2017 Honorees

• June 20, 2017
• No Comment

Southwest Seattle Historical Society
“We Love the Junction” Campaign

Beth Chave Historic Preservation Award for Preserving Neighborhood Character

The Beth Chave Historic Preservation Award for Exemplary Stewardship went to the “We Heart the Junction” Task Force of the Southwest Seattle Historical Society and its supporting partners for their advocacy efforts to secure City landmark status for two iconic buildings in the heart of the West Seattle Junction.

Photo: Jean Sherrard

 

 

First United Methodist Church/The Sanctuary

Exemplary Stewardship

The Exemplary Stewardship Award was presented to First United Methodist Church (FUMC) / The Sanctuary and its supporting partners for their coalition-building, steadfast persistence, and vision to preserve this historic urban sanctuary at the corner of Fifth and Marion.

Photo: Daniels Real Estate

 

 

Robert Reichert House & Studio

Outstanding Modern Preservation

The Outstanding Modern Preservation Award went to Adelaide Blair and Darin McAdams and supporting partners for their sensitive renovation of Robert Reichert’s home and studio in Queen Anne.

Photo: Brooke Best

 

The Publix Hotel

Best Rehabilitation

The Best Rehabilitation Award was presented to Uwajimaya and supporting partners for their exemplary approach to rehabilitating a former working-class hotel and adding a new mixed-use building that beautifully melds old with new.

Photo: Doug Scott

 

Vanishing Seattle

Community Advocacy

The Community Advocacy Award went to Cynthia Brothers’ Vanishing Seattle for her online chronicle of changes to Seattle’s built and cultural environments, created to inspire people to
get involved and take action.

Photo: Cynthia Brothers

 

Optimism Brewing

Neighborhood Reinvestment

The Neighborhood Reinvestment Award was presented to Gay Gilmore, Troy Hakala, and supporting partners for rehabilitating this former Capitol Hill auto-row building into a local brewery, taproom, and community hub.

Photo: Aaron Leitz

McMenamins Anderson School

Best Adaptive Reuse

The Best Adaptive Reuse Award went to McMenamins and its supporting partners for their outstanding adaptive reuse of the Anderson School, an important part of the community’s identity and
catalyst for the City of Bothell’s ambitious downtown revitalization plan.

Photo: McMenamins

 

Building for Culture (4Culture & King County)

Community Investment

The Community Investment Award was presented to to Building for Culture architects 4Culture and King County for their vision and commitment to supporting arts, heritage, and preservation capital projects across King County with this momentous investment.

Photo: Eduardo Calderon

Historic Tacoma Facade Restoration Workshop – August 6, 2011

• July 26, 2011
• No Comment
• Workshops

From a news release issued by Historic Tacoma:

Historic Tacoma and the South Tacoma Business District to host free workshop on the Economic Incentives for Facade Restoration

Tacoma, Washington: On August 6^th, 2011, from 9am-12pm at Stonegate Pizza, Historic Tacoma and the South Tacoma Business District Association are hosting a workshop on Economic Incentives for Facade Restoration.

This half-day workshop showcases resources that can assist building and property owners with the rehabilitation process: the brick and mortar of facade restoration, financial incentives from the city’s special tax valuation and facade improvement programs, and case studies from property owners that have transformed their buildings. Presentations by local architectural firms including Belay Architecture, BLRB Architects, and Eysaman & Company will showcase before-and- after images of transformed commercial storefronts, illustrating how buildings that have been altered in the past can have their presence restored.  Historic buildings in South Tacoma’s commercial district will provide many of the examples. Representatives from the City of Tacoma’s Department of Community and Economic Development and the Historic Preservation Office will discuss various financial resources and incentives, including the financial benefits of listing a historic building on Tacoma’s Register of Historic Places. Concluding the workshop is a discussion with property owners who have already gone through the rehabilitation process and taken advantage of the historic preservation special tax incentives. (more…)

Back Online – Recent Preservation/Heritge News

• September 02, 2010
• No Comment
• Preservation in the News

MAin2 is back in action after a two-week summer hiatus. Here’s some recent interesting preservation/heritage news:

Mayor McGinn to MOHAI: Give Up Some of Your Money to the City

The Stranger’s SLOG (“Mayor’s Office Angry Over $40 Million Given to History Museum”) reports on how Mayor McGinn’s office wants some of the Museum of History and Industry’s (MOHAI) SR 520 mitigation money for the City’s use. MOHAI’s home is in a City-owned building that will be demolished by the State for SR 520 expansion related work. MOHAI deftly negotiated considerable mitigation money to cover the major expense of having to pack up, move, and store museum materials and artifacts for transfer to its new location in to the designated landmark Naval Reserve Building in Lake Union Park. The new building on Lake Union will undergo a major rehabilitation to convert to museum use. The museum had originally built the current building with private funds but later donated it to the City. (more…)

Madrona Neighborhood

• November 12, 2014
• No Comment

This event is SOLD OUT.

