[mSeattle]

:dancing::dancing::dancing::dancing::dancing::dancing::dancing:

New zoning approved for high-rises in Federal Way
http://www.djc.com/news/re/11185151.html (subscription)

By BENJAMIN MINNICK

Buildings in the city center core can now reach 200 feet tall instead of 85.

[seaskyfan]

Great news. I've always been impressed with the height in the Vancouver burbs - maybe we're headed that way finally.

[mSeattle]

Yea, they impressed me too. Rail connecting the core of these places would a great thing and spur more concentrated development and high-rises.

[urbanlife]

crazy...wonder which developer will pop up with a full blown town center idea now.

[mhays]

Federal Way also just got a majorly-improved park-n-ride with direct freeway HOV lane access. That includes a potential mixed-use site. Plus there are a couple of minor high-rises next door to that.

Also, Federal Way will get a big increase in North-South arterial bus service due to our recent vote.

The property the article discusses in particular is a former movie theater probably a half a mile away from the PnR.

Looking at google maps, Federal Way is a nightmare of epic proportions. What an astonishing amount of surface parking and strip mall shit! But wouldn't it be great to turn some large amounts of that into something worthwhile.

[seaskyfan]

I checked the Sound Transit site and it looks like Federal Way would get light rail under two of the three options they're currently gathering comments on.

Kind of cool to see the suburbs growing up!

[77e]

Check page 33 of chapter 7 (http://www.cityoffederalway.com/GetFile.aspx?id=9722) in the city's comp plan. That shows an idea of what the city center could look like in 2025.

To really do that, the city needs to build smaller blocks (over time) and attract more employers to locate jobs in the center (maybe with incentives).

Just raising building heights alone will not bring a dense city center with high-rise and mid-rise housing and office buildings. But it is a start.

[77e]

Alright, Lynnwood. It's your turn.

[northface]

hmmm maybe a littleee talllerrrr.lol

[navyweaxguy]

77e, I thought that Lynnwood passed so that buildings up to 325ft could be built by the convention center.

[northface]

i thought so too^

[77e]

Yes, Lynnwood raised height limits in the center. And nothing has happened.

That's why both Federal Way and Lynnwood really need to attract companies to their city centers, and figure out some kind of incentives to attract high density housing.

Right now, both places have relatively cheap land, even in their centers. The land has to become more valuable for mid-rise and high-rise buildings to make sense.

Bellevue picked a better time (over twenty years ago) to make the jump, but Lynnwood and Federal Way could do more to build up and densify.

I'd love to see how they both look in twenty years.

[77e]

Does this mean that Federal Way is hoping to become the center for South King County?

I thought Kent or Renton might do it, but neither city really seems to want high-rises. Renton has done a lot to improve their downtown. But Kent blew a great location to build the low-rise copy of University Village and Redmond Town Center -- Kent Station.

I hope Federal Way does a great job, and shows Kent what it missed.

[navyweaxguy]

I would rather see downtown Everett grow than see Lynnwood grow. That's just a bias by me though from living on the edge of DT Everett. :)

[seapug]

um didn't renton just change zoning to allow up to 250'. how many suburbs are in the process of uping the height limits.

1. lacey
2. federal way
3. renton
4. lynnwood
5. everett
6. montlake

i can't wait to see what the seattle area looks like in 25 years

[mSeattle]

Scratch Montlake Terrace, they voted against raising the heights I think.

[mhays]

Yes, Lynnwood raised height limits in the center. And nothing has happened.


They changed the heights about three seconds ago in real estate time! Give it a chance!

[seapug]

oh i thought that was edmunds that rejected it. i didn't even know they were trying to raise them

[mSeattle]

^Them too. I think it's just Lynnwood and Everett up there north of the U. District.

[urbanlife]

Wow, I am really impressed they are proposing smaller blocks. I am actually very happy with what they are hoping to do. This could turn into quite a cool area.

[MrVandelay]

Scratch Montlake Terrace, they voted against raising the heights I think.

NO That was Edmonds that rejected it. Montlake Terrace is still deciding

[northface]

um didn't renton just change zoning to allow up to 250'. how many suburbs are in the process of uping the height limits.

1. lacey
2. federal way
3. renton
4. lynnwood
5. everett
6. montlake

i can't wait to see what the seattle area looks like in 25 years

i had no idea renton was....but i read in the renton paper a few years back that they wanted to build highrises near the water....around 10-20 story range...so i dunno.

