,
55 tweets,
16 min read
Read on Twitter
Watch this space for QUEEN ANNE SAFEWAY BATTLE livetweets starting tonight at 7:00pm. 
For those of you just tuning in, this is the 479th public meeting to discuss the new Safeway planned for the top of Queen Anne.
The Safeway development is controversial because it will add housing (likely inhabited by strangers with little or no appreciation for the unique character of the neighborhood) and eliminate a beloved surface parking lot in the heart of Queen Anne’s business district.
Do you have trouble relating to people with a dry sense of humor? Are you reading this thread from some distant retweet of a retweet and now something you’re reading out of context is making you angry at me? Just chill and let the tweets roll over you like a cascade of absurdity.
To get us all on the same page, let’s review: Safeway has been planning to redevelop their store on top of Queen Anne for quite a while.
Originally, the store was going to be redeveloped by Holland but their attempt failed. Coverage here:
The project was on hold until Barrientos/Ryan took over. Their first public meeting was a barn-burner.
Learning from their fist meeting, Barrientos switched from a town hall format to an open house, reducing opportunities for angry mobs to develop.
Today’s meeting, however, will be run by the Queen Anne Community Council’s Land Use Review Committee (LURC) and they have opted for the Angry Mob format.
Last bit of housekeeping: The meeting is at Queen Anne Manor, a place that is considerably older and whiter than the rest of Queen Anne.
Warning: I’m jetlagged and whiskey-deprived but I ate this Hawaiian pizza from the farmers market so I’m hoping that will give me the energy I need to survive this meeting.
Update: I walked over with Marty Kaplan and he says he’s jetlagged too.
We’re about to get underway.
Marty Kaplan laying the ground rules. We’re in the dining room at Queen Anne Manor and a handful of residents are still eating and chatting off in the wings.
Marty is making a joke about how many architects live on Queen Anne. I made a map. Active architects are shown in red and retired ones in gray.
Maria is up. Doesn’t know how much brick or what color, but there will be brick. Crowd: Tentative nods of approval.
Maria is putting in the good word for the architects, including Kris Snider from HEWITT. He is famous for his mustache and his smooth, sultry voice.
Architects verbally cultivating authenticity of place. Exploring the context of Queen Anne. Talking about neighborhood character.
We’re going back to the Pleistocene Era. Mmm...glaciers.
Fast forward to 1891 (a date meeting participants will remember well). Hot summer that year.
Now we’re up to the 1900s. Finally. A century when I was alive.
To myself: “Am I still at the Safeway meeting?”
To myself: “Am I still at the Safeway meeting?”
Whew! Now we’re up to the present day. I skipped a few slides. Here is a “tapestry of magical urban moments.”
Now Kris (mustache) is meditating on the micro-interactions of people sitting in front of Caffe Ladro. “Want to make sure edges are activated. They emit energy; change with the seasons. They flow around you and through you. They permeate your soul.” Voice like buttered gravel.
MASSING! Now we’re looking at the maximum allowed floor area ratio. Doomsday scenario. Shudders of disgust from the assembled townsfolk.
We’re doing a standard massing progression now. I’ll skip a few slides.
Height! Bulk! Scale!
Sharon LeVine had to leave so now my friend @leepyne will be in all of my pictures. Hi, Lee!
Corner of 1st North and Boston. Looks great to me but I’m hearing murmurs of disgust.
Note: At least two people here are sewing or knitting.
Now 1st North & Crockett. Again, looks good. Nice connection to the residential side of the block.
Overall massing. Nice 5’ setbacks across the entire QA Avenue frontage. Plaza at the corner. Three buildings on a low podium.
Kris capturing the energy of the space, exploring it, caressing it. Ruminating on warmth...brick...stone...hearth. Let’s talk fireplace. Let’s talk Adirondack chairs.
By the way, my stylist selected a pair of drawstring athleisure pants with rolled cuffs and a pair of gray flyknit Converse All-Stars. #shoepic
It’s not question time yet but people are getting angry about traffic. Lots of interruptions and grumbling.
I can’t believe we’re not even halfway through.
Tension is building. People knitting faster. Question time coming soon.
Maria is trying to pull a fast one and turn this into an open house! Angry mob is resisting!
Moment of chaos now. Marty trying to regain control of the room.
Tom English pushing back on the departures for ground floor retail. “Safeway turning its back on the neighborhood. Horrible mistake.” Maria: “That’s not a fair comment.”
Question: “Safeway not an innovative store. Can you point to any example where they have built a nice store?”
Maria: There are some nice ones in California.
Maria: There are some nice ones in California.
Question from the audience about traffic. Maria says she can talk to SDOT.
@BrandonMacz has a question. Marty ignoring him.
The Rem Koolhaas guy is asking if the Safeway can have innovative signage.
Here is my rendering of a Rem Koolhaas-designed Safeway.
Neighbor wants the Safeway to reflect the community.
Guy angry that 360 parking stalls isn’t enough. Also angry about traffic. Maria says parking isn’t required.
Another guy (I promise this is actually a different guy) is concerned about height, bulk, and scale. “Driving down QA Avenue, this Safeway is going to dwarf existing buildings.”
Maria (a badass): “I’m not going to apologize for that.”
Maria (a badass): “I’m not going to apologize for that.”
Another guy unhappy about the lack of public space on the Queen Anne Avenue side. Maria jokes that the current surface parking lot has a lot of public space. Guy not laughing.
Man disappointed that the size of the Starbucks might be reduced. Maria says the Starbucks will actually be bigger.
Rem Koolhaas guy wants the team to stretch and create something amazing and iconic. Something that will draw visitors from all over.
Reminder: THIS IS A SAFEWAY
Reminder: THIS IS A SAFEWAY
Sharon LeVine asking Maria about a conspiracy theory she has that Maria cut a backroom deal with the mayor and the council to increase the allowed density on this block.
Guy concerned about traffic on Queen Anne Avenue. Some people grumbling about back angle parking. Maria says that’s SDOT’s purview.
Woman in the corner gets the last question. [Thank god]. She asks about disruption during construction. Maria says it will take 2 years to build.
It’s over.
If you would like to see how a real journalist covers the same design review meeting, I recommend this.
