CHAPTER 9: SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

 

This analysis shows the extent to which Seattle developed its own apartment tradition in the years before World War II.  Building types were adapted to meet local needs and preferences, so that the buildings succeeded both as housing resources and as neighborhood urban design features.  Larger, more elegant apartments served the needs of the upper-middle class, both short-term residents and those who did not want to maintain households.  Since Seattle was a small, largely middle-class city, this was a limited market, and relatively few of these apartments were built.  The larger market was for efficiency, one-bedroom and small two-bedroom units, of which a great many were built.  The study area is rich in these buildings, along with several examples of the more luxurious alternatives. 

 

The examples illustrated above demonstrate that it is possible to have moderately high-density housing of appropriate scale, mass and appearance that fits well in neighborhoods.  Their facades and landscaping make pleasant streetscapes and single family homes continue to exist nearby.  Further study is warranted to determine more specifically the factors which contribute to their success in terms of both housing and urban design.

            

Role of Apartment Houses in Seattle

Physical Role

The role of apartment houses in the area's physical development is multifaceted.

·           Apartment houses were initially concentrated along streetcar lines, especially near commercial nodes.  The busy commercial intersection at Queen Anne Avenue and Galer Street saw the earliest apartments (1902, 1906), followed by others at the bottom of the hill at Roy Street (1908).  The other early buildings (1907, 1909) were on West Olympic Place, on the Kinnear car line, and were sited to take advantage of convenient transportation as well as views and Kinnear Park.  The west end of Roy Street, with the least convenient transit access and fewer views, was the last to develop, in the late 1920s.

 

·           Housing shortages and economic conditions often led to the conversion of single family homes into multifamily units.  The area's major examples are Gable House (converted in 1922) and the Ballard Mansion (1943), but there are numerous examples on Queen Anne Avenue North and West Olympic Place as well.

 

·           Some apartment buildings were the first structures on their sites, such as the Victoria.  However, many replaced single family homes.  Not much is known about the homes replaced during the 1920s; most were probably fairly modest.  However, Villa Costella was built on the site of John Ritchie Kinnear's large home.

 

·           Apartment houses have proven to be fairly permanent structures.  Those built since 1945 have primarily replaced single family homes, not earlier apartments.  Only two buildings built as apartments have been identified as having been replaced by larger apartment buildings: a low-density Anhalt bungalow court on Queen Anne Avenue and the Ames Apartments on West Roy Street were both demolished in the 1970s.

 

·           Zoning, not surprisingly, is a key determinant of apartment location and form.  Before zoning came into existence, apartment buildings were scattered among single family homes, primarily on Queen Anne Avenue.  After 1926, they multiplied rapidly, often being built in clusters. Some blocks became entirely multifamily.  When height limits were increased in 1955, property values rose, and single family homes were rapidly replaced.

 

 

Social Role

Information about these apartment buildings gives some insight into their role in Seattle's social structure, although many questions remain unanswered. 

 

John Hancock, in his article on the American apartment house in Buildings and Society, describes five basic types of apartment houses found in American cities:  palatial apartments for the rich, luxury apartments for the affluent, owner-occupied apartments, efficiency apartments for the middle class, and subsidized apartments for the low income and poor.^[84] 

 

Based on unit size, advertisements, rental prices and amenities, only two types were present in the study area during the pre-war period.  There were no cooperatives or other owner-occupied units, and no subsidized units, although both of these are common in the area today.  None would be defined as "palatial," but several buildings would be considered luxury apartments, serving people who could afford houses but did not wish to do so.  The majority were efficiency units, serving middle class people, primarily working in office or sales positions.

