The Potala Village project continues to move forward with its revised plans for constructing a mixed-use development featuring 58 condo units along Lake Washington Boulevard following its first conceptual design conference in March.
A design response conference with the city of Kirkland Resign Review Board (DRB) is scheduled for Aug. 24 with feedback will be offered on Potala Village’s design for the development at 1006 Lake Street South.
Under the new design, it will be a 138,434-square-foot, three-story building that would include approximately 7,000 square feet of ground floor retail space on the north and south corners of the building, as well as residential units on the second and third floor. The parking garage would be accessed from 10th Avenue South. The conceptual design has an open plaza/courtyard in the center of the property offering “an inviting place that separates the two retail spaces and becomes an informal gathering place for pedestrians,” according to the design response conference application.
The condos would offer views overlooking the central courtyard, Lake Washington and Seattle. The 58 residential units would be a mixture of 1-3 bedroom units.
The building design has it shaped like a “U” to fit in with the abutting hillside as well as conform the developer’s existing shoreline permit.
The application was based off of feedback from the DRB which, among other things, favored the idea of a central courtyard and vehicular access on 10th Avenue. The DRB also advised them to avoid having blank walls that face public areas.
In an April letter to Potala Village developers, city if Kirkland Senior Planner Angela Ruggeri stated that the DRB also highlighted the importance the retail aspect of the project offered for the local neighborhood.
“Given the more localized draw for residents to meet their everyday needs, an emphasis on convenient and attractive pedestrian connections and vehicular access is important,” the letter states.
According to Kirkland city officials, Potala Village developers will not have to reapply for their shoreline substantial developments permit as long as they keep that aspect of the project similar to the previous plan. They have filed for a building permit that will need to meet with current codes before it can be approved.
The new proposal was submitted shortly after developer and owner Lobsang Dargey lost his legal battle with the city of Kirkland when the State Supreme Court denied a request on Feb. 4 to review an Aug. 25, 2014 ruling by the Washington Court of Appeals, Division I. Potala Village developers are still appealing a King County Superior Court’s ruling in May concerning its building permit, in which the court granted the city’s motion for summary judgment. The May ruling also denied Potala Village developers’ cross-motion for summary judgment and dismissed the case with prejudice.
The controversy over the Potala Village project started in 2011 when the developer originally planned to have 143 units. After protests by residents over concerns about traffic problems on Lake Washington Boulevard, the City Council placed a six-month emergency moratorium on all building permits in the business neighborhood zones in November 2011. Before the November 2011 moratorium, however, Potala Village developers had submitted a completed shoreline substantial development permit, which the city approved in January 2013, but did not file for a building permit application.
The council eventually passed new zoning regulations, placing a maximum limit on the number of units per acre allowed in business neighborhood zoning, which reduced the number of units Potala Village developers could build down to 60.
