March 18, 2008
What Was Once Pine Street...
A small crowd has gathered on East Pine to watch the demolishing of a once quintessential Seattle block. The condos have officially won, as the buildings which once contained Seattle divey-landmarks the Cha Cha, Bimbo's Bitchin' Burrito, and Kincora's are no more.
Eagle-eyed Seattlest editor Kim has sent us a couple of mobile photos of the destruction. Sadly, she reported overhearing at the scene, "Am I missing something? This apparently means nothing to me." We'd like to say emphatically, yes, random person, you are missing something. They might have been dark, divey, and a few just might have become painfully hipster--but these places were once the soul of Seattle's night life.
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I heard the Jack-in-the-Box on Broadway is boarded up.. Is it next?
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"painfully hipster" or "overrun by children dressed mostly in black" because there is a difference, however minute!
yes, i saw also this scene today. it was quite a spectacle, but i expected some more misty eyes.
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yeah i didn't see any misty eyes either, just a lot of people stopped and staring, like they were paying their respects.
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i'm pretty sure they were stopping and staring because it was big-ass backhoes tearing down a building. i'm sorry, that block didn't mean squat to me, other than a great night of art. as far as i'm concerned capitol hill lives on, soul intact.
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"...but these places were once the soul of Seattle's night life."
that's debatable.
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i knew someone was going to call me on that line. possibly an over-statement. but, I find the loss of the block sad...it reminds me of past times in Seattle. But no, no misty eyes here either.
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One thing I don't get is that we all want to live in a dense, efficient, modern city, but EVERY time anything gets converted we all bitch about the "great" reminants of old Seattle we are losing. We can't have it both ways.
I'm no fan of cookie cutter town homes and condos, but I realize that every building can't be a gem of a design.
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We all won when the boarded up former Denny's was saved.
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Yes, Jack in the Box and Taco Bell are being torn down. Anything will be an improvement over those eyesores.
This block on the other hand looks like any block on the Eastside now.
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it was pretty cool, though, when, with one fell swoop, that hoe thing knocked down the cha cha. just boom....then plop!
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The Jack in the Box on Broadway is getting torn down to make way for a light rail station (this info from a date I went on with a guy who works for the architect who's doing the project-- alas, this inside info was the best thing I got out of the evening...). I don't remember voting for light rail, but I'm stoked that it's happening. Take that, PDX!
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the jack in the box is moving further down by the park according to the manager. jesse, some people actually liked eating there.
And yes, for the light rail confirmed.
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The Jack in the Box is going to take over the spot where that terrible KFC currently resides at 10th and Pine.
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"...these places were once the soul of Seattle's night life."
Seattle nightlife must be pretty weak if a couple of buildings made up the soul of it. Don't get me wrong, I loved Cha Cha, but all those institutions can relocate if they wish. You may disagree with it, but that's a prime stretch of real estate.
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i'm assuming there will be some retail/food space in the bottom of these new condos? please don't bring us any more places like kurrent :[
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I think Kurrent is funny.
Its such an easy target for laughs.
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The original Cha Cha was one of the coolest bars in the city. 40 oz. Lucky Lager say no more!
The new Cha is cool but not as.
People can bemoan the fact that it was only one block but lets be honest, Seattle doesn't have all that many cool blocks and this one had TONS of character.
So this does suck, and anyone suggesting the gnarly Soviet aesthetic condo that is going to replace it is progress is either full of shit or has no appreciation of character.
New construction is often cheap and unsightly within the decade, just ask the folks at the Whole Foods tower on Westlake.
In Boston this would be small peanuts, in Seattle it's a loss.