Seattle.gov Home Page
Link to Seattle Department of Neighborhoods home page

Seattle Historical Sites

New Search

Summary for 964 Denny WAY / Parcel ID 1986200320 / Inv #

Historic Name: Pantorium Dye Works/ Utility Cartage Company Common Name: Price Asher Garden and Home Store/ Futon
Style: Modern, Spanish - Mission Neighborhood: South Lake Union
Built By: Year Built: 1927
 
Significance
Based on original construction drawings, what appears now as one building was constructed as several buildings in different phases and then was remodeled, particularly on the Denny Way façade. The first building, built in 1927 for the Pantorium Dye Works, corresponds to the southwest portion of the building, which includes the first three western bays of the Denny Way façade. The western façade, although originally clad in stucco, appears to have been changed pretty markedly, assuming original construction drawings were followed. The only real elements from the original design by Schack Young and Myers appear to be the engaged piers with their chamfered corners and the industrial sash windows of the west elevation. Along the main Denny Way façade, the Schack Young and Myers design featured thinner, ornamented piers, which divided the currently visible main bay divisions into smaller bays. At all three floor levels, the smaller bays consisted mainly of generously sized, industrial sash windows, with a glazed double door entry at the center of the tripartite central bay. Also, at the ground level, the western bay featured a central doorway, with angled storefront glazing to each side, while the eastern bay divided into three, had a double door in its smaller eastern bay section. Other elements of architectural interest would have included a string of small tile insets at the top of the piers, a wells as larger tile insets on the face of each pier. Directly north of the 1927 structure, the northwest portion of the building appears to have been originally constructed in 1946, as an addition for Utility Cartage Incorporated. The title block of the original drawings lists several architects, who worked jointly on the 1946 addition: Edwin Ivey, Elizabeth Ayer, well-known as the first woman architectural graduate of the University of Washington, in addition to Harry F. Broman and Rolland Denny Lamping. (In actual fact, Ivey had died in 1940, but Ayer and Lamping continued the practice under Ayer’s name before forming Ayer and Lamping). The rest of the building was filled in around 1956 with a long rectangular, eastern section, with the longest elevation along Terry Avenue. Architect George Groves designed the addition for the Utility Cartage Company in late 1955. While the building is associated with several distinguished Seattle architects, Schack Young and Myers, as well as Elizabeth Ayer and has some interesting architectural elements on the main Denny Way façade, it has clearly been altered. Ayer’s work, if that is what the northwest wing is, is not a distinguished work by this architect, although it does indicate that she worked on industrial buildings, in addition to historically inspired houses. Schack Young and Myers’ design has been mostly covered over or demolished. The building has been altered to the point where it hardly bears any resemblance to its original historical designs.
 
Appearance
The building is rectangular in plan and appears to have a flat roof, possibly with skylights, and a parapet. It is mainly clad in stucco, with buff brick on the western elevation. Its height varies from three stories in the southern portion of the building facing Denny Way to a two story northern portion, consistent in height with the southern portion and accessible from a north alley off Terry Avenue. The main façade is along Denny Way. It is divided into six bays, recessed between engaged piers. The first three bays consist of storefront at the ground level, separated by characteristic engaged piers, rectangular in plan, with chamfered corners at the top. At the second and third levels, there is no fenestration. The piers also stop short of the top of the parapet, which is slightly recessed in relation to the top of the piers and the wall plane between them. The storefront primarily consists of metal sash windows, with the sash currently painted red. The remaining three eastern bays are also three stories in height, with full height engaged piers, separating the bays. The storefront in its western bay also has solid-looking painted metal sash fenestration, while the upper level windows have unpainted aluminum window frames. The engaged piers continue along the eastern elevation of the building and define six recessed bays. The southern bay has a small rectangular opening at each floor, (although the top one is partially covered by signage), while the northern bay has a similar window at the second level. The four central bays consist of recessed wall between engaged piers, with large unglazed rectangular openings over what once functioned as a loading platform.

Detail for 964 Denny WAY / Parcel ID 1986200320 / Inv #

Status: No - Altered
Classication: Building District Status: INV
Cladding(s): Concrete Foundation(s): Concrete - Poured
Roof Type(s): Flat with Parapet Roof Material(s): Asphalt/Composition
Building Type: Commercial/Trade - Warehouse Plan: Rectangular
Structural System: Concrete - Poured No. of Stories: three
Unit Theme(s): Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Commerce, Manufacturing/Industry
Integrity
Changes to Original Cladding: Extensive
Changes to Plan: Moderate
Changes to Windows: Extensive
Major Bibliographic References
King County Property Record Card (c. 1938-1972), Washington State Archives.
Drawings, Microfiche Files, Department of Planning and Development.

Photo collection for 964 Denny WAY / Parcel ID 1986200320 / Inv #


Photo taken Feb 12, 2005
App v2.0.1.0