 

Luxury Apartments

The more luxurious buildings provided very comfortable large units with amenities, excellent locations and the freedom of apartment living.  The Victoria, the Narada, Villa Costella and the Anhalt buildings are examples of this type.  Many units had four or five rooms, and more than 1,000 square feet, with rents from $50.00 to as much as $150.00 per month.  They had such amenities as water views, fireplaces, elevators, balconies, elaborate landscaping (most had courtyards), and even servants' quarters.  Clearly people who were able to pay for these units were able to afford a house.  In 1929, a monthly rent of $75.00, common in these buildings, would have been barely within reach of a professional such as a lawyer.^[85]

 

The reasons these people chose not to purchase houses are not documented, but possible reasons are:  to avoid the trouble of household maintenance; to have more luxurious quarters and a view they could not necessarily afford in a detached house; or to be more convenient to work and urban attractions.  Others may have been in circumstances that meant they did not want a long-term commitment, such as holding a short-term job or being newcomers who were looking for a house to purchase.

 

Efficiency Apartments

A review of available information on efficiency apartments in the study area indicates that they were not necessarily as grim as those described by Carl Condit and Lewis Mumford, as quoted by John Hancock.  Condit saw Chicago's apartments as cramped, undecorative, minimal in service and spaciousness and surrounded by noise and air pollution.  Mumford said the typical small apartment building "raised bad housing into an art.... The result of building apartments in New York and elsewhere was not cheaper rents for small units; it was smaller quarters without the cheaper rents."^[86] 

 

Much, of course, depends on a tenant's expectations, and the value one places on space versus other factors such as convenience, location and view.  Small apartments on Queen Anne often had leaded glass, attractive woodwork, attached garages, and modern appliances and furnishings.  The Sea View on West Roy Street, perhaps the best of the efficiency buildings, had a park-like setting, a luxurious lobby, an elevator, an attractive courtyard, and a ballroom--and small units. 

 

These apartments offered a convenient location and transportation for people working downtown.  Perhaps most importantly, they promised, at modest cost, privacy and independence, compared to living with one's parents (or grown children) or in a boarding house.  Monthly rents of $30.00 to $40.00 were within reach of white collar workers such as office and retail clerks or bank tellers. 

 

For the first time, single women were living on their own in large numbers, and many of the apartment features, such as laundries and built-in ironing boards, were likely to appeal to them.  They were unlikely to have children, however; almost none of the advertisements mentions children or proximity to schools, features found in ads for other neighborhoods.  The census data confirms these observations.

      

Most of the tenants in these efficiency buildings were probably in a transitional stage in their lives.  As described by Constance Perin, most people in apartments today are waiting for the day when they can afford to buy a house.^[87]  This was probably true then as well.  The census data indicates that most of the tenants were women, many living alone.  It is probable that when they got married they moved into a house, even if it were rented.

 

For many years, a significant number of Seattleites have considered these efficiency apartments to be worth the rent.  Many still prefer these older buildings to newer units, which seem sterile in comparison.  As household sizes continue to decrease, they continue to provide privacy and convenience at reasonable cost.  However, since housing prices have risen, it is unclear to what extent apartments are now transitional housing, or long-term residences.

  

Seattle's Apartment Tradition

Based on this study area, Seattle has a definite apartment tradition.  Whether it is unique to Seattle or not would take further study.  It clearly differs from New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, but Seattle's development history and density are so different from those cities that the comparison is not meaningful.  San Francisco's high density and land constraint and Los Angeles' rapid growth and mild climate resulted in particular building forms that are only partially represented here.  However, similarities could possibly be found with smaller western cities such as Portland and Denver.  Such a comparison would further illuminate the role of apartments in American life and in Seattle.

 

Some aspects that appear to be part of Seattle's apartment tradition, as shown on Queen Anne, are:

·           A variety of types of tenants, with varying income levels and lifestyles, and units built to suit their needs;

·           High quality, long-lasting buildings;

            ·           Buildings of moderate size and scale, generally friendly to surrounding structures;

·           Three basic building forms: the block, the courtyard (including both entry courts and large courtyards); and linear forms (usually to conform to a difficult lot);

·           Clustered development, with groups of fairly similar buildings close together;

·           Stratification of building types by the major amenity--the view. (Generally speaking, although not always, the most luxurious buildings are those with the best views.  This appears to be more important than structural characteristics, although unit size is also important.);

·           A variety of building types and tenants in general proximity to each other (Although buildings are clustered together, the hill's topography and development history mean that a luxurious building may be next door to a modest one.).

