Seward Park Estate

Built at the turn of the 20th century, this grand urban estate was originally a waterfront property before Lake Washington was lowered by 9'. Situated on an just over an acre of land in Seattle's Seward Park neighborhood, this property is actually comprised of 3 structures - a main house, a garage/servants' quarters and a boat shed. By the time we were engaged by the new owners, all three structures had been ravaged by time and deferred maintenance. Our initial tasks included demolishing and rebuilding the boat shed as a recreation/media center; reframing the garage/servants' quarters and then renovating the quarters into a business center; and a complete renovation of the main house that included asbestos and lead paint abatement and extensive repairs from a previous chimney fire. All three structures benefitted from extensive plumbing and mechanical system updates; a complete rewiring of the electrical and low-voltage systems; a property-wide telecommunications and audio-visual package that ties all three structures together; and an engineered storm water system that diverts all run-off from the property into a subterranean 7000 gallon cistern. Rain water from this cistern is then slowly released to the city storm sewer via a flow-control valve. The new owners were music industry managers who immediately understood the potential this property offered as a reflection of the creativity in their industry. The finishes turned out to be nothing short of an all-out love affair. Old-world Irish plasterers, master carpenters, faux painters, Chihuly-trained glass artists and one of the finest blacksmiths in the country all contributed to the unique character of this tastefully updated classic. Almost 20 years later, this project continues to remain one of the favorites in our portfolio.