Updates from Save The Hen

August 25, 2025

To the Little Red Hen Community,

It’s been some time since our last update, and while there haven’t been major developments, we still wanted to stay connected. 

The Little Red Hen is Still Open for Business!
While we have yet to hear confirmation of resolutions between the RLD group and The Little Red Hen business owner, we see The Hen’s continued operations as a positive sign and remain hopeful for updates from either party soon.

So keep coming in for dancing, live music, drinks, and the joy that makes The Little Red Hen special. Tell all your friends!

Let’s get to 10k signatures
We’re closing in on 10,000 signatures! Every name strengthens the message that The Hen matters and deserves to stay right where it is. Please keep signing, sharing, and spreading the word. The petition is one of the clearest ways to show support to all parties involved.

T-Shirts Sold Out!
We’re blown away by your love for the Save The Hen t-shirts. Thank you to everyone who grabbed one; your support keeps this movement strong.

What’s Next & How You Can Help
We’re in a bit of a “wait and see” moment as the lease situation develops. The future of The Little Red Hen is truly in the hands of the business owner and landlord, but know that we’re keeping close watch and will share updates as soon as we have them. In the meantime, here’s how you can help right now:

  • Keep showing up - bring in a new friend!

  • Share your stories - we love reading how much The Hen means to you!

  • Tag us on socials - Save The Hen on Facebook and @savethehen_ on Instagram

Thank you all for continuing to show up, whether that’s signing and sharing the petition, dancing, singing, drinking, watching, or simply caring. Our community is what makes The Little Red Hen special.

In solidarity,
Save The Hen

July 31st, 2025

To the Little Red Hen Community,

Every week we say this, and every week we mean it more: thank you. Your continued support for Save The Hen has been nothing short of incredible.

Seattle Times Article & Lease Update

As many of you may have seen, the Seattle Times recently reported that the RLD Group has offered a 30-day lease extension, but contingent on if the owner, Dominic Shim, responds confirming that he intends to “engage in good-faith lease negotiations” by August 4. 

While Save The Hen is not involved in legal or lease discussions, we strongly believe our efforts and your support played a role in this extension and hope both parties can find a way to work out an agreement. 

Petition Update: 8,000+ Signatures and Why It Matters

We’ve now collected over 8,000 signatures (live signature count here) across Change.org, Google Forms, and paper forms from community canvassing, and every single one sends a message: The Little Red Hen matters. The petition shows strong, unified community support and raises awareness that The Little Red Hen is more than just a business and deserves to be protected. We hope the petition helps influence parties involved to find a resolution that keeps The Little Red Hen in its current Green Lake location.

The more voices, the louder the message. Keep sharing it. 

The Hen Is Still Open – Come On In!

The Little Red Hen’s legal team has shared through formal statements that The Little Red Hen intends to continue business beyond July 31, so we encourage everyone to keep showing up. The Hen has been busier than ever, which helps demonstrate how important this space is. Also, we love seeing all your happy faces.

To keep that energy going, we’re celebrating in a big way with a 92nd Anniversary & Save The Hen Customer Appreciation Rally and you’re invited!

  • July 31 – August 2, 9:00 PM each night at The Little Red Hen, dance lesson at 8pm on Thursday and Saturday

What’s Next for Save The Hen?

So what happens after July 31? We are actively working toward forming a nonprofit organization focused on preserving and protecting community spaces like The Little Red Hen – this is necessary to be able to continue Save the Hen's operations over a longer time-frame. Our goal is to be proactive, not just reactive, so that we never find ourselves in this position again. We’ll share more on this soon, including how you can help shape the vision. We are dedicated to a community-driven approach.

Stay Connected

To stay better organized, we’d like to confirm your email preferences to ensure you are getting the information you want. Please fill out this quick form so we can update our mailing lists. 

Also, if you haven’t already, please take our The Little Red Hen Community Survey. Your responses help us show just how strong, diverse, and dedicated our community truly is.

Special Thank-Yous

We want to give special thanks to some folks who have gone above and beyond to help Save The Hen through their volunteer efforts. 

Alex E., Annan B., Ann-Marie D., Ashlie I., Britt H., Brittany A., Emily N., Jake, Jeremy A., Kim S., Kyle S., Matthew B., Nova B., Quark W., Sam B., Scot M., Stan H., Tami G., Tor

You know how you’ve helped. We appreciate you. And we couldn’t do this without you.

