BIZNOTE: Change on the way for another Admiral Junction corner

Two corners of Admiral/California have vacancies – and now we’ve learned that change is on the way for a third. After reader tips, we’ve confirmed with Cori Luckenbach that she’s planning to close Bebop Waffle Shop at year’s end, after a decade. But the intersection’s southeast corner is not going dark – she plans a reinvention:

There IS a silver lining. The flower shop is moving to all-online ordering and they will be moving out of the space (sometime next year). I plan on taking over the entire space and converting it into an event space. Which I have experience with from running South Park Hall. In January I’ll be selling a bunch of our furniture and equipment then beginning the remodel. For me pivoting to an event space will support the local restaurants that want to offer catering and also have space for people to come together with events that I’ll curate and a space for people to rent.

Since our email exchange, Cori has published this official announcement, including:

MANY people are asking how to support me during this transition and all I ask is come TIP my staff, pay in CASH, tip in CASH, buy all our merch, lobby for tax breaks for small businesses, AND BOOK the space when we open.

Before rebranding as Bebop, Cori’s shop in the front of the corner space shared with Flower Lab was the Admiral Bird coffee shop.

Jason November 11, 2024 (11:50 am)

Any chance this can be redeveloped into housing? This isn’t historically significant building or anything as it was a post-earthquake build if I recall correctly… Would be nice to kickstart that One Seattle zoning and beef up some housing and prime ground level retail here…

WSB November 11, 2024 (7:41 pm)

It’s not changing owners (unlike the northeast and southwest corners).

ACG November 11, 2024 (12:06 pm)

Awww, shucks. We love bebop! Any chance we could get your recipe for the lemon curd? It’s so good! Will miss the yummy waffles and will be in to enjoy them while we can! Best wishes on the new business adventure!

Carson November 11, 2024 (1:08 pm)

And prior to all this Cori was also the reason we fell in love with Circa. She greeted everyone like family.

Me mama November 11, 2024 (2:35 pm)

Ugh. That intersection is struggling. Not sure how good that will be as an event space – no parking. Good luck though!

walkerws November 11, 2024 (2:57 pm)

It’s in a walkable neighborhood. Parking is for chumps.
- Rosemary November 11, 2024 (4:27 pm)
  
  My mother taught me not to name call!Not everyone has the privilege of living in the Admiral District to walk to all the awesome businesses. Just came up from Tacoma to go to the historic Admiral Theatre. Struggled to find parking but that tells me my old neighborhood is doing great! I’ll miss the Bebob but pleased to hear about a future event gathering space finally in the neighborhood! And side note, many thanks to the one staff person at the Theatre today! Selling tickets and shoveling popcorn at the same time is a talent!Three cheers for the Admiral District!
- WS Urbanist November 11, 2024 (4:33 pm)
  
  Extremely walkable! My partner and I regularly walk to Bebop from Alaska Junction. We’re so so sad to see this place go. They were good about avoiding gluten cross contamination :/
  - West Marge November 12, 2024 (4:56 am)
    
    It must be great to have a body that allows you to walk everywhere! Ableism at its finest
    - Platypus November 12, 2024 (9:19 am)
      
      The 124 bus would happily take anyone from the Alaska Junction to the Admiral Junction in no time, and wheelchair/disability accessible.
    - Karhy November 12, 2024 (10:09 am)
      
      I think you mean 128 & 150 bus plus 775 shuttle from the other direction. However, to get to those routes you may have to walk a long way on hilly terrain.
    - walkerws November 12, 2024 (11:05 am)
      
      Today I learned that every walkable city in Europe is ableist.
    - K November 12, 2024 (12:23 pm)
      
      Can you please stop using disabled people to prop up pro-car arguments? Curb ramps and wide, well-maintained sidewalks make spaces accessible for those who require mobility aids. Bright colors and talking signals help those with low vision. Blinkng lights are helpful to those with hearing impairments. Just like there are ways to adapt cars to be more accessible to those with a variety of disabilities, there are ways to make sidewalks and neighborhoods accessible as well. Anyone who thinks “walkable” is ableism surely suffers from car addiction and a lack of imagination, but I’m doubtful they’re affected by much more than that.
    - L November 13, 2024 (7:34 am)
      
