I’ve decided that my favorite Seattle / Capitol Hill building style is what you might call the “cottage courtyard” development. There are two examples next door to each other on my old block of 10th Ave E. One is a condo called “The Bungalows” and the other is a rental called “Broadway Court.” I also like “bungalow court” as a generic name for these things, although I’ve seen many other terms used in ads like “Hollywood style bungalows”. I understand they’re quite common in LA but I won’t hold that against them.
So these things have become a recent obsession of mine and I’ve done a little research. The Seattle Department of Neighborhoods has some cool historic info on single story cottage buildings at 1801 18th Ave and 406 Summit Ave E. There are also some cool multistory buildings that might be seen as hybrids of the cottage style and flat style apartments, like 1516 E Republican. This is one of many developed in the ’20s by the Anhalt company. Assessor’s information shows that some units are multi-story townhouse style and others are single story flats.
Another variation is the cluster of small detached cottages, a famous example being the Pine St Cottages just across Madison in the CD. Ms. Final and I saw a craiglsist ad for one recently and wanted to move in really bad. One blogger makes a good case for their “living small” virtues.
I also dug up this document that Seattle Planning Department produced around 2003 in which they considered promoting cottage style development. Tall 4-pack townhouses won out in the last building boom but maybe we should reconsider the cottage style for when the development activity someday starts up again. They don’t have the square footage of the modern townhouse but I would have to say they make for a much nicer streetscape.
So I’m wondering what these things are like to live in…This one at 13th and Mercer might be my number 1 fantasy pick of a place to live on the hill.
Until we have good way to enable specific providers, you need to have special permissions to embed. I’ve hooked you up. Anybody else? e-mail me
btw, fun post. i was a little worried about juxtaposition next to the ‘urban gardener’ real estate ad but hopefully everybody reads and sees we’re not running ‘advertorial’ content :)
There is are 8 cottages right next to my apartment on Summit about a block and a half North of Top Pot that never get any attention online. I would really love to move into one of them (please add cottages in the I-5 shores to your next residential trajectory question J:) ) I posted a comment about them on hugeasscity asking if anyone knew anything about them and didn’t get any response until one day I got the following email from a Legislative Aide for Dow Constantine…
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I also live in the neighborhood and have been fascinated by this interesting development. When I worked as a journalist, I accompanied a photographer who was taking pictures there for a story on cottage housing regulations.
I was also interested in them because of an old poster from the 1920s that a Laurelhurst activist named Kate Hemer made copies of and brought to a neighborhood meeting. It showed a set of little cottages, obviously recently constructed, on a denuded lot next to an elegant Victorian home. The poster itself called for Seattle to adopt a real zoning code (implied threat: or else someone will build something like this next to your house). I am pretty sure that it was a picture of the Summit Avenue Cottages and the home directly to the south, but unfortunately I have no idea what ever happened to my copy of the poster.
The message on the poster is especially ironic because, after years of tree growth and many modifications and improvements to the little buildings, the cottages are beautiful and a great part of the neighborhood.
I’ve pasted the assessor’s information for the cottages below. They are owned and operated as a condominium. The “year built” listed is 1920—a figure that may be approximate, although the city’s building department might have a more exact date, if you decide to do further investigation. Most of the surrounding homes were built in the year 1904.
Not terribly valuable information, I know, but I just thought I’d share it with another admirer of the cottages.
James Bush
Legislative Aide
King County Councilmember Dow Constantine
District Eight
(206) 296-1697
This e-mail and any response to it constitutes a public record and may be subject to public disclosure.
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If someone wants to fill me in on how to do a block quote I’ll put the letter in one.
Thanks for the great post jonglix – the cute little cottage courtyard developments are my favorite housing type in Seattle.
When I walk by the one on 10th, I always wonder what the people are like who live there… well? Anyone?
Thanks, although I may have just broken it again. Will go back and fix it later…
well, isnt this an amazing post! you just never realize the appreciation of your home that other people may have…i’m so happy to read this! i currently live in one of the bungalows and absolutely love it. i looked around seattle for quite awhile before moving in, dismayed by choices that allowed you to live small in a quaint, old world charm feel, with some modern updates in a walkable neighborhood. the bunglaows are just that and more! they are perfectly charming…the interior is quite small — my unit is 700 square feet (and i’m rounding up)…i have a tiny loft space that is actually officialy included in the square footage…they gutted the bungalows right before i moved in so my place has the original hardword floors with modern updates all around — im sure some of the original charm was lost however the restoration really was top notch…pedestal sinks, simple choices, clean tile…and i cant say i miss the old world charm when i fire up my gas stove and run my dishwasher! i’ve always lived in cottage style places — the lake court down on the lake in madison park is LOVELY if you havent seen it, but no dishwasher there! and the pea patches shared by all residents are such an amazing green space to come home to each day. anyhow, thank you for admiring the place that i get to call home. i agree, we need more cottage courtyard developments!! less mega condos!!
Wow! A real live Bungalow People! Nice work drawing them out, jonglix.
Thanks for saying hi, BT.
I live in the Bungalows as well. So glad that other Seattleites are being made aware of this gem of Seattle & Capitol Hill. They’re perfect for gardeners like me or my wife who just loves dining in the garden on Summer evenings. The units are well laid-out and have always felt spacious. Definitely one of the best places to live in Seattle.
Thanks so much for including the Pine Street Cottages (and my blog, Living Small) in this piece. Cottage courts seem a thing of the past, but there is much to learn from their construction and community feel. Thanks for calling attention to this little phenomenon.
And, by the way, another of the cottages is for rent, should you be interested in moving…
jonglix, just walked by the cottages at 13th & Mercer today and there was a for rent sign. Looks like a 1 bedroom is available. If nothing else, maybe you can take a walkthrough….
I have to agree that this is most definitely the way to live in an apartment. It’s very nice to have windows on both sides of the house, two entrances, no one above or below you, and the back door basically opens up a few feet from Broadway. Not to mention how nice it is to have a separated kitchen; large, sunny closet; and an adorable breakfast nook that doubles as a storage area (the bench seats lift up).Unfortunately for me, I am just staying here temporarily, but I am looking into similar accommodations nearby!
One downside: since the buildings are older, not all of the fixtures are up to date (sinks, stove, etc) and each unit varies a little in how current these fixtures are.