Homebuilder proposes vacant Highway 99 Walmart as site for 248 homes
Published 2:11 pm Thursday, May 21, 2026
EVERETT — After more than three years of the site sitting idle, the country’s largest homebuilder’s proposed plan will turn a vacant Walmart in Everett into 248 homes.
D.R. Horton Pacific Ridge Division Office plans to convert the just under 19-acre commercial site, located along Evergreen Way, into 92 single-family detached homes and 156 townhome units, according to planning documents submitted in April.
The project, named Rowan Park, plans to offer purchasable housing, said Everett City Council member Ben Zarlingo.
“In recent years, we’ve not seen as much of that as we have rental housing,” he said in an email. “I want our residents to have choices, and hopefully adding significant supply will help moderate price increases.”
D.R. Horton did not respond to The Daily Herald’s request for comment.
After around 17 years in business, the Highway 99 Walmart closed its doors in April 2023. The retail giant reported that the location did not meet “financial expectations,” according to previous reporting by The Daily Herald.
The big-box store left behind an approximately 147,000-square-foot building and approximately 715 parking stalls, planning documents said. Developers must take into account a tributary to Swamp Creek and adjacent wetland systems and buffers along the north and northeast parts of the property.
Redevelopments include replacing the site’s impervious surfaces with modern stormwater facilities and upgrading its public utilities, such as water, sewer, power, and telecommunications, planning documents said.
As proposed, Rowan Park exceeds the amenity space required by city code, which requires 100 square feet per dwelling unit, according to planning documents.
Plans for the southwest portion of the site include a playground, off-leash dog area, lawn area, and basketball and pickleball courts, totaling approximately 19,725 square feet. Another playground and off-leash dog area in the northeast portion adds 5,677 square feet.
The plan proposed two enclosed garage spaces per unit and 73 street guest parking spots throughout the site for a total of 547 parking spaces, planning documents said.
Rowan Park aligns with the city’s two focus areas in the South Everett Economic Development Strategy, said Economic Development Director Dan Eernissee in an email. This includes connecting residents to jobs at nearby manufacturing companies and growing local ownership of businesses, commercial real estate and homes.
“The city has been aggressively supporting redevelopment of the site,” he said. “We see the new project as a real win for the city and the region.”
For Zarlingo, the redevelopment takes advantage of an existing unused site and “provides housing in a good location from an employment, arterials, and transit point of view,” he said.
D.R. Horton has recently come under scrutiny after a Washington Department of Ecology inspection report from Oct. 16, 2025, stated the homebuilder failed to comply with permit conditions and county codes requiring unworked land to be covered within two days during the rainy season.
More than 100 acres of dirt were exposed when the rain hit, and a temporary dam, intended to catch stormwater, eroded and collapsed. The result was sediment flowing down from the saturated hillside for around two hours, damaging neighbors’ yards and homes.
As of Thursday, Rowan Park is on a correction hold after the city issued a request for additional information on May 13, according to city records.
Jenna Millikan: 425-339-3035; jenna.millikan@heraldnet.com; X: @JennaMillikan
