By SUSAN RIEMER
Staff Writer

The members of Granny’s Attic voted on Monday to move the thrift store into Vashon town.

Susan Chun, the president of the Granny’s Attic board, said that 62 members attended the meeting, and 45 voted in favor of the move to the Vashon Market IGA shopping center, and 17 voted against it.

Tim Johnson, the business manager of Granny’s said he is pleased with the outcome.

“My first feeling is that I am so happy that a lot of our members turned out, and that the majority was by a large proportion, not one or two votes,” he said.

Noting that the vote was far from unanimous, Johnson said he had not expected it to be.

“There were a number of people who very simply and reasonably love being there (Sunrise Ridge) and do not want to move,” he said. “How could I do anything but respect that?”

The plan now is for Johnson to negotiate a lease with Shawn Hoffman, who owns the IGA shopping center. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Johnson said, the store will move there next winter.

Granny’s lease goes until June, Chun said, and if the store moves before that, it will buy out its lease from the Sunrise Ridge board.

In another vote on Monday, the members elected not to provide funds to fix the parking lot at Sunrise Ridge, which has several potholes and continual erosion problems. Prior to its decision to move, Granny’s had been in negotiations with the Sunrise Ridge board about sharing the expenses to repave the parking lot this summer. While members voted not to provide funds to fully fix the problem, many members said they would like to provide some funds to fill in the potholes, Chun said. She added she will be in touch with the Sunrise board about this issue.

Reached Monday, Hoffman said that because nothing has been finalized, he does not want to say much about the potential move, though he noted it would have some definite benefits.

“It would mean a lot for this part of town, and our town and our shopping center especially,” he said.

The spaces that Granny’s Attic is looking to rent are the empty portion of the former Island Variety Store; the batting cages, which are not visible from the parking lot, and the space the library recently vacated.

The news that Granny’s was considering a move came to light recently, after the board recommended the move, which they say will provide more storage and retail space, make the store more accessible and allow the members to focus their efforts on funding health care initiatives rather than on shoring up the ailing Sunrise Ridge facility.

Other members, however, wanted to remain at Sunrise Ridge, which belongs to the community and houses only nonprofit organizations.