Lorig Submits Office-Free Version of Welch Hardware Redo

SEATTLE-Lorig Associates has submitted revised plans for its redevelopment of the Welch Hardware property at 23rd Avenues and S. Jackson Street.

Instead of about 100 housing units and 61,000-sf of office space as originally planned, the project will now be largely residential, with 158 units of housing and 18,000-sf of ground-floor commercial space.

Lorig Senior Project Manager Joan Weiser tells GlobeSt.com the changes were market driven. The revised project — the original design was ready for building permit pick-up — goes to design review next week. About 8,000-sf of the commercial space has been leased to a bank, a day care provider and others. Weiser says she hopes to start construction June 2002.

Half of the property has been leased long-term from the Welch family. The other half is owned by the city and still remains to be transferred into Lorig’s ownership, says Weiser, who doesn’t expect financing to be a problem. “We had commitments previously, but with the changes, until we get design review approval, we are not ready to go back out,” says Weiser.