500 Park Avenue seen from the North side. The neglected trees on the right once framed a pretty landscaped picnic area between the building and Park Avenue. I used to eat lunch there with colleagues.
With red-hot frustration in the community and three-million dollars in fines owed to the city, the owners of Garden Plaza finally seem close to removing the smaller of their two derelict office buildings on Park Avenue.
I’ve heard through unofficial sources that the demolition of 500 Park Avenue might happen in just a week or two, although I remain incredulous about this schedule after the history of delays on this project.
The smaller building is an easy way for the owner to begin the demolition. Its 3-story steel and glass construction will be easier to remove than the 7-story reinforced concrete building next to it.
The owners of the site ION Renton had a private meeting with city officials last week. They’re no doubt feeling the pressure, and moving forward with this building will be a good way to show some progress. And getting the smaller building out of the way would create more space for equipment when bringing the larger building down.
It’s been hard to watch the slow death of this once-beautiful office complex. I had enjoyed working in these buildings during my Boeing career. I’ll be glad to see this dying complex put out of its misery.
I remain concerned that the demolition permits do not seem to include the parking garage, although I’ve heard rumors that this decision might be reconsidered. I hope so, because the parking garage will be unusable without power, elevators and fire protection. The garage would remain for years as a 4-story dystopian nuisance if it stays in place after the buildings come out.
Structural demolition has not started yet, but it looks like it has. This view of the back of the 500 Park Avenue building (former Boeing 10-13) shows the vandalism that has occured since 2021.The 500 Park building is set back by a landscape buffer from the street. This will make demolition access easy without needing street closures. This demolition plan is available here.The demolition plan includes 535 Garden, but I have not heard when that demolition is predicted to commence. It will be more complex due to the 7-story height and the concrete construction. I have not seen any demolition permits issued for the parking garage. Plans are available here.An image of the building from 2021 that reminds me of the distinctive architecture of this once-pretty building. This was a view I enjoyed daily for a few years when I worked here. The sunny glass-column stairwells gave me access to other nearby Boeing buildings. The parking was convenient and accessible by a bridge on the other side.
Debris burns on one of the floors of the tall building at Renton’s Garden Plaza on Park Avenue
I received a link to an Instagram Post which shows the inside of the dilapidated Park Avenue (Garden Plaza) buildings. The owner of the Instagram account states in one of the comments that the photos were sent to him, so the time of the photos is unknown.
I also stumbled upon a youtube video from August 17, with thousands of views, showing the hazardous state of the inside of the buildings. It was obvious that no steps had been taken by the building owner to remediate interior hazards as of the time these images were captured.
The photos and video underscore the danger to anyone moving about within these buildings, and the fire danger these buildings represent to the community. Recently, even Renton’s firefighters and police officers have been instructed not to go into these buildings unless there is a critical life-saving emergency need. No one from the public should enter them. I’ve only included a few sample screenshots from the Instagram post in this blog entry.
The link to the photos was sent to me after this six-minute television news story was broadcast about these dangerous buildings and the negative impact the buildings are having on the community.
This image from the youtube video shows a deadly drop down an open elevator shaft. No one should be going anywhere near this hazard without fall protection. Given that the the building remains unacceptably physically open to workers, the unhoused, and curious explorers, the owners should immediately be installing safety railings and caution warnings on these elevator shafts to prevent falls.An open elevator shaft is visible in this image
This view inside the parking garage appears to include a pile of metal shavings (likely associated with metal theft activities.)Most of these windows are now gone on the east side of the three-story 10-13 building, and the structure is being damaged by the elements
pacnorthwest_media, which owns the Instagram account, explains that the pictures were sent to himTwo days ago when a concerned group of residents walked around the outside of the building we found at least four open fence openings, such as this person-size gap in the chain link. While we didn’t go onto the property, it looked like there were also unsecured openings into the inside of the buildings.This fence should not be relied upon to keep children out of this building
I’ve written several posts about the derelict office buildings on Park Avenue, including how they got to this condition, what is currently being done about them, and what the future may hold for them.
