Seattle artist Kathleen Warren rolled a layer of bright green paint onto a piece of black plywood that covered an empty storefront at the intersection of 3rd Avenue and Pike Street in downtown Seattle. And it didn't take long for someone to float a compliment her way.
"Thanks for making it pretty," Bill Richardson said to Warren while on his way to a bus stop.
"Thank you for saying thank you," Warren replied.
"Boy, it's been black for so long," Richardson said, referring to the boarded up storefront.
Warren and her business partners at Overall Creative painted bright blue, green and pink murals of sea creatures, and forest flowers and leaves at this intersection and one block south, at 3rd Avenue and Pine Street. She said the response from people passing by while she worked was mostly positive.
"We've had a lot of gratitude given to us from the people who live downtown, who are just like, it's really nice to see investment coming back to this area," she said. "Because it was such a challenging time after COVID happened. So I think there's, like, some pride that's coming out of it."
After the start of the pandemic, businesses in this area vacated storefronts, which became targets for graffiti and the sidewalks became sites for open drug use. These problems persist today.
The murals Warren helped paint are part of an effort to attract more people to the area and make the sidewalks and empty storefronts in Seattle's downtown core more inviting ahead of major events, such as the FIFA World Cup. As part of that effort, the city last year strung lights over 3rd Avenue between Stewart and Pine streets.
The Downtown Seattle Association partnered with the city of Seattle, King County Metro and business owners on the murals.
Jennifer Casillas, vice president of public realm and ambassador operations at the downtown nonprofit, said the goal with these murals is to change people's perception of the area.
"These types of actions that we do demonstrate that people care about these spaces," she said. "That we're in it for the long haul, and that the more positivity that comes into these spaces, the better for everyone — tourists, residents, workers alike."
Casillas said successful murals give passersby something interesting to look at and could help brighten up a person's day.
"It does deter — sometimes — graffiti and tagging, and it also just brings a little bit of joy and surprise and delight when you're walking down the street and you see something a little unexpected," she said.
According to the Downtown Seattle Association, foot traffic in the area is nearly back to pre-pandemic levels. In March, more than 2.5 million people visited downtown, which is 92% of the visitors seen in March 2019.
The artwork has already made an impression on some people. Seattleite Tanay Warren frequents the area and said she thinks a pop of color can turn things around.
"So, just seeing art and stuff, it heightens the spirits. You know, just like something simple like that can go a long way with what people want to do. When you feel good, you do good things," Warren said.
City officials hope the murals make others feel the same as Warren.
