Legendary Tacoma developer who saved Harmon, Armory sites to live on with civic gifts

Fred Roberson, who worked to become one of the most prominent commercial property developers in Tacoma, is being remembered for the buildings he brought back to life, now set to live on as he intended following his death.

Roberson, born July 11, 1928, died July 9 in Rancho Mirage, California, of natural causes two days before his 94th birthday, according to Mathew Shaw, property manager and president of Roberson Building Co. in Tacoma.

Shaw is the son of Anne Roberson, Fred’s second wife.

“He was declining, but still very healthy,” Shaw said. “He was reading voraciously, still watching movies every day. So he was still having fun.”

Roberson grew up near Seattle and came to Tacoma in 1953. He eventually made his way into a life of real estate development after an earlier run in politics didn’t pan out.

The planned disbursement of some of Roberson’s buildings was noted as part of an extensive News Tribune profile in 2017. He planned to turn over ownership of Tacoma’s Armory building, 1001 S. Yakima Ave., to the entity that’s now Tacoma Arts Live upon his death.

The Carlton building, 1551 Broadway, will go to the University of Washington Tacoma, after the passing of Anne Roberson, according to Shaw.

Shaw said The Armory was gifted “this past Friday.”

“It’s a very complex estate,” Shaw said. “It’ll probably take a year to unwind all of his wishes. His estate was very well planned,” he added.

David Fischer, executive director of Tacoma Arts Live, told The News Tribune via email, “Tacoma Arts Live will be forever grateful to Fred for trusting us to steward The Armory.”

Roberson purchased the building in 2013 for $950,000 and spent about $2 million in renovations.

“I want to just give something to Tacoma,” Roberson told The News Tribune in 2018.

“We began as his managers of the ‘parade floor’ as a space for the community to gather,” Fischer told The News Tribune this week. “For the past decade, we have hosted festivals, music, dance, immersive art exhibits, Quinceañeras, trade shows, sporting events and family celebrations.

“Fred was trying to revive the Armory’s community events of his youth, and with his investment and attention to detail, we think he succeeded,” Fischer wrote.

Fischer added that Tacoma Arts Live will “ensure the Armory will remain a vital home for the community to come together. For Tacoma Arts Live, the Armory represents a new beginning.”

The Harmon

The nine-story Harmon building, 1944 Pacific Ave., was the property that first turned Roberson toward building rehabilitation after years of new apartment development.

He purchased the former furniture factory site for $700,000 in 1994 when it was a largely vacant warehouse. It returned to life as a mixed-use development that became home to Harmon Brewing along with other businesses and apartments.

Its assessed value this year was more than $25 million, according to county data.

In 2017, Roberson told The News Tribune the Harmon would be left to his only child, daughter Laura Roberson Fisch.

“I want her to keep this. I want this building to last a thousand years, like the Armory,” he said at the time.

Aura Mae, owner of Azarra Salon & Wine in the Harmon building, knew Roberson as more than just the building landlord.

“He was as much a business mentor and a friend as a landlord,” Mae told The News Tribune on Wednesday.

Roberson was also a salon customer.

“He came to the salon regularly. He got his hair cut here, and he would come in and just chat,” she recalled. “We expanded the salon twice in the 20 years we’ve been here, because Fred made us an offer we couldn’t refuse.”

Beyond the salon visits, Roberson enjoyed spending time reminiscing about his time in Tacoma.

“He would just show up, unannounced, and ask if anyone had time to go downstairs to the restaurant and have lunch with him,” she said. “You could just sit and eat your sandwich and listen to him tell stories about his very interesting life and his great business career.”

She added, “And I took those opportunities to pick his brain and to become a better business person myself.”

Looking back at his real estate development career, Mae said, “Fred loved making something that was falling apart into something vibrant that contributed to the economy. So he found the magic in these old buildings.”

The family is planning a life celebration on a Saturday next July, according to Shaw, at the Tacoma Armory. A formal notice will be announced at a future date.

The News Tribune archives contributed to this report.