People keep asking about Kitaro, so I poked my head into Falcone’s dentistry office and then Molly Moons ice cream emporium, but neither had any insights. I think they have gotten used to the presence, like some wreckage from the great cavity war that they’d rather not dwell on.
If I was a better reporter I’d go back to DPD and do some hard core investigative reporting, but I’m not so I’m hoping someone has some info that they’ll pass on in the comments. If you want reporting, the excellent story that was offered 2 years ago on this here blog is still your best source.
My uninformed prediction is that some day 45th will be 4 story condos except for Kitaro, which will stubbornly sit there like the Edith Macefield house. In the mean time, here are some not so pretty pictures that Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren took for us:
Well, about a month ago, I initiated the recent thread about Kitaro. I did contact the DPD, completed a form on the internet, citing safety, health, general hazardous conditions. These conditions remain. They are concerning. I received a response the following day, with a request to confirm my original complaint. I did that. I have not heard anything after that. I encourage others to call and contact DPD.
I’m shocked, SHOCKED that nothing has been done, no proper communication has occurred, that City Hall is comatose on this. One more good reason for local city council representation. If we had a specific council member we could call who HAD to be responsive to US, we might get some action. But, when everybody is responsible, nobody is responsible.
Thanks for your attempt, Shirley. I will follow up later today with DPD.
Wallingford is in the new City Council district 4. This year will see elections for all districts, as well as two city-wide at-large seats.
There is a forum for candidates running for district 4 at Roosevelt high school tonight at 7. (April 29)
Thanks for sharing. Maybe if enough neighbors contact DPD we will get some traction. Not sure what the DPD is, but if you have an email address or phone, I will start the grass root calls!
I started a thread in General a few weeks ago.
Here is what I wrote with all the information you need!
Go for it!
Here is what you need-I can’t think of anything else. I just put that I did not know the name of owner, or tenants. The article said that an elderly woman lived in the back, and got out safely. Just google, Kitsaro fire, N. 45th wallingford seattle. It pops right up.
Kitsaro,
1624 N. 45th st.
Fire was Dec 7, 2011
I wrote a short narrative about rat, health hazard, vandals, safety, thing might fall down,( liability for city, forgot to say that, be sure to add,t that will get their attention!
http://web1.seattle.gov/dpd/complaintform/
Thank you Shirely. I will write to them also. And if more pick up the thread to DPD, the increased pressure will get the city to move to action.
There is no “S” in “Kitaro”.
/ss
Looks like the ownership has shifted around among family members over the past 14+ years. Official ownership as of 7/25/2012 is Eugene Son. See here:
http://www.city-data.com/king-county/N/N-45th-Street-11.html
Oops. Thanks. KITARO. no S in name
Thanks Elizabeth. Is there anything we can do with this information? Regarding Eugene Son? At the very least, this place needs to be razed.
The complaint was made on 4/17 and the city sent out an inspector on 4/22. You can keep up with it here.
http://web1.seattle.gov/DPD/permitstatus/project.aspx?id=55919
In 2012 the property was quit claimed from Yasuka Furuta and Cha Kun Son to Eugene Son and Crystal Son who are likely siblings. They aren’t too difficult to reach online if you really wanted to ask them their plan.
WOW! Glad I did that. Thanks, Brady. I did not expect any action this soon. That is great.
Well I’m glad to see that Wallingford not only hates big business, but equally hates the small business owners also. Just because they’re down on their luck and it’s an ugly eye sore, why is it any different then so many other properties in Wallingford. In stead of making the owners problems worse, why not try helping them? Rat, health and safety issues are in most all properties around Wallingford, except for those severally hated new homes and buildings. I guarantee that my house is much more dangerous to vandals than this place could ever be. From what is being done here, the owners will have no choice but to sell out to big investors in preperation of wiping out the entire block, then we can complain about that too.
Steve
Thank you for your ideas, E30. I don’t hate anyone, big business or small. Though I have a preference for locally owned business. I do love our locally owned businesses. We have two super cool hardware stores, among many,many other locally owned small businesses. I had no idea who owned Kitaro. Have no idea if “they” are down on their luck, or if they are not down on their luck. It does seem that it IS different than other properties in Wallingford. Of course, rats are endemic in Wallingford. This is a given. I am sure they are equally happy hanging around new homes and buildings, too. However, I am not aware of health and safety issues in “most all” properties in Wallingford, that comprise of burned out buildings that appear to be in danger of falling down, possible hurting someone. There are a few, maybe even one that is equally dangerous. I hate to think of someone trying to find shelter in one of these properties and getting hurt or killed. If your house is much more dangerous than Kitaro , maybe we can get a work crew together to help you live in less danger. This is not a new issue for Kitaro, I think the fire was four years ago. Perhaps you should start a website to raise funds for these folks who are down on their luck. I have no idea if they are, or are not down on their luck, as I mentioned above. Another idea for you is to go to Kitaro, see what you can do to make it safer.
Agree with E30 Memorial. My guess is that the owners are doing the best they can, and the option of selling out to big investors, as Steve notes, is inevitable if they are under pressure.
On the bright side, maybe the big investors will buy out the whole block to build condos and obliterate the Molly Moon parklet that so many Wallyhood commenters love to complain about.
