Property owner pushes back on Renton School District’s offer

Property owners facing eminent domain are disputing the offered value from the Renton School District.

Last Flash LLC, owners of the property 301-309 Airport Way in Renton, were offered $2.7 million for their property by the Renton School District, which they believe is below the value of the property. The school district is looking to acquire the property as part of a replacement and expansion of the Renton High School campus property.

“Last Flash recognizes and fully supports the Renton School District’s needs and has come to the realization that it’s best for the community to sell. We are therefore a willing seller,” said Chris Corr of Kidder Mathews, representative for Last Flash LLC. “However, we are not a seller at the appraised price determined by the appraisal from McKee Appraisal Services that (the school district) have provided. This appraisal does not take into account standardized common practices of Rental Income and Comparable Sales.”

Corr said they are willing to accept $4.2 million for the sale of the property, which he said is a significant discount to the property’s fair market value by comparing it to nearby properties. He said a property across the street at 61 Shattuck Street South sold for $210.51 per square foot in late 2023. At approximately 27,000 square feet, the building at 301-309 Airport Way would sell for approximately $5.4 million at $200 per square foot, Corr said.

“These neighboring properties are the ideal value comparisons. At a sales price of $4,200,000, the 27,000 square foot building would sell for $155.56 per square foot,” Corr said. “In light of a comparison of the cost per square foot recently paid for the neighboring properties, the current owner’s offer to sell for $4,200,000 is clearly reasonable.”

Kidder Mathews’s state-certified general real estate appraiser David Chudzik and state registered real estate trainee Troy Stark appraised the prospective as renovated value at $4,190,000.

Last Flash’s master tenant is Glass Eye Studio, a female-owned company and one of the oldest and largest privately owned hot shops in the country, Corr said. He said Glass Eye Studio intended to relocate its glass-blowing facility to Renton.

“We feel like we’re being bullied into taking a bad deal by the Renton School District,” said Piper O’Neill, principal and creative director at Glass Eye Studio. “We’re not asking for special consideration. Of course we understand the public benefit of the school district taking our property. All we’re asking for is a fair price, nothing more.”

O’Neill said she believes the offer is under market value.

“RSD’s offer is a million dollars below market value, which seems punitive and uneven when they’ve offered our next door neighbors above fair market value and the sales comps for other nearby properties all substantiate the very fair price we’ve put forward,” O’Neill said.

O’Neill said she was looking forward to contributing to the community with a location near the school.

“We are a small local business with ties to the community, not some big, faceless corporation. My husband grew up in the South End and we were excited to bring our thriving arts business to Renton,” O’Neill said. “We’re an established 46-year-old art studio that has taught and mentored generations of glass artists, and in our new Renton location, we were planning to open a nonprofit glass-blowing art school to serve Renton youth.”

The Renton School District will hold a special board meeting at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27, at the Kohlwes Education Center in Renton to consider the condemnation of the property. Kidder Mathews will have representative at he meeting to answer any questions the board may have. The Renton Reporter has reached out to the school district for comment.