Washington State Development Thread

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Builders have lofty goals for downtown condos
Sales are slow for The Lofts’ new high-end downtown condos, but the marketing plan is broadening, prices are dropping and a lease option is now available
BY DAVID LESTER
THE YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center
image hosted on flickr

(Lofts and condos are the next big thing in Yakima.)


YAKIMA, Wash. -- Pedestrians on North Third Street these days can't help but cast their eyes upward at what used to be the old Bon Marché building at the corner of A Street.

There, in place of the old retail space, is a venture to bring luxury downtown living to Yakima.

Sometimes looking back at the street below is Mike McMurray, owner of the Yakima Bears baseball team. He and his wife, Laura, were the first and still the only purchasers of a condo in The Lofts.

That is about to change with the sale of a third-floor unit expected to close within two weeks.

A price adjustment on some units and a new element in marketing the project -- leasing with an option to buy -- seek to attract more occupants who will want to stay.

The McMurrays' unit is on the second floor, above the baseball club's office that is the first occupant of the street-level commercial spaces.

Marketing for the remaining three commercial spots is continuing, targeting small retail and business office use.

"We absolutely love it. Going out in the morning and watching the town come alive is really kind of neat," McMurray said. "We get to see things begin to wrap up in the early evening."

It's that experience in downtown living -- different from anything else in Yakima -- the developers of the more than $10 million project are trying to emphasize to fill the 27-unit complex of one- and two-bedroom units.

The condos feature high ceilings and access to an entertainment room on the first floor and exercise room on the second floor. Parking is available in the basement for tenants.

The development is a joint venture between Seattle developer Gary Bodenstab's Bode Properties and property owner JEM Development of Yakima and its owner, Joe Morrier.

To reach the goal, they are taking steps to broaden a marketing plan that now includes the leasing opportunity with an option to buy after a year. Marketing the leasing piece began in mid-June.

Media advertising, participation in local tourist events and the open houses have been the primary conduit for marketing the project.

The lease option is being offered at $1,700 per month. Should the occupant decide to buy after one year, half the lease payments will apply to the purchase price, an offer listing agent Moriet Miketa, assistant manager for Prudential Almon Realty of Yakima, describes as generous.

Bodenstab said the leasing tool is an effort to acquaint potential buyers with what The Lofts has to offer.

"We are hoping the leasing opportunity will give people a chance to experience this type of lifestyle," he said, "and give them the confidence their investment in this type of project is a solid and sound investment."

He added a couple of leases are pending.

Prices for second-floor, one-bedroom units have been reduced to $250,000 from the original pricing structure that started at $317,000.

The fourth-floor penthouse units remain at the top end of more than $600,000.

Miketa said the developers agreed to the price adjustments after she did research on condominium pricing in other communities around the Northwest.

"We looked at other communities similar to Yakima at what consumers are looking for and what they are willing to pay," she said.

She said she looked at condo pricing in Boise, Idaho; Bend and Redmond, Ore.; and the Tri-Cities and Walla Walla.

Prudential Almon took over marketing The Lofts in February.

Prices for The Lofts units are above the average for Yakima. More than 200 condominiums in Yakima County have sold in the past three years at an average price of $165,000, according to the Yakima County Assessor's Office.

The county has nearly 1,600 condos.

The project was essentially completed and public tours began in mid-January of this year. Since then, regular tours are conducted three days a week and finishing touches such as hallway carpeting have been completed.

Miketa's analysis of conditions elsewhere is being echoed in tourist- and recreation-rich Chelan County, which has seen its red-hot housing market cool in the wake of the economic downturn.

Once considered one of the top markets in the country for price appreciation, Wenatchee is now considered some 30 percent overvalued, according to a CNNMoney.com article, which was reported last week in the Wenatchee World newspaper.

The World story said some in the real estate industry disagree that overvalued properties cross the housing spectrum in the community.

But Scott Christie, president of the North Central Washington Association of Realtors, told the Yakima Herald-Republic for this story that high-end homes and condos, a segment of the market that grew dramatically during the housing runup, are taking a long time to sell and some price adjustment is warranted.

He said the buyer pool for expensive properties, including condos, as second or vacation homes has declined.

The Chelan market has a larger inventory of condos and townhouses than the local industry would like to see, he said.

With buyers now holding back because of declining home values in the Seattle market and tougher requirements by banks, condo developers are no longer able to command high prices.

"I have been frank with my clients. You have to get your head around the fact that these prices are gone," said Christie, who has sold real estate in Leavenworth for 11 years. "There's not the volume demand for them. We have a lot of inventory."

So far, owners are unwilling to reduce prices. But some are offering marketing techniques that include what amounts to condo time shares to get the units occupied.

Leasing also is a technique in use in the Chelan County market.

"Owners are getting more creative," Christie said.

Some developers are now looking at downtown Wenatchee for condo development, to hone in on interest by younger people who would prefer to live downtown.

That is the element The Lofts developers are confident will lure more people to downtown Yakima and to their project.

Miketa said open houses are attracting a diverse audience that includes more local people.

"A lot of people thought it would be buyers from Seattle looking for a second home. But they are local people looking to downsize, empty-nesters or those looking to simplify their lives," she said. "It's local people buying into Yakima."

