EVERETT — Everett Transit began operations at a relocated Mall Station on Sunday, bringing a number of upgrades to the busy south Everett transit hub.
The $2 million station is just 500 feet west from where the previous transit center was located. The city undertook the project as the Everett Mall plans to expand its footprint.
Permit filings show that the building set to take up the space previously occupied by the station is a new Topgolf facility, in the works for more than a year and set to come to Everett as part of a redevelopment effort at the Everett Mall, known as The Hub @ Everett, which is expected to open in 2026.
Everett Transit wouldn’t have relocated the platform if the redevelopment of the mall wasn’t set to occur, a spokesperson previously told The Daily Herald, but it gave the transit agency an opportunity to build an improved station for both riders and operators.
“The new Mall Station delivers improved accessibility to transit services for our community and improves operational safety for customers and our operators,” Everett Transit Director Mike Schmieder wrote in a statement Friday. “We’ve also upgraded breakroom facilities for our operators, who go above and beyond to serve our community.”
The new platform includes a “saw-tooth” design, allowing buses to arrive and depart in any order. Buses also will only use one side of the platform, shortening travel distance through the parking lot and lessening impacts on pedestrians. Those riding the buses will now only have to face one side of the platform.
Everett Transit’s two most popular routes — Route 7 and Route 29 — account for about 70% of the agency’s ridership, and both routes end at Mall Station. City data shows that Mall Station is the third most popular destination out of all the bus stops in the city, behind only College Station and Everett Station.
The station serves as a transit hub for south Everett, connecting to northbound Routes 7 and 29, as well as Route 12 traveling west along Casino Road and Route 2 traveling south to Mariner Park and Ride.
Everett approved the permits for the three-story, 68,000 square foot Topgolf facility in January, city records show, but it’s unclear when it will open. A Topgolf spokesperson wrote in a statement that the company does not have any updates to share on the project at this time.
Brixton Capital, the company that owns the Everett Mall, said it is working with Topgolf to add its new facility to the mix of future uses at the renovated shopping center. The company contributed $200,000 toward the relocation of Mall Station.
A spokesperson for Brixton Capital, Jennifer Whitelaw, wrote on Dec. 11 that Topgolf is engaged in a corporate restructuring process, and that Brixton Capital looks “forward to working with them further as they solidify their timing.”
“We’re honored to have collaborated with the City of Everett, Everett Transit and many public partners on the beautiful, new transit station,” Whitelaw wrote.
A private equity firm, Leonard Green, purchased a 60% stake in Topgolf from Topgolf Callaway Brands in November, valuing Topgolf at approximately $1.1 billion, Reuters reported. In 2021, golf manufacturer Callaway had merged with Topgolf, but the sale will see the two companies split back into separate organizations.
Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.
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