After a year and a half of public hearings and study sessions, plans to revitalize the Park Place Shopping Center made strides last Thursday.
The Kirkland Planning Commission voted in favor of an eight-story, 1.8 million square foot mixed-use redevelopment of the site during its Nov. 13 meeting. The Council will review the Commission’s recommendation during its Dec. 2 study session and the City could make its final decision of whether to approve the redevelopment plans Dec. 16.
Following the Planning Commission’s decision last Thursday, Douglas Howe, president of Touchstone Corp. that owns Park Place and other officials in favor of the redevelopment shook hands and congratulated each other.
“In essence, they’ve completed their work tonight,” Howe said of the decision. “The devil’s in the details, so to speak, so now we look forward to the process of really evolving this project to the next level of completion and permitting.”
If Council approves the amended zoning and planning codes, Touchstone plans to apply for a zoning permit for the project as early as January, Howe said, adding he hopes the redevelopment will energize retail both in Park Place and downtown Kirkland.
Last May, Touchstone submitted two private amendment requests (PAR) to the City. The first proposal – and the one the Commission is recommending for Council approval – is designed to accommodate Touchstone’s proposal that includes 1.2 million square feet of office space and an additional 300,000 square feet of retail. Other uses include a hotel and athletic club.
The second, and smaller, proposal called for 1.2 million square feet of office development with limited retail designed to meet the City’s current zoning regulations.
Both proposals would result in developments significantly larger than the current Park Place site.
Some residents in opposition of the first request, such as Citizens for Responsible Development in Kirkland (CRD), have pushed for a smaller mixed-use development throughout the process to maintain the City’s building height restrictions.
In an explanation of rationale for their recommendation to the City Council, the Planning Commission outlined several project benefits, including enhanced retail activity on the site and resulting additional sales and property tax revenues that will aid the city’s fiscal needs and more shopping opportunities for residents. Also, the City would experience a growing employment base for economic development and office and retail activity would provide a needed boost to nearby downtown businesses.
Project impacts were also outlined, including taller buildings that could have an adverse affect on community character, a significant view blockage of properties located to the south and east of the project and some risk that the project will result in parking spillover into surrounding neighborhoods.
