South Lake Union Upzoning and SLUFAN Board Elections

A double feature at tonight's SLUFAN meeting, where board members were set to vote on upzoning proposals and three open seats on the board.

In the first vote, SLUFAN unanimously approved three alternative upzoning proposals for submission to the Mayor.

The plans range from dense, 125 ft to 400 ft – to less dense – 85 ft to 240 ft.

Under the higher density plans, development would take the form of pin towers on a podium base and be focused around the major transportation corridors (Dexter, Westlake, Fairview, Mercer and Density). Specific attention is given to limiting the number of towers by enforcing a certain amount of spacing or limiting the number of towers per block.

The lower density plan calls for a step down effect, with buildings decreasing in height as they approach Lake Union.

The board would not say which alternatives they were gunning for, but you can take a guess.

In exchange the upzone, SLUFAN is calling for additional public benefits including:

• Community facilities such as libraries, schools, community centers, play areas and recreational spaces
• Open space
• Historic preservation
• Arts space and public art
• Streetscape improvements
• Affordable housing
• Day care
• Mid block and thru-block crossings
• Wider sidewalks

What's next? The plans will rung through the environmental impact study (EIS) process, and if all goes well the zoning will be in place before 2010.

SLUFAN also voted on three board positions – two board-appointed, and a tie-breaker vote for a community-elected position between Noel Franklin, representing the United Indians of all Tribes Foundation, and Dianne Masson, of Pacific Retirement Services' Mirabella.

The candidates for the board-appointed positions were Kent Irwin of the Seattle Biomedical Research Institute; Mirabella director James Munn and Mirabella resident John Pehrson; architect Dan Foltz of South Lake Union-based Weber Thompson; Corey Digiacinto, communications manager for The Seattle Times; and South Lake Union resident Tim Soerens. (Thanks for getting all the names, P-I)

Preliminary results are in: your new board members will be Kent Irwin Seattle Biomedical Research Institute, Corey Digiacinto of the Seattle Times, and, in an upset victory, Noel Franklin.

Big story here is Mirabella's oh-fer. The board now has some welcome diversity, but as the P-I points out, relatively little resident representation.

The Place to be on Tuesday

SLUFAN's board is set to vote on upzoning proposals on Tuesday that would raise height limits to as much as 400 feet. The board is expected to vote for the taller buildings, but the vote isn't likely to go through without opposition or controversy.

The P-I has an account of Thursday's South Lake Union / Queen Anne Uptown "visioning" meeting, where planners explained the new zoning heading into the vote.

South Lake Union Armory Building
860 Terry Ave. No.
NE main floor conference room
4:00pm - 6:00pm

SLU Gets All the Attention!

In a blog post about tomorrow's South Lake Union "visioning" meeting, SeattleScape makes the astute observation that much of the city's time is spent working on the future of South Lake Union. It's no real wonder why really, as SLU presents Seattle's planners with an all too rare opportunity to engender a dense-yet-livable urban environment at the city's core.

See SeattleScape for more on tomorrow's meeting:

The Seattle City Council’s Planning, Land Use and Neighborhoods Committee will hold a special meeting at noon Thursday to discuss the long-term vision for South Lake Union.

While they’re at it, they’ll bring out the crystal ball on Uptown, too.

The meeting will be held in Council Chambers on the Second Floor of City Hall at 600 Fourth Ave.

Presenters include John Coney and Steven Paget- in charge of the “visioning” process, Craig Hanway of the Queen Anne Community Council, John Savo of the South Lake Union Friends and Neighbors Community Council, Sharon Lee of the Low Income Housing Institute and Michael McGinn, director of the Seattle Great City Initiative.

Holy Hypocrisy Batman!

Mirabella on Denny & Fairview

Seattle P-I ran an article today indulging the views of one South Lake Union constituent concerning the South Lake Union Neighborhood Plan, specifically around a proposal to increase heights and density by parks and public transit. Representatives of Pacific Retirement Services, developers of Mirabella (pictured above), lay it on pretty thick:

Masson, a SLUFAN board member said she speaks for many concerned about the impact of 40-story-high structures that could block views, including those of Mirabella, and undermine a goal in South Lake Union's recently approved neighborhood plan -- livability.

"Any way you look at this, 400-foot height limits is very scary," said Masson, regional marketing director for Mirabella, a continuing retirement community run by Pacific Retirement Services.

"It's scandalous, what's happening in South Lake Union," said Peter Buck, an attorney representing Pacific Retirement Services, a South Lake Union property owner concerned with increased heights.

"Building 400 feet and out to the lot line could create a concrete jungle and blot out the sun," she said.

The comments coming from these posturing proponents of livability are especially laughable when you look at their own project – Mirabella, a massive structure covering an entire city block with no setbacks. I feel somewhat bad attacking an assisted-living facility, and I applaud their efforts in that arena, but they have no ground to stand on here.

There is a refreshing perspective from Queen Anne Community Council member John Coney towards the end of the article:

Coney is aware of the upzone plans, and supports them, he said. The 400-foot-tall buildings, such as the pedestal buildings in Vancouver, B.C., that are broad at the base but slim on upper stories, do not block views, he said.

"I favor a few, tall narrow towers. ... It's not true that 400-tall buildings will block views," said Coney, who favors concentrating jobs, buildings and residential density in South Lake Union."

The principle behind urban centers is ... that you provide people the opportunity to live near where they work."

Which saves more views and is more aesthetically pleasing – Vancouver-like pedestal buildings built and arranged in such a way to preserve key public view corridors (as set out in the South Lake Union Neighborhood Plan), or a chunky 12-story building with little in the way of height variation or appealing design?

Masson of Pacific is a SLUFAN board member and was involved in the neighborhood planning process, so she knows the goal was not to create an unlivable concrete jungle, but a dense, sustainable urban community. It seems that once Mirabella received the green light she turned her back on density and is now looking out for her own interests.

I'd really like to hear your thoughts on this, whether they conflict with mine or not.

Capping of I-5, SLU rezone, and transit paradigm shift

SeattleScape has an update on some of the proposed amendments to the city's comprehensive plan that passed the first test at City Hall last week.

Among the 12 amendments is a plan to connect First Hill / Capitol Hill and downtown, another that prohibits new surface parking in Belltown, and one that would allow the city to support only those highway projects that produce little or no increase in vehicle miles traveled.

Of interest to South Lake Union, one of the proposals would make it possible to rezone South Lake Union property designated for industrial use to commercial/mixed-use.

See SeattleScape for more.

South Lake Union Up-zone

The city is taking donations to pay for a $300,000 environmental impact study that is standing in the way of a South Lake Union up-zone. As SeattleScape notes, SLU was designated an urban center in 2004, but much of the area is still zoned for lower-density development. The money to fund the required study can come from public or private sources.

I can think of a few developers that may have a vested interest in getting this pushed through. Principal among them is Vulcan, who negotiated a two-block up-zone back in December to nab Amazon.com as a tenant.

Condo / Elementary School in SLU?

The Department of Planning and Development are considering ways to make the city center more family-friendly, and a school tops the list. Problem is, a school district can't afford land downtown. So the DPD is considering offering incentives for developers to incorporate an elementary school into a private development (a condo tower, for example). DJC's SeattleScape has the scoop:

The city wants to work it so kids who don’t live downtown could go there too, traveling to school with their commuter parents and cutting drive times. Moms and dads could help out the school on their lunch breaks, and businesspeople could volunteer for tutoring before work.

“It definitely is going to be a challenge getting it moving, but we have been really pleased with the people who have expressed an interest in working with us,” Sugimura said.