Stories about Friday Harbor House expansion

PORT OF FRIDAY HARBOR

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Friday Harbor House expansion back on track

posted 11/21/02
Backers of the expansion plans for Friday Harbor House are ready to move forward with construction of a building on the old Unocal site. The controversial plans were placed on indefinite hold in August. Friday Harbor Port Director Steve Simpson said the projects proponents now believe they can find financing and want to know if the port is still interested. Port Commissioners were willing but only for a limited time.

Port Commissioner Mike Ahrenius said, "This is one of those fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me." He suggested a date of January 1, 2003 for a final decsion by the Friday Harbor House owners.

"I agree wholeheartedly," said Port Commissioner Brian Calvert." They hung us out already once, after a great amount of anguish."

Commissioner Greg Hertel agreed but suggested a January 1 deadline may be too difficult. Simpson will meet with Langdon Simmons, one of the owners, next week in Friday Harbor and convey the commissioners’ willingness to go forward with the project.

Friday Harbor House expansion put on indefinite hold

posted 08/28/02
The owners of Friday Harbor House in Friday Harbor have put an indefinite hold on plans to expand the facility. Higher than expected construction costs, several design revisions and uncertainty in the economy all played a role in the decision.

The original plans called for the addition of several new guest rooms as well as additional meeting space and lower level office space that was to be leased by the Port of Friday Harbor to the U.S. Customs Service.

The owners decided it was not the right time to go forward with the project. "We looked at the numbers from every direction possible, and realized it was just not going to happen," said Langdon Simons, one of the general partners and owners of Friday Harbor House. "We agonized whether this was the right decision, and we came to the consensus it was just not the time to take on this project. The costs were just too high."

The current success of Friday Harbor House did not play a role in the owners' decision to put a hold on the expansion. Occupancy levels are at the same levels as last year. "Friday Harbor House is having a wonderful year, it is actually out performing the rest of the hotel industry," said Linda Hersey, Innkeeper at Friday Harbor House. "We will continue to look forward, and serve our guests with the utmost service and quality."

Customs can't pay more for new home at Port of FH

posted 04/25/02
The Port of Friday Harbor is proceeding with construction of a new building, even though U.S. Customs -- one of the expected tenants -- isn't able to commit to a lease at a rate the port expected.

Recently General Services Administration informed the port they approve of Customs leasing about 2,000 square feet in the lower level of a building planned uphill of the port marina. However, GSA, which oversees Customs' office leases, said it would not pay more than its present rent for the 644-square-foot office below the San Juan Island Yacht Club.

Currently Customs pays $12,720 per year for the space plus use of the breakwater and other port facilities. The port assumed Customs, which requested more space, would pay the same amount per square foot when it moves into the new building. That anticipated revenue and money from renting the upper two floors of the three-story building to the Friday Harbor House hotel would pay back revenue bonds for the project.

Port staff and commissioners, during an April 22, 2002 meeting, discussed options for the project. Port Director Steve Simpson said the port could scrap constructing the building, rough in the lower level space, find another tenant for the bottom floor or build to Customs' specifications.

Customs is a reliable and desirable tenant, Simpson added.

After hearing Customs officials say they plan to revise their requirements for their Friday Harbor office, port commissioners Greg Hertel and Mike Ahrenius decided the design work, engineering and financing plans for the building should continue.

Architect Leah Martin of GGLO Architecture and Interior Design of Seattle presented the latest iteration of plans for the building to the Port at its April 24, 2002 meeting. The Town of Friday Harbor Historic Review Board was scheduled to review the plans later that evening. The original four-story building has been significantly reduced in size she told the Port.

The reduction resulted from a need to preserve view corridors and a desire to stay outside of the shoreline area. The shoreline boundary originally used was incorrect due to a mistake by the surveyors.

The new plans include 2,100 square foot on the first floor. Two floors of hotel space would be on top.

Martin said the flat roof which had been a point of contention would be a planted. "It'll be an ecologically improved surface," she said. "It will turn all different colors seasonally."

The Town of Friday Harbor Historic Review Board examined the plans for the building at its meeting at April 24. Construction is expected to begin in September and the upper story is expected to be completed by July 2003.

Three-story building OK with Legion

posted:11/14/01
Eleven months after a proposal to build a four-story building on Front Street unleashed heated opposition, a three-story compromise was reached. At a gathering yesterday, (Nov. 13) in Friday Harbor House, Port Commissioner Brian Calvert said, "There's an end to the conflict. When dealing with conflict, I live by the proverb -- Do you want to be right or do you want to be happy? I'm happy to say, the Port, the American Legion and Friday Harbor House are both right and happy."

