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March 31, 2015
Construction began Monday on a six-level addition to University Center, a mixed-use complex in the University District.
Blume Co. Real Estate built University Center and is developing the addition, which will be called 4545 Roosevelt.
It will contain two levels of parking and four levels of office space, and will be built on top of an existing parking structure that is part of University Center, the 175,000-square-foot mixed-use complex.
There will be a total of 53,400 square feet of office space, and 1,282 square feet of retail. The parking structure is between a Trader Joe's store and another retail building that is also part of University Center.
Blume Co. said in a press release the University of Washington is leasing the office space, but would not comment on the lease terms and did not say what UW planned to do with the space.
University Center was built in 1985, and the structure with Trader Joe's was added in 1998, according to the Blume Co. website.
Max Blume, development manager at Blume Co., said the parking lot was built in 2000 with footings and structural steel to accommodate future construction above.
University Center houses a number of retailers including Trader Joe's, Performance Bicycle, Sundance Cinemas, Yoga to the People, and Princeton Review. Blume Co. said they will stay open during construction.
The garage entrance on Roosevelt is being moved about 100 feet north so it can also stay open during construction.
NBBJ is the architect for 4545 Roosevelt and Sellen Construction Co. is the general contractor. Other project team members include Coughlin Porter Lundeen, PSF Mechanical and Weisman Design Group.
The shell and core for 4545 Roosevelt is expected to be done in March 2016.
“This area is poised for a major transformation with the impending rezone and addition of University District Station light rail,” Bruce Blume, chairman and CEO of Blume, said in a statement. “4545 Roosevelt is a catalyst for the anticipated growth of the emerging technology sector seeking facilities adjacent to the University of Washington.”
Blume said this project requires a lot of coordination between the project team and retailers to make sure they can stay open.
The team also has to be careful in planning and constructing the expansion to make sure it meshes well with the existing structure.
That means doing three dimensional radar scans on the parking decks to verify that everything is located where the drawings say, and exposing some of the existing structure to ensure the steel was fabricated correctly.