To help residents and businesses better understand this issue, “For a Better Renton” has asked me to host one or more conversation walking tours around the outside of these buildings (staying in the public space outside the fence, so no personal protective equipment is required). Since I used to work in these buildings, and I also served on City Council from 1994-2021, I bring some unique experience to this discussion.
I want to keep the walk to a manageable group size to support a conversation, so we’re asking people to RSVP to 4aBetterRenton@gmail.com and let us know if you would like to participate. We’ll add additional times if we get more interest than we can reasonably accommodate in this first session.
The walk will begin at Park Avenue and North 6th Street, at 2:00 this coming Sunday, September 7, and last for about one hour. There’s not any parking on these block of Park Ave or North 6th, and nearby lots are private or blocked off, so if you are driving I recommend you look for parking a couple blocks west, on Pelly, Wells or Williams.
The following Saturday there will be a second walk around the neighborhood impacted by the Renton High School eminent-domain expansion, another subject I’ve written extensively about. That walk will be hosted by Sarah Becker.
Renton School District is demolishing homes and businesses obtained by threat of eminent domain
Below is the official announcement for both walks by “For a Better Renton,” which includes additional details:
For A Better Renton (www.4aBetterRenton.com) is hosting its first two “Field Trips” on September 7th and 13th. The purpose of these field trips is to give Renton residents a clear first-hand understanding of some of the issues facing our city, our neighbors, and the direct impact on our taxes, health, future, ability to draw new businesses and residents to our city, growth, and pride in where we live and work.
PARK AVENUE DERELICT OFFICE BUILDING We’ve asked Randy Corman, who served on Renton City Council for 28 years, 1994-2021 (with six years as Renton Council President) to lead the field trip and discussion at the derelict Park Avenue Building. Randy was also with Boeing, as a mechanical engineer and manager, for 33 years, and worked in the building we will ‘touring’. Date: September 7th Time: 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Meeting location: Park Ave & 6th (directly across the street from Mighty Mugs Coffee Stand)
We will commence walking the entire block, around the external of the building. We will start at the old main entrance and then work our way along Park first, then to 5th and then around the backside of the building. We will be joined by a business owner who has been directly impacted by the activities at this derelict building since it’s abandonment by the owner and property manager, ION Renton and AAA Management. We will share information on what the Mayor and City Council has/has not done regarding addressing this building, the current state, the potential future state, and Department of Ecology reports.
Please RSVP at 4aBetterRenton@gmail.com. We look forward to seeing you there.
RENTON HIGH SCHOOL EXPANSION/EMINENT DOMAIN Date: September 13th Time: 10:30 – 11:30 (with the potential to extend to 12 noon) Meeting location: Ikea Performing Arts Center parking lot – right next to Renton High School.
We will commence the field trip by walking clockwise down 2nd , take a right at Tobin, and continue on Logan. We will likely turn left on Logan and walk to the corner of Logan and Airport, then backtrack down Logan to 2nd.
We have asked Sarah to lead this field trip. She has spent a significant amount of time speaking at both City Council meetings and Renton School Board meetings. She was an active leader on helping secure over 500 signatures on a petition, along with 20+ businesses, and 3 associations – and the petition was presented to the school board and City Council and Mayor. She continues to stay abreast of all actions by the school board and city (the city owns Tobin Street).
We will also be joined by John Houston who has vivid memories of the trauma caused by the Renton School Board who used eminent domain to get his families property under the pretense of building a school – which they never did – and instead sold his families property to a developer. John, along with the support of Senator Hasegawa, got SB 5142 unanimously passed this year and signed into law by Governor Ferguson – though it does not help John and his family, it will help others whose property is taken under eminent domain. (Unfortunately it does not impact the 20+ homes (owners and renters) and 8+ businesses who are being displaced by the Renton School Board – again!) Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
We will be joined by at least one, if not several, homeowners who are being displaced under this most recent ’eminent domain’ tactic by the Renton School Board.
