It's hardly news, though, is it? It's funny to go around the city and see all these old apartment buildings (like the one I live in) named for the view and the vista and the panorama... that was promptly blotted out by the next building across the street that was built a decade later.

I'd much rather have some neighbors to spy on. Especially if they are good-looking and into nudism.

Now nobody guarantees you an unblocked view for all of time, so I have only limited sympathy. But it is more than a trivial inconvenience. The blocked view could have cost him hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost value to his former-view condo.

Give me my future now!

You don't own that lot next door. No one stopped your building when it built up and loomed over its neighbor. Stop whining that you didn't get something for nothing. It costs money to buy into a protected-view community. If that's what you want go buy it in Viewcrest, Bellevue.

"Nimvi's" = Not in my view = boo hoo, boo hoo.

the question is, is he going to remodel his current house, invest in stocks, buy gold, or maybe take a european vacation?

...Grab that cash with both hands and make a stash. New car, caviar, four star daydream, Think Ill buy me a football team...

Just tryin' to look on the bright side.

http://seattle.metblogs.com/archives/2007/11/in_other_blogs_195.phtml

And while his condo may have blocked someone else's view too, that doesn't mean that perpetuating the wrong is the right thing to do. We need to value views and sunlight and green spaces properly, or everyone will lose.

As for Mr. Dumbshit and his spoiled view... maybe he should've had the sense to do his research. I can't vilify the guy for moving and renting out his space: he's just exercising his available options.

The real villain here is Aubrey Choen and her editor, for trying to further this idea of Rich Condo Owner As Victim.

You anti-condo pro-density folks can't have it both ways. Stop yer' whining.

What amazes me is the number of these condo units that sell before construction even begins. On the website and in the models the view is always spectacular.

Boo fuckin' hoo...

have about as much sympathy for this dude as i do for the morons that move to Belltown or the Hill, then bitch about the noise and late night shenanigans...

#8 makes a good point: The value of a condo (or house) is often based on the view. So, it's a big deal.

Having said that: If you live downtown, you have to expect that something might block your view. Still, 18 feet away. Even a lot of renters would balk at that.

And my answer is ... tough. Tell him to suck it up.

Reading the PI article (the issue was covered on Metroblog or something a while back), I think the condo owners have every right to complain. At the time most of them purchased, a 13-story tower was in the works next door. Most bought their unit with that understanding. After purchasing, the developer next door decided to almost triple the building height. Because none of the Cosmo owners were actually living at the location yet, they were not notified of the change, and because of zoning, probably could not have done anything anyhow. Regardless of whether or not you hate "rich" condo owners, this type of developing does not bode well for anyone. You can't raise building heights and then turn developers loose. There needs to be some thought given to the process and to the impacts on the surrounding community. That seems to be lacking in a number of projects all over Seattle, and is well illustrated by this particular issue.

Also, I can't imagine that the Cosmo blocked much of anyone's view. There doesn't seem to be much but vacant lots or 1-2 story buildings north and east of there, and it's situated a reasonable distance from other towers. For people on the Hill and other neighborhoods, it became part of the cityscape - it did not completely block their view of everything, as this new development will do for west-facing Cosmo residents.

That whole area a few years ago was run down and mostly parking lots. There are 4 high rise office towers being built and proposed in this area, so it looks like it is not all condo towers going up. The one that is being built beside the Cosmo is a 500 foot office tower.

Here is a video of what the the skyline will look like in 2011 when all of these towers are finished. The skyline will be dramatically larger if these projects move forward.

http://www.urbancondominiums.com/

Click Beta 2.0

I am glad to see that we are filling up empty spaces and parking lots with high rise hotels, condos and office towers.

Sympathy meter says... 0

Being a fan of urban density, I don't really see any solution to the problem. But I do see the problem.

BTW... when I looked at buying a condo in the Cosmo, you could get a (very small) until for 300K or so. Try buying a house, of any size, for that price in the greater Seattle area. These condo owners are not all super-rich living in luxury. The assholes moaning about condo owners on this spool should go fuck themselves. Not every condo owner is a rich Microsoft asshole, and apartment ownership is the norm in most cities around the world. Provincial cry-babies.

*eye-rolling*