Filling the holes in the U-district

Aside from the fact that it is still missing a Denny's, the Ave. is shaping up to be a pretty nice street. The sidewalks are wider and the pavement is a sparkling light gray. In a few months, construction will be finished and the bulldozers will be on to pushing bigger and better piles of dirt around some other part of Seattle. The Ave. used to disgust me. Now, I am proud to call it part of the UW.

A few weeks ago, the Seattle City Council voted to get rid of the outmoded lease lid -- a law that restricted how much off-campus property the UW could lease around the U-District. In the 1970s and 1980s, lease lids were applied to several major institutions in Seattle, but the UW is the last one to liberate itself from such a restriction. The UW is fewer than 10,000 square feet away from breaking the current 550,000-square-foot limit. The UW can now lease as much space as it needs until 2010.

The plan is to relocate offices and research labs to vacant spaces surrounding the campus, primarily to the Ave. The University will probably develop more as well (unfortunately bringing back those wretched bulldozers). And a huge bonus in the deal is the possibility of developing residential areas for faculty and staff. Maybe someone will figure out what to do with the unsightly hole in Northeast 50th Street where an abandoned Burger King once stood.

Is it possible that the character of the Ave. will be lost as the UW encroaches with drab office buildings and plush apartment complexes? I, in turn, ask: Which character would that be? The character that sits in front of Earl's, reeking of beer and harassing people for money? Or the character that vandalized the front of my favorite gyro restaurant?

Overturning the lease lid is one of those "I scratch your back, you scratch mine" agreements. The goal is to revitalize the Ave. And God knows the Ave. needs it. The University's expansion into the surrounding area will stimulate the small-business market -- a market centered entirely on the college lifestyle. Where else could 17 teriyaki restaurants (all serving complete dinners for less than $5), 11 record stores, eight bars and 63 coffee shops all exist in the same half-mile stretch of pavement?

An argument the UW made in order to garner support for lifting the lid is that the increase of long-term residents will keep the Ave.'s small-business economy steady during the summer months and after-school hours. And because more employees will be working and living in the U-District, transportation and public safety are issues the city will be forced to address.

The battle between the UW and neighborhood residents has thus far been less productive than peace talks in the Middle East. The roadmap to overturn the lease lid is receiving flack from residents who claim there are no guarantees the UW will develop housing. If the UW complies with its housing agreements -- and it should -- then both camps may reach a temporary truce. As part of the lease-lid resolution, the city passed a late-noise ordinance that will impose fines on rowdy residents, hopefully shaping the U-District into a slightly more alluring place of residence.

The UW is just about the best thing north of Interstate 90 (ranking a close second to the ZymoGenetics plant on Lake Union). Not only is it the economic heart of the community, it is a top research and medical institution. The UW should be free to expand to a point that does not hinder it or the surrounding community. If nothing else, maybe Denny's will find its way back to the Ave., because IHOP just ain't cuttin' it.