By LEAH WEATHERSBY

A former Red Hook brewery warehouse located at 160 N Canal St. has recently become the Fremont UNconvential Centre (FUNC). The building will serve as a staging area for private and corporate events, which will rent it at market rate prices, and for non-profit functions - at a sizable discount.

The three Fremont business people behind the project are Suzie Burke, who donated the space, Dwayne Edwards and David Moore. Edwards and Moore are partners in Digital Alchemy, a software company located on N 36th Street.

Edwards said he and Moore have spent $50,000 to $75,000 of their own money and resources to get FUNC up and running. So far FUNC has a board, a part-time staffer to do fund development and grant-writing, and volunteer labor.

FUNC has 3,000 square feet of indoor space, 400 square feet of dock space facing the Ship Canal, and 14,000 square feet of parking. Edwards thinks the space should pay for itself. In fact, he hopes that money earned from hosting corporate and private events for rent prices that range from $125-$300 per hour, will eventually allow non-profits to use the space for free. Until then, non-profit groups will pay 50 percent of the normal prices, with FUNC planning to refund residual income to their nonprofit clients on a quarterly basis.

Edwards said the idea for FUNC first came up last March when he was looking for a place to hold his 40th birthday bash. He asked friends to donate money to charity (like his favorite group, the Wallingford Boys & Girls Club) instead of bringing a gift. That act of generosity prompted Burke to offer her warehouse space for the evening. Edwards said the event, which drew 500-600 guests, went off without a hitch and Burke approached him and Moore about making the space available to more non-profits. After market research told Edwards and Moore there were 16,000 non-profit organizations in King County that could potentially need event space, the idea for FUNC was born.

So far, FUNC has about 10 event bookings. The space had its grand opening on June 16 at the Fremont Fair.

For more information about FUNC, call 633-3764. (