The Poet's House
November 2013
It was a logistic dilemma from the start, "The
Poet's House", that is. How to move a 1912 farmhand bunk house
with a rotted out floor a 100 miles to Seattle in one piece. Tricky
business and not for the faint of heart. The owner had listed the 12
ft. x 16ft. structure on Craigslist for the purchase price of $1000.
A good deal but with the requirement, of course, that the new owner
remove the little house at his or her expense. Many people were interested, but soon found the cost
to move the structure prohibitive. As would anyone working on a tight
budget. It was a deal breaker for many. Anne Hagen saw the ad on Craigslist and called the homeowner
and Nickel Brothers and another house moving company immediately to
get prices. Nickel Brothers said they had received several calls on
the little bunk house out in Snohomish, Washington and were quite interested.
Nickel Brothers gave an estimate of around $15,000 to move the house
and on inspection said Anne's back fence would have to be taken down
to allow a 50ft. trailer to maneuver a tight alley to get the small
house into her backyard. Definitely not a workable solution. Helicopter
or crane maybe, to lift the little house over the fence and onto a foundation?
Well, probably not. Anne got online again looking for an affordable house
mover. She scoured Craigslist for hours until she ran across an ad for
"Ty of Tacoma". After talking to Ty she knew she had found
the right guy for the job. Ty had a small, low to the ground trailer
and a forklift. And lots of experience moving large objects of all kinds.
Perfect. With a bid of $4000 Ty Taylor (PAC Rentals LLC.) headed
out to Snohomish to secure and strap down the little house for transport.
Not really a problem for a professional who made it all seem very doable
all of a sudden. And the price was right too. Two pilot cars escorted the little house along a round
about way to South Seattle. On arrival Ty quickly switched his truck
out for a forklift and gently guided the tiny dwelling safely down the
tight alley and made a sharp right hand turn into Anne's backyard. Sweet. About four weeks later the yard was excavated by Mike
Swope & Co. and a small foundation was poured by the father and
son team at JLW Construction out of Lynwood. Ty showed up with his rollers
and tackle and rolled the little house gently onto her foundation, as
she sits to this day. Solid as a rock and pretty as a peach. Getting the small bunk house from Snohomish to South
Seattle and on a foundation was just the first step in what turned out
to be a three year project. With Anne Hagen's vision and the expertise
of contractor Jason Leschinger "The Poet's House" became a
reality. A combination of the best of the old and the new. Salvaged materials used to restore the interior include
fir flooring, fir v-board, a 4 ft. Claw foot tub and Victorian corner
sink, a Putnam Library ladder, antique Chaise lounge, antique door hardware
and lighting fixtures and much more. Reclaimed materials were sourced through Craigslist,
eBay, Second Use and Earthwise in Seattle. "The Poet's House" has all new electrical
and plumbing throughout including radiant floor heat. Also the little
house is fully equipped with wi-fi, security system and iPhone/iPad
compatible devices such as a flat screen HD TV streaming Netflix and
YouTube with Apple TV. "The Poet's House" is a unique artist live/work
space, 250 square feet with a sleeping loft and nestled in the heart
of Seattle's southern urban farm region.
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