Some in the local real estate industry, however, express some skepticism that Yakima is ready to embrace the concept of living downtown. Single-family homes on the west side continue to be the primary objective of buyers.

With more private investment in downtown and more things to do beyond what already is there, that feeling might change, one broker said.

Downtown endured a series of body blows in the form of store closures, culminating in the closure of the Yakima Mall in late 2003.

But the city, local groups and state lawmakers worked to give the city's core new life. A federal designation as a renewal community provided tax and investment credits, and state funds championed by retired Sen. Alex Deccio led to streetscape improvements. Now, new businesses and night life have returned to downtown.

Bodenstab said he believes The Lofts are in the right place at the right time.

He said the worldwide upheaval in financial markets is having an impact on real estate activity everywhere. But he added Yakima remains insulated from the effects.

"Are we better off in Yakima than Seattle? You bet," Bodenstab said. "I like it. I have no competition. For people who want to live this way, this is the only act in town."



* David Lester can be reached at 509-577-7674 or dlester@yakimaherald.com.

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Wenatchee Valley Medical Center donates to hospital’s expansion
By Dee Riggs
The Wenatchee World staff writer
Posted June 23, 2009

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


WENATCHEE — The Wenatchee Valley Medical Center is donating $1 million to Central Washington Hospital's multi-million dollar expansion project, which is expected to begin this fall.

This is the largest, single gift in the history of the hospital, said Abel Noah, the executive director of the hospital foundation.

The money, pledged at $200,000 per year for the next five years, will go into the hospital's capital campaign, which is being used to help fund the expansion project.

"This sends a clear message to the community that WVMC recognizes the need to modernize and expand Central Washington Hospital, as they are willing to provide such significant support," said Jack Evans, hospital president and chief executive officer.

Evans added that the donation also reflects the spirit of cooperation between the medical center and the hospital.

The hospital and the medical center are separate entities, which do not share business ventures, said medical center Administrator Shaun Koos.

With the donation, the capital campaign has raised more than $2 million dollars. The hospital foundation is matching the first $3 million donated to the campaign.

The first phase of the project, estimated to cost $130 million, will add 188,000 square feet of space in a five-story tower. When completed, all patient rooms will be private, the intensive care unit modernized, the number of patient beds raised from 147 to 174, and the rooms will have more efficient work space and better patient and visitor access.

Hospital officials say they hope to sell bonds for the project by mid-August.

Dee Riggs: 664-7147

deeriggs@wenatcheeworld.com

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Napavine Looks to Federal Loan for New City Hall

By Marqise Allen
mallen@chronline.com

Lewis County Chronicle
image hosted on flickr

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

Published: Tuesday, June 23, 2009 10:21 AM PDT

NAPAVINE- The Napavine City Council will decide tonight whether to accept a United States Department of Agriculture Loan to purchase the new city hall building.

“In 2007 the mayor and council elected to build a building and lease before we could buy it,” Mayor Nick Bozarth said.

He said the city is currently paying $5,250 per month, none of which is going to purchase the building. Accepting the $1.125 million loan, will help pay for the $1.25 million building. An additional loan through The Lending Network in Chehalis will cover the remaining balance.

The new loan with an interest rate of 4.5 percent will be paid by the city for the next 40 years. Monthly payments will be just under $6,000, an increase that should not pose a problem as the city has purposefully over-budgeted for the payments for the building, Bozarth said.

“We can handle it, and it’ll be well worth it,” he said. “The city needs to own its own city hall.”

However, should the council not accept the loan, there could be serious ramifications, he said.

“If this doesn’t go through, we risk having $10,000 monthly payments, not owning the building and the owner could look for back pay,” Bozarth said about how the original deal with the owner was constructed to give them the option to raise the rent to “fair market value.”

Clerk-Treasurer Mary Todd said the annual payments if the rent was to raised would be about $120,000, as opposed to less than $72,000 with the loan.

“It’s going to save us in the long run because we’re going to be owning the building and not paying rent,” she said.

The original agreement between the owner and the city gives July 20 as the deadline, and the measure would need to be approved on two readings before taking effect.

He said no one is playing hardball; it’s taken a year to negotiate the loan and the proposal, which Bozarth said he has made clear the council must approve for the benefit of the city.

“Our budget can’t handle the consequences of not purchasing the building both long-term and short term,” he said.

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$80 million Esplanade project faces foreclosure
Waterfront: Few condos sell

THE TACOMA NEWS TRIBUNE / By John Gillie


The Esplanade condo building along the Foss Waterway is headed toward foreclosure. Only 10 condos have been purchased, leaving about 150 empty units.
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


06/24/09 12:00 pm

TACOMA- An $80 million Tacoma waterfront condominium project, caught in the financial whirlpools of the recession, faces foreclosure by late August unless the developer can find new sources of funding.

The Esplanade, a nine-story condominium on the west side of the near-downtown Thea Foss Waterway, has until Aug. 21 to escape from the imminent foreclosure, said sources close to the project who were not authorized to speak publicly.

Just 10 of the 162 housing units in the building at 1515 Dock St. have been sold, and none of the retail spaces on Dock Street or facing the waterfront walkway has been leased.