      Some people with disabilities still try to walk but can’t walk that far. Not everyone with a disability uses adaptive equipment for mobility. Some people may not feel safe using the bus. Parking helps with both environmental and social accessibility. When you have a disability your world can get smaller and everything takes more time. This isn’t an agenda about cars. It is about people.
    - K November 14, 2024 (3:28 am)
      
      I hear and appreciate your perspective, L, but someone who can walk but not that far is the exact person who would benefit from a mobility aid. I’m not saying people should be forced to use them, but at the same time I hope you appreciate how little sense it makes to plan urban infrastructure around a subset if disabled people who prefer not to use the devices designed to help them, and instead prefer to just drive up to everything. The car is not the only answer to that problem, and prioritizing that one solution to the detriment of so many other populations seems wrong. I stand by my earlier statement that walkable areas are not ableist.
    - KM November 12, 2024 (12:48 pm)
      
      It must be great having a body that allow you to drive!

MacJ November 11, 2024 (3:50 pm)

Sad to see the Admiral Junction intersection so bare. The gas station hardly counts for anything, it’s not exactly a community builder.

We’ve loved Bebop since it was Admiral Bird, I’m going to miss the place.

HTB November 11, 2024 (4:34 pm)

It seems counterintuitive that she supports the minimum wags increase, but admits that its why she can’t stay in business. Doesn’t add up.

ACG November 11, 2024 (5:44 pm)

I don’t know if it “doesn’t add up”. I think you can support that concept and want the best for your employees while realizing that your business cannot sustain the reality of it. I think that a lot of small independent restaurants are facing this exact situation. If you have a favorite restaurant/cafe, please go and support them.
Jason November 12, 2024 (1:00 pm)

No one is entitled to a business. Paying the right wages is part of it. You can pick another line of work if you cannot pay.
- Hottake November 12, 2024 (1:42 pm)
  
  For tipped employees including FOH and BOH, they make more than what the minimum wage is currently and will become on January 1st. Most restaurants owners in Seattle are small business owners who aren’t rolling around in profits and pour their heart and soul into their craft. If you ask most tipped employees, they would prefer to keep the system the way it is. Is the tipping system wrong? Yes, but it is what we have. With restaurant profit margins they way they are, expect much more restaurants to close in the future and more people to lose their jobs. Raise prices right? People will go out less, expect sales to go down. It isn’t just the minimum wage increase, payroll taxes, cost of goods, etc. It is a no win situation for small business. I can already imagine your response, that’s business right?

Al King November 11, 2024 (5:01 pm)

HTB. What real world math does add up for small businesses?

West Seattle Mad Sci Guy November 11, 2024 (5:19 pm)

I am not vegan. Their vegan field roast waffle – a cornbread waffle with arugula pickled veggies and aioli – is fantastic

Jethro Marx November 11, 2024 (7:47 pm)

Can confirm this is a mad take for a regular eater.

WSresident November 11, 2024 (11:39 pm)

While I’m all for a living wage, these changes will have a direct impact on many local business’ when the minimum wage increases again. I’ve spoken to several business owners that know it won’t be sustainable. Having a small business in Seattle, even small West Seattle is becoming more and more challenging. Glad to see she’s shifting her focus!

Gaslit November 12, 2024 (10:21 am)

1. This is projected as an event space. It isn’t a stretch to think that means people will be coming to events who live outside the neighborhood. Neighbors’ insistence that people should only walk or bus to the events seems like a way for this person to lose her business.

2. It isn’t the prerogative for commenters on a blog to determine that the space should be used for housing or what the business owner should pay their employees. The minmum wage isn’t unsustainable on its own, it becomes unsustainable to have costs of doing business constantly being altered by local government. The minimum wage is only one factor, but it sounds like a stark one for the business owner.