A new chapter as been opened in the marketing lifecycle of Issaquah Highlands. The new home INFO CENTER will be closed after the last weekend in July 2010. The INFO CENTER was designed to help people shopping for new homes get oriented to the community and learn about the options available. Over the last ten years, thousands of visitors have learned about the advantages of living in this great community, starting with the original location on 15th Avenue NE, then a location on NE Park Avenue, and, finally, the current office on NE High Street, among the retails and offices.

With Issaquah Highlands now entering a new phase of new home marketing, the INFO CENTER was becoming redundant with the offices and model homes currently on the market. Home shoppers are now being encourage to visit the home builders’ models on their first visit to Issaquah Highland.

Many great choices for new homes and town homes are available and information on pricing, contact and driving directions can be found on the Issaquah Highlands website.

Join Port Blakely Communities and the City of Issaquah at Blakley Hall for a public meeting to discuss a proposed Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) that will preserve open spaces at Park Pointe. the meeting will start at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 22. The Issaquah Press has some background on the proposal in an article posted Tuesday, July 20.

2550 NE Park Drive | Issaquah, WA 98029 | 425.507.1107

Driving directions from I-90: Take Exit #18 to Highlands Drive.
Turn right on NE Federal Drive. Turn right again on NE Park Drive.
Continue east on Park Drive past the stop sign at 25th. Blakely Hall will be on the left.

A lot of activity is occurring at the Hospital Wings, MOB, Central Utility Plant’s Utilidor, and site utilities as we enter the month of May. To date 747 tons of re-bar and6,070 cubic yards of concrete 6,070 has been placed in the Hospital areas. The MOB has installed 196 tons of re-bar and placed 1,822 cubic yards of concrete.

Hospital Wings (East, West, and Center):

Horizontal and vertical concrete work, steel erection, MEP under slab and deck rough in,waterproofing, and dirt work/site utility activities continue in these areas. The far south East and West Wing shear walls are the tallest concrete structures peeking out of the site that provides a southern bookend reference of each Wing. The first two out of fifty-five structural steel zones will be erected this month in the Hospital. Metal decking install proceeds on top of the erected steel, allowing other trades to begin locating floor deck rough-in points. Concrete deck pours at Level G and Level 1,Center Wing Basement level fireproofing, MEP rough-in, and setting mechanical equipment round out the Hospital activities starting mid-end of this month.

MOB:
Forming and pouring foundation walls and footings MEP under slab rough in footings, rough-in,waterproofing, and dirt work activities continue at this project location. Towards the end of the month concrete pours start on a portion of the MOB slab on grade, and the Linac foundation walls will be complete.

Central Utility Plant Utilidor:

This underground pathway between the Hospital and CUP takes shape. Waterproofing and pouring foundation walls will be complete by mid month. Thereafter, mechanical pipe rack assemblies are placed inside with the overhead structure work beginning.

Site Utilities:

The east and west utility tie-ins into Blakely Drive will begin this month. This work includes storm, sanitary sewer, and water lines.

Please continue to be aware and follow directions on all of our sidewalk/trail and street closure signs placed for your safety. The Project Team apologizes for any inconvenience our safety signage may cause during your travel near the Project.

Should you have any questions or concerns regarding this month’s activities, please contact Sellen.

To stay updated on the project, visit www.swedishissaquah.org. This site has video,photos and the latest information about the construction of the new campus.

Sellen
Contact: Gerald Beltran
Project Manager
Email

Swedish
Contact: Susan Gillespie
Senior Project Manager
Email

Hammes Company
Contact: Daniel Coxall
Senior Project Executive
Email

http://oxblue.com/pro/open/sellen/swedishissaquah

Today is THE day! Last chance to qualify for the $8,000/$6,500 government tax credit on a new home! HURRY!!! Visit our website for directions to the model homes, agent contact information and new a resale home listings. www.issaquahhighlands.com

As some of you may know, the Issaquah Highlands community was featured on an episode of House Hunters.  A couple’s search for green living takes them to three residences within the community.

