Want answers? You’ve come to the right place! I often get asked to respond to issues in unofficial social media groups, and while I truly want to answer all of your questions, social media is time consuming and can be difficult to monitor. I would inevitably miss someone’s question or comment, so I need a format that I can track to ensure I respond to every question you ask.
I started this Ask Me Anything (AMA) as a way to share answers with you. If you have a question or would like clarification on anything Highlands Council related, please submit your question online. Although I may not have every answer, I will respond to all submitted questions. I look forward to hearing from you!
In this edition of Ask Me Anything, I’ll be answering questions about the Shelter Holdings property.
What is going on with the Shelter Holdings property?
That’s a great question! For those who don’t know, the Shelter Holdings property (also known as the future “High Street Collection”) is that space across 9th Avenue NE from Starbucks and Safeway, east of the Westridge and West Highlands Park neighborhoods.
A little history to start…The space was originally owned by Microsoft, and it was purchased by Polygon Homes when Microsoft decided not to build a satellite campus in Issaquah Highlands. The land was divided into three parcels – Westridge North, Westridge South, and the 21.5-acre “L” shaped area at 9th and Discovery Drive that I refer to as “the Shelter Holdings Property.”
After being ready to start the development process in 2017, Shelter Holdings submitted their preliminary plat (a map showing how a large parcel will be divided into blocks and lots) and land use applications to the city of Issaquah back in 2017. However, with the expiration of the Issaquah Highlands Development Agreement in 2016 (learn more in this article), there was some disagreement between the City of Issaquah and Shelter Holdings about the development requirements for that land, which resulted in more than five years of litigation. Last October, Shelter Holdings applied for a new development agreement with the city which was approved by Issaquah City Council at the end of 2023.
IHCA Executive Director Sarah Hoey and I met with Tia Brotherton Heim and Eric Evans from Shelter Holdings in January to discuss their plans. Here’s what we learned:
- The preliminary plat has been approved, so the next big step is to build the infrastructure, which includes roads, electricity, irrigation and electrical power. This will include connecting NE Federal Drive to 8th Avenue NE and extending 8th Avenue NE from NE Deer Lane to NE Discovery Drive, as well as frontage improvements to NE Discovery Drive. They expect to submit the infrastructure plans (which detail the physical support services necessary for development) to the city this spring and hope to have them approved by the end of the summer, with infrastructure construction starting in early 2025.
- Ongoing planning work will take place following the infrastructure projects, with the hopes of starting the land use application process by 2025. That process involves requesting approval for specific uses for each section of the property (for example: type of buildings and location of open spaces). To ensure the structural design of the High Street Collection meets our community standards, approval from the IHCA (Issaquah Highlands Community Association) will be obtained prior to Shelter Holdings submitting applications to the city.
- The development will include a public park, retail and restaurants, and an office building (for medical or other commercial use). It will also include up to 1,200 multi-family housing units (primarily apartments), with at least 200 units dedicated to senior housing and/or assisted living. About 20% of the remaining residential units will be designated as low-income housing.
- There will be a community open house for us to provide input into the park, which will be built about halfway through the development.
- Shelter Holdings typically builds and operates their developments (this is great, because they’ll continue to be invested in our community).
If you have feedback or requests, Shelter Holdings would like to hear from you. They set up a special email for the High Street Collection project at HSC@shelterholdings.com.
Do you have further questions on this topic? Please submit a question below or reach out to me at lindsey.p@ihcouncil.com.
