(Image: CHS)

The masonry facade of a 122-year-old Capitol Hill commercial building home to a new self-service pottery studio crumbled Wednesday night following weeks of icy then extremely wet weather.

Seattle Police and Seattle Fire were sent to the scene at 19th Ave E and E Aloha around 7:30 PM Wednesday after a caller inside the building reported the crumbling wall had tumbled its blue-painted bricks onto the sidewalk. Emergency tape was strung up to cordon off the area after Seattle Fire reported the integrity of the 1900-built structure was sound.

There were no reported injuries.

(Image: CHS)

The building long home to hair and beauty salons catty-corner to St. Joseph’s recently became home to Seatown Pottery, part of a chain of 24-hour, self-serve pottery workspace that opened this fall and left the windows steamed up and foggy with the heat of a busy studio and ceramic firing as customers worked on holiday gifts and creations.

Seatown said a crew was out Thursday to clean up after the collapse of the blue brick facade and confirm Seattle Fire’s findings. A representative said the hope is that the issue is cosmetic and the building remains safe but the studio is closed out of caution until the inspection is complete.

City records for the new business on the edge of the residential areas surrounding 19th Ave E, meanwhile, show the address is also subject to a city inspection over a zoning complaint from a nearby resident over environmental concerns about the studio’s kiln and glazing. That complaint filed this fall as the studio was planning its opening remains “under investigation” according to the city.

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