Open Houseboat

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Northwest Home (published inside Seattle magazine) partners with AIA Seattle every other month to feature an architect designed residential project and offer an open house tour to the public. January’s open house was today from noon to 3pm. It was a houseboat on Lake Union designed by Dan Nelson of Designs Northwest Architects based in Stanwood. It’s actually a floating home dwelling and not a houseboat since none of the house exists below the water. The owner is a commercial contractor. A British Columbia company created the float out of concrete, rebar and Styrofoam. The float was sent down to Seattle on a barge where they would raise the rest of the house in the shipyards near the slip. Imagine not being able to use a plumb-bob or level and having to assume that the slab is straight and square off from there. Now those are some crazy construction conditions!

Here are a few pictures I took during the Open House Tour:

The houseboat

The exterior materials are reminiscent of an industrial cargo shipping crate.

Spiral stair to rooftop

Rooftop complete with a putting green

The view

Space Needle view and neighboring houseboat

Here are a few neighboring houseboats on the same dock.

I had admired this houseboat when I was researching architecture firms for a new job when we moved. I feel for this exterior photo at night, but I don’t feel it has as great of a presence on a rainy barely lit day. The warmth of the wood doesn’t read through anymore.

The 2,134 square foot home features 2 motorized garage doors opening the living room to the lake.

Awesome open stair.

The corner bathroom window is awesome.

Entry door.

A little history…Houseboats started cropping up in the area in the 1890s, when sailors, fishermen and dock workers in Elliott Bay built homes on rafts. During the Depression, low-income laborers took advantage of the geography and built or moved into tax-free houseboats. The houseboat population peaked in the 1930s, at about 2,000, but has since dropped to around 500. Still, Seattle boasts one of the country’s largest houseboat communities.

The 1993 Sleepless in Seattle film brought houseboats as an iconic must-see destination in the Emerald City. The 2,075 square foot houseboat was built in 1978 with 4 bedrooms, 2 baths and is one of the largest floating homes on Lake Union. It was put on the market in 2008 for $2.5 million. It boosts beautiful exposed wood beams in the main living spaces as it did in the movie. The wrap-around floating decks have amazing views. It’s actually located at 2460 Westlake Avenue North, almost directly across Lake Union from 2369 Fairview Ave, the houseboat I toured, but the day wasn’t clear even and my camera phone didn’t have a strong enough zoom. I guess I’ll just have to drag Joe over there this summer and kayak by for a closer look since it’s on the end of another private dock.

Snowmageddon 2012

January 14-19, 2012
I mentioned in the last post how it began to snow Saturday as soon as we got home. We watched some football, but slept most of the day. When we woke up Sunday morning, there was 3 inches on the ground! Welcome home to a winter wonderland!

 In between football playoff games we went out to shovel the driveway (after going out to buy a shovel).

Chance seems to like the snow.

Not so keen on the booties.

During the Packers vs Giants playoff game, we needed a pick-me-up at halftime so we took Chance out to play fetch.

Too bad the Packers decided to not show up to play.

Monday Joe went to work, but since GGLO was closed for the Martin Luther King Holiday Jackie decided to stay home with limited holiday bus routes, snow and a likely empty office.

Tuesday morning, Jackie rode with Joe to the South Everett Park and Ride since early Monday morning before leaving there wasn’t a direct bus running from our house.

When we got home from work Tuesday, we had 6 inches of snow. Joe says “It should not be like this!”

Wednesday Jackie worked from home. Chance had to show off to get my attention.

Our neighborhood.

As the freezing rain mix started to fall, we reached 8 inches of snow.

Our backyard. There are even icicles hanging from the bay window roof.

We had to coax Chance to play fetch this time in the deep snow. She hid under the bush to escape the deep snow. We may not have a dog fit for snowshoeing with us.

Her poor furless belly was freezing.

Thursday morning started with snow slush freezing into ice and freezing rain mix started to fall. Joe was the only one to take the vanpool into work. Jackie worked from home again. The temperature never warmed up as much as the weather people said it would. Most of the freezing rain mix stayed further south. Mill Creek had snow falling all day. We are probably around 10 inches deep now on top of the ice layer from the early morning.

Jackie took a break in the afternoon to take Chance for a walk around the neighborhood. She was fully dressed for the occasion as well. She wore her new booties, red sweater for cold weather and yellow raincoat since it was still snowing.

The main road outside our cul-de-sac.

Chance got into the snow.

Trees.

Chance with a snow beard.

Chance wanted to chase after the cross-country skier ahead.

She seems to have a hang of walking in the booties when we are outside.

Has anyone seen Chance? Do you think we like red? At least she’s warming up from our mile long walk in 10” deep snow.

By the end of the day Thursday we added probably 2 more inches on top of the sheet of ice we got at 8 inches deep. That’s a total of at least 10”, the most snow Joe may have ever seen at once!

Friday the temperatures finally warmed up and switched to rain. The rain helped wash away most of the snow on the main arterial roads. We were both able to make it to and from work with no issues.

Saturday we were out shopping for warm winter layers for Joe. He is bound for Thompson, Canada for work over the next 2 weeks where the average temperature in -20 degrees! I think he’ll be so over the cold winter weather by then.