Kirkland landmarks undergo changes

Two Kirkland landmarks are in transition this week.

Hector's, a popular Lake Street restaurant and watering hole for 28 years, reopens today after being sold and closed since April.

And Betty's Apparel, a downtown fixture since 1963, shuts its doors for good on Saturday.

Stuart McLeod, longtime Kirkland resident, spent the summer restoring the 1918 building that has housed Hector's since it opened in 1975. McLeod likes old stuff — cars, furniture, buildings and landmarks. So when the commercial real estate owner and manager purchased the restaurant last year, it was more than just a business deal.

He tore out wall coverings to reveal old brick columns and clay block walls, and brought in antique furniture, including a 105-year-old bar. The remodeled restaurant opens today at 5:30 p.m.

It still will be called Hector's.

"I figured as long as I was going to be the landlord, restore the building and bring a restaurant back, I might as well choose to keep it Hector's," McLeod said. "I want to continue the tradition that Dan (Corthell) started 28 years ago."

The interior configuration is similar to the old building with a separate dining room, bar and patio areas. The look is lighter and brighter. The menu reflects the remodeled restaurant — a mix of old and new. Although Hector's only will be open for lunch and dinner on weekdays, Hobo Eggs will be available weekend mornings. Five former Hector's employees have returned.

Not all downtown Kirkland landmarks are as lucky.

A half-block away, Karen Lightfeldt and her father, Bob Lightfeldt, expect to permanently close the door at Betty's Apparel Saturday. The store founder, Betty Lightfeldt, died in April.

"Although we own the building, a sale is pending," Karen Lightfeldt said. "Thinking about dealing with a new landlord took the wind out of my sails."

During the heyday of the retail operation, the Lightfeldts had stores in Juanita Village, Totem Lake and Factoria shopping centers.

The going-out-of-business sale has been an amazing experience, Lightfeldt said.

"Customers have been so nice. I keep hearing over and over again from them and about their loyalty to the store. It has been touching and a lot of people have just stopped to say goodbye," she said.

Other changes are in store for the small town on Lake Washington.

Larry Springer, owner of The Grape Choice, has been looking at downtown sites for his wine store. The longtime Kirkland business is located in what was the former Kirkland Hospital. A developer plans to tear down the building at the end of 2004 and build a hotel.

"The hospital was built sometime in the 1920s," said Springer, who also is the city's mayor. "I have a plaque on my wall listing more than 40 people who were born at the Grape Choice when it was the Kirkland Hospital."

The demise of old favorites isn't hurting the city, said Bill Vadino, executive director of the Kirkland Downtown on the Lake Association.

"Though Betty's Apparel is closing, the legacy of the Lightfeldts' contributions to downtown over the last 40 years lives on," he said.

"The reopening of Hector's by Stuart McLeod is an example of the continuing revitalization of downtown, which has welcomed 10 retail stores and three restaurants just this summer, leaving downtown with only a few vacancies."

Sherry Grindeland: 206-515-5633 or sgrindeland@seattletimes.com