Last July, the Viaduct - one of Tacoma's few remaining all-ages venues - shuttered, leaving a crucial void in the local music scene. Spots like The Den still host teen-friendly gigs, but the options for the area's underage crowd are especially anemic nowadays, even by Tacoma's standards.

Jeremy Bushnell, who had a brief-but-valiant tenure at the Viaduct during its twilight months, recalls that right around the time it closed, "Club Impact shut down, (and) Hell's Kitchen stopped doing all-ages shows. Right now, other than house shows or little tiny places where people are doing shows under the radar, there's absolutely nothing within the Tacoma city limits that's doing all-ages shows." The appetite for these kinds of concerts, of course, is stronger than ever. "Every day, bands have been contacting me and other places trying to (find somewhere to) play," Bushnell says.

Back in July, Bushnell told the Volcano's Rev. Adam McKinney that he had plans for opening a newer, more viable all-ages space. He said that, unlike the Viaduct, he didn't want it to be strictly a hardcore venue: "I want everybody to come, everybody to play."

Fast-forward to early 2011, and Bushnell's vision is closer to becoming a reality. Bushnell and former Viaduct co-worker Josh Brumley (who, like Bushnell, is a veteran show-runner with a decade of experience) have been spearheading an effort to establish a one-stop all-ages arts and music destination for Tacoma's youth - a nonprofit public space in the vein of Seattle's always all-ages Vera Project. As the "Tacoma All Ages Project," they're working in tandem with the city's Live Music Alliance - a "dedicated committee of volunteers" in town working for the betterment of the local all-ages scene. The two organizations meet monthly.

"We're looking to have a space that will do stuff for music and beyond music - not quite to a teen center-type level, but a more specific, music-based teen center, where we're doing art, hang-out nights (and more)," Bushnell says, stressing that the planned venue will maintain a strong commitment to supporting the local community through charitable activities.

The plans for the TAAP's space are audacious: "We're going to have a recording studio in there, as well as a venue, also a record store, a book and zine library (and a) book exchange," says Bushnell.

While the TAAP works to secure funding (they've inherited the now-dormant Viaduct's nonprofit status), Bushnell is on the hunt for a building they can move into. It hasn't been easy.

"We've found so many places that are perfect, that have all the things we need as far as legal, as far as sprinklers and fire exits, and all the stuff we need to have for fire code - but they don't want to have kids there, they don't want to have an all-ages venue in their building," Bushnell says."As positive as what we're trying to do is, people are still against it when they find out it's for kids. It sucks."

Kevin Erickson, of Seattle's All-Ages Movement Project, can relate. "Finding space that is affordable, accessible and appropriate is often one of the biggest challenges in starting a venue," he says.

The Tacoma All Ages Project website (tacomaallages.webs.com) has more info on the group's effort, and includes a section where visitors can make a donation. The investment would be a smart one. "(All-ages venues pay) real dividends in terms of civic pride, economic vitality and youth development," Erickson says, adding, "This is especially true in a community like Tacoma that's trying to make the arts a cornerstone of its economic revitalization."