The Esplanade was part of a grand plan by the Foss Waterway Development Authority to encourage private developers to build new housing and a hotel along the formerly industrial inlet of Commencement Bay.

The hotel never broke ground, but California developer Mark Ossola and his Thea Foss Holdings LLC erected the handsome condo building. The owners of the adjacent hotel property now have their land for sale and are negotiating with a Bellingham hotel developer about completing the hotel project.

“It’s just a tragedy,” said Don Meyer, the waterway authority’s executive director of the Esplanade’s financial trouble.

“The developer built a first-class building,” he said.

The condo project was built later than the developer originally had projected, hitting the market last year just when the housing collapse was beginning.

Ossola didn’t return several phone calls this week seeking his comments.

Judy Mayfield, sales manager for the Esplanade, said the market conditions and the financial crisis conspired to make selling units difficult.

She has more than 100 potential buyers who showed strong interest in the building, but the tender condition of the economy has kept most of them from committing.

“We’ve had a great response to the building,” she said, “but other factors are keeping people from completing their deals.”

Some of those potential customers say they want to buy in the Esplanade, but they must sell their existing homes first. They’re seeing little interest in their own property.

Buyers who need financing are finding it difficult, but not impossible, to find banks willing to finance their condos.

The building’s low occupancy erects barriers to obtaining conventional financing, said Mayfield. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the quasi-federal housing finance agencies, now require a condo building to be 70 percent pre-sold before they’ll buy the mortgages from that building. In some cases, the percentage can be reduced to 51 percent, still a long way from the Esplanade’s occupancy percentage.

Some owners in the building qualified for private financing or plunked down cash for their units.

The 10 sold units are scattered throughout the building, some facing the city, others facing the water. They’re located on several different floors.

The developers haven’t made wholesale price reductions in part to protect the value of the condos sold during more prosperous times, said Mayfield, but they’re willing to negotiate with buyers to suit their particular needs, she said.

If the Esplanade is foreclosed upon, said Meyer, it will be an unfortunate setback for the developer who worked hard to see the building was completed.

But at least the structure is done, he said. That’s a better circumstance than for other projects in Tacoma and elsewhere who saw their financing frozen midproject.

John Gillie: 253-597-8663

john.gillie@thenewstribune.com

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Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2009
Tri-City homes in short supply
Ingrid Stegemoeller, Tri City Herald staff writer
image hosted on flickr

(Housing development in Pasco.)

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


PASCO - Pasco Fire Chief Bob Gear may have moved into his new job in January, but finding a house in his new city has been more of a challenge.

Gear, formerly the chief of Benton Fire District 1, and his wife Rhonda easily sold their old house in Kennewick earlier this month. But because of a dwindling housing inventory they're having a hard time finding a new home in their price range.

"I thought we'd have trouble selling and it would be a buyers' market," Bob Gear said. "It's exactly the opposite of what I expected."

Tri-City real estate agents are reporting that homes priced at less than about $325,000 are selling fast and inventory is dropping.

"If we list a nice property under $250,000, we're seeing it sold within 30 days," said Dave Retter, designated broker and co-owner of Windermere Tri-Cities. "If we list a home under $150,000, and it's a nice home priced in the market, we're seeing it sold in 10 days."

In a balanced market -- meaning it would take about six months at a similar sales rate to sell the current inventory if no new homes came on the market -- such homes take an average of 60 days to sell, Retter said.

Gear said his Kennewick home sold for $248,500 in 24 days and had two other offers.

"It's a sellers' market," he said.

The couple are looking for a three- to four-bedroom rambler in west Pasco with a three-car garage or a shop, he said, priced between $200,000 to $300,000.

They've found a few they like recently, but the homes went under contract before the Gears were able to make a move.

Their agent, Jennifer Ralston of Coldwell Banker Tomlinson Associated Brokers in Kennewick, said there are only a handful of homes that meet those specifications.

"We don't even have a month's (supply)," she said.

Another set of buyers, Laura and Jon Strycker of Pasco, also had a hard time finding a house to meet their needs.

The couple, who have two young daughters, had been renting an apartment and started thinking about buying their first home last summer.

They wanted three bedrooms and two bathrooms with at least 1,200 square feet of space, Laura Strycker said.

And they didn't want to spend more than $135,000.

They got serious about their hunt last fall and put in an offer on a house only to find out another buyer had outbid them.

So they kept looking.

The couple finally found the right house in December and closed in January, taking advantage of the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit.

"Houses were either out of our price range ... or smaller than we preferred," she said.

There were 161 homes priced at $100,000 to $150,000 on the market as of June 10, Retter said, less than half the 332 in the same price range on the market at the same time last year.

And in the $150,000 to $200,000 range, there were 193 homes listed for sale as of June 10, compared with 278 a year ago, he said.

He and other agents attribute the shrinking availability of homes in lower price ranges to tighter lending for new construction.

"We're not continuing to put units up as our population continues to grow," said Paul Roy of Coldwell Banker Tomlinson Associated Brokers. "We're seeing that in our dwindling inventory."

Doug Bayne, vice president and director of marketing for Banner Bank, said the bank has seen a slowdown in applications for residential home construction loans.

