A groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday, September 25 marked what will become the tallest tower south of Interstate 90 and north of Tacoma, according to developers Omar and Christine Lee. The $120 million Washington Place project at 223 Andover Park E. in Tukwila is expected to create more than 1,600 jobs.
Washington Place special projects director Matthew Chan said the building will be a pioneering mixed use project for Tukwila Urban Center zone in the city, the first Class A high-rise in South King County to be developed.
“It sets the stage for the City to meet the Growth Management Act mandated by the government,” Chan said. “It is hopeful that with its success, it will encourage many other high density development to follow suit in said zone of Tukwila and in surrounding communities in South King County, taking some attention away from Seattle, the East Side and North End of Puget Sound Area.”
Chan said the jobs created will comprise of construction, architectural and engineering, other consulting jobs, hotel management, restaurant and service staff, apartment management and maintenance staff, plus positions in other industries supporting hotel/apartment components.
“Our project will also positively influence other services in the vicinity, thereby creating jobs out of such service outlets,” Chan said. “We of course anticipate our labor pool to come from all ethnicity backgrounds including Asian Pacific Islanders.”