The buffet conversion at the former Wight’s Nursery and Homage Senior Services property in Lynnwood, WA, has received mechanical and sprinkler permits. City records now identify the project as Ascend Buffet doing business as Coastbay Buffet.
Residents have also reported visible work at the site, including restriped parking and an interior taking shape. Those observations add to the permit trail, although neither an opening date nor completed construction has been confirmed.
A large restaurant inside an existing building
The property is commonly identified as 5026 196th Street SW. The city’s December 2024 land-use notice uses 19604 50th Avenue W for the same corner-site project.
That notice described a 3.2-acre property and conversion of an existing 28,886-square-foot building, with 22,954 square feet assigned to restaurant use and the rest to storage. The proposal retained the building footprint and called for removal of southern roof structures to create 87 additional parking spaces, bringing the planned total to 230.
The nursery is only part of the property’s history. Homage later used the building as its headquarters. Local reporting in July 2025 said the senior-services organization had sold the property and would relocate to Everett, clearing the way for the restaurant conversion.
Earlier local coverage described a roughly 25,236-square-foot restaurant plan with 700 seats. That area differs from the city notice’s restaurant-use figure; neither should be presented as a verified final dining-room measurement. The approved final seating capacity has not been established.
Permits document progress, not an opening
City reports hosted by the Daily Journal of Commerce list a mechanical permit issued January 27, 2026, and a sprinkler permit issued April 22. Both identify the project as Ascend Buffet DBA Coastbay Buffet. A June report records a sign application submitted June 1 and deemed technically complete June 2, without establishing that the sign permit had been issued.
The records connect the Ascend and Coastbay names, but they do not yet establish the restaurant’s final public branding. An operator announcement confirming the opening, menu, pricing and ownership has not been located, nor has a certificate of occupancy or final inspection establishing readiness to serve.
For now, the supported update is a substantial reuse project with issued permits and reported physical work. The next meaningful milestone is confirmation that the buildout has cleared its final approvals and that the buffet has a date for welcoming diners.
