You should be embarrassed if you’re reading this because you saw the “what you missed” part in the title and you thought “what DID I miss?” But just in case you have a good excuse, here are some photos from First Thursday in Pioneer Square:

The Nord Alley Party VI — people crammed the alley to look at the Green Alley competition entries, enjoy the food, listen to a jazz band, and to see the spot through one of the alley doors where Washington CASH will be setting up their new retail space next month (check them out, they’re an incredible company).

Sally Clark (City Council) announced the winners of the Green Alley competition: LMN won the grand prize and people’s choice. The only thing I remember about their entry is they had grass and called it an “iAlley.” Sadly, I didn’t take pics of the competition entries, so you’ll have to wait until ISI updates their site.

My favorite entry that night wasn’t even an official entry because it was done by the UW Green Futures lab last year. They had 3 months to create submissions for activating alleys in Seattle and had some really great ideas.

Unfortunately, this was only a design competition, and the entries won’t actually be installed in any alleys. That hasn’t stopped Todd Vogel of ISI, however — they have worked tirelessly to find new ways to change how alleys in Pioneer Square are used.

After leaving the alley competition, we walked through Art in the Park to check out the different vendors. I normally take pictures of the art to share, but will instead share photos of these these two gorgeous necklaces that I couldn’t resist.

The first one is by Monika Wysocki, a local artist from Lynnwood who has a booth at First Thursday every month and sells a variety of necklaces and scarves.

The second is from “Jewelry by Joy” and you can find her etsy shop here.

After leaving Occidental, we were on our way to the six19 Western Ave Arts building when I happened to glance over and see that the Delicatus (pronounced del-i-kot-uhs) looked open. I’ve been laughing at their website because it keeps changing from “Coming January 2010!” to “Coming February 2010!” to it’s current: “Coming March 2010!”

After talking with one of the owners (helpfully pointed out below), he said that they are waiting for the overworked health inspector, who should inspect them today. If that happens, they will finally be open mid-week next week.

The even better news is not that they have great seating on their second floor, or that they will have free wifi, or even that if you come in 3 times a day, “it will be a different experience,” but that on Thurs, Fri and Sat, they are planning on staying open until 10pm. Finally! More food options for the residents in the evenings.

We wanted to make it to six19 before the studios started closing, because we didn’t want to miss Jen Vertz’s display of photographs of homeless in Pioneer Square. I also would have taken photos of her event, but it was so incredibly crowded in the building, I don’t think I could have managed to squeeze my camera out of my purse.

Walking around Pioneer Square yesterday helps me forget some of my frustrations about our neighborhood. The square was packed with people who couldn’t wait to explore what our neighborhood has to share. And yet people leave and kind of forget what an incredible experience it was and go back to thinking that it’s unsafe and unpleasant.

I choose to hold on to sights like this image of Occidental Mall that remind me of all of the potential in my neighborhood and to plan for when there are this many people walking around daily, instead of just for special events.

If you’re wondering what reason this might be (because there are so many I could list: reference), it’s because of all of the boundaries we have in our neighborhood. I’m sure that most of you that just have one boundary are feeling pretty jealous right about now.

Check it out:

In case you can’t read the key:
Red Historic District
Blue Business Improvement Area
Green Urban Village
Yellow Metropolitan Improvement District (For more info on the MID, click here.)

Just to clarify why this might be a problem:

The businesses within the BIA incur an additional tax that other Pioneer Square businesses aren’t subject to (although they can sign up if they’re interested). The ordinance is for retail level sales and then a percentage of sq ft for upper level businesses). The money from this tax is supposed to pay for programs to be implemented that would support the community. One of the problems is that it’s difficult to implement a program just within the BIA, and not on the surrounding blocks, which are still considered part of the Pioneer Square neighborhood.

Here’s an example at how it can be confusing to people: the holiday program only included businesses within the BIA; some businesses were frustrated that they couldn’t be a part of the program. People trying to shop down in Pioneer Square were confused which businesses were actually included in the program when they assumed all Pioneer Square businesses would be.

Right now, programs are only able to be implemented outside of the BIA if they receive additional funding, which is only gained through fundraising (which isn’t too easy to get nowadays). The lamppost banners were only allowed to be installed throughout what people consider “Pioneer Square” because they received private funding from ING.

PSCA also can’t receive money (aka employee salaries) from just the BIA because they operate programs and work to better the neighborhood outside of the small area. And see the note above regarding fundraising.

The city needs to reevaluate what area should actually be included in the BIA so that the rest of the neighborhood can benefit from all of the programs that the BIA tax contributes to. Although it’s not beneficial to include blocks that only include parking, it would only seem logical to me to have the boundary fit what people consider “Pioneer Square.”

