The heart and soul of Husky Deli and the West Seattle Junction
Seven story building will replace Bikram Yoga and Sleepers in Seattle; Husky Deli will move four doors south
The heart and soul of Husky Deli and the West Seattle Junction
Sat, 06/02/2018
It’s been more than three months since the news broke about our plan to build a new building so that we can move Husky Deli four doors south in the West Seattle Junction. Since then, I’ve been truly honored to hear so many positive reactions. It’s also been a good chance to hear the questions people have about the project. I hope this little article will provide some answers and perspective for anyone who is interested.
Our goal, of course, is to keep Husky Deli going in the Junction and to give the next generations of our family a chance to shape it in their own image and make it a success.
Many people know that Husky has been around since 1932, when my grandfather, Herman Miller, bought a tiny grocery store called Edgewood Farms that operated in what is now the card section of Northwest Art & Frame. Right away, he put in an ice-cream machine in the front window, and then a soda fountain. Fresh-sliced meats and cheeses soon followed, and by the end of World War II, my dad, John, and my uncles had turned it into a full-fledged deli.
My dad moved Husky two doors north to our present location in 1969, three years after I started working here. In 1975, when he had a heart attack, I left college to fill in, and I’ve been here ever since. Just like society, Husky has evolved, and now we focus on ready-made convenience foods while still keeping the traditional deli, ice cream and specialty items. My kids have lived through all this and are grown up now, Kate (and husband Tom) John and Tony – run a lot of the business day to day. Just like me, they love Husky, they love the Junction, and they’re the future.
But the future isn’t the exact footprint where we are now. Anyone who comes into Husky knows that we still look a lot like 1969 and that the structure needs some basic work, from the cramped restrooms to the up-and-down flooring to everything in between. My brother, Joe, who owns the building, has no plan to develop it anytime soon, and with the new Seattle minimum wage and other increasing costs, and being a small business we will be unable to shut down our business for an extended period of time to remodel. At the same time, we all agree that we need the ability to serve the ever-growing West Seattle population by updating and streamlining the Husky.
To make that happen, we are looking to move four doors south to where Sleepers furniture store and Bikram Yoga (which some of you remember was Junction Feed & Seed) are located. Those two buildings have a lot of the same big challenges that the current Husky building has. The buildings are in bad shape from top to bottom, and they are not landmark historical buildings worth saving.
So our plan is to start anew. The only way we see for us to put together enough capital for my children to create the Husky of the future and to stay in the Junction is to tear down these two buildings and construct a taller one on that combined site, with apartments on the top to help pay for the new Husky down below.
On first thought, this plan might not sound like something that would reflect the Junction’s low-scale character. We all have seen other tall buildings recently go in and start to create the feeling of a narrow corridor. That’s not what I want to create, and I don’t think it’s what most people want in the Junction. We think it’s important to keep, as much as possible, the feeling of our small-town, downtown West Seattle. So we want to create something different that really focuses on the Husky’s shop space instead of the upper levels.
The apartments above the store are set back to minimize the visual impact along California Avenue, and retain the historical retail storefront height. The project will contain a commercial kitchen and ice cream plant so we can continue to prepare our own food and make ice cream on site. (And yes, we will make sure that the beautiful Eric Grohe mural on the south side of the yoga building gets either reproduced or replaced with and updated mural on our new structure.)
We have been talking with the Junction Neighborhood Organization (JuNO) about our plan, and they want us to put together a building that sets a good example for future new buildings on that side of the Junction. That makes perfect sense to me. We are planning something with good neighborhood qualities and hopefully anything built after us will follow suit.
My biggest concern is that Husky will continue on in our family and serve the overall family of West Seattle – that we can maintain the traditions started by my grandfather 86 years ago, that we can update everything but still keep it cool, and that my kids can have the chance to feel like it’s theirs, too, so that they will put their heart and soul into it.
The Junction is all about heart and soul. It’s about actively local ownership, where you can meet the people who own and run the stores, where there’s an active business association that puts on really good activities, and easy transit (even light rail, which will come sooner than we think). It’s also about the common feeling that it’s our main neighborhood business district – the hub of our small town in the big city.
Throughout West Seattle, a lot of older folks who have lived here forever have sold their homes for huge amounts of money to younger families who moved in from all over the country. They were not originally West Seattle kids, but they really want to embrace West Seattle, and the character of the Junction, and want to be a part of it.
All of that sort of seeped into me as I grew up. My dad wanted us at Husky all the time. Even if we were running around in the backroom, he wanted us close-by. We helped make ice cream in the middle of the night. He had us running back and forth with ice-cream scoopers getting people cones because he wanted us active in it all.
We are blessed in the fact that we have been here long enough that we are a big part of the community. When we move a few doors down the street, it might be a new building, but it’s going to be the same people. It’s become a huge comfort zone for me, being in West Seattle with all these people that we know. I know my kids agree, and I trust that West Seattle will feel the same way.
Thanks for reading this. If you have any questions or comments about our project, I would love to hear from you. Drop in the store and say hi anytime.
