Safeway Buys Burgermaster Site Near UW -- Customers Hope `Institution' Stays

The future of one of Seattle's favorite gathering spots for burgers and breakfasts is uncertain after the sale of its site near the University of Washington to Safeway.

"I have no idea what they are going to do with the property. I have a couple of years left on my lease, until Dec. 31, 1999. They may offer me a space; they may not. They may tear this building down or they might not," said Phil Jensen, founder and owner of the Burgermaster on Northeast 45th Street.

He speculated Safeway might be eyeing the additional land for expansion to compete against the 66,000-square-foot Quality Food Centers store next door in University Village.

Rich Costanzo, Safeway's director of real estate, said the food-store chain did not have redevelopment plans at this time.

"We are constantly on the lookout for good contiguous real estate," Costanzo said. "This opportunity presented itself."

If Safeway ever redid the site, it would like to keep Burgermaster, a 45-year-old community landmark, somewhere on the property, Costanzo said.

Safeway bought the 50,000-square-foot lot, which includes a storage building leased by the university, for $2.5 million from the Mowat family, Costanzo said.

The Northeast 45th Street Safeway underwent a $2 million remodel in 1994.

"We obviously wouldn't tear it down. We like the way it is performing," Costanzo said.

Customer demand might lead to an expansion, he said. However, he ruled out Safeway putting up a "humongous" store like QFC's University Village flagship.

Safeway is 35,000 square feet. Its largest suburban stores run about 55,000 square feet, and its store planned for East John Street on Capitol Hill will be about 45,000 square feet.

Jensen expressed mixed feelings. On the one hand, he is 76 and "sort of backing off" from his daily restaurant activities, he said. On the other, his daughter, son-in-law and son remain active in the Seattle-based Burgermaster chain.

His customers have told him they "don't know what they are going to do without the place, because it is an institution,"Jensen said.

Construction workers, professors, retirees, students, amateur baseball players, families and business people can be found sitting cheek by jowl in the bustling restaurant. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has been spotted eating there.

Lee Moriwaki's phone message number is 206-464-2320. His e-mail address is: lmor-new@seatimes.com