Oh, and you don't need economics lessons to have an opinion on this subject. This should be a forum of discussion not attacks.

I see where you all are coming from, the condo lovers and the condo haters alike. I think that change is good and inevitable, but I do feel that retaining a sense of connection to the past is extremely important.

That said, I think there is a balance that should be made. Like Heather said, it's a matter of slowing down the building. If five condo developments go up at once, who will be able to buy them? Vacant housing in my opinion doesn't really enhance the vibe of a community.

Also, most people I know don't think that $300k is what they would consider affordable. My husband and I work full time, get good pay, have normal expenses and we could only afford half of that. What's happening to the working class of this community is that they are being forced out of these neighborhoods because A) they can't afford to live there if they want to buy B) Their apartments are at risk of being bought and converted to condos C) The apartment owners are catching onto this trend and see that their buildings are becoming few and far between and therefor raising prices of rentals.

So you are left with a split community, the "haves" who can buy and live there and the "have nots" who have to commute into the area which they were forced out of- to work to give the "haves" that are lucky enough to stay there that sense of atmosphere they so desperately wanted to buy into.

Basically, just stop building for now and let the condos get bought up that are already there, leave some history to Ballard, and actually make the condos affordable.

Nigh!- Thanks for the "nob" comment.

Looks like we need a new bumper sticker:

"Ballard welcomes our new blog overlord"

Tammy - your bumper sticker idea rocks!

"The Official Bird of Ballard: The Boom Crane"

I'd buy one!

I'd buy a FLEE BALLARD one too. ;-)

My wife was born and raised here in Ballard. After renting here for the last several years, she and and I have purchased one of these condos and will be moving in soon.

We bought a condo here for several reasons. First, and most importantly, we love Ballard- the neighborhood, the restaurants, the parks, and the neighbors we have a long history with. Secondly, if we are to stay in our home town, this type of homeownsersip is our only option. A $300k condo is a lot more affordable than our parents' bungalow that would sell for $500k+. Finally, while our building is taking up more airspace, it has not displaced any existing businesses or any renters. It also happens to be built with concrete and steel, sustainable materials, and at a high level of quality. We are proud of the neighborhood and the kind of building we are buying into.

So, it makes me sad to sense the scorn that so many people have for what will be our new home. It seems especially unfair directed at people like my wife who could move out of the city to Lynnwood, Kent, etc. but choose to stay in the neighborhood they grew up in. I understand the concerns people have about changes to Ballard's traffic, density, history, and community. I share many of those same concerns. Clearly, as a city and neighborhood, we need to be vigilent when it comes to design reviews and growth management.

My hope and belief is that as Ballard grows more dense (as it must unless we stop having babies) it will continue to be a place where people walk to the farmer's market, ride bikes to Golden Gardens, and march on Norwegian Independence Day.

Peter your wrong. If TH's are selling for 550k on lots similar to your house, multiply the number of TH's you can fit on your lot by $550k. A 2 story apartment building in the Denny Triangle next to 2 skyscrapers is not losing value.

Heather its a Time Value of Money calculation. Get your money returned asap for better returns so you can re-invest. Check your 401k allocation to see if any of your funds have real estate holdings. For your financial well-being I hope they do. Sales price is a f(x) land purchase price, cost of improvements. To keep values down, consider selling your property below market value...*gets out contact information*

Aaron your a nob. Because your friends building has uneven floors all new stuff is bad? The carpet was added for noise transmission reasons and delay eventual lawsuit. The stucco isn't structural so I'm not sure what your bit regarding poor sturdyness is about. Your right. You don't need an econ class. Something more remedial is would be ideal.

I agree that many of the developments are quite lacking aesthetically. This is why we should, as a community, be thinking about what we want these buildings to look like. The city, through the growth management act, has said that condos will be allowed in Ballard, when all you say is "No, no, no!" you will be overridden and crap will be built. What we need to be saying is "Yes, but...(insert design guidelines here)"

Oh guess what?

These condos are ugly!

The architecture of these condos is bad. It's ugly and they're usually poorly constructed. Some seem sturdy at a glance, but you look up three stories and the bricks stop and the stucco or siding starts! Wavy sheets of metal, cheap plastic"energy efficient" windows, entire sides of buildings without windows, and the potential for manufactured bustling city life in the retail spaces below.

One of the places I was forced out of was a building on Lower Queen Anne that had beautiful hardwood floors, which after conversion to condos were replaced with nasty carpet. Bad taste. My friend owns a condo on Lower Queen Anne (a new building) and you can set a marble on the bathroom floor and see which way the foundation is slanting. The walls are great too, he can't close some of his doors.

I'd love to be proved wrong, you know -- 100 years from now all these buildings have become historical landmarks.

The least they could do is give us something decent to look at. I don't need an economics class to recognize poor aesthetics.

Face.

I don't understand why anybody would buy these condos, and news reports seem to indicate that they're not selling. As far as I can tell, they're 1/2 - 1/3 the space, for the same price as a house. Perhaps I'm just missing something about their appeal?

I got a chuckle about the overlords, regardless of who's right or wrong. I think a good bumpersticker would be The Official Bird of Ballard: The Boom Crane.

If anyone is curious about the Overlord meme, it originated on The Simpsons. Here's the lowdown:

""I, for one, welcome our new insect overlords", was used by Kent Brockman in "Deep Space Homer" and has seeped into popular culture to describe a number of events. Variants of Brockman's utterance are used to express mock submission, usually for the purpose of humor. It has been used in media, such as New Scientist magazine...[snip]"


More here.

