The building that houses Seattle’s Lava Lounge, and the two adjacent parcels, are part of a proposed redevelopment project. Included in the project is the nearby, beloved, Coney Island-themed pinball joint, Shorty’s.
Puget Sound Business Journal reports that Atlanta-based Wood Partners is planning a 124-unit apartment building, with street-level retail, for the site. It’s not a done deal: the company has not closed deals on the three real estate parcels included in the plan, and the parcel that houses the Lava Lounge is to be considered for landmark status in a meeting on Wednesday. The landmark status process was initiated by the building’s current owners, Rain City Properties… not sure if this is an earnest desire to have it classified, or if it’s more of a due diligence thing before they complete the sale for redevelopment, or some other motivation. Regardless, the PDF of the landmark nomination is an interesting and detailed account of the history of the building; the space that holds the Lava Lounge was built in 1911, but the attached upper-level apartments were built around 1890.
It’s been A Very Seattle Week here at Critiki News: don’t miss the sneak peek at the Northshore Lagoon, a new tiki bar and swimming pool coming to Bothell courtesy of McMenamins, and a look at the progression of the facade of the old Seattle Trader Vic’s through its history.
- Lava Lounge in Seattle [Critiki]
- Shorty’s, Rocco’s, Tula’s buildings slated for redevelopment, new Belltown apartments [Puget Sound Business Journal]
- Landmark Nomination Application [City of Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board]
- Preview of the Northshore Lagoon at McMenamins Anderson School [Critiki News]
- The Progression of the Seattle Trader Vic’s Facade [Critiki News]
Critiki News 
Thanks so much for the photos and for including the links to the Landmarks process. The Wayne Apartments as they are called, 2224 2nd Ave in Belltown, are very old and so any proposed tear-down is required to be presented at the Landmarks Board before the City of Seattle will issue a permit. The presenter is an architectural historian whose report on behalf of the current property owner, will attempt to show that the building is NOT worthy of preservation — so that they can redevelop the site. We will see what the Landmarks Board decides on Wednesday, September 2. The meetings are open to the public — anyone can attend these meetings and listen to the presentations, which are an interesting review of Seattle history and architecture.
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Thank you so much for the background and context about the Landmark process!
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I often attend the meetings to listen, but they begin at 3:30 PM and can go quite late. Most of the time the nominations of buildings come up on the agenda at about 5 PM.
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