Published October 2004

Real Estate Briefs

Report: County home sales
remain strong
Housing activity in Snohomish County remained strong during August, with closed sales up almost 8 percent and pending sales up 13.8 percent from the year before, the Northwest Multiple Listing Service reported.

“The 2004 dream market continues,” said J. Lennox Scott, chairman and chief executive of John L. Scott Real Estate. “Historically low interest rates coupled with a growing economy are continuing to drive record sales activity.”

In Snohomish County, 1,488 sales closed in August, and another 1,589 deals were pending, according to the listing service. The month also brought with it 2,010 new listings, bringing the total active to 4,211.

The average median price — meaning half the homes sold for more and half sold for less — of single-family homes and condominiums in Snohomish County was $240,500, up 4.57 percent from a year ago, the listing service said.

For single-family residences, the median price in August was $252,000 up from $240,000 a year ago. For condos, the median price was $169,000, down from $170,000 a year ago, the listing service reported.

Together, single-family homes and condos in Snohomish County spent an average of 50 days on the market — 10 fewer days than a year ago, the listing service said.

Everett rezones former Asarco site;
housing planned
The Everett City Council recently approved a zoning change on former Asarco property that opens the way to a housing development that could include dozens of houses, duplexes and townhouses.

In June, the Everett Housing Authority bought 18 acres from Asarco, including 4.7 acres that had been fenced off because of severe contamination, which the company has been working to clean. The agency plans to sell the land to a private developer for up to 85 houses, duplexes and townhouses.

On Sept. 8, council members voted 6-1 to allow townhouses, which are defined as more than two units attached at the sides, on the site. The land previously had been zoned for single-family homes and duplexes. Housing authority officials said the change was necessary to make its plan financially viable.

Councilman Ron Gipson cast the lone “no” vote, citing concerns of increased density.

The zoning change comes with requirements for open space and design guidelines so the housing blends in with the neighborhood, Everett Planning Director Allan Giffen said.

Asarco has removed nearly half the tainted dirt and was on schedule to finish the cleanup by the end of September, said Clint Stanovsky, a consultant for Asarco. Housing authority officials will soon solicit potential developers and hope to sell the land by the end of the year.

Howard Johnson being sold;
‘sizable renovations’ in works
The Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel in Everett is being sold and will shut down as the new owner makes substantial renovations to the 23-year-old building.

Hotel employees told guests in September that the hotel was scheduled to shut down Sept. 17. The employees said that they were told the hotel would be closed until at least summer 2005.

Because the sale is still ongoing, those involved in the transaction said the new owner doesn’t yet want to be identified. No details of the transaction have been released.

Built in 1981 on the west side of I-5 near downtown Everett, the Howard Johnson is considered the only full-service hotel within the city limits. The hotel, which has nearly 250 rooms, offers an on-site restaurant and lounge, meeting spaces and in-room services.

But the hotel, which has been for sale for years, also has not seen many major improvements. In Snohomish County’s latest assessment of the hotel and its 3.5-acre property, the value of the building actually dropped more than $300,000.

Now, the combined value of the hotel and land at 3105 Pine St. is $6.7 million, according to the county assessor’s office.

The sale follows a four-year legal fight between the hotel’s previous owners, Pacific West Hotels Inc., and the company that was leasing the hotel and running the day-to-day operations, Seattle-based Everett Pacific Hotel Associates, which ended earlier this year.

Everett Pacific hasn’t leased the hotel since then, but an associated company, Northwest Lodging Inc., has managed it.

The new owner, however, plans major changes, said Karen Shaw, Everett’s director of economic development and human needs.

“He’s closing because he wants to make some sizable renovations,” she said.

It’s unclear how many people will lose their jobs.

Three new stores sign on
for The Village at Alderwood
Alderwood mall has signed up three more retailers, including The Sharper Image, to join the shopping center’s new outdoor shopping wing.

The Sharper Image, which specializes in high-tech gadgets and other products, will have a new store in The Village, a large addition on the Lynnwood mall’s north side. The two other new retailers that will open locations in The Village are Island Soap & Candle Works, a Hawaiian-based business that specializes in natural soaps, and Club Libby Lu, a store for girls that features fantasy makeovers.

The mall’s new shopping areas are scheduled to open this fall.

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