Courtesy of Strata Architects

The City of Seattle Department of Planning and Development (DPD) has conditionally approved a new apartment building project at 717 3rd Ave N.

Llewellyn Place will be a 3-story building with 20 residential units, an outdoor courtyard, a rooftop deck including space for gardening, and an underground parking garage with parking for 11 vehicles.

Strata Architects is helming the project, which will include the demolition of the existing structure at the location. The 7,680 square foot lot is situated between a 4-story apartment building to the north and a 5-story mixed-use building to the south.

The project must address the usual conditions around excavation, disposal of hazardous materials, construction parking, street  and sidewalk closures, and greenhouse gas emissions.

Groundbreaking on the new project is expected this year.

As part of the West Phase of the Mercer Corridor Project, a large portion of Aurora/99 and part of Mercer Street will be closed starting 11pm Friday, May 17 through 5am Monday, May 20. Then, beginning Monday, travel along and around Mercer will change. Expect “significant delays” for the weekend,and “major” Mercer and Aurora/99 impacts beyond the weekend.

The run-down on the closure and the aftermath are as follows from SDOT:

Weekend closure:

• Aurora/99 will be fully closed between Valley St and the southern end of the Battery St Tunnel
• Traffic traveling through Seattle via SR 99 will be directed to I-5 north of Seattle at 85th Street or south of Seattle at E Marginal Way
• Mercer Street will be fully closed to traffic between 5th Ave N and Dexter Ave N
• Traffic heading east towards I-5 will be detoured to Denny Way at 5th Ave N and will reconnect to Mercer Street at Dexter Avenue N to continue east
• Sidewalks will be closed on both sides of SR 99 between Thomas and Valley Streets and on the south side of Mercer between 5th Ave N and Dexter Ave N

Beginning Monday, May 20:

• Lane restrictions on Mercer will remain in place between 4th Ave N and 9th Ave N an alternate route for travelers heading to I-5
• Broad Street re-opens to eastbound traffic as an alternate route to I5
• Signal modifications at the intersections of 5th Ave N and Harrison St and Harrison St and Broad St will allow southbound 5th Ave N traffic to connect to eastbound Broad Street
• Due to the re-opening of Broad Street to two-way traffic, left turns from eastbound and westbound Mercer onto 9th Ave N will be restricted to facilitate traffic flow on Mercer. Travelers heading north towards Westlake and Fremont should use Dexter Avenue N to reach their destinations.

Mercer West: 5th Ave W to Dexter Ave N - Access to Northbound 99 During Construction

Mercer West: 5th Ave W to Dexter Ave N - Access to I5 During Construction

Additional traffic revisions will include:

• Mercer will be reduced to two eastbound lanes between 4th Ave N and 9th Ave N
• Local access will be maintained at Taylor Avenue N
• The sidewalk on the north side of Mercer will be closed between 5th Ave N and Dexter Ave N. The sidewalk on the south side of Mercer Street will remain open
• Aurora/99 traffic will be shifted to the west side of the roadway between Valley and Harrison streets; two lanes of SR 99 in each direction will remain open
• Northbound 99 off-ramp to Mercer will be permanently closed. A new signalized intersection at Republican Street and Dexter Avenue N will be available for northbound SR 99 traffic to reach South Lake Union

Steel yourselves – this is just the tip of the iceberg. More on next week’s Mercer messiness and closures next week (a hint if you’re unaware: Mercer and 99 closures next weekend for Mercer West work, so enjoy this weekend…).

From SDOT:

The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) advises travelers of upcoming lane restrictions on Mercer Street and Broad Street beginning tomorrow, Thursday, May 9:

• Eastbound Mercer Street will have the left lane restricted from just west of Dexter Avenue N to Ninth Avenue N on Friday, May 10 from approximately 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
• Westbound Mercer Street/Broad Street will have the left lane restricted from Westlake Avenue N to Harrison Street from 8:00 a.m. Thursday, May 9 until 3:00 p.m. on Friday, May 17.

Just last week, the Queen Anne Community Council Land Use Review Committee and Planning Committee hosted a meeting to review the Ballard to Interbay Land Use Corridor project. Now, there are two ways to share your thoughts and feedback – a community meeting next Monday and an online survey available now.

Key information on the future of Interbay are available online, including the preliminary recommendations and background information. For the past six months, the city has been studying and thinking about the future of Interbay. Metro’s Rapid Ride is now running, and new apartments and offices are under construction. The community is changing, and the city wants to hear from residents and business owners about key elements such as:

• What kind of businesses can thrive in the Interbay corridor?
• What types of retail does the community want?
• Which streets are the most important for walking and biking?
• Would Interbay be a good place for more people to live?

The Community Meeting will be held on Monday, April 29th at Q Café (3223 15th Ave W). The meeting is set to run from 5pm-7pm, with light snacks served.

Additional information about the Ballard to Interbay Land Use Corridor Study is available online.

SDOT will reopen Fairview Ave. N to two-way traffic on Saturday, March 9th (weather permitting). This move marks a key step toward the completion of the East Phase of the Mercer Corridor Project and the transition to Stage 4 – the final stage of Mercer East construction. A step in the right direction, but still messy (really, is it possible to get to I-5 from 5th Ave N in less than 15 minutes?).

