After spate of fires, Seattle’s Lake City neighborhood grieves lost community center

This week saw another significant fire in Seattle’s Lake City neighborhood, in a vacant building on Lake City Way. On that same day, a group held a memorial for the neighborhood’s shuttered Lake City Community Center, which was closed after another fire in April.

Srijan Chakraborty is the co-executive director for the Hunger Intervention Program, which is part of a partnership with the nonprofit Sound Generations that has offered meals and programming to seniors at the community center three days a week.

After the fire on April 18, Chakraborty said the program moved to Lamb of God Lutheran Church nearby.

“We had existing partnerships and they have been great about inviting us and giving us this opportunity and the space. So we were lucky to have the space by the next day without much notice at all,” he said.

But Chakraborty said people were upset about the fire, and after the scramble to maintain the meals program, they finally had time this week to specifically grieve that loss.

“There’s a lot of memories in that building," Chakraborty said. "So it just felt right that we needed some event to let the building go, because we know it’s not going to open anymore.”

People related stories and memories of the center, where the program for seniors has been in place for over a decade and offers menus and translation in Mandarin, Spanish, and English.

Chakraborty said the fire reinforces the need for the city to build a new community center as quickly as possible.

Rachel Shulkin is the spokesperson for the city’s parks department which oversees its community centers. She said in a statement that the city was “deeply saddened” by the fire, adding, “We are currently evaluating options to restore the site and to find interim spaces for the community recreational programming in consultation with the Mayor, Housing and Council offices.”

Seattle firefighters have responded to six significant fires in the Lake City neighborhood so far this year. They’ve included two vacant buildings, two established businesses and one under construction, as well as the community center.

A cause for most of the fires has not been determined — the May 10 fire is under investigation. The Seattle Fire Department said the fire at a dog boarding business February 1 was an “accidental dryer fire,” and the dumpster fire that damaged the exterior of the Thai One On restaurant January 30 was “intentionally set.” Both businesses remain closed.

This Wednesday firefighters were called to a vacant building on Lake City Way at Northeast 135 Street.

Roy Ovenell has an office in the building next door. He said the incident resembled the vacant building that was destroyed nearby in March. That building had already been slated for demolition.

Ovenell said this latest fire was under control when he got to his office Wednesday morning so he wasn’t unduly worried. He said his plea to city officials would be to address housing needs in the city.

“I don’t know what caused the fire here, but one would assume it was somebody using drugs or trying to stay warm," Ovenell said. "So providing housing for people that don’t have a place to stay is important.”

According to Seattle Fire Department spokesperson David Cuerpo, the number of fires in vacant buildings has increased this year over last citywide.

“This year, Seattle Fire has responded to 17 vacant building fires throughout the city compared to 14 for the same timeframe in 2022," Cuerpo said.

The website Enjoy Lake City said the recent fires have left questions and concerns for local businesses and neighbors.

In a statement, Chris Leverson, the project manager for the Build Lake City Together coalition led in partnership by Children's Home Society of Washington with other neighborhood organizations, said, "The recent fires that have dramatically affected two small businesses, closed our Lake City Community Center, and destroyed two empty warehouses are an unacceptable trend in our neighborhood. The fires are creating fear and unease for all who live and work in Lake City."

"We are hopeful that the city of Seattle will communicate more directly and address what has obviously become a pattern that threatens lives and our overall wellbeing," Leverson added. "There is also hope that property owners who have allowed buildings to fall into blight will do their part to keep our community safe by taking down derelict buildings or ensuring they are occupied and maintained."