New developments, like the Conner Homes project planned for California Avenue Southwest and Southwest Alaska Street, has caused community members to propose new building requirements that could preserve the scale of the Junction.
As newly constructed and proposed high-rise projects have become more common in the Alaska Junction neighborhood, local residents have grown increasingly concerned that the character of their neighborhood could be lost.
Most recently, the seven-story Conner Homes project planned for California Avenue Southwest, Southwest Alaska Street and 42nd Avenue Southwest has drawn numerous community complaints about the height and scale that is appropriate for the local business district.
But a local design firm and neighborhood associations are developing a proposal that they hope will protect the character of their neighborhood for years to come.
The West Seattle Junction Association and Junction Neighborhood Organization have been working together with Nicholson Kovalchick Architects—where Southwest Design Review Board member Brandon Nicholson is a principal—to develop proposed upper-level setback requirements for the Junction.
According to the proposal, buildings in the Junction would only be allowed to scale four stories or 48 feet along the street. To build up to the 85 feet allowable in that zone, a 30 foot setback from California Avenue Southwest and Southwest Alaska Street would be required.
The proposal would protect public access to light and air in the historical commercial district, according to the creators.
The regulation would affect California Avenue between Southwest Edmonds Street and Southwest Genesee Street and Alaska Street between 44th Avenue Southwest and 35th Avenue Southwest.
Currently there is no setback requirement for the Alaska Junction area. Developers can build straight up to 85 feet along property lines on California Avenue Southwest. To illustrate how high that is, Nicholson pointed out that the Mural building on 44th Avenue Southwest is 75 feet tall.
The Morgan Junction already has a limit of 40 feet for building mass on the street-facing property line. Other “view corridors” with similar requirements can be found in Belltown on Cedar Street or Vine Street and Madison Park.
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