Title
Recommend Approval for Evergreen Inn Special Tax Valuation
Recommended Action
Move to accept Heritage Review Committee recommendation and recommend City Council approval of a resolution granting special tax valuation to the historic Evergreen Inn located at 2402 Lakeridge Way SW.
Report
Issue:
Whether to accept the recommendation of the Heritage Review Committee to recommend granting Special Tax Valuation for the Evergreen Inn to City Council for final approval.
Staff Contact:
Brittany Gillia, Historic Preservation Officer, Community Development, 360.753.8427
Presenter(s):
Commissioner Stephen Becker, Chair of the Heritage Review Committee
Background and Analysis:
The City of Olympia has received an application to request Special Tax Valuation for the property located at 2402 Lakeridge Way. The applicant is Amie Gutierrez with Ryan LLC, a tax firm hired by the property owner, Olympia 196 LLC, to pursue a listing on the local Heritage Register and a subsequent request for Special Tax Valuation with the City. The subject property has recently undergone an adaptive reuse to convert the 196-room conference hotel into 196 market-rate studio units and is requesting Special Valuation for the rehabilitation costs incurred as part of the project scope. The total dollar amount shown in Attachment 1 has been amended to include additional expenses that were found to be eligible. Before and after photos are available as Attachment 2, and the scope of work statement is included as Attachment 3.
This property is pursuing listing on the Olympia Heritage Register concurrently and the granting of Special Valuation in this calendar year is contingent upon the approval of being listed on the Heritage Register as seen in the previous business item on the agenda.
The Heritage Review Committee performed a site visit on November 2 to review the improvements and determine if the work is consistent with the US Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation and affirm that the subject rehabilitation has not altered or in any way adversely affected those elements of the property which qualify it as historically significant.
The Historic Preservation Officer has confirmed that the subject property tentatively meets basic program eligibility criteria for Special Valuation:
• The application for listing on the Olympia Heritage Register must be approved prior to approval of the Tax Valuation application and is scheduled for approval on Nov 12.
• The submitted expenses were incurred within the 24-month window. The project scope extends beyond that, however, the applicant has rightfully omitted those earlier and non-eligible expenses; and
• Per applicant’s documentation (Attachment 4), expenditures total at least 25% of the assessed value of the property, exclusive of land value, prior to the rehabilitation and meet eligible expenses criteria.
o The assessed value of the structure prior to rehabilitation was: $4,971,100
o 25% of this is $1,242,775
o The approved rehabilitation costs are $10,528,995.07
o The costs were verified by receipts/invoices submitted by the applicant.
The Historic Preservation Officer has reviewed expenses and payment documentation with the property owner to verify the stated expenses and establish the exact total of qualified rehabilitation expenditures (TQRE).
Timeline for Special Valuation Review and Approval:
November 2- Heritage Review Committee evaluation and recommendation
November 12- Public Hearing to list property on Olympia Heritage Register, Heritage Commission Review of Tax Valuation w/ HRC recommendation
December 8- City Council Consideration
December 31-Submit to Thurston County Assessor’s Office
Climate Analysis:
The greenest building is the one that is already built, and the project is an adaptive reuse which helps to reduce the waste associated with demolishing a building and with new construction. Following the NPS guidelines encourages repair of historic material as much as possible, which reduces the introduction of more waste to landfills.
Equity Analysis:
The Olympia Heritage Commission is dedicated to improving education and outreach. Every application for the Heritage Register and Special Valuation program are opportunities to engage underrepresented communities in the civic process which may lead to future involvement in the City’s historic preservation programming.
The project is an adaptive reuse of hotel units into housing units. Increasing the amount of available housing units helps to ease the pressure of rental market pricing and moves the City closer to our housing target growth rates.
Neighborhood/Community Interests (if known):
N/A
Options:
1. Move to accept the recommendation from the Heritage Review Committee to approve the Special Property Tax Valuation application and recommend final approval to Olympia City Council
2. Seek additional information for review and further consideration
3. Move to recommend that the Special Property Tax Valuation be denied by the Heritage Commission because the completed work does not meet the applicable Standards.
Financial Impact:
N/A
Attachments:
• Signed and Amended STV Application
• Before and After Photos
• Owner Statement of Scope
• Summary of Expenses
• Special Valuation Eligible Expenses
• Completed Special Valuation HRC Checklist
• List of Significant Historic Features- Draft pending approval