But Banner is making $10 million in loans for spec homes in June across its coverage area of Washington, Idaho and Oregon, he said.

"Of all the market areas we're in, the Tri-Cities continues to be one of the more strong areas," Bayne said.

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Napavine Rejects Loan to Buy City Hall

The Chronicle Serving Lewis County.
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center



By Marqise Allen
mallen@chronline.com
Wednesday, June 24, 2009 10:25 AM PDT
NAPAVINE — Coming into Tuesday night’s City Council meeting, Mayor Nick Bozarth thought the council would approve a measure to accept two loans to pay off the balance of the new city hall building.

However, Napavine council members voted 2-3 against accepting a $1.125 million United States Department of Agriculture loan that would have covered most of the costs for the $1.25 million structure, which the city is leasing.

The vote complicates matters on what happens next for the city and its new, still unpaid for city hall.

“I wish I could say what happens next. But I don’t know,” Bozarth said. “We had an opportunity to own city hall and we turned it down. Staff and I worked really hard for a year to get this in place.”

Bozarth cited this meeting as the last council meeting to begin the process of accepting the loan and get the paperwork ready before the July 20 deadline in the city’s agreement with the owner.

Most of what follows will depend on the property owner Arnold Haberstroh, and whether he decides to increase the rent of the city hall building to “fair market value.” When constructed, the building was appraised at $1.4 million, which would raise the monthly lease payments from about $5,200 to almost $10,000.

Haberstroh was not able to be reached as of press time.

Councilors Dave Williams and Paula Sandirk voted in favor of accepting the loan.

“In spite of some of the budget concerns, it was a sound business decision to move forward,” Sandirk said. “Our council could come back to approve the loan resolution, but I’m not saying that’s what’s going to happen.”

Councilors Ken Williams, John Sayers and Larry Stafford weren’t sold that the final deal was the best deal the city could get.

“I think the building is overpriced and overstated,” Stafford said. “The building was built and appraised before the downturn. I personally think being a commercial building in the place it is, you can’t get that for that building.”

Stafford said he feels another appraisal would potentially lower the cost of the building and keep the city from paying off on the building for the next 40 years, the duration of the loan.

“I don’t want to spend a dollar more than I have to,” Stafford said. “You have to draw the line somewhere and this is maybe one of those times. Maybe we’re not ready for this type of expenditure.”

Another point of contention is the way councilors perceive Haberstroh potentially raising the rent on the building.

“We don’t take threats easily, so we’ll see what comes out in the wash,” Stafford said. “We could always go back across the street (to the old city hall), and let the legal aspects of itself fight it out.”

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KeyBank District Headquarters to Stay in Downtown Bellevue

DowntownBellevueNetwork

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

By Michael / June 22, 2009

image hosted on flickr

(Bellevue, Washington.)

KeyBank will maintain their district headquarters that is in Downtown Bellevue at Key Center, on the corner of 108th at NE 6th and Bellevue Way, according to an article on Friday by the Puget Sound Business Journal.

After searching for alternative space, KeyBank’s Rick Wirthlin said, “The landlord made it very attractive for us to stay where we were.”

The new lease will extend the current lease, which expires in July 2010, for an additional 5 years. KeyBank will lease a total of 70,200 square feet on the 2nd through 4th floors.

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Legacy opens 135 apartments in Redmond
By THE SEATTLE DAILY JOURNAL OF COMMERCE STAFF
June 25, 2009
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


Legacy Residential has opened the first phase of a luxury apartment complex called Legacy at Riverpark Apartments in downtown Redmond.

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June 25, 2009
Pierce College gets an upgrade
By THE SEATTLE DAILY JOURNAL OF COMMERCE STAFF
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


Image by McGranahan Architects
Pierce College is moving ahead with the second phase of improvements to the Cascade Building on its Fort Steilacoom campus.

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Drivers sue 19 cities over traffic camera fines
Wednesday, June 24, 2009 10:55 PM PDT
By Richard Roesler
The Spokesman-Review / The Daily News
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

image hosted on flickr

(Traffic sign for photo enforced camera's in Seattle.)

OLYMPIA — Eight ticketed drivers on Wednesday filed a lawsuit alleging that 19 Washington cities, including Spokane, are overcharging people who get automated traffic-camera fines.

A Spokane police spokeswoman said that the department hadn’t had time to fully review the case, but that the city’s traffic-camera ordinances were thoroughly vetted before they took effect.

“We’re pretty sure we had our ducks in a row before the cameras ever went in,” said Officer Teresa Fuller. Based on a first look at the lawsuit, she said. “It doesn’t seem to apply to Spokane.”

Attorneys for the eight are seeking class-action status, which would dramatically expand the number of plaintiffs.

The 2005 law allowing such fines limited how high the charges could be.

“The intent of the Legislature was primarily safety, not raising of revenue,” said the complaint, filed Wednesday in King County Superior Court.

State law says that traffic-camera fines “shall not exceed the amount of the fine issued for other parking infractions within the jurisdiction,” according to the complaint.

Spokane’s fines comply with that, Fuller said.

