UPDATE: The project has provided this updated rendering of the design from Atelier Drome
A Capitol Hill development plan on ice since 2021 is ready to break ground as an affordable project backed by a development team that pairs “Super Bowl champion and former Seattle Seahawk” Cliff Avril and Amazon.
The Pointe at Thomas development will rise seven stories on land at 11th and Thomas currently home to a 1963-built, nine-unit apartment building.
The renewed 67-unit project is now moving forward under C&A Development, a joint venture from Avril’s CA Family Properties and the Cohen Properties investment firm.
According to the announcement, the Pointe units will be available to households earning between 40% and 80% of Area Median Income, $46,000 to $92,000 for a one-person household. Under the Amazon funding and affordable program, the units will be under covenant to remain affordable for 99 years.
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The project had been stalled by the pandemic development slowdown. CHS reported on early planning for the development as part of a ripple of activity north of Cal Anderson being planned in early 2022. Most of that has remained on hold.
Designed by b9 Architects Atelier Drome, the 11th Ave E project has had most of its construction permits in place for years now for “a highly sustainable building” that prioritizes “the building envelope to reduce the building’s ecological footprint.”
Amazon’s fund provided $6.7 million in low-cost capital and below-market financing. In addition to Amazon’s private fund, the development received public support via a pre-development grant from the Washington State Department of Commerce, which reimbursed early planning and design expenses. The construction financing of $11.4 million is being provided by the Seattle Credit Union.
The developers are also reflecting Seattle’s community preference efforts, partnering with the Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic. The development will offer OBCC “employees, patients, and patients family members” first notice of unit availability, according to the announcement.
“We believe the people who power this city – teachers, health care workers, and everyday professionals deserve the opportunity to live in the communities they help sustain,” Avril is quoted as saying in the announcement.
Now that sounds truly workable – 40% to 90%, true workforce housing. Hope this model can sustain itself.
Hint: it can’t
what would be “not workable” in your opinion?
We will see… did you know that their are people that work at Amazon who make between those figures? People who even work for the Seahawks (not actual Seahawks., but actual Amazon college grad employees tho.) make those figures. Don’t expect a team of baristas and cooks to be the standard tenant. Old cap hill is closing up shop.
$46,000 is just above minimum wage, so actually yeah… there will be spots that it’s likely even a barista or a line cook can afford. No reason to gripe that it’s not the whole building.
Seattle’s Minimum wage is $21.30/hr. I could see this being a place for line cooks working 40-50 hrs/week. Also these would be places for starting public school teachers, retail workers, and first responders to live at too.
UG-LY
so are tents on the street, get over it!
Agreed on the tents but I doubt the 40% AMI threshold will actually help with reducing their presence…
In addition, based on how many times our “good neighbor” Amazon has pulled their funding out of other affordable projects at the very last minute, I believe this one will happen when I see it.
Oh for sure, the current building is a real masterpiece
Do you have any scoop if/when Walgreens can sell their condo share of the Broadway Crossing building? If we are comparing masterpieces here, they are a pained storefront.
Pained storefront? how so?
Yes, and WAY out of proportion to the surrounding area.
this seems to be 67 more new units brought to supply than the new public “developer” has planned. kudos to new supply.
when are b9 architects going to realize that all gray exterior cladding is ugly (and always was?)
…not here to defend b9’s aesthetic but it looks like they are not involved in this project.