February 25, 2016

Walking loop eyed for First Hill as part of a proposal by Swedish

Image courtesy of Site Workshop [enlarge]

Residents, workers and patients on Seattle's hospital-heavy First Hill may soon have a better path around the neighborhood.

Swedish Medical Center is proposing to create a walking loop called First Hill Mile near its campus.

The loop is part of a package of public benefits Swedish would give the city in exchange for vacating an alley and allowing it to install a skybridge in connection with two towers the hospital plans to start building late this year.

The loop would be on sidewalks along University and James streets, Boylston and Minor avenues, and Broadway.

Curb bulbs would be installed to make the route safer. Trees would also be added as well as markers telling people where they are on the loop.

“It's really an opportunity for exercise, which ties in very well with health care,” said Eric Oliner, who is overseeing the two-tower development for Providence Health & Services/Swedish. “As you walk along, it will be much nicer than it is now.”

As part of the benefits package, Swedish also proposes contributing $500,000 to revamp First Hill Park, and providing open spaces around its campus and the new towers. It also would add public art on and off the campus, bike share stations on the campus perimeter, and pedestrian activated traffic signals at Cherry Street and Boren Avenue and perhaps at James and Minor.

Perkins + Will is the architect, Sellen Construction the general contractor and Site Workshop the landscape architect on the towers, which would replace some of the hospital's aging facilities.

The new Northwest Tower at Marion Street and Minor Avenue would replace the current North Tower. Swedish said it would have the latest technology for operating rooms, more private rooms for patients and rooms for multiple uses, along with a larger, more efficient emergency department and a new dining area.

The other tower, tentatively called Block 95, would be bounded by Columbia and Cherry streets, Minor and Boren avenues. It would have medical offices and house some of the hospital's support and logistical functions. Oliner said Swedish wants it permitted for 17 stories, but may construct the building in stages.

Swedish wants an alley that bisects that site to be vacated and to install a skybridge over Minor Avenue to connect Block 95 to the current hospital.

Oliner said the Seattle Design Commission is asking developers to look off-site when providing public benefits, so Swedish is doing that as well as providing on-site benefits.

“We are members of the community and we serve the community so we really should be looking at things beyond our campus,” he said.

Oliner said First Hill Mile is part of a larger green corridor plan identified in the city's First Hill Public Realm Action Plan for creating more parks and open space in the neighborhood. He said Swedish hopes other developers will add to the loop.

The value of real estate on First Hill has skyrocketed recently, he said, which makes property that might be used for public parks more expensive.

“It's difficult to take a chunk of land that might be a parking lot or a rundown building and turn it over to the public when the value is in developing it as a building,” he said. Therefore, he said, it is important for developers to add public space to their projects.