A part of the Central District’s historical past of redlining and alter, 16th Ave’s Considine Home thought of as Seattle landmark

Amid the change brought about by the Black Lives Matter movement, Seattle is also counting on its own history of racism and inequality when it comes to its neighborhoods and efforts to protect some of the buildings and homes that remain.

Wednesday the Seattle Monument Conservation Agency will decide on possible safeguards for a house built in 1909 on the corner of 16th and E Columbia in the Central District, which proponents say should be preserved for its architectural value to the neighborhood and as a reminder of the role that racist real estate practices have shaped the Central District and Seattle. TO UPDATE: King County records 1909, but landmark research shows it was built in 1901.

The Considine house, first built as a private residence and later as a Monastery of the Immaculate ConceptionIt survived decades in the middle of the city and managed to remain useful for the neighborhood, even if racist redlining left it empty and abandoned, writes the group behind the nomination for the landmark:

In 1972 the Church of the Immaculate Conception put the monastery on the market. However, the redlining of the 1960s and persistent racist attitudes towards the Central District made it impossible to find a buyer. The house stood empty for six years, during which time some of the original furnishings were removed from the house and sold to antique dealers. Neighborhood kids roller-skated the empty spaces, and musicians – including local celebrity Jimi Hendrix – got together to practice.

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CHS reported here on the restrictive alliances of the era that shaped the modern areas of Capitol Hill and Central District.

Today the house is a four-plexi house for the owner of the building, artist Sue Perry (You can see Perry’s artwork and renderings of the Central District here) and the residents hoping to protect it from the constant redevelopment that is changing the neighborhood. Historic Seattle spoke to Perry’s daughter and resident Amy Hagopian and Sarah Greiner who wrote the nomination, about the effort and the complicated relationship of today’s generation of people living in the Central District to the neighborhood as we know it today:

Despite intergenerational ties to the neighborhood, Sarah and the Hagopian and Perry families recognize their part in the gentrification process. “I definitely feel complicated about my relationship with the neighborhood,” said Sarah. “When my parents bought their house in the late 1980s, they were the first white people on the block. The block and of course the neighborhood looked very different then than they do today. The Hagopian and Perry family are also mostly white and despite their activism, social awareness and care for all of their neighbors, they are still a white presence in the neighborhood. I think we can preserve elements of the neighborhood like the house while recognizing the damage that has been done to people including our families and friends. As the nomination report describes, the house has been primarily a working class residence over time, and it continues to be one of the few affordable rentals within a few blocks. The desire to see people no longer displaced is a big reason we strive to preserve them. I want it to continue to be a family space, a meeting place and a place where people can afford to live. “

There are currently no zoning plans for the property, and efforts on the landmark are being driven by Perry to protect the home, Historic Seattle reports. In addition to protective measures, designating a property may consider granting and tax credits and programs to preserve and protect the home and its features.

Wednesday’s decision on Considine House precedes another Landmarks Board vote that will take place this April on historic Capitol Hill Cayton Revels House. In February the board voted to move forward the nomination for the 14th and 1902 Mercer-built house that was once home Horace Roscoe Cayton, Editor of Seattle Black-owned newspaper the Seattle Republicans Seattle, and his wife and associate editor Susie Sumner indulges in Cayton.

According to the landmark nomination, “the Caytons were one of only three black American families who lived by the current Capitol Hill definition before racially restrictive alliances banned non-white residents in 1927”.

While, like the Considine House, it is also an example of historic turn-of-the-century architecture in Seattle and Capitol HIll, when the Cayton-Revels House is finally listed it will also be a memorial to the changes that went into overcoming injustices like redlining that shaped the city.

Considine House is being considered for landmark protection on Wednesday afternoon:

Meeting of the Monument Protection Committee
Remote meeting
Wednesday March 17th 2021 – 3:30 p.m.
Personal attendance is currently prohibited under the Washington State Governor’s proclamation
No. 20-28.5. Attendance at meetings is limited to access through the WebEx Event Link or phone
answering machine specified below.
Log in to make an oral public comment at the meeting; see link below.
Join the meeting virtually via this WebEx (all participants are muted when they join).
Shortcut:
https://seattle.webex.com/seattle/onstage/g.php?MTID=e7155e8f4baca956366daa428
b8f90d26
Listen to the meeting by calling 1-206-207-1700 and entering the meeting access code:
187 991 4352

The full nomination report can be found here (PDF).

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