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Summary for 8729 15th AVE / Parcel ID 3300700810 / Inv # SFD015

Historic Name: King County Fire District No. 9 Station Common Name: Fire Station No. 35
Style: Modern Neighborhood: Crown Hill/Ballard
Built By: Year Built: 1942
 
Significance
This fire station, which serves Ballard and northwest Seattle, was constructed over a period of time between 1942 and 1964. When the first portion was built in 1942 by King County Fire District No. 9, it was located just north of the Seattle City limits then at NW 85th Street. Seattle had annexed the independent City of Ballard in 1907, but the area north to 145th Street remained part of unincorporated King County until annexed in 1954. The original 1942 fire station was a small one-story wood frame building with a brick veneer and a small tower on its south elevation. Six years later, the fire station assumed its current form when it was substantially enlarged with a concrete block addition on the south elevation. The original station retained its engine bay, and its tower remained between the two halves of the station until another remodel occurred in about 1957. At this time, the building assumed its current configuration with the removal of the older tower and the construction of a new tower at the south end of the building. The north engine bay within the original station was converted into an office, and the doors in the main engine bay were replaced. The City of Seattle acquired this fire station from King County after the city annexed the northwest neighborhoods in 1954. However, the fire department continued to use its original 1917 Fire Station No. 35 for another ten years. This large two-story wood frame fire station was located in the Crown Hill neighborhood at the northwest corner of 16th Avenue NW and NW 73rd Street. Seattle City Architect Daniel R. Huntington most likely designed the building, which featured Dutch Colonial Revival stylistic elements. After the annexation of Ballard in 1907, the Seattle Fire Department initially operated out of the Ballard Volunteer station until 1911 when a new brick Fire Station No. 18 was constructed on Russell Avenue NW at NW Market Street. The original Fire Station No. 35 was the first to be built in the northwest area of the city. In 1964, the fire department moved its operations to the refurbished former county fire station, which had been used for storage since its acquisition. This fire station is significant for its associations with the development of the Seattle Fire Department and the Ballard and northwest Seattle neighborhoods.
 
Appearance
This one-story brick veneer and reinforced concrete building occupies a parcel on the western side of 15th Avenue NW at its intersection with Holman Road NW. While the building largely acquired its current form in 1957, the last major alterations were completed in 1964, more than twenty years after the initial phase of construction. The piecemeal nature of development is evident in the disjointed appearance of this Modern building. The flat roof building is comprised of three sections, creating a roughly rectangular footprint, which measures approximately 83 feet by 69 feet. The taller engine bay occupies the southeast corner of the building. A one-story brick clad office wing adjoins the engine bay on the north. A one-story concrete block crew quarters extends the length of the rear west elevation. The engine bay dominates the principal east elevation and contains a band of multi-paned windows above a large recessed opening with a pair of overhead entrance doors. A narrow belt of concrete projects over the doors and continues as a cornice along the roofline of the adjoining office wing. A steel pier separates the two modern doors, which replaced the single large door installed in the same opening. A 1957 historic photograph shows an earlier overhead door in a smaller recessed opening. Embellished by metal louvered openings, a large reinforced concrete hose tower anchors the southern end of the east elevation and balances the large center opening. A single entrance door flanked by a window provides access to the tower from the exterior. A roman brick veneer extends across the east elevation of the office wing and terminates at the northern edge of the engine bay opening. Originally, the brick veneer framed the entire opening below the transom and helped to tie the façade together. However, the other portions were removed when the opening was enlarged. This reduced the horizontal emphasis achieved by the brick cladding. The façade of the office wing is set with an opening, which contains a row of transom windows above a single entrance door and a band of windows with steel bulkheads. Clad with common brick, the north elevation of the office wing has three window openings, including two with the original multi-paned sash and one with a modern replacement. Six windows also line the north elevation of the engine bay, which extends above the lower roof of the adjoining office wing. The crew quarters at the rear of the building has a series of seven window openings along the west elevation. The six smaller windows are set at a slight inward angle. This building is well maintained with good physical integrity despite many early alterations.

Detail for 8729 15th AVE / Parcel ID 3300700810 / Inv # SFD015

Status: Yes - Inventory
Classication: Building District Status:
Cladding(s): Brick, Concrete, Stucco Foundation(s): Unknown
Roof Type(s): Flat Roof Material(s): Unknown
Building Type: Government - Fire Station Plan: Rectangular
Structural System: Concrete - Poured No. of Stories: two
Unit Theme(s): Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Politics/Government/Law
Integrity
Changes to Windows: Slight
Changes to Plan: Intact
Changes to Original Cladding: Intact
Major Bibliographic References
King County Property Record Card (c. 1938-1972), Washington State Archives.
Seattle Fire Department, Centennial Commemorative, 1889-1989. Portland, OR: Taylor Pub. Co., c1989.

Photo collection for 8729 15th AVE / Parcel ID 3300700810 / Inv # SFD015


Photo taken Nov 01, 2000
App v2.0.1.0