Commercial construction is still going strong all around the Kitsap Peninsula, with various projects ranging from mixed use to health care facilities in the works. A sampling of projects that are under way: GIG HARBOR
St. Anthony’s Hospital recently broke ground and construction got into the full swing in April. Also in Gig Harbor North, Costco started construction on May 1 and is on an aggressive schedule that anticipates the store to open in November. The site, being developed by Pope Resources, will include a tire center and a fuel station. The Costco complex will include five smaller retail buildings nearby with a total of 54,000 square feet; they are being developed by a company owned by one of the Hogan family members.
Nearby, the YMCA is getting finishing touches on its interior, with an estimated opening day of late August. The Y will be one of the top facilities in the country, and include racquetball courts, three swimming pools, a gymnasium, kids and teen centers, a climbing wall, a chapel and other amenities.
In the west side, a mixed-use development called the Olympic Square Center is being built in several phases. The development will have two 9,000-square-foot retail spaces and five retail/office spaces of nearly 1,200 square feet each. Phase one will include a high-end grocery store called Harbor Greens, and phase two will build a high-end coffee shop called Forza Coffee. The project will include residential spaces as well.
Also on the west side, construction is in full swing on Uptown Gig Harbor, a high-end shopping development that will be anchored by Borders Books. A MultiCare Medical Park that is part of the Uptown site just finished construction and will open to patients on June 11.
In Downtown Gig Harbor, a new museum that has been in the works for several years will break ground July 13. The project, located on the waterfront, will include a combination of new construction and renovation of a building that housed the Beach Basket Garden Shop. A historic one-room schoolhouse will also be moved to the site, as will the boat Shenandoah. The 14,500-square-foot, $10 million facility is slated to open in spring 2008.
BREMERTON
Construction continues on the waterfront condominiums, with The 400 nearing completing and The 600 ready to start. Also downtown, work has started on a mixed-use office/retail building being developed at Sixth and Pacific by Tim Ryan Construction. The building will combine 26,000 square feet of office space on three levels over one retail floor and two underground parking levels. The company hopes to attract an upscale pub or restaurant to the site.
In West Park, an assisted living facility is in its final construction stages, with grand opening scheduled for August. The West Park complex, owned by the Bremerton Housing Authority, will eventually include new residential units that will be done in stages in order to help relocate existing tenants before demolition will occur. Russell Road, which was closed in order to be reconfigured as part of the project, is anticipated to reopen in June.
Pope Resources is finishing up work on developing lots in Wright Creek Business Park, which started construction last year. The first phase will include nine of the 24 pads that could accommodate warehouses, R&D facilities or offices. The business complex will require high-end design standards.
PORT ORCHARD
Projects expected to start construction this summer include two mixed-use condominium developments in Manchester called The Anchors at Manchester and Colchester Commons; one will consist of one building that will include 7,700 square feet of retail and the other will have two buildings with retail/office space on the ground floor and condominiums on top. The projects have been delayed due to opposition from some neighbors due to their height.
An office condominium project slated for the intersection of Tremont Street and Pottery Avenue has been slowed due to the delay in funding for the city’s proposed roundabout. At a recent community meeting about the project, property owners were asked to be patient while both the funding and some engineering details were worked out.
SILVERDALE
Cavalon Place, an office condominium complex being built in the Highland Business Park, is well under construction. Originally expected to be completed at the end of 2006, the two buildings are approaching completion now. The buildings’ new residents include Pacific Northwest Title. Elsewhere on the property, development has begun on the north pad, closest to Ridgetop, was fairly close to being finalized. A fourth pad is being reserved for either retail development or for a third Cavalon Place building, depending on the success of the first phase of the project. The final pad, approximately 1.5 acres along Bucklin Hill Road, is currently being held for a nice restaurant.
Restaurant chain Chuck E. Cheese’s is going into the Clear Creek shopping center on Silverdale Way, and renovations on that space are going on now. And the Doctor’s Clinic is undergoing a major remodel and expansion.
Kohl’s, which finally publicly announced is upcoming presence just a month or so ago, is busily gutting and renovating the space previously taken up by Mervyn’s at the Kitsap Mall. The retailer expects to be ready for business in October, although no exact date has been set. Also at the mall, AT&T, Trade Secret and soon Zumiez have all moved into larger, new spaces and Subway will be the latest addition to the food court. Across the street Lay Z Boy Furniture will be moving into the old Barnes and Noble store.
Amish Touch, Inc., is building a new showroom space behind Target, near the site of new apartment homes for seniors. Further down the road, Oxford Suites is almost finished and the long-delayed hotel is currently expected to open for business summer 2007.
Out on Anderson Hill Road West Sound Orthopedics is building an impressive new facility, expected to be complete in July.
Hooters is rumored to be going into the old Sandpiper Restaurant at the corner of Bucklin Hill Rd. and Shoreline Drive. When asked specifically about the Hooters rumor, building owner Judy Mentor Eagleson would only say, “Rumor indeed, I have heard that one too.”
POULSBO
About 40 acres of land along the intersection of Highways 3 and 305 is in the process of being developed into a 185-home neighborhood, to be called Parkside. The planned community will be the first housing offered as part of the College MarketPlace development.
Poulsbo Place II continues its inexorable expansion, adding an additional 140 homes to Poulsbo’s well-known planned housing community, as well as some mixed use properties with condos on the second story and retail or office space on the first floor. The project’s Division 5 was the first to offer homes for sale last year, and was a near sellout. Division 6 lots are currently available.
The rebuilding of Mitzel’s American Kitchen, which burned down last year, is slated to begin shortly, and a new restaurant, reportedly one from the Elmer’s chain. It will feature a more Northwest-themed design, will be open in a few short months.
KINGSTON
Two new buildings in downtown Kingston — the first to be built in the area in 20 years — have been completed. The commercial buildings house four 260-square-foot spaces. Three of the units have been leased to date.
A sign near the location of the old Kingston Inn, which burned down several years ago, is announcing the upcoming development of luxury, waterfront condominiums. After announcing in March that the Kingston Inn would not be rebuilt, due to the expense, owner Mike Prestley formed a partnership with a developer to construct a new building featuring a restaurant on the ground floor and condominiums reaching several stories into the Kingston skyline. The developer and other partners reportedly backed out after it became clear that the condos — which were in the $1 million range — would not sell in Kingston.
BAINBRIDGE ISLAND
Harbor Square, a 180-unit complex located on 4.6 acres across from the ferry landing, with room for ground floor retail and underground parking, is filling up with residents and some of the retail space has been occupied, as well, including health food store Island Health Foods and the Harbor Square Wine Shop and Tasting Room.
Vineyard Lane, another large housing development being built on the land formerly occupied by Bainbridge Island Vineyards and Winery, started selling units last year and is nearly sold out.
