Souvenir closing to make way for elevator shaft | Business

During the past decade, Curtis Steiner, owner of Souvenir on Ballard Avenue, helped make the street the successful commercial area it has become. Now, he feels he has become a victim of that success.

Souvenir, the decorative arts gallery located at 5325 Ballard Ave. N.W. and featuring jewelry, antiques and more, is being forced to close so the landlord, Mycon Property Management, can install a lobby, elevator shaft and stairwell for the upper floors, which have been condemned for the past two decades, Steiner said.

When Souvenir opened in 1999, it was noteworthy, Steiner said. There was not much sophisticated retail on Ballard Avenue and there was parking as far as the eye could see.

He said he was instrumental in bringing the Ballard Sunday Farmers Market to the street. The weekly farmers market, one of the most popular in the city, got people to travel 10 miles for a head of lettuce, he said. And, those same people kept coming back to the neighborhood.

The market made Ballard Avenue more successful and richer, Steiner said. He said Mycon Property Management would not even be thinking about putting office space in the building without the success he helped create.

The landlord looked at the popularity of Ballard Avenue and the successful renovation of other crumbling buildings, such as the Kolstrand Building, now home to the Dutch Bike Co. and Ethan Stowell's Staple & Fancy, and saw opportunity.

"He has big money symbols in his eyes, for lack of a better thing to say," Steiner said.

Since announcing Souvenir's impending closure this past Tuesday, there has been an outpouring of memories, sadness and well-wishes on the store's Facebook page.

"It was 10 years ago the first time I came into your store," wrote Saskia Bakker Lehnert. "It has always been a treasure trove, and I have many special treasures still that I obtained from your amazing space."

"Your genius will not be forgotten, Curtis," wrote Beth Cullom. "It has been an inspiration to me from the day I first set foot in Souvenir. But, this sad news will take some getting used to."

"Your shop is the crown jewel of Ballard," wrote Lina Raymond.

Steiner said the support is sweet, and he appreciates it. He said Souvenir has made fans because of its eccentricity. He is not selling shoes or lady's dresses; he is doing something more unique and sophisticated, he said.

"I don't feel like I could transfer this to another place, so I'm basically going to reinvent myself," said Steiner, who has a permanent installation at the Seattle Art Museum and has been featured in the Seattle Times and "Seattle Homes & Lifestyles."

He said he plans to open a new place with a new name. He thinks he has found a location but is not ready to announce it just yet.

Souvenir's final day will be Feb. 6 for its Super Bowl Sunday Garage Sale.

Mycon Property Management hopes to have art studios and office space ready to go in the building sometime next year.

Steiner said he sees this as the turn of gentrification for Ballard. There is a period of gentrification, about 10 years after the artists move in, that is a great moment. Then, like on University Way and Broadway and in Fremont, it turns into a food court and people stop wanting to be there, he said.