I received a tip this morning that HGTV was featuring green home themed House Hunters episodes for Earth Day today, and that this episode will be among them.

If you can’t get to a television now, On Demand usually features episodes of this show for free.

Here is the info:
http://www.hgtv.com/house-hunters/searching-for-a-million-dollar-green-home-in-suburban-seattle2/index.html

Episode synopsis: Bill Pedersen and Patricia Hovda are planning to move in together in Issaquah, Washington, a suburb of Seattle. They’ve decided to invest in a green home and have a substantial budget of $1 million. Their must-have list has three major criteria; it must be green, it must have a view, and it must be around 4,000 square feet. To help them secure a good investment, Bill and Trish are bringing broker Scott Gibbons on board.

Issaquah Highlands was named one of America’s Top 10 Green Built Neighborhoods in Natural Home Magazine May 2010 issue. To read the full article check out these links:

http://www.naturalhomemagazine.com/energy-efficiency/americas-top-ten-best-green-built-neighborhoods.aspx

http://www.jetsongreen.com/2010/04/top-10-green-built-neighborhoods.html

Residents have been asking about storage solutions for quite awhile. Now, a local resident is making it happen. Entrepreneur and Issaquah Highlands resident Bob Gregg plans to break ground on the new Issaquah Highlands Self-Storage building next month.

Located next to the Park & Ride, it will open in March 2011. Issaquah Highlands Self-Storage will offer convenient, safe storage close to home. The facility will feature 500 storage units, including 800 square feet of acclimatized space for wine storage. Bob also hopes to lease street-level retail space for other uses.

Residents have identified the need for extra storage for items such as bikes and kayaks, legal documents, home furnishings, antiques, home renovation and automotive tools, business inventory and equipment, patio furniture and seasonal decorations. Self-storage will also meet the needs for special items that require a climate-controlled environment.

At Issaquah Highlands Self-Storage, customers will load and unload in a covered area inside the ground level of the building. They will drive into the covered area to park and then load everything into the elevator. However, Issaquah Highlands Self-Storage won’t have garage-style storage for cars, boats and RVs.

The top of the Issaquah Highlands Self-Storage building will be taller than the surrounding buildings, including the adjacent Park & Ride. When neighboring construction projects such as the cinema and YWCA are completed, the building profile will blend well with the adjacent buildings.

Issaquah Highlands Self-Storage will feature many LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) design elements. There are no existing LEED standards for buildings of its kind, so Bob and his architects have adapted guidelines from other commercial buildings to integrate energy saving features. The building is also designed to look and feel like other buildings in Issaquah Highlands, from exterior paint colors to canopies that minimize heat gain.

Over the years, it has been a planning challenge for Port Blakely to meet resident needs for self-storage in Issaquah Highlands. This is because typical self-storage projects are laid out horizontally and require much more land space. The Issaquah Highlands Self-Storage addresses both of these issues by going vertical.  Vertical density is also more fitting with our urban village town center.

Locating self-storage in the lot adjacent to the Park & Ride also makes sense. Typical retail stores found the self-storage lot configuration to be challenging due to its size and lack of access to onsite parking. The Issaquah Highlands Self-Storage required a smaller footprint and minimal parking requirements.

As discussed at February’s Town Hall, businesses such as Issaquah Highlands Self-Storage will meet the everyday needs that residents have expressed. The close-to-home services, including the grocery store and energy station, will shorten car trips – therefore reducing energy consumption and pollution – while freeing up valuable personal time.

Information on how to reserve a space in Issaquah Highlands Self-Storage will be available from Bob and his team at Gregg Consulting Group later this year.

GET YOUR GREEN ON!
This Saturday, March 13th 1-4pm
St. Patrick’s Edition 2nd Saturday Home Tour
For a FREE “What’s New “ Tour Map, stop by the Issaquah Highlands Info Center
1011 NE High Street, Suite 103
Issaquah, WA 98029

The Northwest’s leading Green master planned community!

