Steam Plant Facility: The Decommissioning
The Hydro House, 1993
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In 1932 the Hydro House was taken out of use and the generators sold. Rumor has it a generator was bought by a Christian radio station in Ecuador and is still being used today. The building itself became a storage room for the batteries of the adjacent Steam Plant. During World War II all of the windows of the Steam Plant were painted black to camouflage the building in the event of regional involvement in the war.
Seattles need for an alternative power source had decreased significantly over time. In September 1987, the Steam Plant was decommissioned. After years of minimal use, with the exception of firing up the boilers during the energy crisis in the 1970s, the process was set in motion to surplus the property. In 1988, two of the smokestacks were removed for safety reasons. The five remaining smokestacks and an oil tank were removed in 1991.
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