GEORGETOWN - An historic icon of the Georgetown community, Rainier Cold Storage, located at 6000 Airport Way, will face an uncertain future with the recent land-use application by Sabey Corporation, a locally based company, which plans to demolish part of the structure.
The 1903 building measures in at 129,885 square feet and once held the sixth largest brewery in the world, the Rainier Brewing Company. The goal of this unusual project, which has involved ongoing community input and communication, includes demolition of an 96-by-40-foot freestanding masonry wall and stock house. The property itself consists of five buildings: the bottling plant, the malt house, the icehouse, the general offices, and the stock house
According to Jim Harmon, senior vice president of investments and treasurer of Sabey, the goal of the project is to support the revitalization of Georgetown as a thriving business and community center while helping to preserve an important chapter in the community's history.
The application is to demolish the stock house, the stock house addition (where Café Umbria is currently located), the general office, and the bottling plant addition on the north end of the property.
A UNIQUE DEVELOPMENT
The Sabey design calls for the construction of a five-story building similar to the current building but set 10-feet off the property edge with retail space at street level, office space above, and two stories of underground parking.
The main entrance would be at South Nebraska Street and Airport Way South at the traffic light designated by the community's Airport Way Visioning Project. The plan also calls for the removal of the facade wall between the stock house and brew house to allow for entry, access, and sight lines to the machine room and the malt house smoke stack.
The developer envisions a replacement for the stock house that will be about two-thirds the size. The stock house currently takes up about 120,000 square feet. This replacement, noted Harmon, will be generally equal in height with the combined street level retail office space.
What makes this project so unusual is the consistent communication between Sabey and area community groups. Kathy Nyland, chair of the Georgetown Merchants Association and a director of the Georgetown Community Council, along with her partner Holly Krejci, owner of George, have been involved with the project since Sabey purchased it in the fall of 2006.
"A neighborhood and business association working with developers on a project that benefits all in the long run is uncharted territory," Nyland said.
All the affected parties are making every effort to communicate with each other in a way that both sides are being heard, Nyland noted. She added that this is unlike the Dearborn Project on Rainier Avenue South, one that's filled with contention.
Nyland, who has lived in the neighborhood for the past four years, describes Georgetown as a close-knit community where "people can disagree, but at least we can continue to talk." Rainier Cold Storage is a visual focal point of the community, she asserted.
BIG BRICK ICON
Indeed, the building is a reflection of the neighborhood, a place Harmon describes as hardworking, gritty, and intelligent. The company understands that any loss of this local flavor puts the neighborhood in peril and is doing everything they can to create a win-win situation for all concerned.
"People identify with this building," Harmon said. "They are very passionate about it, and while few in the community have actually been inside prior to last summer when we conducted tours, they identify with it and want to preserve it as much as possible."
Nyland's goal is to make sure the community, Sabey, and the neighborhood have a continuing open dialogue. Her role is to help Sabey understand the values of the neighborhood, and "who we are" while striving to see the development reflects the neighborhood. As far as Nyland is concerned, Sabey's outreach efforts to gain community input have been effective.
Sabey has met with the Friends of Historic Georgetown, the merchants association and the community council several times a month. The communication, along with the tours of the structure, was helpful, Nyland noted.
"Sabey was fabulous," Nyland said. "Jim Harmon himself led a dozen tours this summer. While the building is a huge monstrosity, very few people in the neighborhood had actually been inside of it. Once they did and they saw the condition of it, this really helped them get a better idea of the property and what could realistically be done with it."
Nyland's read on the community is that most people hope the brick facade facing Airport Way can be saved. If not, then it is the community's hope that the new structure reflects the integrity of the neighboring properties and that the new design compliments and is compatible with the existing buildings.
According to Harmon, the building is in bad shape. The big concern is the overall rapid deterioration of the property, especially the brick facade facing Airport Way South.
"Half of the structure is wood and masonry and the other half is cast iron and reinforced concrete," Harmon noted, adding that masonry doesn't flex.
"Five years ago, the owner of the building turned off the freezer portion which had the ground frozen to -24 degrees. This ground is now thawing, and with it the building is heaving due to the freezing and thawing. Internal cracks, like jagged lightning bolts, are growing at the rate of one-quarter to one-half inch a month. Ammonia, used in creating ice, has leached into the rebar, along with the salt water also used in making ice, causing [the rebar] to decompose."
REACHING OUT
Sabey held a community meeting in October and unveiled possible designs. The community gave its input, and while most were not impressed by the new designs, Harmon and Nyland said they appreciated the opportunity to give input. Sabey plans to incorporate this feedback into future versions to be presented to the community. In fact, Sabey took its plans back to the architecture review committee of the Landmarks Preservation Board on Nov. 2. Harmon said the focus of the meeting was the new space design. It included elements of the old building and façade wall that will be retained, the site layout, and the new building. The plans also included the neighborhood's feedback and building design questions that concern the community.
Harmon said Sabey recognizes the project is a challenge for the community.
"This is a very difficult project, and we are doing our best to make it easier on the community," Harmon said. "We appreciate Georgetown and the people of the neighborhood. Sabey has been located in South Seattle since 1980, and our company president, Dave Sabey, was raised in the area. We appreciate the community's willingness to work with us. We want to create a structure that will enhance the community and have retail tenants in the building that appreciate and respect Georgetown for what it is."