For me, other than the Denny's building being saved, not enough people around here seem to see the value that restoration has to a community. Yes, there will always be people who are tempted to take the money and run. But, it's up to us to help save buildings that have historical value after they have been vacated.
My family is from England and I grew up with a father who was a brick layer and instilled in me the value of what goes into a building or house as well as the importance of keeping old buildings around.

Shakspeare's house is still standing in Stratford-Upon -Avon. So why are we so quick to let a building from the 1900's go?

Denny's may not be as old as Shakespeare's house, but if we keep tearing everything down, it just might be the OLDEST in town.

dluxgenx - I'd be happy to go toe-to-toe with you in this debate because I have yet to read anything from you that is even remotely intelligent or enlightening. Just superficial dribble so far. If you can conjure up constructive solutions, I'd love to hear it.

Peg, I agree with all you said...pretty soon it will be so over crowded that it will be a very unplesent place to live.

Ben and strike should get a room..

What about the issue of these expensive condos taking the places of affordable housing, of centers of recreation, of locations where small businesses not offering tanning, manicures, cell phones, dry cleaning, or mediocre coffee can afford to exist? What happens when a neighborhood becomes so saturated by residences so expensive that the people who live in them are working 60 hours a week simply to pay for a lifestyle that they then have no time to go out expience. . .like actually participating in their neighborhoods by supporting what local businesses are still around? I find it very interesting that those little businesses, instead of seeing increases in traffic due to dramatically increased local populations are actually seeing less business. Funny that condos are sold in part on the reputation of the surrounding neighborhood when that neighborhood is quickly disappearing around the condos and suddenly that's all you have. Condos condos condos.

I hope some of these beige monstrosities end up turning into apartments when they're unable to sell as condos. Maybe then Ballard will still have a chance. Change is one thing, but change at the price of what makes a neighborhood a vibrant, diverse, actual neighborhood where people do more than store their stuff and sleep at night is a sad state of affairs. So then what? Goodbye small, interesting businesses, goodbye industrial areas, goodbye night life, goodbye Ballard. Hello Overlords.

The development will stop when it's no longer an attractive thing for real estate investors to get into. That time is closer now than ever before, but at what cost? Since 2006, 5 single-family homes were torn down on my block and replaced with 20 town homes. 12 of those townhomes were pulled off the market after not selling for 4 months. They sit empty (almost, the eastern-block worker housing on 52nd has a mannequin family at the dinner table) awaiting tenants unwilling to pony up $550k in such a weak market.

It's a catch 22 for me. I'm glad that the developers are having to carry an investment they can't move - it means they'll be less likely to speculate again. At the same time I have empty, ugly monstrosities on my street that are bringing down my property value and blocking out my sun.

So yes, development will stop, but not before it's too late. When 80% of the condos in Ballard are unsold or owned by investors and unoccupied (ala Vulcan City in the Cascade neighborhood), the cranes will go away. A Pyrrhic victory, but it's better to have loved and lost right?

No, I don't believe prices will drop. I just wonder why so many places need to be/are being built and then they seem to sit empty. This is not coming from a place that doesn't understand basic economy, it's coming from a place of practicality. If you can afford to buy a place, great! I don't nor does any other rational person begrudge anyone for that! But is it really fair to drive people out of a home or neighborhood they enjoy living in because it's not affordable anymore? Wouldn't it make sense to slow down(I didn't say stop completely) building until a certain percentage of the units are occupied?

Heather take an intro econ class. If they are being overbuilt what do you think the outcome would be? More importantly, what do you think will happen if limitations/caps are placed on new housing? Do you really believe prices will drop?

I'm all for "affordable homeownership", but $300,000 (for a 1 bedroom condo) is not affordable homeownership for me or any of my friends. I guess I will continue renting. If my building doesn't get bought and converted.....

Some of the condos are priced in the $300's, but most are more. Granted, most houses in the area are closer to $6-700's. I looked at one condo flyer today that was $550,000...not so affordable.

I think the "Overloards" addresses the "they" feeling that we get when we look at what is happening to Ballard. Look what "they" are doing to our neighborhood. We only have a vague idea who they are and even less idea what we can do about it.

It's not condos that's the problem, it's the over development. Honestly, when will it end? When every building is converted and the neighborhood is covered in high rise condos and townhouses? Sure, it's a housing alternative but is it really a cheaper alternative? It seems that people are being priced out of Ballard, and that's a shame.

I just wish we had the monorail. All of these people will be bringing their CARS!

Ben - your "ranting" seems justified to me.

Hee!

Stopping on my way home tonight to pick up the overlords one. That's funny. I wish they would make one about being almost-hit by contractor trucks or something. Or Leary being perpetually one lane.

I know that the condos are great for people needing a cheaper place to live - and I'm all for people experiencing Ballard. But there needs to be SOME control with regards to traffic, parking, pedestrian and bus routes. It's kind of a free-for-all right now and it's stressful!

At this point I understand that I am ranting but I must say that these "overlord" developers are making it possible for more people to experience this great place for less money. To me an overlord would be someone who says no one can live here unless they were born into that right or unless they have the $500,000 it takes to buy a stand-alone house here.

Okay I can't just leave it at that. These people have every right to do what they are doing, they are buying land and building what it is zoned for. If you want to get mad at someone get mad at the people selling their land to them.

Yes, condo developers are just like overlords aren't they?