Stalled Riverfront project could be revived

EVERETT — A developer is expected to offer a first glimpse tonight of plans for reviving the stalled Riverfront project on former industrial land east of I-5.

The briefing with homebuilder Polygon Northwest is scheduled during the regular 6:30 p.m. City Council meeting.

Polygon, of Bellevue, is looking to buy the Riverfront property from San Diego developer OliverMcMillan. The land includes about 100 acres available for residential and retail development.

If the sale goes through, Polygon wants to start building houses next year, Mayor Ray Stephanson said.

More details are expected tonight.

“This can best be described as the introductory meeting for the council and the public to Polygon,” Stephanson said.

“So far I’ve been impressed with Polygon … They have been a successful developer that has a very good financial record of performance.”

The property’s current owner and the prospective buyer are about halfway through a 120-day due diligence period that would precede any sale.

The property stretches north from the Lowell neighborhood, along the Snohomish River. It includes a former Everett city landfill and the sites for two former mills.

Preparations over the past two decades have involved massive environmental cleanup and moving railroad tracks. Road, sewer and drainage improvements are ongoing. By the time it’s finished, the amount of public money invested in the project could exceed $80 million.

The city in 2008 sold the Riverfront site to OliverMcMillan for $8 million.

As part of the deal, the developer agreed to contractual deadlines for building out the site. One was a requirement to provide 400,000 square feet of retail space by mid-2017. There also are requirements to preserve wetlands and natural areas.

Those agreements will transfer to the new owner as part of any sale, city attorneys have assured the mayor’s office.

Council President Jeff Moore said he hopes Polygon can assure him and his colleagues that it intends to honor the previous commitments outlined in the development agreement.

“We have this opportunity, at this time of transition, to reaffirm that the citizens’ needs are met,” Moore said.

The master plan calls for a total of 900,000 square feet of commercial space, a 250-room hotel and up to 1,400 houses and condos.

Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465; nhaglund@heraldnet.com.

If you go

An update on the Riverfront project is scheduled during Wednesday’s Everett City Council meeting, beginning at 6:30 p.m. in council chambers, 3002 Wetmore Ave. The city sold a developer former industrial land along the Snohomish River in 2008. The deal was designed to bring a mix of condos, shops and public space. The project has stalled because of the economy, and now the developer is discussing a potential sale of all the land to a local homebuilder.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Everett mall renderings from Brixton Capital. (Photo provided by the City of Everett)
Topgolf at the Everett Mall? Mayor’s hint still unconfirmed

After Cassie Franklin’s annual address, rumors circled about what “top” entertainment tenant could be landing at Everett Mall.

Everett
Everett man sentenced to 3 years of probation for mutilating animals

In 2022, neighbors reported Blayne Perez, 35, was shooting and torturing wildlife in north Everett.

Dorothy Crossman rides up on her bike to turn in her ballot  on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett leaders plan to ask voters for property tax increase

City officials will spend weeks hammering out details of a ballot measure, as Everett faces a $12.6 million deficit.

Starbucks employee Zach Gabelein outside of the Mill Creek location where he works on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024 in Mill Creek, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mill Creek Starbucks votes 21-1 to form union

“We obviously are kind of on the high of that win,” store bargaining delegate Zach Gabelein said.

Lynnwood police respond to a collision on highway 99 at 176 street SW. (Photo provided by Lynnwood Police)
Southbound lanes on Highway 99 reopen after crash

The crash, on Highway 99 at 176th Street SW, blocked traffic for over an hour. Traffic was diverted to 168th Street SW.

The view of Mountain Loop Mine out the window of a second floor classroom at Fairmount Elementary on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County: Everett mining yard violated order to halt work next to school

At least 10 reports accused OMA Construction of violating a stop-work order next to Fairmount Elementary. A judge will hear the case.

Imagine Children's Museum's incoming CEO, Elizabeth "Elee" Wood. (Photo provided by Imagine Children's Museum)
Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett to welcome new CEO

Nancy Johnson, who has led Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett for 25 years, will retire in June.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.