Are Historic Districts or DADUs the Best Way to Preserve Queen Anne?

Posted on by Michael Herschensohn

Torn by the perceived conflict between preserving Queen Anne’s historic character and of increasing urban density, I waver between historic districts and backyard cottages as the best way to preserve historic fabric. Across the country, we find contiguous districts such as the Ballard Avenue Historic District and thematic districts where scattered buildings of the same general type, style or age are protected as if the buildings were contiguous. Both types of districts protect all the buildings within their boundaries.

The relatively absence of individual landmarks and historic districts in Seattle underlies my angst. Ours is no longer a young west coast city, yet we have but eight historic districts and only the Harvard-Belmont District includes residential properties. The rest are commercial neighborhoods (Ballard Avenue, Pioneer Square, Pike Place Market, International District and Columbia City) or former military bases (Fort Lawton and Sand Point). Seattle has no neighborhood historic districts like Queen Anne, upper or lower and no thematic districts. …Continue reading “Are Historic Districts or DADUs the Best Way to Preserve Queen Anne?” →

Endorsing Landmark Designation of Edris Skinner Nurses Home

Posted on by Michael Herschensohn
The Queen Anne Historical Society continues its active support of the city’s landmark processes with this email sent May 15, 2018 to the Landmarks Preservation Board prior to its deliberation on May 16 of the designation of the Edris Skinner Nurses Home on the campus of the former Seattle Children’s Orthopedic Hospital once located on Queen Anne Hill.

Dear members of the Landmarks Preservation Board:

Due to unexpected conflicts and with apologies for the tardiness of this message, the Queen Anne Historical Society enthusiastically endorses the designation of the Edris Skinner Nurses Home which will be before the Landmarks Preservation Board tomorrow May 16, 2018.  In our opinion the Edris Skinner Nurses Home meets five designation criteria. A, B, C, D. and F.

…Continue reading “Endorsing Landmark Designation of Edris Skinner Nurses Home” →

Historic Preservation and the Illogical Dangers of Hyperbole

Posted on by Michael Herschensohn

I prepared this article in response to a misleading article published on December 22, by the Sightline Institute. A link to the article appears below. Today, January 17, 2018, the Landmarks Preservation Board (LPB) voted not to impose Controls and Incentives on the Wayne Apartment the recently landmarked building discussed by Mr. Bertolet and me. The vote effectively makes my arguments weaker. Even though the building is part of Belltown, I share the article so as to give our readers a sense of the obstacles we face protecting the historic fabric of Queen Anne.

The LPB’s vote is the result of the property owner’s claim that preserving the building would be an economic hardship. It frees the property owner to sell the building with nothing in the way of its demolition. Part of the argument for the vote, which resulted from a rigorous review of all the options by the staff of the city’s Preservation Program and its recommendation to oppose Controls and Incentives that might have protected the building from demolition, rested on the huge disparity between the amount of money owners could realize from selling the Wayne and the cost of repairing and restoring it. It is a very dangerous argument in this time of incredibly high land values throughout the city. The Queen Anne Historical Society plans to begin redrafting the landmark ordinance in cooperation with other preservation organizations and lobbying the city council and the mayor for its eventual adoption, so stay tuned.
 …Continue reading “Historic Preservation and the Illogical Dangers of Hyperbole” →