Real estate mogul and Magnolia resident Martin Selig has big plans for the site of the former Westfarm Foods and Darigold building at 635 Elliott Ave. W.
Too big, say numerous residents of two condo complexes up the hill and in the 600 block of W. Mercer Place. The main sticking point is the 65-foot height of a two-building, four-story complex Selig wants to build. The project also includes two floors of underground parking for 520 vehicles.
Industrial-commercial zoning for the area along Elliott Bay calls for heights of 45 feet, noted King Jones, one of the residents. "We checked that zoning before we bought our condo," he said.
They weren't the only ones. "I personally purchased this place because of the zoning. I checked on it," said a man who spoke on condition of anonymity because he works in the building industry and doesn't want to rub Selig the wrong way.
The view was also a selling point for Gina and Thomas Rembiesa, they said. "It's a wonderful view. A lot of us bought here because of that," Gina said. "You take away the view, you're taking away a considerable amount of the resale value."
There are other issues, according to Thomas. If someone wants to build in the area, they should contact people who live there, he said. "That didn't happen."
Jones said the condo owners were contacted and went to meetings several years ago about a proposed project just below the condo complexes on their side of Elliott Avenue. The project was ultimately scrapped because of the dot-com bust, he said.
"And we certainly went through it with the city on the water-treatment plant," Jones said of the huge, combined-sewer-overflow project on Elliott.
Furthermore, Thomas added, he learned about the Selig project only by chance; he was riding his bike recently and happened to notice the Master Use Permit announcement, which Thomas said was posted in a hard-to-see area at the north end of the building. "When I saw the sign, the comment period had expired," he groused.
That wasn't a problem, according to the anonymous tenant. Tamara Garrett - the Department of Planning and Development land-use specialist working on the project application - said to send in as many letters as possible as soon as possible, he said.
But there is a problem with the condo residents' contention that the 65-foot height of the Selig project flies in the face of normal zoning.
It doesn't, according to a section of the land-use code, which notes that a "Special Exception" to height limits is allowed if certain requirements are met.
"The structure contains at least two (2) stories at least 15 feet in height (and) a minimum of two (2) floors in the structure have a floor to floor height of 14 feet," the land-use code states.
Selig plans to put in the taller floors on the first two levels and the shorter floors on the third and fourth level, he said. An additional 5 or 6 feet above that will be used for the HVAC system, Selig said. "It's no big deal."
He also said his proposed project wouldn't be the first building in the area that reaches to 65 feet. The f5 and the Clear Channel buildings not that far to the south on Elliott have 65-foot heights, Selig noted.
Another requirement for the height exception is that a view corridor be included in the project, according to the land-use code, which notes the view corridor has to be at least 35 percent of the width of the lot.
Plans for his project include a football-field-size view corridor, and it will also feature four sculptures, Selig said. "The plaza should be a nice addition to the area."
Given that only public views - not private ones - are protected by law in Seattle, the condo residents on West Mercer Place appear to be facing an uphill battle in their efforts to see the project at least scaled back.
Selig, for his part, doesn't seem especially worried about his project going south. "We're doing everything within code," he noted.
Staff reporter Russ Zabel can be reached at rzabel@nwlink.com or 461-1309.
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