Mercer Island Northwest Mansions - Index - Nordstrom, Lytle, Galanti, Berg, Glazer, Ellison et al.

The following mansions are in earlier posts in this blog along with information about the mansions and their owners. Click on the highlighted heading or first picture to go to the respective posts.

Berg, Galanti, Dillon, Lytle, Edwards et al. Mansions

Mercer Island North - Mansions (click to go to)

East to West

Simpson, Sasaki et al. Mansions

Mercer Island Northwest – Mansions (click to go to)

North to South

Proctor Landing, Stroum-Glazer, Ellison, Nordstrom et al. Mansions

Mercer Island West-North - Mansions

North to South

       (Updated 5/19/13)

Page numbers refer to Lake Washington 130 Homes

Click on Mercer Island Southwest Mansions – Index for the index for mansions to the south.

Cruising Northwest Mercer Island

Afternoon on LW North of I-90

Between Leschi/Madrona and Bellevue/NW Mercer Island is one of my favorite places on the lake. It is between the SR-520 and I-90 floating bridges. In the afternoon the sun reflects off the glass in Bellevue’s new modern high-rise buildings and 14,400 ft Mt Rainier. The views also include 10,800 ft Mt Baker to the north and the mountains (highest peak 10,500 ft) in the North Cascades National Park to the east.

The first floating bridge connecting Seattle to Mercer Island was built in 1940. A second bridge, as part of the Interstate highway system (I-90), was completed in 1989 and the old bridge was closed for repairs. The next year during a Thanksgiving storm, while work continued, most of the 1940 bridge sank. That bridge, the southern one, was re-completed in 1993.

I-90 continues to the eastern mainland across the East Channel from Mercer Island via a conventional high-rise bridge. The first bridge there was completed in 1923 and provided the first road off the island. That bridge was torn down after one span of the current bridge was built in 1940. A second span was opened in 1992 as part of the I-90 system.

The west-end 7 miles of Interstate 90 were the last miles to be completed on not only I-90 but on the three coast-to-coast Interstate highways. It took 30 years of community protests and legal battles to go from initial plans to completion. These 7 miles, at $1.6 billion, were the most expensive 7 miles in the entire Interstate highway system. Much of the high cost was due to the floating bridges but the most expensive ½ mile, costing $150 million, is on Mercer Island with its lid over the freeway park.

In the early 1900s there were a total of about 25 ferry landings on all sides of Mercer Island. The northwest side of Mercer Island has four prominent points. All the points were ferry landings. The eastern point in Luther Burbank Park is Calkins Point, the west side of the middle point is Roanoke Landing, the point on the NW corner of MI is Faben Point and the point about 0.7 miles south of I-90 is Proctor Landing.

Mercer Island (MI) is the largest and only residential island in Lake Washington. It is six miles long and averages about one mile wide for 6.4 square miles of land with about fifteen miles of waterfront. It has approximately 22,000 residents. It is the U.S.’s most populated island in a lake. The northwestern area, before the bridges were built and the Island was incorporated as a city, was named “East Seattle.” It still carries that name as a MI neighborhood.

Afternoon on LW South of I-90 Floating Bridges – Looking at MI’s NW Shoreline

Northwest Mercer Island has more, compared to any other LW Map of the Stars^® area, mansion sales, listings and new construction greater than $12 million. These mansions are in 3/11/12 and 3/12/12 posts. Notable sports stars that formerly owned waterfront homes in this area include Jim Zorn and Kazuhiro Sasaki. Top executives of Amazon, Costco, Microsoft, Nordstrom and Boeing have waterfront homes in this area and are in the previous NW MI Homes 3/17/12 post.

The western shore of Mercer Island south of the I-90 Bridge has prime viewing for Seattle Seafair’s Blue Angels air shows. The “Boaters Guide to Seafair” 3/10/12 post has more information.

Family Boating West Side MI Looking South

South of the Seafair area, on the Seattle side of LW, are Andrews Bay and Seward Park. From many lake locations the park appears to be an island but it is connected to the mainland by a narrow isthmus. Andrews Bay is north of the isthmus and well protected. It is the only authorized in LW spot for overnight anchoring. It is popular for day anchoring, swimming in 75° fresh water, having boat parties and spending the nights on summer weekends. It reminds me of my sailing days in Southern California and mooring in Catalina’s harbors and bays. The “Andrews Bay – Anchoring and Partying” 2/27/12 post has more information.

From NW MI Viewing Sunset, Seward Park and Andrews Bay.

(This is the fourth chapter [go to next chapter] of our “Lake Washington Cruising” article. The chapters are being posted in reverse order. When all chapters are posted they will be in order in this blog with the first chapter at the top. I will be posting approximately one chapter per week. You can read and print an abbreviated pdf version of the entire article.

Copyright © 2012 by David C. Dykstra

Mercer Island West - North - Mansions

Proctor Landing, Stroum-Glazer, Ellison, Nordstrom et al. Mansions

North to South

This home sold 8/15/12 for $3.4 million. It was listed for $5.0 million in 2011 and lowered to $4.2 million in early 2012. The home was listed by Betsy Terry, Ewing & Clark. From the Listing: “Gold Coast opportunity on the Western Shores of Mercer Island. Traditional 1920's home that has been lovingly cared for. Walled garden w/ pretty lawn on street side. 60 ft prime waterfront w/ dock for maximum enjoyment of lakeside offerings. Great Room concept w/ spacious kitchen dining & living in one huge space, w/ French doors that open to the large deck. Den plus library on main. indoor pool opens to the terrace & lakeside lawn. Apartment beside the two car garage. Newer systems throughout.” The seller was Robert H. Thompson and the buyers were Marc B. and Andrea M. Chatalas. Marc Chatalas and his brother, Bret Chatalas, are the founders and owners of the popular Seattle area Cactus chain of restaurants. Thompson is a workers compensation attorney with The Walthew Law Firm in Seattle. The home is 4,000 sq ft on 0.3 acres.

