Another Mixed-Use Project for McCarver
A new mixed-use building is being proposed in the McCarver Neighborhood at the southeast corner of South 19th Street & Yakima Ave. O’Connor & Associates, developer of McCarver Village & Gaslamp Terrace, purchased the property in November 2008. The property currently has a brick four-plex on it. The new mixed-use building will house 32 market-rate apartments and a private medical office. The project goes before the Tacoma City Council on Dec. 1st 2009 for its 8 year multi-family tax exemption. The building will be across the street from St. Joseph Medical Center and 2 blocks from the UWT campus boundary. The four-plex currently sits vacant which could mean construction may happen soon.
I am happy to hear that apartments have been added to this project. About a year ago I saw an ad on Craigslist from O’Connor & Associates advertising lease space in a proposed 2 story medical building at the site. This new building will be another gateway building to the growing McCarver Neighborhood.
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- View from 19th Street
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- View from Yakima Ave.
Former Happy Dragon Location on 6th Ave. Sold
The former Happy Dragon restaurant location on 6th Ave. & Alder Street recently sold for $1,100,000. The two parcels measuring 19,981 square feet are part of the 6th Ave. mixed-use center and are zoned NCX. The new owners are a group that includes architect Ross Deckman of Ross Deckman & Associates and a number of individuals who work at AHBL, a Tacoma based civil/structural engineer, landscape arcitecture, and community planning firm. While no plans are concrete they do plan to look at their options for future development of the site. In the meantime they may try to lease the space to another restaurant as all of the restaurant equipment is still in the building.
(image from Google Maps)
From the looks of the purchase price it appears the property was bought for it’s “land value”. I think the prospect of a future development are pretty good considering the land value purchase and the owner’s portfolios. What would you like to see built at this location? Mixed-use with apartments/condos? Office space with retail similar to Poole’s Corner down the street at Union Ave.? My vote? Mixed-use with apartments and retail. The 6th Ave. area hasn’t seen much in the way of new residential structures in the past few years. With UPS a few blocks away and the popular 6th Ave. corridor right there, I think it would be a great spot for that kind of development.
Haub Closes on USPS Parcels
The Haub Brother’s holdings in Tacoma’s Central Business District just got a bit larger. On April 28th the Haub Brother Enterprise Trust closed on two parcels owned by the United States Postal Service. The two parcels located on A Street between 13th and 14th measure 32,600 square feet and are county assessed at $2,674,900. The purchase price was not yet available.
Haub now owns the properties highlighted in red:
The two parcels are key in Haub’s plan for a large highrise development on the site and possibly a new headquarters for Russell Investsments. The City of Tacoma and Haub recently started environmental cleanup and monitoring of the Haub properties and the former Sauro drycleaner site across the street.
Russell HQ proposal:
Design Architect Moving to Tacoma’s Brewery District
On Sunday Dan Voelpel wrote and article in the TNT about the City of Tacoma’s plans to transform the Brewery District in Downtown Tacoma into a neighborhood of the arts. Last year Angelou Economics did a study on Downtown Tacoma and gave recommendations on what the city should be trying to attract to Downtown. Creative arts and deign was one of the targeted fields.
From Sunday’s TNT article:
“Angelou Economics defines the creative arts and design sector as software design, film production, theater production, music recording, interior and graphic design, advertising, marketing, commercial photography, architecture and urban design. It also includes niche manufacturing of handmade jewelry, glass, ceramic, wooden and metal arts.”
Right before I read the article I found out that a municipal design architecture/engineer company will be moving to the Brewery District from their current downtown location on Broadway Plaza. KPG purchased the warehouse building on the corner of South 25th Street and Jefferson Ave. for $2,000,000 earlier this year. They plan to move into the building later this year. The building is also the location of the Robert Daniel Gallery. KPG is said to be only taking up half of the building. KPG’s new space will be across the street from Commencement Bay Coffee Co., next to the Galleria Condos, and only a block away from the new location of Rainier Connect.
KPG also has an office in the South Lake Union neighborhood of Seattle.
Metro City Homes Heading to the Auction?
