January 15, 2016

Frye Museum picks B.C.-based Westbank to develop two towers on First Hill site

Images by Studio216 for Perkins + Will [enlarge]

The lower floors of the complex will be designed to complement the museum.

Officials with the Frye Art Museum would like to create a built-in audience on First Hill, so they are moving ahead with plans to develop two apartment towers on a parking lot at 707 Terry Ave., just west of the museum.

On Thursday the museum announced that it is exploring development with an entity related to Westbank Projects Corp. of Vancouver B.C. The DJC previously reported on Westbank's involvement with the project, which is set for a design review meeting later this month.

The initial plan is for about 450 apartments in two 330-foot towers, 5,500 square feet of retail and 250 underground parking spaces.

Perkins + Will is the architect, and Rick Sundberg of Sundberg Kennedy Ly-Au Young Architects is a consultant. Sundberg designed the museum's expansion and renovation when he was with the firm now known as Olson Kundig in Seattle.

David Buck, president of the Frye's board of trustees, said the parking lot has been a “dormant asset” for the museum.

“We wanted to put residential across the street with parking underneath so that we could create a broader, larger immediate audience for the museum, so we could maintain guest parking, and so we could help guide development in our neighborhood,” he said.

The Frye's press release said the project will create another revenue source to keep the museum financially stable and allow it to continue to offer free admission.

Westbank representatives did not return requests for comment.

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The complex at 707 Terry Ave. could have about 450 apartments, retail and underground parking for 250 vehicles.

An early design guidance meeting is set for 6:30 p.m. Jan. 27 at Seattle University, 1000 E. James Way. The team will also show the project to the First Hill Improvement Association.

The team's preferred design is called “creative tension” and shows two towers that lean away from each other as they rise, creating a V-shaped space between them. A 52-foot-long bridge near the top would let residents share the rooftop amenities on both buildings.

Design review documents said art will play a key role in the complex. The team wants to have multi-story gallery spaces along Terry Avenue. Cladding on the complex is intended to resemble canvas.

“The whole building can be seen as a canvas that will contribute to the emerging culture of First Hill,” the documents said.

Frye chose Westbank because it has a history of incorporating art into its projects and values sustainable design, Buck said.

The Frye Museum, O'Dea High School and St. James Cathedral make up a civic center on First Hill, Buck said, and the museum wanted a developer that would contribute to that campus feel in the neighborhood.

Westbank and Frye officials have agreed on a set of design guidelines, Buck said, and he gave an example: the podium's lower floors should fit in aesthetically with the museum's design.

Museum officials will be in contact with Westbank throughout the planning process, offering some opinions and helping introduce the developer to the community. Mostly it will be up to Westbank, which Buck called a “first-class developer,” to move the project forward.

Westbank was established in 1992 and has built a variety of projects, primarily in Canada, including luxury condos, apartments, affordable housing, office, retail and hotels. The company has more than $25 billion in projects completed or under development

Westbank recently has shown a lot of interest in Seattle. The firm is proposing a pair of 41-story residential towers at 1200 Stewart St., with 876 units and 791 parking spaces. Early designs for this complex show the balconies would create a wavy, sculptural facade.