SEATTLE — Since 1978, 1400 Alaskan Way has been Ken Eubank's second home. He has owned and operated Seattle Antiques his market for his 41 years. Most of that time was spent with our ubiquitous neighbor, the Alaskan Way Viaduct.
“We were considered to be on the wrong side of the tracks. It looked creepy and scary. The only business we had was destination business,” Eubank said. “It was very noisy. It created a lot of dirt.”
Eubank has learned to tolerate the constant noise from the double-decker highway, which carries thousands of cars just meters from his business. He said he never noticed it until someone came into the store and pointed it out. Things changed in 2019 when demolition work on the viaduct began.
“I thought it was a great idea to get rid of it because it's in the way,” Eubank said. But the problems he had with it weren't just about business. He was in his store when the 2001 Nisqually earthquake occurred.
“It was rocking back and forth and it was really scary when I was standing on the dock looking for a place to hide,” he said.
The viaduct cracked due to the earthquake and collapsed. That made it clear that something had to be done. KING 5 chronicled the events leading up to the start of demolition on February 15, 2019.
Five years later, Eubank is happy with the new view from his store. His customer base has changed from people looking for a store to people casually walking in from across the waterfront. Nevertheless, Eubank doesn't want to stand in the way of progress, he said.
“Yes, there is some nostalgia here, but it could be used for a better purpose. It could be a beautiful apartment complex,” he said.
Eubank pointed out that his building is the only one with an unobstructed view of the bay. Even if condos are built, don't expect them to go anywhere, Eubank said.
“I'm going to live on the top floor of an apartment building,” he said.
Work on the Waterfront Seattle project is expected to be completed by 2025. The latest information can be found here.
