Recent Stories with tag tower

Amazon has reported net sales were up 39 percent in the third quarter of 2010, and that Kindle sales were.... Well, there are no numbers attached, but the general impression is that they're selling Kindles at a fine rate, and proud we are of all of them. Interestingly, while media sales were up 14 percent, sales of electronics and other merchandise grew 68 percent.

Amazon may be the leader in online retail, but Forbes wonders how good the investment angle is, given Amazon's legendarily razor-thin margins. One impact on those margins, as TechFlash reports, is that Amazon has increased its employee headcount by 44 percent from last year. (An earlier story noted that "Fulfillment costs in Q3 were up nearly 46 percent from the year-ago quarter, to $680 million.")

Amazon moved into its South Lake Union offices earlier this year, and now the area is full of hustle and bustle--forget a quick bite to eat at Blue Moon Burgers if it's anywhere around noon. Back on Beacon Hill, the ex-Amazon Tower is forlornly waiting for its lease to expire next May; in three years, nobody the size of Amazon has come knocking to rent the 16 floors.

Escala's news release last Wednesday reported 65 new sales, with 38 closings, in the last three months. That's 38 of a total of 275 units, after the condo tower reopened with prices reduced 20 to 50 percent at the end of March. (Last February, the PSBJ was reporting that only six units had sold, and current King County tax records show just eleven units in private ownership.)

Designed by Thoryk Architecture (Mulvanney G2 were architects of record, and DiLeonardo International, Inc., did the interior design), the 30-floor, $370-million tower from developer Lexas Companies has come down in the world since 2006, when you could "reserve a home" with a $10,000 deposit. (Urbnlivn took the video above, and wrote a review, after touring an open house.)

The idea was to overwhelm Seattle's highest-living with luxury amenities, including a "spa, library, billiard room, theatre/screening room, fitness center with a lap pool, a catering kitchen, a formal dining room, and an events center." There was a marble staircase at the entrance, of course.

In 2007, as the Seattle Times reported, it was the "year of the condo" in Seattle: "Real-estate economist Matthew Gardner shared Thyer's optimism, telling an audience of about 700 that demand for new places to live downtown will remain 'very positive.'"... (more)

How appealing is it to potential renters to find out that their apartment could be "put up for sale as condos again in 18 to 24 months"?

That's what those canny development moguls at Schnitzer West, owners of the Bravern, have decided to find out. To beat slumping demand for condos (they let Eric Pryne at the Seattle Times in on the strategy), "we're shorting the supply." ("That's like saying 'I quit' after you've been fired," says a Seattle Times commenter.)

The 236-unit south tower will be offered for lease as apartments, beginning at $1,100 (and reaching the heady heights of $5,000) per month. You can still sneak into a condo in the north tower for as little as $320,000, says the PSBJ.

What's puzzling about the rental pitch is the firm's insistence it's only until the market recovers. First of all, what recovery means in Bellevue isn't exactly assured. Pryne writes that: "County records indicate about 150 of the 377 units at Washington Square, completed in early 2008, remain unsold. And buyers have closed on fewer than 100 of 539 condos at Bellevue Towers, completed early last year, despite price cuts last summer."

Second of all, how large is the pool of renters who don't care when their residence becomes a condo re-conversion? Personally, I might tone that optimism down until I rented a few of those 236 vacant units. 

Bing's Streetside view captures the scaffolded look of The McGuire

Yesterday, the news broke that a 25-story high-rise in Belltown, The McGuire, would be torn down just nine years after construction, due to "defects." The $31-million apartment tower, at 210 Wall Street, had been clad in scaffolding for months, as the owners tried to deal with cracking and spalling of the concrete exterior, due to problems with reinforcement placement in the building’s frame.

Further investigation revealed that post-tensioned slabs--widely used in high-rises to help support and strengthen the concrete, and allow for thinner floors--contained cables that were corroding. (After it opened, The McGuire fairly quickly had troubles with water entering the building's envelope, and then the wrong paint and grout had been used to protect the cables from water, as well.) The City of Seattle Department of Planning and Development told the owners to repair it or vacate by the end of 2010.

Given the costs of repair, the Carpenters Union Local 131 and MEPT, the Multi-Employer Property Trust, gave hundreds of residents notice to vacate. (The McGuire's original developers were the Carpenters Union Local 131 and Harbor Properties.) Ronald Holden, Belltown's eyes and ears, reports on his blog Cornichon that residents are being offered substantial incentives to quit the building by May 15.

Legal advisers Kennedy Associates said the owners were suing the general contractor and architects. Emporis.com and the city's permits confirm that the general contractor on the project was the national firm McCarthy Building Companies, Inc., one of the top ten commercial builders in the U.S. Here is their differentiator:

Because we are true builders, owners get more and better options. Faster and safer execution. And a clear cost/benefit solution that yields the best final cost, every time.

Structural engineers were ABKJ, who also worked on Harbor Steps and Belltown's Arbor Place. Architecture firm Hewitt has a long list of Seattle projects, from Harbor Steps and Belltown's The Klee lofts and suites, to the Capitol Hill light rail station and University Village. Most recently, they are working on Belltown's Third & Cedar project, a 17-story tower with about 200 units, funded by HB Capital.... (more)

Well, aren't you curious about every little thing?

It's a 52-ton crane, and it's there to hoist a "building maintenance unit" to the rooftop of the Seattle Municipal Tower. The BMU, as we're calling it now, sounds like something you might be able to charge admission to.

It sits in a well on the roof, and gives maintenance workers access to all sides of the tower, from floor 62 to the first floor. Most excitingly, it comes with a crane itself, a telescoping arm with a reach of 112 feet, that holds a personnel basket (16 feet wide, 2-3 people, up to 750 pounds).

The tower's current "façade maintenance systems" is out of compliance with Washington State Labor and Industries and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

The city's BMU fact sheet explains that preparation for this began in 2007. "To prepare for the rooftop unit, 45 tons of steel reinforcement have been added to floors 60 through 63." A further 15 tons of steel supports were added temporarily as part of the installation process.