This could be the last day for the people occupying the unfinished 23rd and Alder duplex dubbed Turritopsis Nutricula. A judge ruled against the anonymous residents December 28, giving them ten days to leave the property. The house has been occupied since November 19, when a group of Occupy Seattle protesters marched to long-empty building from their Seattle Central Community College encampment.
The judge ruled that the residents must vacate the property within ten days of the decision (January 7 by our count). After that, police will be able to take action to evict them. The judge also ruled that the defendants can be held liable for rent (plus interest) and any damages discovered.
The home’s legal owner is Denmark West, who owns the property through the 307309 23rd LLC (the entity identified on court documents). Representatives for Mr. West have not returned messages and phone calls from CDNews.
The residents did not go out without a party, though. An “eviction party” was announced on the Puget Sound Anarchists website, and police records show that they did respond to a noise complaint shortly after midnight January 6.
Larry Hildes, attorney for the anonymous residents, said he and his clients are upset by the judge’s decision. He summarized their court argument in an email to CDN (read the court documents yourself in our previous post):
We argued that the actual owner, a millionaire many times over, who is sitting on 307 23rd Avenue and other properties in the City allowing them to deteriorate until he can make a killing on them is fundamentally harming the community, and pointed out that our clients were trying to improve the situation and repaid the building so that it can house tenants not crack deals. That housing is there for people to live in not leverage for obscene profits, and that Denmark West is not entitled to charge rent for a building that is stripped to the frame, and that our clients were doing what was necessary to improve a bad situation that was not going to get any better without their efforts.
The commissioner who heard the case was not receptive to those arguments, which are not the typical landlord-tenant arguments and found against us.
Our clients have been ordered to leave, which makes us all sad and angry. We ask the community to organize to hold Denmark West and those like him politically accountable.
Before I became a lawyer, I was a tenant organizer, fighting slumlords and gentrification in New York back in the ’80’s.
We know that that fight will continue in the CD and elsewhere.
It is unclear what kinds of action the residents or the police will take going forward. CDNews will be monitoring the situation.
just drove by it. looks like they finally finished up the remodel. looks great kids! way to do exactly what everyone thought you were going to do, (trash the place, leave it looking worse) and none of what you said you’d do! (respect our neighborhood) good riddance.
Giant letters on the side of the house say “Decolonize.” OK… You guys go first.
Yea I thought it looked like shit before, but now. Way to stick it to the man by trashing a working class neighborhood.
Not sure I’d agree the building looks worse now… more interesting, for sure. Lots of cheaply built, cookie cutter designed developer housing already sprinkled around our neighborhood.
If, as I believe I have read (please correct if I’m wrong, but you get the point), the CD was heavily white before it was heavily Japanese before it was heavily black– exactly how far back do we go in arbitrarily deciding what’s “colonizing” and what isn’t?
What stops them from just moving to another place and going again? There was basically no punishment or disadvantage to them, right?
“The commissioner who heard the case was not receptive to those arguments”
What is clear if you read the decision is that (s)he was pissed that you did not show up.
Evidently the owner was not able or willing to finish redeveloping this property at this time. While this can be frustrating for neighbors, it is legal to stop development of a property due to economic conditions, personal issues or whatever, as long as you continue to pay your taxes. There will always be some idle property in any neighborhood; part of the free market we live in.
Building on a vacant lot also seems to antagonize the anarchists (referring to the “gentrification kills” story). Can’t quite grasp that argument or see how it agrees with the above argument that unused property is bad.
I’m glad to see them gone. If they want to live in a world without laws or government there are plenty of places to go. But Seattle is a community of people who believe in a society based on Democratic ideals.
Glad to see the anarchists leave.
We need to fully fund the mental institutions. The jellyfish need a place for healing. Western State hospital should make room for them.
Still awaiting alllllllllllllll that community outreach and “helping others” OS, these folks, and our dear Lucas keep promising. Sadly, it never happens. Kind of like OS replanting the lawn they ruined at SCCC. Or the free guitar lessons from those “resourceful” people at “Water.” When will the occupy movement realize it has been taken over and totally ruined by jobless drug addicts who not only don’t want to work, do want to steal, have criminal histories, and trash every “squat” and rental they encounter? As well as warring with neighbors at every turn. The Occupy movement in other cities has figured this out. Wake up, Seattle, while you still have any occupy movement left.
Right on, Del! OS has lost a lot of early supporters.
This is a call to all Occupiers. Rise up with us and abandon the Occupy movement!
Occupy Seattle Kills!
Occupy occupy?
To all you occupy protesters: If you are reading this, I want you to know that every time I drive past that building, you guys protesting on the street or at SCCC, I literally laugh out loud. As well as everybody worth ANY amount of money, even a dollar. Because you are nothing but a bunch of lazy bums that do not want to pay for anything. No landlords, no big banks, no everything. Maybe if you had a job, tried to look like a decent human being and took a shower more than once a month, then maybe people might respect you or at least give you a chance to hear to out. But EVERYBODY, and I mean everybody is laughing right in your face and there is nothing you can do about it. Go back to getting your pit bulls and giant black pants and hanging out on Broadway in front of Dicks looking for enough change for your next fix. Enjoy rotting in the gutter you worthless scum.
PS…
Sorry had to get that off my chest.
You are a terrified slave (if you’re not a cop).
Sincerely,
Mayor Mike McGinn
Hey D,
Have you or any of the others commenting negatively on this post seen this property lately? Plenty of non-Anarchist graffiti. Looks like the landlord is also nothing but a lazy bum that does not want to pay for anything like keeping up his lovely home. Maybe he’s to busy hanging out on Broadway in front of Dicks looking for enough change for his next fix. Meanwhile his property is a rotting hulk of worthless scum.