One of Seattle’s first streetcar suburbs, Madrona vividly shows how our neighborhoods have been shaped by transportation— water, streetcar and automobile. The tour looks at parks and neighborhood institutions, as well as the ever-changing commercial district formed in the streetcar era. The streets are lined by both modest houses and some of the city’s most impressive homes in a wide variety of styles. Appreciate the neighborhood’s spectacular views, proximity to downtown and diverse population. Join community planner Mimi Sheridan for a walk through the neighborhood. Some residential interiors included.

Photo: Charles R. Bussell Residence / Credit: Aimee Chase & Vista Estate Imaging

Cost:
$45 general public / $35 members / $30 students

Registration for this event has closed due to limited capacity.

25 Historic Sites in the Seattle-Puget Sound Area Host Special Open House Weekend, May 1-2

• April 26, 2010
• No Comment
• Grants

Sites competing for a portion of $1 million in historic preservation grants

WHEN:  Saturday, May 1 and Sunday, May 2, 2010

WHERE:  Please see www.PartnersinPreservation.com for further information about individual locations and events.

WHAT: Twenty-five historic places in the Seattle-Puget Sound area will offer free admission and host an open house for the public. The sites are competing in an online contest for part of $1 million in preservation grants from Partners in Preservation, a community-based program sponsored by American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Activities at the different sites include food, children’s games, tours of an old-fashioned schooner, musical performances, art demonstrations and workshops, astronomy lectures, Croatian dancing, and a kite design and flying festival.

WHO: Representatives from all 25 historic places, the general public and local media.

WHY: These open houses offer an opportunity for the public to learn more about these historic sites and the region’s heritage.  These sites are competing for the public’s vote at www.PartnersinPreservation.com until May 12. The site with the most votes is guaranteed to receive a grant. Partners in Preservation is a program of American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation designed to help preserve historic places in the Seattle-Puget Sound area, engage the community in preservation, promote sustainability, drive tourism and stimulate economic development. The program also seeks to inspire long-term support from local citizens for the historic places at the heart of their communities. (more…)

Partners In Preservation To Unveil 25 Historic Sites on April 15

• April 14, 2010
• No Comment
• Grants

Historic places in the Seattle-Puget Sound area to compete for $1 million in restoration grants

WHEN: Thursday, April 15 | 10 a.m.
WHERE: Daniels Recital Hall (formerly the First United Methodist Church of Seattle), 811 Fifth Avenue (at Columbia St), Seattle
WHAT: Partners in Preservation, a program sponsored by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and American Express, will unveil 25 historic places in Seattle and the Puget Sound region that will be eligible for $1 million in preservation grants.
WHO: County Executive Dow Constantine, Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, First Gentleman Mike Gregoire, and representatives from all 25 historic sites, the National Trust and American Express are confirmed to attend.
WHY: These sites are asking for the public’s vote at www.partnersinpreservation.com until May 12. Winners of the voting contest will be guaranteed funding for critical preservation projects. Partners in Preservation is a program of American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation designed to help preserve historic places in the Seattle area, engage the community in preservation, drive tourism and stimulate economic development. The program also seeks to inspire long-term support from local citizens for the historic places at the heart of their communities. (more…)

Preservation and Sustainability in Cuba

• February 22, 2010
• No Comment
• Cuba

Seattle preservationist and developer Kevin Daniels was in Havana last week. He was part of a group of preservation and sustainability professionals who were in the Cuban capital on an educational and cultural exchange sponsored by International Sustainable Solutions and Global Exchange. Kevin blogged about his experience and posted his thoughts in the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s blog. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to visit Cuba have found the experience transformative. The architecture in Havana is fascinating (from high-style to vernacular), but it’s the people and Cuban culture that give the place true meaning. We learn from each other.

Kevin’s observations and lessons learned are must-reads. Here are the posts:

Preservation Meets Sustainability in Old Havana

Cuba Offers Lessons on Community, Preservation

Arts and Letters Take Center Stage on Cuba Visit

Beautiful Countryside and Notable Quotes Close Out Cuba Trip

Ballard Historical Society

• January 04, 2016
• No Comment

Online Registration is closed for this event.

Preservation in the News

• February 25, 2016
• No Comment
• Advocacy

January and February have been filled with news in the preservation world. The following articles look at some controversial projects and issues–the good, the bad and the ugly.

Save Our Square – Pioneer Square

The big news from yesterday was the City Hearing Examiner’s ruling that overturns the Department of Neighborhoods Director’s decision to issue a Certificate of Approval for the proposed 11-story project at 316 Alaskan Way S in Pioneer Square. Save Our Square, advocates from the neighborhood, appealed the Director’s decision last fall, asserting that the project was out-of-scale with its surroundings and not in character with the historic district. Historic Seattle has been supporting SOS’s efforts and provided expert testimony at the hearing. The City Hearing Examiner ruled that the DON Director’s decision was “arbitrary and capricious and must be reversed.”

“Seattle’s approval of 12-story Pioneer Square building overturned,” Seattle Times, February 24, 2016.

An earlier article covered the hearing in January. “‘Miami Beach on Elliott Bay?’ Opponents decry proposed 12-story Pioneer Square building,” Seattle Times, January 21, 2016.

