The Joshua Sears Building is a historic building in Kirkland, Washington located at the northwest corner of Market Street and Seventh Avenue, Kirkland's historic commercial core. It was built in 1891 by Boston philanthropist and capitalist, Joshua Sears, who was heavily invested in Peter Kirk's Great Western Iron and Steel Company and was the town site's largest landowner. As a result of the Panic of 1893, the steel mill and the bank intended to occupy this building never opened but the Sears building survives today as a reminder of what might have been in Kirkland. It is an early example of Beaux-Arts architecture in the Northwest, where Victorian and Romanesque Revival styles were still predominant in commercial buildings. On August 3, 1982, it was added the National Register of Historic Places. In December 2015 the building was purchased by local attorney Simeon Osborn and his wife Monica Hart, who stated they plan to keep the current business and residential tenants. Original and present appearance A single detached structure, the building is an irregular polygon in plan, measuring 10' x 81' x 52' x 42' x 61'. It is two full stories with a full basement. The main business entrance is on the southeast corner with a second major entrance centered on the east facade. Reflecting the East-Coast influence of its builder, The building is predominantly Beaux Arts in design; a style newly popular on the East coast but which wouldn't become common place on the West coast until the turn of the century. The original architect is not known. Like its neighbors, it is constructed of locally fired red brick in the stretcher bond pattern. The foundation is also brick, and has been mostly stuccoed over on the exterior to protect against moisture. The roof is flat and covered with tar and gravel. There is a continuous pressed metal cornice around the east and south roof lines. The cornice contains brackets, dentils, and a decorated frieze. There are belt courses of cast ornamental concrete over raised brick occurring at four levels: on the first floor under the window sills a wide band above the first floor windows; on the second floor as a continuous band window sill and just below the metal frieze of the cornice. This cast concrete is used throughout the exterior to imitate stone. There are several types of window treatment. These are on the west facade: