Nordstrom to take office space at former WaMu Center

Looks like homegrown retailer Nordstrom has just delivered the Seattle Art Museum an early Christmas present.

Nordstrom said today it signed a letter of intent to lease about 265,000 square feet of office space formerly occupied by Washington Mutual in downtown Seattle. Of that, 182,000 square feet will be leased from SAM and about 83,000 square feet from Russell Investments Center.

Nordstrom expects to begin occupying the Second Avenue space in 2010.

It currently occupies space in four buildings downtown: above the Nordstrom flagship store on Sixth Avenue, at 1700 Seventh Avenue, Century Square on Fourth Avenue (where its lease expires in January 2013) and the Metropolitan Park North tower at 1220 Howell St. (where its lease expires in January 2012).

"It's been tricky having employees spread across four buildings downtown," said spokesman Colin Johnson. "This is a long-term solution that's going to allow us to consolidate the number of buildings.

"It's also fair to say we've been challenged for space at some of our current locations," Johnson added. "This gives us space now and in the future. We think we have flexibility in the lease to add space as we grow."

Nordstrom employed about 3,400 people downtown as of January. Details are still being worked out about which employees will go where, Johnson said, though the corporate offices will remain above the flagship store.

He characterized the move as a "business decision," while also noting that Nordstrom and SAM have a long working history together. "They've been a great partner over the years," he said. "Maybe the silver lining here is we found some space that also benefits SAM."

Lease terms were not disclosed.

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