The proposed plan to redevelop Paseo Nuevo mall and build 313 units of residential housing — including 80 units of low-income affordable housing — will be at the center of multiple upcoming meetings, offering the public a peek at the latest version of developer’s design renderings.
Not much has changed about the project since it was last seen during a pre-application review with the city’s Historic Landmarks Commission on November 24, when several commissioners asked developers to scale down the overall massing of the project and to break up the two large residential buildings to give the appearance of multiple smaller structures.
The original plan for more than 500 units was scratched when the project’s developer, Alliance Bernstein, found that it would force a much more costly construction of the mall’s foundation. The developer then worked with the city — which owns a 40-year ground lease on the mall — to come up with an updated plan to build the residential units on top of the two city parking lots on either side of Paseo Nuevo, with 233 market-rate units over Lot 1 and the Macy’s building, and at least 80 affordable units built with help from the city’s Housing Authority over the underused city Lot 2.
City officials are working toward a Disposition and Development Agreement, which, if approved by the City Council in December, would lock in the terms of the plan and allow the project to officially move forward. The agreement must be signed by the city, Alliance Bernstein, and Shopoff, an investment firm that owns the Nordstrom building. The agreement benefits each party in different ways, and without the consent of all three, there is a risk Paseo Nuevo would sit without any improvements for the next 40 years.
While the Paseo Nuevo project is not technically part of the long-term State Street Master Plan, it’s considered by city officials as an important piece of the revitalization of downtown. State Street Master Planner Tess Harris said that having more housing downtown is essential to the future of downtown. “This is a big catalyst. Downtown is only going to work if we get significantly more housing in the area,” Harris said.
The project’s public tour will continue with hearings at the Downtown Parking Committee and Planning Commission for conceptual review on Thursday, October 9. The city and Alliance Bernstein will then host two open house meetings on Wednesday, October 15 (6-7:30 p.m.) and Thursday, October 16 (noon-1:30 p.m.). The two open house meetings — which will include info on the architectural design and plans for affordable housing — will be hosted at 707 Paseo Nuevo, near the Nordstrom building.
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