By Kate Snyder
An urban marine facility on the shores of Seattle’s Lake Union in the city’s Eastlake neighborhood recently sold after being listed on the market last year. The property at 1801 Fairview Ave. E was purchased by an entity affiliated with the Coastal Villages Region Fund, a nonprofit organization based in Anchorage, Alaska, for $19.7 million, or approximately $1,150 per square foot, according to King County public records. The 17,100 square foot building sits on 6.6 acres of land. The seller was recorded as an entity affiliated with U.S. Homeport, a division of United States Seafoods.
The property is located on the eastern side of Lake Union and close to Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood. Nearby businesses include Seattle Seaplanes, Silver Cloud Hotel and Chandler’s Cove.
Coastal Villages is a seafood owner/operator headquartered in Alaska with investments in the Bering Sea, particularly the Pollock fishery, that enables the organization to provide benefits to its 20 member communities, according to the group’s website. Its Seattle office is located on the purchased property site, and its mission is “to provide the means for development of our communities by sensibly creating tangible, long-term opportunities that generate hope for all residents who want to fish and work.”
U.S. Homeport is also located at the property site. As a division of United States Seafood, U.S. Homeport was originally meant to provide a home base for the United States Seafood fleet, and eventually the property grew to serve the rest of the maritime community by offering moorage, maintenance and repair services, according to U.S. Homeport’s website. In 2015, United States Seafood moved into the Homeport facility and throughout its ownership, United States Seafood continued to install more services and upgrade the property.
Last year, the property was listed for sale, according to previous reporting from The Registry. The facility provides office space and warehousing, along with support services for fleets and vessels engaged in fishing and seafood business in Alaska.