Until then, you may continue being jealous of all of the colors of the maps that our neighborhood contains.

It is tough to dispute the fact that the North Lot development will be a great thing for Pioneer Square — most revitalization conversations include statements like “…when the North Lot is finally built” and “just wait until we get the North Lot, then things will be better.” Well, the North Lot has taken another step towards someday being built. A new 15-year Master Use Permit (MUP) was just published for the North Lot this week. Under the new MUP, the North Lot will include:

One residential building (668 units) distributed among three towers (10, 20 and 25-stories)
Ground level retail (21,784 sq. ft.)
399 above grade parking stalls (which will be hidden)

One, 20-story 424,061 sq. ft. office building
ground level retail (11,762 sq. ft.)
502 above grade parking stalls (491 stalls are replacement parking for Qwest Field)

Although construction may still be far away because of lending problems and the state of the economy, there’s another main concern surrounding the development when it comes to Pioneer Square. With just under 1,000 condos + apartments in our neighborhood, almost 70 percent are already dedicated to low-income housing. (link)

The requirement for Daniels Development Co to add affordable housing is a condition from the county as part of the purchase and sale agreement. As it stands, DDC needs to build 100 affordable units. The question right now is whether or not those units are incorporated into the North Lot or are put in the International District. And just to be clear: ID wants them.

“They have tried for years to get affordable housing,” Kevin Daniels said. “They want them.”

International District has been interested in working with DDC to get more development in their neighborhood. If the county continues on their current path, however, they may be required to incorporate them into the North Lot. As part of the Revitalization Committee, one of the comments by Donovan Rypkema is that Pioneer Square needs a lot more market rate housing, and definitely not more affordable housing.

According to Kevin Daniels, the reason that this requirement has been put into place is because a long time ago, Ron Sims looked at our neighborhood and said “we need housing down there and we’re going to get 100 affordable housing units.” In the meantime, we’ve gained more than our fair share of affordable housing, not to mention human services. Some critics say that the North Lot developers are just trying to pass the buck — they get to build higher buildings and then place affordable housing in a different neighborhood. This is a situation where the city needs to take a step back, however, and look at what our neighborhood needs and what the International District is asking for.

So while (most of us) are extremely excited for the North Lot development, our neighborhood needs to send a message to the city and the county: No more affordable housing units in Pioneer Square.

To see more info on the North Lot and to see renderings of what P2 will look like, click here. *Note that the renderings and model are just to give you an idea of size — the design has not yet been completed so we won’t know what they will actually look like until much further down the road.

Link to Part 1, Social
Link to Part 2, Economic
Link to Part 3, Political
Link to Part 4, Physical

The Revitalization Committee for Pioneer Square is meeting again tomorrow morning (open to the public)  to continue the discussion about revitalizing our neighborhood. I’ve been posting clips from the presentation, but if you’d like to see the whole 60 min presentation, click here.

Realities and Observations

1. There is a sense among Pioneer Square stakeholders that the commercial district is suffering.
2. Declining rents, vacancies and deferral of major reinvestment projects support this premise.
3. However these characteristics are true of commercial districts all over America, and the primary forces creating these consequences are national in scope and beyond the ability of one city, state or region to quickly overcome them.
4. But even in its current condition, Pioneer Square is one of the great historic commercial districts in the country.
5. The quality level of the retailers in Pioneer Square is very high, and a vast majority of them are independent, locally owned businesses.
6. There seems to be an inadequate recognition by Pioneer Square stakeholders of how extraordinary this commercial district is.
7. The number and quality of great historic buildings in Pioneer Square is certainly the major defining characteristic and strength of the district. At the same time the “edginess” and concentration of locally owned businesses is also an asset. But both “edginess” and independent merchants are fragile assets. In economic downturns, many independent merchants struggle to simply survive. In economic boom times the “edginess” can often be lost in a wave of cash and investment from national chains who prefer a more antiseptic environment.



