A more seasoned neighborhood news editor would have had the obits already in the can. Instead, we’re posting this fresh, as it happens. Another of the E Pine businesses set to be displaced by the massive Melrose & Pine development is calling it quits.
Fashion retailer Scout Apparel posted a goodbye message Thursday afternoon:
To all the friends of Scout Apparel,
It’s time to say goodbye. We will be closing our doors mid-June in anticipation of the impending demise of our block as we know it. Although we have loved serving you and truly appreciated all your support and kindness, we see this as an opportunity to move on and into other things. Our greatest wish is for the continued support of small businesses and the creative, brave spirits that bring them into being on our beloved Capitol Hill.
All the best,
Erin and Karen
CHS wrote about the debut of Erin Dolan and Karen Krupp’s Capitol Hill store in spring 2011:
We were looking for a name that worked for men and women and fit in with our vision of what we would carry and how the store would look. Erin and I both enjoy thrifting and looking for the perfect find, so it just kind of fit.
You can add the goodbye note to the list of great works produced by outgoing shopkeepers on this stretch of E Pine. Kris Minta’s essay detailing his decision to close the Spine & Crown bookstore is also a remarkable meditation on the realities of small retail on Capitol Hill. In the meantime, Mud Bay has also left while Edie’s is making a two-block move to E Pike.
At the corner of Melrose and Pine, Bauhaus hasn’t yet announced widely when it will be leaving its longtime home. The cafe has an agreement to return to the mixed-use building when its construction is complete in the next 18 months or so. In the meantime, the cafe is seeking refuge in Ballard.
Earlier this month, the eight-story Melrose and Pine building received final approval for its design clearing the way for the 180-unit apartment, restaurant and retail development to begin demolition, preservation and construction.
Sorry to hear Scout is closing. I really enjoyed the selection and aesthetic. Best wishes to Erin & Karen on their next adventure!
Sad. Anyone know what the future holds for Wall of Sound?
Probably off to Ballard like everything else.
This neighborhood has seen so many changes since I first saw the area nearly fifty years ago; more or less a forgotten place, in between one era and another.
Funky, very Seattle, very much Capitol Hill when that meant so many different things than what residents or visitors see today. I assumed (falsely) that this particular section of Pine wouldn’t face demolition but then I also never expected to see upper Pine/Pike/Union turn into what they are today. Growth has a downside, even when development is more or less managed. I never shopped at Scout–knew where the business is or was, remember other businesses which once existed along the block. Old, funky, real shabby chic are vanishing from the Hill.
Does any one know what La Frock’s plans are? This is one of the best secondhand vintage stores around. Will follow if and/or when they move/reopen.
[…] side of Melrose Market, another big project — this one eight stories and not red — prepares to dig in later this […]