By: Morgan Alexander

Part 2 in a series on economic development in Tacoma.

One of the side effects of being in the shadow of the Seattle-metro area is that an abundance of older buildings, many eligible for historic status, have been spared the fate of the wrecking ball. Love them or hate them, Tacoma has a LOT of old buildings.

Some are quite significant and have names you may have heard: Winthrop Hotel, Elks Temple, Luzon, and of course Union Station. Still, there are many others that aren’t quite as stately, yet no less significant: the Horsfall Building, built in 1919 in the Lincoln District or the Pochert Building at 1110-1112 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, designed by C.A. Darmer in 1904. Darmer is better known for other projects including the Tacoma Hotel, Harmon, the original Pierce County Courthouse, Columbia (Heidelberg) Brewery, Pacific Brewing & Malting Co. Complex, Olympus Hotel, Waddell, Meeker Mansion, Tacoma News Tribune, Carnegie Library, Carlton Hotel, to name only a few.

Heritage Tourism
Many Tacomans may take for granted how many fine old buildings we have, but visitors don’t. Many visitors during the last Tall Ships Festival were overheard commenting on all “the neat old buildings.” However, for many Tacomans there remains a perception that old buildings are a reminder of the past and that it’s time to move on, which is too bad. Indeed, some cities capitalize greatly on their history and incorporate it into their marketing – Port Townsend is a great local example. In fact, last year the State of Washington Department of Archaeology & Historic Preservation released a report indicating that heritage tourism contributes hundreds of millions of dollars annually in this state.

“The National Trust defines ‘cultural heritage tourism’ as traveling to experience the places, artifacts and activities that authentically represent the stories and people of the past and present. This is a broad definition, but it’s fair to say that the interests of heritage travelers generally include visits to historic districts and privately-owned historic buildings, including hotels and bed and breakfasts, as well as museums and sites with guided tours and central admissions. Heritage sites in Washington range from historic homes that are entirely staffed by volunteers and open only part of the year to large federally-funded National Historic Sites administered by the National Park Service. Historic districts and vibrant historic downtown areas also serve as important heritage tourism attractions.”

“Heritage and other forms of tourism generate economic benefits for local economies because visitors to the area spend money on entrance fees, food and drink, transportation, gas, and lodging, among other things. These direct expenditures represent new money for the area and support local jobs and income, as well as generating additional employment and income through local multiplier effects. The heritage tourism portion of this study is primarily concerned with identifying the total (direct, indirect, and induced) economic impacts associated with spending by heritage tourists visiting Washington State.”

“Heritage tourists spent an estimated 8.7 million visitor days in Washington State in 2004, with average expenditures per day of $72.40. This resulted in total annual spending statewide of about $633 million, with much of this spending concentrated in the lodging, eating and drinking, and retail sectors.”

“Almost half (48.5 percent) of all visitor spending in Washington was in King County in 2004, with about 6.2 percent in Pierce County and 5.9 percent in Spokane County.”
* Washington Sate Department of Archaeology & Historic Preservation

Neighborhood Vitality
By their nature, old buildings have an easily overlooked advantage to new buildings: they’re cheap! New construction, on the other hand, is not cheap. In Tacoma, you can expect to pay $25-$30 per foot to rent new office or retail space. Older buildings range from $9-$18 per foot – about half that of new construction. What does this mean? It means older buildings are more affordable to small local businesses and entrepreneurs. National chains can afford the more expensive space because they have the power of a brand name but also because they have the wherewithal to weather a down economy much longer than a small local business.

Retaining and re-using older buildings creates a rich urban fabric and is crucial to local entrepreneurs and businesses. For example, if I wanted to rent a 1,500 square foot retail or office space on MLK today, I could either pay $650 a month for renting in an older building, or I could lease space in a new building, such as the one proposed at 11th & MLK, for $2,250 a month. If you were starting a new business, which would you choose? But it’s not just about money, many people desire the character, simplicity, and integrity that are only found in older buildings.

In a study commissioned by the City of Tacoma, the Browne’s Star Grill Building on MLK was found to be structurally sound, though in need of some TLC. This building played a significant role in the development of the historic “K” Street business district. And it may be hard to tell in its current state, but under the grime and boarded up storefront sits a proud building with more character in its two stories than in many of the high-rises going up today. Many cities dream of having classic old buildings like this! And there are many other examples like this. While other local cities such as University Place and Mill Creek struggle to create walkable main street neighborhoods from scratch, Tacoma’s old commercial centers silently wait to rise again.

