A huge crack in the Alaskan Way Viaduct – an elevated waterfront roadway – caused a shutdown of the popular road yesterday, snarling commuter traffic and frustrating the thousands of baseball fans headed to the Seattle Mariners' Opening Night festivities against the Oakland A's.

The crack also sparked second thoughts of "demolish or repair" decisions by building owners who face expensive repairs. Seismically upgrading of old or historic structures can easily cost a building owner millions of dollars. In some cases, the owner is not willing, yet the city wants the property to remain.

Such is the case of the 111-year old Cadillac Hotel. The building owner – Goodman Financial Services – wants to tear down the building because the quake weakened its walls. Goodman also contends that workers would be in danger attempting to repair it.However, the city and neighbors want to preserve the building – one of the first to be rebuilt after the Great Fire of 1889 – and say Goodman merely wants to avoid repair costs.