Showbox Market Demolition?
One day after the Showbox Market celebrated its 79th birthday, reports have emerged that the venue will be demolished in order to construct a 44 story skyscraper. The building housing the Showbox was built in 1916 and the venue has been hosting shows in its current space since 1939; it is clearly a Seattle institution! See for yourself: Upcoming EDM events at the Showbox Market or read more about the Showbox Market’s history.
It goes without saying that this is a very special venue with a history and fan base that expands well beyond EDM. What will happen to downtown Seattle when all of the places that make up its charm are demolished and only tourist attractions remain? What about all of the vacant new construction that you can clearly see is not currently occupied? Do we really need more expensive apartments or condos?
Note that there has been no confirmation or denial by the Showbox on any of their social media accounts as of the writing of this article. The calendar of events shows concerts scheduled through January 20th, 2019. The developer proposing the demolition is Omni of BC, Canada. An LLC associated with strip-club magnate Roger Forbes (who also owns Deja Vu) owns the Showbox building, while AEG Live owns the club.
AEG issued the following statement:
We intend to continue operations of this legendary venue including all of the shows currently announced on our calendar. We are hopeful of beginning a dialogue with the building’s new owners to preserve the Showbox for decades to come.
What can we do?
- Amplify our impact by using the hash tag #SaveTheShowbox on social media
- Submit a “nomination as a historical landmark” by email to Sarah Sodt, City Historic Preservation Officer
- Join this Facebook group for updates: a grassroots campaign to save the venue has already begun, join the group or follow us on Twitter or Facebook to get updates about what you can do to aid the cause.
- Sign these online petitions:
Sources:
Daily Journal of Commerce
The Stranger
Seattle Times
MyNorthwest
City of Seattle (Application details)
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Time to do whatever it takes to help save the Showbox Market! Our goal is to take portraits of the people of Seattle, the fabric of Seattle, telling in photo form why places like the Showbox are important to them and the city of Seattle. Come to Jupiter Bar between 4pm and 8pm on Monday to have your portrait taken. Let’s draw as much attention to this issue as possible through the power of social media! Everyone welcome! Showbox employees and people with lots of history at the Showbox playing music, or going to shows especially encouraged.. Special thanks to Jupiter for letting us use the space! All photos will be posted here as well as more info to be added ASAP https://savetheshowboxportraitproject.weebly.com
Time may be running out to save The Showbox, Sawant warns:
If a temporary boundary extension gets held up in committee Wednesday afternoon, it’s unlikely supporters of The Showbox can prevent a developer from replacing it with an apartment building, according to Seattle Councilmember Kshama Sawant.
In an email to supporters, Councilmember Sawant said that if an ordinance to expand the Pike Place Market Historic District to include the music venue isn’t passed to full council, “we won’t be able to beat Onni [the developer] to the buzzer.”
She continued: “meaning they could get their way, and ultimately tear down this historic music venue. We need to keep up the pressure.”
The council meets one last time on Monday, Aug. 13, before going on summer recess.
Onni, a Vancouver B.C.-based developer, submitted a permit application to construct a 44-story building at the side of The Showbox. It received almost immediate pushback from people, once word spread.
Onni said it intends to nominate the building for landmark status. However, some, including Sawant, are wary of the developer.
“Big developers have immense power in Washington state, but one possible point of leverage are Seattle’s landmark preservation laws,” Sawant said. “Because The Showbox has so much historic value, the Landmarks Preservation Board should agree to landmark it if they hear from a large enough community of people. However, the board often preserves only the outside of buildings, and in this case, we need the Board to also preserve the music venue inside.”
A temporary boundary extension for the Pike Place Historic District would give the public more time to weigh in on saving the venue. The district currently stretches from SR 99 to First Avenue, and just past Pike Street north to Virginia Street.
The Showbox is located on the other side of First Avenue, just outside the current district boundaries.
Even if The Showbox receives landmark status, it would not preserve its current use — Sawant has said she is researching ways to do that.