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$4.15 million later, Capitol Hill’s Colman Automotive building restored to 1916 glory

(Images: Alex Garland for CHS except where noted)

It was like layers of heavy, pore-clogging makeup pancaked onto a face. For decades, the artificial mask suffocated what lay beneath and deprived passersby of its true beauty. No more. 

A four-month renovation project has successfully peeled off coats of stucco and metal paneling that concealed parts of the Colman Automotive Building building on Bellevue and Pine.

“It was just nasty metal corrugated siding,” said Michael Oaksmith, managing partner at Hunters Capital, the boutique real estate firm that is on a mission to further its investments in the neighborhood and preserve historic properties in the Pike Pine corridor.


Hunters Capital also acquired and renovated the structures that house Poquitos, Elliott Bay Books and Blick Art Materials.

“Our goal is to save as many historic ‘Auto Row’ buildings as possible,” said Oaksmith. “There’s just a charm that you can’t replicate.” 

In April, Hunters Capital acquired the building at 401 E. Pine for $3.85 million and set out to go back in time, to 1916 to be exact. That’s when the two-story building was developed by J.M. Colman, the Seattle man who made a fortune in timber and than diversified into real estate. Named after its developer, the Colman Building served as a garage for auto-related businesses and fit in perfectly amongst the car dealerships on Capitol Hill’s Auto Row.

In the 1950s, the building’s owner heaped a ton of stucco on the lower façade. The corrugated paneling came afterwards. For the next 60 years, the layers masked much of the first floor’s exterior. The second floor was spared and served as a hint of what was trapped below.

To free the original exterior, Hunters Capital consulted with the Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation, getting their advice on how to match the original architecture. Mallet Construction served as the lead contractor on the work, according to Hunters.

Contractors began peeling back the gray metal panels and stucco. In time, they exposed the beautiful brick columns and ornate shadow boxing beneath. They also revealed additional windows, which had been inexplicably covered up. 

“From the state we bought it in, we actually uncovered 30% more glazing,” said Smith.

Then, the job shifted to rebuilding much of the woodwork by hand. Another challenge was fabricating new metal corbels underneath the cornice because three of the eight were missing. 

“We had to go to an Iowa company that specializes in this kind of work,” said Smith. “We wrapped and shipped one over to them so they could replicate it.”

In all, Hunters Capital said it spent about $300,000 on the four month project. That’s on top of the $3.85 million it paid for the building. “We are really excited with the building, inside and out,” said Smith. “We just feel every dollar we put in to it was a dollar well spent.” 

Before (Image: Hunters Capital)

After (Image: Hunters Capital)

The tenants agree.

“All of our customers, clients and Pine Street neighbors love the new façade,” said a manager at Area 51, the furniture store that has a lease on the building through 2015. “It’s a magnificent jewel to behold.”

The State of Washington also recognizes the building’s historic value. In October, it placed the building, renamed the “Colman Automotive Building” in honor of its roots, on the Washington Heritage Register of Historic Places.

Hunters Capital is not done yet. Oaksmith says the firm is eyeing several other properties on Capitol Hill to purchase and preserve. 

That should come as cool comfort for those buildings still trapped underneath a ton of “makeup” or those that face possible destruction and redevelopment.

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28 Comments
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calhoun
calhoun
11 years ago

Let’s all give three cheers for Hunters Capital! They are the epitome of a responsible developer…wish there were more like them.

Jason
Jason
11 years ago

Great work! The Hill needs more quality work like this.

JimS.
11 years ago

I agree! I walked by this building the other night and, looking in, remarked to the people I was walking with “wow, I never noticed how big this place is!”. At the time I didn’t even make the connection that a serious restoration had been done. No wonder I never noticed before. It looks great. Well done, Hunters.

hell yes!!!
11 years ago

It looks soooo good! I wish everything was restored!

genevieve
genevieve
11 years ago

nice to see some positive renovations on the Hill (and yes, the Poquito’s space and Elliot Bay Book Store look amazing as well).

