October 8, 2015

Civic Square to start next year

Courtesy GGLO and Foster + Partners [enlarge]

The building will have about 600,000 square feet of office space, 200,000 square feet of residential and 40,000 square feet of retail.

The long-awaited Civic Square project is set to begin construction next year.

Brett Allen, senior vice president of the project developer Triad Capital Partners said construction would begin sometime next year. He couldn't say when exactly because the 43-story project is still going through review with the city.

Allen said Triad has financing lined up for the project on the full block bounded by Third and Fourth avenues and James and Cherry streets.

The only things holding back the start of construction are permitting and additional documentation related to a purchase and sale agreement with the city for the site. Triad is also working with King County Metro Transit on a new entrance to the transit station under the Civic Square property.

Allen said Triad would begin construction even if it hasn't preleased space to an office tenant.

The building will have about 600,000 square feet of office space, approximately 200,000 square feet of residential units and 40,000 square feet of retail space. Allen said the current plan is for the residences to be condos.

The DJC previously reported that Triad applied for a shoring and excavation permit in April, and a construction permit in June. Permitting work for the site was active throughout the summer.

Triad's deal with the city is set to expire at the end of the year. The city would transfer the block to Triad and, in exchange, Triad will build a public plaza with retail and services that the city will own. The city values the deal at approximately $25 million, which reflects the value of the plaza and improvements.

Seattle-based GGLO and the British firm Foster + Partners are the architects, and Skanska USA Building is the general contractor.

Civic Square is the last piece of the city's 1999 Civic Center Master Plan, which led to construction of Seattle City Hall and the Justice Center and remodeling of Seattle Municipal Tower.

Triad was selected to develop the Civic Square site after a request for proposals in 2006.

Triad shelved the project during the recession. Several years ago, the developer resumed permitting and started looking for tenants and financing.