Please rsvp at 4aBetterRenton@gmail.com
And a few other gentle reminders: RSVP’ing is important as we will have handouts/information for you to take home. And John will have a few of his recently published books on hand for sale. Please dress accordingly as we will be hosting these field trips regardless of weather. And wear comfortable shoes!
This photo (taken two days ago) shows the continuing deterioration of the deathtrap Park Avenue office buildings through a gap in the unmaintained security fence. Councilmember Rivera, chair of Renton’s Public Safety Committee, has repeatedly promised the public that the City has reached agreement with property owners to secure this site. The lack of follow-through puts the public and first responders in danger.
In a move that looks a bit like Superman endorsing Lex Luthor for City Council, the Renton Police Guild leadership shocked many local election watchers by endorsing Councilmember Carmen Rivera’s reelection bid against challenger Mary Clymer.
Recent publications have shown that Councilmember Rivera also has serious anger-management issues that she won’t acknowledge or own up to. She has left a trail of grieving victims of her bullying, many of them former allies that once trusted her. She’s been arrested for domestic violence in the past, and caused at least one current council member to request legal protection from her.
In contrast to Councilmember Rivera’s record, challenger Mary Clymer has a long history of supporting Renton city employees and the community. Ms. Clymer has a commitment to safety that she learned from her grandfather Earl Clymer, a two-term mayor of Renton who helped reverse rising crime rates in the early 1990’s. And rather than let derelict buildings become blight, Ms. Clymer has been beautifying our older buildings through her dedication to public arts, often helping organize community murals and other beatifications– even wielding the paintbrushes herself.
I respectfully encourage the Guild to reevaluate this endorsement. I would have expected this endorsement to go to the deserving Mary Clymer, who will make an extraordinary Renton City Council Member.
Renton’s well-equipped police station can trace its roots to a study that Mayor Earl Clymer commissioned in 1994. This study recommended a larger police station, which ultimately was the impetus to move Renton City Hall (including the police station) to its current larger location.
“This account is subject to or in foreclosure.” This is the taxpayer information for the dilapidated Park Ave buildings, formally known as Garden Plaza
The deathtrap buildings on Park Avenue may potentially be falling into foreclosure according to the King County Taxpayer website. A foreclosure, whether for tax or lending reasons, would further complicate resolution of the dire safety issues that have gone on much too long with these buildings.
The website also shows that the owners, ION Renton, have been hit-and-miss with tax payments in recent years, although they appear to be caught up now.
The data can be found at the King County website here. When you access the site, the parcel number is 7564600055.
The King County assessor has updated their photo of the building. This can be found on the King County Parcel Viewer by navigating to Park and 6th in Renton.
Renton Fire Authority must once again respond to the abandoned buildings on Garden and Park Avenue. Photo taken at about 8:30 PM today.
This evening there has been another fire call to the abandoned Park Avenue Buildings. Christopher Krystofiak, a firefighter with the Renton Fire Authority who helps with online media communication gave me the following details at 9:00 PM:
“Randy, it was black smoke from the roof. We have determined that all fire responses to this building will be defensive only due to the open elevator shafts and damage/hazards inside the building. Crews eventually located a small fire, quickly extinguished it and are releasing most of the apparatus as we speak.”
These buildings require an urgent fire response every time they catch on fire, as they lack the code required fire suppression systems. The systems were mined out of the buildings by metal thieves after lax security invited trespassers. If a fire spreads from floor to floor through the open elevator shafts it could turn into an inferno.
Renton Fire Authority responding to abandoned buildings on Garden and Park Avenue. Firefighters are using ladder trucks instead of the building’s stairwells to reach the roof due to the many hazards inside the building. Photo taken at about 8:00 PM today along Park Avenue (west side of building)More units were positioned defensively on the north side of the building, many from neighboring jurisdictions. If the fire had grown into an inferno, these rigs were positioned to reduce the chance of it spreading.
