Eastlake: `It's Like Living In A Little Village' -- Lake Union Community A Diverse One

Morning mist veiled the downtown office towers as a kayak slipped through the still waters of Lake Union and a grebe swam past a houseboat whose big window framed the entire scene.

A blue light dangling from a cord swung back and forth very slightly over the kitchen table, a small sign that this dwelling indeed was floating.

Not far away, in a Victorian house of high ceilings and restrained ornamentation, several friends talked about how lucky they were to live in their neck of the city, despite a drawback or two.

"We don't have a bakery," said one.

"What do you want, sushi or a bakery? You can only have so much," replied another.

Welcome to Eastlake, the long, narrow community anchored by the University Bridge on the north and the old City Light steam plant on the south, just a few flaps of a gull's wings from downtown.

Only five blocks wide, Eastlake nevertheless does have much to offer. From cottages to stylish condos, from floating homes to fishing boats, it's an eclectic expression of close-in city life.

Once forested, later farmland, what is now called Eastlake is where several thousand people live, about a thousand work, and untold others come for entertainment. When fireworks blaze over the lake on the Fourth of July, or decorated boats grace the water at Christmas, this community has the first row in the grandstand.

It seems to have come of age gracefully, too. The architecture has a human scale to it, old and new blending nicely, and mature brick apartment buildings are set neatly back from the streets behind manicured shrubbery.

The late Victor Steinbrueck, architect and civic activist, chose to live in Eastlake, in one of the oldest homes in the city, built as a farmhouse. It has a wraparound porch reminiscent of a ship's prow.

This home is one of two "Victorian ladies" that, together with the old Seward Elementary School, have been designated as historic landmarks a few blocks apart in Eastlake. Lynn Howell and his wife, Anne Fisher, live in the other, and this was where the friends had gathered, to admire the refinements in home construction from another age and, looking out over the rooftops, glimpses of the lake.

Howell said he likes living in Eastlake because of its diversity of people and places, and delights in curling up in the cozy spaces of his Victorian farmhouse with its fir flooring.

When the mist had gone and the afternoon sun beamed down, the city skyline and the lake around the houseboat with the blue light came alive with color. The houseboat itself is always colorful: It's exterior is teal blue trimmed in turquoise, yellow and raspberry.

It is the home of artist and interior designer Mary Gey-McCulloch, her husband, Fred, and her 10-year-old daughter, Jennie. A two-story, three-bedroom houseboat, it was built in 1921, has been remodeled five times and is now worth much too much for most people to dream of buying.

The public will be welcome to step inside their home and both of the Victorian homes during Sunday's tour.

The houseboat, which has been featured in national publications, is among about 280 on the lake off Fairview Avenue East, including those on Portage Bay. They are believed to make up the largest such colony in the West.

"It's like living in a little village. When you walk down the dock, you kind of leave the city behind," said Gey-McCulloch.

She said that during the hot weather last July the temperature of the water in the lake beside their houseboat reached 78 degrees. "My daughter would rather swim in the lake than go to summer camp," she said.

Eastlake always seems to be in a state of renovation and restoration, said Peggy Stockley, another houseboat dweller. "People want to stay here and want their houses to look nice," she said.

So is there anything wrong with Eastlake, other than that it lacks a bakery? Chris Leman, president of the Eastlake Community Council, pondered the question.

"We have many elderly people living here and we need to serve them better," he replied. "There is no senior center. We don't have major public services. No library. No church. No Little City Hall."

There used to be a church. St. Patrick's Catholic Church once was in Eastlake, but it was moved during the construction through the community of Interstate 5, which now forms the noisy eastern wall of Eastlake.

Noise, traffic and air pollution are problems in the community, as they are in most urban areas. Eastlake Avenue East, the business spine, throbs with traffic. Floatplanes droning on takeoff from the lake are a nuisance to some residents, but others say the planes are a nice aspect of the changing panorama of the lake and say the noise isn't as bothersome as the roar of cars and trucks.

Eastlake's closeness to downtown also presents threats.

"Our land is so valuable because of the proximity to downtown and views of the lake," Leman said. "As a result, the pace of development is so fast that we are in danger of losing the mix of people and uses that have made Eastlake so special."

The community council is one of the most vibrant such groups in Seattle. It has 250 paying members, about 20 business sponsors, and counts a considerable number of renters among its members.

A survey of Eastlake residents is to be made by the community council beginning in May, to learn what concerns residents. This is a step toward having a community plan to guide growth.

One of the wonders of this working lakeis a shipyard that has been in continuous operation since 1919. The Lake Union Drydock Co. and its gates will be open during Sunday's tour. A Navy minesweeper being fitted with new engines will be on view, as will the Linda Rose, a fishing boat being converted into a factory trawler.

Visitors will be able to go aboard the Zodiac, a two-masted schooner built in 1924. Nearby lie fat tugboats and research vessels of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The tour will include, by reservation only, an opportunity to climb the narrow stairway leading up the tower of the University Bridge to the bridge operator's perch, and have a bird's eye view of this part of the city.

EASTLAKE TOUR

For the first time, the public has an opportunity to peek into some of the fascinating homes and workplaces of Eastlake.

On Sunday, from noon to 5 p.m., people may tour more than a dozen places. Tickets cost $15, or $10 for seniors. They are on sale at a number of outlets and will be available Sunday at a hospitality house at 2300 Yale Ave. E. Proceeds will benefit the Eastlake Community Council.