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A rendering showing the planned massing of the new structure (Image: Atelierjones)
The Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board will be briefed this week on the planned redevelopment and adaptive reuse project envisioned to create more than 100 affordable homes on the St. Mark’s Cathedral campus on northern Capitol Hill.
The project would transform the landmarks-protected St. Nicholas building that has stood on the property for 98 years. CHS reported here on the project taking shape with designs calling for 109 affordable apartment units in a development that would create a new twin to the historic building.
Designated as a protected landmark in 1982, the St. Nicholas structure’s protections include the “entire exterior of the 1926 building” and “the entire site” but the restrictions do not extend to the structure’s interior.
(Image: Atelierjones)
Under the city’s landmarks ordinance, a “Certificate of Approval” must be issued by the board for significant changes including an alteration or painting of exteriors or “new construction.”
“There are fewer restrictions than you might think since the goal is to manage change, not to eliminate it. Protection is provided by review and approval of modifications to the exteriors and, in some cases, the interiors of buildings,” the city’s description of the program reads. “In other cases, building use is monitored. Review guidelines and the process of applying for a Certificate of Approval to make a change vary depending on the district or landmark.”
(Image: Atelierjones)
St. Nicholas is in need of crucial upgrades and the development includes “a significant addition or phased new building” that would rise four stories behind the older structure, according to the early permit paperwork. The new building would be about 61,000 square feet — around 22,000 square feet bigger than the existing structure it will join.
Organizations that have been utilizing the old building are moving out. Gage Academy held a “yard sale” to help clear out its holdings as it prepares to move into a South Lake Amazon office building where the 35-year-old school will become the ground-floor presence below floors of tech workers above. The Bright Water School and Amistad School have also been calling the building home.
St. Mark’s is working with the Atelierjones architecture firm on early planning for the development. In November, St. Mark’s announced it received a $100,000 grant from Trinity Church Wall Street, an organization that helps churches and faith organizations fund feasibility and predevelopment costs, to plan the project hoped to help fund the cathedral and its social and community programs.
The Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board will be briefed on the project at its Wednesday, April 17th meeting (PDF).
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