Seattle Apartments Open Half Leased

By Dees Stribling, Contributing Editor

Seattle—Jasper by Alta, a 91-unit apartment complex on 35th Ave. NE in Seattle, has opened after being under construction for a year. According to the developer, Wood Partners, the property opened more than half leased.

The development is part of a large wave of apartment construction in greater Seattle. According to local market research firm Dupre-Scott, as of the spring more than 10,000 apartment units were under way in Seattle and environs, with plans on the boards for 3,000 more. Perhaps as many as 23,000 new units will be developed by the end of 2016, the company predicts.

“A lot of investors, lenders, and even developers are nervous about the surge in new development activity, so it’s logical we will see these production numbers trimmed quite a bit,” Dupre-Scott notes in the report. “However, vacancies are low, especially in-city Seattle where a lot of the new development is planned.”

Wood Parnters asserts that Jasper by Alta is well positioned to take advantage of employment growth in greater Seattle, one of the drivers of demand for apartments. The property is near the University of Washington Hospital and the currently expanding Seattle Children’s Hospital, two growing employers, and is also not far from the Redmond, Bellevue and Kirkland employment centers.

Jasper by Alta features four stories with studios, one- and two-bedroom units ranging in size from just under 500 square feet to more than 1,400 square feet. It includes single-level subterranean garage and a green roof deck, and many of the units have bay windows, private patios, decks and balconies.

The design team included Baylis Architects, DCI Engineers, Nakano Associates landscape architects and Sechrist Design Associates for interior design. The lender on the construction loan was Banner Bank.