This home sold 4/3/2013 for $5.9 million. It was listed for 7.3 million in 2011, lowered to $7.0 million in 2012 and $6.5 million in 2013. The home was listed by Betsy Terry, Ewing & Clark. From the Listing: “Avant garde one level design on 120 feet prime no bank Lake Washington Waterfront. Completely remodeled in keeping with the original International Style design. Floor to ceiling windows, open floor plan beautiful terrazzo floors. Incredible kitchen w/ huge icestone island, Family Room, Media Room, office, pantry. Choice Gold Coast park-like property w/ weeping willow, massive oak tree on Bob Chittock gardens. Sweeping lawn to beach, 55 ft +/- dock, beach house.” The home was sold by Janis A Cunningham, Trustee for Karen Gamoran to Wing Lee and Loretta Yee. The home is 5,790 sq ft on 0.7 acres. In 2009 Gamoran opened Karen’s Vintage Couture, a boutique of designer clothes, in Pioneer Square. She is also the principal of the multi-million dollar Karen Mayers Foundation that supports the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle and other religious, educational and charitable organizations.

The mansion sold for $15.7 million in a private transaction with an undisclosed buyer in the second half of 2009. It was listed by Betsy Terry and Jane Powers, Ewing & Clark. It was listed for $34.5 million in the early 2000s and $23.9 million shortly before the sale. From the Listing: “Breathtaking LW Waterfront Estate in premier Mercer Island . . . neighborhood. 1.37 park-like acres . . . opens to the fantastic indoor swimming pool completer w/ waterslide and spa, game room, sport court, home theatre, heated terrace. Dock w/ boat lifts, sandy beach, 2BR guest house, 3-office carriage house.” The mansion sale was featured in a 2/16/10 Seattle Mansions Post. This was 2009’s most expensive LW waterfront home sale. The mansion is a prominent landmark and has a rich history. The original house was built in 1932 and it has been remodeled several times. The estate has 17,780 sq ft of living space on 1.37 acres with 255 feet of waterfront, 8 bedrooms and 15 baths. The original mansion was built in 1932 and has been extensively expanded and remodeled, maintaining the original English Tudor architecture.

This landmark compound, “Harmony,” sold in 2012 for $21.6 million. This was the most expensive LW Map of the Stars® waterfront sale in 2012. It was listed at $26.9 million by Tere and David Foster, Windermere. From the listing: “Resting gently on 2.93 acres, Harmony commands an extraordinary 324 feet of Lake Washington waterfront and sets its vista on the Seattle skyline and Mount Rainier . . . Waves roll gently up on the beach as the sun shines down on two private docks. . . [nearly 20,000 square feet in 4 buildings]. . living wing plays host to the grotto, saline pool and exercise areas. Upstairs two guest suites each with their own bath and walk-in closets . . . private outdoor spa . . . A world like no other.” The sale and current renovations were featured in a 4/1/13 Seattle Mansions Blog. The seller was Marsha Stroum Sloan Glazer. The buyer was Thomas Ellison, the principal owner of the Value-Village/Savers chain of stores. Permits were issued in February to demolish three homes (total 8,260 sq ft) on the compound. The main 11,300 sq ft mansion will remain. Plans for the replacement buildings have not been submitted. Marsha and her family are respected Seattle area philanthropists. Thomas Ellison’s sister, Debbie, and her husband John E. Bacon purchased the legendary Groat Point mansion from Bruce McCaw in 2011 and demolished all the buildings including the 14,000 sq ft main mansion (2/21/13 Seattle Mansions Blog).

This is the home of David and Susan Dykstra. David is the author of this blog and LW 130 Homes. The original part of the house (on the left [north] facing the house from the water) was built circa 1925 as a ferry master’s house. The ferry from this house’s dock was the primary transportation for children who lived in this area of the island (known as East Seattle) to go to school across the lake. Susan Ogden Dykstra and her previous deceased husband purchased that house in 1975 and, preserving that part, extensively remodeled and enlarged the house in 1979 and 1989. The house, water frontage and lot size are small compared to our neighbors. It is a flagpole lot with 85 steps between the house and dock. We enjoy living here, our home, dock, WaveRunner and boat, Happy Hours very much! The house has 4,760 sq ft with 25 feet of waterfront on 0.4 acres.

From 1999 through 2009, James F. Jr (Jamie) and Lisa Nordstrom purchased, for $9.1 million, 4 parcels from the George W. Clarke estate and family. The waterfront has a park-like setting with a recently erected “cabana with deck” structure that looks like it is for parties and picnics. There are docks for multiple yachts and watercraft. It is an ideal setting for family gatherings including Seafair. Jamie (born 1974) is the great grandson of John W. Nordstrom, the founder of Seattle based Nordstrom, Inc. He is EVP of the company and President of Nordstrom Direct. George W. Clarke was a well-known and respected community and family leader. He served in the Washington state House and Senate from 1966 to 1985. (More information is in a Seattle Mansions 3/14/12 post.) The mansion, on top of the hill is 5,140 sq ft. The four parcels are 1.5 acres with 300 feet of waterfront.(Updated 5/19/13)

Page numbers refer to Lake Washington 130 Homes

Click on Mercer Island Northwest - Mansions for north-end Mercer Island mansions to the north.

Click on Mercer Island West-Central - Mansions for Mercer Island mansions to the south.