82 Year Old Community Beach Given To Adjacent Neighbors Background In 1932, the Lake City & Cedar Park community established a public beach at the street-end of NE 130th and Riviera Pl. NE. They wanted to give the neighborhood children a place to swim without having to trespass on private property. The community spent time and resources improving and maintaining this small 60-foot wide beach which was (and still is) the only public access to Lake Washington in the area. As documented in the book “Lil’ Ol’ Lake City – A Community Spirit” by Imogene Inglet, there was a “Dollar Drive” in 1937 to equip the beach with public amenities such as a dressing room, lavoratories, and a drinking fountain. They also offered life guard service, swimming and lifesaving lessons, and water sports which were provided for free by local clubs and volunteers. Since 1932 this beach has been used by the surrounding neighborhood to access Lake Washington. Nobody questioned the public nature of this property until an opportunistic lawyer (Frederick A Kaseburg) bought the property next to it in October of 2010 and two years later (after recruiting neighbors Keith & Kay Holmquist) sued King County and Seattle for ownership. By exploiting a technical procedural error made 82 years ago, they were able to take this property away from the public. Legal Issues When streets are “vacated” by county or city governments in Washington State, the owners of the abutting (plotted) lots each get half of the property (to compensate them for the loss of the street).     

On April 25, 1932, a community group filed a petition for King County to vacate NE 130th street end. On June 25th, 1932, Shotwell and Muller, who were buying the property from the Puget Mill Company adjacent to the beach, executed a quitclaim deed conveying any interest in the beach property to the Cedar Park Community Club with the stated purpose to “designate the land as a community beach.” Two days later King County Board of Commissioners voted to vacate the street at the end of NE 130 th. Later that summer the King County Board of Commissioners determined that Shotwell and Muller didn’t hold title to the property because their loans had not been paid off and Puget Mill Company still owned the property. To rectify the situation Puget Mill executed a quitclaim deed on August 10, 1932, conveying its interest in the vacated street end to King County with the expressed purpose of “serving as a park for the Lake City community.”

Now, 82 years later, the courts have ruled that King County wasn’t a “bona fide purchaser” of the property (having paid only $10) and the abutting owners, Shotwell and Muller, were each entitled to half of the property

once their loans were paid off. Puget Mill could have sold the beach property, but because it was donated, the rights remained with Shotwell and Muller. Unfortunately, this wasn’t known at the time when it could have been rectified and the rights were passed on to people not as civic minded as the original owners. In making their decision, the courts did not consider the intent, undisputed by the parties, which was to dedicate this property in perpetuity to the public. So what can be done? The City has an obligation to explore all options to keep this property public including condemning for eminent domain: that is, acquisition of property by a government agency for the public good. I know this process is not entered into lightly by city government, but should be given utmost consideration given the history of this beach and its significance to the surrounding communities. Such action would have precedence and be justified with broad community support. The City Council recently voted unanimously to condemn a private parking lot near the downtown waterfront in order to turn it into a public parking lot. The equities here are even stronger. The 130 th street end beach has never had any private use. When Kaseburg and Homlquist purchased their own properties, the sellers and their brokers assumed the beach was public. No part of the prices the buyers paid reflected the value of the disputed beach and no taxes have ever been paid to King County or the City of Seattle. Preserving the dwindling access to waterfront is the responsibility of our city government. The current goal of the Seattle Shoreline Master Program is: 1. Protect the ecological functions of the shoreline areas; 2. Encourage water-dependent uses; 3. Provide for maximum public access to, and enjoyment of the shorelines of the City; and 4. Preserve, enhance, and increase views of the water. The north end of Seattle has very limited access to Lake Washington and it would be irresponsible to let this public beach fall into the hands of two landowners who already enjoy water access. This small beach is the only public access to Lake Washington between Matthews Beach and Log Boom Park in Kenmore (5 miles). The City recently replaced the staircase leading to this beach from 42nd Ave. NE. Let’s protect the investments made over the past 80 years and save this public resource for future generations to enjoy. Regardless of our economic background, we all deserve access to the lake. Don’t let these two landowners add to their waterfront property at the expense of our community. Encourage our city leaders to use their authority to condemn this property for eminent domain and help honor the community spirit that created this public space in the first place. Please send an email to Mayor Murray and the Seattle City Council expressing your opinion. Mayor Ed Murray: http://www.seattle.gov/mayor/contact-the-mayor Seattle City Council: http://www.seattle.gov/council/councilcontact.htm Also, join the Facebook group “Friends of NE 130th Beach” to learn more about what others are doing to keep this beach public: https://www.facebook.com/groups/284635865015041/

Thanks, Friends of NE 130th Beach