For more than a quarter of a century the Antique Mart of Kirkland has been a center piece for the downtown area. It one of the only places a Kirklander can still buy a rotary phone, items from the golden age of TV, pin-hole cameras, a “Bone Shaker” bicycle or a bronze bust of George Washington. The stalls are set up to look like mini stores or a room in an apartment. One even has a six foot tall stuffed kangaroo.

The business has survived four owners, the construction of the Heathman Hotel and many changes in downtown Kirkland. But the antique mall with the murals on the side at Park Lane and Third Street will close its doors at the end of September.

“Antique buying and collecting has changed,” said Antique Mart of Kirkland owner Pat Pope. “There were a lot of collectors in the 1980s and 90s, but the trends have changed.”

The antique mall opened in 1983 under co-owner Marietta Van Patten, who still works part-time at the mall.

Van Patten and three other women owned an antique store in old Bellevue that closed. The four women decided to take on the project of renovating the Kirkland building to start the antique mall.

“We spent two-and-a-half months putting up walls, mudding, painting and cleaning,” said Van Patten, who lives in Kirkland. “In those days antiques were quite popular.”

The business opened under the name Old Heritage Place. Van Patten and her partners sold the business three years later. The new owners changed the name to the Kirkland Antique Gallery, but the business remained the same.

“The habits of the antique collectors have changed, not much else,” said Van Patten. “EBay was a big change for the industry.”

In 1994, when the third owner of the business took over, the name stayed the same but made one big change that has been a big part of downtown Kirkland ever since. The owner commissioned Ross Nicoll, a local artist, to design and paint the mural on the outside of the building.

“It was really bright when he painted it, but it has faded over the years,” said Van Patten.

Van Patten isn’t the only holdover from the beginning.

“We still have some patrons that have been with us since the start,” said Pope, who bought the business in 2002. “The Kirkland community has done an admirable job of patronizing the mall.”

Pope leases the building and then rents the 60 stalls to different antique dealers. He said that the antique business has been steadily declining since 2000.

“It wasn’t very good when I bought this place,” said Pope. “It was a dark and stormy night the night when I got the keys. Literally, a ceiling tile got water logged and fell out (above the front door).”

Since then the downtown area of Kirkland has changed drastically with the building of the Heathman Hotel, Parkplace and the current remodel of the library.

“It seems like a lot of the people living downtown are not under 40,” said Pope. “That demographic on the whole is not interested in antiques.”

Many antique malls are being forced to close.

“The present economy is one reason,” said Pope, who has been a dealer and a collector most of his life. “Many of the dealers are choosing retirement and some are just moving on to other things.”

After the Antique Mart of Kirkland closes, Pope believes that the antique stores in Gillman Village in Issaquah will be the last mall on the Eastside.

“We all depend on sales and commissions,” said Pope. “We saw a few good years … we know we are using up a lot of expensive land.”

Pope said that the worst time he has had was during the construction of the Heathman Hotel, which is located next door.

“(Our sales) were down 15 to 20 percent during that time,” said Pope. “I was not looking forward to when Sound Transit tears up (Third Street).”

The building and the property has been owned by Marilyn Diller since 1951 when it was a Tredwell store.

“I am sad to be losing Pat,” said Diller. “It would be very nice if we could lease the building.”

Through the good and bad the Antique Mart of Kirkland has maintained a loyal group of dealers and collectors. Van Patten said many of the regulars were sad to receive a post card in the mail advising them of the closure in September. The Antique Mart of Kirkland has begun with its going-out-of-business sale.

“I have encouraged all of the dealers to take a percentage off,” said Pope. “Some have gone as far as 50 percent.”

The Antique Mart will also be having a “parking lot sale” every Wednesday this summer from 12-4 p.m. The sale will not happen if there is rain.

But not even rain will prevent the end of an era, and that part is not easy.

“I will miss the people,” said Van Patten, who works just two days a week. “The building has disintegrated. But the people have become like family.”