Paved Paradise: The Case for Community Space
Punk rockers Peelander-Z perform at the Funhouse in their signature costumes. Photo credit: soggydan
All around Seattle, iconic community spaces are closing their doors to be torn down and replaced by condos. Bauhaus Books & Coffee, Faire Gallery Cafe, and The Funhouse are just a few places that have been on the chopping block recently. These are spaces that have been at the center of their respective cultures. For the Funhouse, a small bar/concert venue near Seattle Center, it’s the underground music scene. The venue has been “a vital creative zone” for musicians and music-lovers to connect and breed new ideas for Seattle’s music. At the end of this month, the Funhouse will be closing its doors for good.
In Capitol Hill, residents like visual artist Amanda Manitach will be evicted next year when her apartment and the adjacent Melrose Building (which houses Bauhaus Coffee and other small businesses) are demolished and replaced
by condos. In her recent article in City Arts, she described
her home as “an object on the verge of extinction.”
“When this building comes down, the ghost of it will echo with all of the people who inscribed their essence on this space.”
She explains how these spaces touch the lives of the people who inhabit them, that they are not just a series of walls but “can be designed to hold experience, to stimulate the feverish flow of daydreams.” These are the kinds of spaces that create community.
Ultimately, the goal of the new construction is to capitalize on space and create high-density living for our growing city. The advantage of this is the prevention of urban sprawl and the opportunity to build stronger, more efficient buildings. But there is a loss, too, as Dominic Holden points out. The new mixed-use buildings often push out the tightly packed small businesses and replace them with expensive storefronts that tend to attract big chain stores. Thus in the process of creating more living space, these developments can uproot the community spaces and small business that anchor our city’s culture.
Shops like Bauhaus and the Funhouse aren’t just places to buy coffee or watch a concert. They are spaces for like-minded people to gather and share ideas, experiences, talents, and cultures.
Community is not about buying things, it’s about sharing things. And when we lose these spaces to share, we lose parts of our community.
Fun at the Arts in Nature Festival 2011
The Arts in Nature Festival is a sharing space. Unlike most of Seattle’s outdoor festivals, there are no long corridors of vendors trying to sell you things (besides food, because we have to feed our people). There is only art. And people. And the great Seattle outdoors. (Our mission goes something like that.) It’s a festival of community, not commodity, where people come together to share an extraordinary experience.
But when budgets are tight, small businesses and nonprofits tend to struggle. This year, we had to cancel the festival due to lack of funding. Since 1998 we’ve been offering the festival for free, believing that art, nature, and experiential community spaces should be accessible for everyone. It’s one of our fundamental values.
But free is hard, and it’s not sustainable without extra support.
We’re determined not to lose this festival. While the Funhouse and the like may be ill-fated, we see hope in the success stories of other local landmarks. In the 1960s, when the famous Pike Place Market was on the chopping block, community members rallied to save it. Even closer to home, Nature Consortium worked with outspoken neighbors to win a seven-year battle to save part of our greenbelt from being paved over. While the mayor and developers saw dollar signs and a patch of overgrown woods, we saw a learning space where people could come together to restore an environmental resource.
We want to create and maintain spaces that breed culture and creativity. Seattle’s vibrancy as a city depends on them.
Our growing city must leave room for theses spaces to exist. By speaking up, rallying with neighbors, and donating time and money, we can save our community spaces. We’ve done it before; help us do it again.
Absolutely! Preserving and fostering these spaces is so key to a thriving, active community. Density is a good thing and it’s something that should be strived for so we can preserve more green spaces. However, it has to be done with the community in mind. Rally your neighbors not to prevent density but to ensure that the plans include open spaces, public art, locally-owned storefronts, creative spaces and other elements that are good for our community.
The Arts in Nature festival is a terrific example of using public space to create an event that celebrates art, nature and brings the community closer to these elements and to each other. But it takes a community to make it all happen; donations and volunteering will help this festival thrive.