A King County Superior Court judge on Monday denied a request to overturn the sale of the former headquarters of the Seattle Black Firefighters Association, which has been at the center of a bitter legal battle dividing active and retired members for more than three years.
The association, a dues-paying membership group aimed at supporting the city’s Black firefighters and strengthening the pipeline of firefighters of color, sold the property to a real estate developer in October. The move sparked outrage from retired members and community advocates, who said the property was historic and sold at an undervalue.
Retired members and their allies filed a number of motions late last year in an effort to reverse the sale. The group argued the transaction was illegal because the buyer knew or should have known the property was still embroiled in legal challenges when it went through.
In her written ruling, Judge Josephine Wiggs-Martin found the group had failed to prove the buyer, Unico Designs LLC, was not a bona fide purchaser. The term refers to someone who bought a property without knowing of any issues in the transaction.
“There is no evidence that Unico had actual or constructive knowledge of any claim of Plaintiff’s right to or equity in the Property prior to the sale, and Unico paid valuable consideration for the Property,” she wrote.
Wiggs-Martin’s denial of the request is a major setback for the group of retired members and their supporters, which has been working for over three years to prevent — and later reverse — the sale.
In February, Wiggs-Martin ruled the sale of the property was “likely based on contemptuous conduct in violation of the court’s findings.”
But because of the bona fide purchaser rights of Unico and by extension its lender, “this Court lacks jurisdiction to impose reversal of the sale,” she wrote Monday.
In a statement Tuesday, Clarence Williams said he and other retired firefighters are “shocked and disheartened” by the judge’s decision.
“The public will likely be confused that someone can violate a court order and there are no repercussions,” said Williams, who served as the association’s second president from 1970 to 1980.
The group is still determining whether to appeal the decision or file a new lawsuit against the buyer, Williams said, and “how best to fight to keep this historic property in the rightful hands of the Black firefighters, where it belongs.”
Matthew Macklin, an attorney representing the association, said his clients are happy with the judge’s Monday ruling and hope to use the proceeds of the sale to support active members and recruit more Black firefighters.
“The organization (can) move on and focus on working conditions and increasing diversity,” Macklin said Tuesday. “There’s a lot of rebuilding to be done.”
The controversy over the Central District home has pitted the association’s current executive board and many of its younger active firefighters against past executives and older, mostly retired firefighters.
The former camp argued the property had been neglected for decades and was in need of costly repairs far beyond the association’s financial means, and was unnecessary as a meeting house given the increased use of video conferencing. The latter group argued the house has significant sentimental value and should’ve been redeveloped by the association.
In November 2021, members of the association voted to approve the sale of the property. That vote set off a wave of backlash from retired members and some older members, and the incensed group sued the association to block the sale in February 2022.
Wiggs-Martin ruled in December 2023 no proper vote had occurred, finding under the organization’s bylaws retired firefighters should be considered members regardless of whether they pay dues. The association appealed the ruling.
Discord among active and retired members continued to grow. In July last year, members voted and approved an update to the association’s bylaws clarifying membership requires dues payment. Retired members denounced the vote, saying several didn’t know how to access their online ballots and alleging emailed ballots were not counted.
The following month, dues-paying members voted on whether to sell the house for a $760,000 cash offer or repair the home for a minimum of $90,000. About 83% of voters chose to sell the house. The initial offer fell through, and the association ultimately sold the property to Unico Designs LLC in October for $680,000.
The actions surrounding those votes were heavily scrutinized by Wiggs-Martin at a hearing this year. The association maintains the votes to change the bylaws and sell the house were permissible under the judge’s December 2023 ruling.
The judge in February found the association in contempt of court, but declined to make a judgment at that time on whether the sale could be reversed until she had more information from the purchaser and lender.
Macklin said he hopes the appeals court will review the case on the initial ruling by this summer.
“I’m really anxious to see what the court finds on the original membership issue,” Macklin said. If the appeals court rules in the association’s favor, “much of what has occurred after trial is moot and irrelevant,” including the ruling on contempt, he said.
The Seattle Black Firefighters Association was founded in 1968. Aimed at fighting workplace discrimination and recruiting more Black firefighters, the group’s founding members bought the property at the corner of 23rd Avenue and East Pike Street in the 1970s to increase their presence in the community and establish a home base for organizing.
Since the sale of the property, major construction has already begun on the house.
In a declaration submitted to the court this month, Camila Borges, the owner of Unico Designs LLC, said she plans to finish work at the property in the coming weeks and then list the house for sale.