2 and 1/2 happy barbers

Ballard Lofts

Ballard

Developer of property with the Viking invites public to design meeting Dec. 19

Guest — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 23:12:23 +0000

Guest (not verified) Fri, 12/14/2012 - 3:12pm

Courtesy of Johnston Architects, PLLC

Local developer Bill Parks is inviting the public to attend a development review meeting at Sunset Hill Community Clubhouse at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 19 to learn about plans for the Ballard Lofts project on southeast corner of NW 65th St and 24th Ave NW.

The scope of the project has changed since Design Review meetings held earlier, with the addition of the properties south of the existing auto body shop, which includes The Viking, the barber and a residence.

In order to address community questions Parks is inviting interested citizens to hear a presentation of the revised project, an overview of the parking and traffic study and identify additional concerns in a question/comment period. Per Mr. Parks public input has already led to changes in the number of parking spaces and a reduction in units from 95 to 72. He knows this project is also of interest to those tracking on another development proposed for NW 64th St and 32nd Ave NW because he proposes to relocate the Sunset Hill Green Market which resides there to the 24th Ave NW location during its later construction.

If you want to know more or just remind yourself on what has been happening, we covered the design here and a previous meeting here. You can find the latest update here.

Sunset Hill Community Clubhouse is located at 3003 NW 66th Street. Email any questions to ballardlofts@gmail.com.

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Ballard Lofts

Ballard

Development on block with The Viking and 2 1/2 Happy Barbers moves forward

Guest — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 19:21:48 +0000

Guest (not verified) Thu, 11/01/2012 - 12:21pm

The Viking is one of the businesses which might be developed over to make way for a new apartment complex.

Photo by Zachariah Bryan

Developers have submitted the Land Use Application for the block housing The Viking and 2 and 1/2 Happy Barbers on NW 24th Ave, between NW 64th St and NW 65th St, according to the Department of Planning and Development (DPD) Land Use Information Bulletin.

The application will move forward plans to turn the block into the "Ballard Lofts," a six-story, 90-unit apartment complex with two or three levels of below-grade parking. One part of the building has already made it through the permitting process, so this application is only for the southern side, which comprises 60 residential units and where businesses 2 and 1/2 Happy Barbers and The Viking sit.

The development caused some online controversy last July, when many residents found out for the first time that The Viking tavern, which has been around since 1950, might be developed over. At the time, the property owner and developer Bill Parks said he had not set anything in stone whether or not he would include The Viking in the new apartment building.

“I met with Tim Cannon and I’m open to the idea,” Parks told the Ballard News-Tribune in the July 20 article, "No promises for businesses in new development."

But at the time, Parks skirted around the issue of whether The Viking was not friendly enough for his vision of the new development. He said it was simply too early to tell.

“There’s some things we do feel strongly about. (For example) having a pool of people that smoke outside is not the character we want.”

Some community members, especially considering that part of the building has already been permitted, felt that they had no voice, either at the meeting or through comments.

One community member, going by the name Andy, had this to say in the Ballard News-Tribune's comment section for the July 24 article "Community questions development, but little outrage":

"I was at the meeting and it was made abundantly clear that the project was a foregone conclusion. We were told the meeting was only to discuss the 'design' of the building - comments going beyond the scope of that discussion were not only discouraged but cut off. Furthermore, the developer made it clear that the Viking does not fit into his 'family friendly' (stated repeatedly) vision for the project. So - yeah, few people spoke up, but other than to vent what would have been the purpose?"

Two conditions are required for the application to go through: a design review and a SEPA environmental review. If residents have any concerns about environmental impacts of the proposal, comments may be submitted through Nov. 14 to DPD Planner Beth Hartwick at beth.hartwick@seattle.gov or (206) 684-0814. Or click here.

Letter to the editor: Neighbors outraged by 64th St development

Guest — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 16:43:20 +0000

Guest (not verified) Wed, 08/01/2012 - 9:43am

Dear editor:

I wish to comment on the article "No promises for businesses in new development" as well as the article by the same reporter about the public meeting to the NW Design board. Mr. Bryan missed the anger and message. We cannot stop the buildings, but we want the developer to step it back or not build to the full 65-foot height. The proposed building is too big in scope and size for the neighborhood. That was said clearly and repeatedly at the design board meeting. The apparent arrogance and disregard of the developers and architects is apparent; they aren't actually listening to the neighbors affected by the project. We are not "at peace" with this project. This will adversely affect the neighborhood by adding 90 to 180 residents in our neighborhood. Considering the number of units in process in Ballard, the number of current vacancies, and the condos they haven't been able to sell or lease, Mr. Parks may end up cursed with a half-empty building on his hands.

