The Half-Finished Skeleton on Second and University
After contractors were left hanging without payment, a court orders a developer to pay over $8,000 for a four-story building that never rose past the first floor.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Anton Osten, August Parth, and Herman Hoets, working as Anton Osten & Co., were awarded a contract by Gustave Winehill to construct a four-story brick and stone building at the corner of Second and University streets. After completing the first story, the contractors demanded payment, but Winehill refused to pay the installment, instead pressuring them to continue work. The contractors exhausted their own capital to keep the project moving but were eventually forced to quit. The building remained an unfinished, single-story skeleton. The firm sued Winehill for $8,447.50, and a jury returned a verdict in their full favor.
“The building has never been completed, and it remains to-day only one story in height.”
Unfinished construction projects and stalled developments are a staple of the Seattle skyline today, just as they were in 1893. The dispute underscores the brutal reality of the 'boom and bust' economy where small contractors often carried the financial risk for wealthy developers.
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