It has been said that tourists don’t go to Europe to see new buildings – they want to see the old! Old buildings give neighborhoods character. They stabilize neighborhoods and encourage economic development. If historic preservation can turn our downtown around, then wouldn’t we want to do the same for our neighborhood business districts?

Going Green
There is more value to old buildings than just nostalgia. In many cases, they are irreplaceable. The materials and craftsmanship simply are not available to today’s developers. You can’t build another Browne’s Star Grill building because the brick they used is not made any more. Even if you could find the brick, today’s zoning would not allow it to be built – it has no off-street parking. Why would the original builders not feel compelled to incorporate parking? Because streetcars used to run right in front of the building! But that’s another topic.

Jane Jacobs wrote in her seminal book, “The Death and Life of Great American Cities,” “The economic value of new buildings is replaceable in cities. It is replaceable by the spending of more construction money. But the economic value of old buildings is irreplaceable at will. It is created by time.” While there is much talk these days about “green building,” we sometimes forget that the “greenest” buildings are the ones we already have. Building materials constitute the single largest category in our landfills.

By: Morgan Alexander

Part 1 in a series on economic development in Tacoma. 

Following the plight of a little nail shop has got me thinking about how we think about growth.

Growth comes in two forms: incremental and punctuated. Incremental growth occurs gradually over time and is more organic. Punctuated growth is marked by sudden and dramatic change. Humans, by our nature, are mesmerized by punctuated change – as long as it’s not happening to us! Think of cities evacuating due to a volcanic eruption, the devastation of a community from a major flood, earthquakes wrecking havoc on a region’s infrastructure, or a six story building going up where most of the surrounding buildings have only one story. You get the idea. Conversely, humans like consistency and gradual change, if any change at all. It is safe to say that humans generally don’t like a great deal of change, especially when it’s happening to us.

How does this relate to the recent case of a Vietnamese family filing for a change of land use for their home-based nail salon in the Proctor District?

This home business in particular exists in a single family dwelling located at the corner of N. 26th & Madison Street. The other three corners are all commercial structures with fairly low impact businesses operating in them- two banks and financial service company. While it is understandable that we would want to keep commerce from encroaching too much on neighborhoods, we must ask ourselves what our aim is.

Without a doubt, the Proctor District is one of the more stable and successful business districts in Tacoma. Rental rates are high and vacancy rates are usually near zero and the availability of commercial zoned properties for sale are also quite rare. However, the last significant development in the Proctor District occurred nearly a decade ago with little new development since. This is a classic case of pent-up demand in the marketplace.

Through the Growth Management Act, the State of Washington mandates that the City designate urban growth areas and plan accordingly. According to the City’s Growth Strategy, the population is predicted to increase to 255,240 by the year 2022. Based on the current population of 201,700, the city of Tacoma should be adding 3,569 new living units every year.

Clearly, increased density in many of our neighborhoods is not happening as was expected from our land-use zoning system. While some of the business districts have witnessed a revival of sorts, we have added very little density. Density is necessary in order to create vibrant business districts, walkable neighborhoods, and sustainable transportation systems such as streetcars.

There is a fear in Tacoma that there needs to be some sort of buffer between commerce and residential.

Commerce and residential do not need to be mutually exclusive. They can peacefully exist and even prosper side-by-side. The perception that there needs to be a line dividing commerce from residential is one inherited from 50 years of suburban-based urban planning – a one size fits all approach that only works in suburbia.

There are examples showing the symbiotic relationship between commercial and residential all over town. The Rosewood Cafe is a great example of a business with a fiercely dedicated neighborhood following within a single family neighborhood context. If they were to build the Rosewood Cafe building today and open for business, it would be illegal. Why? Because our policies declare it so. Since the build sat vacant for so long, it had lost its “right” to be zoned commercial. Get it? I don’t. As it was explained to me by a city planner, the Rosewood Café is only open today because of lax enforcement from a previous era of city government. It would be a tough sell today.

Back to the nail salon. One of the arguments brought forth against allowing expanding the home-based nail salon business into a regular business operation were concerns about signage, parking, and exterior building modifications. Seems reasonable. However, it appears that the use of the building is being confused with the building itself. One solution is to address these topics through a policy update. If the use is low impact and family friendly, which is desirable in this location, it shouldn’t be too difficult to create guidelines addressing neighborhood concerns for a win-win situation.