Sincerely,
Kay-Ellen Tomlinson
64th St resident

letter to the editor

Johnston Architects PLLC

Ballard

Department of Planning and Development

Community questions development, but little outrage

Guest — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 12:10:05 +0000

Guest (not verified) Tue, 07/24/2012 - 5:10am

About fifty people showed up to the public meeting concerning the development project on NW 64th St and 24th Ave NW, where 2 and 1/2 Happy Barbers and The Viking sit.

Photo by Zachariah Bryan

About 50 people showed up to the public meeting last night concerning the development on NW 64th St and 24th Ave NW, but few people spoke out against it.

The meeting, an Early Design Guidance review hosted by the Department of Planning and Development, started twenty minutes late and was held in a barely lit gymnasium at Ballard High School. Architect Megan McKay from Johnston Architects PLLC made a presentation on the project (Details can be found in BNT's last post on the project) and followed up with questions.

The development would be for a six-story, 90-unit apartment complex with two-three stories of below-grade car garage called "Ballard Lofts." One part of the project has already been permitted, so the meeting was only concerned with the second part, which consists of 60-units and where a single-family house, 2 and 1/2 Happy Barbers and The Viking Tavern currently sit.

The meeting did not turn into a hardlining Q&A about what will happen to The Viking tavern, as some may have predicted from looking at comments on My Ballard or signs posted around the neighborhood beckoning people to "Save The Viking." (Tim Cannon, owner of The Viking, said he had nothing to do with the signs.)

Only one attendee brought up questions about The Viking, asking the developers to incorporate the historic restaurant -- it has been around since 1950 -- into the new development. He also said that he is a supporter of growth and density, and wanted to see the two work hand-in-hand.

Rather, most concerned community members were in the immediate neighborhood, and brought up concerns over the size of the apartment complex and the possible ramifications of so many people moving into the area.

For Peg Walsh, who lives immediately east of the building, the project is personal. The six-story building would completely overshadow her house by late afternoon, as the sun sets to the west, according to a solar study presented by Johnston Architects.

"It's horrific for my house. I have a full on garden -- it won't live, basically," Walsh said. "I will be completely shadowed in peak of summer."

She said it would help at least a little bit if the developers considered a four-story complex instead.

Another community member, Christy, who has been involved in past meetings about the site's development, said that the complex would be an aberration in the city of Seattle.

"There's no place else in the city that we got such height bumping up right against single-family buildings."

Her and other community members had looked into this, she said, but could find nothing. She also said that the city government never helped or looked into it and essentially threw up "brick walls."

Other concerns included increased traffic, where cars would come in and out of the garage, sewage, trash pickup, noise from the building's HVAC, proximity of the building to the sidewalk, what businesses would go into the retail floor and neighborly aesthetics.

The design is still in it's early phases and many of the proper engineers have not been hired yet to hammer out all of the details. DPD officials said there will be more public meetings in the future with more information on these subjects. Until then, they would take the comments into consideration.

Development

Department of Planning and Development

Don't Miss: DPD meeting on development of block with The Viking, barber shop

Guest — Mon, 23 Jul 2012 17:36:30 +0000

Guest (not verified) Mon, 07/23/2012 - 10:36am

Tonight (July 23) at 6:30 p.m. in the library of Ballard High School, the Department of Planning and Development will be holding a meeting about development on 24th Ave NW and NW 64th St, where The Viking tavern and the barber shop 2 and 1/2 Happy Barbers sit.

The meeting is open to the public. Property owner Bill Parks and the architects from Johnston Architects, PLLC will be present. Tim Cannon, owner of the Viking, also confirmed he will be at the meeting.

Development of a six-story, 90-unit apartment building, "Ballard Lofts," is planned for the site. The owner has made no promises or final agreement with the owners of either business yet, but said it is still a possibility for them to move into the new building on the retail floor. Parks confirmed that the Sunset Hill Green Market will be moving in.