Comments
Hello, Thank you for taking…
Hello, Thank you for taking the time to share the background and intent behind the new building along with the story of Husky deli. I love your ice cream and have appreciated the lovely items you sell for years. I hope you don't mind - I would like to offer a critique to the new building design (coming from a background in architectural/sculptural design and a passion for preserving the beauty in our cities), I appreciate the upper stories are set back from the street, however it is still a huge square design like all the other (monstrous) buildings being put up all over town and making a huge impact in West Seattle. I want to suggest you build the upper stories with many more set backs and in a diverse nature, working with them like multi-dimensional tiers. This type of direction allows for more depth in the design aesthetic that takes into consideration its relationship to the street, and can bring a new feel to the west side of the street, perhaps setting a new norm as these buildings continue to go up. The long-term vision is what is key and a more stylized look, that is a take on a multi-tiered, classical building, or something with that type of inspiration, could be a great shift. Currently all these large boxy buildings just fill the sky with what feels like walls that have no distinctive mark and do not carry a timeless beauty. They will age horribly. Thank you for reading my note and I hope this will inspire a second look at the current design.
Jack, knowing you and your…
Jack, knowing you and your awesome family for these many years, I feel confident that you will do the research and make the decisions that honor the wonderful business your family have put so much of yourselves into, while respecting and protecting the best interests of the whe West Seattle Community of which Husky's has been such a solid member from the start. If only the other decision-makers that impact our hometown could & would see where true value can be maintained during times of necessary change and follow your lead by considering what is best for the community as a whole...
Seven stories high means no…
Seven stories high means no sun light will exist in the junction, like tall buildings downtown. Money, money, greed rules the day, and someday we will recognize what really happened to our small communities. It will be too late to get back the quality of life we all seek. Good luck!
I grew up a West Seattle kid…
I grew up a West Seattle kid and my family had a small business too. Your store catered all 3 of us girls' weddings and countless other celebrations. My fsmily sttore eventually had to move out of West Seattle and we closed once my parents retired. But I am still in the same industry working as a rep. I am so thrilled to hear you recognize that your kids need to feel involved and passionate about the future. I drive from Kent regularly for your ice cream and can't wait to see the new building. Way to go guys. Keeping the heart of small business alive is a battle worth fighting!
So, you would be moving to…
So, you would be moving to the new building that is to be built right next to your current building, is this correct? What's going to become of the other businesses in that building?
Jack, regardless of where…
Jack, regardless of where you end up, you're still in the heart of where your grandfather first set up shop.The very first licorice ice cream cone I ever had was where what used to be Blakes Bakery is now, good luck wherever you end up, I'll be there.
Nice letter to the community…
Nice letter to the community - hope you'll encourage your architect to creatively 'tier' the building, the depiction right now is very boxy, but understand the need to get in units. This is a second to the comments above, and glad Husky Deli will continue being here!
Great to hear the Husky Deli…
Great to hear the Husky Deli will continue to be an anchor in the West Seattle Junction for the foreseeable future. Looks like a solid and well thought out plan. After 86 years I believe you have deservedly earned the loyalty and trust of the West Seattle community. Good luck Miller Family on your new building and keep up the good work. Cento Anni !
To the Husky/ Miller Family,…
To the Husky/ Miller Family,
Change is tough for those of of that like "Coming Home"! But any one that know "JACK" knows that He is... Husky Deli, no matter what building they land in, it will be a part of him, just like his family before him. Those of us True Blue West Siders will follow you and your family's business in what ever direction you take it! Heidi and your children have helped build an incredible reputation and foundation for the family business, also the incredible staff you have had over the years. I am one of your Loyal Customers who loves Coming Home....I also never thought I would eat anything other than the licorice Ice Cream....but Jack you have ruined me....now my licorice has to share space in my lovely Homemade waffle cone with...the Amazing Salted Caramel :) My point here is...CHANGE CAN BE GOOD! I will miss the ambiance of the old store, the worn out floor and the itty bitty bathroom....i am confident that the legacy of the Husky Deli is in wonderful hands, this had to be a tough, but wise decision. God bless you and the Husky Deli family...hope you have a Private Party before you close the doors and another one when you reopen in the new stompin grounds! Kisses to you Jack, from one of your FANS!
Jack, always the pioneer and…
Jack, always the pioneer and forever the godfather of west seattle. How perfect is it you're leading the charge in updating and preserving the Junction. We love you guys! Thank-you!!
What about Sleepers? They…
What about Sleepers? They have been around so long and the owners have been kind neighbors to us all as well.
I worked at Husky's. I am a…
I worked at Husky's. I am a West Seattle Grad. I was Tony's Millers Girl. Jack's Older Brother. This is What Tony would have done. He would, as I know, get it Modern. Be more cool than Whole Foods (they were the Whole Foods of the 70/s. Tony and I were all about the FUTURE. But, I saw things ahead and well, he took a raft boat and on August 25th, 1975 with me on the side of the river, he left me to see the future in heaven.
I am keeping the promise, Yes, Tony. I have promised to love again even though I loved you will all my heart. WHY? Cause God has all of us in HIS HAND. I miss my Husky Days.. But they are with me in TIME!
Jack, I wish you and your family the very best. As you know my family and I have been Husky customers and friends for generarions. It is understandble that in order for Husky's to continue, this is the best solution. I have always known you and your family as community minded and generous. Again I wish you much success with this venture.