Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell’s desire to potentially convert some of the city’s downtown office space into housing and other commercial uses moved a step forward with the selection of three top proposals from a call for ideas.
The mayor and the Office of Planning and Community Development said Tuesday night that the winning proposals “exemplified imaginative and achievable designs that integrate housing, commercial areas, and community amenities, fostering a thriving and inclusive urban environment.”
The first place entry came from a team consisting of Seattle-based Hybrid Architecture, with project architect Tom Geeslin; Seattle-based real estate firm Great Expectations; and Diamond Parking. The entry suggested converting the Mutual Life Building at 605 1st Ave. in Pioneer Square into a co-living space that would provide affordable units and create what the team called “environmental, economic, and socially responsible housing.” The historic building was built in 1890.
Two second-place proposals included:
- A team from the Seattle office of design and architecture firm Gensler. The proposal suggested a building with a more modern footprint, a centralized elevator core and a variety of unit mixes with great natural light. The submission highlighted code changes that would make a stronger case for conversion.
- A team from the architecture firm The Miller Hull Partnership and Stanley Real Estate. The proposal focused on adaptive reuse of historic buildings in Pioneer Square, converted into residential units and a shared courtyard.
The call for ideas received 13 proposals from 12 design teams. The City said the top three submittals were selected for designs that were both imaginative and achievable.
The highest scoring submittal received $10,000 and the next two highest received $7,500 from the Office of Planning and Community Development.
Harrell released the first stage of his “Downtown Activation Plan” in April in a bid to rethink and revitalize downtown Seattle and attract people back to the urban core in the wake of the pandemic.
With a rise of office vacancies, converting that space to other uses has been an area Harrell is exploring.
“This design competition sought bold ideas from partners that are best positioned to help us design and build a downtown where we can all live, work, learn, shop, play, and so much more,” Harrell said in a news release. “We will use these ideas to explore and inform next steps to increase housing in our city core and activate our streets with new and diverse businesses and services at the ground level.”
Moving forward, the City says it will be using all submitted proposals and key findings learned during the process to determine what kind of legislation, regulatory modifications (including code and permitting) incentives, budget, and partnerships are necessary to support and effectively advance future conversion projects and development proposals.
A series of exhibitions featuring project submissions will be available to the public throughout the summer. On June 14 from 5:30-7:30 p.m., The American Institute of Architects, Seattle Architecture Foundation and the City of Seattle will host an exhibit reception at the Center for Architecture & Design Gallery. The gallery will also be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on June 21, 28, and on July 5. All submissions will be available on the project website after June 14.