“We have a $250 parking citation in the city of Spokane,” she said. “Our photo-red citations are half of that.”

The lead attorney for the plaintiffs, Rob Williamson of Bainbridge Island, could not immediately be reached for comment.

The suit was brought by four West Side residents, two from Lynnwood, one from Lakewood and one from Puyallup. Their fines ranged from $64 to $124 per violation. One man, Seattle’s Mark Contratto, was fined $124 on each of two consecutive days for failing to come to a complete stop before turning right on a red light.

The defendants include the cities of Spokane, Auburn, Bonney Lake, Bremerton, Burien, Federal Way, Fife, Issaquah, Lacey, Lake Forest Park, Lakewood, Lynnwood, Monroe, Moses Lake, Puyallup, Renton, SeaTac, Seattle and Tacoma.

Dan Mitchinson contributed to this report.

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Planners OK condo and retail project near marina
Kimberly Jacobson | The Anacortes American



AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

June 25, 2009 - 09:50 AM

ANACORTES - Anacortes planners Wednesday night OK’d a four-building mixed use development in the area being used as a temporary dog park near the Cap Sante Boat Haven.

Lynden-based developer Homestar Northwest is proposing to build 20 condos and offer 7,000 square feet of retail space at Ninth Street between Q and R avenues.

The condos would range from 700-square-foot one-bedroom residences to 1,600-square-foot three-bedroom spaces. Each of the four buildings has up to 1,800 square feet of commercial space on the ground floor and five living units above.

The property is zoned commercial marine.

The company previously went before the Planning Commission in late 2008 requesting to build 14 condos and allowing 800 square feet for retail at the property.

After planners and the public expressed concerns about the lack of retail space as required in the city’s comprehensive plan, Homestar Northwest went back to the drawing board.

Planners approved a shoreline permit at the June 24 meeting and OK’d a conditional use permit for the project. It is scheduled to be heard by the City Council July 6.

The applicant proposes work begin on the project in September.

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Rest of Bethel Corridor Could Soon Join City of Port Orchard

By Chris Henry / The Kitsap Sun
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

image hosted on flickr

(Port Orchard City Hall.)

PORT ORCHARD —

A group of Bethel Avenue property owners started the ball rolling toward making the rest of Bethel Corridor part of the city of Port Orchard.

The city has already annexed choice commercial properties — including Fred Meyer — at the corner of Sedgwick Road and Bethel Avenue. A two-part annexation of properties along Geiger Road is also part of the Bethel Corridor plan.

On Tuesday, the city council accepted a petition from Bethel North property owners announcing their intention to be annexed. Those who signed the petition represent 14 percent of the assessed valuation of the land within annexation boundaries, more than the 10 percent required by law.

The proposed annexation includes 387 parcels totaling about 600 acres and represents the bulk of the Bethel Corridor, which is South Kitsap’s main commercial thoroughfare. The corridor represents a significant source of sales tax revenue.

The earlier annexations were a sore spot between the city and Kitsap County. In March, shortly before the Bethel-Sedgwick annexation was finalized, the county commissioners — with South Kitsap Commissioner Charlotte Garrido in the lead — took exception to the way annexation was moving forward on the corridor.

The Bethel-Sedgwick and Geiger annexations, located at the south end of Bethel Avenue, left a vast swath of unincorporated property between city boundaries, an arrangement Garrido said was out of step with tenets of the state’s Growth Management Act.

Garrido threatened to derail the Bethel-Sedgwick annexation unless the city came up with a more “logical” plan for assuming the rest of the Bethel Corridor. The city complied by showing its intention to annex Bethel North all in one fell swoop, rather than piecemeal.

But the city had to work with property owners, who by law must be the driving force behind an annexation.

Now those property owners spearheading the Bethel North annexation must circulate a second petition showing that owners of property representing at least 75 of the assessed valuation with the boundary approve the annexation.

The law will change on July 26, dropping the required threshold to 60 percent. According to City Attorney Greg Jacoby, the Bethel North annexation will be subject to whatever rules are in effect at the time the petition is submitted to the council.

Resistance to the annexation is unlikely to be a factor, however, as businesses along the corridor have been clamoring for some time to become part of the city. Two large businesses, Safeway and Wal-Mart, represent 50 percent of the assessed valuation within annexation boundaries.

The McCormick Woods annexation, representing another significant addition to the city, is likely to be finalized next month.

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Proposed Housing Development Would Bring Big Change to Silverdale

By Brynn Grimley / The Kitsap Sun
Thursday, June 25, 2009
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

SILVERDALE —

A proposed new housing development could add nearly 700 homes and significantly change the face of Silverdale.

The project, called Woodbridge Crossing, is being planned for northeast of the Waaga Way interchange on Silverdale Way, near Rotary Gateway Park.

The proposal calls for 659 residences on about 122 acres. County zoning rules allow up to 798 residences.

Silverdale developer Gary Lindsey and his partners propose to build a mix of single-family homes, multifamily apartments and senior housing on the land that runs from Silverdale Way east to the Ridgetop neighborhood.

None of the buildings will be taller than 35 feet, and they will be built at the back of the property to preserve open space along Silverdale Way.

Work will be done in phases, likely over 10 years. About half of the property will remain undeveloped.

