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Originally published Sunday, November 22, 2009 at 12:10 AM

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Denny Triangle gains skyline, but tenants slow to come

A high-rise construction boom in the 8th Avenue corridor alters the skyline, opens during trough

Denny Triangle's new buildings

Click on the "Next" button above for a graphic showing the numbering system used to identify the buildings described below. (Click on "enlarge" for a better view.)

1 Aspira

Location: Terry Avenue and Stewart Street

Developer: Urban Partners, Los Angeles

Height: 37 stories

What's in it: 231 apartments, ground-floor retail.

What's at street level: Nothing so far.

Completion: Scheduled for Feb. 2010

How it's faring: Leasing hasn't begun yet; developer says he's "cautiously optimistic."

2 The Olivian

Location: Eighth Avenue and Olive Way

Developer: Hanover Co., Houston

Height: 27 stories

What's in it: 224 apartments; ground-floor retail.

What's at street level: Nothing so far.

Completion: May 2009

How it's faring: Six months after opening, about 100 of 224 apartments are leased.

3 Olive 8

Location: Eighth Avenue and Olive Way

Developer: R.C. Hedreen, Seattle

Height: 39 stories

What's in it: 346-room Hyatt Hotel on lower 17 floors; 229 condos in top 22 floors.

What's at street level: Urbane restaurant

Completion: Hotel opened in January; condo sales began closing in April.

How it's faring: Fewer than one-quarter of condos have closed. About 80 percent had presold in 2006 and 2007.

4 818 Stewart

Location: Ninth Avenue and Stewart Street

Developer: Schnitzer West, Seattle

Height: 14 stories

What's in it: 238,000 square feet of office space; ground-floor retail.

What's at street level: Watermark Credit Union branch, Dilettante Mocha Café.

Completion: Fall 2008

How it's faring: Office space about 60 percent leased. Largest tenants include Avanade, Accenture, First American Title Insurance, Schnitzer West.

5 1918 Eighth

Location: Eighth Avenue and Virginia Street

Developer: Schnitzer West, Seattle

Height: 36 stories

What's in it: 660,000 square feet of office space; ground-floor retail.

What's at street level: Specialty's Café & Bakery to open in spring.

Completion: Scheduled for Nov. 30.

How it's faring: More than 95 percent of office space unleased. Only announced tenant is law firm Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro (21,000 square feet).

6 West 8th

Location: Eighth Avenue and Westlake Avenue

Developer: Touchstone, Seattle

Height: 28 stories

What's in it: 492,000 square feet of office space; ground-floor retail; child-care center.

What's at street level: Mistral Kitchen restaurant under construction.

Completion: July 2009

How it's faring: Office space all unleased.

7 2201Westlake/Enso

Location: Westlake Avenue and Denny Way

Developer: Vulcan Real Estate, Seattle

Height: 19-story condo tower (Enso); 12-story office tower (2201 Westlake)

What's in it: 135 condos; 300,000 square feet of office space; ground-floor retail.

What's at street level: Nothing so far.

Completion: July 2009

How it's faring: Global health non-profit PATH moving into 113,000 square feet of office space in January; remainder unleased. Condo prices cut and closings postponed indefinitely. Vulcan says more than half of condos are pre-sold, but it wants to make sure enough closings actually will happen to meet guidelines of giant mortgage underwriter Fannie Mae.

A few years ago Seattle's Denny Triangle didn't really have a skyline. That's recently changed with the construction of several new high-rises.

But the owners of those buildings — all recently completed or nearing completion — are finding the market a far less receptive place than when they broke ground in 2006 or 2007.

The recession is pushing downtown office vacancies toward 20 percent. New office towers built on speculation are scrambling for tenants.

The same goes for downtown condos. Many buyers who put money down on unbuilt units before the crash have postponed closing, or backed out entirely.

So the Denny Triangle may have a skyline now — but much of the space in these prominent new towers is empty.

Eric Pryne

Sources: Urban Partners; King County Records; Officespace.com; Northwest Commercial Brokers Association, Vulcan, Hanover

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Comments (13)
The whole "condo" idea only makes sense with radically rising values for real estate. With falling values, no one should buy a condo....  Posted on November 22, 2009 at 12:21 AM by Creme Brulee. Jump to comment
Practice what you preach. I live in the area and it's great. The fact that it's not crowded is even more appealing. If you want to see...  Posted on November 22, 2009 at 1:27 PM by greenman1. Jump to comment
The whole meaning of condo has changed. Years ago condo meant decent digs at a lower cost of ownership. If you look at the condos developed in the...  Posted on November 22, 2009 at 11:10 AM by Not the last word. Jump to comment
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