The NW 58th St Ballard home that was set for demolition to make way for apartments was demolished on Monday afternoon. The My Ballard team reported the story last Thursday after learning of the plans from reader Sally.
According to KOMO News, who took footage of the demolition in progress, many local residents are furious about the demolition. KOMO heard from NW 58th St resident Linda Melvin, who said, “I believe in urban density but this is too much for our small neighbourhood. I draw the line.” Former urban planner and NW 58th St resident was reported to share Melvin’s feelings. “Even though it’s legal, I think the codes are woefully out of date and incomplete. There’s a complete lack of standards for these developments.”
The demolition of the 1909 home is set to make way for 43 “aPodments,” which are smaller, less expensive units that share amenities such as a kitchen. According to developers documents, the units will share six kitchens on the 5,000 square-foot lot but will not include parking facilities. City code deems that parking facilities are not required for these developments (read more here in a micro-housing recommendations document sent from DPD Director to the Seattle City Council in June).
City code also states that buildings that have nine or more “dwelling units” must have a design review. However, a “dwelling unit” is defined by the number of shared kitchens and not by the number of micro-units or bedrooms. So according to city code, the new apartments are defined as only six apartments.
According to the KOMO report, developer Bob Dedon, who now owns the NW 58th St lot, had a short response to residents who had concernes about adding over 40 people and cars to the neighbourhood with no parking facilities. “I’m sorry you feel that way,” he said.
The My Ballard team will continue to update readers on the progress of the development over the coming weeks.
Photo courtesy of My Ballard reader Sally.
