There are many reasons to celebrate Grand Street Commons, a mixed-use, transit-oriented development in Seattle’s Judkins Park neighborhood that opened in early 2025. First and foremost, the development transformed what Puget Sound Business Journal termed “three blighted blocks” into a walkable town center, something that hadn’t existed in Rainier Valley since the construction of I-90 disrupted the neighborhood in the 1950s. The development’s proximity to RapidRide and the Judkins Park Link light rail station provides residents with easy, car-free access to both Seattle and the Eastside. Then, there is the scope of the project: Grand Street Commons is the largest concurrently developed mixed-income community in Seattle, offering a total of 775 units across three buildings, nearly half of which are affordable housing, plus an additional 51,000 square feet of commercial space.
Perhaps the most remarkable thing about Grand Street Commons, however, is the collaboration between Lake Union Partners (LUP), Mount Baker Housing Association (MBH), and HAL Real Estate to create a true mixed-use, mixed-income community. By joining forces, they created a new hub that strengthens neighborhood connections, improves safety for pedestrians, and provides needed right-of-way improvements between Rainier Avenue South and the open spaces north and east of the project site. Grand Street Commons offers a model for how private and nonprofit developers can work with public agencies to address the region’s housing needs while thoughtfully serving a range of incomes.
Pooling Resources, Sharing Opportunities
The collaboration between market rate and affordable housing developers was fundamental to the success of Grand Street Commons. By strategically pooling resources and expertise to address shared challenges, the co-developers maximized benefits for the community as a whole. Conceived as a shared master plan, LUP and HAL – the market-rate developers – financed the predevelopment work and carried the land to bolster MBH’s more limited funding sources, which was critical given the remediation challenges of the three-block site. The land, situated along Rainier Avenue South, previously housed a dry cleaner and a manufacturer and required significant clean-up. In return, the project leveraged MBH’s access to the Department of Ecology’s funding for testing, clean up and remediation of all three brownfield project sites. Saving dollars on remediation allowed the market rate team to devote resources to features that benefited the entire community, including the public benefits required for MBH’s alley vacation. Ultimately that alley vacation generated an additional 45 units in the south building, bolstering Grand Street Commons share of affordable housing options dedicated to families. In exchange, the City got a redirected right-of-way that reduced vehicular space in exchange for a new pedestrian plaza and community gathering space. The new streetscape also created a sustaining amenity for ground-level retail, benefiting residents of all three buildings as well as the surrounding neighborhood.
Rooted in Community
From the very beginning, all parties involved in the creation of Grand Street Commons had a shared vision: that it wouldn’t just be another mixed-use development, but a neighborhood resource serving a broad range of community needs.
To that end, the team began outreach to neighborhood stakeholders in Spring of 2018. Initial outreach consisted of gathering input from these organizations on the aspects of the project that they felt would enhance the neighborhood and provide public benefit. The developers mailed letters and flyers (translated into Mandarin, Japanese, Vietnamese, and Spanish) to residents and businesses within 500 feet of the site, generating more than 3,273 website visitors and more than 340 comments. They also reached out to more than 50 neighborhood organizations, resulting in over 20 individual stakeholder meetings. This robust community response ultimately informed many facets of the project’s design, including the art that now graces the public plaza.
Design at Scale
Early on the team recognized Grand Street Commons’ opportunity to concurrently design three independent buildings with one cohesive design approach. A decision was made to coordinate the exterior design language between adjacent buildings, creating composed outdoor “rooms” along the three distinct rights-of-way boarding the projects. The design team drew architectural inspiration for each outdoor room from the cultural history of the Rainier Valley neighborhood, resulting in three interpretations of the porch: the Italian portico inspired covered retail arcades along busy Rainier Ave S, the African American stoop encouraged design that would foster social interaction between the ground related housing and sidewalks along 22nd Ave S, and the Japanese engawa creates space to appreciate the mature trees lining 23rd Ave S. By customizing the urban design response for the spaces between the buildings, the coordinated dialog between buildings creates a distinct sense of place for the growing community.
A New Town Center
Now completed, Grand Street Commons comprises three properties on a 3.35-acre site: Grand Street West, which offers 282 units of market rate and workforce housing; Grand Street East, with 287 units of market rate and workforce housing; and Tahoma Valley, with 206 units of affordable family housing. The development also offers 51,000 square feet of commercial space across the three buildings, providing a destination for missing neighborhood services as well as space for community gatherings.
Grand Street Commons adds 11,601 square feet of new plaza and 10,075 square feet of woonerf, a shared urban street, along one of the most trafficked (and least pedestrian-friendly) roads in Seattle.
In response to community feedback about what they’d like to see as part of the development, the team hired a local BIPOC art consultant to oversee, manage and implement opportunities for onsite cultural and artistic expression. This included adding a splash pad to the plaza, commissioning local artists to create artwork for the site, incorporating public seating, and installing 29 artistic pole lights designed to look like garlic flowers (a nod to the neighborhood’s previous moniker, Garlic Gulch). The team executed a contract with the Office of Arts and Culture’s Cultural Space Agency (CSA) to provide year-round programming for the plaza, as well as community-focused opportunities and events, dedicating 1,500 square feet of commercial space fronting the public plaza to the CSA for the life of the use.
The development also includes a range of other features that will enhance quality of living for its residents. Units in the East and West buildings are designed to maximize natural light and airflow. The South building, Tahoma Valley, is 100% affordable housing, featuring ample amenity spaces as well as three-bedroom units that are ideal for multigenerational families. Tahoma Valley is designed to meet the Evergreen Sustainable Development Standard and includes environmentally friendly features such as heat pump water heating, rooftop solar panels, high-performance windows, reduced power lighting controls, improved envelope performance, and onsite bio-retention at grade and on the podium deck.
Lessons for Market-Rate Developers
By sharing resources and expertise and taking advantage of special zoning and financing opportunities, Lake Union Partners, Mount Baker Housing Association and HAL Real Estate were able to create a vibrant and equitable neighborhood capable of housing 1,600 people. In the words of Joe Ferguson, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Lake Union Partners, “Grand Street Commons represents what’s possible when developers think beyond individual buildings to create true neighborhood transformation.” Crucially, this kind of transformation isn’t just inspiring, it’s a model that can be replicated. Here are three lessons for development teams who want to replicate the success of Grand Street Commons:
- Look for adjoining sites. This may feel like a rarity, but it happens more often than you might imagine. When it does, take advantage of the chance to think beyond single-building designs.
- Find a partner. Instead of trying (and potentially struggling) to address inclusionary zoning targets on your own, team up with an expert. Find a developer that specializes in low-income housing and let them take the lead on that portion of the project.
- Co-develop properties side by side. Designing multiple properties simultaneously allows you to pool resources for the benefit of everyone involved, while also giving you the opportunity you to create distinct, cohesive neighborhoods.