Downtown "renaissance" under way

When City Manager Rich Conrad looked around Mercer Island's downtown not long ago, he had to admit it was bleak.

Businesses were failing: Only banks, dry cleaners and parking lots dotted the streetscape. There was no nightlife, few restaurants and hardly any people strolling the streets.

Now halfway through a downtown redevelopment, the changes are dramatic.

New apartment and condo buildings are opening, with shops, banks, real-estate offices and restaurants renting space on the ground level. Two mixed-used projects are already completed, and with four more to come, the developments will add more than 80,000 square feet of retail space, 24 condos and more than 700 new apartments.

"We are on the front end of a renaissance," Conrad said.

At Island Square, one of the largest projects, all but one of the retail spaces in the five-building complex has been rented. Among the new tenants will be Noah's bagels, Taco del Mar and Maggie Moo's Ice Cream. A few businesses are already open and serving customers.

Emerald City Smoothies has been open for more than a month, and sales have exceeded expectations, said owner Tom Napier.

The location provides a "built-in clientele" from the apartments above and passers-by on their way to Interstate 90, he said.

"There is a lot of enthusiasm about the development," Napier said. "People want to know when you are opening and what is going in here. Mercer Island is ready for expanded urban living."

Much-needed face-lift

Redevelopment is not a new goal for the island. As the city's population boomed in the 1960s and '70s, strip malls were put up hastily to meet the needs of new residents, said Susan Blake, a former City Council member and a resident for more than 50 years.

"The city knew downtown redevelopment was critical, but we weren't really plunged into it until the Growth Management Act initiative," said Blake.

Aimed at stopping suburban sprawl, the GMA was passed in 1990 and required urban areas to find ways to absorb the bulk of projected population growth. Mercer Island had to figure a way to include 3,000 more residents into the population, which now stands at nearly 22,000. Rather than force growth into existing single-family neighborhoods, the city looked to downtown.

City leaders saw an opportunity to give the city a much-needed face-lift, said Richard Hart, Mercer Island's development services director.

"Downtown just looked like one big parking lot," he said. A redesign process was started and plans were set by 1994, but it took nearly a decade more before property owners and developers thought there was enough demand and economic drive to begin construction.

Nurturing nightlife

So who's moving downtown?

The condo and apartment complexes are geared primarily toward islanders looking to downsize and toward the grown children of residents who are looking to leave the nest or return to the city after college, said Conrad. Newell Court and Avellino, two projects that together have 63 apartments, are almost completely rented, and Island Square has rented about 80 of its 235 apartments in less than four months.

With hundreds of people living downtown, the city hopes to jump-start the island's nightlife. The need for more restaurant and entertainment options was something residents stressed during the redesign phase, said Hart. Already there's an increase in people out and about at night, running errands or eating out, he said, and that trend will likely continue as more restaurants and shops open.

"Mercer Islanders wanted to be able to go out in their own neighborhood rather than crossing a bridge to Seattle or Bellevue," Conrad said. "We'd love to have a little more nightlife.

"Maybe we'll get some people who will stay out until 8:30 or 9," he joked.

Traffic, parking issues

The two primary concerns heard from residents in the design phase were traffic and parking. Anticipating a parking shortage, the city required each developer to install lots underground or behind buildings. To help encourage patronage, the parking spots will be free. Although the city does not anticipate traffic problems, it is installing a few traffic lights to replace four-way stops, Conrad said.

There were also some initial concerns about increased crime and strain on the school district as more residents moved in. But Conrad said the city's crime rates are low and have continued to decline in recent years.

To compensate for any increased strain on the school system, developers must give money to the district based on the number of children expected to move in. Developers estimate only one school-aged child for every four units in the complexes.

A lively downtown

Longtime resident Phil Flash said he looks forward to having more options for shopping and dining in the downtown area.

"There really isn't a nice restaurant for special occasions on the island. I think there is a market for it," Flash said. "We're looking forward to this. The new people and new shops might be a stimulus for the downtown. It could turn out to be a very nice thing."

Once all the buildings are completed, with the shops and restaurants open, city officials hope it will be a vibrant, lively place for residents, Hart said.

"Mercer Island is not like New York, San Francisco or places in Europe, but we're trying," he said.

Kayla Webley: 206-464-2391 or kwebley@seattletimes.com.