The Eitel Building is an eight-story hotel building at the corner of Pike Street and 2nd Avenue in
Downtown Seattle
Downtown is the central business district of Seattle, Washington. It is fairly compact compared with other city centers on the U.S. West Coast due to its geographical situation, being hemmed in on the north and east by hills, on the west by ...
, Washington, United States. Originally built by the Eitel Brothers in 1904 to house medical offices, the building had been mostly vacant since the 1970s and described as an
eyesore
An eyesore is something that is largely considered to look unpleasant or ugly. Its technical usage is as an alternative perspective to the notion of landmark. Common examples include dilapidated buildings, graffiti, litter, polluted areas, and ex ...
. In 2016, after several attempted purchases by local developers, the Eitel Building was sold to a development company that announced its intent to convert the building into a
boutique hotel
Boutique hotels are small inventory, design driven, unique hotels with their own character, personality and storytelling at the heart of their concept. Positioning is secondary for these hotels as they focus on authenticity and personalization ...
. The hotel renovation, which also added the eighth floor, cost $16 million and was completed in early 2019.
History
In February 1904, developers David and Fred Eitel announced their intention to build a six-story,
steel frame
Steel frame is a building technique with a "skeleton frame" of vertical steel columns and horizontal I-beams, constructed in a rectangular grid to support the floors, roof and walls of a building which are all attached to the frame. The developm ...
d building at the intersection of 2nd Avenue and Pike Street in Seattle's then-developing northern business district.
The building's upper floors would house 95 offices for medical practitioners and pharmacists, while the ground floor would be divided into two retail stores. Construction began in April 1904, and was completed in January 1905, at a cost of $80,000. The Eitel Building's
terra cotta
Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous.
In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...
exterior, designed by architect William Doty van Siclen, was hailed as the centerpiece of one of the city's finest buildings; the building also boasted modern features such as concrete flooring and the largest passenger elevator in the
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...
. The Eitel Brothers sold the building to the J. A. Livesley Company on March 7, 1906, who added a seventh floor to the building later that year.
As the 1st Avenue area declined in the 1940s and 1950s, the Eitel Building lost its ground-level retail tenants and was sold to various investment groups.
The building's office tenants slowly left, leaving the upper floors completely unoccupied by 1978, as renovation to modern building code standards became too costly for landlords.
Real estate investor Richard Nimmer bought the property in 1975, and pursued several unsuccessful attempts at renovating and selling the Eitel Building for various uses, including apartments, offices, and a hotel.
The Eitel Building became regarded as an "
eyesore
An eyesore is something that is largely considered to look unpleasant or ugly. Its technical usage is as an alternative perspective to the notion of landmark. Common examples include dilapidated buildings, graffiti, litter, polluted areas, and ex ...
", owing to its highly trafficked location near
Pike Place Market
Pike Place Market is a public market in Seattle, Washington, United States. It opened on August 17, 1907, and is one of the oldest continuously operated public farmers' markets in the United States. Overlooking the Elliott Bay waterfront on Pu ...
,
with boarded windows, a rotting roof, and a pigeon infestation. At one point, the city of Seattle threatened to condemn the property as part of their efforts to clean up the area.
The building also suffered damage during the
2001 Nisqually earthquake
The 2001 Nisqually earthquake occurred at on February 28, 2001 and lasted nearly a minute. The intraslab earthquake had a moment magnitude of 6.8 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (''Severe''). The epicenter was in the southern Puget So ...
, including the separation of a brick wall from the roof, which was repaired but dissuaded potential buyers.
After the rezoning of the downtown area and development of the
Fifteen Twenty-One Second Avenue
Fifteen Twenty-One Second Avenue is a residential skyscraper in Seattle, Washington. Designed by Weber Thompson, the 38-story tower contains 143 individual condominium (living space), condominium homes. The building is located near the historic ...
to the immediate north of the Eitel Building in 2006, Nimmer sought to build a 22-story tower on top of the existing building.
The proposal drew the ire of condominium owners in
Fifteen Twenty-One Second Avenue
Fifteen Twenty-One Second Avenue is a residential skyscraper in Seattle, Washington. Designed by Weber Thompson, the 38-story tower contains 143 individual condominium (living space), condominium homes. The building is located near the historic ...
, who would lose their views if the tower was built, and preservationist groups that sought a
landmark
A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances.
In modern use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures or f ...
designation for the building.
The landmark designation was granted by the
Landmarks Preservation Board in 2006, but not approved by the
Seattle City Council
The Seattle City Council is the legislative body of the city of Seattle, Washington. The Council consists of nine members serving four-year terms, seven of which are elected by electoral districts and two of which are elected in citywide at-lar ...
until the dispute between Nimmer and the condominium owners was settled in 2011.
The Eitel Building was put up for sale in 2011, with an asking price of $4.85 million. The following year, Ariel Development agreed to buy the building and announced plants to convert it into an 80-room
boutique hotel
Boutique hotels are small inventory, design driven, unique hotels with their own character, personality and storytelling at the heart of their concept. Positioning is secondary for these hotels as they focus on authenticity and personalization ...
. The firm backed out of the contract in late 2012, citing the high cost of the property and renovations. In 2013, developer Greg Smith of Urban Visions signed a contract to buy the building, but also backed out over the property's cost.
The building was sold to Lake Union Partners for $5.35 million in November 2015, ending Nimmer's ownership, and plans for a $25 million boutique hotel renovation were announced. The renovation will convert the building into a 90-room hotel, adding an eighth floor, completing
seismic upgrades, and refinishing the terra cotta exterior. The hotel, branded as the State Hotel and operated by Columbia Hospitality, opened in early 2019.
The State Hotel also has a ground-floor bar named for sportsman and former tenant
Ben Paris
Benjamin M. Paris (July 15, 1884 – January 8, 1950) was an American Sportsperson, sportsman, entrepreneur, conservation movement, conservationist, and owner of a landmark restaurant in Seattle, Washington. Paris founded the Seattle Ben Paris Sal ...
.
References
External links
*{{commons category-inline, Eitel Building
1905 establishments in Washington (state)
Buildings and structures completed in 1905
Landmarks in Seattle