Fairview Ave. N has been restricted to one northbound lane between Harrison and Valley since August 2012. It’ll now have two northbound lanes and two southbound lanes between Republican and Mercer. In preparation for the re-opening, there will be lane restrictions on Mercer this Friday, March 8th – beginning at 8pm, Mercer will be reduced to two lanes in each direction though Saturday morning.

Just as Fairview opens, the final stage, Stage 4, of Mercer East begins. Stage 4 is the final stage with the following street restrictions:

• Valley St: restricted to one westbound lane between Fairview and Terry; closed between Terry and Westlake
• Westlake Ave. N: restricted to one northbound lane between Valley St. and Aloha St.
• Broad St: closed between Westlake and 9th Ave. N
• Northbound Terry Ave. N: restricted to local access only between Mercer and Valley
• Access to Lake Union Park will be via Fairview and Valley

Stage 4 is expected to be completed in July. More information on the Mercer Corridor project is available online. Here’s the map of the new traffic flow beginning Saturday, March 9th:

Next up in the ongoing fix of Mercer is Mercer West. This phase of construction will begin in April, and span from Dexter Ave N to 5th Ave W. If you have any questions for the Mercer Project West team, there’s a “Meet the Contractor” event on Thursday, March 21 from 4:30pm-7:30pm at the Seattle Center (Northwest Rooms and Rainier Room). You can share your comments, opinions, feedback and ask questions too.

As reported in January, the proposed Aegis on Galer project was conditionally approved by the Department of Planning and Development (DPD) and a new public hearing date for appeals was scheduled for tomorrow, Tuesday, February 19th.

According to the DPD, both the Declaration of Non-Significance and Design Review have been appealed. The public hearing will be at the Office of the Hearing Examiner. If necessary, additional time has been reserved on February 22, 2013 for a continuance.

You can access copies of the Report and Recommendation, the rezone application, and all other documents related to this project online – enter “3012582” in the project number field.

Key Details

• What: Public Hearing on Rezone Application for 223 W. Galer Street
• When: Tuesday, February 19, 9am
• Where: Seattle Municipal Tower, 700 5th Ave, Room 4009

If you have additional questions, contact Colin R. Vasquez, Senior Land Use Planner at 206.684.5639.

315 1st Ave N Proposed Development
Courtesy: Runberg Architecture Group

Another mixed-use building is proposed for Lower Queen Anne/Uptown, this time across from Key Arena at 315 1st Ave N. The proposed building will be six stories tall and have 212 residential units along with just over 12,000 square feet of retail space. As with other recent developments, it’ll have underground parking – although it’ll have more ample parking with spots for 238 vehicles.

Runberg Architecture Group is listed as the applicant for the project; the firm also designed the Expo Apartments at 100 Republican St. At this point in the process, the firm has provided early design drawings that indicate the mass of the building, not the final design details:

The Design Review Board Recommendation meeting is slated for 6:30pm on Wednesday, February 27th at the Queen Anne Community Center (room #1). At this meeting, the applicant will present information about the proposed design and how it responds to Design Guideline priorities. Public comments are welcome, but they must be limited to design considerations. If an environmental review is triggered, comments related to environmental impacts (e.g. traffic, parking, noise, etc.) may be sent to DPD following notice of that review.

And, in related news, construction on the 5-story apartment complex designed by Studio Meng Strazza at 3rd Ave W & Republican will begin next month. As reported in December, this project will house 71 apartments, 5 live/work units, and 82 underground parking stalls.

Proposed Aegis on Galer
Courtesy of VIA Architecture

As reported earlier this month, the proposed Aegis on Galer project was conditionally approved by the Department of Planning and Development (DPD) – however, appeals were being accepted through yesterday, January 23.

Today, the DPD announced a new public hearing date for appeals received for the project. According to the DPD, both the Declaration of Non-Significance and Design Review have been appealed. The original public hearing was slated for January 30th, but it has been rescheduled to February 19th at the Office of the Hearing Examiner. If necessary, additional time has been reserved on February 22, 2013 for a continuance.

Written comments will be accepted until the close of the hearing scheduled for February 19, 2013. Comments should be sent to:

City of Seattle Hearing Examiner
700 5th Avenue, Suite 4000
P.O. Box 94729
Seattle, WA 98124-4729

You can access copies of the Report and Recommendation, the rezone application, and all other documents related to this project online – enter “3012582” in the project number field.

Key Details

• What: Public Hearing on Rezone Application for 223 W. Galer Street
• When: Tuesday, February 19, 9am
• Where: Seattle Municipal Tower, 700 5th Ave, Room 4009

If you have additional questions, contact Colin R. Vasquez, Senior Land Use Planner at 206.684.5639.

Most of the comments on yesterday’s Aegis on Galer article were around the design review drawings – they are not, ahem, attractive. But, as pointed out in the post, they are preliminary and don’t reflect the materials or final design.

