After a nearly 25 year preservation effort, the First United Methodist Church sanctuary building was saved from the demolition ball in March of 2008 when Daniels Real Estate and its financial partners, Stockbridge Fund II, purchased the building from the congregation.

After a deconsecration ceremony on Easter Sunday 2008, the congregation moved into the Belltown neighborhood, where its new church was built at 2nd & Denny.

The preservation battle gained national attention because it pitted the public’s right to control zoning over a religious institution’s right to freely practice religion.  In a 5-4 vote, the Washington state Supreme Court ruled in favor of the congregation, and allowed for the demolition of the building without city landmark protection.  After years of negotiation, an agreement to save the building and construct a new facility for the congregation was reached in 2007.

The original intention for the property by the congregation was to demolish the sanctuary building and build a 34 story high rise on the half block parcel.  After purchase by Daniels Real Estate, the plans for the property included the development of a new architecturally stunning high rise building that retains and compliments the historic sanctuary building.

In 2009, Mark Andersen was appointed as Artist in Residence, and was asked to provide a free noontime concert music series, with performances each month in the sanctuary.  More than 57 noontime concerts were presented over 6 years, and many other evening concerts and events were also booked in the Hall.  Many of these concerts were filmed and aired on the local television show Crescendo! by International Artists Foundation.  The television program, still airs from New York State, first aired on SCANTV, and now on Seattle Community Media (SCM) at North Seattle Community College (Comcast 77).  Crescendo! still airs across the country on Time Warner Cable.  These concerts continued until December 2014, when preparation for reconstruction of the Recital Hall in 2015 began.  The final concert before reconstruction was held December 16, 2014.

Daniels Recital Hall is now The Sanctuary Lotte Hotels.

811 5th Avenue, Seattle, WA 98104

206.800.8119

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