The derelict buildings on Park Avenue put public safety at risk, harm nearby businesses, blight the northern entrance to downtown, and make it harder to lease the new office buildings at nearby Southport.
Renton’s 4-5-060 code is clear. If Renton’s building official determines that a building is an immediate danger to occupants or those nearby, the official should post it with a message that says “This Structure Is Unsafe and Its Occupancy Has Been Prohibited by the Code Official.” It is then unlawful for anyone to enter unless they are officially repairing it. This is commonly known as the city putting a “red tag” on a building. The building official should then order the work to be done to bring the building up to code. If the danger is imminent, the code official is allowed to make emergency repairs to prevent imminent danger. The cost of the emergency repairs will be temporarily covered by the jurisdiction, but billed to the owner of the building.
The buildings on Park Avenue reached an unsafe condition two years ago, with unabated fire damage, disabled fire protection that could cause a seven-story inferno, blocked fire exits, broken windows falling from 7 stories up, open elevator shafts, mold build-up from rain and fire hose water, biohazards from human occupancy without sanitation, and the attractive nuisance of being a dystopian former aerospace office that looks like it belongs in the game “Fallout.”
It took a year and a half, and much cajoling from residents, to finally get the city to follow the code-prescribed procedures to visibly “red-tag” the building. For months the city effectively just kept writing letters to the building owner threatening that an even more firm letter would be coming if they didn’t take action.
A trellis for invasive plants? This rusting tower and others like it on Sunset Blvd NE perform no useful function. The electric wires were removed years ago, and the towers are just abandoned and disintegrating in place.
It’s way past time for the Electric Utility to remove the derelict power line towers on Sunset. Our views in Renton are cluttered enough by power lines, that we don’t need a bunch of additional rusting towers adding their own blight.
I took these photos two years ago, and the scene is no different today (other than a little more weed growth and more rust. )
This power line was abandoned and replaced by a new run many years ago, but the retired power lines were initially left in place. Several years ago copper thieves began climbing the towers and stealing the wire, so as a safety measure the power company removed the rest of the wire.
I assumed they would eventually apply for demolition permits to remove the ugly, unnecessary towers, but that has not happened. I’ve expressed my displeasure to our local utilities in the past that they never seem to prioritize maintaining the appearance of their easements in Renton. This is just one example of it.
I don’t remember whether these were owned by PSE or Seattle City Light, but in either case the City of Renton should lean on them to take them down and clean up this easement.
You may have to look closely to realize there are no wires going to this large electrical truss tower that pointlessly interferes with views in the Windsor Hills neighborhood.
The abandoned towers are in the greenbelt between I-405 and Sunset Blvd NEHimalayan Blackberry, english Ivy, and other invasive plant species climb the rusting structures, spreading seeds through wind and birds to nearby homes.The two towers shown are the closest to the street. There are several other abandoned towers in the greenbelt to the north of these.
North Renton will soon be overwhelmed with cars and no parking on the west on Logan Ave, while to the east on Garden Ave they will have a four-story derelict, unusable parking garage
What the Public Safety Chair didn’t say in her statement was that the four-story parking garage on the site is not part of the demolition plan, and will be left in place after the demolition is complete. The sky bridges that connected the garage to the office building will be demolished along with the buildings.
The demolition permit covers the building on Park and the building on 6th. The parking garage, which is the large square in the center, will remain, as shown in this traffic plan.
I’ve not seen or heard of any structural, plumbing, electrical, or fire permits to restore this garage to usability. If these permits are not applied for and issued, it will mean the garage will probably remain unusable, hazardous, and abandoned for years to come after the demolition is complete.
Open sections in the chain link fence around the site give quick access to the dangerous buildings.
A month ago the North Renton Neighborhood turned out in force at a Renton council meeting, to beg for action in resolving the hazards and blight caused by the dystopian Park Avenue Buildings. These formerly beautiful office buildings were allowed to swiftly fall into ruin over the past 18 months.
