NOAA MAriNe OperAtiONs CeNter - pACifiC

MARKET
The Lake Union Market
Lake Union is the freshwater centerpiece between Seattle’s Central
Business District and the thriving close-in neighborhoods of Queen
Anne, Fremont, Capitol Hill and the University of Washington main
campus and adjacent University District commercial area. It’s also
the center of commerce for many companies, marinas, shops and
residential areas that flourish around the lake’s 6 mile circumference.
The lake is connected to Puget Sound and the Pacific Ocean by
the Chittenden Locks to the west and to Lake Washington by the
Montlake Cut and Portage Bay to the east.
Two commercial seaplane services operate on the lake, as well as
several marine tour operations and commercial maritime enterprises,
in addition to the many marinas for pleasure boats and houseboats.
“Sleepless in Seattle” was filmed at one of the Lake Union houseboat
communities. Last September the 12 acre Lake Union Park was
completed at the south end of the lake, which joins an array of public
access amenities around the lake’s perimeter. This wonderful park
opens the waterfront to pedestrians, provides moorage for historic
vessels and is the home of the Maritime Heritage Center, and soon the
new location for the University of Washington’s Museum of History
and Industry.
One of the most vibrant areas of the lake is its south shore – Seattle’s
South Lake Union district. Over the last 10 years South Lake Union
has undergone a major growth period that has transformed the area
from a sleepy industrial and distribution area to the most dynamic and
rapidly developing market areas in the Pacific Northwest, including the
development of over 2,300 residential units, 377,000 square feet of
retail space and 4,200,000 square feet of office, research, laboratory
and hotel space. Much of this growth was spearheaded by Paul Allen’s
Vulcan Real Estate along with other prominent Seattle developers.
Amazon.com, Inc. is currently moving into its Global Headquarters which
will take up 2,000,000 square feet of new office space adjacent to the
southern shores of Lake Union. Other prominent tenants in the area
include Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle Biomedical
Research Institute, Rosetta Inpharmatics, University of Washington
Medicine and School of Medicine Campus, and the world headquarters for
the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (Microsoft’s founder). The area is
also becoming a very desirable residential community because of the very
cutting edge new projects rapidly gentrifying the area, the great small shops
and restaurants and the close proximity to the best Seattle has to offer in
the way of shopping, recreational and residential amenities. Also, the South
Lake Union district is now directly linked to downtown Seattle’s central
shopping district via the South Lake Union Trolley, which runs from the
South Lake Union shore to Westlake Center in downtown.
Mercer Street, the main access to Interstate 5 north and south that
bisects the South Lake Union district, is presently undergoing widening
and reorganization which will result in greatly enhanced vehicle and
pedestrian circulation in the area. In addition, the City of Seattle is
currently considering zoning modifications for the area to allow for more
development and create more density by increasing the allowable height
limit in this district.
The South Lake Union district is the future. . . . It’s where Seattle’s growth is
heading.
NOAA Marine Operations Center - Pacific l Offering Memorandum