The Good Shepherd Center
Address: 4649 Sunnyside Avenue North
Date Built: 1906
Original Architect/Builder: C. Alfred Breitung.
Description: Fine example of the Italianate style embellished
with Corinthian capitals and elaborate stone work.
Original Owners: Sisters of the Good Shepherd.
Historic Seattle's Role:
The Good Shepherd Center / Photo: Historic Seattle Archives
After providing over 60 years of service to young women seeking
shelter, education, and training, declining numbers of residents
forced the Home of the Good Shepherd to close in 1973. After
the Wallingford community defeated a proposal to turn the 11-acre
site into a shopping center, the City of Seattle bought the
property in 1975 with Forward Thrust and Federal Revenue Sharing
funds and then transferred the buildings to Historic Seattle
for use as a multi-purpose community center. The project is
listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Current and Future Uses:
The property is owned and operated by Historic Seattle and
the center currently houses nonprofit organizations and schools
including the Meridian School, Neo Art School, the Wallingford
Senior Center, the Wallingford Community Council, and Seattle
Tilth.
Historic Seattle added six live/work units for artists in
early 2002. Ranging in size from 580 sq.feet to 650 sq. feet,
the artist studios are located on the top floor, once used
for the school's dance classes and costume storage. The artist
residents are a diverse group and bring a lot of creativity
and enthusiasm to the Good Shepherd Center community.
Find out more about the Artist Housing Project.
The Good Shepherd Center / Photo: Marissa Natkin
The former chapel on the upper floors of the Good Shepherd Center was
converted to a performance/assembly space in winter of 2006 and is currently an
active music and performance venue. NonSequitur, a new music non-profit, partnering with Historic Seattle, handles all scheduling and bookings. Accessible by elevator, this beautiful, two-story
space features wooden floors, columns, and a permanent stepped
platform at one end of the room. There is also the possibility
of permanent office space adjacent to the new space.
The Good Shepherd Center gained Offical City of Seattle Landmark
status on September 10, 1984 (Ord. # 111882).