The Queen Anne water towers next to a fire station and two tennis courts at Warren Avenue North and Warren Place are coming down. That's despite one of them - which boasts an ornate concrete façade - having been designated an historical landmark several years ago, according to Seattle Public Utilities.
Both water towers were built at the turn of the 20th century. The top of the one with the concrete jacket was at one time used as a viewpoint observatory. In fact, a Seattle Parks and Recreation sign by the tennis courts still lists the area as an observatory.
But the days of that use are long gone because of safety considerations, and both tanks are now obsolete, according to SPU spokesperson Susan Stoltzfus. "Seismically, it's just not safe," she said.
To be sure, the tanks are a looming presence next to the neighborhood fire station, where one firefighter joked that the possibility of an earthquake-induced deluge causes the firefighters to "keep their surfboards waxed."
The Landmarks Preservation Board OK'd the demolition of the ornate tank in 2002 because of those seismic considerations, Stoltzfus said, but there is also another, more pressing need to do something: "Queen Anne actually needs more water, so we need to expand capacity in some way."
The two tanks currently hold 1.2 million gallons of water. SPU wants to increase that amount to 2 million gallons because more people now live in the neighborhood, she said.
How the increase will be achieved remains to be seen. The two tanks could be replaced with new ones with a diameter of 53 feet, or a single tank with a diameter of 75 feet could be built, Stoltzfus said.
Having two tanks means the water towers would have to be taller than a single one. However, there is a 60-foot height limit for both tanks because the water pressure would be too strong if the tanks were taller than that, according to SPU engineers.
And while the Landmarks Board approved a demolition plan for the concrete-clad tank, aesthetics will still play a role in replacing both tanks. "The aesthetics of the project are important to us because it's important to the community," Stoltzfus explained.
SPU has not met with community members about the project for a few years, but the aesthetics are certainly important to John Burell. Although he's lived across the street from the water towers for about a year and a half, in a Craftsman-style home on Warren that was built in 1907, the news that the tanks are going to be replaced came as a surprise to Burell. "Whatever goes up there, I hope it fits in with the neighborhood," he said.
Still, SPU has to balance the aesthetics of the new tanks with effectively spending ratepayers' money, Stoltzfus said. According to SPU estimates, the budget for the project is approximately $4.5 million, and it would cost roughly $300,000 more to build two tanks rather than just one. "It's really complex right now," she said of the balancing act.
The project is currently being considered by the Seattle Design Commission, which came out with a list of recommendations and concerns last December.
The commission doesn't feel strongly one way or the other whether there should be one or two tanks, although community sentiment favors having two, according to a report about the group's December meeting.
But the report notes that an artist was involved in the early stages of design work for the project, and the commission urged SPU to continue having an artist involved.
The report also mentions that SPU looked at historical designs of water tanks and the details that have been included in the past. "It turns out that the current most efficient technology for building water tanks is to build smooth-walled cylinders with the fewest attachments possible," according to the report.
Still, the commission hasn't ruled out including architectural elements in the design for the base, middle and cornice at the top. "The base could be pre-cast concrete or steel fins," according to the report, which notes there would have to be a way to remove decorative elements so that city crews could have access to the tanks themselves.
Another possibility is to have steel ribs surrounding the entire tanks and extending past the top to form a handrail. Also under consideration for the tops is including a handrail that would form a "decorative cornice," according to the report.
Design Commission coordinator Layne Cubell said an earlier concept design for the tank-replacement project is being revamped. "The Design Commission is just one component," she cautioned, adding that SPU still has to get building permits.
Normally, Cubell said, the commission reviews ongoing projects every four or five months, meaning plans for the new water tanks should come up for review again this spring or summer.
Stoltzfus confirmed that timeline. "I'm told it's going to be this summer sometime," she said.
News reporter Russ Zabel can be reached at rzabel@nwlink.com or 461-1309.[[In-content Ad]]
