February 25, 2016

Groundbreaking event for Othello TOD

Image by Ankrom Moisan Architects [enlarge]

Mercy Housing and Sound Transit are having a ceremonial groundbreaking today at noon on the site next to Othello Link light rail station where 108 affordable apartments are being built in a $35 million mixed-use complex.

The event is at 6940 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard S.

Mercy Othello Plaza will have four levels of housing above 8,000 square feet of commercial and community space, and underground parking for 50 cars. Units will be affordable to families earning up to 60 percent of the area median income, which is $47,640 for a three-person household. Rents will range from $450 to $1,100.

Sixty percent of the units will be two- and three-bedroom apartments designed for families.

Bill Rumpf, regional president of Mercy Housing Northwest, said, “We are pleased to be meet the critical need for affordable rental homes for families. Most new construction happening now is small apartments. Being located by Othello light rail is ideal for families getting to jobs, school and other destinations.”

Ankrom Moisan Architects is the designer and Walsh Construction Co. is the general contractor.

The pedestrian-oriented design is intended to strengthen the neighborhood and provide more “eyes on the street,” according to a press release from Mercy Housing.

The complex will have 7,500 square feet for Mercy Housing's headquarters, a 2,000-square-foot community center and a large landscaped courtyard. Opening is set for March of 2017.

Funding came from a variety of sources. Seattle Office of Housing is providing $8.5 million from the Seattle Housing Levy. JP Morgan Chase is the construction lender. Wells Fargo Bank is providing equity, and the Washington State Housing Finance Commission has allocated Low Income Housing Tax Credits and bond financing.

The Rainier Valley Community Development Fund provided a land acquisition loan.

Philanthropic support includes Longbrake Family Foundation and Enterprise Community Partners.