8. The clients of Pioneer Square social service providers (who are readily apparent in the district) are seen as a significant adverse factor on both commercial activity and more market rate residential development in the district.
   1. There is a concentration of social service providers (and, therefore, their clients) in Pioneer Square.
   2. Many of these service providers predate any of the existing businesses in Pioneer Square. Further, many own their own buildings and are not going elsewhere.
   3. There seems to be a significant difference among social service providers their sense of responsibility for their clients once they leave their facilities.
   4. The congregation of unemployed and often homeless persons in a relatively small commercial district does create a sense of uneasiness among many customer and stakeholder groups.
   5. The criminal predators – drug dealers and others – exacerbate the sense of unsafety and frequently target the homeless and their not-infrequent addictions and physical and mental health conditions.
   6. The reality is that people who may have a bed but neither a job nor a daytime residence have to be somewhere. And until there is a day center for them to go, they will be on the street.
   7. While there is a role for police in addressing these issues, it is not solely a police function.
   8. While being homeless is not a crime there should be an expectation of civility in an urban context, and many of the actions of some of the homeless far cross the civility threshold.
   9. At the same time there is a political position among some advocacy groups that the expectation of civil and hygienic behavior is a violation of some imaginary “right”. The concept of rights without responsibilities violates the basic principles which functioning urban life requires.
9. This concept of rights but not responsibilities is not limited to some homeless or their advocacy organizations, however. There are numerous examples in Pioneer Square of property owners leaving properties vacant, unmaintained, or suffering demolition by neglect. This is defended by the argument “It’s my property and I have the right to do with it as I will.” But this ignores the property responsibility side of the equation that recognizes that a deteriorating and vacant property is essentially stealing value from adjacent properties. The concept of property rights should not be extended to allow one property owner the right to diminish the property values of his neighbors.
10. The Pioneer Square Community Association as lost considerable effectiveness and credibility in recent years.
11. The Pioneer Square Community Association needs to be a comprehensive economic development organization, not just the “voice of the neighborhood” or a promotional organization. Currently it is neither staffed nor funded to serve in that role.

Here are the final recommendations from Rypkema (commercial revitalization expert):

1. Establish an entity that is a comprehensive economic development organization. This could be a new organization, a reconstituted Pioneer Square Community Association, or a subset of another organization.
2. Systematically assemble and evaluate reliable economic data for the Pioneer Square for the last 5 to 8 years.
3. Create and then implement a communications strategy targeting both Pioneer Square stakeholders and the larger Seattle community regarding the organization and its role and the economic facts (as opposed to anecdotes) of the Pioneer Square economy.
4. Actively recruit and involve the growth sector business segments in Pioneer Square beyond retailing and food and beverage.
5. Incorporate these and other priorities into a comprehensive strategy for Pioneer Square.

“Far from being a commercial district in its last gasp, Pioneer Square is a commercial district of both relative economic health and extraordinary economic opportunity. The physical fabric of the neighborhood, the considerable but largely invisible growth of knowledge based businesses, and the proximity to both Seattle and international markets that the district provides would be envied by almost any other commercial district in the country.

But those opportunities will be foregone if stakeholders in Pioneer Square don’t approach economic development comprehensively, continue to make decisions based on anecdote rather than data, and fail to include and capture the currently untapped human and financial resources that could be available.”

Donovan Rypkema
PlaceEconomics
Washington, DC
December 20, 2009

Top Image Credit Link

Link to Part 1, Social
Link to Part 2, Economic

Part three of the Revitalization Committee discusses the Political aspects of Pioneer Square. And who doesn’t like a nice political commentary?

Here’s the clip from Donovan Rypkema:

Rypkema said that “if you’re serious about having a real, lasting, sustainable change in Pioneer Square, you’ve got to go beyond the neighborhood association version to be an economic development business (or you will have this meeting every 8 years).”

Can you talk more about the political piece and capacity?
Rypkema: I’m a strong believer in the voice of residents and neighbors, but this should not be a homeowners association type of situation. It is a commercial district. What has been done organizationally in Pioneer Square is inadequate –the focus is too narrow and the resources have not been there. In order to get support, the organization (in whatever form it takes) need to be more businesslike.

How should we convey this to new City Council Members?
Rypkema: It will be best to engage people with the assessment and be able to say “here’s what you need to do.” You need a specific, actionable plan.  The timing of this is fortunate because the Livable South Downtown plan will be coming to the City Council in March. Historic Preservation is also a priority this year for the Land Use Commission.  The Council will appreciate a summary of potential programs, incentives and tools that can be used to improve the Square.

The “big guys and institutions” you mentioned as being interested in participating in improving Pioneer Square – who are they?
The City of Seattle, sports teams, some of the big developers in town, the Downtown Seattle Association – they would provide resources if they felt something positive was going to happen.  On Capitol Hill, the Chamber of Commerce had previously collapsed, and the City stepped in and helped facilitate a way to reconstitute it. In Pioneer Square I don’t think we will have finalized the organization and its elements – but we can identify the steps. Form follows function. Just as a point of reference, the Plan for Capitol Hill led to what is now a 200-member Chamber and $500,000 in City investments.

It will take more than just fingers crossed to make sure that an organization will be given the tools they need to implement the changes that our neighborhood needs to start improving.