I don’t think this house poses any health or safety issues for anyone in the community, unless they break into the building itself and step on a rusty nail. Is it an eyesore? Maybe. But no more so than the monstrous new construction projects popping up in the neighborhood.
Hey, I assumed it was owned by Hugh Sisley, based on the apparent lack of concern for the neighborhood 🙂 (see Roosevelt District landowner from hell).
It seems it has been a reasonable amount of time has elapsed for the owners to take some steps to work on the property. Insurance (assuming they were responsible and had some) has certainly covered what it is going to cover.
The City has legislation, inspired by the problems with slumlord Sisley, to address health issues. I suspect the owners may soon be facing fines for ignoring the condition of their property and for not using some of the insurance money to tidy it up a bit. Seems a reasonable thing to expect.
E30, ctl, hyperbole much? Hate business owners? Kripes. You do not know squat about these owners. Casting them as poor, down and out people just getting by and doing the best they can is purely speculation. This place has been in that shape for over 4 years, and it is absolutely proper for the neighborhood to seek information and decide on action to take. An old building like that one, exposed as it is to the elements, is, indeed, a hazard. The fire may well have done severe damage to the structural integrity. And maybe not. We do not know, so some of us are trying to find out.
Here is what I sent to the DPD:
Hello,
I am inquiring about the former Kitaro restaurant location. As it as been well over 4 years since the building burned, I, and many neighbors, would like to know what its status is. With a growing population of homeless and druggies moving into the area, I fear it may become a haven for drug dealing, squatting, and a general nuisance. It is also an inviting target for arson, a problem this area experienced some years back.
Thank you for your time and attention.
Meanwhile, I look forward to the GoFundMe or Kickstarter campaign, kicked off with a very large donation from E30 and ctl, to help these poor landlords. Or not.
Rickvid!
Perfect!!!
“With a growing population of homeless and druggies moving into the area, I fear it may become a haven for drug dealing, squatting, and a general nuisance. It is also an inviting target for arson, a problem this area experienced some years back.”
Hyperbole? Speculation? Take a close look again at your own words. We all hope that something happens with that property, but your email to DPD will harm the effort not help it. It’s filled with so much scaremongering that it will be easy to dismiss. The site isn’t accessible to anyone and the Greenwood (not Wallingford) arsonist was already caught and sentenced back in 2010. The only arson we’ve had in our neighborhood was related to townhomes/condos in the process of being built; not good but also not applicable to this situation.
That it’s an unsightly vermin-drawing mess that’s potentially unstable and could cause other health hazards if it collapses should be enough without additional rhetoric.
I think it is fair to contact the owners to see their plans for the property. I think it is also fair if there are some fines due to violations in the City health codes.
I don’t know the situation of the owners, but I think it is more likely that a son and daughter became owners and since they are in their 20’s they aren’t sure what to do with the property because they have other things going on or possibly the insurance from the fire complicated things. This is all speculation and who knows without asking them.
I agree completely. They have been contacted, at least a couple time that I know of, but I cannot state chapter and verse about it anymore. It has been about two years after the fire, and subsequently after that. With the recent events, maybe there is a way to find out the current status of this place. It seems to me that it would take a period of time to get insurance, etc., resolved. Clearly, the family is aware of all of this. They transferred ownership to other family members fairly recently.
My own experience with insurance is that the company wants to get it settled and resolve as much as I do. I did receive payment, which I DID use for a replaced roof for hail damage in the Midwest, same for a fire that spread to my house from a neighbor burning leaves I guess the other choice is to take the money and not make repairs. I am not sure the insurance companies allow this.
So..how will the be “asked?” I think reporting the situation to the city is the right thing to do. It has been done. Let’s see what happens, if anything.
I took a look at that link regarding the complaint and saw that a new “Vacant building violation” was noted today…
Got this a sort of response I got from DPD:
We have no active applications on this site. You can check for permit activity anytime online by property address: http://www.seattle.gov/dpd/.
And while Kevin Salwell was a nut case and is in jail, and it was 5 or 6 years ago, and his fires were largely in the Greenwood area, the old Kitaro site would still be a draw for arsonists. And, with the Alcohol Impact Area that runs from15th Ave NE in the U district to Latona, and from 60th to Northlake Way, a growing number of drunks come this way for their crap booze. Haven’t noticed them?
Thank you rikvid.
E30.. no one hates small business.
people dislike and hate and are worried about helath and damage.
i believe the owners were interviewed in an article on here and aksed the community to be patient a little while longer over 2 years ago.
it is in good judgment to ask what can be done and to ‘call’ thes e owners on their request for patience- a little while longer has come and gone. More graffitti and trash remains.
Just to throw in a little neighborhood history, and maybe to keep us from feeling too sorry for the owners: Kitaro has been here about as long as I’ve lived in the neighborhood (40 years), and I can’t remember many times when it had more than a customer or two, if any. For years, I wondered what kept it going, and it certainly wasn’t the little line of cleaning products they sold on the side. I was pretty struck by one of the comments in Wallyhood right after the fire: on the order of “It wasn’t like the restaurant was empty. I mean, the cook and waiter were there”.
I’d love to see the site cleaned up and a new, small business go in there!
It’s a shame, from what I’ve read, the vegetarian sushi got good reviews. I wish I’d gone in, but I can imagine how hard it would be to keep a restaurant going with that particular specialty.
We happened to be dining across the street, a window table at Casa Azul, when the fire broke out.