Development

BNT

DPD

Ballard' All of Seattle

No promises for businesses in new development

Guest — Fri, 20 Jul 2012 15:11:51 +0000

Guest (not verified) Fri, 07/20/2012 - 8:11am

The new development, "Ballard Lofts," is meant to be warm and inviting, with an open courtyard meant for the public to interact with.

Courtesy of Johnston Architects, PLLC

New apartments being proposed for the block between 64th and 65th on 24th Ave could change the look and feel of the neighborhood in the near future.

Property owner Bill Parks and architects from Johnston Architects PLLC held a meeting at the Neighborhood Service Center Conference Room Wednesday night at 6:30 p.m. to discuss the project. Despite an uproar of online comments, and due in part to relative lack of publicity for the meeting, no community members showed up. Instead, Parks and the architects -- Ray Johnston and Megan McKay -- went over the project with the Ballard News Tribune.

Johnston said that the development is planned as an 18-month project, with construction starting in Spring of 2013 and nearing completion at the end of 2014.

Currently, there are two pieces to the development. The first, which has already been permitted, sits along 65th Ave. The second, which the developers are still seeking a permit for, stretches the first phase out to 64th Ave and encompasses a house and two established businesses, 2 and 1/2 Happy Barbers and The Viking tavern.

Between both phases, the new apartment building (the architects were quick to note that it was not a condominium), “Ballard Lofts,” would house about 90 residential units in five floors, a retail floor on ground level, and a below-ground parking garage, which would either be two or three levels.

Elements planned for the building are meant to create a sustainable, clean, family-friendly atmosphere, Johnston said. An open courtyard is planned to be placed between the two projects to provide an “warm and inviting” space for the residents as well as the surrounding community, he said. A green roof on top and a bicycle garage down below are also ideas the architects are brainstorming.

Businesses, too, are meant to contribute to the inviting, family-friendly environment. Parks has already bought the popular grocery store, Sunset Hill Green Market, which will definitely be in the retail space, he said.

As for the two current businesses, Parks stressed that no promises have been made. The owner of 2 and 1/2 Barbers has expressed interest, Parks said. Parks has also had several conversations with the owner of The Viking, Tim Cannon, but nothing has been settled yet.

“I met with Tim Cannon and I’m open to the idea,” Parks said. “There’s some things we do feel strongly about. (For example) having a pool of people that smoke outside is not the character we want.”

While Parks skirted around the issue of whether The Viking was not family-friendly enough to fit the vision of Ballard Lofts, he did say that, if the tavern were to stay, he would like them to somehow clean up. Parks said he did not know what that would look like, exactly.

His associate Elizabeth Torbet said that people were very polarized on the issue. While there is a certain demographic that loves The Viking, she said that the surrounding neighborhood almost uniformly does not like it because of vomit, smoking and noise.

In the end, the decision is left to Parks on whether to keep either business.

“I can tell you in our negotiations in buying the property that we were very clear and specific that we were buying the property without any promise of any of the businesses moving forward,” Parks said.

Parks had bought the property for the second phase from owners of the Viking in May, Parks said.

Johnston said that a development was a “fairly complex animal to assemble,” and that it would be a while before they start hammering down what businesses will be moving in.

“Unfortunately, things that people want to know most take the longest time to resolve,” Johnston said.

Right now, Parks and the architects are figuring out land use elements of the building, like how to handle parking, rather than hammer out whether or not current businesses will remain.

“People have emotional investments in these businesses, and I can appreciate it, but it isn’t helpful for us to try and design the building,” Parks said.

The development has been years in the making, with roots back in the “Shrink the Condo” movement of 2004, when there was huge community outrage for the planned development on 65th.

Both Torbet and Parks, who had seen packed rooms of still-passionate community members while creating their own plans for the space in 2009, were shocked to see that no one had made it to Wednesday’s meeting.

From talking with neighbors around the area, Torbet said that most people seemed to be “at peace” with the project now.

There is still time for community input, though. On Monday, July 23, the Department of Planning and Development will be holding another public meeting at Ballard High School. Cannon, owner of The Viking, confirmed that he will be there.

Development