A King County Superior Court judge this week dismissed a legal challenge seeking to halt demolition of the historic Masonic Home property in Des Moines, a ruling that removes the latest court obstacle to redevelopment of the nearly century-old site.
The court decision is the latest development in a yearslong dispute over the future of the historic, nearly century-old property overlooking Puget Sound. Zenith Properties LLC has owned the site for more than six and a half years, acquiring the property in November 2019 after it was sold by the Masons for $11.5 million.
In his order, Judge Joe Campagna wrote that “the impacts of possible future development are not impacts of demolition because they are not effects or consequences caused by demolition,” concluding that the city’s environmental review was not required to analyze hypothetical redevelopment that has not been proposed…