 

Additional Studies on Queen Anne Buildings

Now that this basic data has been compiled for the Queen Anne area, there are numerous opportunities for additional studies to answer some of the remaining questions.  

 

One area for future work is to discover more information about the people who actually lived in the buildings studied.  Census data provides a statistical portrait, but no insight into individuals.  Anecdotal accounts, such as those found in the Queen Anne community history and Constance Horn's recollections of the Victoria, focus on the most memorable residents--the wealthy or famous, or those who lived there for decades.  But we know little of the average tenant, who was probably there for only a short time.  Some possible questions to consider are:  What was the average length of tenancy?  What percentage became long-term tenants, and why did they do so? Did people often move from one apartment to another, or did they move into houses?  Did they live in these apartments until they married, or until they had children?  Were they satisfied with their apartments?  Did they socialize and form communities within the buildings, or did their friends live elsewhere?  How did they actually use their space and the indoor and outdoor common spaces?  This information is obviously difficult to obtain so many years later.  It is possible that some buildings have rental records or other documentation that would be rich sources; it is also possible that some tenants or neighbors remember conditions sixty years ago, and oral histories would be worthwhile.

 

A second area of missing information is about the developers.  The work of Fred Anhalt and the development of the Victoria are well documented.  However, more research is needed to identify who built the other local structures and if there are any particular stories behind this development.  How many developers were involved in the area?  Were they active elsewhere in the city?  Were they large firms, groups of local individuals or families?  Why are so many of the buildings so much alike?  How were they financed?  How were decisions made about the type of building to construct and the potential market to target?  Were the buildings financially successful?  The best source for initial identification of builders and developers is the original building permits.  Once the companies are identified, further information can possibly be gained from careful review of corporation records and of the local building press, such as the Journal of Commerce and its predecessors. 

 

A third gap is the lack of information on the numerous smaller buildings, primarily converted single family homes, that were discovered.  More detail on the reasons for the conversions, when they occurred and the physical modifications that were made would be important to a better understanding of the neighborhood.  Matching this data with oral histories from neighbors about their perceptions of the changing community character would be particularly interesting.    

 

One of the most important and unexplored resources, which would be useful in any of these efforts, is local and regional newspapers and periodicals.  The greatest insight into local apartment development was gained through these, but much remains to be done.  For example, Pacific Builder and Engineer, Pacific Coast Architect, Western Architect and Washington State Architect all discuss West Coast trends and can be helpful in determining what influenced Seattle designers.  Besides the Seattle Times and Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the Journal of Commerce and its predecessors and smaller papers such as the Seattle Mail and Herald and community papers provide day-to-day accounts of development activities.  Special Collections at the University of Washington library and the Pacific Northwest Collection at the Seattle Library also have notebooks, photographs and scrapbooks.  All of these sources are laborious to review, since they are generally not indexed, but they can be very rewarding.

 

Additional Research and Implications for Today

This work focuses on only one small part of Seattle, but the questions raised about the role of apartments in the city can only be answered by similar studies of other parts of the city.  Queen Anne, like all neighborhoods, is unique.  For example, it has spectacular views not enjoyed by all areas.  It is accessible to the city by streets and transit, but is not simply an extension of downtown, since it is separated by the Denny Regrade.  The manner in which these characteristics have affected its development would be better determined by comparison with apartments in other neighborhoods.  This would provide a better picture of "Seattle's apartment tradition," rather than just Queen Anne's tradition.

 

Concentrations of apartment houses occurred during the pre-war era in the University District, Wallingford, First Hill and other neighborhoods.  Capitol Hill is particularly rich in apartment buildings, with a wider range of types and styles and greater density than found on Queen Anne.  Because of its size and large number of apartments, a preliminary survey would be needed to divide it into areas for further study.  A study such as this one, compiling basic information on buildings and land use, would provide a strong basis for better understanding Seattle's apartments. 

