IHoP next?

The Denny's in Ballard just got historic preservation status last week. It's tough to venerate Googie architecture because it is inherently weird to attribute the same level of value to something meant to be enjoyed at 40 mph in a car. Like the SR-99 Viaduct.

Meanwhile in our neck of the woods, the Shoremont Apartment building down on Alki is about to be torn down in favor of a series of glass and brick mod townhouses. Old isn't historic and new isn't necessarily better.

For centuries, the Ise Shrine in Japan has been torn down and rebuilt exactly, every twenty years. Maybe that's the gold standard--if we cared enough to rebuild a structure, it is a cultural treasure.

Although, since there are plans to rebuild the Viaduct exactly the same.....