Rypkema was very upfront when he brought up the issue of organizational credibility in Pioneer Square. The Pioneer Square Community Association (PSCA) has been through many ups and downs in its role in the neighborhood. In 2001, the Community Council, the Development Organization, and the Business Improvement Area were all combined to create the PSCA. But even since then, they have gone through restructuring, lots of leadership turnover, staffing turnover, etc. Although there are some terrific people working at PSCA right now, it is just not in a situation where it can take on the large-scale development goals set up by the Revitalization Committee.

The reality is that Rypkema is suggesting a very large scope of work in a very complex neighborhood with a very small budget.

Where do we go from here?
Will the city set up a brand new organization that can take on these recommendations? Rypkema acknowledged that whatever is set up, they’re going to have a hard time building credibility in and outside of Pioneer Square “when the existing organization has lost significant credibility.”

So the jury is still out on what happens next — and it looks like we may not have any answers until mid-2010. In the meantime, PSCA is working long hours to make sure that residents and businesses needs are met and that activities meant to revitalize the neighborhood are on track. And although the Revitalization Committee was set up under Mayor Nickels, Mayor McGinn is continuing the efforts in the neighborhood and OED has stated that this time, it will be different.

In the words of Rypkema, “Pioneer Square deserves to be a political priority of the City of Seattle.”

Sorry for the lack of posts, I was in Vancouver, BC on business — and surprisingly enough, they have a lot of the same problems we do: drugs, homelessness, and people who wear kilts. (c’mon Utilikilts… don’t get mad. I haven’t made fun of you in a while).

But I digress — this is a loaded post with lots of information.

Part two of the Revitalization Committee discusses the Economic side of Pioneer Square. Here’s the clip from Donovan Rypkema:

The following is from the Executive Summary from the Revitalization Committee:

The Sky is Falling: Anecdote vs. what the data says
There is a widely held perception that Pioneer Square is experiencing a major economic downturn and that the factors leading to that downturn are variables within Pioneer Square itself. The “proof by anecdote” is exacerbated by the very unfortunate departure of long time neighborhood anchor, Eliott Bay Books and by a series of press articles where quotations rather than data were presented as “facts.”

In fact, the evidentiary story is significantly different.

As part of this assignment, the consultant reviewed and analyzed the Gross Receipts data for Pioneer Square for the six year period, 2003 through 2008. To be clear, the data covered the “Urban Village” of Pioneer Square, which is somewhat larger than the Business Improvement Area for which the PSCA draws much of its funding. Nevertheless, examining this data provided some noteworthy information.

From 2003 through 2008, the US national economy (represented by the GDP) grew 30.1%
From 2003 through 2008, the Gross State Product of Washington grew 34.0%
From 2003 through 2008, the Gross Receipts of Pioneer Square grew 125.9%

Retailing is seen as both a major economic mainstay of the Pioneer Square business mix and as a segment that has been unusually adversely affected in recent years. Retailers, particularly independently owned businesses, are certainly among the hardest hit in this recession. But on a composite level over six years, Pioneer Square retailing fared better than did retailing nationwide.

From 2003 through 2008, retail sales in the United States grew 21.3%
From 2003 through 2008, retail sales in Pioneer Square grew 124.8%

There was a perception among some stakeholders that other Seattle commercial districts were significantly outperforming Pioneer Square. Again the data tells a different story.

From 2003 through 2008, the Gross Receipts of Chinatown/International District grew 35.1%
From 2003 through 2008, the Gross Receipts of 12th Avenue in the Capitol Hill neighborhood grew 57.2%
From 2003 through 2008, the Gross Receipts of Pioneer Square grew 125.9%

Perhaps most revealing from a future planning perspective is the nature of the businesses that are in Pioneer Square. The Gross Receipts data is organized through the use of the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). Within Pioneer Square, there are in excess of 150 different business categories. As part of the analysis of the data, the consultant combined these classifications into 18 consolidated categories listed below.

The Gross Receipts from each of those consolidated categories was then compared for the years 2003 and 2008. For each category was calculated the percentage of contribution of that consolidated category to the entire Gross Receipts of Pioneer Square. The results are represented in the table below.

There are a number of very interesting patterns that emerge from this data:
While Retailing and Food & Beverage are most often viewed as the core economic activity in Pioneer Square, the two together only constitute around 12% of the gross receipts, a share largely unchanged from 2003. This means that 88% of the gross receipts in Pioneer Square were neither retailing or food and beverage.

There has been a huge growth in the category of Personal Services. This includes such things as beauty salons and barbershops, but also tattoo parlors and health clubs. Not only did the gross receipts in that category grow significantly in the six years but also did the number of businesses which increased from 67 in 2003 to 113 in 2008.

The largest share of gross receipts comes from the business, professional and technical services category. This included such activities as attorneys’ offices, architects, accountants, and consultants.

