When Kevin Spitzer first rented a former auto repair shop just off E Union in the late ’90s, it was his studio, a raw, industrial space in a then-neglected stretch of Seattle’s Central District.
“This was actually my sculpture studio in here before the theater,” Spitzer says. “It was Jean’s first tenant when she and Jack bought the building out of an auction.”
The building at 1411 21st Ave has lived many lives since it was constructed in 1929. “It was originally built in ’29 as a car dealership. “Pretty sure it was Ford,” Spitzer explains. “Then what I heard is it became a dairy for, like decades, it was a bottling plant.” By the time the Spitzers arrived, the area was far from the bustling hub it is today.
This summer, Central Cinema is celebrating its 20th year in the neighborhood — though it has been on the block a little longer.
“There was no 20/20 Bike Shop, or Katie’s coffee or anything like that,” Kate Spitzer remembered. “It was like storefronts with plywood on them. The gas station was just Jimmy and Al fixing cars.” Continue reading