August 9, 2019

Denny Triangle high-rise site sells for $72M, with 953 condos possible

Rendering by Gensler [enlarge]

Last month, Crescent Heights and architect Gensler have received a master use permit for two 40-story towers with 953 residential units.

Kidder Mathews announced on Wednesday the $72 million sale of an entitled half-block, high-rise residential project at 1901 Minor Ave. in the Denny Triangle.

Update: King County recorded the sale on Monday, Aug. 12, so some details were pending before deadline Friday.

KM's Ross Klinger and Tim Foster represented the buyer, Concord Pacific of Vancouver, B.C. Klinger previously represented the same buyer in its recent $60 million purchase of a majority stake in the entitled twin-tower residential project at 2300 Sixth Ave., also in the Denny Triangle and previously called BB6 by now minority partner HB Management. It's now dubbed Seattle House.

Until last fall a stranger to our market, Concord Pacific has now invested some $132 million here.

The 1901 Minor seller was Crescent Heights of Miami, which assembled the site between 2014-2018 for about $31.5 million, and took it through the permit process. Its brokers weren't announced.

The 1901 Minor deal, including the value of the plans and permit, was worth about $1,697 per square foot.

Late last month, Crescent Heights and architect Gensler received a master use permit for 1901 Minor. It will have two 40-story towers (including the eight-story podium), with 953 residential units. Whether rentals or condominiums hasn't been announced, but Concord Pacific's usual model in Vancouver has been condos—and Seattle House is being marketed as such. A mix is also possible at 1901 Minor.

The unnamed project also includes about 14,400 square feet of retail/commercial space and underground parking for 649 vehicles. Total project size, including the parking, is around 1.2 million square feet.

The site is bounded by Virginia and Stewart streets and Boren and Minor avenues. On the west side of the same block is rival project 1916 Boren, also designed by Gensler. It's owned by Chinese developer Onelin Investment. No permits have been issued there. That project appears headed for a third design review, which hasn't yet been scheduled.

For 1901 Boren, Crescent Heights apparently never applied for a construction permit or even phased permits. No general contractor has been announced by the new owner. The team listed on the most recent plans includes MKA, structural and civil engineer; CP Engineering, MEP engineer; and Site Workshop, landscape architect.

Over at Seattle House, aka 2300 Sixth, JTM is listed as the general contractor for Concord Pacific. The latter company is a major developer in Vancouver and Toronto. Now controlled by the Hui family, with roots in Hong Kong, it's recently expanded to London and now—in a dramatic fashion—Seattle.