Status: Lost
Year Listed: 2009
Location: King County
The Vashon Island Parks District received a state grant to develop athletic fields at the location of the gymnasium.
The project required removal of the gymnasium and in October 2008 the Vashon Island School Board, which owned the site, voted to demolish the gym.
Status: Saved!
Year Listed: 2009
Location: King County
As Sound Transit continues to focus on an alignment for the proposed East Link transit corridor through Bellevue, options under consideration could result in potential adverse impacts to the Surrey Downs neighborhood. Collectively, the Mithun
& Neslund-designed houses have been determined eligible for listing as a historic district in the National Register of Historic Places. It now falls on Sound Transit to ensure that the final alignment selected for the East Link Corridor fully considers the potential impacts to the neighborhood.
Status: Lost
Year Listed: 2009
Location: Mason County
Facing structural deficiencies identified through an engineer’s evaluation, the congregation opted to sell the parcel rather than pay for expensive stabilization work. Interested in the land for the purpose of expanding its adjacent county campus facilities, Mason County purchased the parcel, stipulating that the congregation be responsible for removal of the church building. In April of 2009, the congregation applied to the City of Shelton for a permit to demolish the sanctuary. Acknowledging the historic significance of the building, the city called for a 90-day waiting period before issuing a demolition permit with the hope that local advocates can work with the county and the congregation on a strategy for preserving the resource. The waiting period expired in August of 2009.
Status: Saved!
Year Listed: 2009
Location: Seattle, King County
The history of Sand Point Naval Air Station begins in 1920, in the wake of World War I. Seeking to build an airbase in Puget Sound, King County Commissioners and U.S. Navy officers broke ground on a site at Sand Point, near Lake Washington, then outside Seattle city limits.
Over the next several years, the air station grew. Bill Boeing tested his first airplanes from Sand Point. In 1924, it was chosen as the launch and end points for the first aerial circumnavigation of the world. In 1927, Charles Lindbergh landed The Spirit of St. Louis at Sand Point and was treated to a ticker tape parade in downtown Seattle. In the 1930s, Works Progress Administration projects to fill in Mud Lake and Pontiac Bay, as well as Civilian Conservation Corps building projects, enabled the Navy to increase the number of buildings to 17. During World War II, Sand Point served as the headquarters of the 13th Naval District which oversaw the front lines in the Pacific, and the air station’s population ballooned to 8,000 personnel.
After World War II, activity at the air station slowed considerably, and it was ultimately decommissioned in 1970. In 1975, a large portion of the air station’s land was given to the City of Seattle, which was eventually developed into Magnuson Park, named in honor of longtime U.S. Senator Warren G. Magnuson, a former naval officer from Seattle. Over the next few decades, the runways were demolished and some of the air station’s historic buildings were torn down; others fell into disrepair, their futures uncertain.
In the late 2000s, the Washington Trust for Historic Preservation joined with community groups like Friends of Sand Point and Sand Point Arts & Cultural Exchange (SPACE) to advocate for the preservation of Sand Point’s historic buildings, listing Sand Point Naval Air Station on our Most Endangered Places list in 2009. Those advocacy efforts led to Sand Point’s listing on the National Register of Historic Places in 2010 and to its designation as a historic district by the City of Seattle in 2011—making Sand Point Naval Air Station Landmark District Seattle’s eighth historic district, and the first one added in more than three decades.
Thanks to the Friends of Sand Point, SPACE, the City of Seattle’s Historic Preservation Program, Seattle Parks and Recreation, and many more community partners for their help in preserving these important historic sites.
Status: Most Endangered Places, In the works!
Year Listed: 2009
Location: King County
Location: Seattle, King County
Built by Pacific Car and Foundry and Electrical Products Consolidated (still in business today as PACCAR), the Globe is a visual representation for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer newspaper and remains a post-war tribute to the significant role trade signs and the graphic arts hold in commercial advertising. With the P-I now only an on-line presence, the globe does double duty as a tangible reminder of the challenges currently facing the newspaper industry in a community increasingly reliant on digital media formats. With concerns swirling about how those same challenges might impact the future of the globe, local elected officials have engaged in efforts to recognize the structure as an official historic resource. While no plans indicating the globe’s removal have been publicized, office space within the P-I building is for lease and maintenance needs for the structure could play a role in coming years. These facts have sparked discussion about an appropriate site for the Globe if its relocation ever becomes imminent.
Status: Saved!
Year Listed: 2009
Location: Island County
Desiring to construct a new, larger house on the site, the current owner filed an application to demolish the historic Libbey House in March 2009. Given the significance of the resource, the Town of Coupeville is requiring that an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) be prepared and has invoked a mandatory two-year waiting period required whenever demolition is proposed for a Class I historic structure.Despite this, the concern is that the owners will continue on the path towards demolition.
