For Michael Wells, getting involved is about staying home
In some respects, Michael Wells can serve as a poster child for the quintessential urban existence. The owner of Broadway's Bailey/Coy Books, Wells lives a mere block from his store, doesn't drive and freely admits he rarely leaves Capitol Hill.
But his is more than just a strong physical bond with the city's most densely populated neighborhood. For the last several years, Wells has been deeply involved in business and community groups, enough so that he's become a recognizable figure in City Hall as well as on Broadway. With all the changes coming to Broadway, from redevelopment to Sound Transit's light-rail station, Wells is one the people who is working long hours to ensure that Capitol Hill remains Capitol Hill.
His path to Broadway was by no means certain. Born in raised in Normal, Ill., Wells moved to Seattle in 1989 after finishing college at the University of Iowa with degrees in English and theater. He knew he wanted to leave the Midwest, knew he'd end up on either coast. He made a quick decision.
"My choice was either New York or Seattle, and I chose Seattle mostly because most of my friends were moving to New York and I wanted to start fresh," he said.
Apart from his first three months when he lived with a friend in Fremont, Wells has always lived, and always worked, on Capitol Hill. From the beginning, he appreciated the Hill's eccentricity - its acceptance of the gay and lesbian community, the mix of people who give the neighborhood its character, the sense of life and activity.
"Not only was the Hill welcoming as a gay man, it was welcoming to the entire spectrum of eccentricity. And that was something I really appreciated. I wasn't just eccentric just because I was gay, I was eccentric because I was a character, and Capitol Hill likes characters," Wells said.
The seeds for his long, emotional neighborhood connection were sown during his first night in town.
"That first night my friend said 'let's go to Broadway.' I was wearing a green mohair sweater - very Nirvana, though I had no idea who Nirvana was at the time. We walked up and down Broadway and I thought, wow, this place is hopping," he said.
He walked into Bailey/Coy books that night. Patsy Cline was playing in the background. And Wells was hooked. His first job, at age 17, had been at a bookstore. He worked in bookstores throughout college. A bookstore job in Seattle was not really a major stretch.
"I honestly thought, that first night, that this was the place where I wanted to work," he said. Three months later he was hired, working nights and weekends behind the counter for 10 years before becoming the manager. It became more than a job. Bailey/Coy is a bona fide Capitol Hill institution. Wells found he fit right in, enough so that when owner Barbara Bailey began having an eye on retirement she announced she intended to sell the store to him. The process took several years, but in early 2003, Bailey/Coy Books because his.
Wells' challenge as a small business owner has been to preserve a well-loved business while adapting it to Broadway's, and the bookselling industry's, changing realities. The store established itself during a time when it was practically unheard of for a general bookstore to carry a large amount of gay and lesbian literature, but now such sections are typical in all bookstores. The business faces the considerable pressures from the likes of Amazon.com and warehouse stores like Barnes and Noble and Borders. He said he works to make changes without making Bailey/Coy into a different place. Customer loyalty, earned over the 30 years of the store's existence, is essential.
OWNERSHIP
While a fixture on Broadway for many years, Wells' considerable involvement as a business and community activist came as a result of his becoming a small business owner. His indoctrination to community group participation came during a challenging time for Broadway in general and the Broadway Business Improvement Association (BIA) in particular. Wells joined the BIA board at the time when its dire financial situation led to the city's pulling the plug on all but its most basic responsibilities. It was an organization in crises, and, for Wells, trial by fire.
"Being invested in your community is a part of doing business," he said. "You have to get in there and do the work that needs to be done for the neighborhood, for yourself and the people you care about. It's rewarding and leaves you with some self respect at the end of the day."
The first order of business for the BIA was helping that group rise from the ashes, so to speak. The organization had to rebuild its relationship with the city.
"At the same time Broadway was really struggling. Shoppers were leaving for Downtown or the University Village. Sound Transit was coming, at some point. Businesses weren't renewing their leases because of the uncertainty over light rail, and new businesses were hesitant to come here," he said.
