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It was a wasted neighborhood because Vulcan bought it all up and then sat on it for years while the land appreciated. There was a good Joeys, Chandler’s crab h
by doublerebel 3y ago
It was a wasted neighborhood because Vulcan bought it all up and then sat on it for years while the land appreciated.
There was a good Joeys, Chandler’s crab house, and more which died during the wait. Now it’s Amazon central with carbon copies of restaurants from other places and ridiculous lines. Not a locals spot. It does look better now, and is walkable during work, but to find many day-to-day basic services requires leaving the neighborhood.
Originally there was a Central Park plan that Vulcan proposed, but when that didn’t pan out they gave up on development for a couple decades.
Denny Park used to be a huge green space for gathering, with outdoor movies and concerts, but those parcels have been bought from the city and sold against the wish of the commons. They’ve also closed the basketball courts (!?).
https://www.seattletimes.com/business/vulcan-plans-to-replace-denny-playfield-with-two-towers/ https://www.seattletimes.com/business/vulcan-plans-to-replac...
https://www.globest.com/2022/04/19/biomed-realty-buys-seattles-denny-park-south/ https://www.globest.com/2022/04/19/biomed-realty-buys-seattl...
https://crosscut.com/2015/12/south-lake-union-could-have-been-seattles-central-park https://crosscut.com/2015/12/south-lake-union-could-have-bee...
> The person at most fault for the failure of the Seattle Commons is Paul Allen. The billionaire co-founder of Microsoft asked voters to approve $250 million in new taxes to build the park. During the second Commons campaign Allen made $1 billion during a stock rally on a single day.
> the Commons-less SLU is a neighborhood without a center, a heart, or a great park.
- tasuki 3y ago> The person at most fault for the failure of the Seattle Commons is Paul Allen. The billionaire co-founder of Microsoft asked voters to approve $250 million in new taxes to build the park. During the second Commons campaign Allen made $1 billion during a stock rally on a single day. This is extremely dishonest reporting. So what that he made a billion in a single day? He probably also lost a billion some other day... If he didn't make a billion in a day, would he not be at fault for the failure?
- Apocryphon 3y agoThe implication is he probably could’ve self-funded it himself, but chose not to.
- nostromo 3y agoThe guy made a neighborhood out of parking lots and motels, and you’re mad he didn’t do more? Seattle needs housing more than anything, and I’m glad they added a ton when they developed the area.
- doublerebel 3y agoVulcan removed commons areas and built a limited amount of housing that they profit from. In 2013 Amazon had 15,000 employees in Seattle. Now they employ 55,000 at the downtown Seattle campus. https://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/26/us/as-amazon-stretches-seattles-downtown-is-reshaped.html https://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/26/us/as-amazon-stretches-se... https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/community/amazon-return-to-office-downtown-seattle-revival https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/community/amazon-return-to-... South Lake Union has added ~6000 units in the last decade. https://www.point2homes.com/US/Neighborhood/WA/Seattle/South-Lake-Union-Demographics.html https://www.point2homes.com/US/Neighborhood/WA/Seattle/South... https://kidder.com/wp-content/uploads/trend_article/2023-Apartment-Development-Report-061623.pdf https://kidder.com/wp-content/uploads/trend_article/2023-Apa... Employment to housing is like a 6:1 ratio. All those units are full. There is less housing per employee in the area now.