Beaux Arts Village, WA...what?! (Seattle, Bellevue: sale, houses, neighborhood)

[RunTheDistance476]

So I typed in "Bellevue, WA" into google maps and it outlined the city limits. Although, I noticed a small, small village area on the southwest side called "Beaux Art Village". Does anyone know why this isn't considered Bellevue?

[Ira500]

It was originally an artists colony with a private beach, and as Bellevue was expanding in the 1950's, Beaux Arts Village incorporated as a separate town in order to protect it's feel and 1100 feet of private beach, only available to residents. From the website:
Access to the beach was (and still is) available only to members of the Western Academy which had to approve any sale of Village property as it does now. To protect the private community beach and the lifestyle that had developed in Beaux Arts Village, Judge Storey Birdseye urged his fellow residents to incorporate as a Town in 1952. Bellevue was expanding rapidly and Beaux Arts property owners wanted to guarantee that they would not be annexed and that the beach would remain private. Alas, incorporation as a fourth-class town required a minimum population of 300, and the Village population was slightly smaller than 300 in number. The call went forth for new residents, and the incorporation goal was met shortly thereafter in 1954 with 304 Beaux Arts residents. Mothers contributing to the population increase were made members of the prestigious "300 Club."

[RunTheDistance476]

This sounds like a place I should be inspired to find a way to move to! haha

[Vinylly]

Originally Posted by wlw2009

This sounds like a place I should be inspired to find a way to move to! haha

It's really not all that nice of a place to live, seems it is nearly swallowed up by the second Lake Washington bridge and expansion of I-90. If you like a lot of freeway traffic noise overhead, then you'll probably love it.

[BellevueNative]

Beaux Arts is awesome and beautiful. Vinylly, have you spent much time there? I don't find it to be very loud at all. It has a lot of trees that block the noise from I-90, some really cool A-frame houses, and small little lanes. It is also very expensive to live there...like almost $1 million or more. It also is in the best part of Bellevue for schools (Enatai Elem., Chinook Middle, Bellevue HS).

If you're interested in BA, you should drive through it some time.

[Vinylly]

Originally Posted by BellevueNative

Beaux Arts is awesome and beautiful. Vinylly, have you spent much time there? I don't find it to be very loud at all. It has a lot of trees that block the noise from I-90, some really cool A-frame houses, and small little lanes. It is also very expensive to live there...like almost $1 million or more. It also is in the best part of Bellevue for schools (Enatai Elem., Chinook Middle, Bellevue HS).

If you're interested in BA, you should drive through it some time.

By coincidence I was rummaging through my library this morning and came across this book;
'HOMES AND GARDENS OF THE PACIFIC COAST, SEATTLE 1913'. It was published in January, 1913 by the 'Beaux Art's Society Publisher's, Beaux Arts Village, Lake Washington. (notice, it doesn't say 'Bellevue'.) It's a beutifully designed book fitting for any coffee table, (I forgot I even had it.) It features stories and photographs of all the great mansions in the N.W. and Seattle at that time. Of course they would feature the original homes of their own Village of the 1913s'. which appear to be very nice craftsman style homes of that time period. I'm not sure they are still there.
Here's their story as written from their own hands at that time: 'The Beux Art's Society was founded in 1908 with the idea of establishing a community in many respects similar to the Garden Villages of England, and to advance the arts and crafts, as related to home building. With this object in view the Society acquired a tract of land on the shores of Lake Washington which was named 'Beaux Arts Village'. This is a beautiful spot which offers unlimited opportunities for the building of such a village. Most of the great trees and natural cover have been preserved, and just enough clearing done to make roadways. The Society is divided into two branches, the Western Academy of Beaux Arts and the Beaux Arts Workshop. The former having for it's aim the educational features and the latter the industrial features and business management. The educational work has been planned along lines similar the Chautauqua but confined to arts and crafts work only. The workshop is for the practical demonstration of this study. The work so far has been confined to establishing the village and to putting the institution on a firm financial basis. A magazine to further advance the Beaux Arts idea will soon be published at the village. Workshops are being planned, and there is no doubt that this will be before long, one of the most interesting places in the West. The establishment of such a village will lead to a greater interest in home building. Gardening and outdoor life will lead to a greater happiness and pleasure in life.'
Seems to me, with the first floating bridge and Interstate I-90 has curtailed their dreams.

[BellevueNative]

Originally Posted by Vinylly

By coincidence I was rummaging through my library this morning and came across this book;
'HOMES AND GARDENS OF THE PACIFIC COAST, SEATTLE 1913'. It was published in January, 1913 by the 'Beaux Art's Society Publisher's, Beaux Arts Village, Lake Washington. (notice, it doesn't say 'Bellevue'.) It's a beutifully designed book fitting for any coffee table, (I forgot I even had it.) It features stories and photographs of all the great mansions in the N.W. and Seattle at that time. Of course they would feature the original homes of their own Village of the 1913s'. which appear to be very nice craftsman style homes of that time period. I'm not sure they are still there.
Here's their story as written from their own hands at that time: 'The Beux Art's Society was founded in 1908 with the idea of establishing a community in many respects similar to the Garden Villages of England, and to advance the arts and crafts, as related to home building. With this object in view the Society acquired a tract of land on the shores of Lake Washington which was named 'Beaux Arts Village'. This is a beautiful spot which offers unlimited opportunities for the building of such a village. Most of the great trees and natural cover have been preserved, and just enough clearing done to make roadways. The Society is divided into two branches, the Western Academy of Beaux Arts and the Beaux Arts Workshop. The former having for it's aim the educational features and the latter the industrial features and business management. The educational work has been planned along lines similar the Chautauqua but confined to arts and crafts work only. The workshop is for the practical demonstration of this study. The work so far has been confined to establishing the village and to putting the institution on a firm financial basis. A magazine to further advance the Beaux Arts idea will soon be published at the village. Workshops are being planned, and there is no doubt that this will be before long, one of the most interesting places in the West. The establishment of such a village will lead to a greater interest in home building. Gardening and outdoor life will lead to a greater happiness and pleasure in life.'
Seems to me, with the first floating bridge and Interstate I-90 has curtailed their dreams.

Well, all of the Puget Sound region is quite different from the turn of the century, yes. After all, many people then still didn't have a car. Hardly anyone lived over on the east side of the lake. It was berry farms, orchards and trees. But if you drive through Beaux Arts Village today, it still has the tall trees and narrow lanes mentioned in that book, and some lovely old homes. Note that I-90 actually does not cut through Beaux Arts...it goes over just the very south tip of the Enatai neighborhood of Bellevue. And yes, Beaux Arts Village is its own town and shares the 98004 zip code with west Bellevue.