Historic Preservation: Saving A Denny's (dare we call it, restaurant?)
"Stephen Lee is not accustomed to being the center of attention. He heads the Seattle Landmark Preservation Board, an 11-member commission that typically receives three or four requests every two weeks to decide whether or not a particular building is worthy of landmark designation. His meetings usually attract a handful of attendees, if that many.
"But when Lee and his board met for a routine meeting last week, four television crews, reporters from all the local papers and more than 100 community members joined them. The property to be considered: a shutdown Denny's restaurant in the city's Ballard neighborhood. 'It was wild,' says Lee, who describes the Wednesday night meeting as 'the most excitement' he has seen during his six years chairing the board.
"The crowd stuck around for two and a half hours to get the verdict: by a 6 to 3 vote, Seattle declared the former Denny's, built in 1964, a historical landmark, citing its importance as a local signpost; its swooping, Googie-style roof made it a distinctive marker of the neighborhood. 'I truly think that it has a distinctive enough element in the community and its urban fabric that it should not be lost,' says Lee, who voted in favor of saving the building. As a result, a lot of people are asking him, 'What are you doing saving a Denny's?'"
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