When the damage begun in 2023, many of us encouraged the city to save the multi-million dollar building complex by repairing the property at owner expense through the enforcement and abatement process defined Renton’s Code Section 4-5-130 . To meet code, the buildings needed some windows replaced, water dried out, some lights left on, and ideally (with owner coordination) a caretaker or non-profit tenant to keep the buildings looking occupied…the precise steps any good homeowner would take before an extended trip away from home. The City could take the action to abate the building, and the expense could be billed to the owner and/or placed as a lien on the property. The money would also come back to the city through property taxes many times over (as opposed to losing all property tax associated with the building, which is ultimately what happened).
In my blog entry of November 30, I provided documents describing King County’s anticipated purchase of the former Renton Red Lion Hotel. The documents show the County was choosing to purchase the damaged hotel instead of repairing it to save cost. Their future plans for the building and the site were not revealed.
That purchase was recently completed, and the questions have not been answered regarding their intended use for the property.
Renton’s former Red Lion Hotel remains boarded-up after being used as an emergency shelter during the pandemic
Former Mayor Denis Law received news that King County is preparing to buy the Red Lion Hotel, and he has written to two of our County Councilmembers to ask them to help improve inter-agency collaboration. King County’s plans appear to be intended to relieve the County of further ongoing costs, while failing to return a hotel in serviceable condition. Per King County documents: This property is being purchased to relieve the County of liabilities associated with the License Agreement. The property previously operated as a hotel at this location, is currently vacant, and there are no known plans for the property to be used at this time.
The news that the hotel will likely be purchased by King County with no specific plan to make the property productive motivated former-Mayor Law to speak out for Renton on this topic. Here’s his full letter to Council Members Upthegrove and Dunn.
As you are well aware, the homelessness crisis in this state continues to be one of the most frustrating issues with the public. Despite spending literally billions of dollars in tax dollars, the numbers continue to grow. There obviously are no easy solutions but one thing is certain: merely dedicating billions of taxpayer dollars has not made any progress to date.
I strongly feel that a poorly executed plan to decentralize Seattle’s homeless to suburban cities during the beginning of the COVID crisis, including taking over a hotel in Renton, proved to be a total failure that continues to cost taxpayers millions of dollars. This is only one of many such projects and we’re talking about millions of dollars for the Renton location alone.
As you know, the County, operating under a, “declaration of emergency,” took over the Renton Red Lion Hotel in April, 2020, to house up to 200 chronic homeless individuals with a goal to help stop the spread of COVID. This was done with no input from city leaders, which was legal due to the emergency declaration, but totally inappropriate and lacked in any sense of collaboration. To be fair, the COVID crisis was an emergency since everything was shutting down as the pandemic and fear spread like wildfire across the country. However, there was no effective plan of managing and serving this population that was relocated to the hotel and the consequence was considerable. Renton police and fire were overwhelmed with emergency calls for service at the hotel, from arson fires to assaults and other crimes. Local businesses were severIy impacted and in the end, upwards of $18 million dollars in damage was done to the hotel. The county’s contract agreement with hotel owners obligates you to return the hotel to its original condition, which has created another very costly challenge.
The homeless tenants were moved out of the facility within 16 to 18 months, around September of 2021. Fast forward to today, 26 months later, and the hotel remains boarded-up and surrounded by cyclone fencing. This is a major gateway to the city and has remained an eyesore for all this time. To make it worse, the County has continued to pay the owners of the hotel $330,700 per month in lease payments, more than $8.5 million since the buildings were vacated.
