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Olympia building heights: Selling our souls, or revitalizing downtown?
6:35 p.m. -- About 270 people -- the maximum allowed -- are crammed into The Olympia Center to air opinions for or against a proposal to raise building height limits on a downtown isthmus. Another hundred or so people are in the entryway, hoping to get a seat.
7 p.m. -- Some in the crowd boo when pictures of what the strip between Budd Inlet and Capitol Lake would like like if a proposed condominium complex were built. Local developer Triway Enterprises proposed the building height change to allow for 140 5- and 7-story condos.
Jeanette Hawkins of Triway promises the project is sustainable and will create a "24-hour" downtown that's an attractive place to live.
7:10 p.m. -- Some people laugh sarcastically as Triway representatives present the pros of their project, including creating a livable, walkable community and protecting open space from development.
Tri Vo, president of the company, gets lots of applause after he urges planning commissioners to support the project. “We want to make this community a better place,” he says.
7:30 p.m. – Public comment has begun, and speakers include residents and stakeholders.
The first speaker opposes the project because it would block views of the state Capitol dome. “Please build more housing in downtown, but please not in the last open view spot,” he said to loud applause.
An Olympia resident since 1975 and a member of Olympia 2012 steering committee spoke in support of raising building heights.
She said the project should stimulate additional downtown housing and create an urban environment that decreases dependence on cars. “We have been needing housing in the neighborhood … for over 10 years.”
7:55 p.m. -- Testimony continues, alternating between supporters and those opposed.
Several members of the Olympia 2012 committee talk about need for downtown housing. One member said the project directly addresses climate change by discouraging urban sprawl and creating a city where cars are not a necessity. The isthmus is clearly the most viable option for downtown housing, he said.
Another member of the steering committee and local business owner said a three-story office building is planned regardless of whether planners approve the change. The real issue is whether the community wants a mixed-use building with housing, or just an office building. He said Olympia should follow cities such as Portland that have embraced high density housing downtown.
An Indian Creek resident calls the project a crime against the public because it obstructs views and takes away public space. He says the project represents the special interest of builders, and represents only a place for rich and elite to live.
A local developer based in downtown and past president of Olympia Downtown Association opposes project and building height changes. He said the project is beautifully designed, but that it might not end up as shown in the pictures. “I believe this is the right project, but the wrong location,” he says.
Other opponants agree that downtown housing could be built in other locations. "Let's take development to higher ground a few blocks away," said one woman who worried about rising sea levels.
8:25 p.m. – Occasionally some people leave and people from the hall take their seats. The audience is a mix of young and old, some in suit jackets and some in shorts. Speakers are having trouble sticking to three minutes. The audience claps and cheers enthusiastically after each speaker. They are slightly louder for the opponants.
A Lily Road resident from Los Angeles reads a Letter to the Editor from a realtor. The realtor wrote that there isn’t a local market for such expensive condos, expected to cost $800,000 to $1.2 million. Rather, lack of parking is the bigger issue that needs to be addressed.
A lifelong resident and property developer spoke in favor of Tri Vo, who built Cabela’s and other projects. “Don’t lose somebody who has the wherewithal” to make the project possible, he urged planners. He said there are people who would stand in line to buy downtown condos. Some businesses are moving out because there’s no one to buy the projects, and market-rate housing would help businesses.
The president of the Master Builders Association said the association supports the proposal and bringing market-rate housing downtown. She’s the first to speak in under three minutes. The Thurston County Chamber also supports the proposal.
A local artist shares a poem she wrote in opposition: “Olympia: I am not alone. Many who make art are attracted here. It’s being by the water. The atmosphere. … Change will come. Let’s design it to suit us. If we lose our everyday clear views of Budd Inlet, the loss would be tragic.”
A proponent said Triway's project could help stop Olympia's fall from funky to seedy.
9 p.m. – There are now some open seats in the audience as people start to trickle out.
Opponants continue to question a need for such expensive condos. The audience claps and whistles especially loudly in response to comments of a member of Friends of the Waterfront, a citizens group against raising building height limits: “Research shows millionaires do not ride the bus,” he says.
A downtown resident and Evergreen student said the city should focus on providing subsidized housing for homeless communities and keep the isthmus open as a park. “Do not close off the open space to people without economic privilege. … Let us raise community and not building heights,” she says.
Supporters include a 40-year Olympia resident and the Roundtable of Thurston County. Many say Olympia is dying because of a lack of development and planning.
Both sides pull up examples from other communities that support their points. One opponent says Boston and other cities have all seen serious downturns in the luxury condo market.
9:45 p.m. – As the meeting winds down, we hear many of the same arguments for and against increasing building heights downtown.
A representative of The Washington Center said downtown housing that spans income brackets is important. A board member of the Hands On Children’s Museum said he’s heard the “yes, but not here” argument. It’s an advantage to have a local developer propose a project and stick with it, and the community should seize the opportunity, he says.
An Orange Street resident whose family has a 100-year history on Olympia said it’s a matter of courage for planners to approve the project.
An opponent echoed others that the project would be great in another location. Rather, she’d like to see an aquarium or something else the entire community can benefit from on the isthmus.
Former mayor Bob Jacobs and spokesperson for Friends of the Waterfront gets lots of applause after talking about some of Olympia’s biggest accomplishments: Sylvester Park, Percival Landing and Heritage Park. And then there’s the “nine story mistake on the lake,” Capitol Center. He says city planners have two choices: develop the isthmus, or expand the waterfront park.
“We’re at a crossroads. What will we choose? And how will the future judge us?” he says.
10:15 p.m. – The hearing approaches 4 hours; we’re told it will wrap up soon.
A downtown business owner who is behind in rent said high-end housing is needed to bring people who can afford to spend in Olympia’s shops.
“It’s going to all be boarded up and vacant,” she said.
A longtime Olympia resident who says she’s a member of "Olympia 2020, A Better Vision" says she supports a long-term plan for the city that puts public good before private interest.
“There’s no reason to give away our 360-degree views,” and ruin the city’s historic relationship with the waterfront, she says.
Another opponent said the waterfront is what gives Olympia its character. She said the argument that wealthy condo owners would help benefit the entire community is a myth, tested during the Reagan Administration.
10:30 p.m. -- About 60 people remain as the meeting wraps up. More than 80 people testified, and many didn’t get a chance to speak.
A Triway representative concludes the evening by commending the process and making a final pitch. He said that Olympia, which prides itself on being a progressive community, appears to embrace the status quo. He said he heard classism from residents that don’t want to diversify housing by adding high-end options to the market that’s predominantly low-income.
Triway is committed to following through with the project, he said. Regardless of what planners decide, it will either be a three-story office building or a mixed-use residential building. “This is an opportunity. Don’t waste it,” he said.
Community members can still comment on the proposal to increase building heights on the isthmus through June 30. The planning commission will deliberate on the issue July 21.
For more on this story, see Wednesday’s Olympian or check back at www.theolympian.com. Videographer Matt McVay will have video highlights Wednesday.
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Residents share thoughts about building-heights changes
Olympia residents get their chance tonight to tell the Planning Commission what they think of a proposal to raise building height limits on the downtown isthmus.
• LIVE NOW: Public hearing on Proposal to raise height limits on downtown isthmus:
• LIVE COVERAGE: Reporter Diane Huber blogs from the Hearing!
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