Looking for advice to buy a house near terminal 5

[new_seattlite]

Hello West Seattle Community,

I and my wife are considering to buy a place on Harbor Ave W facing terminal 5. We saw mountains of gravel on terminal 5 near the place that we are considering. Based on my research so far, I believe it’s for the construction of terminal 5 but feel free to correct me if I am wrong. I have a few questions and will appreciate if the community on this blog can help us:

1) What are the (a) short-term and (b) long-term implications of this project can be for people living very close to the terminal? Short-term means while construction is on-going for the next couple of years and long-term once this terminal 5 is functional (i.e., traffic, ship/docking noise).

2) What is the potential impact of this on real estate properties? During construction and while terminal 5 being functional in the future, will this have a negative impact on the properties that will be very close to the terminal? I know its a hard question to answer but I would love to take an opinion from the community here.

In the end, would you recommend me not to pursue this as my first house for a young couple who are expecting a baby soon? Or you think this project shouldn’t have any impact on my decision of buying this place.

Will appreciate your response. thanks.

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[CarDriver]

A friend rented a condo on Harbor Ave for a while. It was the first building north of the bridge on the west side of the street. His big complaint while living there was the noise from the cars on Spokane street plus the regular traffic noise(and summer traffic) on Harbor Ave. It was annoying enough that he moved to a quieter area. With the terminal being developed noise will be something to consider.

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[mark47n]

If you are referring to the piles of gravel that are just to the S of the workspaces that look like storage units those are always there and are not related to T5. Generally T5 is accessed at the intersection of Spokane, Chelan and Delridge (I think I got that right, it’s the 300 way intersection) and I can’t see why that would change for the modernization project.

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[new_seattlite]

@mark47n

thanks for sharing your thoughts. Any specific thoughts on the impact of terminal 5 construction project on the community living very close to it like Harbor Ave SW?

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[mark47n]

I presume most of the traffic related to construction of the terminal will access it through the main entrance over by the Chelan. It’s wider and more suited. The parts off of Harbor are largely partitioned off and may or may not actually be a part of T-5.

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[CarDriver]

Doubt Harbor ave. will see much, if any effect. mark47n is correct that most-if not all of the constuction equipment will come and go on the east side-to the north of the Chelan cafe. There is also access from lower Spokane street. I’ve seen the fence moved and vehicles come and go occasionally. During construction, and opperation the question will be noise. Could very well be a 24/7 opperation.

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[Coach Stephanie]

Hi there,

I live in a condo on Harbor Ave facing terminal 5, and I haven’t noticed too much more noise that’s directly related to the construction. However, between the rail cars going back and forth to the Nucor plant, and summer traffic to/from Alki, the overall noise level is definitely noticeable, especially in the summer. There’s also quite a bit of grit in the air – certainly more than I’ve noticed in other places I’ve lived. All that being said though, if you can install an air conditioner and keep the windows closed, it isn’t too bad.

Good luck!

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[Don_Brubeck]

Here’s a link to the Port’s Terminal 5 environmental impact statement (EIS) for the project.

The “piles of gravel” up against the fence are slag piles from the Nucor steel plant.

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