The 500 block of East Pine Street, known for bars such as the Cha Cha Lounge and Kincora's, will soon be replaced with a large, mixed-use condominium development.
While the building's imminent demolition will change the character of the street and has not been greeted with enthusiasm, the street has been preserved electronically. "Requiem for a Block," a Web site developed by Capitol Hill resident Vaun Raymond, was launched to serve as a virtual museum for the street as it was prior to redevelopment.
Raymond created the site for a graduate course in digital media. The site includes a large panorama of the block, stitched together from 11 separate digital photos.
By clicking on any of the storefronts in the picture, visitors to the site can "go inside" to view photos and read articles and interviews about each of the unique businesses. The Web site also includes essays about condominium culture and the importance of appreciating (and sometimes preserving) the humbler and seamier things of this world.
Raymond points out that both Pioneer Square and the Pike Place Market were at one time considered eyesores and were threatened with demolition.
The site can be found at http://web.mac.com/vaunraymond/iWeb/Requiem/Home.html.
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