Autonomia, a non-profit radical social center at 24th and Lane, has closed after relations with some neighbors frayed and the city stepped in to shut down it’s allegedly unpermitted parties.
The collective behind Autonomia has not yet released a statement on the house’s closure, and we have contacted the house to learn more.
The Department of Planning and Development cited Autonomia in June for operating as a nightclub, which is not a permitted use for the space. It was only permitted to be a market or residential apartments. Jonah at Publicola reports that DPD never received requests for such permits after the space was cited for violations.
An anonymous story in Issue 6 of Tides of Flame, a self-described anarchist paper in Seattle, mourns the loss of the house and has some choice words for the neighbors of Autonomia (the full story has also been posted on the Puget Sound Anarchists website):
Thanks to its rich, whiny neighbors, the Autonomia Social Center at 600 24th Ave S. in the Central District is closing after only 9 months. Evidently this mighty little bastion of freedom was too much for these assholes, who could not abide a bit of street-life on an otherwise empty corner. A little music a few nights per week and a well-tended sidewalk garden? Not for these gentrifying scum-bags.
…
Anyway, thanks to these party-pooping shitheads, the Department of Planning and Development put a stop to the music, thus starving Autonomia of potential income. Neighbors like these are the types that regularly attend community meetings with police, slobbering on their handcuffs and offering tips on which neighborhood kids they think possibly maybe could be selling drugs on the corner based on their, you know, manner of dress and slang and stuff. They cringe at graffiti and all other signs of disorder. They use their money and their friendly relationships with cops to sanitize their surroundings. You know, “those” kind of people.
“They use their money and their friendly relationships with cops to sanitize their surroundings.”
Sounds like an appropriate use of money and cops to me!?!
“anal-retentive, control-freak yuppies”
Sounds like a good disposition for dealing with a dense, diversely populated urban environment
“that is bound to erupt into riots within the next few years.”
Sorry little white anarchist… that ain’t happ’nen… As the black gentrifier dog walking by “Gidden’s Church” daily, let me report to you that those days have passed…
“disused building near you”
It wasn’t!
You people weren’t of or about the neighborhood. Any functioning organism rejects foreign bodies… that’s what you were, that’s what you remained, and that’s why you’re gone.
“Rich, whiny neighbors”??? Where? Sounds like they have no idea in which neighborhood they were living. And when you interfere with the sleep of those neighbors, many of whom work 2 jobs, you are bound to run into trouble. Good riddance, I say!
People with 2 jobs are responsible for the high level of unemployment (jk)
One of the neighbors who led the campaign against Autonomia is a very well paid Amazon employee with a very neurotic wife–who called the police because in her fevered imaginings he was being attacked by Autonomia members, when in reality they were having a civilized discussion. Since the house that led the campaign against Autonomia was only purchased in April 2007 (for a mere $760,000!), claims of established neighbors are a little dubious in this particular case, and claims of rich yuppie neighbors seem to carry weight.
There is definitely an element of law-and-order neurosis here. The woman in the abovementioned house has spreadsheets in which she track the minutiae of the activities of the kids who hang out at the convenience store across the street. Her neighborhood watch friends waste police time by calling 911 every time they find a cute little drug bag outside their house, and get laughed at by the police when they try to hand this “evidence” in (all this information was gleaned by attending a local police-community liaison meeting). This is the kind of people we are talking about – scared, petty souls obsessed with controlling every detail of their lives.
You can use the king county parcel viewer http://info.kingcounty.gov/Assessor/eRealProperty/Detail.asp to check this information (24th ave s and s lane st). The house in question is diagonally opposite Autonomia.
Other people leading the campaign against Autonomia included the assistant manager of a fast food restaurant, an underpaid security guard, a tattoo artist, and a coat-check girl at a local nightclub… all of whom pay rent and do not own a home, but have lived in the neighborhood for years. If you’re going to lambast two of the many neighbors, at least be honest and go for the median income level… which will definitely fall in the lower-middle class range.Your descriptions of our Neighborhood Watch are ridiculous. Any idiot can see that you’re stretching the truth to ridiculous lengths. How do you type this shit out without being embarrassed by yourself?
Bingo.
And looking at the mission statement of their website, it would SEEM they support the very action the community around them took:
“We support and encourage the concept of community self-control and autonomy…”
“We believe in mutual aid, solidarity, and direct democracy. We exist to support movements that organize along these guidelines.”
Be careful what you wish for, I guess.
Isn’t it funny how these snotty little white kids (half of whom are probably trust fund babies) love to hang out in urban, tolerant cities like Seattle, San Francisco, or East Village NY all acting tough with their “chaos” and love of “disorder” and shit? Why don’t you take your “rage against the machine-down with the man” bullshit to Alabama or Spokane or some place where you can make a difference? Probably because the rednecks out there would pretty much eat you for breakfast.
Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Sniffle. Sniffle.
Ahhh that was Rosie Taylors old house. I did not know she sold it and moved. Glad she got a good price. Be glad it wasn’t Rosie and her husband (both African American) they would have not waited around for the police or DPD. They would have ripped of your heads and shit down your necks, he was an ex-marine and both were community leaders. I wish them well!!!!
Funny thing about these “anarchists” – I can’t tell the khaki wearing masses apart but you guys all look exactly alike.