This is exceedingly good news for the long term economic development in Pioneer Square. First, these are areas of economic activity that are growing nationally (as opposed, for example, manufacturing which is shrinking). Second, when combined with other categories represented (Medical, Computers, Publishing, Cultural, Medical et al) nearly half of the gross receipts in Pioneer Square are from “Knowledge Worker” or “Creative Class” activities.  While definitions in the field vary, these are the types of activities that are on the top of the priority list for most economic development recruiters.

There is a downside, however. Many of the workers in these industries are largely “locationally indifferent” – that is they can do their work from virtually anywhere. They choose to live and work based not on where the port or mine or factory is, but based on the qualitative factors of their urban environment. The fact they currently choose to be in Pioneer Square is certainly a positive factor. But they are also able to move when a commercial district no longer fits their quality of life criteria. It is paramount, then, that the needs, interests and inputs of these groups be incorporated into the overall Pioneer Square strategies as soon as possible.

Tina, the founder of clothing store Synapse 206 graciously took some time out of her day to tell me about her store. Open for seven years now, Synapse has a great atmosphere and a great philosophy and they have prices that fit any budget.

For a little bit of history, Tina has lived in the neighborhood since 1988 and has been involved in a few different businesses. She started Neds restaurant, which was ruined in the 2001 earthquake, and Java Diner (now known as Planet Java), which she sold to the current owners.

Instead of doing my own write up, I thought I would post this as a Q&A so that you can get a better sense of the store in the enigmatic owner’s own words.

Q: What made you want to start a clothing store?
A couple of things – the first thing is – I really like interesting clothes, and I found that in Seattle, many of them are priced way beyond what I thought was reasonable.

The second thing was that I had run across various people that wanted to express themselves by making “wearable art” (in the design sense) and there really wasn’t a platform for those folks. And so I said “well, screw it, I’ll just give it a shot.” So I have a mix of ready to wear and original work, and it’s trying to give a platform to artists from Berlin, Pioneer Square, and every place in between.

Q: How do you choose what clothing to put in your store?
I’ll look at any artists’ work, I may or may not elect to put it in the shop. It has to speak to me in a way that I feel good about it. There’s a lot of work out there that I think is great that is not appropriate for this shop. I try not to be trendy. I try not to be young – it’s not aimed at an age group, it’s aimed at an attitude.

Q: And what’s the attitude?
A little more confident, maybe. A little more experimental – not out there, out there, it’s just not mainstream – it’s the edge of mainstream.

Q: Is every piece here unique?
Not every piece, but I’d say about half of the inventory is unique. The rest of it is pretty much limited production work.

Q: What about the name? Where did it come from?
The street address and the area code is 206. It’s about creativity, it’s about the synaptic connections in the brain. This is the city loan building and the history of this building is that it has always been filled with creativity: dancers, modern dancers, graphic designers, artists, culinary artists. Now it’s filled with a bunch of techie companies, but it’s just a building whose energy is creative. And I do believe places have energy. Because of the relationship to neural firing and the synaptic connection, in searching for a name, Synapse just fit. It just fit.

Q: How has the business been?
It’s great – it suffers from the economy just like every other business, but it’s an amazing business. It’s amazing to help someone find their voice in a way that is a little more personal than you might normally expect. And to be able to do it in a fairly economically approachable manner.

Q: Do you ever do fashion shows?
I used to, but my experience in Seattle is that they don’t really help you sell clothing. It would be different if it were really a way to move product, but it’s not. It’s a way to get exposure, so you have to balance it. Maybe if I did more ready-to-wear, I might be more inclined to showcase stuff, but with this stuff, it’s either such limited custom production, or comes from Berlin – it just doesn’t work for me.

Q: How do you think your location in Pioneer Square affects your business? Or do you?
I think that I would have more volume if I were closer to downtown, but it wouldn’t be the same business. This business fits Pioneer Square – it’s ambitious, it’s entrepreneurial, it’s showcasing originality, it’s not fancy in the sense of energy or environment. I can’t imagine replicating this in a neighborhood that had a different energy.

Q: What are your prices like?
All over the map — you can spend a couple thousand dollars on an item here or you can spend 50 bucks an item. Or you can buy the world’s best tank tops for $17.50.

Q: What else should people know about your store?
There’s 28 different artists represented here. Of those artists, probably 26 of them, every piece is original. 2 of them is artists — one is from Lithuania, one is from berlin — do custom work. So, they don’t make it unless they order it — it’s very limited production. There’s something here for pretty much any age group — we even carry little kid’s squeaker shoes.

To see more, visit their website at www.Synapse206.com or stop by their store at 206 1st Avenue South.

