Cafe Racer, the dearly loved Ravenna scooter bar, says it’s facing possible closure due to impacts from a nearby street project and a building retrofit. The cafe is appealing to its far-flung community of fans to donate a few bucks to help keep its doors open.

A note on the fundraising page reads thus:

“For years now we have lived for our Café Racer Love. But sadly we cannot live on the love alone. Unfortunately, we are reaching the end of our resources. It hurts us to admit this but it has come a point where we will not be able to survive without help. The debt incurred in the refitting and repermitting of the building combined with the Roosevelt corridor construction has left us in dire circumstances. We are asking our friends to help us keep going and to get the word out to anyone who may be interested in contributing to the cause.”

The Roosevelt Way NE Paving and Safety Improvement Project began March of this year. As it happens, the City of Seattle is hosting a “Celebrate Roosevelt” event tomorrow in hopes of driving business to impacted storefronts.

Sadly, Cafe Racer is perhaps best known for the tragic 2012 shooting spree that began there; four people were killed and a fifth was wounded. However, any one who’s visited Cafe Racer knows it to be a positive, art-filled space with good grub and beer. Last time I was there, they were playing a Smiths song (can’t remember which one) on repeat, and keeping track how long it took for people to notice; it was strangely not annoying, just fitting.

Again, that donations page is here.