Historic Capitol Hill building may become a McDonald’s after 2 years of vacancy

A historic Capitol Hill building may get a facelift with McDonald’s applying to take over the space after it has sat vacant for the last two years.

Located at 201 Broadway E., the space was previously used as a Rite Aid, and before that, was home to a movie theater that operated for nearly 80 years, according to The Seattle Times.

In February, a permit-advising company filed the application with the City of Seattle to convert the building into a McDonald’s, costing roughly $750,000 for the renovations.

Neighboring businesses are open to the possibility of McDonald’s setting up shop in the vacant space in Capitol Hill, including a nearby food truck owner.

“I’m so happy about it. Many customers are going to walk through me to go to McDonald’s. Maybe next time, they’ll just go to me,” Nabil Abouelyamin, the food truck owner, told The Seattle Times.

Others are not so welcoming, with fears that McDonald’s could invite more crime to the area after the Third Avenue location, informally known as “McStabby’s,” has seen heightened crime numbers ever since it banned indoor seating.

“That’s what I can feel it turning into,” Eric Hayes, owner of Broadway Locksmith, said. “I’m not too keen on all these corporate fast food places.”

Historic neon signage has been dark since Rite Aid shuttered two years ago

Despite worries of crime or support for other local businesses, many have expressed pleasure in seeing the site finally being filled after two years of vacancy.

The building boasts a large neon marquee sign that formerly read, “Broadway Rite Aid Pharmacy,” but was also paired with a “COME GET SHOT HERE” sign after the “S” fell off the word “shots.”

In 1911, the building opened as “The Society Theatre” and was later turned into “the Broadway” in the 1920s, when the large Broadway sign was incorporated above the front entrance of the space. Decades later, the theater closed in 1990, and a Rite Aid took hold of the space, maintaining the large neon sign to pay homage to the building’s beginnings.

Rite Aid shuttered its Capitol Hill location in December 2023 as the company filed for bankruptcy. The drugstore chain later closed all of its locations, which included roughly 80 stores in Washington, and some were sold off to CVS.

Currently, the Broadway sign lights have been turned off for quite some time, and a “For Lease” banner hangs in front of the former Rite Aid signage.

The drugstore chain joined the long list of other retail chains closing down in the Puget Sound area, like Kroger’s decision to close six Fred Meyer and QFC locations in 2025. Joann and Bed Bath & Beyond also closed stores over the past few years.

The vice president of commercial real estate brokerage CBRE, Yohar Renaud, had a good perspective on the closures in a November interview, stating that the loss of the chains ushered in potential for more retailers to expand.

“I think, from a real estate perspective, it’s welcomed because we’ve not had a lot of vacancy historically in Seattle,” Renaud told The Seattle Times. “And so it’s creating this really big opportunity for retailers that have been trying to expand or grow.”

As of 2023, there were 259 McDonald’s locations in Washington, making it the state with the 18th-most locations, according to KW3. Specifically in Seattle, the city itself is already home to 19 McDonald’s restaurants, according to City-Data.

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