North Lot Development

[CrazyAboutCities]

Seattle's big North Lot project stalls again

A big mixed-use project that could bring hundreds of new residents to help revive Seattle’s Pioneer Square neighborhood has hit yet another snag.

The $180 million development of apartments and shops just north of CenturyLink Field is idling while the construction lender, Pacific Life Insurance Co. Pacific Life Insurance Co. Latest from The Business Journals Lake Mary Preparatory turns offices into dorm rooms Department of Insurance plans investigation of 10 large companies Department of Insurance plans investigation of 10 large companies Follow this company , reviews a complex series of agreements stretching all the way back to the late 1990s.

The lender decided to double check the documents after the land sale almost fell through last month.The agreements are between the developer Daniels Real Estate Co., King County, the Washington State Public Stadium Authority — which owns CenturyLink Field — and First & Goal Inc. First & Goal Inc. Latest from The Business Journals Newsmakers of 2010: FightersSeahawks hiring St. Louis hockey execQwest Field playing surface to be replaced Follow this company , the company that owns the Seahawks football team and operates the stadium. First & Goal is owned by Microsoft Corp. Microsoft Corp. Latest from The Business Journals Amazon scores ‘zero’ on political spending transparencyFedEx named fifth-best multinational workplaceSurvey: Microsoft best multinational workplace Follow this company (NASDAQ: MSFT) co-founder Paul Allen.

Plans for Stadium Place, also known informally as the North Lot project, call for 700 apartments and condos and 16,000 square feet of retail space, including a small grocery store. The project would bring hundreds of new residents to help support Pioneer Square’s struggling shops and restaurants and make the neighborhood feel safer. Tech companies, including phone maker HTC Corp. HTC Corp. Latest from The Business Journals Toolbox: Week of October 28, 2011Nokia unveils Lumia devices, the 'first real Windows Phones'Google, Samsung unveil latest Android OS, phone Follow this company , have been snapping up office space in the area, but street-level retailers have suffered since Elliott Bay Book Co. left a few years ago. Another major retailer, Masins Fine Furnishings, recently announced plans to leave.

Last month, the deal to sell the northernmost end of the CenturyLink football stadium’s north parking lot to developer Kevin Daniels threatened to fall apart in a dispute over whether sufficient parking would be provided for the stadium during construction.

Just weeks earlier, the Stadium Authority had passed a resolution authorizing its executive director to pull the plug on the deal if an agreement could not be reached.

The dispute was settled when Daniels agreed to pay $10.2 million to provide 491 parking stalls in a nearby Metro employee parking garage. Daniels paid $10 million for the 2-acre North Lot site and the project broke ground late last month.

But the snafu prompted the project’s lender to take a closer look at all of the agreements between the parties. The lender “never had those concerns until that resolution popped up,” Daniels said.

That brought the project to a halt. On a recent weekday morning, the work site contained a pile driver, three port-a-potties, two trailers, one truck — and no people.

“We have some final points to work out with the lender as a result of some of the actions prior to us working out a deal with the Stadium Authority and First & Goal,” Daniels said. “Our deal is solid and done with them but the PSA’s resolution caused concerns with the lender that we are still trying to work through.”

“Unintended consequences sometimes happen,” Daniels said. “It’s a frustrating situation that we will work our way through.”

Among the items under review: No one has found a document terminating a special use agreement between King County and Football Northwest LP — which no longer exists— regarding the use of the Kingdome, which previously occupied the site.

Daniels said King County, the Stadium Authority and First & Goal have worked with him in answering questions on about a dozen items that are now being reviewed by the lender, Pacific Life Insurance, based in Newport Beach, Calif.

Daniels said his firm and partner R.D. Merrill Co. R.D. Merrill Co. Latest from The Business Journals Merrill raising money for a 0M construction spreeM bond issue would add memory care units in San Jose senior care centerMerrill gets 6M for 26 properties Follow this company have sufficient funds to go ahead with the first phase of the project on their own. That would include a 197-unit residential tower with 16,000 square feet of retail space, including the small grocery store.

The project, at 201 S. King St., will be the largest transit-oriented development on the West Coast when it is completed with access to light rail, Amtrak Amtrak Latest from The Business Journals Slideshow: ABQ Ride flash mob gives Downtown a thrillObama jobs bill could bring .1B for Ohio infrastructureOfficial: Obama jobs bill would bring .1B for Ohio infrastructure Follow this company passenger trains, buses and ferries.

The project will be built in phases with the first two residential towers leased before the third is begun.

JEANNE LANG JONES covers commercial real estate for the Puget Sound Business Journal. Phone: 206-876-5426 | Email: jlj@bizjournals.com Click here to sign up for the PSBJ Daily Update.

http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/n....html?page=all

[mSeattle]

It seems they've found a way to annoy the holy hell out of readers who are reading a copy/paste of the article with the thing that seems to follow the name of every company or is it where the name is also a URL? Whatever, makes me want to hit the text every time it happens.