Please know we’ve had so many more who have stepped up and we are greatly appreciative to EVERYONE!!!

Thank you all for continuing to show up,whether that’s signing, sharing, volunteering, dancing, or simply caring. Our community is what makes The Little Red Hen special.

With gratitude,

Save The Hen

July 24th, 2025

To The Little Red Hen Community,

We now have over 7,000 signatures in support of saving The Little Red Hen! It was a big week last week with connecting with the Mayor, the Save The Hen Rally, flashmobs in Fremont and Ballard markets, and the community Town Hall. The love we have for The Little Red Hen has been heartfelt, loud, and getting noticed.

Call for Volunteers This Weekend:

First, we’d like to thank all of those who’ve volunteered already! It’s been amazing to see the community come together with their different skill sets to bring many successes to the Save The Hen effort. Sincerely and deeply . . . thank you!

We’re currently looking for volunteers for the following:

  • Community Canvasing Blitz Volunteers!

    • Potential Sites: Pier 58’s Opening Celebration, Bite of Seattle, Morgan Wallen Concert, Summer Sounds at Pier 62, or the Seattle Art Fair Exhibit.

    • If you're interested, reply to this email or simply grab a clipboard at The Little Red Hen and busk with a friend. We’ve found the combo of live music and paper petitions works beautifully to get attention and signatures.

  • Canvassing & Resource Coordination Assistance

  • More Dance & Busking Volunteers

Every effort helps, whether you're sharing petitions or helping keep spirits high through music and dance.

Town Hall Recap: 

We recently hosted a Save The Hen Town Hall and we wanted to share this recap with everyone:

Who We Are and Our Goals

  • The people behind Save The Hen are community members just like you. This effort is entirely community-led, powered by volunteers, and rooted in love for The Little Red Hen.

  • Short-term goal: See for a resolution between the Landlord and the Business Owner before the July 31st deadline.

  • Long-term goal: Explore community-based solutions to ensure that cherished community spaces like The Little Red Hen are protected in the future.

    • We learned that  preservation status is not an option for The Little Red Hen, but we hope there are other paths forward. But we need time, creativity, and continued community support.

Donation Transparency: Where Your Support Is Going

Many of you have asked where your generous donations are being spent. We’re committed to full transparency:

  • Donations are used exclusively for organizing efforts: flyers, printing, volunteer parking, website maintenance, and other outreach-related expenses.

  • No funds are directed to The Little Red Hen’s business operations or legal matters.

What We’ve Learned & Reiterating Where Save The Hen Stands

We recently had a conversation with the Landlord and have also seen the statement shared by The Little Red Hen’s legal team, which is available on The Little Red Hen website. 

We want to be clear: Save The Hen is not involved in legal proceedings, negotiations, or representing the Landlord or Business Owner of The Little Red Hen.

This is a lease dispute between the two parties. We are simply a group of community members working to ensure the love for The Little Red Hen remains part of the conversation. Our role is to elevate the voice of the community, to share your stories, and to keep the public spotlight on what The Little Red Hen means to so many.

Our hope is simple: that the Landlord and Business Owner find a resolution, and that the music, dancing, and the magical vortex of The Little Red Hen can continue.

Thank you for standing with us and for sharing in this effort. The love you’ve shown has been powerful and we’re not slowing down.

With gratitude,
Save The Hen

July 15th, 2025

To The Little Red Hen Community,

In just a few days, the Save The Hen petition has gathered almost 6,000 signatures, this is all thanks to your incredible support! Let’s keep this momentum going. It’s been wonderful seeing so many of your smiling faces at The Little Red Hen the past week, we even had an actual little red hen stop by! Here’s what’s happening and how you can help:

Calling volunteers!

  • We’re looking for community members who can lend their talents to keep this movement strong. Right now, we’re especially hoping to find:

    • A Videographer (with drone capability and approved FAA license)

    • Website Support (Squarespace)

    • Buskers & Dancers for Wednesday @ 5:30pm in Columbia City

    • Canvassers for Bars and Neighborhoods

    • Anybody with Contacts for Busses (Schoolbus or Otherwise), or Vans to Transport People

  • If you can help with any of these, please email us at savethehen@gmail.com. 