On Wednesday afternoon, many stakeholders and Pioneer Square interest groups gathered together to listen to Donovan Rypkema’s revaluation of the neighborhood. (to read more about the background of the Mayor’s “Revitalization Committee,” click here).

He started out the presentation by stating that his recommendations for 2009…. are basically the same as back in 2002. And that something drastic better happen this time to avoid him coming back in 2016 with the same report. And then he ended the presentation and ran to catch his plane. Just kidding. But he could have — he could have just put his old presentation on auto-play and left, and hoped that the city would pay attention this time.

The (hopefully) good news is that Deputy Mayor-elect Darryl Smith showed up to the meeting. He gave some background (including thanking anyone that might have been part of the 15,000 who voted for him when he ran for office in 2003 [insert chuckle]), and proceeded to talk about why he’s interested in what the Revitalization Committee is doing. He said that McGinn is definitely interested in suggestions that come out of these meetings, and he himself feels vested in the future of the neighborhood. Of course, as a cynical Political Science student, sometimes what politicians say isn’t quite what they mean, but I’m holding out hope this time around.

On approval from the committee, I videotaped the entire presentation, and most of the Q&A. Over the next couple of weeks, I hope to post clips from his presentation and get some discussion going regarding what needs to happen in our neighborhood.

One of the interesting things that Rypkema said is that people seem to be conflicted about the neighborhood — most everyone he talked to said that the neighborhood needs to see some major changes, but also that they love it just the way it is and don’t want things to really change.

He shared some great insights, and I’m looking forward to the conversations that can happen surrounding different suggestions for “change.”

p.s. “Revitalize Pioneer Square” just made it to the #3 spot on McGinn’s Ideas For Change website. Thank you thank you thank you to all who have voted. Although this may just be a tool to make people feel like they’re actually influencing what McGinn will do, at least it will get his attention when it hits the #2 spot. I’m confident that we’ll overtake legalizing marijuana this weekend. Please let us beat legalizing marijuana. It’s all I want for Christmas Santa.

p.p.s. Check out this article. Looks like the Pioneer Square Antique Mall is closing, and blames the city. It would be inappropriate to make a joke here (although I really want to). So I’ll just let you know that I really want to. We’ll miss you Antique Mall.

p.p.p.s. I’ve gotten a few Christmas tree pictures in, but don’t more of you want to send in pictures of yours? Isn’t 8 yummy caramelly, nutty apples from Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory good enough of an incentive? Even if you have a Charlie Brown tree, I want to see it. I just know that if I get pictures of 10 Pioneer Square Christmas Trees, that our neighborhood can be saved. Isn’t neighborhood love and the love of chocolate all that it takes?

p.p.p.p.s. (I had to do it this way so that I didn’t write a bunch of mini posts). I went to the Streetcar Open House (which wasn’t the most amazing thing I’ve ever been to, I’ll be honest), but the real reason to do it is to fill out their comment sheets about why it should come down into Pioneer Square.

One proposed idea (only a couple million more dollars) is to bring it down Main street and then loop (on that street that the waterfall park is on) back up to Int’l District and First Hill. It would be a really great thing for our neighborhood, so if you have a moment, go add your comments to the comment section on this site, or email Ethan Melone (with City of Seattle) and help get a streetcar in part of our neighborhood!

px5.s. Posts may get more sparse during the Holiday Break.

Here is a letter I just received from Peter Aaron, the owner of the Elliott Bay Book Co, where he confirms the very sad news that he is moving the bookstore to Capitol Hill.

December 10, 2009

A NEW CHAPTER

After many weeks of speculation about the future of The Elliott Bay Book Company, I am now able to confirm that the book store will be moving to a new location on Capitol Hill in the spring of next year.

The past two years have been a difficult, painful period of exploring and evaluating possibilities in an attempt to determine what would be best—and necessary—to ensure the long-term health and vitality of the store. And while the thought, and the practicalities, of moving from the site and the locale which have been home for the past 36 years are daunting to say the least, I am convinced that this upcoming relocation will afford us the best opportunity to remain, and further develop as a thriving enterprise.

First—about the new location. We will be moving into a beautiful vintage building on 10^th Avenue between Pike and Pine. The building dates from 1918—and was the original Ford truck service center for Seattle. The space will be comparable to the current store (in fact a bit larger), and will incorporate a café and a room dedicated to author appearances. It has the fir floor—complete with creaks—we’re used to treading, and gorgeous high wood ceiling—including massive wood beams—and skylights. While no space could exactly duplicate the charm of the original store, I can promise that the new building will offer a warm, comfortable and cozy environment that will be true to the beautiful place Walter Carr founded on Main Street.