Plans for the project call for a network of walking trails that will eventually connect with the Clear Creek Trail. First the trail has to be built out across county land formerly owned by the Markwick family.

To accommodate the increase in traffic on Silverdale Way, a number of improvements are required. A traffic study estimates that the first phase of the project — which will include up to 300 homes — could generate 2,500 average daily trips.

County officials say that building sidewalks along Silverdale Way running the length of the property is a condition of approval. The county is also asking Lindsey’s consortium to pay for a right-turn lane on Silverdale Way and eventually an upgrade of the intersection of NW Randall Way and Silverdale Way.

The state Department of Transportation has also required the addition of another lane on the off-ramp from Highway 303 to Silverdale Way.

The development will have two entrance and exit points onto Silverdale Way. Eventually, a road will connect to Ridgetop Boulevard.

Lindsey said he is aware the market isn’t exactly favorable for large housing developments right now, but he thinks demand will present itself as the project develops.

“I think I can safely say today there is a demand for none of this,” he said.

But the group wants to be ready to build when the opportunity arises, which is why it is applying for permits, he said. He estimates work won’t start until spring 2010 at the earliest.

County Hearing Examiner Ted Hunter is expected to make a decision on the project and its conditions in 10 days. There was no opposition to the project at a hearing Thursday.

Lindsey also agreed to stormwater mitigation, including adding buffer zones for wetlands and catching runoff from the uphill Ridgetop housing developments that currently discharge onto his property and county land.

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June 26, 2009
21-unit complex eyed for site on Lake Union
By The Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce Staff
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center



Image by studio 216 for The Enclave [enlarge photo]
Seattle-based Trinity Real Estate said it plans to develop in phases The Enclave, a 21-unit complex within the 5-acre redevelopment known as Wards Cove on Lake Union. This would be in Seattle's Eastlake district.

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June 26, 2009
Bremerton opening $54M ferry traffic tunnel
By THE SEATTLE DAILY JOURNAL OF COMMERCE STAFF
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

Photo courtesy of WSDOT (Enlarge Photo)
BREMERTON- Drivers debarking Seattle-to-Bremerton ferries will soon have a scenic tunnel to navigate for the first 960 feet of their journey. The $53.9 million project connects to Burwell Street near Park Avenue, separating ferry traffic from downtown streets to improve pedestrian safety and reduce congestion, according to the state Transportation Department.

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Othello apartments set to break ground despite economy
By AUBREY COHEN / June 25th, 2009
Seattle Post Intelligencer Staff
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center



SEATTLE'S Rainier Valley- Developer Othello Partners plans to break ground in July on a $70-million, 420,000-square-foot project in Rainier Valley, despite the slow economy.

The Station at Othello Park will put 352 apartments and 20,000 square feet of retail space at the southeast corner of South Othello Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Way South. The site is beside Othello Park and kitty-corner from the Othello Station of Link light rail, which is set to start service July 18.

It would be the first new project to break ground along the light-rail route in Rainier Valley and one of the few residential developments to go forward with construction in the region, or anywhere, amid the economic slowdown. The recession has hit condominium projects much harder than apartments, but a lack of new jobs and skittish investors are hurting all types of development.

The Othello project can go forward because it has financing from USAA Real Estate Co.

"They've seen how great communities are created at these" transit-oriented developments, said Mike Hlastala, chief operating officer at Othello Partners.

While the project is still seeking debt financing, USAA will not hold up construction over that, Hlastala said. "They're committed to moving forward."

Steve Rauf, chief executive and president of Othello Partners, said he expects the economy to start recovering by the building's opening, scheduled for spring 2011. He also noted that the nationwide construction slowdown has brought down construction and material costs and means the project will have less competition when it opens.

While the project is larger and fancier than existing development in the area, the developers are betting that renters will be drawn to Link's quick-and-easy connections to downtown, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and elsewhere.

"That's obviously the defining thing that makes this project possible," Rauf said. And, he noted, the site has quick access to Interstate 5, for those who drive.

The developers also tout the site's views of Mount Rainer, the Cascades and downtown Seattle, and it's proximity to a 7.6-acre park, Chief Sealth Trail, community center, library, police station and one of the most diverse neighborhoods in the city. The project includes 18- to 48-foot-wide sidewalks that allow for cafe seating, a 12,000-square-foot courtyard with an indoor-outdoor fireplace, a 7,500-square-foot roof deck, an Internet cafe, a plaza along MLK with public art and a dog-washing station. It is aiming for silver-level certification through the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program, which goes up to platinum.

The 352 apartments will range from 400 studios to 1,100-square-foot, two-bedroom units. The developers didn't give details on rents, other than to say they will be at market rates, with some units affordable to people earning 80 percent area median income.

Othello Partners also is in permitting for a 370-apartment building with 18,000 square feet of retail space on two-acre it owns on the north side of Othello Street, across from the first project. The neighborhood is set to host a street party on that site from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. July 18 to mark the launch of service on the light-rail line.

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Community News 06/26/09
Green is the theme for new Waste Management headquarters
By Craig Howard / The Spokane Valley News Herald

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

SPOKANE VALLEY- Every week, workers with Waste Management of Spokane retrieve recycled materials from thousands of residential and commercial customers throughout the greater Spokane Valley.

