SEATTLE — The West Seattle Bridge reopened in September after more than two years of being closed to drivers for repairs.
Many West Seattle business owners hoped the Sept. 18 reopening would draw in new waves of customers.
Business owners like, Philp Sudore, who owns The Spot, an eclectic restaurant on Avalon Way in the shadow of the bridge.
Sudore signed the lease for the building on Feb. 20, 2020.
“The running joke is, I probably signed the seventh seal of the apocalypse on that day because literally two weeks later COVID hit," Sudore said. "Then as we all know, maybe a month after that the bridge was closed."
When COVID-19 and the bridge shut down isolated West Seattle from the rest of the city, Sudore, a musician himself, started hosting live music and open mic nights. The community came through.
“The community support here has been amazing," Sudore said. "I think it’s a big integral part of what got us through having the bridge shut down."
With word that the bridge would officially reopen came the hope of new customers and higher profit margins.
“We were like, 'the bridge is opening,' (and) we’re hoping for this huge wave of activity," Sudore said. "It hasn't but I can see an uptick."
The West Seattle Junction Association noticed a similar trend.
“I kind of expected this flood of Seattle to come over to West Seattle but I don’t think we noticed it because so much of West Seattle left for Seattle," said Chris Mackay, Executive Director of the West Seattle Junction Association. "So, I think the wave kind of evened out."
The Junction Association sold “Reunited” t-shirts to celebrate the bridge reopening.
The proceeds from those sales are split between the Junction Association and Chamber of Commerce. The funds will go towards events to help draw people into West Seattle.
“Because that really benefits all of West Seattle," Mackay said. "We want to encourage people to continually come back to West Seattle."
Sudore hopes West Seattle becomes "the spot" for all of Seattle to enjoy and rediscover.
“In the last year or so there’s been a lot of really cool things that have opened up," Sudore said. "There’s a lot of live music and places and great food and great restaurants and great bars, so it’s worth the now ten minutes to come across the bridge and check it out."
Mackay said very few businesses in the neighborhood closed for good even with the double whammy of COVID shutdowns and the bridge being closed.
She credited the community for stepping up and supporting their local merchants.