The Seattle Times reported today that there is a proposal (by developer Martin Selig) to turn a 2 story parking garage into a 14 story apartment building only 15 feet away (at the North corner) from Seattle's beloved Olympic Sculpture Park.
The cylindrical Airborne Express building currently resides at the end of the park, standing at eight stories. I was just showing a few condos to one of my clients over the weekend, who made the comment about the partially blocked view from the Airborne Express building right across the street. This new apartment building will significantly alter the remaining view from those West facing units at the Trio. And could reduce a lot of the light in those remaining units too, I would imagine.
The project is fully financed and groundbreaking could occur as early as late summer or fall, according to the Times. When asked about concerns of the museum's officials, Selig was quoted as saying “This is a big love fest. Everybody is happy.”
Selig is probably best known for his construction of the Columbia Tower in Seattle during the mid-1980s, by far the tallest tower in Seattle at 76 stories and tallest building west of the Mississippi. Victor Steinbrueck, Dean of the University of Washington School of Architecture at the time, was quoted as saying “It's probably the most obscene erection of ego edifice on the Pacific Coast.”
Everybody Selig!