Airport buildings were not “scheduled” for demolition; city should have continued maintenance

A statement from the Mayor claims the historic old control tower building, along with two popular airport hangars, were “originally scheduled for demolition in 2015.” This is false.

A public statement issued by the Mayor two days ago provided inaccurate information about the buildings occupied by The Landing Gear Works. “The City of Renton is moving through the legal process of eviction of a tenant for a long-standing non-payment of rent. The occupied buildings in question were originally scheduled for demolition in 2015.” 

The statement says “buildings” plural, indicating that the old tower building together with the hangars leased by Landing Gear Works were all scheduled to be torn down in 2015.  Discussion of tearing down the hangars in 2015 is nonsense, as they were in good shape and in high demand. They should only be demolished if better replacements are planned and shovel-ready.

Potential long-term replacement of the old tower building has been discussed notionally for years, and an appropriate advisory statement was added to the lease. But the building was never “scheduled for demolition”, and still isn’t to this day.  The building was designated Aircraft Manufacturing space in the 2017 FAA-approved Renton Airport Layout Plan with no reference to possible removal, and this status was unchanged until 2022.

The lengthy process for demolishing and replacing this building involves an airport layout plan revision, public notification, RAAC review, Council approval, FAA approval, environmental review, Requests for Proposal, bid openings, new building plans,  lease negotiations, and many other steps– a process that generally takes years.   In the nine years elapsed since 2015, the only step taken has been the first one, the 2022 Airport Layout Plan now says the building might possibly be replaced at some future date.

So why does the Mayor’s statement say these building were scheduled for demolition? Unfortunately, this looks like an excuse for the airport neglecting the old tower building since 2015.

According to a 2019 email from Landing Gear Works to the Airport Business Manager, the airport stopped repairing the un-leased sections of this building– the historic tower, hallways, bathrooms, and other public areas– many years ago. (These areas were not leased to The Landing Gear Works.)  One would expect these areas to be professionally cared for by the airport.

It is not okay to stop maintaining a building in Renton just because the owner decides it will be torn down at some future date.  This is unsafe, and contrary to building codes. They city should set a good example, not a bad one.

Renton’s code enforcement division has allowed vacant buildings to become hazards in our city.  For instance, the large seven-story glass office buildings on Park Avenue, that served as Boeing offices until 2021, have become dystopian and deadly, with broken glass, missing fire protection, and reported open elevator shafts. Residents have been pleading for action from Renton code enforcement. City officials say not to worry because the buildings are scheduled for demolition in the future, but the danger is real today.  Will the Landing Gear Works building be next?

Missing doors and broken windows allow thieves to steal metal from fire protection systems in the seven-story office buildings on Park and 6th,  vacated and sold by Boeing in 2021.  Broken glass, fire hazards, and fall hazards put curious youth in peril.

Just a few days ago Landing Gear Works  repaired a leaking 2 inch water main in the old tower building. Fortunately, they discovered it quickly, repaired the pipe, and cleaned up the mess. The leak would have flooded the entire building if it had been vacant.

A few days ago Landing Gear Works made an emergency repair on a gushing 2″ water main in their ceiling; if the building had been vacant it would have flooded

We need our Public Works office and Code Enforcement to help keep all of Renton’s buildings looking their best, regardless of how many years the buildings have left.   Working with Landing Gear Works on roof repairs would have been the easy, cost-effective approach to protect the airport’s old tower building while they complete the lengthy public process for making eventual improvements.  If they insist on going through with the eviction, they must have a plan to keep the building safe and looking good until final decisions are made about its future.

Below is an email from Tom Anderson, President of Landing Gear Works, in 2019, asking the  the Airport Business Manager to properly maintain the public parts of the old tower building.  Tom eventually did the maintenance himself.

———- Forwarded message ———
From: Thomas Anderson <tom@tlgw.aero>
Date: Wed, Dec 4, 2019 at 2:15 PM
Subject: Building issue/Leven Lease
To: Casey Boatman <CBoatman@rentonwa.gov>

Casey,

I hope you had a great week.

As I am sure you are aware that we have been fighting water leaks here ever since we moved in. The airport initially took care of us in 2013-2015. Fixing items as required and maintaining the grass that merged into the public ramp area. In 2016 we finalized and leased the whole building and three hangers in building one. There is also public areas still here that we do not lease, hallways, bathrooms, the tower, etc. We had always complied  with the terms of the lease and made sure minor repairs were done.The airport leased us a supposedly turn key building as so we can make a living and contribute to the community. In 2016 the airport stopped or greatly cut down on the services we had depended on. The roof is in very poor shape and we have attempted under airport guidance to make repairs, bandaids at best. At first the trade off for reasonable lease rates made it possible for us to afford the maintenance. However the Airport and the transportation division of the city has used its advantage to reduce our working area in building 1 and thus we have now used every square inch of 295 prime space. Three times in the last 2 years we had to move everything out of 800 square feet to keep office furniture, office equipment, sensitive records, drawings and such safe from water damage. I am asking for help here as the public areas above the halls are the main area that the airport, in my humble opinion, should be maintaining.

The next question is where are we at with our lease application proposal? We are now more than ever wanting to take over the SW corner and move into a nice useful and mutually beneficial facility. There is an unconfirmed rumor floating around that the Leven Estate will be granted a 10 year extension over the original lease. Is this true? If my opinion is worth a nickel, it should be legally challenged. I am sure there is a way through our legal efforts to make sure businesses like ours are fast tracked into space that is GA community beneficial, safe, dry and spacious. I doubt if the original lease holder is true to the original intention. Bruce died and his estate really does not use the space as was intended. It probably can be shown one or two corporate aircraft and businesses are not related to the ideas of the original lessee.

Let me know as soon as you can what the airport can do for us, possibly a credit for currently condemned space, options for possible partial use of a closed building to the south, building 1 or the old Kaynan main hanger that does not have major leak problems. Any future ideas we may find attractive? I do wish and hope to grace these grounds as TLGW grows in support of Renton and this awesome airport.

Best wishes

Tom