CULTURAL RESOURCES OVERVIEW FOR THE DENNY CENTRE PROJECT KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON April 4, 2017 SWCA ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTANTS SEATTLE, WASHINGTON CULTURAL RESOURCES OVERVIEW FOR THE DENNY CENTRE PROJECT KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON Report Prepared for EA Engineering, Science and Technology, Inc. By Amber Earley and Brandy Rinck April 4, 2017 SWCA Project Number 42527 SWCA Report Number 17-152 DAHP Project Tracking Code 2017-02-01166 REDACTED SWCA Environmental Consultants 221 1st Ave W, Suite 205 Seattle, Washington 98119 CULTURAL RESOURCES REPORT COVER SHEET Author: Amber Earley and Brandy Rinck Title of Report: Cultural Resources Overview for the Denny Centre Project, King County, Washington Date of Report: April 4, 2017 County(ies): King Section: 29 Township: 25 Range: 4 E Quad: Seattle North Acres: 0.58 PDF of report submitted (REQUIRED) Yes Historic Property Inventory Forms to be Approved Online? Yes No Archaeological Site(s)/Isolate(s) Found or Amended? Yes No TCP(s) found? Yes No Replace a draft? Yes No Satisfy a DAHP Archaeological Excavation Permit requirement? Yes # No Were Human Remains Found? Yes DAHP Case # No DAHP Archaeological Site #: ABSTRACT SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) was retained by EA Engineering, Science, and Technology to conduct a review of a parcel proposed for development in the Denny Triangle neighborhood north of downtown Seattle. The project is subject to the State Environmental Policy Act. SWCA carried out background research to identify previous cultural resources investigations and known archaeological sites within the project vicinity by reviewing historic maps and published historic, ethnographic, and environmental information. Background research indicates the project area has moderate to high potential for cultural resources to be present, and archaeological monitoring during construction is recommended. SWCA Environmental Consultants i April 4, 2017 REDACTED VERSION SWCA Environmental Consultants ii April 4, 2017 REDACTED VERSION TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 1 Project Location and Description .............................................................................................................. 1 Regulatory Context ................................................................................................................................... 1 METHODS .................................................................................................................................... 4 NATURAL ENVIRONMENT .......................................................................................................... 4 Geology ..................................................................................................................................................... 4 Geomorphology .................................................................................................................................... 5 Paleoenvironment..................................................................................................................................... 6 Vegetation ................................................................................................................................................. 6 Fauna ......................................................................................................................................................... 6 CULTURAL ENVIRONMENT ....................................................................................................... 7 Prehistory .................................................................................................................................................. 7 Ethnography/Ethnology ............................................................................................................................ 8 Euroamerican History ............................................................................................................................... 9 History of Land Use ................................................................................................................................. 12 Previous Archaeological Research .......................................................................................................... 13 ARCHAEOLOGICAL POTENTIAL OF PROJECT AREA ........................................................... 19 RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................................................................... 20 REFERENCES ........................................................................................................................... 21 SWCA Environmental Consultants iii April 4, 2017 REDACTED VERSION LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Project location. ............................................................................................................................. 2 Figure 2. Aerial photograph showing project location. .................................................................................. 3 Figure 3. T-sheet, 1875, showing project location and local development. ................................................ 10 Figure 4. T-sheet, 1886, showing project location, platted streets, and local buildings. ............................ 14 Figure 5. Sanborn Fire Insurance map, 1893, showing project location and buildings. ............................. 15 Figure 6. Sanborn Fire Insurance map, 1905, showing project location and buildings. ............................. 16 Figure 7. Sanborn Fire Insurance map, 1950, showing project location and buildings. ............................. 17 LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Previous Cultural Resource Investigations Within Approximately 0.5 Mile of the Project Area ... 18 Table 2. Previously Recorded Buildings Within the Same Block or Adjacent Blocks to the Project Area .. 19 SWCA Environmental Consultants iv April 4, 2017 REDACTED VERSION INTRODUCTION BOSA Properties plans to develop Parcel 066000‐2230 with a 40‐story mixed‐use building. SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) was retained by EA Engineering, Science and Technology, Inc. to assess the probability for significant archaeological resources to be present on the parcel proposed for development, and to recommend potential measures for avoiding impacts to significant cultural resources. A building assessment was not included in this investigation. Project Location and Description The project is in the Denny Triangle area north of downtown Seattle Washington in Section 29 of Township 25 N, Range 4 East, Willamette Meridian (Figure 1). The project is on Parcel 066000‐2230, bounded by Denny Way on the north, Fairview Avenue N on the west, Boren Street on the southwest, Virginia Street on the southeast, and Minor Avenue on the northeast. The site comprises approximately 24,459 square feet and contains a two‐story office building that was constructed in 1937 (Figure 2). Regulatory Context The project is subject to the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), which requires project proponents to identify any places or objects on or adjacent to the project that are listed in, or eligible for, national, state, or local preservation registers, and to identify sites of archaeological, scientific, or cultural importance in or adjacent to the project. Project proponents are required to describe proposed measures to reduce or control impacts to those places, objects, and sites. The City of Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections (SDCI) prepared an environmental impact state (EIS) addendum to accompany the project through the City of Seattle’s Master Use Permit (MUP) process, and pursued a Determination of Significance (DS) for the project (SDCI 2017). In its review of the DS, the Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation (DAHP) noted that nearby archaeological sites have been identified on similar landforms and requested that a cultural resources overview assessment for the parcel be conducted, and a report submitted to DAHP and interested Tribes. DAHP also requested that the existing 1937 building be recorded on a Washington State Historical Property Inventory (HPI) form. An “Appendix A” Report was completed for the building Mirro and Jaeger 2015), but submittal of an HPI form is not part of the scope of this overview. Other Washington state laws address archaeological sites and Native American burials. The Archaeological Sites and Resources Act (RCW 27.53) prohibits knowingly excavating or disturbing prehistoric and historic archaeological sites on public or private land. The Indian Graves and Records Act (RCW 27.44) prohibits knowingly destroying American Indian graves and provides that inadvertent disturbance through construction or other activities requires re‐interment under supervision of the appropriate Native American tribe. In order to prevent the looting or depredation of sites, any maps, records, or other information identifying the location of archaeological sites, historic sites, artifacts, or the site of traditional, ceremonial, or social uses and activities of Tribes are exempt from disclosure (RCW 42.56.300). The purpose of this report is to aid the project proponent in complying with these various legal requirements by assessing, based on background sources and field reconnaissance, the potential for encountering archaeological materials during construction. Recommendations are also included for any additional archaeological resources