Everett Radio Station Owners Buy Former Herald Newspaper Property

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Herald property in Everett, WA

There are two parcels. One on either side of West Marine View Drive. Photo provided by Skotdal Real Estate

Craig Skotdal, President of Skotdal Real Estate and co-owner of Everett radio station Classic Country 1520 KXA, announced yesterday that his family has purchased the former Herald newspaper property at California and West Marine View Drive near the Everett waterfront. The property has been listed for sale since early 2013 when Sound Publishing bought the Herald from the Washington Post Company. On Sunday, the Herald office and reporting staff finished moving out of the buildings on California Avenue and into a new location at the former Verizon building at 41st and Colby. The printing operation had previously moved to Paine Field. Skotdal did not reveal how much his family paid for the property. Here’s the full press release issued by Skotdal…

Skotdal Real Estate announced today it has acquired the real estate assets of The Daily Herald Company from Graham Holdings Company (NYSE: GHC). The property includes two city blocks on the west edge of downtown Everett where The Daily Herald Company previously operated. The transaction was made through the purchase of the company’s stock from Graham Holdings. The price of the transaction was not disclosed.

With the closing of the sale, the real estate parcels now return to local ownership after being sold to the Washington Post Company by the Best family along with their newspaper business in 1978. Graham Holdings Company is the successor in interest to the Washington Post Company. In early 2013, the newspaper assets of The Daily Herald Company were sold to Sound Publishing, Inc.

“The Washington Post Company and Graham family have a long history of responsible stewardship in the Everett community,” said Craig Skotdal, president of Skotdal Real Estate. “Throughout their 35 years as owners of The Daily Herald Company, they invested in quality and took a long-term approach that made a positive difference in our community. That’s the same model we intend to follow.”

Skotdal Real Estate’s latest purchase is another step forward in the company’s goal of accelerating Everett’s transformation as a vibrant urban center. “As a company and as a family, we’re committed to helping downtown Everett become a dynamic urban neighborhood where people can live, work, and play in one great place,” said Skotdal. “The purchase of the Daily Herald properties creates opportunities, now and in the future, that can help achieve that goal.”

The two city blocks included in the property sale are comprised of approximately 4.39 acres of land. The first parcel, located in the 2700 Block of Grand Avenue, includes 83,537 SF of building space with a mixture of office and industrial/warehouse uses. It features the former headquarters office building of The Daily Herald Company. The second parcel is located in the 2700 Block of W. Marine View Drive, immediately west of the other site. Both properties had been extensively marketed for sale.

Skotdal Real Estate’s immediate plans for the property include leasing the available office and industrial spaces to businesses interested in relocating to downtown Everett. As part of this effort, the company will undertake aesthetic improvements to the property to bring it up to the same standards as other buildings in its real estate portfolio. “Our primary focus is to bring people back to the core of the city, and recruiting new businesses to downtown is a big part of that effort,” said Skotdal.

In January, Skotdal Real Estate confirmed it was in the early stages of planning a new 102-unit apartment building to be constructed at the southeast corner of Hewitt and Rucker Avenues. A major goal of the project is to expand the number of urban dwellers living in Everett’s central business district.

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