It took time, but the BIA righted itself and got back in the city's good graces in time to be an advocate for the Broadway rezone, which raised the allowable building height on the street from 40 to 65 feet two years ago. Wells, and the BIA, was an early advocate of the change. Such involvement with the city, and the city's willingness to pay attention to Broadway, led to last year's Broadway Action Agenda, a document that serves as a guide to improving Broadway's overall economic health. Wells served as a co-chair of the group that created the plan. Such involvement found him leading well-attended public meetings and, in effect, become a recognizable face of a community group. When Seattle Mayor Greg Nickles announced significant city funding for Broadway's efforts, he did so at Bailey/Coy Books.
One highly touted element from the Action Agenda was the creation of a new Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce. Since formed, Wells has become the president of the chamber while remaining the chair of the Broadway BIA.
"As if I didn't have enough to do," he laughed.
But Wells is aware that along with the full-time responsibilities of running a small business, the prospect for burnout or community overload is high. Also, he's seen other community activists become the face and heart of an organization and is conscious of not wanting it to happen with him and the BIA or chamber.
"I'll stay involved, of course, but I'll step down from the leadership positions when the terms expire," he said. "This is something I worry about. When an organization becomes subject to only one 's voice it doesn't grow or change. The chamber needs a multiplicity of voices and shouldn't get too focused on one personality. One of the things the chamber is trying to do is bring in more bodies."
Wells firmly believes Broadway's health is better than it was four or five years ago. Urban problems still exist - if they didn't, we'd live in suburbia - but he thinks there are fewer public inebriates, fewer homeless youths and not as many drug incidents than there used to be. As well, he thinks that Capitol Hill community voices carry more weight and legitimacy with the city and with developers.
"Developers are aware that this neighborhood wants to take care of itself and is invested in making sure we get the best living circumstances we can. We love Capitol Hill, and no one is going to come here and trash it without getting an earful," he said.
As evidence of the chamber's growing voice, Wells points to a recent Sound Transit forum at Seattle Central Community College. The chamber, along with the Capitol Hill Stewardship Council, played to host to the transit agency's first visit to the Hill in well over a year. More than 120 people attended. If the message that the Hill doesn't care about what happens up here wasn't sent, Sound Transit wasn't paying attention.
Wells said this moment on the Hill is especially crucial:
"What's going on now will really affect the next 100 years in this neighborhoods. Sound Transit, home prices, affordable housing. These are big questions. Not just what's going on in the next six months, but things that will deeply affect the history and future of this neighborhood. It's important that people get as engaged as possible right now."
CHANGING HOME
After 11 years in an apartment one block from Broadway, Wells recently received word that his building was going condo. Very fortunately, he was able to find another apartment nearby. He notes the irony regarding his residential fate. Wearing his BIA hat, he'd strongly advocated for the rezoning that makes condo conversions on the Hill more likely.
"I guess it's a bit of karmic payback," he said without evident malice. "Lot's of people can afford to buy up here, which is good for the district even if I'll never be able to buy one of those condos."
While firmly rooted after nearly 20 years on Broadway, Wells deep connection to his neighborhood was not part of some master plan or a set of expectations. While sitting in Bailey/Coy's back office ordering this year's Christmas cards, he acknowledges that the Midwest was never the most welcoming place for him. But Capitol Hill has always been deeply welcoming.
"I had no idea the west coast would be my home," he said. "I assumed I'd stay a Midwestern boy or end up on the east coast. Purely by accident I end up at this spot, in this place. And it turned out to be the right place."
He notes that he spends virtually his entire life within a few blocks of Bailey/Coy Books. Which is fine by him - Wells doesn't really enjoy spending long periods of time away from Capitol Hill.
"I do feel separated when I'm out of the neighborhood or when I've gone to another town," he said. "As soon as I turn on Olive Way I go 'ah!' and breathe a sigh of relief because I know I'm back home."
Doug Schwartz is the editor of the Capitol Hill Times. Reach him at editor@capitolhilltimes.com or 461-1308.
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