The building has its own parking below street level—and between this and a nearby lot, we will be able to provide ample validated parking. In addition the new space will offer something we’ve never been able to offer before—wheelchair access to all levels.

The neighborhood is one of incredible vitality. I’m confident that this move will boost our business to the level necessary to maintain our commercial viability—and to facilitate the ongoing investment necessary to keep any business vital.

It will be sad for us all to leave a building—and a neighborhood—that have been our home for all these years. For those who can’t imagine us anyplace else, believe me—all of us at the store have had to wrestle through that. Moving the store is the second-last thing I would want to see happen. Seeing the store close would be the only thing worse. The fact is that the business has been eking downward for the past several years, and the steeper decline of the past two years has made it clear that if the book store is to survive, it must be in a location that affords the vibrancy (especially in the evenings), parking, population base, and freedom from conflict with the sporting events—all of which characterize the new site.

When I first became involved in the ownership of Elliott Bay eleven years ago, it was because I believed fervently that this gem, which had been “my” bookstore since I first moved here twenty-seven years ago, was worth saving—that it was a precious asset that must and, in fact, could flourish in this city—if anywhere on earth. Since that time I have done my best to be a faithful steward in preserving both the spirit and the body of this unique place which has been built and nourished cooperatively by the generations of booksellers who have worked here over the years and the book-lovers who have supported us—here in Seattle, across the country and indeed around the world. I’m inexpressibly grateful for that ongoing support—and most especially for the outpouring of concern and commitment we’ve received in recent months. We’re committed to doing everything in our power to continue to earn your patronage and support.

Even as we work toward this significant change, we will strive to do our best to stay focused day-to-day on our primary calling: putting books in readers’ (your) hands. This includes the full regimen of author readings. To us, this is less about ending or beginning than about continuing, developing and deepening what we can offer to a community of devoted readers.

We will post progress reports on the new location and ongoing updates on the exact timing of the move on the website (www.elliottbaybook.com). I welcome the opportunity to address any questions or comments you may have.

Sincerely,

Peter Aaron, Owner

Attached to the bottom of the letter is an image of the building they’re moving to (that’s being revitalized) up on Capitol Hill. (1521 10^th Avenue on Capitol Hill in Seattle  (Circa. 1936))

Aaron was also unable to confirm whether or not the Elliott Bay Cafe would be moving with them.

To read a more in depth write-up on the slog of what this means, click here.

Main Image Credit

I’m finding that I’ve mentioned a few times about being embarrassed about different posts or things I’m writing about, and my previous Elliott Bay Book Co (rumors) post is no exception. As a new blogger, I learned a new lesson: don’t post rumors, even on a blog. I finally “manned up” and called the owner of EBBC, Peter Aaron, who graciously agreed to meet with me.

We walked over to Caffe Umbria and ordered some delicious warm drinks and sat outside, in the midst of our historic neighborhood. After getting a few details out of the way (including what my motives were for my previous post), Peter said that he was happy to answer as many questions and dispel as many rumors as possible. He gave some background on the store; open since 1973, EBBC had a successful history from the start, up until about 1995. During those first 20 years or so, they operated as one of a few bookstores in the area (before Amazon and Borders came to town). Without the online competition, EBBC thrived and was a great destination for people from all over the country when visiting Seattle. From 1995 until 1998, however, the store began to steadily decline, losing 10-20% in sales profits per year. In 1998 and just 60 days from liquidating inventory and closing shop, Peter Aaron and Ron Sher stepped in and made the “emotional” decision to buy the bookstore.

Things were going OK for the bookstore for a few years, but around 2004, their situation began to decline again. With sales always hovering around the break even line, the bookstore could have continued for years. Possibly. Unfortunately, what we’ll call “the great Seattle snow disaster” struck and EBBC, like many other retail shops, lost their Holiday shopping sales. In an already precarious situation, the bookstore had to then face a harsh reality — it would take drastic measures if they had any chance of making it.

So, here we are to present day. December 2009, their lease up in 2 months, and three options to choose from:

1. Stay open and operating in Pioneer Square
2. Stay open and move to Capitol Hill
3. Close the bookstore

Contrary to rumors, Aaron has explored many possibilities for remaining open in the Pioneer Square neighborhood. Part of EBBC for the last 11 years, it is hard for him to image it located anywhere else but Pioneer Square. He has met with the Office of Economic Development (and will again this next week), he did go to the meeting with the former Mayor, he’s explored options with the City, he has worked to negotiate lease options with Jones + Jones (owners of the space), and he’s looked into an online presence. One by one, however, none of these options has panned out.

