Report: Famous ‘Hawk House’ in Kirkland shuts down
Nov 25, 2016, 8:57 AM | Updated: 8:58 am
Complaints finally outweighed the Seahawks spirit in Kirkland.
Anthony Mish will not light up the “Hawk House” this season. Mish decided to end the tradition after the City of Kirkland told him he would have to get a special-events permit this year, The Seattle Times reports.
The ‘Hawk House’ put Clark Griswold to shame
The house, which was decorated in about 175,000 synchronized lights, was widely celebrated by people outside of Mish’s neighborhood. But some nearby residents felt differently.
In 2015, Mish told KIRO Radio’s Dori Monson the amount of traffic the “Hawk House” drew over the past several years became an issue. The free display drew thousands of people — in 2014, Mish estimated about 20,000 people stopped by throughout the holidays.
What may have been the final straw for neighbors was when a TV crew filmed the house for a reality show in 2015. The filming lasted until about 4 a.m.
“All the complaints came in before the season even started, because that night they filmed until almost four in the morning and there was live performances and stuff like that,” Mish told Dori last year. “There was a DJ out there and the music was cranked all the way up.”
Mish scaled things back last year to try and satisfy neighbors. He lowered the music and shortened the hours of the display.
But along with complaints from some neighbors, the city pointed out that the residential street Mish lives on is not large enough to handle the traffic. Deputy Director of the Parks and Community Services Department Michael Cogle told the Times that there were concerns about emergency access.
The fact that the annual tradition has ended shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise, however. Mish was told last year that he would likely have to find a new location for the display that he dedicated hundreds of hours to every season.
But fans of the “Hawk House” shouldn’t give up hope. The Times reports Mish is looking for another venue that could make way for an even larger display.
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