 

However, the more important research opportunities are in looking beyond the basic descriptive information to analyze specific facets of the pre-war multifamily sector to determine their significance for today's planning challenges.  One example is West Olympic Place, the most varied of the streets in the study area.  This street presents an excellent example of increasing density while maintaining neighborhood character, and of integrating large and small multifamily buildings with single family homes.  It also has numerous less successful examples of larger scale structures that focus on views and automobiles rather than on neighborhood context.  A detailed look at changes and contrasts on this street, and the impacts of regulations over time, would undoubtedly provide guidance for design guidelines for such conversions. 

 

Studies could also look at a variety of factors in pre-war buildings in relation to their popularity with today's tenants.  How important to a prospective renter are factors such as charm and character, location, cost, maintenance, building size, unit size, landscaping or relationship to the neighborhood?  An extreme example is Anhalt's buildings, which are renowned for their continued appeal.  However, much plainer buildings are also popular, if they are well maintained.  While a developer could not duplicate these buildings today, a better understanding of their appeal could mean more attractive new buildings in our neighborhoods.

 

The growing cost of housing and decreasing family size means that there is a need for additional multifamily housing.  The desire to prevent urban sprawl by increasing density means that this housing must be attractive and appealing enough to fit into a variety of neighborhoods and to meet the needs of a range of income levels and lifestyles.  For many people, modern apartments are not attractive choices, often lacking individuality, character and solid construction.  Large apartment complexes often are completely separated from the neighboring buildings, isolating the residents.  In many cases, integrating smaller buildings into mixed use areas can better accommodate people's housing needs. 

 

The study area contains many examples of moderately high density multifamily structures that fit well into the neighborhood, without overwhelming nearby single family homes.  One of the most attractive options is ground-related housing, such as Seville Court, Villa Costella and 1108 9th Avenue West.  Each unit, or small group of units, has its own entrance, providing a direct relationship with detached dwellings.  Their scale, mass, landscaping, and overall appearance are appropriate for many single family or transitional neighborhoods.  Considerable variation in design is possible, making this a good prototype for new housing.

 

A second type of multifamily structure seen in the study area is that which is built around a well-proportioned courtyard.  Examples such as the Victoria, the Parkview, the Seaview and Olympus Manor are modest in scale, three to four stories.  Most importantly, their courtyards are large enough in relation to the building to be a significant amenity to both residents and neighbors.  The Victoria is notable in this regard; although the building is large, the large open space makes it seem less overwhelming and more appealing.  The other examples have smaller courtyards, but their proportions and landscaping make them neighborhood assets.

 

The third type of building in the community is the plain block-shape form that is most common, especially on Queen Anne Avenue and West Roy Street.  These structures are typically modest in scale, usually of two to four stories and occupying about one-sixth, or less, of a block.  Each one individually is pleasing in appearance and detailing, although styles and ornamentation vary.  Their most important characteristic is their respect for their context, for each other and the surrounding single family homes.  They meld into a whole, forming a generally pleasant streetscape.  These attributes should be considered as important aspects of new apartment buildings.

 

Conclusion

The southwest slope of Queen Anne is a well-established neighborhood of relatively high density;  it has successfully housed a significant number of people in high-quality buildings for many years.  While many changes have occurred in the streetscape since 1930, the pre-war buildings are a crucial element of the area, both in terms of the housing they provide and their aesthetic contribution.  They are important assets to the community and to the city as a whole:  "The personality of any city is not just dependent on its great buildings and great places but is created by the total complex of large and small, important and minor, the individual and the mass.^[88]

 

The buildings studied here provide a large number of units of all types, from studio apartments to six room townhouses.  They continue to serve a variety of income groups and ages.  They should not only be maintained, but should be looked to as examples for modern multifamily living.   They have established a scale and overall neighborhood ambience that should be valued; this does not preclude new buildings or large buildings, but encourages new buildings to take into consideration their surroundings.