[seaskyfan]

I'm also impressed with the proposed development of the street grid in the Federal Way plan. Looks like they might wind up as a real city some day!

[urbanlife]

I'm also impressed with the proposed development of the street grid in the Federal Way plan. Looks like they might wind up as a real city some day!


Federal Way looking like a real city, weird? Never thought I would hear anyone say that.

[mSeattle]

NO That was Edmonds that rejected it. Montlake Terrace is still deciding

Hm, ok. I thought there was an article 'bout them rejecting a "city center" proposal.

[Hoodrat]

Bump bitches!!!!!

[Black Box]

^ I love it, I guess I'm going to pop open up a bottle of Veuve in honor of your sass, Hoodrat. Oh, and I love Interpol. I hope they come out with a better album, soon. And congratulations to Federal Way. I never thought I'd say it, but after traipsing about areas outside of major destinations that I've been to in the past year, I have to say, Federal Way looks GOOD.

[jake840]

http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/102480.html (article)
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/v-enlarge_photo/story/102480-a102478-t3.html (image link)


Federal Way delays decision on downtown

Hesitant to go ahead with a Bellevue-like development, the Federal Way City Council seeks more information on a proposal for three 22-story towers downtown.

STEVE MAYNARD; The News Tribune
Last updated: July 4th, 2007 07:49 AM (PDT)

The Federal Way City Council decided Tuesday night to take more time to decide whether to go ahead with a project that would dramatically change the city’s skyline.
Under the proposal by a Canadian developer, three skyscrapers, each taller than anything built in Tacoma in 25 years, would help remake a section of Federal Way in what would be the largest mixed-use project in city history.

But after two council members expressed concerns about the scope and nature of the project, the council decided to seek additional information about it and wait another two weeks before taking a vote.

United Properties Ltd. of Vancouver, B.C., wants to put the Bellevue-sized project on 4.4 acres at the center of Federal Way. It could help establish a downtown identity and dwarf other buildings in the low-lying city center, now dominated by strip malls, big-box stores and gridlocked traffic.

Tuesday night, Councilman Jim Ferrell expressed doubts about the residential-retail mix included in the proposal. “Putting 2,000 people in four acres is not livable,” Ferrell said.

Fellow Councilman Jack Dovey said he had questions about what the apartments included in the project would be like.

Councilman Eric Faison defended the project as a “transformational” development for downtown. He said the residential growth it would bring would naturally bring retail growth.

Construction of the first of three 22-story towers could start next June and be finished in November 2009. The entire $227 million project – with 890 condos and apartments – is proposed for completion in July 2011.

The developer is offering to buy the property for $6.1 million – $2 million more than the city paid for it less than a year ago.

The company also proposes to build a one-acre city park and lease office space to Highline Community College.

The total buildout, including the three towers and another one 15 stories tall, would have close to a million square feet of space.

When the city agreed to buy the vacant AMC Theatres building in November, it sought proposals for mixed-use projects at least several stories high. Two developers applied.

The other pitch came from Alpert Capital Ltd. of Seattle and Dallas, which offered less money ($4.1 million) for a project featuring shorter buildings (four, six, nine and 20 stories) and fewer condos.

Alpert also wanted the city to chip in up to $6 million for public parking. By contrast, Federal Way would not have to invest any city money in the United Properties venture.

Nearby cities have had mixed success buying up land so private developers could build mixed-use complexes.

Kent lost money on the sale of land it bought for Kent Station. Both Kent and Auburn were left with little more than parking garages after the collapse of separate development deals with a former Microsoft executive. And in University Place, the $250 million Town Center development won approval in May after years of delays and developer switches.

Mayor Mike Park said he believes the Federal Way project will be a catalyst for similar developments downtown. With a population of 87,390, Federal Way is the state’s eighth-largest city.

“We are ready,” Park said. “It will be a domino effect.”

A Seattle consulting firm hired by United Properties said it is “very bullish” about building more apartments in downtown Federal Way.

Demand has caught up with the glut of apartments in the early 1990s, and some properties have been converted to condos, says consultant Gardner Johnson.

United Properties says it will offer a variety of condos, attracting first-time buyers, couples with dual incomes and “empty nesters looking to simplify their lives without moving out of the Federal Way region.”

