Urban Visions Lands $90M for Seattle Project

The Jack. Image courtesy of Urban Visions

Urban Visions has secured $90 million in construction financing for The Jack, a 146,000-square-foot office project taking shape in Seattle’s historic Pioneer Square neighborhood. JLL Capital Markets negotiated the note on behalf of the borrower. An affiliate of Mack Real Estate Credit Strategies LP provided the loan.  

The Jack is currently underway on nearly 0.5 acres at 74 S. Jackson St. The project broke ground in 2020 and was initially slated for completion this summer. After several months of delay, the property is scheduled for completion at the beginning of next year. Urban Visons tapped architect Tom Kunding of the Olson Kunding studio and general contractor JTM Construction to deliver the project.  

The Jack was designed to achieve LEED Gold, WELL Building and WiredScore certifications. Plans for the eight-story building call for a brick and glass facade, floorplates averaging 20,000 square feet, as well as a 17,000-square-foot outdoor terrace. Located adjacent to Seattle’s waterfront, the project site opens to some 20 acres of pedestrian space and is within walking distance of multiple dining and retail options in the city’s downtown.

The JLL Capital Markets team representing Urban Visions included Senior Managing Director Bruce Ganong, Director Kaden Eichmeier and Associate Christopher DuCharme. JLL will also handle leasing activities at the upcoming location.

Updating the office landscape

At the end of last year, Seattle had nearly 6.9 million square feet of office space underway, despite 16.1 percent of inventory being available as of December—60 basis points above the national vacancy rate, the latest CommercialEdge report shows.

The metro’s construction pipeline is driven by some 2.5 million square feet of active tenant requirements, JLL’s Ganong said in prepared remarks, adding that well-located, highly amenitized buildings like The Jack are most likely to benefit from that demand.

The Seattle office sector is supported by tech businesses, which accounted for more than half of the total leasing activity in the last quarter of 2021, a recent JLL report indicates. Companies were particularly keen on expanding or relocating to high-quality office space.

Catering to the strong demand for next-generation workspace, Urban Visions is currently developing another building that is set to reshape Seattle’s office landscape. Last year, the company partnered with Mitsui Fudosan America to start construction on The Net, an 807,000-square-foot office building taking shape within half a mile of The Jack. The 36-story tower will be the first Gold pre-certified WELL development in the Pacific Northwest.