Next steps: Make your voice heard

  • We’re urging City Council members to step in and bring The Little Red Hen and RLD Group LLC to the table to reach a fair resolution.

  • You can help by sending a letter. Here is a template and who you should contact, which can also be found on our website. Personal stories are powerful, so please include yours!

  • We plan to show up strong at the upcoming Seattle Mayor’s Candidate Forum. A big community presence makes a powerful statement, so please join us – Wednesday, July 16th, 2025 at Columbia City Theatre at 6:30pm.

Working toward preservation

  • We are actively researching and exploring heritage preservation options.

  • Seattle City Landmark meetings happen every 1st and 3rd Wednesday. We plan to attend the July 16 meeting and have requested time for public comment.

Save The Hen Community Town Hall | Sunday, July 20th, 2025, 3:30pm at The Little Red Hen

  • We’re hosting an in-person town hall to share updates, gather your thoughts, and explore how we can continue working together to Save The Hen.

Share your voice: Take our quick community survey

  • We’d love to get to know you better. Please take a moment to fill out The Little Red Hen Community Survey. Tell us how long you’ve been coming to the Hen, how far you travel. We know so many of you go out of your way to support this special place! Your responses help us show just how strong, diverse, and dedicated our community truly is.

Ultimately, we need more time and we aren’t slowing down. 34 days is not nearly enough time for our community to rally around this effort and secure the future of such a special place. With your continued support, we’re hopeful these efforts will give us that time and a clear path forward.

Thank you for standing with us.

With gratitude,

Save the Hen

July 10th, 2025

To our Little Red Hen Community,

First and foremost, thank you for all of your support of our efforts in saving The Little Red Hen. One thing we all know to be true - it takes an entire community coming together as a whole to keep The Little Red Hen right here in Green Lake. The other thing we all know - win, lose or draw, we’re all ready to resist. 

A few key updates for the community:

  • We have a petition on Change.org. With over 3,000 signatures (from all over the world) in less than 2 days, we will show Seattle city leaders that The Little Red Hen is a Seattle icon.

  • We are submitting a Landmark Designation status application to stay eviction.

  • We are seeing support from several different musicians, dance communities and venues who are willing to help whichever ways we need!

  • We are planning several loud & rowdy activities to make noise for the Hen, letting people know we plan to stay!

And remember, The Little Red Hen is STILL OPEN!!! Just because we have a notice to vacate by July 31st, doesn’t mean we are going quietly. Keep dancing, keep singing, keep this community going strong. Be sure to check The Little Red Hen calendar for events: thelittleredhen.com 

Sincerely,

Save The Hen

July 5th, 2024

To our Little Red Hen Community,

We want to first say that we hope you all had a great 4th of July and thank you to the folks invested in the quality and longevity of this community. 

Secondly, it is important to know that we plan to be here Honky Tonk’n our butts off Friday August 1st, and you are going to be essential to make that a reality. The strategy includes:

  • Historic preservation of the location. The Little Red Hen is one of the oldest continuously operating live-music Honky Tonk establishments in the United States. We’ve been at this Green Lake location since the mid 60’s. We are no small part of Seattle’s history.

  • Recognition of the art that adorns our walls. (Take a look if you’ve never noticed the characters painted throughout The Hen.)

  • Community engagement through: 

    • Sharing how The Hen is a part of your life’s story to savethehen@gmail.com

    • Supporting the historic preservation petition.

    • Emailing and/or calling your city councilmember. (Suggested themes will be provided.)

    • And of course, coming out to keep the music and dancing going each and every night.

We believe the established current lease with the prior building owner should be enough on legal grounds, but we are working on this from all sides. 

It takes each and every one of you to make this the magical vortex that is Sylvia’s Little Red Hen. Sunday Funday New Artist Showcase and Bodacious Open Mic, Monday’s epic line dancing crew, the talented Bluegrass musicians on Tuesday, DJ Forrest Gump’s raucous Wednesday Karaoke, the free Thursday (and sometimes Saturday) dance lessons - and always, LIVE music for a social dance community that brings all kinds together from Thursday to Saturday. 

Stick with us, and we’ll see the other side of this better and stronger than we already were. 


Sincerely,

Save The Hen