Lorig Seeks Grocer to Anchor Vitamilk Dairy Site

Lorig Associates of Seattle is spearheading the process in a venture with the property owners. Lorig senior project manager Tom Bartholomew tells GlobeSt.com that the finishing touches are being put on a marketing package that it hopes will convince a grocer to anchor the project and open with the first phase, which will include 250 apartments, about half of the retail and two full blocks of underground parking.

"With the rezone approved several weeks ago, we are in the early stages of designing the project and hope to be able to design the street level for a specific retailer," says Bartholomew. "We have the ability to design a store of up to 35,000 sf in addition to any mezzanine and the loading area."

Bartholomew says Lorig commissioned a market analysis for a grocery store at the site from a grocery locater specialist. "The demographics are very strong," he says. "About 200,000 people within three miles."

The redevelopment site includes the entire block bounded by Northeast 70th and 71st streets and 5th and Woodlawn avenues, and the east halves of the blocks immediately north and south. The goal is to start demolition of existing structures in March 2007 and have the first phase complete by late summer 2008. The project designer is Hewitt Architects. The retail leasing agent is Maria Royer of Real Retail.

The project is located at the center of the Greenlake residential urban village, which is designated by the city's neighborhood plan for higher density development. The rezone from Commercial 1 to Neighborhood Commercial 2 increased the height limit from 40 feet to 65 feet, allowing for five stories of residential over the street-level retail.

Vitamilk shuttered its Greenlake operation in August 2003. The family owned and operated dairy produced and distributed milk and ice cream from the location for more than 60 years. One of the property owners is Daryl Vander Pol, whose father-in-law started the business.