A five-story, 343-unit apartment complex is being planned for the former Lombardi’s restaurant site and the old Hi-Lo Mall in Issaquah. Los Angeles-based Lennar Multifamily Communities wants to develop the 6.09-acre site into a multi-family complex with 460 parking spaces, outdoor recreational spaces and a community garden adjacent to Issaquah Creek.
Jerry Lind, a senior planner with the city, said the project still has to go through the review process for transportation concurrency, environmental review, shoreline substantial development permit and the site development permit.
The property is bordered by Gilman Boulevard, Northwest Locust Street, Seventh Avenue Northwest and Issaquah Creek. The property is part of the Central Issaquah Plan, which was created to encourage urban growth on the valley floor.
Tom Bartholomew with Lennar said the company has primarily been in the single family home business, but established its multi-family branch a few years ago.
“We saw an opportunity to create something new and different in the valley, with good proximity to transit, high walking scores and a good place to meet a market close to outdoor recreation and shopping,” Bartholomew said.
If you look at the site now, it looks like a sea of asphalt. Bartholomew said all of that impervious surface will be gone, and there will be a wide landscape swale through the property to accommodate overflow in case of flooding from Issaquah creek.
As far as projected rents go, he said it’s too soon to tell because it’s two years out before the units will be ready to occupy. But there will be a range of rents and sizes of units.
Since the project borders Issaquah Creek, a public hearing is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 4 before the city’s river and streams board, which will be held at City Hall Northwest, 1775 12th Ave. N.W.
Also on the valley floor, Rowley Properties is planning to build a 122-room hotel, another Hilton property, adjacent to the Hilton Garden Inn. The eight-story hotel will be approximately 100,000 square feet with 5,000 square feet of retail/spa area.
Access to the new hotel would be off 18th Avenue Northwest and from a new street constructed to the west off Northwest Gilman Boulevard. A new parking lot would be added to the north of the proposed hotel and an extension to the current Hilton Garden Inn west parking is included in the proposed project.
