Developers and city officials broke ground today on The Village at Totem Lake, a long awaited mixed-used development next to Interstate 405 and close to health care and transit centers in the Totem Lake neighborhood of Kirkland.
The project is headed by California-based development company CenterCal, whose representatives Rick Beason, Vice President of Development, and Paul Brett, General Manager for the Totem Lake project, attended the groundbreaking.
“We’ve had our eye on this location for a long time,” Beason said.
The Village at Totem Lake will be constructed in two Phases, with the first phase of development west of 120th Avenue Northeast, including retail and residential units, will be completed by mid 2018.
Phase Two includes retail to the east to be completed by spring or summer 2018 and residential units by 2019.
The project in total will include more than 360,000 square feet of residential and retail space, some 855 residential units, more than 1,700 retail and theater parking stalls and nearly 1,300 residential parking spaces.
A 900 seat theater will also be included.
A map provided by CenterCal shows Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s Ross, Auto Zone, Mod Pizza, Chipotle, Nordstrom Rack and Wells Fargo in retail slots, though CentralCal’s Gary Hall said they will be announcing more tenants in the future.
Kirkland Deputy Mayor Jay Arnold said he is excited to see development in Totem Lake, which the city has been looking at having developed for the past 25 years.
“This is huge,” he told the crowd of media, government officials and media.
Whole Foods Pacific Northwest President Joe Rogoff also attended and said the Kirkland location was picked due to it’s location in between other Whole Foods stores in Lynnwood and Bellevue.
He also said the direction of the community was in sync with his company’s values of sustainability.
The roughly 45,000 square foot store will likely have a coffee shop, a pub and many small restaurant-like venues scattered throughout the store along with seating.
“I think it’s a really beautiful space,” he said. “I think it’s going to feel warm and inviting and exciting.”
During Phase Two east of 120th Avenue Northeast, the ground level will be dropped by a few feet, allowing a smooth transition for pedestrians. It has been tiered for the duration of the Totem Lake Malls.
Bike lanes will connect the development to area parks and the Cross-Kirkland Corridor.
“We’re excited about this project,” Beason said. “What it can become, again, is an incredible place to live, work and play, we are going to build something that is going to be a destination.”
The development is also located near EvergreenHealth and the Kirkland Transit Center, as well as ramps to I-405.
The property was purchased from the California Public Employees’ Retirement System by Coventry Real Estate Advisers and Developers Diversified Realty for $37 million in 2004. The two companies originally intended to redevelop the site, however, the project was dragged into a $500 million fraud lawsuit filed in New York.
The property was purchased by Village at Totem Lake LLC in 2015, a joint venture between CenterCal and PCCP, LLC.
