— from Paul Thomas —
Edith Macefield’s famous “UP House” will float away after all — by sea, not by air.
After a number of potential buyers discovered that the house could not be used on site in an economically viable way due to building code requirements, the seller solicited proposals from individuals and organizations who wanted to move the house and take over as stewards.
The winning proposal came from OPAL (“Of People And Land”) Community Land Trust, a nonprofit organization that has been providing permanently affordable housing on Orcas Island for 26 years. (www.opalclt.org) Orcas Island is 60 miles north of Seattle in Washington’s San Juan Islands. OPAL is particularly focused on helping bridge the affordability gap for families that otherwise could not afford their own homes. They have moved ten houses to date, five by barge, and are very comfortable with the intricacies of moving a house.
OPAL plans to have the house trucked to the nearby Ship Canal in Seattle, put on a barge and towed to Orcas Island. Once back on solid land, the house will be trucked two more miles, including taking a shortcut down the island’s airport runway, to its final location. (Yes, the airport will be closed during the detour.) OPAL’s crew will place the house on a new foundation and renovate it, then it will be used as a house once again.
“Edith’s house will soon get a new lease on life in a far less claustrophobic location,” said listing broker Paul Thomas. “It will be surrounded by trees, not by towering cement walls. Rather than being forlorn and vacant it will be lived in and loved.”
(Editor’s Note: Watch the KING-TV video below for the background story.)
Good news, I suppose. But I sure hope that the house not become a tourist destination…. :~)
Hold the balloons…
Such a fitting resolution to Edith Macefield’s tenacity. Nice to know this is coming to Orcas after another well executed OPAL initiative.
Indirectly related, the matter of 钉子户 / ‘nail houses’ in contemporary China is fascinating and too often tragic: https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2015/04/and-then-there-was-one/390501/ May be of contextual reading interest…
Perhaps I live in a different world economically speaking, but spending an estimate $205,000 to provide an $180,000 house doesn’t seem to make sense.
Numbers quoted from: https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/up-house-could-move-by-barge-to-orcas-island/
You’re right Jim, it doesn’t make any financial sense. But that’s kind of the point.
The house is being purchased and refurbished and then provided to a local family at a cost that will allow them to continue to stay on the Island. The final sale price is not about what it costs to get the house built – it’s about what it costs to keep working families (and I count a family as 1- ???) in housing.
I never knew Edith, but I think she would agree.
Who is going to supervisor of this project?
Where cost is irrelevant.
Here’s a bit of clarification from OPAL:
The total cost to move and renovate the house, including project management and administration is $385,000 ($205,000 in donations plus $180,000 paid by the homebuyer). The homebuyer pays substantially less than market value. In the future, if the homebuyer decides to sell, the resale price will be restricted to keep the house affordable for a new buyer.
The project will be managed by OPAL staff members Jeanne Beck and Lisa Byers, along with contractor Greg Johns from On the Level Contracting.