But longtime Federal Way resident H. David Kaplan wonders who would fill up residential towers downtown.

“I wonder if we’re ready to look like Bellevue with those very, very tall buildings,” Kaplan said. “Where are the people going to come from?”

Steve Maynard: 253-597-8647

steve.maynard@thenewstribune.com


TWO PROPOSALS
Project name: Symphony
What's planned: One 15-story and three 22-story towers and a park
What's in it: 490 condominiums, 400 apartments, retail and office space
Size: 919,000 square feet
Cost: $227 million
Construction: Four staggered phases, with the first 22-story building starting next June and finishing in November 2009
Developer: United Properties Ltd. of Vancouver, B.C.


Project name: Steel Lake Village
What's planned: Four buildings of four, six, nine and 20 stories
What's in it: 500 condominiums, movie theater, office and retail space
Size: 762,200 square feet
Cost: $315 million
Construction: Four staggered phases, with first six-story building starting in spring-summer next year and finishing in early-to-mid 2009
Developer: Alpert Capital Ltd. of Seattle and Dallas

Originally published: July 4th, 2007 01:19 AM (PDT

[WESTSEATTLEGUY]

This is good to see. But I hate how they split these things up into phases. Why can't they just build them all at once? And when the first tower is finished the residents moving in will not be happy since the site will be a mess of construction activity. If they are going to tear up Fed-Way it better be all at once.

[J. Will]

“Putting 2,000 people in four acres is not livable,”

Why not let the people who choose to buy there decide if it's "livable".

[destroybananas]

^thank you!

[SpongeG]

City says yes to high-rise apartments

MATT MISTEREK: The News Tribune Published: July 18th, 2007 01:42 PM

On a split vote, The Federal Way City Council decided late Tuesday to move ahead on an economic development project that would result in the four tallest buildings in the city -- three 22-story skyscrapers and one 15-story tower.
The city will now sign a preliminary agreement with United Properties Ltd. of Vancouver, B.C. The company plans to build 490 condominiums, 400 apartments, retail and office space on the former AMC Theatres property downtown. The city bought the land last year for $4.1 million.

The council voted 4 to 3 in favor of going with United Properties. The alternate developer, Alpert Capital Ltd. of Seattle and Dallas, was pitching a project with less square footage, shorter buildings and no apartments.

To find out more, read Thursday's News Tribune.

http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/updates/story/113021.html

[seaskyfan]

Yahoo! Looking forward to the Federal Way skyline!

[Black Box]

Great! It will be nice to see some high rises in South King County.

[mhays]

Hope it goes forward.

[James Bond Agent 007]

I can't help but wonder if this will steal some thunder from Tacoma's highrise aspirations.

Let's hope not.

[uwhuskies]

I can't help but wonder if this will steal some thunder from Tacoma's highrise aspirations.

Let's hope not.

Why do you "hope not"?

[James Bond Agent 007]

Why do you "hope not"?
I'm hoping that this doesn't steal any momentum from Tacoma's highrise aspirations.

That's what I hope.

[destroybananas]

bump biotches and ho's...

[destroybananas]

http://www.djc.com/stories/images/20070719/SymphonyAerial_web.jpg just in case you missed it

[uwhuskies]

I'm hoping that this doesn't steal any momentum from Tacoma's highrise aspirations.

That's what I hope.

Tacoma's highrise is a different market than Federal Way. There is probably not as much interaction as you might think given the relative short distance between both markets.

This is great news because it helps to create a stronger overall market in S. King and N. Pierce counties to attract out of area relocations.

[WESTSEATTLEGUY]

Destroy- Great rendering!!!

[jake840]

Here is a story posted from the TNT today. Mentions the Fed Way project and the Tacoma issues...
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?p=2963122#post2963122

[destroybananas]

Federal Way lands $227M downtown development

Federal Way is poised to get its first live-work-and-shop high-rise development in its downtown.

In a 4-3 decision, the City Council voted to move ahead with negotiations with Vancouver, British Columbia-based United Properties to build a massive, $227 million project on a former AMC Theatre site in downtown Federal Way.

[UrbanSteroid]

Looks alright, wish there was some kind of street presence on that street in the foreground. They should also loose or do something with the needle on the far tower, but a huge step for fed. way none the less.:tup:

[destroybananas]

there should be a really tall one in there as well

[uwhuskies]

Federal Way's future sky-high?
By Cara Solomon

Seattle Times South King County reporter


More Southeast King County News
Federal Way's future sky-high?

