For years, the old Veterans of Foreign Wars’ lodge tucked into the woods just north of Burton was at the heart of Vashon’s civic life — a gathering spot for concerts, banquets, weddings, auctions and other community events.
Now, after months on the market and an uncertain future, the weather-beaten building constructed by Island veterans nearly 40 years ago appears it will once again reclaim its vibrant spot in the community.
Phillip Bevis and Derek Smith purchased the sprawling building in February for $375,000. For the last several months, they’ve been hard at work, getting it ready for what they hope is its second lease on life.
“Every square inch of the building needs some love,” Bevis said recently, as he welcomed a visitor to the space.
The exterior of the building boasts a fresh coat of slate blue paint, and goats from Rent-a-Ruminant have cleared away much of the brush and blackberry bushes that used to surround the building. And just inside the front door, the floor of the main hall has been polished and sanded to a honey-colored gleam. But the most striking difference in the space is that bookcases, filled with hundreds of rare and speciality books, now stretch from floor to ceiling along every wall of the main space.
“As far as we know, we’re the only event space in the country with a decorative theme of books,” Bevis said.
The theme is more than appropriate, because Bevis and Smith are the owners of an online bookshop, Vashon Island Books, and the directors of a fledgling nonprofit organization, The Center for Sustainable Book Arts. They also print and publish speciality books, from poetry chapbooks to multi-volume art portfolios.
Smith said the 6,000-
square-foot building at the corner of Vashon Highway and Dugway Road was a “perfect fit” for combining all of their enterprises, with plenty of room for their equipment and warehouse of books, as well as space to offer classes, exhibitions and workshops sponsored by The Center for Sustainable Book Arts — which has a mission to celebrate what Bevis called “every aspect in the life cycle of a book,” including writing, illustration, printing and even marketing.
Smith, an Islander, and Bevis, who lives in Seattle, also plan to rent out the space to those interested in hosting community events. They plan to stick to the same rental fees that the VFW charged for using the hall, once a thriving community gathering place.
“This building has had a large part in the social life of Vashon,” said Smith, who added that he has a dream of publishing a book filled with Islanders’ stories about their experiences in the old VFW Hall.
But for now, the owners are in the final push of readying the building for two inaugural events that will be held Saturday, Nov. 13.
On that day, author Layne Maheu will offer a fiction writing workshop, “Turning Old Myths into New Tales,” from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., which will be followed by an open house for the community from 3:30 to 7 p.m.
Maheu’s short stories have been published widely; his debut novel, “Song of the Crow,” published in 2006, was a retelling of the Biblical flood myth from the perspective of a crow. His workshop, according to Bevis, will be a chance for local authors to explore ways to infuse their own works with the power of ancient legends.
These events are first of many Smith and Bevis hope to offer.
In early 2011, the Center for Sustainable Books Arts will be the site of a large-scale exhibition of the work of Grammy Award-winner David Byrd, the celebrated poster artist, designer and illustrator renowned for creating some of the most famous images in the history of rock, including posters for Jimi Hendrix, Jefferson Airplane, The Who, The Grateful Dead and The Rolling Stones. He also created iconic posters and graphics for Broadway shows, including “Godspell,” “Jesus Christ Superstar” and “Little Shop of Horrors.”
Byrd, who in recent years has designed countless books, album covers, animated film characters and graphics, will attend the exhibition and spend the week prior to it teaching a workshop to a small group of students at the Center for Sustainable Books Arts.
The workshop’s purpose will be to create a tour poster and CD graphics for a Puget Sound-area band, and it will culminate with an unveiling of that work and a concert by the band.
A monthly concert series curated by Islander Ruben Arnot, featuring local bands, will also be launched on Dec. 11 — when The Diggers will play.
The building’s owners said it is exciting time, and that they had high hopes for the building.
“I’m sure a lot of things will happen that we haven’t even thought of yet,” said Smith.