Upset over the loss of some of their view if the building was constructed, American Legion members opposed the plans and filed an injunction in March 2001. The four story building would have housed port offices on one floor, U.S. Customs offices on another and Friday Harbor House suites and meeting rooms on the top two floors.

Port Commissioner Greg Hertel said Marilyn O'Connor and other port staff deserve the credit for the compromise. They came to us and suggested we take the port offices out of the equation he said.

The shorter building met with approval from the American Legion. Calvert said the group gave its unanimous approval. He thanked attorney Carla Higginson for her work on the compromise.

Higginson said under the agreement:

the building will not be higher than the retaining wall behind the American Legion.
The Legion will not oppose the Front Street turn around project of the remodel of the existing port offices.
And the Legion recognizes the port gave up some property rights.

Architect Alan Grainger showed drawings of the proposed three-story building at the gathering. A board room on the top floor opens onto a garden. Meetings for up to 24 people could be accommodated in the space. Two guest suites and a lounge round out the top floor. Three guest suites would take up the middle floor. The bottom floor would house U.S. Customs offices. Grainger said the new plans allow for a better pedestrian traffic flow for guests coming up to Friday Harbor House from the marina.

Langdon Simmons, one of the owners of Friday Harbor House, was happy about the cooperation of the neighbors. If construction goes as planned "there will be a grand opening in 2003," he said.

Port might scale down
hotel addition/office building by one story

The Port of Friday Harbor might drop one floor from a proposed hotel and office building on Port property downhill of the Friday Harbor American Legion Club.

During a Wednesday, Oct. 24 meeting, Port commissioners and staff discussed eliminating Port offices from the planned building. That would reduce the height of the building and hopefully objections by neighbors, said Port Commissioner Brian Calvert.

The original proposal was for a four-story, 6,000 square foot building which would have been 41 feet high when viewed from Front Street, 21 feet high when viewed from First Street. Legion members contended the originally planned building would have significantly blocked their view and are taking legal action to ensure that the Port follows land-use rules. If the Port offices are struck from the plans, the Friday Harbor House would occupy the top two floors and U.S. Customs would be in the bottom floor.

"It would bring the top of the building to the level of the Legion's retaining wall," Calvert said.

Under the new plan, Calvert estimates the Legion's view of Front Street will be blocked but it won't lose any view of the town's harbor.

The Port also won't lose any income if it remains in its present home, Calvert said. "The only part of the building that doesn't make economic sense is the Port offices."

Since U.S. Customs is inquiring about gaining more space in the building than it originally planned, more rental income than previously anticipated might be possible from a scaled down building. said Port Director Steve Simpson.

To meet the Port's need for more space, Port commissioners are considering restructuring and enlarging the building currently housing marina and administrative offices. In addition to gaining more office space, Port commissioners and workers also want to provide better restroom facilities for boaters and visitors.

Calvert said the new plan should be "reasonable" to the Legion members and other objectors. On Oct. 25, 2001 he was attempting to contact the Legion's attorney about the potential change.

The Port believes the original proposal would have withstood legal challenges but a protracted court battle would have meant "economic ruin for the Legion," Calvert said.

"They'd like to be in good relations with their neighbors," Simpson said

Developers of the hotel/office building also would benefit from less legal challenges. "We're getting to the point, that if the hotel is going to be built, we need to get to final design," Simpson said.

First test of view protection rules

Model of proposed building which will be located next to upper port parking lot in Friday Harbor.

posted 02/13/01
Protection of public shoreline views is one of the parameters designers working on the proposed four-story port offices/Friday Harbor House addition must consider. "This is the first time the regulations -- part of the town's 1999 Comprehensive Plan -- come into play," said Warren Jones, town permit coordinator.

The building site is in the town's View Protection Overlay District. The area includes property east of First Street and Harrison Street from the parking lot by the courthouse to B Street. A map is available on the town's Web site. The protected view corridors are delineated on a map on the town's Web site.

The town's regulations state:

Public shoreline views should be preserved to the maximum extent consistent with the rights of the owner whose property is proposed for development. Wherever reasonable, existing public shoreline views should be enhanced, provided that enhancement of views should not be construed to mean excessive removal of vegetation that obstructs or impairs views, and new public shoreline views should be created.

Though view protection is a land use issue and not part of the historic preservation guidelines, the impact of the building on view corridors was one of the concerns mentioned by town Historic Preservation Board members during a Feb. 7 meeting with Jim Moore and Leah Martin of GGLO Architecture and Interior Design of Seattle. The meeting was a followup to one held Dec. 13, 2000. (see story below.)

In order to obtain a building permit, property owners in the town's Historic Overlay District must meet once with the preservation board. Board members stressed the importance of the public views to the designers and moved on to other issues which are covered by the historic guidelines.