The Dwelling Company’s Metro City Homes townhome project in the McCarver Neighborhood appears to be heading to the foreclosure auction. A Notice of Trustee’s Sale was filed recently for the 13 unsold townhomes and 17 vacant lots. 2300 Yakima Avenue Inc., the corporation the development is under, has sold 10 units at the project. All marketing on the property has been pulled and the homes are no longer listed with a real estate broker.
The public auction is scheduled for 10:00 am, June 26th outside the Pierce County Courthouse. The property will be sold the highest and best bidder. The developer has until June 15th to clear the default to avoid the auction sale.
NFL Player and Real Estate Agent Buy UWT Land
Former St. Louis Rams player Raonall Smith and real estate agent Sterling Griffin have purchased property at the northwest corner South 21st and Fawcett Ave. on the UWT campus. The land was purchased for $854,000 under the name Student Housing, LLC. The approx. 15,000 square feet of land is zoned Downtown Mixed Use and allows residential and commercial use. In 2007 the State Senate passed a bill banning the 10/12 year property tax abatement for multifamily housing from being used by private property owners in the 46 acre campus. I don’t think the UWT will be to happy about this purchase.
McCarver Mixed-Use Building A Go?
While many construction projects around town aren’t getting off the ground it appears that one anticipated project is moving forward. Metropolitan Real Estate Development’s mixed-use project in the McCarver Neighborhood at South 25th & Yakima Ave., has received permits for grading of the site as well as a Street Occupancy Permit for soil nails to be installed under the Yakima Court and 25th Street right of ways. Soil nails would be part of the foundation for the building once the site is dug out. I am told the the actual building permit has not been issued but it is in the works at the city.
The project originally (click here for article) was to be a 7 story building with 1 floor of commercial and 6 floors of apartments and condos. The project was taken off MRED’s website a while back so no updates on if the plans have changed. This building was also originally planned to have a grocery store but word was a while back that it had shrunk into more of a corner store or may not happen at all. Forza Coffee was also rumored to be opening a location in the new building.
If this building gets built it should be a great addition to the ever growing McCarver Neighborhood.
Heidelberg Building Sold.. Again
The former Sam’s Tire building at South 23rd and C Street, part of the Heidelberg Brewery complex in Downtown Tacoma, has been sold for the second time in less than 2 years. The new owners, Heidelberg Tacoma Partners, LLC, purchased the building late last year for $2,750,000 from Illahee Shores, LLC. Illahee Shores purchsed the building in July 2007. The new ownership consist of some well known Tacoma businessmen including Randy Rushforth & Kim Nakumura of Rushforth Construction and Eric Cederstrand of Colliers International (who just sold the Wilsonian Apartments to the YWCA).
I couldn’t get any details on the plans for the building but I can say the new owners have been involved in multiple commercial and multi-family projects around Downtown Tacoma. The site is just blocks from the UWT campus and 2 proposed hotels on South 21st and C Street.
Previous story on Exit133.com
Walker Condos Start Renting
The Walker Condominiums, a luxury condo conversion in the St. Helens Neighborhood, has started renting out some of the building’s units. What is surprising is the affordable prices they are being listed at considering finishes and rental rates at apartments/condo buildings in Downtown Tacoma. Units advertised for rent are listed at $1.19 per sqft. 1 bedroom units range from 730-899 square feet. 2 bedroom units range from 1,341-1476 square feet. $868 for a 700+ square foot 1 bedroom in a luxury building shouldn’t have a problem being rented quickly.
Here are some of the ameneties listed in the rental ad:
Amenities:
Views of Mt. Rainier, Downtown Tacoma, & Tacoma’s Harbor
Washer/Dryer in each unit
Stainless Steel Kitchen Appliances
Luxury Finishes
Storage Units
Fitness Center
Infrared Sauna
Billiard Room w/ Flat Screen TV, Bar, & Card Table
Private Wine Cellar
Concierge Service
Secured/Garage Parking
Courtyard w/ Gas Barbecue
Upscale Restaurant/lounge Attached
Cat or Dog Under 25lbs. Accepted
For more information call – 253.722.2724
