From the Jul 4 – Jul 10, 2002 issue

News

Demolition Man

Paul Allen Gets Ready to Tear Down South Lake Union Low-Income Housing

by Isolde Raftery

As if Paul Allen hadn't done enough to turn Seattle into his fantasy playground (think the Seahawks stadium, EMP, and serious light-rail finagling), now his development company, Vulcan, is messing with low-income housing in South Lake Union.

On Wednesday, June 26, the Department of Design, Construction and Land Use (DCLU) conducted a hearing at the Key Tower to determine whether to give Vulcan a permit to raze the Lillian Apartments building at 1258 John Street, near the Greyhound bus station. Vulcan made the request based on the DCLU's inspection report, which says the cost to restore the building exceeds 50 percent of the cost to replace the building.

Vulcan would have had its way, but questions about the inspection report and strong opposition from activists about a net loss of low-income housing in South Lake Union prompted the DCLU to postpone a decision until July 19. DCLU's Alan Justad said, "We're waiting for both groups to produce further evidence."

The 33-unit Lillian, a very low-income building, has been a hot topic since Vulcan gave its residents $5,000 to scram last winter ["The Clue in the Crumbling Wall," In Other News, Nancy Drew, March 14].

In response to a petition to save the Lillian ["Petitioning Paul Allen," In Other News, Isolde Raftery, June 13], Vulcan promised to "work in a manner that supports the South Lake Union Neighborhood Plan." The letter also states that Vulcan will provide the Cascade neighborhood with additional affordable housing. Vulcan spokesman Michael Nank says, "What's good for the community is good for Vulcan."

Bullshit? Seems like it to me.

For one, the South Lake Union Neighborhood Plan is hardly a reference point--it's a vague document littered with phrases like "vibrant neighborhood character" and "perpetuate health and vitality." The plan fails to address housing issues.

And as it turns out, the community isn't down with Vulcan. Malaika Lafferty, a spunky Cascade resident who lives 200 feet from the Lillian, wants to save the building. She says everyone she knows feels the same way. "I haven't found anyone in support of Vulcan," she says. "People are saying they think it's wrong."

Third, Vulcan's claim to refurbish the neighborhood with affordable housing is bunk. The city council mandated that developers produce at least 50 units of affordable housing by June 2001--regardless of the Lillian. And "affordable" is a misnomer. "Affordable" housing hovers around the annual median income--$43,200 for a family of three.

Meanwhile, there's that fishy inspection report. Activists argue that Vulcan sabotaged the site before calling in a city inspector, removing essential fixtures from the building in order to meet the DCLU's demolition requirement (restoration costs exceeding 50 percent of rebuilding costs).

Given that Vulcan was about to apply for a demolition permit, activists think it's suspect that the property owners were gutting the building of its appliances in what could have been an attempt to push it toward demolition status.

Nank says that to the best of his knowledge, Vulcan only removed bathtubs and then donated them to the Union Gospel Exchange. He says the missing fixtures are just a minor part of what makes the Lillian unfit for use. "The things the city found in the report are larger than... just bathtubs," Nank says.