Construction is expected to begin this year on three apartment complexes in Federal Way with a combined total of nearly 900 units.
The Celebration Senior Living Apartments are slated for a vacant site at Pacific Highway S. and S. 328th Street (across from Econo Lodge and Burger Express).
The proposed project consists of about 380 affordable independent rental units, housed in two 65-foot towers joined by a skybridge. Each tower will have its own ground level parking. There will also be a “social building” and common open space.
This is a community headed by the Senior Housing Assistance Group (SHAG), a non-profit organization that provides affordable rental apartments for low- and moderate-income seniors in the region. Construction is slated to begin this fall on the east building, with construction beginning on the west building in the third quarter of 2014, according to a SHAG spokesman. No official opening date has been set.
Another project titled Park 16 Multifamily Development, with 293 mid- to low-income housing units, is slated for 16th Avenue S. and S. 356th St. The project will include a recreation center and open space.
According to a city report, the complex is expected to generate a significant number of new students at Rainer View Elementary, Sequoyah Middle School and Todd Beamer High School. Construction is expected to begin this summer, with plans to open by the spring or summer 2014.
A 208-unit multifamily apartment complex is slated for the land at S. 336th Street and Pacific Highway S., also known as Kitts Corner (previously known as Federal Way Village). The 46-acre parcel has been rezoned, with 19 acres designated as community business and 27 acres as multifamily.
The site has undergone a series of rezoning approvals dating back to 2005, when the developer originally wanted to build townhouses. The zoning was changed to reflect a greater demand for apartment buildings and affordable housing. The local market conditions have shifted to favor renting over homeownership, according to a report from the hearing examiner.
The city council recently approved to change a proposed roadway on the site from public to private in order to facilitate construction of the apartments.
The developer is awaiting permits and hopes to get them by the end of 2013, said Jack Hunden, president of DevCo Inc. Construction will begin as soon as the permits are received, and should take about 13 months.
“We would have the first units available eight months after starting construction,” Hunden told The Mirror.