The Office of Economic Development was only interested in providing support if he could prove that the business had a history of success (which they don’t). So although this has a huge impact on the neighborhood, because of the numbers in their sales book, there will be no help from the city if they decide to stay. Makensey Real Estate (big P2 property management company) has worked tirelessly with Jones + Jones to try and come to a compromise, but the numbers for the two groups are just too far apart. And lastly, having an online presence is a huge undertaking, is something that the store doesn’t have the funding or warehouse space to try for, and there’s nothing that differentiates them from other online bookstores. What differentiates them is their history and the reputation of having books that are hard to find in the online stores.

Here are what he considers to be the main problems for operating the bookstore in Pioneer Square:

1. Parking. This is a huge factor, if not the main one. I walked around and conducted an informal survey of 25 different customers shopping in the Elliott Bay Bookstore at noon on a Saturday. Want to guess how many were actually from the neighborhood? Not one. One woman was from Chilliwack (Canada), and stops at the store every time she visits the City. Others were from Tacoma, Everett, Montana, California, etc. And they almost unanimously had the same response when I asked why they came to this bookstore. The reputation; it is a destination spot because they have friends that recommend it, or a mom who loves it, or they’ve come for years. Guess what else? They all drive to get here. Aaron has tried to work with numerous parking lot owners and the city to get dedicated parking spots for their store, but no one has cooperated. Not even the parking lot east of Occidental will work them. The city won’t even give them four small spots directly in front of the store. Which brings us to the second problem.
2. Sports. Although I’m a big fan of the sports in Seattle and it’s part of the reason why we moved down here, they cause major problems for retailers. Aaron estimated that football home games cost them anywhere from $20,000 to $50,000 in sales. This is because no one is willing to come down to this neighborhood to fight the crowds (not to mention the parking that’s extremely expensive, if you can even find any). As someone who has been in and around Pioneer Square at all times of the day, every day of the week, he said that game day is the only time when he feels uncomfortable in the neighborhood.
3. Safety. Not specifically the safety of his staff or of customers, but the reputation that P2 has in regards to violence, homeless, and drugs. I’ve written about this before, but the impact of this is far-reaching. The city needs to recognize that this is a real problem and needs to make some real changes, instead of making vague promises and creating fake 10-year homeless plans. Aaron said that “sequestering all of the homeless shelters and services in one neighborhood is not an answer.” And it’s not saying that they should close, but that they should be spread around the city (see post of map with shelter locations and history). People joke that of the new banners made for our neighborhood, a “homeless district” one should have also been created. And it’s a reality. And it’s hurting local businesses from operating and residents from moving in.
4. One Community Voice. Aaron said that there seem to be four different factions with differing opinions regarding what this neighborhood needs; sports, historic preservation, retail shops, and residents. Right now, these separate groups do not present one strong community voice for changes that this neighborhood needs. And although the residential and retail voices are probably the closest in desired outcome, there is no real organization for these groups to come together to present their case. This needs to happen if we are ever going to make the city hear what our needs are and to realize that they need to do something to help.

As Aaron has worked with banks to try to secure funding, they only seem interested in helping if it looks like the store is doing something to change its current situation; such as moving to a different neighborhood. If they decide to move to Capitol Hill, the new location will have 30 dedicated parking spots, with 100 more offered (with validation). As mentioned above, that’s huge. With the majority of people driving in to get to the shop, it doesn’t seem to matter if they’re in Pioneer Square or up on Capitol Hill — and at least they’ll get free parking up there.

When I asked Aaron what it was about Capitol Hill that would help them be successful where they weren’t in Pioneer Square, he said that “the reputation of Capitol Hill is that it’s been revitalized and is vibrant. There are incredible retail and restaurant destinations.” Not to mention the streetcar that is coming soon (one block from where the EBBC might relocate). And even though it is five years out, Aaron said that “it’s something that will bring in even more business.” Aaron also said that “the bookstore wouldn’t just be serving the Capitol Hill neighborhood, but also 1st Hill and the universities in the area.” And although there is a healthy daytime population in Pioneer Square, there just aren’t enough locals that shop there. Just as parking, safety, and sports is the perfect storm for EBBC to leave Pioneer Square, parking, retail, and a dense Capitol Hill residential population are the perfect storm for them to move there (the good type of storm, of course).

And although residents in Capitol Hill may shop at Amazon, or Barnes and Noble, it seems that people go to the bookstore because of what it is, and not necessarily where it’s located. And it breaks Aaron’s heart to say that, because to him, it feels that their location in Pioneer Square is such a big part of the store.

Aaron will be making a decision in a few weeks about whether they’ll stay, close, or move. The chances of them staying are slim; there is too much change that needs to happen in this neighborhood for them to stay. Change that, if it happens, will take a lot of time, and time is what Elliott Bay does not have.