Lake Washington: still toxic after all these years?

Late this summer, the State Department of Health (DOH) posted a “Lake Washington Advisory” sign at the E. Madison Street road end that I, for one, found a bit shocking. The advisory warns that eating certain fish from the Lake could be harmful due to “chemical pollution.” In fact, two fish (the carp and the northern pikeminnow) are singled out—in no fewer than seven languages—as too dangerous to be eaten at all; and another fish, the cutthroat trout, is listed as being worthy of only one serving per month.

Sounds bad, but what’s going on here? I thought that Lake Washington had been cleaned up long ago. Is the Lake getting cleaner, as I had previously supposed, or is the water quality here actually deteriorating?

I decided to find out, so I called the number helpfully listed at the bottom of the advisory. I was connected with Dave McBride, Lead Toxicologist with the DOH’s fish program, who assured me that things are not as bad as they may seem from a cursory review of the new advisory. First of all, he said, this is not really new information, even though there had previously been no posting on the subject. What happened, he said, is that the department recently received funding for some new signs. In fact, he said, there already had been an interim advisory concerning Lake Washington fish. The new signs coincide with the decision to make the advisory a permanent one.

So why are these fish so bad for our health? PCBs and mercury are the primary contaminants, according to McBride. PCBs have been banned for 30 years or so, but they still exist in plentiful supply in the environment, he told me. “There’s not really any new input (of PCBs),” he noted, “so much as there’s a recycling of existing PCBs within the system.” What this means for big, fatty, long-lived bottom fish such as carp, he said, is that they have time to build up an unhealthful supply of these chemicals and mercury, which occurs both naturally in the environment and as a result of human intervention. Chemicals continue to be introduced into Lake Washington through such means as the leaching of landfills and the draining of old transformers into the Lake, McBride told me. Fossil fuels also cause pollution, he noted; and any lake located in an urban environment, such as ours, will never be pristine.

The good news is that the trend is in the right direction. “The Lake is definitely cleaner than it was twenty or thirty years ago,” he said, “but it’s still not perfect.” Lake Washington is not worse than most other lakes in the state, McBride said, and it probably could be rated a ‘moderate’ lake in terms of fish contamination.

There really aren’t all that many carp in Lake Washington in the first place (and perhaps no northern pikeminnow), according to McBride. There are cutthroat trout in the Lake, but the “Good to Eat” lake fish are much more plentiful, fortunately. The yellow perch is good for a meal a week, but the sockeye, rainbow trout (shown above), and pumpkin seed are all good for two to three meals a week. So go ahead, knock yourself out--assuming you can catch any of them!

Thieves in the night: hardly a random act

This was the scene at Madison Park Hardware on Thanksgiving morning, following a break-in the previous night. The store (located at 1837 42nd Avenue E.) has been broken into many times in the past, but I believe that forced entry usually occurs through the alley side. In this case, the front door was the access point, the burglars either battering or kicking the door in, breaking the glass, damaging the door frame, and wrecking the kick plates. Not a pretty sight, and one that the police and the store owners were investigating when I wandered by during the morning; so there was no immediate assessment of the consequences.

Unfortunately, this kind of criminal activity is becoming all too common in the neighborhood lately, at least based on anecdotal evidence. At a recent meeting of the Madison Park Community Council, more than one third of the audience raised their hands when asked whether they had been recent victims of either a car or house burglary. One of my neighbors actually reported that the front seats had been stolen out of his parked car during the summer.

I will be doing a posting next week concerning the East Precinct's Crime Prevention efforts. At least for residential areas, a formalized block watch program might be one way to help fight crime in the 'hood. More to follow...

UPDATE: Scott McKee of Madison Park Hardware reports by email that the burglars, in what was clearly a premeditated act, stole the store's safe and apparently brought their own hand truck in order to cart the safe out of the store.

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UPDATE TO THE UPDATE: Antiques and fine furnishings store Maison Michael II (4118 East Madison St.) was also hit that night, presumably by the same brazen crew that broke into Madison Park Hardware. Owner Michael Schoonmaker told me that the store was entered through a side window, probably sometime between 3 and 4 in the morning. The store was not trashed, fortunately, but some items were taken, including the store's computer.

It's official: no Water Taxis for Lake Washington

As expected, the King County Ferry District Board of Supervisors (aka the King County Council) voted this month to defer the start date of possible demonstration routes for Water Taxi service on Lake Washington. As we reported in September, Madison Park was already out of the running as a destination point for the new service, but Leschi remained a candidate. Although service was scheduled to begin on two foot-ferry demonstration routes in 2010, the Ferry District's reversal at minimum postpones the start date and, more likely, probably kills the project for the foreseeable future.