They will NOT be missed!!! Now we just need that crack house on Judkins to disappear!
Ya, everyone that wants a safe, quiet neighborhood should be ostracized and removed. Automania sounds so safe and tolerant.
Your post shows your disconnect to the neighborhood and the people who are the neighbors of now defunct Autonomia. Others on the block, including myself, complained to the city and police without the prompting of the neighbors that you say “led the campaign.” These complaints had nothing to do with politics or economics. These complaints were focused on disrespect for neighbors, property, and safety.
I agree with another poster that pointed out that it seems that those at Autonomia should have supported the neighbors (or at least respected) for voicing their opinions taking action. I guess it’s just a conflict that the city and police were involved. Autonomia supporters would have maybe preferred that the neighbors stormed the building, took captives, and knocked the building down.
I am not sure why people that supported Autonomia choose to focus on the economic status of people in the neighborhood. I am one of the people that could afford to live elsewhere, but choose to live in the CD. People of all income levels live on the block, and I think get along and enjoy eachother. It’s a great diverse urban neighborhood full of good people. While there are things that could change that would improve life in the neighborhood, it’s not that bad. Seattle is such a low crime and safe city that the CD just looks bad when compared to other local neighborhoods. The stuff that happens here is nothing in comparison to many cities.
Good riddance, get those dbags outta here. Who needs em.
When you’re all about anarchy and no authority, I suppose it’s no surprise not one of you snot-nosed little punks could muster up the wherewithal to request the proper permits once you’d been cited repeatedly. “…the Department of Planning and Development put a stop to the music, thus starving Autonomia of potential income.” Really? Sounds like you did that to yourselves by none of you stepping up to that minimal task. What’s the matter, not consistent with anarchy to fill out a form? OK, well, you’re consistent, I’ll give you that.
Buh bye.
But I guess it’s only legitimate rebellion if its the Autonomaniacs doing the rebelling. What a bunch of hypocrites! Can’t they appreciate a little dissent?
What crack house?
Hey SarntLee isnt saying they are all white racist? I am sure there are other types of people that are anarchists as well but all we should care about is ones personality and if they are affecting other people is all im sayin.
As much as I dont cry seeing people like these kicked out I must say I would rather have these people here than the aforementioned crack houses, gangbanger refuges, etc. in the CD.
“We support and encourage the concept of community self-control and autonomy…””
Just as long as said autonomy means they get to do what they like with no regard to the wishes/feelings/rights of anyone else.
Extreme groups at both ends of the political spectrum seek to exert enormous control and will lash out at anything that disagrees with their” gospel” of social reform/control/what have you.
“Anarchists” are reallly fun because they expect others to pay for their fun and to fall in line with their “new world order” or else. Only way to tell them fromt he far right wing is they smell bad and dress worse than extreme Republicans.
Exactly. They didn’t bother to know their neighbors AT ALL if they think the heart of the combat zone = rich neighbors. Good riddance. I need my frickin sleep to work my grave shift, you self-centered asses.
I live 1 block from Autonomia. I don’t know ANYONE who has a house of anywhere near the value you allege. Your noise, graffiti and general rudeness is what got you run out of a neighborhood where people notoriously won’t call the cops even if their own house is on fire. Buzz off, you upper class children of the rich masquerading as social activists. Get off mom’s dime and get a job, rude jerks. Those of us who work are trying to sleep.
suggestions:
move anarvhist meetings to the starbucks on 23 rd. cozy chairs, free tefills on coffee with sbux card, and lovely pink donuts
anarchist ipad app to stay in touch and post rambling manifestios from comfort of sbux
host your fundraising parties at UW HUsky tailgates…easier to bring booze and be loud, and wider array of potential new members. better view of lake and goodlooking husky fans.
I never got the chance to throw a brick through their window, and spraypaint “How does it feel?” on their building.
xx,
I don’t have a dog in this fight, as that’s not my neck of the woods, but to be fair, the purchase price Matt cited is not an allegation. It’s a matter of public record to which he linked. One could argue that the owners overpaid, and it seems reasonable, based on recent events, that said owners might concur, but Matt’s right about the price.
Matt–I didn’t know that buying a $760,000 house these days in a major US city made a person rich. Who should own that house? I guess the past owners should have abandoned the home for squatters to inhabit and become homeless rather than probably making a nice profit on a house they owned for years. Thank God people that can afford to pay $700k for a home and maintain it choose to live in the CD.
And as far as established neighbors, by the records you provided, they have lived there 4+ years. At what point does a person become “established?” Autonomia moved in less than a year ago. Sounds like they were the unestablished.
Nouveau Riche,
A $760,000 house these days in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metropolitan area, according to the National Association of REALTORS, is very nearly 2 2/3 X the median sales price ($287,200) of existing single-family homes. While I agree that buying such a house may not make a person rich, it surely implies that they are, or were when they were approved for their loan, very likely living comfortably.
http://www.realtor.org/wps/wcm/connect/41c2648047e600e7adb7e
Well, the Tides of Flame article evidently did its job… pissing off assholes.
Ya gotta act fast Karl. Don’t miss out next time. Go throw a brick through that drug dealer store at 23rd and Dearborn. If we all through a brick at that place we could improve the hood by 6%.