Top 10 Office Projects Under Construction in Seattle

Seattle is home to some of the nation’s largest tech companies, which has helped the local economy power through the cycle and attract intellectual capital and other ventures. While Microsoft and Amazon are homegrown powerhouses, Apple, Google and Facebook also have large presences in the metro—and their rapidly expanding footprint seems to grow despite pandemic-induced uncertainty. Office deliveries this year consisted of a little over 340,000 square feet, all occupied by Facebook, Yardi Matrix data shows.

More than 14.2 million square feet of office space was underway in the metro as of June, with 6.9 million square feet expected to come online in 2020. Development activity is concentrated in tech-centric submarkets such as the SR-520 Corridor (2.7 million square feet), Denny Triangle (2.4 million square feet) and Lake Union (2 million square feet). A third of these projects will be owner-occupied, while two-thirds have already been preleased. The table below highlights the largest properties underway, using Yardi Matrix data.

10. Third & Lenora

Martin Selig Real Estate broke ground on the 552,753-square-foot project in November 2017. Located at 2031 Third Ave. in Seattle’s Belltown neighborhood, the 38-story asset is being erected steps away from the city’s retail core and two blocks away from the Amazon headquarters.

Upon completion—scheduled for the third quarter of 2020—Third & Lenora will include first-floor retail, a five-story underground parking structure and 384 apartment units. Perkins and Will designed the project and ACORE Capital funded its construction with a $161.2 million loan.

9. 999 Lake Drive – Expansion

Costco Wholesale Corp. started expanding its Issaquah, Wash., campus in March 2020, with the addition of a 600,000-square-foot building. The nine-story asset is situated at 999 Lake Drive and is expected to come online in March 2021.

The building will house 4,000 employees and is part of a 2014 development agreement which allows the city’s largest employer to add 1.5 million square feet of new office space around its campus. Additionally, it will include an on-site auditorium and an adjacent parking garage with 1,650 spaces.

8. Expedia Corporate Campus – Expansion – Phase II

Expedia’s upcoming 600,000-square-foot campus expansion is the second owner-occupied project on the list. The company broke ground on the four-story development in March 2019, with completion expected in June 2020. The upcoming property will be located on 40 acres, at the junction of 16th Avenue West and West Galer Street in Seattle’s Uptown submarket. 

7. 333 Dexter Ave.

In August 2016, Kilroy Realty broke ground on 333 Dexter Ave., its first ground-up development in Seattle. Scheduled for completion in June 2020, the 12-story property will encompass 641,184 square feet across two buildings, as well as a 15,000-square-foot retail component.

Last June, Apple preleased the entire asset, which will accommodate 3,000 to 4,500 employees. It is situated in the heart of the Lake Union submarket.

6. Qualtrics Tower

Skanska is currently developing Qualtrics Tower, a 703,000-square-foot office building in Seattle’s central business district. The 38-story property is expected to come online in the second quarter of 2020 and will include 17,000 square feet of retail space and on-site venue space.

Formerly known as 2+U, the fully leased project underwent a name change after anchor tenant Qualtrics leased 13 floors last September. Other notable tenants include Dropbox, Spaces and SAP.

5. 1001 Office Towers

Trammell Crow Co. and MetLife Investment Management’s 1001 Office Towers is the only property on the list in Bellevue, Wash. The joint venture broke ground on the 716,584-square-foot, two-building asset in July 2019. Wells Fargo provided $237.9 million in construction financing.

Scheduled for completion in September 2021, the Class A build-to-suit office project will include an outdoor plaza and seven levels of underground parking. Following its massive expansion plans in Seattle’s neighboring areas, Amazon signed a lease to occupy the entire asset.

4. Rufus 2.0 – Block 21

Amazon’s ongoing growth has helped shape Seattle as one of the country’s powerhouses. The company broke ground on Block 21, an 888,049-square-foot premier office project, in May 2018. Upon completion, scheduled for the last quarter of 2020, the asset will include two buildings of eight and 24 stories, respectively, as well as 35,000 square feet of retail space.

Block 21 is located at 2200 Seventh Ave. in the Denny Triangle submarket. It is part of the Rufus 2.0 campus, where Amazon owns more than 2 million square feet of office space.

3. Block V

Also in Seattle’s Denny Triangle submarket, Onni Group is currently developing Block V, an 896,890-square-foot asset encompassing first-floor retail, residential space and four levels of parking. The construction of the 41-story asset is backed by $39.3 million of financing funded by HSBC Bank.

Project Completion is scheduled for the first quarter of 2022. Located at 2301 Seventh Ave., the asset will rise in the vicinity of other major upcoming developments, including Amazon’s Block 21 and Block 18.

2. Rainier Square Tower

Another office structure taking shape in downtown Seattle is Wright Runstad & Co.’s Rainier Square Tower. Rising 850 feet and designed by NBBJ, it will be the second-tallest building in Seattle upon its completion in September 2020. The 59-story skyscraper will total 982,418 square feet and will include first-floor retail and 18 floors of residential space.

Last year, Amazon preleased 788,000 square feet in the building, but has since backed out and subleased part of the space to Bank of America. Rainier Square Tower is part of Wright Runstad & Co.’s 1.2 million-square-foot Rainier Square development, which also encapsulates the upcoming 400 University at Rainier Square, scheduled for completion next year.

1. Microsoft Redmond Main Campus – Redevelopment

Redmond, Wash., has been home to the Microsoft campus for more than three decades. In an effort to upgrade its entire 500-acre location, the tech giant embarked on a multimillion-dollar redevelopment that kicked off in 2019. Upon completion, scheduled for 2023, the Microsoft Redmond Main Campus will encompass 2.5 million square feet across 18 new buildings that will replace 12 existing ones.

The transformation will allow Microsoft to add more than 8,000 employees to its current workforce. The new buildings will also be clustered into five different villages and will include trails and sports fields.