CollinsWoerman

Specialty: Corporate commercial; mixed-use and residential; health care, science and technology; community planning; design and interiors

Management: Mark Woerman and Arlan Collins, partners

Year founded: 1984

Headquarters: Seattle

Current projects: 450,000-square-foot 2200 project at Westlake and Denny for Vulcan; $200 million mixed-use project in Wenatchee for Kamkon Development; $18 million satellite campus for Olympic Medical Center in Sequim

Image courtesy CollinsWoerman CollinsWoerman is designing an $18 million satellite campus for Olympic Medical Center in Sequim.

CollinsWoerman prides itself on having one of the most varied set of specialties in the Northwest, which should come in handy in a market where synergy is key. More and more clients want mixed-use projects that integrate residential construction with retail, commercial and hospitality, said partner Mark Woerman.

“Clearly, one of the trends that’s emerging out there is the mixed-use integrated project model,” said Woerman. “I don’t think there’s anything on the horizon that will diminish the value of (that).”

Big doings in Wenatchee

For the last nine months, CollinsWoerman has been working on just such a project in Wenatchee. The 13.5-acre development on the Columbia River will include residential, retail and commercial as well as a permanent home for the Wenatchee farmers market.

“This will be a project that will reshape the riverfront district,” Woerman said.

Challenging permits

One of the firm’s biggest challenges right now is getting projects through the permitting process in a timely manner. “In almost any jurisdiction in Puget Sound, (it) remains a challenge,” he said.

It’s especially difficult right now, he said, because there is so much development activity and permitting staffs are maxed out.

“It’s never easy and it always takes more time than our clients want to invest,” he said.

Construction cost escalation is contributing to that anxiety, Woerman said.