Bellingham’s Flatiron building has new owner with vision of energizing downtown
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- Place purchased Bellingham’s Flatiron Building for $10.1 million in August.
- The company plans to house all local operations inside the historic downtown site.
- Leadership expects company presence to increase foot traffic and business downtown.
The historic Flatiron Building in downtown Bellingham will serve as the headquarters for a new company after the sale of the building was finalized this summer.
The building on Bay Street has been the home of Faithlife, — the Logos Bible study software platform developer — for years. Now it will serve as the headquarters for Place, a locally owned and operated real estate services and technology platform designed to support brokerage teams.
“We are very excited about the purchase of the Flatiron building and the creation of a new headquarters for our company, Place,” company co-founder Ben Kinney said in a statement to The Herald.
“Place has seen significant growth over the last four to five years, and we have outgrown our space in the Barkley neighborhood and we needed a new PLACE to grow and call home,” Kinney said, adding that he has a love for puns.
The building sold for just more than $10.1 million in early August, according to documents from the Whatcom County Treasurer’s Office.
Kinney told The Herald the building will be used as a workspace, with his family of companies occupying 100% of the building. That will include Place, Brivity, Envoy Mortgage and his original business, the Ben Kinney Real Estate Team.
“We employ hundreds locally and thousands nationally, and now we get to bring more people downtown every day,” Kinney said. “It is one of Bellingham’s most iconic buildings. We wanted to preserve it, fill it with amazing humans, and bring some more energy to downtown Bellingham.”
Teams are already moving into the building, Kinney said, with small renovations of the space expected to take place over the next year.
Place invests nationwide but Kinney said investing in this building is “personal.”
“It is about our roots and our commitment to creating jobs and opportunities in Bellingham. We see too much talent leaving our community for jobs in Seattle and out of state. This is a good investment to show locals that we are hiring and growing,” Kinney told The Herald.
Kinney said bringing the company headquarters to the Flatiron Building and downtown in general will “add life to the heart of Bellingham” by bringing hundreds of people to the area who “like to shop, eat, and support local businesses.”
“I think the economic impact will be felt immediately downtown and we encourage local businesses to reach out and see how we can support each other,” Kinney said.
The Flatiron Building was first constructed in 1907 for the Bellingham Bay Furniture Co., which remained in the building until 1978. It received federal Landmark status in 1983. It was the tallest building in the city until 1926. After the furniture company left, the building remained vacant until renovations were completed in 1990, according to the city of Bellingham.
Inspired by Daniel Burnham’s 1902 Flatiron building in New York, the triangular shape of the building was popular among American architects in the first decade of the 20th century.
This story was originally published September 6, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
