At least one prominent corner in Ballard might be sans condo since a city board decided last week to consider the 43-year-old Manning's/Denny's building for landmark status, potentially halting a planned eight-story development there.

Benaroya Co., the owners of the now boarded up building at the corner of 15th Avenue Northwest and Northwest Market Street, applied for a landmark review to head off a possible nomination by another party. But the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board voted 8-1 that it was worth looking at more closely for preservation.

Rhapsody Partners, a Kirkland-based development firm, is in negotiations to buy the site and replace the building with a condominium that would include retail and 261 residential units. Louie Richmond, who represents Rhapsody, said the developers were dismayed at the board's decision to move forward with the nomination.

Incorporating the restaurant into any mixed-use development isn't likely and is not something Rhapsody is considering at this point, Richmond said, adding that he wants to make sure the motive for landmark status is not based on simply stopping development.

"Is this a landmark issue or a non-growth issue?" said Richmond. "If this is being used as a way to stop development ... I don't know if that's the right approach. A lot has been invested in this in time and money."

The board will meet again on Feb. 6 and when the nomination could be affirmed, which would likely stop demolition.

The building, with its sweeping A-framed roof, is considered by some architecture experts and local historians to be a great example of a type of car-culture architecture called "Googie," which was first made popular in southern California with showy, futuristic elements designed to catch the eye of passing motorists.

The Space Needle and Dick's drive-in restaurants are some local examples.

Larry Johnson, the architect hired by the building's owners to prepare the nomination, did his best to convince the board that while the building may have at one time been a noteworthy piece of "Googie," it had lost too much of its integrity to warrant a designation.

"The physical integrity has decreased to the point that it can't convey whatever original significance it may have had," said Johnson.

But the board, several of which are Ballard residents, came out in strong support of a nomination.

"I think this is definitely worth a look," said board member Tom Veith. "I think we need to consider this."

Board member Vernon Abelsen said the roofline alone warrants a nomination and that the integrity issues are "minor."

"I support the nomination strongly," Abelsen said. "The idea for this kind of architecture was to catch a motorists' eye ... and that hasn't changed. I think it would be a loss if we did not nominate it."

The fact the building was designed as a Manning's Cafeteria by a well-known architect, Clarence Mayhew, also helped in convincing the board.

It opened in 1964 as a Manning's Cafeteria and then became a Denny's in 1984, which closed in September to make way for the planned development. The Manning's chain started in the Pike Place Market in 1908 and spread across the Pacific Northwest before ceasing operations in the 1970's.

Richmond said Friday the developers plan to prove that the building doesn't meet any of the landmark criteria and that a mixed-use residential building fits in better with the city's "urban village" concept.

The site, once purchased by the failed Seattle Monorail Project, was to be demolished to make way for a transit station. Only building's 50 years or older were examined for preservation but the community never objected those plans leaving Richmond to wonder where the current interest to save the building is coming from.

"We want to deal with that very openly," said Richmond. "We are proceeding as we're going to be successful."

Mildred Andrews, a local historian who was first hired to prepare the nomination and then let go after her initial report would have supported a designation, said the building's major character defining elements are still intact.

Letters supporting the nomination were also submitted to the board by Alan Hess, an author of several books on "Googie," and Eugenia Woo, a board member of Documentation and Conservation of the Modern Movement in Western Washington.

Alan Michelson, head of the Architecture and Urban Planning Library at the University of Washington, prepared his own nomination report and submitted it to the landmarks board. Michelson said Mayhew's Manning's is one of the best of just a few Googie examples left in the region.

"Its scarcity is a compelling reason in itself for preservation," he wrote in the report.

In 1983, Manning's closed and the property was set to be demolished for a new Denny's restaurant. By that time, the diner had become a favored gathering spot by many Ballard residents who staged a protest. Denny's agreed to remodel the building instead.

The building has undergone two major renovations, according to Michelson's report, which both altered the floor plans, though not much material was removed. A hung ceiling covers the original vaulting and paint is concealing the red color scheme the Manning's was famous for.

"The dining room could again serve as a restaurant, and could, with minimal cost and effort, be returned to near-original condition," Michelson reported. "Other buildings in more altered states, have been accorded landmark status."

Rebekah Schilperoort may be reached at 783.1244 or rebekahs@robinsonnews.com