[LCIII]

Yah definitely less annoying at the actual site.


Anyways- this project is cursed. Once it finally gets up, a decade from now, it'll have faulty concrete or something like that Belltown tower and will have to torn down. Just wait for it.

[AzChristopher]

Although it will cost them a little bit of money it doesn't look like that bad of a delay. Lender just wants to make sure they have a more firm standing if any lawsuits come up during the building.

[LCIII]

I think everyone understands the situation- it's the fact that this is the third (that I know of) delay. As soon as they sort it out something else pops up. Hopefully this is the end of the delays but another delay wouldn't surprise me.

[Rogue Linguist]

Originally Posted by 2ndz

Isn't there a Uwajimaya close by?

There is an Uwajimaya close by, yes, but it's a specialty store. It doesn't sell the same things as a generic store would. And, besides, it's kind of hard to miss it living in Pioneer Square.

[Rogue Linguist]

Originally Posted by CityView Jim

Excellent idea (among other residential-supporting services)!!

Uwajimaya is not really a general pop servicing grocery store. Then again, neither is Whole Foods! Maybe a QFC or Safeway. They seem to be doing more urban concepts stores.

Why haven't we seen a Safeway or QFC open downtown? That's what I want to know. Imagine being able to live downtown and actually walk to the store to get medicine, diapers, or tampons at 3 o'clock in the morning. Like in a real city.

[Rogue Linguist]

I wonder how "small" they mean by a "small" grocery store? A tobacconist? A cornershop? I hope you can get more than just Twinkies and lottery tickets there.

[mhays]

Originally Posted by Rogue Linguist

Why haven't we seen a Safeway or QFC open downtown? That's what I want to know. Imagine being able to live downtown and actually walk to the store to get medicine, diapers, or tampons at 3 o'clock in the morning. Like in a real city.

Most people can. Just have to get to one of the LQA stores or Broadway.

There's no huge gap. Until 10:00 (or whatever) the IGA takes care of the CBD, along with the Market.

I'd guess there's room for a chain in Belltown, though we have a lot of options just outside our borders. Probably SLU soon at the lower end. First Hill could use a store, probably not quite as upmarket as the one that just closed.

[Rogue Linguist]

Originally Posted by mhays

Most people can. Just have to get to one of the LQA stores or Broadway.

There's no huge gap. Until 10:00 (or whatever) the IGA takes care of the CBD, along with the Market.

I'd guess there's room for a chain in Belltown, though we have a lot of options just outside our borders. Probably SLU soon at the lower end. First Hill could use a store, probably not quite as upmarket as the one that just closed.

I guess I mentioned Safeway and QFC because they're usually open 24 hours a day, and there's no such store in downtown itself--just on the periphery. Maybe with growth that will change.

[mhays]

The best hope is probably for the IGA to go 24-hour, or maybe a new store in Belltown.

[Seasun]

I hope a large grocery could go in somewhere in or near the Clise properties. About where the Toyota dealership is. It's interesting how most people (understandably) can't see Whole Foods as a place to go for everyday things.

[LCIII]

Whole Foods doesn't have a lot of the everyday brands and products that average Americans use daily. It's definitely not a store for everyone but their prices indicate they know that.

[BoulderGrad]

Originally Posted by Seasun

I hope a large grocery could go in somewhere in or near the Clise properties. About where the Toyota dealership is. It's interesting how most people (understandably) can't see Whole Foods as a place to go for everyday things.

The stalled Insignia towers (twin tower proposal) are surrounded by the Clise properties, and were to have a Trader Joes as its main retail tenant.

[Capitol Hill]

I did not know that about Trader Joes in the Insignia. I guess that means they had a miserable parking lot/garage arrangement.

[biggodhead]

The new Target store on 2nd is likely to sell more groceries than we're used to seeing.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/17/bu...pagewanted=all
"Target invested $500 million last year alone in a new push on groceries, retrofitting some of its general merchandise stores with full-blown food sections. Sales and traffic at stores with the new grocery areas are about 6 percent higher than at similar stores without them, the company says."

[Capitol Hill]

Chicago's CityTarget information:

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?sec...cal&id=7960001

[LCIII]

The Target in DC had the groceries too. Seemed like most people who bought groceries there were like me- Id get things every now and then if I happened to remember an item or two I needed when I was there already. I never saw someone leaving with a large amount of food as though that was the purpose of their visit.

[bgwah]

The Redmond location recently expanded their food section, adding produce.

[biggodhead]

Originally Posted by LCIII

I never saw someone leaving with a large amount of food as though that was the purpose of their visit.

Yep, seems like the only food you ever see at Target is processed/frozen food like lunchmeats and hot pockets.
What they need @ North Lot is a big Food Emporium.
Those guys have the urban grocer business down pat.