Moore and Martin said the owners of Friday Harbor House want to continue to work with the board beyond the one mandatory meeting. They asked for specific feedback which would help them with the final design.

Board chair Nancy Jones said, "We want to be involved in the thinking stage." Moore said the full-blown design process won't begin for a few months.

Board member David Waldron mentioned the importance of vertical windows and a color palette consistent with the guidelines. He suggested next time the present Friday Harbor House is painted, it would be nice if the color scheme was toned down.

The size of the proposed building concerned the board. "It gives the impression of a compound. It doesn't have flow in either views or traffic," said Nancy Larsen, town historic preservation coordinator. Nineteenth century towns were "walking towns" She encouraged pedestrian links. "People have traditionally walked up and down that cliff." she noted.

Port Administrator Steve Simpson said, "The owner agreed it should be open to pedestrians -- primarily for people to go to the restaurant." He said the port wants the building to be approachable.

Addition planned for Friday Harbor House

A preliminary sketch of the proposed addition to Friday Harbor House shows the view from the waterside. The existing building is on the left.

By Sharon Kivisto

posted 12/14/00
Friday Harbor House wants to add suites, U.S. Customs needs a bigger office and the Port of Friday Harbor wants to utilize property it purchased from Unocal. The solution: a four-story, 6,000 square foot building which is 41 feet high when viewed from Front Street, 21 feet high when viewed from First Street.

Plans for the proposed building were unveiled last night (Dec. 13, 2000) at a Historic Preservation Review Board meeting in Friday Harbor. The building would be north of Friday Harbor House and east of the Whale Museum. Jim Moore and Leah Martin of GGLO Architecture and Interior Design of Seattle told the board five suites and a multi-function space would occupy the top two floors. The bottom floors would house commercial space which the port would use. The building is not connected to Friday Harbor House. The two buildings are 16' feet apart.

Friday Harbor House owners Ann and Langdon Simmons explained the reasons for the expansion. Langdon Simmons said there is a need for suites in order for Friday Harbor House to accommodate families and upscale guests who want sitting rooms. He said, "We are excited about the addition to our inn. We intend to have it fit into the Town of Friday Harbor."

Ann Simmons said the community would be welcome to use the multi-purpose lounge in the quiet season.

The addition is the first project to be reviewed by the town's historic review board since the historic preservation manual was adopted Thursday, Dec. 7. While the design guidelines in the manual are voluntary. Property owners are required to meet with the board before permits are issued.

The inn would have a stone veneer on the exterior of the bottom two floors. "The basement would appear to be an extension of the bluff," said Moore."It would appear to be anchored in the bluff." Preliminary plans call for the two upper floors to be covered with painted siding and cedar shingles. Moore asked the board for clarification of the types of sidings appropriate under the design guidelines.

The building would fit in with the architecture of the town through its use of cornices, flat parapets and vertical components instead of one large facade said Moore. The color palette would be an unassuming natural palette.

Scale and mass of the building are important considerations according to Historic Preservation Coordinator Nancy Larsen. "This is a walking town. It's important how scale and mass affect pedestrians."

Buildings in Friday Harbor cannot exceed 27 feet in height above the average grade. The 8,000 square foot parcel is heavily sloped. The average grade is calculated using the four corners of the footprint and a complex formula. The Friday Harbor House addition comes in under the 27-foot height limit according to Moore.

Board members will review the drawings and share their views with the Simmons and the architectural firm at a Jan. 24, 2001 board meeting. "The back and forth process is what we want," said Nancy Jones, board chair.

Port of Friday Harbor Director Steve Simpson and Port Auditor Marilyn O'Connor said the plans meet several goals the port has for the property.

"Access is available to the upper part of the building without using Front Street," Simpson said.

The port plans to use one floor for U.S. Customs offices. The other floor would most likely house some of the operations of the Port of Friday Harbor. Simpson noted the Port hasn't expanded its office space in 20 years. No retail businesses are planned for the two bottom floors.The use of the lower levels would not increase traffic on Front Street according to Simpson.

O'Connor said, "It is a very complicated and tight area. This plan offers us opportunities." The port has plans for reworking the traffic flow on Front Street. A 90-foot in diameter traffic circle is planned.

The port plans to lease the property to Friday Harbor House. A price has not been set yet. The port purchased the property for $350,000 from Unocal which had stored bulk fuel storage tanks on the site for years. Cleanup of the site is part of the work that needs to be done.

Langdon Simmons hopes to start construction a year from now with completion by the spring of 2002. The port wants to complete its plans for improvements to Front Street at the same time.

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