A proposed 101-unit residential building with five live/work spaces on 15th Avenue Northwest could create a serious safety hazard for neighborhood school children because of its planned parking garage entrance off Northwest 67th Street, according to some Ballard residents.

"Several families have asked me to express that this is seen as a nightmare," one neighbor said during the Nov. 8 Design Review meeting for the project at 6559 15th Ave. N.W. Of the more than two-dozen residents at the meeting, most seemed to agree with that statement.

The four-story development is being proposed for the vacant lot across 15th Avenue from Ballard High School. It will be market-rate apartments with 72 studios and a mixture of one and two-bedroom units on the top three floors. The first floor will be a mixture of live/work units, parking and leasing offices and a gym for tenants.

The project includes sections of green roof on the second and third floors as well as on the roof and the addition of two sidewalk trees and a planter along 15th Avenue.

Scott Clark of Clark Design Group said they faced a number of challenges when designing the project for the site. There is heavy pedestrian use, especially during the school year, and there is a very narrow sidewalk, he said.

"How do we make it more commercial?" Clark said. "How do we give it more identity? How do we make it pedestrian friendly?"

The building also faces single-family homes on the west side, and Clark Design Group's Brenda Barnes said they are very sympathetic to the issues arising from multifamily housing facing a residential neighborhood.

Clark said the Seattle Department of Transportation does not like to have curb cuts off of busy arterials, such as 15th Avenue, so the parking garage entrance would have to be off 67th Street. The entrance to the garage is set back seven feet in the designs to increase safety, he said.

Even with the setback, a garage entrance on 67th Street would be dangerous for students and children, who are often listening to headphones or not paying attention, said one resident.

Another resident said there is more pedestrian traffic on 67th Street than on 15th Avenue, at least anecdotally.

"Your exit onto 67th is a recipe for disaster," said one meeting attendee.

The Northwest Design Review Board elected to not take a position on the location of the parking garage entrance during the Nov. 8 meeting. The issue will be handled during the project's State Environmental Policy Act review, which can better take into account traffic and safety considerations, said Scott Kemp with the Seattle Department of Planning and Development.

One of the other major concerns for residents is the encroachment of the project toward the houses on its west side.

City zoning regulations require a 15-foot setback from residential developments for anything taller than 13 feet. Clark Design Group asked the Design Review Board to lower the required setback to 11 feet in some places.

Clark said by being allowed to move closer to properties on the west, the project could create a more interesting facade along 15th Avenue as well as a much wider sidewalk, which would give pedestrians more security and a better experience.

In order to make up for the encroachment toward private property on the west, the project included a green screen and balconies that are only six inches deep.

Clark said they were trying to find the balance between residential privacy to the west and the pedestrian experience on the east.

Residents argued that the properties on the west should have priority, and the Design Review Board agreed. While the board appreciated the added space along the 15th Avenue sidewalk, it declined to reduce the required setback from the properties to the west, Kemp said.

The board did approve the three other regulation departures requested by Clark Design Group, including one that was unpopular with residents.

City code requires that 60 percent of the project's 67 parking spaces be medium sized and 40 percent any sized. Clark Design Group requested 55 percent medium stalls and 45 percent compact stalls.

Meeting attendees said small parking spaces would force building tenants to park on the street, where there is already parking pressure from Ballard High School students during the school day and evening events. But, the board agreed to Clark Design Group's request.

The board did not request a second design meeting, so the project will head to a State Environmental Policy Act review, which will be open for public comment, and can apply for a Master Use Permit.

For more information on the proposed development, download Clark Design Group's presentation with the link at the top of this article.