These days, those renewable resources are being returned to a building that has a recycled history of its own.

A grand opening for the Waste Management Spokane Operations Center was held last Friday and included addresses from Spokane Valley Mayor Richard Munson and Spokane County Commissioner Mark Richard. The 23,000-square-foot site is located in Spokane Valley near Spalding Auto Parts.

A grand opening for WM’s new 23,000-square-foot operations center was held last Friday with dignitaries like Spokane County Commissioner Mark Richard and Spokane Valley Mayor Richard Munson in attendance. The building will serve as home base for 64 WM trucks and a staff of 72, including 56 drivers.

Richard gave credit to WM for integrating environmentally conscious themes into construction of the $8.5 million site. Elements of the structure – including solar panels, a high efficiency heating and cooling system and green friendly water and light mechanisms – will translate into a 30-percent energy savings compared to a traditional building of the same size.

“This is a proud day,” Richard said. “The amount of money you’ve invested in the environmental component is impressive. I would hope that others would catch onto this example.”

The building – located off Interstate 90 near Spalding Auto Parts – was designed and constructed according to standards outlined in a program called Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, established by the U.S. Green Building Council in 1998. There are currently over 14,000 projects in the U.S. and 30 other countries that comply to LEED criteria underscoring priorities such as indoor environmental quality, water efficiency and innovation in the design process.

Carl Damoude, design manager for ET Environmental Corp., a Portland-based construction firm that designed the Spokane Valley WM site, said the emphasis on a green approach includes the construction and utilization of the building.

“There are so many benefits to the employees because of this working environment,” Damoude said.

Along with spacious windows and high efficiency lighting, the site includes reflective roofing and concrete paving that reduces heat. An automated truck wash, responsible for cleaning each of the vehicles in the WM fleet, uses recycled water at a rate of 92 percent.

“There are tangible, monetary benefits,” Damoude said.

Even the landscaping around the building, comprised mostly of plants that require little water, adds to the green theme. Damoude said WM will see a 72-percent reduction in outdoor water usage because of the configuration.

After the ground breaking last July, contractors recycled 75 percent of the materials generated at the construction site. Recycled products account for nearly 30 percent of the resources used to build the structure.

More importantly, an extensive supply of eco-friendly materials were integrated into the – from low-emitting paint to wood with no added urea formaldehyde, a toxic substance that has been linked to cancer and respiratory problems.

“This place means a lot to each and every one of our employees,” said Marco Gonzales, district manager of the Spokane Valley WM center.

The local WM branch serves over 52,000 residential and commercial customers in an area that includes the city of Spokane Valley, Millwood, Liberty Lake, Deer Park and portions of unincorporated Spokane County.

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Gloves coming off in cities’ duel for Russell
Tacoma lawmakers send angry letter to Seattle

THE TACOMA NEWS TRIBUNE
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

Published: 06/24/09 8:11 am | Updated: 06/24/09 8:13 am
By Rob Carson

TACOMA- The courtship of Russell Investments is getting a little rough.

After they got wind of the sweet nothings Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels has been whispering into Russell’s ear to entice it to leave Tacoma for Seattle, 16 Pierce County legislators fired off an angry letter to the mayor Tuesday, telling him to knock it off.

The letter calls the mayor’s overtures “misguided” and “cannibalistic.”

“It was with tremendous disappointment we read about your efforts to provide local tax incentives to lure away Pierce County’s largest private sector, for-profit employer,” the letter says.

“Not only does a public competition for Russell Investments represent misguided and cannibalistic public policy from a regional economic development perspective, it erodes the very foundation of cooperation we have worked to develop in recent years.”

Neither Nickels nor his staff members responded Tuesday to repeated requests for comment.

With billions in international investments and about 900 local workers, Russell would be a sweet catch for any city.

However, since Tacoma clearly needs the business more than Seattle, state business leaders and politicians – most notably U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks, D-Belfair – have been urging Seattle not to pull too hard in the tug-of-war.

For the most part, that’s what has happened. But a public records request by The Seattle Times turned up a June 2 letter from Nickels, offering Russell a $250,000 annual break on the city’s business and occupation tax.

Meanwhile, Tacoma has gone all out in its efforts to keep its anchor downtown tenant, offering the company more than $148 million in benefits ranging from tax breaks for sales tax on construction to B&O tax loopholes.

Tacoma’s package also includes 500 parking spots and a $66 million upgrade of downtown streets.

Russell has indicated it will make the decision on its headquarters location by fall.

Rob Carson: 253-597-8693

rob.carson@thenewstribune.com

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Theater owner to buy old Kmart building
By Michelle McNiel
The Wenatchee World staff writer
June 27, 2009 / AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

image hosted on flickr

(An abandoned K-Mart store.)
WENATCHEE — Sun Basin Theatres, the owner of the Liberty and Columbia cinemas and Vue-Dale Drive-In, will buy the old Kmart building in Olds Station and expect to open a new cinema complex there.

Brian Cook, general manager of the Wenatchee-based Sun Basin Theatres, made a bid to buy the 107,000-square-foot building and nine acres of land on Easy Street during a public auction at the Chelan County Courthouse on Friday.

