The building planned at the site of Wallingford’s only field of fenced-off wildflowers, where the storied Guild 45th Theatre once stood, has undergone its final design review.
On October 21, the Seattle Design Review Board met with architects from Clark | Barnes who presented their final draft for the currently unnamed multi-family building at 2115 North 45th Street. This online meeting was a follow-up to an initial design review in February, where the architects presented three designs, none remarkable, but one solidly preferred over the other two. A few recommendations were made by the board to this preferred design and small changes were implemented by the architects, leading to this final design presentation, which was approved unanimously by the board.
The building will pretty much look like other new construction in the area, which I guess is the idea—to blend in with the other new multi-family buildings in this neighborhood…and the neighborhood next door…and the one next to that.
The structure will be five stories, with retail on the bottom. The most interesting design aspect will be a “pass-through” corridor (which doesn’t actually pass through) at the center of the building. While the initial idea to have this walkway wrap around the Octopus Bar (like a tentacle?) and connect 45th to Bagley was nixed due to “safety concerns,” it will at least allow the ground floor retail tenants to have windows on two sides, and potentially utilize this covered central area with seating. In addition, there will be bench seating for the public in this space, which will be closed off by a decorative gate during “off-business” hours.
Much to the outrage of some, no doubt, the building will have no parking spaces for cars. Since public transportation is readily available nearby, car parking is not required by the city (and bike storage will be available for residents). Though the 44 and 62 are convenient, albeit sometimes sluggish routes, it’s a shame that Metro killed the 26X, with speedy bus service to SLU and downtown from Wallingford. Oh, how I miss the 26.
The east and west sides of the building are a bit foreboding, and to break up the monotony on the western wall, a large mural “with emphasis on the Pacific Northwest” will be commissioned. Much of the public feedback on this project recommended that the architects pay homage to the Guild 45th Theatre somehow. Perhaps the mural could be a nod to the former movie theater, which opened in 1921, and whose floors were last mopped in the mid-90s.
Potentially the name of the building could pay homage to the theater as well, but when asked for comment from the architect, I got no response. Nor did they provide me with a timeline for the groundbreaking of this project. For now, enjoy the wildflowers.