Politics is at the heart of the decision, as the idea of the County's expanding ferry service while simultaneously limiting Metro bus service did not sit well with a lot of people. The subject came up during the recent King County Executive election campaign; and the County Council members, who also constitute the Ferry District Board, were certainly aware of the potential negative fallout of going forward with ferry expansion plans.

The method used by the Board to stop expansion of the ferry routes was to cut the Ferry District levy for 2010, thereby choking off tax revenues to the Ferry District that would have funded the operation. The demonstration routes were expected to cost $1.2 million in 2010 and another 1.36 million in 2011. The original property-tax rate, set in 2007, was 5.5 cents per $1,000 of assessed valuation for King County properties. This will be reduced to .3 cents for 2010, allowing the King County Council to increase the property tax by a proportional amount to fund Metro bus services. Thus, property owners will pay the same total levy, but the tax support for transportation will be directed to buses rather than ferries.

The existing King County Water Taxi routes from West Seattle and Vashion Island into downtown will continue next year.

[Photo courtesy of the King County Ferry District.]

October Real Estate Report

Sellers ‘capitulate’ to the market

During my ramblings around Madison Park last month I happened to cross paths with a well-known local real estate agent who was standing in front of a house—one of his listings—where a “sold” sign had recently been posted. He was watching the movers cart out the last vestiges of the “staged” furniture that had been on display in the home during its many months on the market. My congratulations on the sale were met with a weary sigh. “Well,” the agent said, “the seller lost a bundle and I lost a bundle, but at least we got the thing sold!” Then he added wryly, “It sure was a heck of a deal for the buyer, though.”

The seller had been “testing” the market over a long period by holding out for a higher price. But he ultimately succumbed to market realities, accepting a much reduced sale price. In a phrase borrowed from the stock market, he finally reached his personal capitulation point. And he was not alone. With only one notable exception, every Madison Park seller in October accepted a discount from their originally-hoped-for selling price, 12.5% on average. Even so, it appears that the market is achieving equilibrium and maybe even a bit of momentum.

Eight home sales were recorded in the Park during October, which was down from September’s volume of 11 sales but is level with the average eight-sales-per month pace of the market during the third quarter. There were also a large number of new pendings added during October and the first two weeks of November, bringing the total pendings at mid-month to 23, including three homes sold on a “contingent” basis. This is a huge increase from the 12 pendings outstanding a month earlier.

All but one of the six houses sold during October were in the $1 million or more price range, with a median sale price of $1,272,500 for all the houses. Their median square footage was 3,497, reflecting a median price per square foot of $454. The two condos (each boasting less than 600 sq. ft.) changed hands at about $300,000 each, for a median price per square foot of $524. While the houses sold in only 90 days on average, the condos took over twice as long to sell: 188 days each.

This combination of sales activity and the fact that there were only ten new homes listed for sale during the last month has caused inventory levels to continue their steady decline. The total number of homes on the market in Madison Park is now only 78, which compares favorably to the 116 active listings we had at the beginning of the summer (for those who are number oriented, that’s a 33% decline). Where there was a 17-month absorption rate (total listings divided by the month’s sales) in May, now there’s only 9.75 months of inventory, a pretty substantial improvement.

In addition to the two condos sold in October, there are nine additional condos that are now listed as pending, including two of the three units in this 2007 building at 1611 43rd Avenue E. These condos have been on the market for almost 700 days, according to Redfin; and it's expected that the developer will be taking a bath on the sale of the units, so to speak:

Here are the numbers for the Madison Park market (Broadmoor and Washington Park included) as of mid-November (courtesy of Redfin):

Houses

Listings: 53
Median List Price: $1,995,000
Median Sq. Ft.: 4,372
Median Price per Sq. Ft.: $456
Average Days on Market: 129
Proportion with Price Reductions: 45%

Condos & Townhouses

Listings: 25
Median List Price: $599,950
Median Sq. Ft.: 1,125
Median Price per Sq. Ft.: $533
Average Days on Market: 185
Proportion with Price Reductions: 56%

Interestingly, the proportion of for-sale properties that have been reduced in price is trending upwards, perhaps another sign of the capitulation process at work. As any viewer of cable TV’s Million Dollar Listing (Bravo channel, Mondays at 10:00) will tell you, sellers in even pricier neighborhoods than ours can be pretty unsophisticated about the market and resistant to facing the reality of declining real estate values. Many of them, of course, don’t have to sell and simply withdraw their properties or stick to their over-market price while awaiting a recovery that may or may not occur.

