To preserve Seattle's rich architectural history, the city is surveying significant historical and architectural structures in Walling-ford and other neighborhoods in a project that will involve community input and provide a comprehensive database of historical resources for Seattle's residents.
On Tuesday, June 28, in the University House auditorium, dozens of Wallingford residents attended a slide show of the Wallingford buildings that are candidates for inclusion in the City of Seattle's Historic Resources Database.
A citywide project
Architectural historian Tom Veith evaluated more than 4,800 buildings in Wallingford alone. Of those, 375 will be surveyed, and between 125 and 150 houses and buildings will be selected, inventoried in detail and recorded in the city's electronic database.
"Most of the buildings that are selected are from the teens and '20s, because that is when our neighborhood was built," Veith said. "There are also a few buildings from the Depression era, and a few from the late '40s and '50s."
The borders used for Wallingford include Aurora Avenue and Stone Way to the west, Lake Union to the south, Interstate 5 to the east and North 57th Street to the north.
City Historic Preservation Officer Karen Gorden said the city appropriated money to begin resurveying the city.
A survey project was originally done in the late 1970s. Wallingford is one of the neighborhoods that will be surveyed and inventoried; the University District, Mount Baker, Queen Anne are among those that have already been surveyed.
"The attempt is to understand the resource base of historic properties, and to have that information available to the general public electronically," Gorden said.
The survey also will be used as a basis for nominating and evaluating potential landmarks and for planning construction projects and design-review procedures for Seattle neighborhoods.
The inventories also will provide information for developers and property owners about the significance of their properties.
Buildings and houses built in or after 1906 were evaluated based on age, integrity and significance. City-owned buildings and parks, Seattle landmarks, public schools and commercial buildings were not included in the survey. To be included in the inventory, the buildings must be at least 40 years old.
For the integrity criteria, the structures must be close to their original historical appearance, condition and materials. Minor changes are acceptable, but houses with dramatic changes in shape and appearance were not included in the inventory.
Veith said he doesn't want any buildings that are not typical of their time period.
"It doesn't matter how good it looks; it is not going to qualify if it is not close to its original appearance and condition," he said. "If it doesn't have integrity, it does not have the ability to convey the significance of the building."
For the significance criteria, a house or building must be architecturally or historically prominent.
"Buildings get their significance from different perspectives, and they all have to be honored," Veith said. "Sometimes a building becomes significant because of its association with a particularly important historic event, person or designer."
Veith said that in most cases, buildings were chosen for their architectural significance. He looked for good examples of what the neighborhood looked like historically and for houses that represented architectural trends of the time periods.
An ongoing project
Veith will finish the the inventories and help make the final choices by mid-August.
Veith said he has been talking with other historians to get their perspectives, and that his choices will be reviewed by a city official upon completion of the inventory, adding that historically surveying the city will be an ongoing project.
"Over time, people's attitude about history and what is important changes," he said. "In 25 years, there may be changes to what people think is important or appropriate to value and preserve."
[[In-content Ad]]
