After 36 people died in an Oakland, California warehouse fire in December, artists in Seattle want to prevent that kind of tragedy here. To do so, they are asking city officials for help.

Seattle has several "underground" or "DIY" arts spaces similar to the Ghost Ship warehouse in Oakland. They're often not permitted or code compliant. As the cost of real estate goes up in Seattle, those spaces play a crucial role for artists trying find places to live and work.

S. Surface is a curator and member of the Seattle Arts Commission. Surface said other cities have started shutting down underground venues and they are hoping Seattle can take a different path.

Surface: "And so we wanted to come up with a set of recommendations to support the venues, to communicate to our community at large that we are behind them."

Surface briefed the City Council on those recommendations Tuesday.