He was the only bidder and submitted the minimum bid of $4,250,000.

The building at the intersection of Highways 2/97 and Easy Street has been vacant since Kmart closed in 2006. It has been owned by the state Department of Natural Resources since 1993 and is part of the state’s school trust lands that generate money for public schools.

Once the sale is complete, the money will be used to purchase new state trust lands.

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SEH buys Hewlett-Packard campus in historic deal
Friday, June 26 | 4:38 p.m.
BY JEFFREY MIZE AND JULIA ANDERSON
THE COLUMBIAN STAFF WRITERS
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

VANCOUVER- SEH America's parent corporation has purchased Hewlett-Packard's sprawling campus in east Vancouver in a historic $55 million transaction that showcases the rise of one high-tech company and the decline of another in Clark County.

Shin-Etsu Handotai Group might use the property at 18110 S.E. 34th St. to expand silicon wafer production into the emerging field of solar energy.

The property has a market value of $51.15 million, according to Clark County property records. With 174 acres, four buildings and 694,000 square feet of space, the HP campus has the potential for as much as $1 billion of industrial development in coming years.

Mayor Royce Pollard declined to speculate on how many jobs SEH could create at its new site, except to say "probably in the hundreds."

"This is the brass ring we have been reaching for to keep our local community thriving and vital," Pollard told The Columbian. "It says something about us when a successful, international company like SEH America chooses our city for its future growth. They could have gone anywhere in the world, but they chose America's Vancouver."

The sale, which was formally recorded Friday, signals another step in HP's gradual departure from Vancouver, where 30 years ago, its engineers invented the company's hot-selling line of inkjet printers.

Inkjet printers boosted HP sales throughout the 1980s and 1990s when HP's Vancouver work force peaked at 3,500. Beginning in 1999, when printer manufacturing ended here and was moved to Malaysia, HP has been reducing its Vancouver work force, now estimated at 600. HP is expected to lease back a portion of space from its new landlord for at least three years.

The deal has been in the works since late 2008 and represents the latest in a series of investment decisions by SEH and its Japanese parent corporation to expand manufacturing in Vancouver.

Shin-Etsu is the world's largest supplier of semiconductor materials and silicon from plants around the globe, with annual sales of $12.25 billion.

Its Vancouver plant, 4111 N.E. 112th Ave., produces 8- and 12-inch silicon wafers. SEH's customers, including Intel Corp. and Texas Instruments. The nonconductive wafers are used to make computer chips, considered the electronic brains of computers, mobile phones and an exploding array of other electronic devices.

Pollard said SEH may use the former HP campus to broaden its wafer production into solar energy.

"But there has been no commitment to that," he added. "I know it will be something that will add value to our community."

In late February, Pollard announced that SEH has decided to double production capacity at its existing 112th Avenue plant, a long-term commitment that could add as many as 1,000 jobs and represent a $1 billion investment in the local economy.

SEH officials have confirmed they intend to expand, but they have provided few details about when and by how much.

When Pollard announced the SEH expansion during his Feb. 26 State of the City address, the deal already was in the works. But attorney review and other details caused months of delay before it finally could be completed.

Earlier that month, Pollard and City Manager Pat McDonnell made an unpublicized trip to Tokyo to meet with top officials at the Shin-Etsu Handotai Group and its parent corporation, Shin-Etsu Chemical, including President and CEO Chihiro Kanagawa.

"Mr. Kanagawa told me that SEH America's existing Vancouver operations have proven to be very successful and that he was confident this additional investment would eventually prove to be the same," Pollard said.

The city's involvement in the HP purchase is more one of facilitator than participant, but there is little doubt that Vancouver has latched onto SEH as its "golden child" for economic expansion.

Vancouver helped push a state tax cut through the 2006 Legislature that was tailored for the company's Vancouver operation.

The legislation slashed SEH's business and occupation tax rate by 43 percent once the company invested at least $350 million on construction, building improvements or equipment used to make silicon wafers, a trigger it reached before the end of 2006.

But SEH hasn't been immune to the economic crash and the global decline in the demand for semiconductors.

In February, the company shut down production for a month, idling about 750 employees out of a total SEH work force of 840. There also are reports that SEH has laid off longtime employees.

Palo Alto, Calif.-based HP is the world's largest computer manufacturer. The company no longer responds to inquiries about its Vancouver employment levels. Some speculate that the company will shutter all operations in Vancouver within two to three years as it moves away from the lagging low-cost consumer-oriented inkjet market into more lucrative Internet-based devices developed and produced elsewhere.

Pollard, however, said the city intends to work with HP to ensure it has a permanent spot inside the city limits.

"HP, I believe, wants to stay in this community," he said. "They have a great, long history in this community, and we don't want them to leave. And we will do
everything we can to get them to stay."

Even with only 600 employees, HP's departure would be felt. Its total local payroll is estimated at $55 million, not to mention the loss of top-end HP technical and engineering talent to the community.

The commercial real estate brokerage firm, The Phillips Group in Vancouver, represented SEH in the real estate transaction. Cushman & Wakefield represented HP.