If you don’t have to sell, of course, there are more options available than for those who cannot afford to hold. But clearly it is possible with the right property to properly gauge the market and price accordingly. One Madison Park home, for example, was sold in October after only 9 days on the market—and at a 3% premium to the list price. It could be a fluke, or it might just be a good example of “pricing to the market.”

On the other hand, there is the example of that Washington Park house I mentioned in an earlier posting, the one whose owners had been “chasing the market down.” After almost 500 days on the market, the nicely located Hillside Drive home was finally sold early this month. Though the sale price of $1,350,000 was a 52% reduction from the initial offering price of $2,795,000, this was still a 35% increase in value from what the owners reportedly paid for the property in 1999. Not quite a hard-luck story, but a come down and a capitulation to the market nonetheless.

[Upper photo: a 2007 contemporary home at 1840 41st Avenue E., listed by Kathryn Hinds of Windermere at $1,795,000 (my favorite for-sale property in Madison Park). Thanks to Wendy Skerritt of Windermere Realty for her help in providing some of the market data utilized in this report.]

Last chance to order Greek Christmas delicacies

Even if you are not Greek like me, you probably still enjoy digging into a good batch of baclava or spanakopita when the opportunity presents itself. Well, now's your chance to get in on a good thing. The talented parishoners of the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption on Capitol Hill (1804 13th Avenue) are baking up a storm in preparation for their annual holiday bakesale, and the deadline to order is Monday, November 30th. So if you're in the mood for some great Greek delicacies, including tiropita, koulouraka, and pastitsio, you better check out the list of goodies (with mouth-watering pictures) at the Church's Holiday Fest website right now.

Orders can be picked up at the Church December 4-6.The Church will be holding its annual Holiday Fest dinner on December 5, and everyone is invited. Information is available here.

SR-520: Second Montlake Bridge Endorsed

A State legislative workgroup yesterday moved the SR-520 bridge replacement project a step closer by endorsing a six-lane solution (including two HOV lanes) and a wider Montlake approach, which will result in the construction of a second Montalke drawbridge (as shown above) if the plan is ultimately approved by the full legislature.

Although the vote was 10-2 in favor of the plan, known as "Option A," it was two Seattle representatives on the committee, including our own Rep. Jamie Pederson, who were opposed, according to the Seattle Times.

The replacement of the Evergreen Point floating bridge was discussed at the most recent meeting of the Madison Park Community Council, held earlier this week. As a result of that discussion I have to retract my earlier comments about the probable lack of impact on Madison Park of the new bridge. Those who have been paying closer attention to the project than I tell me that the design of the new, much taller bridge will almost certainly create what one critic called "an Alaksan Way Viaduct" profile all the way across the Lake. Additionally, a proposed noise-deadening wall on part of the north side of the bridge (to protect the sensibilities of Laurelhurst residents, apparently) will intensify the noise levels in Madison Park, in the opinion of some.

So the plan is much more controversial in Madison Park than I had believed. Unfortunately (and probably purposefully) there are no artist's conceptions on the State Department of Transportation's website showing what the new bridge will look like in profile.

The SR-520 legislative workgroup is sponsoring a townhall meeting next week: 6 pm on November 24 at the Center for Urban Horticulture (3501 NE 41st Street). The DOT website claims that the meeting agenda and related materials are available here, but as of this morning no such information had been posted to the site. I guess we're supposed to check back later.

[Graphics courtesy of the State Department of Transportation.]

UPDATE: KPLU today posted a report on its website stating that there is a coalition of Montlake and Madison Park neighbors who intend to fight the State's "Option A" plan for SR-520 expansion, but quotes no one other than a resident of Montlake. I am unaware of a concerted effort of Madison Park residents to oppose the plan.

Safeway: we've found your lost cart!

Anyone who thinks that all of Madison Park's beaches are pristine ought to run down and take a look at this scene at one of our road end "pocket parks." The debris gradually building up at the E. Highland Street beach can hardly be called flotsam and jetsam, since it doesn't appear that any of these objects arrived by water.

My neighbor, who clued me in to the build up, says that it began with the plastic chaise lounge late this summer, to which was later added the lovely print sofa with matching cushions. More recently, the shopping cart was abandoned there (arriving by way of the Capitol Hill Safeway or the one near University Village?).

If it's unclear how it all got there, it's just as unclear how it's going to be taken out. There's just a narrow beaten path down to the beach through the blackberry bushes and brambles, so it'll be quite a job.

Have I mentioned my bad back?

[Aerial photo (infamous beach marked in red) courtesy of Bing.]