Anon.
Anon.
11 years ago

Wonderful story. Misleading headline (4.1 m. total, not for the renovation). Great somber color scheme for our NW skies.

jseattle
jseattle
11 years ago

Seems incomplete not to include cost of acquisition, no?

Darrell Jesse
11 years ago

Thanks for a great article. It would be even better if you had mentioned the name of the contractor who did the work.

oiseau
oiseau
11 years ago

I am so glad to see that this work has been completed. I have loved this building for a long time. Great to see that it has been made whole.

Also, I love seeing lights on in the entrance on Crawford Place. I’ve always hoped that the space there could be transformed into a hole in the wall bar, café, or eatery. We will see!

Anon.
Anon.
11 years ago

‘$4.15 million later, Capitol Hill’s Colman Automotive Building restored to 1916 glory’ while gammatically correct, without a second verb, implies that the cost of the restoration was 4.15 mil. The only verb you used was ‘restored.’ Please split the headline and clarify the most recent purchase price, or use the lower dollar amount of 300k, the cost of the restoration, not that I’m your copy editor.

harvardave
harvardave
11 years ago

Seriously Anon? You want a novel not a headline. Choose your squabbles more carefully or tuck them away.

jseattle
jseattle
11 years ago

Enough, please. Note taken, Anon. I’m ok with this headline.

jseattle
jseattle
11 years ago

Thanks for the question. Mallet Construction was the main contractor on the renovation. We’ll note above, too.

so fun
11 years ago

I love it when the arm chair copy editors come out ‘gammatically’ correcting others.

eric1972sea
eric1972sea
11 years ago

I live on that block and it is nice to see that building fixed up. I remember when the gas station museum on the upper floor use dto host parties and stuff, but they don’t do that anymore that I know of.

Of course that was back when there was way more surface private parking lots for visitors those are all gone now so that would make it harder for a place like that to host events.

jseattle
jseattle
11 years ago

It *can* be really helpful. And doesn’t drain the spirit when done in the “let’s work together” mode of things. I think we do a pretty good job on the grammar/typo/clear more than clever headline end of things but we do play fast and loose at times and there are plenty of examples where we blow it and need a hand. It’s the people who thrust a stick instead of a hand that get old. But it’s also way low on my worry list. I’ll live :)

22Blades
11 years ago

This is the level the bar has been raised. This is Capitol Hill. Now if other developers (read Melrose Bldg. / Bauhaus)will step up, and work with the present tenants, it’ll be great.

BenE
BenE
11 years ago

That’s a great attitude jseattle! Keep up the great reporting!

EJ
EJ
11 years ago

It makes me wonder who ever uglified it and the first place and what their reasoning was.

Tom
Tom
11 years ago

I think they did a fantastic job on the renovation! I loved the ‘VIDEO’ sign, but I realize it didn’t really go with the building. The post-renovation look is fantastic and I hope it’s possible to work more buildings the same way. It’s great they could preserve the building, leave the existing tenant intact and still update as needed.

Thanks for this story. I honestly wasn’t aware the work was finished, it was so well executed.

joanna
joanna
11 years ago

thank you for the pics.

Gordon Padelford
11 years ago

Great to see development that celebrates the heritage of the Hill – and all with private funds as well. What’s not to like?

Kid
Kid
11 years ago

Subject line says it all, save for the fact that it ought to be in caps for going the extra mile to not only save a great old building but to do such a magnificent job of renovating it. Man, I’ll bet it looks better now than it did when it was first constructed! So, once again, fortissimo: THANK YOU, HUNTERS CAPITAL!

esk
esk
11 years ago

The before/after pics are amazing & heartwarming! Huge kudos to developers that care about preserving classic buildings.

cheesecake
cheesecake
11 years ago

any word on where the VIDEO sign ended up?

arobilar
11 years ago

AWESOME. MORE OF THIS, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE

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[…] Hunters Capital has also been busy on E Pine with this multi-million restoration of the Colman Automotive building. […]

Brian
Brian
10 years ago

Looks great and keeps the personality of Capitol Hill in tact – nice work!