PORT TOWNSEND — Less than one year after the Undertown closed as a subterranean coffee bar, the space has been filled with four new retail stores.
“It’s a terrific mix,” said Port Townsend Main Street Executive Director Mari Mullen.
“They complement each other and are all owned by imaginative, hard-working entrepreneurs.
“People are intrigued about going down the stairs to discover them.”
The Undertown, which closed on Jan. 1, occupied four rooms of about 1,000 square feet each. The food service was in one room while the other three served as seating and meeting areas.
The space is in the basement of the Mount Baker Block Building and is accessible through a staircase at the corner of Water and Taylor streets.
The building’s owners subdivided the space to make each room a separate business.
The Red Raven Gallery and the Candle Store, were the first to open in the new location over the summer, followed by the Frame Shop on Nov. 1.
The last piece was provided by Quimper Sound, which opened for business Friday.
All four shops relocated from other downtown locations.
“We have four great shops and have created a unique part of town with a nice vibe and have all remodeled the spaces to make them warm and inviting,” said Quimper Sound owner Mark Haring.
Candle Shop owner Ruthy Marlow, the first tenant, is pleased the space is now at full capacity.
“These shops all provide things that are good for the soul,” Marlow said.
“Art, candles and music are all good for people who need comfort in their lives.”
Frame Shop owner Megan Foley moved from 118 Taylor St., where she was the only building on that block.
“I have more space and have become more efficient,” said Foley, who doesn’t have any employees and runs the business on her own.
“It’s a more inviting space than what I had before.”
Haring has about half the space he had in his previous location at 230 Taylor St., but it provides a warmer and more hospitable place to display vinyl albums, which now make up the majority of his business, he said.
Quimper closed on Nov. 1 and it took a little more than two weeks to clean out the space.
As soon as that was accomplished, the Broken Spoke, a bicycle sales and repair shop, took over that location, moving from its location at 835 Water St.
The Taylor Street space is an improvement for the bike store as it has about twice the space as the old location and is more accessible, according to shop manager Jacob Freese.
“It’s bigger, sunnier, more inviting and warmer,” Freese said.
“We also have much better foot traffic than on Water Street.”
The bike shop moved into the new location Monday. It took four days to take down Quimper’s sign and put up the bike shop’s.
While Red Raven and The Frame Shop have expanded their space, the other two stores had to shrink which, according to Marlow, isn’t a bad thing.
“It’s smaller but it’s wider, which a lot of people have told me they prefer,” she said.
“They like the energy and don’t feel so cloistered and feel like they can turn around without feeling like they are going to bump into something.
“Both Mark and I came from stores with high ceilings that had an open feel but I think this is an improvement for both of us because having a lower ceiling draws more attention to your products.”
Mullen said she expected the newly installed Undertown merchants to make a big splash at the next Port Townsend Art Walk, which begins at 5 p.m. on Dec. 7.
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Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
