A procession of developers, community members, and Buddhist monks marked the start of renovation at a historic building in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District, Monday.
The spiritual cleansing and good luck blessing at the Louisa Hotel redevelopment project, at the corner of 7th and King St., was a moment of tranquility before months of construction work on the more than century-old building.
The structure, which went up in 1909, once housed immigrants who helped build Seattle. It was also the site of the 1983 Wah Mee massacre, when gunmen robbed, shot, and killed 13 people. The property burned in a massive fire on Christmas Eve in 2013.
The building also has historic murals on a staircase leading to a former jazz club. The owners hope to restore those and make them visible to people passing by.
“It's been an uphill battle ever since the fire, we've been going one direction, then another direction, finally (we’ve) gotten a way to go through with this project and complete this building,” said Timothy Woo, a co-owner of the building.
Buddhist monks prayed at the site before a ceremonial ground-breaking, Monday. Community members lit incense and participated in a blessing for safe construction.
The developer of the project, Barrientos RYAN, calls the 84 new apartments “workforce housing,” meant for tenants making approximately $45,000 to $75,000 per year. Restoration is expected to be completed in mid-2019.