I must admit that the numbers I have may not be totally accurate, but they have not been disputed during conversations I have had with a couple county council members. The reason for my angst now, in addition to the hotel remaining an eyesore at the entrance to Renton, is a proposal before the county council to purchase the building. It’s my understanding that this is due to the huge amount of money required to repair the building, and there is no reasonable way the county can justify paying these repair costs and come away with nothing. The purchase price is $36,200,000 and to my knowledge, there has been no public discussion regarding this expenditure. This price is essentially for only the land since it’s likely the buildings would need to be demolished for new development. Here is some of the justification made to the county council for authorizing this purchase:
King County’s “Rationale for transaction:” Under the License Agreement the County is responsible for damages caused by the County’s use. While being used as a quarantine site during the COVID-19 pandemic, guest rooms, and common areas were extensively damaged. Damage ranges from broken furnishings such as mirrors and lighting, to soiled carpeting, to water damage due to demising walls and ceilings from over run toilets and bathtubs. There is also damage from an intentionally set fire in November of 2020. The estimated cost to restore the property to the condition contemplated by the License is $17,920,000. In addition, the County is paying $330,700 per month under the terms of the License. Acquisition of the property will relieve the County of the liabilities of the License.
In the end, taxpayers will pay upwards of $70 million dollars or more for this one initiative to address homelessness in King County. There’s no accounting on how many other similar scenarios exist, and not a surprise that billions of additional tax dollars continue to be budgeted by the state, King County and Seattle to address homelessness. There have been a number of initiatives created by these entities that have been disbanded due to a lack of funding or adequate outcomes. Again, there is no question that this is a very complex crisis, but there seems to be a need for better collaboration between government agencies as well as more public transparency on total costs and results.
I appreciate that you both have taken steps in the past to address the negative impact this effort has had on the Renton community and local businesses. It seems apparent at this point the county has few options remaining other than spending millions more to resolve the Red Lion issue. Finally, I feel it’s totally inaccurate and unfair for housing advocates to label cities as uncaring or unwilling to help vulnerable populations when they challenge the process of addressing homelessness.
I strongly encourage you to work with Renton’s elected officials on future plans for the Red Lion site.
The glass doors on 500 Park Avenue have become plywood. And the beautiful glass wrapped staircases that jet out in front of the building, giving the building distinction, have been repeatedly damaged by vandals.
Those of us who worked for Boeing have great memories of the sprawling company office campus in North Renton, with some of the nicest buildings being 535 N 6th street and 500 Park Avenue North. Both buildings, built in the 1980s, offered excellent work spaces and conference rooms, easy parking, and nice views. Thousands of us either worked-in or visited these warm, inviting engineering and logistics centers, sometime around the clock when big projects were in-work, letting ourselves in using our badges that functioned like key-cards. Boeing always cared for them meticulously, the way the company oversees all of its properties. Company employees affectionately referred to the buildings by their company codes; the larger one was the 10-16 and the smaller one the 10-13.
500 Park Avenue North from near the larger building at 535 N 6th street
These buildings were sold by Boeing to an LLC owned by a San Diego Company in 2021 as part of a property consolidation , and unfortunately the buildings have been vacant ever since. During that time Renton started seeing worsening crime problems throughout the area. Renton also saw dramatic increases in the number of people experiencing homelessness in Renton, a challenge actually made worse by the King County Regional Homelessness Authority. The agency bussed hundreds of chronically homeless individuals from downtown Seattle to Renton hotels, and when an individual broke too many rules, the Authority would evict them out of their hotel space and onto Renton streets.
While Boeing never would have let it happen under their watch, the buildings under new ownership are beginning to look abandoned, with broken windows on all sides, doors that appear boarded up and barricaded, metal gratings and fixtures stolen for scrap, and HVAC and electric service stripped of parts.
Two weeks ago there was a fire on the first floor of the taller building, and the Renton Fire Authority extinguished the flames and rescued two people and a dog from the roof. It’s obvious that people have been entering these buildings without authorization. Broken windows have been covered with wood to block intruders, but it does not appear that anyone is currently doing fire repair and remediation work, like drying out the interior before mold sets in. The other building, the 10-13, is missing some of it’s upper windows, letting the elements get in.
Renton Regional Fire Authority put out a fire in 535 Park Ave North on June 11, and rescued two people and a dog from the roof of the building
