Plans for the Mercedes dealership property on E Pike

The East Design Board will get its first look at two Capitol HIll projects Wednesday night. One of the new buildings represents yet another twist on the struggle to measure just how much preservation should be required to justify developer incentives in Pike/Pine. Meanwhile, the second building is the type of scrappy project you kind of have to love — destined to live in the shadows of its heralded and trailblazing, super-green, super-solar neighbor across E Madison, a project we’ll proudly call the Taco Time building is ready to take shape and take its turn in the Seattle design review process.

600 E Pike

CHS has reported on the road leading to the start of this development project for months as word first spread early last year that the family-owned Mercedes dealership at the site would be sold and moved off the Hill. By September, we learned that big time developer Avalon Bay was preparing to buy the land with plans for a mixed-use development incorporating elements of the auto row-era structures in return for the extra floor of height the Pike/Pine Conservation District makes available to preservation-minded developers. The sale price, by the way, is not yet available from King County records.

The plan Avalon and architect Ankrom Moisan will come to the table with Wednesday night will present yet another variant of preservation being sought by developers trying to work within the auspices of the conservation district. The project developers will begin making their case for the board to support a preservation plan that will see extensive restoration to two of the main structures’ street frontage and the internal structure of the Boylston garage building but not full preservation of the primary showroom structure’s internal historical attributes. Yeah, we’re not even sure what we mean by that — but, basically, this project will be another test to just how much historically preserved and restored facade is enough to justify the incentive square footage. Without incentives, the project would pencil out to 178,000 square feet of residential space and 17,000 of retail. Adding that bonus floor will give the developers another 4,000 feet of retail space to profit from.

Meanwhile, some of the current Mercedes dealership and garage’s funky features will be killed off in the process — say goodbye to the mansard roof — while the arch that currently serves as a garage entrance on Belmont is envisioned as a future retail entry.

Project: 600 E Pike St map Design Proposal available (33.4) Review Meeting: January 16, 8:00 pm Seattle University 9012 12th Ave map Student Center Room #210 Review Phase: EDG–Early Design Guidance Project Number: 3014172 permit status | notice Planner: Shelley Bolser

With the incentives in place, the project is planned to soar 75 feet, house 250 to 300 residential units, include “distinctive retail spaces that are appropriate for the neighborhood,” and make space for around 300 underground parking stalls. In addition to permission to utilize the preservation incentive while not preserving the main showroom structure’s internal attributes, Avalon will also be asking the board to bless smaller than specified setbacks for the tower components and allow splitting of the automobile entry from truck parking between the Belmont and Boylston sides of the project.

As for the preservation tradeoffs, by now, the East Board has some precedent to fall back on having dealt with similar tradeoffs in the nearby 714 E Pike project redeveloping the old BMW campus, and this 10th and Union development we wrote about this week slated to complete its design review run later this month.

1420 E Madison

It’s tough to get much attention when you’re a simple, mixed-use apartment building planned for a now-empty lot across the street from the world’s greenest office building. But after tearing down their fast food restaurant that stood on the site and seeking a buyer to develop the property, the family behind the Taco Time chain of restaurants held onto the land and are now moving forward with a plan to create a six-story, 70 unit building on the site.

Good news, Mexi-fry fans — the plans include some 3,700 square feet of commercial space. Sounds like plenty of room for a return of TT to E Madison, no?

Project: 1420 E Madison St map Design Proposal available (5.9 MB) Review Meeting: January 16, 6:30 pm Seattle University 9012 12th Ave map Student Center Room #210 Review Phase: EDG–Early Design Guidance Project Number: 3013776 permit status | notice Planner: Shelley Bolser

Meanwhile, those who consider global warning a fad and enjoy tossing stones at solar-powered, 50,000-square-foot glass houses might be disappointed to learn the Taco Time project only has plans for 95 parking stalls. Still, we’ll be on the lookout for Denis Hayes sneaking an SUV onto the new property across the street from the Bullitt Center once construction is completed.

The 1420 E Madison project is designed by Capitol Hill-based architect Roger H. Newell and could incorporate an even split of studio and 1-bedroom apartments or a majority 1-bedroom set-up depending on the scheme the design process ultimately settles on.