Owner Says Richmond Beach Shopping Center to Get Facelift and Trees Were Hazardous

Back in June, after much discussion with her family, Kelly Davies of Kirkland-based ML Davies Investment Company, the owner and manager of the Richmond Beach Shopping Center, decided it was time to cut down the dozen or so maples lining the center.

The main reason? Davies was embarking on a redevelopment project at the center, which was built by her grandfather Myron Lloyd in 1962, and the tree roots were coming up through the asphalt in the parking lot and going into pipes at QFC. Her grandfather planted the trees.

"Those were my grandpa's trees," she said. "After a long belabored decision with important people in my family, and considering the cost to tenants and completely remodeling the center, we had no choice but to cut the trees down and cut the roots."

"You can only know how hard that was," she said. "The trees had to come down."

"We'll replant," she said. "We have to, by law, that's how it goes. Without the trees it looks naked, this is part of our process."

Some were incensed the trees the cut despite signs posted by Davies in the window of the old Ace Hardware explaining the reason.

A woman put signs up in Ace Hardware's space saying "please bring back our trees."

"I think it was someone who was uninformed and lashed out," she said. "It made me feel bad, it wasn't a very nice move...I'm easy to find. I'm there almost every day."

There was some speculation that one reason the trees were removed is that they were blocking some of the businesses, and making it hard for them to be seen from the street. A Tae-Kwon Do school and Ace Hardware went out of business earlier this year.

"I just can't talk about my tenants," Davies said. "It wouldn't be an honorable thing. The number one reason was because it was very hazardous with roots coming up through the asphalt."

Davies said the revamping of the shopping center will "be very reminscent of Mill Creek."

"Soon I should have an artist's rendition," she said. 

Davies said the remodeling project is "going to be exquisite, it's going to fit the pillars with stones, it will be gorgeous. It will attract the right tenants. It will fit the neighborhood, the community deserves it, it's just time."

"Anybody can call me (425-822-8895) I'm there for the community," she said, noting that she's out at the shopping center most days. 

"We have supported the community because it's the right thing to do," she said.