DEVELOPMENTS
News about construction projects underway
Posted February 2004
Developer spotlight: Opus Northwest builds on new opportunities
Whether it's commercial or residential, North or South, East or West, Opus takes aim. Opus Northwest LLC, which is best known for its office complexes and industrial parks, has expanded its project mix to include retail and multifamily projects. The company is currently contemplating or in progress on: the Dexter Apartments near Lake Union; an open-air mall similar to University Village in Seattle's Interbay neighborhood; a nine-story, 200,000 square-foot office tower in downtown Seattle; a potential lifestyle project in Federal Way; a few big-box retail centers; several government projects, including a Seattle-Bremerton mixed-use development; possibly up to 800,000 square feet of office space in Snoqualmie Ridge Business Park; potentially up to 1.4 million square feet of warehouse and distribution space in DuPont; up to 800,000 square feet of office space in the company's Northpointe project; and potentially up to one million square feet of light industrial or distribution space in Fife and Sumner.
Bellevue: bursting at the seams
Plans are underway to add 19,000 square feet of retail space and 106 parking spaces to Bellevue Square, which occupies 1.3 million square feet of land in downtown Bellevue. Three stores - Banana Republic, Pottery Barn and Williams-Sonoma - will expand into the new space. The parking garage will be added from the fourth level of the northwest garage. The new expansion at Bellevue Square is one of several projects currently in progress at Kemper Development. Others include Lincoln Square, a two-tower, 1.4 million-square-foot mixed-use project and a second hotel tower at the adjacent Hyatt Regency as well as a second office tower in the Bellevue Place complex. Additionally, the company is involved with building Performing Arts Center Eastside, which is expected to open in fall 2007. At some point, Kemper Freeman also anticipates acquiring the Bellevue Way property currently owned by Safeway.
Downtown: on the rise
Washington Mutual purchased a site for its headquarters on Second Avenue in downtown Seattle. Construction is underway and slated for completion within two years. Washington Mutual will consolidate its Seattle headquarters while giving the Seattle Art Museum 335,000 more square feet. The development will be built on a six-level, 710-vehicle underground garage that will be owned by the bank.
Just north of downtown Seattle, 38-year-old hotel University Plaza has been sold. The buyer, developer John Goodman, plans to turn the building into apartments and retail space.
Kent: new ride evokes new pride
To encourage development near its Sounder commuter-rail station, the city of Kent sold 10 acres to Tarragon Development of Seattle. Construction starts in July and will bring a 14-screen AMC Theater complex to the site and a branch of the Green River Community College. Tarragon plans to spend $39 million on the project's first phase, building 130,000 square feet of mixed-use space and a 21,000-square-foot civic plaza in the development's center. City officials envision a revitalized, fully developed 18-acre site to include 470,000 square feet of retail, office, residential, education and entertainment facilities. The city will contribute $2.3 million in the form of infrastructure improvements, including a main street that will run through the project and connect to the city's downtown core.