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PINCH ME. It's really happening! Kirkland ParkPlace is winding down operations and preparing to get blasted into the 21st century with a transformation that will deliver to us.................Kirkland Urban. Even the name sounds fresh and hip and kind of awesome. Talon Private Capital has one more Design Review Board meeting with the City of Kirkland on Dec 7th before they start moving forward with demo in Q1 of 2016.

<-nice of them to put me in this rendering. I'm the one in the center in workout clothes that still hasn't showered when it's clearly the middle of the day. )

There's a lot of buzz around town. Everyone is worried about what will become of some of their neighborhood faves that reside in ParkPlace. Many shops have already closed and some are hanging on until the end of the year. But I won't leave you guessing.

Here's the breakdown:

QFC- this will stay continuously open. Phase 1 will house the NEW QFC (roughly where the bagel shop was) so the current QFC will stay open until their new space is ready. They plan to step up their game to be a flagship QFC for this area. Good thinking with Met Market up the street and Whole Foods making their way to Totem Lake. ;-)

Moving Elsewhere-

Hoffman's Bakery- out Nov 30th. Moving to 16175 Cleveland St. That's a long way to drive for a princess torte but oh-so worth it.

Key Bank- moved to 324 Central Way (across the street)

Palettes & Pairings- moving to Redmond Town Center into the Borders space 11/30

GNC- new store in Crossroads

Weldon Barber- new location in Kirkland

Kirkland Vision- new location in Kirkland

Tuxedo Club- Closed 11/3. Moving to Seattle

Hot Yoga- Closed. Has a Bellevue location.

Lucia- closing end of Nov. But don't forget they have a Greenlake location!

Places you might see again but not really sure:

Pancake House- open for 2 more years (not in Phase 1 demo)

Starbucks- closes 11/15.

Purple- closes Jan 1

Tim's Seafood- 11/30 close

Kirkland Parkplace Cinema- closes 12/31....A fancy new one WILL be going in (later phase 2019-ish)

Places to Wish Farewell:

Rikki Rikki- Potential Feb close. No plan to re-open now.

Einstein Bros Bagels- already gone. Other stores in Seattle and Mercer Island

La Pasta- out 11/15

Saigon Jade Vietnamese- closing end of Nov. No plans to relocate.

Hallmark- left in August

Parkplace Books/Common Folk/Todd's Crab Cracker- all closing at the end of the year

This Kirkland Urban project is happening in phases, and the first will be the corner that encompasses Central Way and PK Park (estimated completion for Phase 1 is Q3-4 2017). Look for construction fences going up soon! Eventually, there will be office/retail space in the mid-high $30's/sf range and 185 units of residential condos (all rentals) for roughly $3/sf. Some are 2 story townhouses. There is also space for a health club in a future phase, and it sounds like some Seattle based chefs might have an eye on our little Eastside gem.

The retail leasing is still getting underway. And we are geographically in a non-compete zone for many of the retailers at Bellevue Square. So I'm curious to know what shops/services YOU want to see in Kirkland Urban? Jot your wishlist in the 'comments' section below (I'd like an Athleta, please!). You never know who might see them. ;-)