Seattle, Washington condominium law lawyers represented the parties in a dispute regarding the adverse impact on the light and glare from a new 46-story mixed-use apartment building.

King County Courthouse - Seattle, Washigton

MoreLaw Legal News For Seattle

The Fischer Studio Building is an eight-story residential condominium

located at 1519 Third Avenue in downtown Seattle. In 2018, developers

(Applicant)1 proposed to replace a four-story building and surface parking lot that

sit southwest across an alley from the Fischer building. The proposed

development (the Project), at 1516 Second Avenue, would be a dual-tower mixed

use residential high-rise with its main entrance on Second Avenue. The 46-story

project would include a 484-foot tower and a 160-foot tower connected by

columns and would house 531 apartment units, retail, and parking for 268

vehicles. The plans included a double-height lighted lobby between the two

towers.



In November 2019, the city's Design Review Board recommended that the

design of the Project be approved, subject to the condition that it provide

additional information related to the lighting feature in the lobby and any glare it

would create in the alley facing the Fischer Building.



The Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections (SDCI) is the

agency tasked with evaluating the project under SEPA. In January 2021, the

SDCI issued a determination of non-significance under SEPA. Fischer filed a

notice of appeal to the city's hearing examiner. Fischer challenged the

determination of non-significance under SEPA, asserting that (1) SDCI "did not

collect, analyze, or require the necessary and adequate information upon which

to make a determination on whether the proposal would have significant adverse

impacts related to loss of light and human health”; and (2) "the Design Review

Board's final recommendation reflects inconsistent application of the design

review guidelines and contradicts prior decisions regarding the project site.” 2

After a hearing that occurred over five days in June, the hearing examiner

issued its findings and decision in August 2021. The examiner found that Fischer

had failed to establish evidence of probable, significant impacts from the loss of

light. It also found that Fischer had failed to establish that the City had

inconsistently applied its downtown guidelines to this Project as compared to

another 2015 proposed development, Urban Visions, for the same location. The

hearing examiner reasoned that the projects differed from one another.

Fischer next filed a complaint in King County Superior Court under the Land

Use Petition Act (LUPA). On February 15, 2022, the court issued an order and

judgment dismissing Fischer's LUPA appeal. The court concluded that Fischer

failed to meet its burden to demonstrate that any of the standards set out in RCW

36.70C.130(1) were met, and that there was no clear error in the hearing

examiner's findings related to SEPA. The court also concluded that there was no

clear error in the hearing examiner's rejection of Fischer's claim that the design

review board had inconsistently applied the applicable design guidelines. The trial

court denied the petition and dismissed Fischer's complaint with prejudice.

Affirmed.