Status: Lost
Year Listed: 2009
Location: Kittitas County
Over the years there were attempts to revive the building, but there were a variety of complications including an underlying “public reserve” zoning. The property changed hands several times and the hospital was unfortunately demolished in early 2013. The lot currently still sits vacant.
Status: Still Standing
Year Listed: 2009
Location: Columbia County
Despite its storied history and role in Dayton’s development, deferred maintenance has taken its toll on the building. The second floor has been vacant since the 1950s and, in part because of a partial roof collapse in December of 2008, the commercial space on the ground floor is now vacant as well. Failure to address the needed repairs and continued exposure to the elements could potentially result in a case of demolition by neglect. At present, the Day Block is neither for sale nor for rent.
Status: Saved!
Year Listed: 2009
Location: Pierce County
In the early 1990s, Pierce County purchased the property and the existing house for use as parkland.After incorporating
as a city in 1995,University Place assumed control of the property and in 1999 developed a Master Plan for the park in order to evaluate future uses and programs at the site. Of the several scenarios included in the plan, each called for retaining the Curran House based on findings that the building could serve a useful function and was an integral part of the property as a unit. Despite this planning document, the city is currently debating whether or not to demolish the structure, citing a variety of costs related to repairs, security, and utility bills as barriers to rehabilitation. Given the lack of funds, the responsibility has fallen on the community to provide money for needed improvements and ongoing maintenance.
Status: Lost
Year Listed: 2009
Location: King County
Vacant for years, the house fell into disrepair and was subject to vandalism. In addition, the property was for sale. Adjacent to an institutional medical center, existing zoning allowed for a much more intensive level of development than the existing single-family house, which made it more likely for a new owner to demolish the historic house.
Status: Saved!
Year Listed: 2009
Location: Snohomish County
In 2002, Snohomish County revoked the Certificate of Occupancy for the circa 1889 Bush House Inn due to public safety concerns—leaving the inn vacant, structurally precarious, and facing inevitable roof failure. Of the five historic-era hotels that once served Index, the Bush House Inn stands as the last remaining.
In 2011, the Bush House was purchased by local couple Blair and Kathy Corson, who rescued it from certain loss with a new foundation, roof, restoration of original window configuration, and more. They were joined by partners Dan Kerlee and Carol Wollenberg in 2015 to complete the massive project of rehabilitating the beloved landmark, bringing it to current standards of comfort, safety, and convenience while maintaining its historic integrity. Thanks to the team’s efforts, the Bush House was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2017 and celebrated its full reopening in 2022. At over 130 years old, the hotel features 11 guest rooms and an outlying cabin, a ballroom/conference hall, lofted event room, café/bar, and space for a commercial kitchen and restaurant space. The project utilized the Washington State Special Valuation Tax Program to support rehabilitation.
For information on an overnight stay, visit: The Bush House Inn
Status: Still Standing
Year Listed: 2009
Location: Kitsap County
Counter to the objectives of the Overlay District as defined in the Comprehensive Plan, on May 14th the city’s planning commission approved a proposal to demolish the BF Tabbott House, replacing it with a mixed-use project that would combine residential and commercial uses on the site. This decision was based in part on an independent legal analysis that the Ericksen Avenue Overlay District, while designed to preserve the area’s historic character, does not specifically prohibit demolition of the historic resources located therein. The design guidelines in place for the Overlay District do allow conversion of the historic single-family structures to non-residential use, but require new additions to be made toward the rear of the existing buildings.With the recent planning commission decision, the fear is that more property owners will simply opt to demolish historic structures within the Overlay District rather than work to retain the historic character by implementing development programs that utilize the existing buildings.As for the BF Tabbott House, one of the more intact structures along Ericksen Avenue, the remaining hope is that someone interested in relocating the house will come forward.
Status: Saved!
Year Listed: 2009
Location: King County
In January 2009, the restaurant suffered an electrical fire, leaving the interior and portions of the roof damaged. Temporary measures were taken to prevent additional damage from weather exposure, but the time frame for implementing major repair work needed to stabilize the building was uncertain. Compounding matters was the fact that the restaurant had been for sale for nearly a year prior to the January blaze.
In 2015, the property was purchased by Dennis Shilling and underwent a multi-year restoration with apartments in the upper floor and a restaurant once again on the main level. After 10 years as a Most Endangered Place, Alki Homestead opened its doors again in 2019. Mike and Victoria Easton, who own Il Corvo (“the crow”) in Pioneer Square in Seattle, have opened acclaimed restaurant Il Nido (“the nest”) within the historic building.
If you want to read more about the saga of the Alki Homestead, check out the 50+ articles from the West Seattle Blog.