We emerged from the restaurant, a successful date night almost complete. Around us, Belltown’s usual Friday night crowd was in full effect. The human subgenre known as "bros" roamed the sidewalks, along with their female equivalents, loud as ever. I suggested a nightcap somewhere away from it all.

“Sounds great,” she said. “Just not the clown bar.”

“Definitely not. Not that kind of night. I have another idea.”

We walked down the street, rounding the corner at Second Avenue and heading in the direction of downtown. A distrustful look crossed her face. “Where are we going exactly?”

“You’ll see,” I promised. “New place.”

A few blocks later and there we were, standing before Shorty’s in all its glory. From its open front door, the stale B.O. stench of its hot dog grill wafted onto the street. The cigar-smoking clown logo beckoned from the windows, promising strange clown paintings on nearly every inch of the walls inside. My date sighed, disappointed in me and whatever life choices had brought her into my orbit.

“Fine,” she conceded. “Let’s just sit in the backroom, OK? I don’t feel like getting stabbed.”

This was slander, of course. Yes, a middle-aged woman pulled a knife on us while we sat on Shorty's front porch one evening. But she pulled that knife on everyone there, not just us. It wasn’t personal. Shorty’s security shuffled her off, after her demand for a beer fell through. That was Belltown’s fault. Don’t blame the clown bar.

Such incidents could never dampen my love of Shorty’s, one the best examples of old, weird Seattle still in existence. With pinball machines, the lighting of a nearly bankrupt circus, and the best collection of creepy clown art in driving distance, it’s a citywide treasure.

But as with so many buildings in Seattle, change may be coming. This week, it was announced that Shorty’s and its neighboring businesses may be demolished, to be replaced by a mixed-use apartment building. Following the sale of Mama’s Mexican Kitchen down the street, the owner of the Shorty’s building has reportedly said he's ready to cash out and retire. The owner of the bar wants to keep it rolling.

In response to the news, there’s a new campaign to declare the building next to Shorty’s historic, which could scuttle the entire land deal in question. Shorty's supporters filled a Landmarks Preservation Board meeting Wednesday to support the idea, and received a favorable vote. They plan to show up in force to the next meeting on October 7, and are working to rally more support to the cause. Seattlish has a good write-up here.

With the fight to keep the place alive just starting, I headed over to Seattle’s finest clown-themed drinking establishment to hear what's at stake for regulars.