Washington Athletic Club
| Washington Athletic Club | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| General information | |
| Type | athletic club, hotel |
| Location | 1325 6th Avenue, Seattle, United States |
| Coordinates | 47°36′35″N 122°20′01″W / 47.609783°N 122.333661°WCoordinates: 47°36′35″N 122°20′01″W / 47.609783°N 122.333661°W |
| Completed | 1930 |
| Cost | $2,500,000 |
| Height | |
| Roof | 76.20 m (250.0 ft) |
| Top floor | 70.72 m (232.0 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 21 |
| Floor area | 305,548 sq ft (28,386.3 m2) |
| Lifts/elevators | 5 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect |
Sherwood D. Ford |
| Designated | April 15, 2009 |
Sherwood D. Ford
The Washington Athletic Club, founded in 1930, is a private social and athletic club located in downtown Seattle.
The WAC includes five floors of athletic and fitness facilities, including a 25-yard pool, full-size basketball court, running track, handball and racquetball courts, and pilates and yoga studios. The top ten floors house the Inn at the WAC, a 109-room boutique hotel. The club also offers a full-service day spa—voted the best private club spa in America in 2012—and a wellness center with nutrition, physical therapy, and naturopathic services. In addition to wellness, spa and fitness facilities, the WAC is home to three restaurants, a private ballroom, social areas, and numerous meeting spaces.
The WAC won its sixth consecutive 5 Star Platinum Club of America award in 2012. The WAC was named the best athletic club in Washington and one of the top four nationally. The 21-story WAC clubhouse opened in December 1930 and marked its 86th anniversary in 2015. The clubhouse was designed in the art deco style by Seattle architect Sherwood D. Ford.
The idea of the Century 21 Exposition was first conceived by club members within the building in January 1955.
In 2009, the Washington Athletic Club became a City of Seattle Landmark.
The club's magazine, WAC Magazine, is published 10 times a year. Current and past issues are kept in a digital edition archive at wacmagazine.com. The club's website is wac.net.
In mid 1928, Seattle newcomer and realtor Noel B. Clarke put together a committee of Seattle attorneys, capitalists and bankers to raise money to form a new athletic club to serve the city's skyrocketing population. They began soliciting $100 founders' memberships to hire an architect and construct a clubhouse and by early 1928 over 1,000 had been collected. Funds were stored in a trust that couldn't be accessed until 2,000 memberships were sold. In February 1928, Clarke announced a 120 x 96' site had been chosen at the corner of 6th and University Streets. The committee hired the Seattle architectural firm of Baker, Vogel & Roush to design a building. Their plans were of an elegant twelve-story structure with Gothic Revival influences. The building would cost around $1,000,000 and construction was to begin in June 1928. By March 1928, only 1,200 of the needed 2,000 members had signed up for the new club, causing a delay in the plans. More troubles arose in May 1928 when Clarke, the club's biggest single promoter, quit the board because of difficulties dealing with the Seattle Real Estate Board.
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