Somehow, all of our historic business districts evolved without the tight zoning controls that have been in place for the past 50 year. They grew naturally over time, not overnight. That’s the way it is around the world – even London, Paris, and New York started with small home-based shops. With an awareness of how our business districts came to be, we gain an understanding of the way to grow them: incrementally.

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Bahama Nails, 4002 N. 26th Street. The owners of this home-based business would like to hire employees.
The Rosewood Cafe, 3323 N. 26th Street, built 1931. The Rosewood Cafe is near the Proctor District and is surrounded by single family homes. They serve beer and wine along with a simple menu. Although they have minimal off-street parking, their overall impact on the neighborhood is very low in terms of adverse impact. The building is what we now call “mixed-use” as it has apartments in back of the storefront. Small commercial buildings such as this one are located all around Tacoma and were built along what was once one of the most extensive streetcar networks in the country. Located at intervals along the streetcar route, the buildings provided goods and services to the neighborhood and to streetcar passengers.
The Jasminka store at 3820 N 26th in the Proctor District. The store and facade was built in 1970 according to county records. However, the original structure – a house with a storefront added – was built in 1905.
Alley view of the Jasminka store. This structure was built in 1905.The Proctor District Ice Cream Shop located at 3812 North 26th Street. According to county records, the facade of the building dates from 1975. However, the original structure which began as a house is over 100 years old.
Alley view of the Proctor District Ice Cream Shop. This part of the structure was built around 1905 and probably provided living quarters for the original shop owner.
A long time Tacoma business, the Collectors Nook is located at 213 North I Street. The storefront was built in 1927.
Alley view of the Collectors Nook building. Behind the Collectors Nook store is actually two old houses (double house). The structure seen in this photo dates from about 1888 (213 N. I), while the house hiding behind the tree is from 1889 (211 North I).

Perhaps no other action by the City of Tacoma has caused so much long term damage to the downtown streetscape as much as the construction of the North and South Plaza Parking garages.

Touted as “urban renewal” and as a solution to Tacoma’s perceived lack of parking downtown, several blocks of Tacoma’s historical buildings on Pacific Avenue were razed in the 1960s with great fanfare. In their place, the city constructed brutish cement slab parking garages which Mayor Baarsma has accurately described as “tombstones.”

Where retail storefronts once invitingly greeted pedestrians, visitors are now faced with garage entrances and exits, frequent curb cuts, blank walls and empty caverns, all foreboding to street life. Worse, much of the North Park Plaza Parking garage is simply a foreboding darkened cavern of sorts and a frequent site of “unintended uses.” It is difficult to image a more repulsive visitors and residents alike are forced to endure who walk by the North Parking Garage. Not surprisingly, the area is avoided whenever possible.

The few retails spaces under the parking garages are recessed back under the garage itself resulting in dark storefronts. The escalators through the parking garage failed years ago leaving only a walkway and a tunnel with blind corners creating a dangerous environment which is perceived as such.

The north wall of the Northern Parking garage is presents a large blank cement wall against a small grass area on the corner of 9th and Commerce which facilitates that area to being haven for criminal activity, fights and bizarre behavior and consuming much of the resources of the police.

Not surprisingly, much of the retail underneath the parking garages has failed. The Tacoma Daily Index has labeled the area under the South Parking Garage “The Dead Zone.”

Perhaps one of the most prudent acts of the Tacoma City Council in recent memory has been to start the renovation and expansion of the South Parking Garage. The plans are to add an additional floor of parking and topped with 2 floors of Class A office space. The front of the retail spaces will be extended out so that they are appropriately flush with the building. Restoring the South Parking Garage will restore an entire block of the streetscape in downtown Tacoma.

Yet the North Park Plaza is even more foreboding and repugnant to any sort of street life than the South parking garage. The dark and cavernous garage covering half a block presents one of the most repellant streetscapes one could imagine. Understandably, most people avoid the area. The City of Tacoma should promptly work to replace or restore the North Park Plaza parking garage as soon as possible. Because the North Park Plaza parking garage is a public facility, it is incumbent on the city restore the building.

Tacoma’s elected leaders and citizens alike have expressed a desire to attract a large employer to Tacoma preferably locating in the downtown area. Tacoma’s success at doing so will be greatly related to how attractive of a city we have which would want an employer to move here.

Here’s what a streetscape should look like.