1928-1929: The Lakecrest
Paul Thiry was living at the Shoremont Apartments while completing his architectural degree and was commissioned by the owner to design the Lakecrest/Lake Court Apartments in 1928-1929. His design for the apartments was influenced by his time abroad studying in France. An announcement was made in the April 7, 1929, Seattle Daily Times promising the twenty-six new apartments to be open in the following week, detailing the open courtyards and promising “vacation pleasures along with metropolitan convenience” The grand opening of the Lakecrest building was announced in the April 21, 1929, Seattle Daily Times with the headline: “…A Metropolitan Apartment with Vacation Pleasure Privileges.” The full-page editorial, naming James Taylor, Jr. and Paul Thiry as designers, speaks of the Normandy architecture, and mentions a sunken pool, natural rock seating and a white Honolulu sand beach. Listed amenities included Frigidaire's, electric ranges, radios, and automatic hot-water heating systems.
In addition to the new apartment homes, the Lakecrest also hosted Elona's Lake Crest Inn, a small tea room at the waterside (See additional information about the Lake Crest Inn).
1929-1930: The Lake Crest Inn
In addition to the residential apartment homes, the opening day article refers to the Lake Crest Inn: “A dining room in the upper court” to serve residents and the public, open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. “Elona’s Lake Crest Inn” was advertised in several later editions of the Seattle Daily Times as “Seattle’s Finest Place to Dine.” Dinner service was advertised from 3PM to 8PM. The Lake Crest Inn was noted in several society columns over the following year, hosting tea parties, birthday luncheons and dinner parties. A catered Thanksgiving dinner was advertised for $1.50: “Motor down to Lake Crest Inn for Thanksgiving Dinner […] or the Madison car will bring you within one block of the Inn.” Among the listed Thanksgiving menu options were “Young Stuffed Yakima Turkey, Roast Goose, [and] Lake Crest Apple Pie". Elona’s Lake Crest Inn can be assumed to have succumbed to the Great Depression, as all equipment and furnishings for the tea room were listed in a Seattle Daily Times classified ad on April 9, 1930 as “for sale cheap.”
