Seattle Goes With OVG For Sports Arena

In what could be the most controversial of the never ending saga of new sports arenas, the Seattle City Council has given approval to Oak View Group to build a 600 million dollar renovation of what is now Key Arena.  The move means the city has abandoned efforts by Chis Hansen to build an ground up arena in the SoDo district.
Many NBA fans believe the SoDo arena would be a better in luring an NBA (pro basketball) team as Hansen indicted his desire to purchase a team.  Hansen had tried to lure the Sacramento Kings a few years back.
The Key project is said to be an attempt to lure the NHL (pro ice hockey) to Seattle, with  the possibility of the NBA returning in later years.

Sears To Close Sodo Location

It has been announced that Sears will pull out of it's Sodo (South Downtown) location this year.  Radio reports said that it was the oldest continuous operating store in existence, however, I was unable to find anything to back that up.  The historic building is located at 76 S Lander Street and has been a visible but quiet landmark of the area once named for being south of the dome.  The building also houses the world headquarters for Starbuck's, which moved to the location in 1997 and put it's logo on the tower. 
Once the nations top retailer, Sears has struggled in recent years and has lost market share to online retailers and brick and mortar competitors like Target and Costco.