• All new homes meet a minimum Built Green® 4-Star rating
• All new homes ENERGY STAR® certified to reduce your energy bill
• Visit LEED® Silver certified Blakely Hall Community Center, Firehouse and Retail buildings.
• Learn about water conservation features
• Experience the Living Green lifestyle of so many Highlands residents
• Visit the American Lung Association of Washington demonstration home at West Highlands Park

For more info on Living Green at Issaquah Highlands visit: http://www.issaquahhighlands.com/living_green.php

Curves of Issaquah is encouraging women in the area to show their philanthropic strength by participating in the annual Curves Food Drive. And, even though donating food to families in need is its own reward, the club is offering compelling incentives for potential members who participate.

From March 1 to 31, Curves of Issaquah will collect non-perishable items for food banks in the local area. The goal, according to Norma Stephens, owner of Curves of Issaquah, is for the community to come together to help families in need. “At the core of our business is the message that women are stronger when they rally together, and that is the point we hope to bring home with our food drive,” said Stephens. “We want to show our community just how powerful the generosity of our members can be.”

According to Stephens, non-members who donate a bag of groceries between March 8 and 20 can join Curves for free. Curves will waive the Service Fee to join. Stephens says that as part of this effort, Curves of Issaquah will be participating in a company-wide contest for the most food drive donations collected by Curves locations across the nation. Winners will receive one of several cash prizes to be donated to their local food bank. Each year, Curves locations collectively donate millions of pounds of food to feed the hungry.

“We hope women in the Issaquah and Eastside area will come together and participate in this initiative,” added Stephens. “Even if you are not thinking about joining a gym, you can still drop off your donations. There are so many families right here in our own community who need our help.”

For more information about Curves of Issaquah, located at 1091 NE High St in the Issaquah Highlands, and the Curves Food Drive, contact Norma Stephens at 425-392-2330 or curvesofissaquah@ihmail.com.

As Port Blakely Communities (“PBC”) seeks a partner to help move forward the retail and commercial development in the town center at Issaquah Highlands, a senior officer of Port Blakely Companies, the parent of PBC, will now lead this effort.

René Ancinas, President and COO of Port Blakely Companies (“Port Blakely”), also became acting president of its subsidiary, PBC, earlier this month. He replaces Alan Boeker who resigned in mid-January to pursue other real estate industry opportunities. During his nearly two years at Port Blakely Communities, Alan contributed in many ways. These include the YWCA Family Village and zHome transactions, land sale to Swedish Hospital, joint venture with OPUS for the office project and stabilizing the Town Center project amidst a tough and unforgiving economy, which helped lay the foundation for the company to pursue a partner.

René has been involved in Issaquah Highlands for many years in different roles. He followed it closely for several years in his role as President of the Family Council, the governing body of the family ownership group. He then joined the company as Senior Vice President in 2005, and one of his early assignments was to evaluate and restructure the Highlands Fiber Network in 2006. Since becoming President and COO of Port Blakely in 2008, he has been actively involved in overseeing the operations of PBC.

“René’s experience, collaborative style and values-driven leadership are exactly what this community needs as we move into the future,” said Judd Kirk, former PBC president who now serves as a senior advisor to René and the real estate team. “He clearly understands the vision we have for Issaquah Highlands and has championed it within the family and the company.” Kirk added that over the years the support from senior management has been essential to keep the project on course for the long term.

The current head of Port Blakely, Jim Warjone, has been actively involved since 1989 and will be turning over his position as CEO to Rene this July. The current change at PBC will remove one level of management, giving René an even more direct role. With his background with the company and an MBA from the University of Washington, Rene will continue to be guided by a tradition of progressive leaders and the counsel of Jim Warjone and the entire PBC management team.

“The top priority for my family and our company today is to complete Issaquah Highlands consistent with the vision we set out for the community,” Ancinas said. “While the economic climate continues to be a significant challenge, we are fully committed to finding a solution that will facilitate building out the next phase of the community.” He added that he looks forward to working closely with the excellent team, led by experienced managers “who continue to do an amazing job as stewards of our real estate assets and the community we’ve been building for many years.”