Well, now we have brand-new images from VIA Architecture of the planned development at 223 Galer St – see the two views below and let us know what you think:

The City of Seattle Department of Planning and Development (DPD) released a conditional approval of the planned Aegis development at 223 W Galer Street (corner of Galer and 3rd W). You may recall that the last Design Review was held in October.

The Director’s Report is available online, and is quite exhaustive. Here are the key points if you don’t feel up to reading 39 pages:

Proposal: Council Land Use Action to Contract Rezone 12,800 sq. ft. of land from NC2-30′ to NC2-40′ [this means increasing the height from 30’ to 40’ – or four stories]. Project includes a 4-story structure containing 60 assisted living units above 509 sq. ft. of street level retail. Parking for 21 vehicles to be provided below grade. Existing structure to be demolished.

Conditional Approval: The Director recommends that the proposed contract rezone to NC2-40’ (increasing the structure to four stories) be “conditionally approved” and has accepted the findings of the final Design Review recommendation meeting. Conditional approval requires that the design meet the following conditions:

Rezone: Approval of this contract rezone is conditioned subject to a Property Use and Development Agreement (PUDA) that limits the structure to be built to the design approved by the Design Review

State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA): For the duration of the removal of the existing building, excavation of materials, and delivery of construction materials; the owner(s) and/or responsible party(ies) shall cause truck trips to and from the project site to cease during the hours between 4pm and 6pm on weekdays.

Design Review: Any proposed changes to the exterior of the building or the site must be submitted to DPD for review and approval by the Land Use Planner assigned to the project.

Prior to Issuance of a Permanent Certificate of Occupancy: The applicant shall arrange for an inspection with the Land Use Planner to verify that the construction of the buildings with, sitting, materials, and architectural details is substantially the same as those documented in the approved/issued plans. A public hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, January 30 at 9am at the Office of Hearing Examiner (address below).

Written comments will be accepted until the close of the hearing scheduled for January 30, 2013 – send comments to:

City of Seattle
Hearing Examiner
700 5th Avenue, Suite 4000
P.O. Box 94729
Seattle, WA 98124-4729

If you want to appeal the environmental determination or design review, appeals must be received by the Hearing Examiner at the address shown above no later than 5pm on January 22, 2013. Appeals must be accompanied by $50.00 filing fee in a check payable to the City of Seattle. Appeals of the decision will be heard at the public hearing on January 30, 2013 at 9am.

Edited to add some content about the final look and feel of the building. At this point, VIA Architecture only has the above drawings available. However, in the Conditional Approval document, the firm provided the following statement on the “character” of the building:

They also provided the following information on the materials for the building:

• A significant amount of reddish/brown brick is used to accentuate and feature the primary corner of the building. This also includes a rustication recess effect at the ground level, a second lighter brick color at the base of the columns, header courses and masonry sills at windows openings.
• Bay windows, storefront columns and the commercial “frieze” will be painted wood trim with board and batten style multi-level paneling.
• Windows will be pre-finished storefront aluminum at the ground floor and white or beige vinyl windows on the residential floors.
• Windows will be surrounded with painted trim wood or cementitious trim.
• Lap siding is painted cementitious siding with a 6” exposure.
• Painted concrete block at the east property line.
• Cast in place concrete plinths along W Galer St.
• Painted steel trellis, steel and glass canopies and steel brick channel headers.

We still don’t know what the final building will look like, but at least it won’t be a solid concrete building. Check out what VIA Architecture designed for Aegis Madison for an example of what comes after the design proposals.

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is beginning its construction season early this year, with the first of “nearly 20” weekend and weekend night closures starting next weekend, January 4-7. The I-5 closures will run through April, and we’ll add these to the Traffic Impact section of the Queen Anne View Weekend Roundups.

Why January – April for these closures? According to Russ East, WSDOT Assistant Regional Administrator:

Per WSDOT, the following projects will occur between January and April:

• Replace 31 expansion joints on ramps linking I-5, the West Seattle Bridge and Columbian Way and one joint on northbound I-5 just south of the ramps
• Grind and smooth out three lanes of southbound I-5 between 50th St and Roanoke St in the University District and add durable striping to both directions of I-5 between Northgate and Roanoke St
• Replace bridge expansion joints and repave the ramp on northbound I-5 to Spokane St (West Seattle Bridge) and northbound and southbound I-5 off-ramps at Corson Ave

WSDOT traffic engineers worked with multiple agencies and organizations including the city of Seattle, sports teams, and event planners to avoid any major overlaps between construction and planned events. However, while they have identified the lightest traffic times, there will still be construction impacts.

What to do? Check before you go via WSDOT’s I-5 Reconstruction site, traffic app, or Twitter feed. And, we’ll include any I-5 impacts in the Queen Anne View Weekend Roundup.

Caron Architecture: 306 Queen Anne Ave
back up to 6 stories

Last week, we reported on 3 new Lower Queen Anne/Uptown mixed-use developments that received Design and Planning Department (DPD) approvals. The final decision for 306 Queen Anne Ave required the developers to reduce the building from six to four stories.

Today, DPD issued a revised notice to “clarify the proposal as a six story structure” with all other conditions unchanged. 306 Queen Anne Ave will be a six-story, 50-unit residential building with three live-work units at street level. The building will include parking for 11 vehicles.