The City Hearing Examiner’s decision can be appealed to King County Superior Court. An appeal must be filed within 21 days of the decision.

Note the project is actually 11 stories, not 12 stories as reported in the media.

Save the Reactor – Nuclear Reactor Building, University of Washington

In December 2015, Docomomo WEWA filed a Seattle Landmark nomination application for the Nuclear Reactor Building (aka More Hall Annex), and shortly thereafter the university filed a lawsuit against Docomomo WEWA and the City of Seattle in King County Superior Court. With approval from the Council of Historic Seattle and the Board of Directors of the Washington Trust for Historic Preservation, both those organizations officially signed on as co-nominators with Docomomo WEWA when the final, revised landmark nomination was submitted just last week. Historic Seattle and the Washington Trust for Historic Preservation will also be added as intervenors in the lawsuit soon. The UW Board of Regents voted to demolish Nuclear Reactor Building on February 11. The preservation organizations have retained Dave Bricklin of Bricklin & Newman as their attorney.

Read Knute Berger’s Crosscut.com article about the the lawsuit and its broader implications beyond this one building. “UW launches attack on city’s historic preservation powers,” Crosscut.com, February 14, 2016.

Here’s Save the Reactor’s latest update on the issue.

Another SOS – Save Our Seminary, Saint Edward Seminary Building, Kenmore

State Parks held a public meeting on February 9 to gather comments on the proposal by Daniels Real Estate to rehabilitate the historic Saint Edward Seminary building at Saint Edward State Park in Kenmore. Plans are to convert the building into a hotel, modeled after the great lodges in national parks. Historic Seattle supports this proposal and offered public testimony in support at the February 9th meeting. Opponents at the public meeting voiced concern about turning over public property to private hands. They don’t feel a hotel/spa is appropriate for the park. Some would actually prefer to see the historic building deteriorate to the point of becoming a “ruin.”

Read more about the issue and the controversy surrounding the proposal. “Struggle over Saint Edward: Renovate it or tear it down?” Seattle Times, January 31, 2016.

Added 2/27/16: Blame the Victim – Landmark Seattle Times Block to be Mostly Demolished

The Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections (DCI) is allowing the owner of the old Seattle Times Block in South Lake Union (1120 John St) to demolish most of the building (there are actually three buildings). The owner, Onni Group of Vancouver, BC, purchased the property in 2013 and has not managed to properly secure the buildings, making it a target for vandals and squatters. The building’s condition has deteriorated since the Seattle Times vacated the property. DCI is invoking a part of the Landmarks Preservation Ordinance that is rarely used–the Director of DCI can approve the demolition of a Seattle landmark for public safety reasons. The Landmarks Preservation Board (LPB) has no say in the decision. Part of the main facades will probably be “saved” and incorporated into the new development (tall apartment towers). Approval for the preservation of the facades and the design for the new project will go through the LPB. Read more about this issue in this Seattle Times article.

All these advocacy efforts are ongoing. We’ll keep you up to date on the latest. Look for future calls to action for advocacy.

Photo: Rendering of proposed project at 316 Alaskan Way S, Pioneer Square / Gerding Edlen (from Department of Neighborhoods files)

Firland Sanatorium | CRISTA Ministries

• January 05, 2017
• No Comment

The Firland Tuberculosis Sanatorium in Richmond Highlands was started by the Anti-Tuberculosis League of King County (which later became the American Lung Association) for the care of patients with tuberculosis. Seattle City Architect Daniel Huntington designed six of the campus buildings, built 1913-14, including the Elizabethan half-timbered administration, Detweiler classroom buildings, and powerhouse. Firland Sanatorium was turned over to the City of Seattle in 1912.

Vicki Stiles, Executive Director of the Shoreline Museum, will share the development history of the site, and historian and author Paula Becker will share local author Betty MacDonald’s first-hand experience as a patient at Firland, which she wrote about and published in The Plague and I.

In 1947, the Seattle/King County Health Department acquired the surplus Naval Hospital in north Seattle, and the Firland Sanatarium moved to this new site.  In 1948, CRISTA founder Mike Martin began looking for a place to house and feed the teens he met through his youth ministry. Although the King County Commissioners responsible for the sanatorium’s fate initially rejected Martin’s application to lease the space, he was persistent. Eventually, they granted him the 56-acre campus for a $1.00 a year, with one condition: he must also begin a much-needed retirement community on the campus. Just one year later the sanatorium became King’s Garden and opened as a home to youth in dormitories and approximately 80 older residents. Soon, King’s Schools was formed to meet the youths’ educational needs with a Christian-centered mission. King’s Garden became CRISTA in 1979. It serves people through education, international relief and development, senior care, and media.

Both The Plague and I by Betty MacDonald and Looking for Betty MacDonald: The Egg, the Plague, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle and I by Paula Becker are available at Elliott Bay Book Company and would be excellent preparation for this program.

Due to popular demand and space limitations, registration is now closed.
We will be unable to accommodate walk-ins. Thank you.