[ Site 17 North, at Western Ave. and Wall St. in Belltown ] I like it. Because, unlike Belltown Court (see previous post), there is life and vision in its design, from the massing and form, down to the detailing. A big reason why so many people react negatively to new development is the lack […]
Artspace, the folks who developed Tashiro Kaplan Artist Lofts in Pioneer Square, are just finishing their second Seattle project, Hiawatha Lofts, a block southeast of Rainier Ave. and Dearborn St. The building houses 61 low-income artists lofts, 5000 square feet of retail space, and 54 underground parking stalls. Designed by SMR Architects, who specialize in […]
by Wendell Berry, published 31 years ago: ‘It is no doubt impossible to live without thought of the future; hope and vision can live nowhere else. But the only possible guarantee of the future is responsible behavior in the present. When supposed future needs are used to justify misbehavior in the present, as is the […]
Not. But would anyone be that surprised if at some point in the not too distant future it was officially renamed the Starbucks Hammering Man? Regarding Seattle Coffee Works: they are serving up some serious espresso. On that funky block on Pike between 1st and 2nd, right next door to the obnoxious 50’s rock and […]
[ Rendering: Group Architect ] Like a hornet. Like a crayola crayon. Pure, saturated, unapologetic yellow. Five uninterrupted stories of it, no less. And, OMG, it’s right next to traditional brick apartment buildings on both sides. Seattle, are you going to stand for it, this boldness, this blatant disrespect for context? This happy yellow thing […]
Here’s another Ballard monstrosity just being completed on 24th, right next to the huge hole where the QFC used to be. It’s silly name, NO-MA, is supposed to mean “North of Market.” Ask yourself this. How plainly stupid would you feel telling people you lived in a building called NO-MA in the first place? But […]
That is some sweet etched glass creeping up the side of the Olive 8 Hyatt Hotel/condo project at 8th and Olive downtown. The fade of the etch makes it look like the building is framed with massive white tubes — I like it. When completed, the 39-story tower’s relatively high floor-to-floor spacing will push it […]
But will they go down in flames? Based on their web portfolio, the design/build firm has yet to produce a building more than three stories tall. Yet within the past month they have unveiled plans for a 440-foot residential tower, as well as the 24-story hotel/condo project shown in the rendering above. As for midrise, […]
[ A lunch I had in Bellevue last weekend to celebrate a rare visit to the Eastside. After I ordered one Big Mac, the guy working behind the counter asked if I wanted two for the price of one, and I said, “are you offering me a free Big Mac?” and he said yes, so […]
[ Interbay; North is to the right ] As reported in the Seattle PI today, and in the Seattle Times back in January, pretty much everyone* agrees that upzoning the Interbay district is a good idea. Interbay, which is not an official neighborhood, is a chunk of neglected land just south of the Ballard Bridge, […]
[ Preferred option for the proposed new Safeway building in Pinehurst ] As is clear in the site plan above, the proposed (big pdf) new Safeway in Seattle’s Pinehurst neighborhood is the standard suburban model — a single-use, single-story big box grocery store next to a sea of surface parking. An urban community that possessed […]
[ Seneca St. and Minor Ave. on First Hill ] I like this building because it’s purple. Our City lacks purple. I can think of only one other large building in Seattle that has a lot of purple on it, and that’s Site 17 condos at 2440 Western Ave. in Belltown. The Epicenter in Fremont […]
Governor Gregoire is going to beat King County Executive Ron Sims to it: the State legislature just passed House Bill 2815, which establishes reduction targets for C02 emissions as well as strategies for achieving these reductions. Meanwhile the City of Seattle, whose Mayor is noted for spearheading the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, has not […]
[ Rendering of Kinects Apartments at 1823 Minor Ave. ] If you’ve been wondering how much the Seattle market has shifted from condos to apartments, check out this mountainous list of new and proposed downtown apartment projects recently posted by the ever-industrious Seattle Condo Blog. As with the Denny Way projects, I can’t resist doing […]
[ 14th Ave. and E. Yesler Way ] (Apologies in advance. So sorry. Not news. Nothing original here. You’ve heard it all before.) Just a friendly reminder: We used to be better at making good buildings. The building on the left is probably 80 or 90 years old. The building on the right went up […]
[ Diagram of a “road diet,” which will be necessary to fit bike lanes on 23rd Ave ] As previously reported, the City of Seattle’s new Bike Master Plan shows bike lanes on 23rd Ave, south of Madison St. Since 23rd Ave is so narrow, the only way this could happen is if the road […]
