Slowly but inexorably, the pieces for what the city of Auburn hopes will remake its downtown into an economic powerhouse and entertainment magnet are falling into place.
The latest piece started to drop Monday evening, Oct. 21, when the Auburn City Council authorized Mayor Nancy Backus to execute a purchase-and-sale agreement with 125 East Main LLC for the commercial property it owns at 125 East Main in downtown Auburn.
That property, widely known as the Comic Book Store, and the former Max House Apartments property to its immediate west, play all-important roles in plans the city has announced not only to replace the adjacent Auburn Avenue Theater and create a theater district on the sites, but also to remold the city’s downtown into an economic and entertainment magnet.
The old Comic Book Store suffered severe damage in the July 2021 fire that destroyed the Max House and assorted businesses on its first floor, and subsequent demolition of the Max House mortally damaged the Auburn Avenue Theater. The city is now razing the old theater to make way for the new one.
The city will demolish this pending purchase and develop a park there to serve the reconstructed Auburn Avenue Theater, the Postmark Center for the Arts, and downtown businesses and residents.
No city money was used in this effort. King County reimbursed Auburn via a King County Conservation Futures Grant, for the purchase and demolition of the building for up to $950,000.
“The city’s plan to purchase and add this property to the Auburn Avenue Theater redevelopment will help turn what had been a heart-breaking event into something that will bring entertainment and joy to Auburn for years to come,” said Councilmember Clinton Taylor before the council’s unanimous vote.
Here’s how the old Comic Book Store factors into the city’s plans to redevelop its downtown.
In 2006, the city began leasing the Auburn Avenue Theater at 10 Auburn Avenue. In 2020, it bought the building outright and began hosting performances there. In 2016, the city bought from King County the former King County Health Building to the immediate north of the theater at 20 Auburn Avenue. The city later redeveloped that building into the Postmark Center for the Arts to operate as an artistic hub for Auburn and surrounding communities. And in 2022, the city purchased the vacant lot where the Max House one stood.
These property purchases are intended to create and maintain a theater district that would provide entertainment and have long-lasting economic impact on the city and its downtown. Indeed, the demolition of the old theater got underway this month, making way for the new Auburn Avenue Theater that will rise where it stood and on the two sites mentioned above.
