One thing that George and Becky remarked on last night while visiting us was how new Kirkland looked, despite being a fairly old community. We pointed out that a lot of the building in Kirkland over the past few years has been “teardown”—small houses on valuable properties have been razed so that new, larger (I wouldn’t say ostentatious) houses can take their place.
Kari Happold Real Estate agent, says that the neighborhood was originally vacation homes for folks coming across the lake from Seattle in the summertime, and so a lot of the original houses aren’t especially large. I suspect, on the basis of this history of the town, that some also housed workers in the Kirkland shipyard. Today, of course, on our hill overlooking Lake Washington any property that has even a little bit of a lake view is enormously valuable. So the old houses are going.
Another one (this one a bit of an eyesore) was demolished yesterday down the hill from us. While I certainly don’t mind the potential appreciation in the value of our house, I also can’t help but feel that some of the history of the place is being lost.
(Title reference: “Houses in Motion” from Remain In Light by the Talking Heads.)