Housing project won a unanimous board vote recommending design approval, with a variety of conditions; the first project on the night’s agenda, what turns out to be a 2-phase, 43-unit-total project on 20th SW in South Delridge, will advance from Early Design Guidance to the second round.
Just back from an errand in The Junction, during which we happened onto two unrelated but notable things:
BREEZEWAY REPAIRS: The Junction’s south breezeway – between Puerto Vallarta and Northwest Art and Frame – is closed today (and possibly longer; we’re expecting an update later from Liz with the West Seattle Junction Association). A pipe problem has to be fixed. So if you’re parking in the 44th SW lot behind that area, you’ll either have to use a business’s back door, or walk around via Edmunds. (4:17 PM NOTE: The breezeway is expected to be closed for 4-5 days.)
SURVEY CREW: In case you wondered: The one that was working on the west side of California, around the SW Alaska intersection, says their work is on behalf of the new property owners on the southeast side of that intersection (Equity Residential, which, as first reported here in January, expects to start construction this year at the site they bought in December from Conner Homes).
Got $3,950,000? You can own a third of an acre at 1311-1325 Harbor SW, across from Don Armeni, described as “ASTONISHING views directly across Elliott Bay to Seattle. 6 contiguous lots with commercial, multifamily zoning. Unobstructed view corridor in perpetuity.” We spotted the listing online first, then noticed the sign when we went over today for a photo.
The six lots include the Alki Tavern, a vacant lot, a century-old house (photo right), and offices (photo left) used by Salty’s, which county records list as the land’s owner. Though this website describes the listing as new – and we can verify it wasn’t there, as recently as three days ago (the physical sign is new too) – the listing agent’s site says it’s been on the market for eight months. (Other versions of the listing online have a lower price, $3,595,000.) The site is zoned for commercial/multifamily development up to 65 feet.
(Harbor Properties’ year-old Link, 38th between Alaska and Fauntleroy)
One of the highest-profile development companies to build in West Seattle in recent years is merging with another company. Harbor Properties‘ merger with Los Angeles-headquartered Urban Partners was first reported this morning by the Puget Sound Business Journal, and we just spoke with Harbor executive Denny Onslow to find out what this means for the company’s West Seattle properties, mixed-use (apartment/retail) Link in The Triangle and Mural in The Junction (both WSB sponsors), plus all-apartment under-construction Nova (4600 37th SW).
That rusty industrial building at 28th and Yancy often pronounced an “eyesore” is about to come down, we’ve learned, after noticing a demolition permit was granted Monday for the building, and silo, just south of Allstar Fitness. A few years back, it was supposed to come down as part of a development project that was shelved; there’s no active development plan now, so we went over to find out more in person. A worker at the site told us the building and silo will be razed – probably within days – for a “parking lot.” (Whose parking lot, we’re still checking – certainly parking can be a crunch in the area, with Allstar, Nucor, and Longfellow Creek in the area.) A crew is doing prep work at the site right now.
The big construction crane is indeed going up right now at the 193-unit Youngstown Flats project. 26th SW will be blocked between SW Yancy and Dakota till the work is done at some point this afternoon. We talked with developer Maria Barrientos at the site; she said it’s scheduled to be done by day’s end (only one piece remained when we left around noon, in fact). The crane is expected to be on site for four months.
This week, we’re likely to learn a lot more about what’s envisioned for the 
Most significantly, the development/ownership team continues to circulate for conversations with community leaders, as they were doing before we even found out about the proposal. West Seattle business-community members met with the development team last week. This time in addition to the “on the ground” Seattle team members from 
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