By Aaron Allen, The Seattle Medium
Many members of the Seattle Black Fire Fighters Association (SBFFA) are outraged and calling for a halt to plans by the organization’s current executive board to sell property owned by the organization in Seattle’s Central Area.
According to Clarence Williams, a past president and one of the original founders of the organization, the property located on the corner of 23rd Ave. and Pike St. was purchased by the SBFFA around 1972 to provide the African American community with a space for heritage and to maintain a lasting African American presence and legacy in the area. Williams claims that the property was recently listed for sale without the knowledge and approval of the membership and will effectively removes a landmark that has a significant place in Seattle’s Black history if the sale goes through.
“We were not even aware of the sale or that it was being proposed to be sold,” says Williams.
“We bought [the property] as an office space and to eventually have it as a Black history or history museum,” continued Williams. “We have a majority of African American Fire Fighters who do not want to get rid of the building and there seems to be a small number, three people on the executive board, who proposed the sale, and we have been trying to reason with them not to sell.”
Williams claims that the organization’s bylaws do not provide clear guidance with regards to the approval process to sell assets that belong to the organization other than bequeathing the property to other Black organizations like the Urban League and the NAACP if the organization were to relinquish the prized location. It is this grey area of the bylaws that members in opposition to the sale claim that the executive board used to justify their decision to approve the sale of the property without a vote of the membership.
According to online real estate listings in the Seattle area, the four-bedroom, 2,270 square foot property, located at 2302 E. Pike St., which was listed for sale on Jan 25, 2022 for $675,000.00 with a subsequent offer review date of February 1, 2022 is currently pending, which means that the seller [the SBFFA’s executive board] has accepted an offer and the property is under contract for sale.
The listing, which was listed by an African American real estate broker, describes the property as follows: “Investor Alert! Unlimited opportunities to bring out the potential of this property. This 1908 home in the Central Area is in a prime location close to some of the best restaurants in the city! Easy access to downtown, parks, coffee shops, grocery stores and public transit. Great opportunity to build your dream home or excellent development opportunity to build several units on this lot in a very popular location!”
The sale of the property comes at a time when the Central Area, which was once a predominately Black area of Seattle, had undergone gentrification and development that some claim has eroded the history and culture of Seattle’s Black community. Which is one of the many reasons that many long-time members of the organization wish to maintain the property.
“I think this action is a tragedy,” says newly retired Fire Fighter Roberto Jourdan. “Everyone knows that keeping property such as this, and the history behind it, is the treasure that it is.”
“The intent on buying the house in the first place was for Black Fire Fighters in the community to have access to it in perpetuity,” added Jourdan. “And so, for us, [it was] a matter of having a corner we could call our own no matter what else was going on around it.”
Williams agrees and says that the property was bought and paid for by many retired fire fighters and is a historical part of Seattle’s Black community that should not be sold.
“Most of the founding members are retired and we left today’s active members a debt free property,” says Williams. “And now there are a few in the organization who want to sell the property and get rid of it to raise money for scholarships and other things.”
According to sources, three executive board members of the association — President Doug Johnson, Treasurer Hilton Jones and board member Juliana Edwards – are the ones who allegedly authorized the sale of the property without the consent or vote of the entire body. Williams claims that a majority of the association’s membership does not want to sell the property and they should be allowed to collectively determine its fate.
“All the retired fire fighters want to keep the property and there are large numbers of active-duty Seattle black fire fighters who do not want to sell, and we are vehemently opposed to this because once you lose a property and you’ve given out a few scholarships you have no legacy and nothing to stand on coming up,” says Williams. “So, we want to get the sale of it halted and have it returned to the Black Fire Fighters Association.”
“Right now, the Board has taken complete control. They did not put it up for a vote, many of the active members believe they should have the opportunity to vote but they [the board members] are not allowing that to happen,” continued Williams. “Because there are no definite articles within the bylaws that say one thing or the other regarding voting, the board thinks there is a loophole there for them to do as they wish, and they are not communicating with us. So, we have already surmised what they are thinking based on their actions.”
Erwin Chappel, who is an active member of the organization, also believes that the membership should have been included in the decision to sell the property.
“What would have been the best outcome would be to put this to a vote,” says Chappel. “This did not happen, as I believe this was a decision made by the executive board and a special committee. And they made a decision which will affect a lot more people, like retired fire fighters and the community, and I don’t think they took that into account.”
“I think the best thing would have been to pause the situation, get all the information, and with that being said, I think the sale was rushed and a lot of us feel that even if a sale was on the table, it should have been up for a majority vote,” added Chappel.
From the Black community’s perspective, there have been many fights to keep property and the historical relevance of Blacks in the Central Area. Property development over the last twenty years has changed the landscape of the area and many Black leaders want to make sure that some legacy of their community remains.
“This was something that was well thought out [on the part of the executive board],” says Jourdan. “I think the selling of a piece of Black history in the CD, and again everybody knows of the treasure that this property is, but for us who own land in the Central District, especially organizations such as the Black professional fire fighters, we understand its value.”
Heritage, history and legacy are very important in how organizations and communities tell their stories, and for some in the SBFFA this property represents the heritage and growth of their beloved organization.
“I understand who I was mentored by when I came into the [fire] department, so I understand the historical part of this,” says Chappel. “I think that, sometimes, when people are not connected to the legacy, they have a tendency to downplay it or not give it enough credence as they should.”
“So, in this particular house situation, I think that some of the fire fighters, that are there now, do not have a tie to the historical perspective because they were not there to see or interact with the living, breathing men who laid this foundation and made it easier and possible for this new generation of fire fighters, such as myself, to even have these types of jobs,” he concluded.
The Seattle Medium tried to contact the members of SBFFA’s executive board but they had not responded to our request for comment prior to press time.
