According to developers and landowners in Ballard the neighborhood's building boom is still going, though now with the economy slumping it's more of a firecracker than a stick of dynamite.

A number of developments in Ballard have been cancelled or put on hold due to the economy and other factors, leaving vacant lots or doomed buildings littering Ballard's landscape.

Anthony's Restaurant had been in negotiations to build a new, more casual restaurant at Shilshole Bay Marina to complement the current Anthony's already there.

Sharon Briggs at the Port of Seattle said in a press release that the volatility of the current market and the economic downturn caused Anthony's to back out of their plans.

"This is not the time to build a new restaurant," said Lane Hoss, vice president of marketing for Anthony's.

Peter McGraw, Port public relations spokesman, said the Port would have loved to have another restaurant at that location as it draws more people to the marina. However, he said the Port had not negotiated a particular lease with Anthony's yet and so do not stand to lose money of the failure of the deal.

The Port of Seattle will be responsible for paving and fencing off the site where the new restaurant would have gone, and the site will most likely sit empty for the next few months, said the press release.

Jim Dougherty is the part owner of a lot for a planned retail and office building that has sat empty on Market Street and 28th Avenue Northwest since last spring. The site has been ironically nicknamed the Market Street Pool by one Metro bus driver for the stagnant, murky water that fills two large craters on the property.

Dougherty said the project has been stalled by a lawsuit over the cleanup of contaminated soil left over from the lot's time as a gas station, but the economic slump is causing him concern for the future of the project.

Right now the market is better for office and retail space than it is for housing but the earliest he could start construction is next spring, Dougherty said.

Developer Bill Parks owns two pieces of land in Ballard currently occupied by tenants that he is looking to develop.

His project on Northwest 65th Street and 24th Avenue Northwest where a garage is currently located has been delayed for two years, he said. Parks said he plans to hold off on the project because the land is destined for condos and there is not a strong market for that.

"I'm a little hesitant with where the economy is right now to start a large project like that," he said.

The Hjarta condo complex on Market Street opened last spring and has so far only sold half of its 79 units, sales associate Tamara Hahn said.

The economy is slowing sales a bit because it is harder to get loans right now and because a lot of their sales are contingent on the buyers selling their current properties, which isn't happening as quickly, she said. So far only 25 of the units sold have been moved in.

Two other high profile housing projects in Ballard are also slow in developing during the economic downturn.

The now-closed Sunset Bowl has sat empty since April and is causing concern among neighbors as a source of crime while the project moves through the design review process.

The site of the demolished Denny's on 15th Avenue Northwest, which still holds two empty structures, is causing the same kind of concerns among neighbors.

Neither developers returned requests for comments on the status of their projects, though Louie Richmond, handling public relations for Rhapsody Partners, said Rhapsody is under contract to do something with the Denny's property by the end of the year or it will be returned to previous owner, Benaroya Properties.

Not all landowners in Ballard are convinced the faltering economy is entirely to blame for their empty properties.

John Nick, owner of an empty plot of land at Northwest 65th Street and Seventh Avenue Northwest that housed Nick's Boats and Motors until in closed in May 2007, said the economy isn't the problem, people just don't realize how valuable the land is.

The contaminated soil from an old gas station was removed from his land in July, and Nick said he and his brother are in the process of finding a price that is agreeable to both them and buyers.

New zoning regulations passed by the Seattle City Council last year are having more of an effect on development in Ballard than the economy said Lee Noble, owner of an empty plot of land just west of the Ballard Bridge on Leary Way.

In December the Council passed an ordinance that limited development of land zoned for industrial use, which Noble said cost him a sale and destroyed interest in his property.

"They all say it's a great site, but what can you do with it?" he said.

Noble said his land hasn't had a tenant in about five years, but he only finished environmental cleanup on it last year.

Bill Parks said the best way to get around the slipping economy is to build unique projects in smaller markets like Sunset Hill.

There is no market right now for stereotypical townhouses and condos because there is a lot of available inventory and the products are stale, Parks said.

He offered his project on Sunset Hill on the land currently occupied by the Greenmarket, which will most likely be apartments over retail, as an example of what could work in this market. But, he said that project, not slated to get under way for two years, could be delayed as well depending on where the economy goes from here.

"It's like using a crystal ball," Parks said. "You don't know what the future holds."

Michael Harthorne may be reached at 783.1244 or michaelh@robinsonnews.com