Walking group cruises the streets of Kent

Sergeant cleared in investigation

Prep football season kicks off

Devoting her life to dancing

Back to the routine of nagging, whining
First came the families, pushed out by Seattle's high housing prices. Then came the subdivisions, spreading out where fields used to be. Now the ultimate symbol of growth is coming to South King County: skyscrapers.

Federal Way is planning to create a 4-acre urban village downtown, with residential towers up to 24 stories tall. The city is negotiating with United Properties, of Vancouver, B.C., which has proposed the $300 million project, a 1-acre park surrounded by a mix of residential, retail and office space.

The towers would be a stark departure from what other cities in South King County have done to draw more people downtown. The tallest buildings at Kent Station, a mix of retail and, eventually, residential, will be four stories, though the city hasn't imposed a height limit downtown. Burien's Town Square will limit its residential buildings to seven stories.

United Properties President Victor Setton said going vertical allows more space for a park — the first of any size in downtown Federal Way. And then, of course, height adds the value of views. The towers are expected to rise between 16 and 24 stories high, dominating the city's skyline.

The tallest building in Federal Way now is nine stories.

"Anything you build that's over four floors in Federal Way is not in character with the area," Setton said. "But I think you have to look to the future, and I think vertical is the way to go."

City officials say there is good reason for going higher: Its residential neighborhoods are built out. The only way to accommodate more growth, city officials say, is to build upward. The idea of being the first to do so also has some appeal. The city of 86,500 has been searching for its signature style ever since it incorporated in 1990.

"We've been in that awkward adolescent phase," said City Manager Neal Beets. "But I think this demonstrates that we're blossoming into our 20s quite nicely."

Outsiders may know Federal Way for its office parks and shopping complexes, but a residential community has thrived for several decades, drawing families to waterfront properties and dozens of parks. Since incorporation, some residents have gotten even more vocal, pushing for change they say will improve the city's quality of life.

Hence, the 72,000-square-foot community center that opened this spring. A grass-roots effort for a performing-arts center also seems to be gaining ground. And now, after years of discussion, the city is moving to revitalize its downtown core.

"I think that's been the missing piece," said Patrick Doherty, the city's economic-development director.

The goal is to create a more dense, pedestrian-friendly downtown. The city has worked on that for years, doing an environmental study of the area to reduce costs for developers and advising area owners how best to redevelop their properties.



But it had not bought property until an owner offered last autumn to sell land west of the transit center, where a former movie theater stood. The city purchased the land in January for $4.1 million, then set it aside for development.

This winter it took the critical step of raising the height limit in a specific zone downtown from 85 feet to 200 feet, with some flexibility to go higher.

Des Moines recently raised height limits in its Pacific Ridge neighborhood, a struggling area that borders Highway 99. The move came at the suggestion of developers, who said they were more likely to build if they could offer views.

In Federal Way, there has been little public resistance to skyscrapers. But the council voted 4-3 on this project, which the developer says would include about 900 condominiums, of varying prices; up to 85,000 square feet of retail area; and space for the local campus of Highline Community College.

United Properties has offered the city $6.1 million for the land; the city would have no other financial investment in the project.

Critics are concerned about increased traffic and the number of residential units proposed. Deputy Mayor Jim Ferrell said he would support the project but preferred another proposal that provided three times the retail space.

"I was much more interested in creating more economic-development dollars, rather than trying to bring in more people," Ferrell said.

Barbara Barney, a resident of more than 20 years, said the project doesn't sound like Federal Way, a mix of working-class and wealthy, with increasing ethnic diversity.

"I feel like what the City Council is trying to do is create another Bellevue," Barney said. "I don't think that's us."

But Mayor Michael Park said he was gratified to see the city's vision for downtown take a major step forward. He sees the project as a catalyst for other development downtown.

Pending negotiations, the first tower could open in 2009.

Cara Solomon: 206-464-2024 or csolomon@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company

:banana:

[destroybananas]

Awesome, great for FW, we'll have true satellite cities besides Bellevue and Tacoma

[WESTSEATTLEGUY]

Awesome!!!! :cheers:

[destroybananas]

cheers indeed! :)

[urbanlife]

the first tower could open in 2009? That would mean construction would start sometime this winter. That is quite impressive.