Saved from the wrecking ball and onto a new life!
Hear ye! Hear ye! The First United Methodist Church in downtown Seattle has been saved from destruction! After two decades of struggle to save the embattled sanctuary, a deal has finally come through that preserves this historic community landmark. Many people may not know this sanctuary by name, but they definitely know it by sight. Located on 5th and Marion, this 100-year old building topped with a red terra-cotta dome, sits serenely among a thicket of skyscrapers.

photo of rally May 2006 Photo from rally May 20, 2006 -- the historic downtown sanctuary. More photos.

VISION
In the heart of our downtown, imagine a new neighborhood civic center. Within half a block of the new Seattle City Hall and the new Central Library, this building is located within the core of our government, cultural and business districts. People can walk to it easily if they work or live downtown. It's easy to get to by bus, car, rail or ferry.

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For the latest news on the sanctuary, please see our newspaper articles TIMELINE

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SEATTLE COMMUNITY COUNCIL FEDERATION comments

Building on the long work of other preservationists, Save Our Sanctuary (S.O.S.) served as a grassroots catalyst to avert a deal with Martin Selig that would have demolished the sanctuary. Inspired by Victor Steinbreuck’s tactics to save the Pike Place Market, S.O.S. organized rallies and worked closely with the media to re-energize public debate. Kathy Mulady of the Seattle PI wrote a large front page article about the first rally and Knute Berger, then editor of the Seattle Weekly, wrote several columns and blogs about the sanctuary. King County Councilmember Dow Constantine spoke at an S.O.S. rally and brought in key elected leaders to talk with church leadership.

The tide began to turn and then Kevin Daniels, of Nitze-Stagen, stepped up to the plate. He worked diligently to earn the church leadership’s trust and engineer a new deal that would both preserve the historic sanctuary and provide the congregation with a new property.

Thankfully, we can now celebrate the 100th anniversary of this beautiful sanctuary not with an iron wrecking ball but with historic restoration, cleaning and seismic up-grading. The newer 1950’s addition to the sanctuary will be demolished to make way for a glass commercial skyscraper. But the story of the sanctuary does not end here; a new chapter begins with a critical question: What will be the new use of the sanctuary?

$1 million tax credit from the National Historic Trust and $500,000 each from the City and King County were used to secure the deal. In addition, decades of volunteer activism and pro-bono services were given by concerned citizens as well as preservation groups such as Washington Historic Trust, a valuable ally in saving the sanctuary.

The sanctuary is located in the very heart of the City between the financial and government centers. It is at the nexus of the central rail, bus, ferry and highway arteries that connect the region and state. It has a magnificent three-story space filled with light from surrounding windows and the dome above. In the entire city core, there is currently no building that can serve a public ceremonial space for festivities, political debates, funerals and dedications. With a magnificent pipe organ and multi-leveled seating, the sanctuary could also become a wonderful public performance hall for local and school theatre and music groups.

There is a once in a lifetime civic opportunity with this sanctuary but the window is closing fast. With vision and dedication, citizens, political leaders, preservationists and Nitze-Stagen will rise to the occasion of doing something truly great.

Michael Godfried is President of Save Our Sanctuary. He can be reached at (206) 938-0472. Please visit the website at www.saveoursanctuary.org for more information

 photo of rally April 2006
Photo from rally April 3, 2006.