Published February
2004
Gas
station makes way
for mixed-use building
|
Illustration
courtesy of Barb Lamoureux
“I wanted it
to look like a big old house that has aged well,” Barb Lamoureux said
of the mixed-use building she is developing at Wetmore Avenue and
19th Street. With 12,000 square feet of space, the building will house
four two-bedroom apartments as well as office space. |
By
Kimberly Hilden
SCBJ Assistant Editor
At Wetmore Avenue
and 19th Street, the Arco gas station at the southwest corner is gone,
torn down at the end of 2003. In its place will be a mixed-use building
more fitting of north Everett’s historical homes, said property owner
Barb Lamoureux.
The longtime Windermere
real estate agent purchased the 15,000-square-foot site in October 2002
after driving by and seeing a “for sale” sign on the lot. She immediately
called the seller’s agent.
“I always loved that
corner; that corner defines the start of the historic neighborhood,” said
Lamoureux, a 23-year resident of north Everett. “I wanted to build a building
that would fit into the neighborhood and have that characteristic of it.”
That includes a two-story,
residential-style building with cedar siding, double-hung windows, shutters
and a large, welcoming front porch, she said.
“I wanted it to look
like a big old house that has aged well,” Lamoureux said. “The city has
been very gracious in working with us to make sure we got some setback
so we can have grass and a porch. It gives it the character of an old
house rather than a commercial building.”
With 12,000 square
feet, the building will house four two-bedroom apartments and some office
space upstairs as well as office space downstairs. There also are tentative
plans for a mini-gym, a “nice perk” for tenants, Lamoureux said. A 20-car
parking lot will be tucked behind the L-shaped building.
Lamoureux plans to
move her real estate business, which now employs her two sons, Aaron and
Chris, out of her home and into the new building, leaving about 2,400
square feet of commercial space for lease.
In early January,
work began on the building’s foundation, and the project is expected to
be completed by the end of 2004 with an appraised value of $1.5 million,
Lamoureux said.
Newland Construction
is the general contractor for the project, and Architectural Design Associates
is the architect. Frontier Bank is the lender.
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