It will start looking a little different along Snoqualmie Parkway next week. That’s when construction crews should begin work at the site of the future hotel/retail complex in the Snoqualmie Ridge Business Park.
According to Snoqualmie Community Development Director Mark Hofman, the Clear and Grand Permit for the hotel lot has been issued, with the pre-construction meeting completed on Friday, August 18, 2017.
Hofman explained the applicant can now proceed with staging, erosion control and site preparation of the four-acre lot. Once the site – located on the corner of Snoqualmie Parkway and Center Street – is stabilized and prepared for weather events, the “grubbing and rough grading” can commence.
Construction activity should start the week of August 21st and it is estimated that within two weesk the site will be roughly prepared for development of the hotel and retail project.
Earlier this year the developer stated the evergreen lining Snoqualmie Parkway will be removed – so residents will notice a difference in the land parcel’s appearance. Due to a PSE power line easement that runs through the property, the city allowed the building to be placed closer to Snoqualmie Parkway, which means the trees will be removed prior to construction beginning.
The moderately priced 99-room Hampton by Hilton hotel is expected to open the summer of 2018. According to the city’s project information page, the hotel will have 4-stories (45 feet above ground) and a daylight basement (11-feet sloping downward from the first story). It will also have meeting space and an indoor pool in the daylight basement area.
The adjacent retail building will be two stories with space for restaurants, retail and offices. There will also be “pedestrian-friendly plazas with seating” and 178 parking stalls for the development.
For more information visit the City of Snoqualmie’s Hotel/Retail Project page.
Comments
I’m totally against building this hotel in our town.
I agree, thanks for speaking up.
The City Council unanimously approved this hotel even though 1)The City failed to notify residents living within 500 feet of the hotel as per City code and were made aware of this violation 15 separate times; and, 2) the planning commission recommended against reducing the buffer from 50 feet to an average of 15 feet. True, Snoqualmie does need a moderately-priced hotel. Violating code, disrespecting citizens, ignoring Planning Commission recommendations and cutting the protective tree buffer that gives Snoqualmie its beauty and charm is NOT how open and responsible government should work.
Thanks Lesley for your continued effort to inform us. I don’t know Lesley personally, so this endorsement is simply from all the comments she made, and her bio. This is such an important election for Snoqualmie and its residents. It could alter the direction of how our beautiful community we love so much will go forward. Don’t give up because you feel you don’t have a voice, you absolutely do. Let yourself be heard on this forum, thanks to Danna!
Its about time!
We can thank our Mayor and City Council for this. Remember this when you vote in the general election this fall.
I’m not against a hotel in our city. I’m against a hotel on this parcel of land for which it is 100% inappropriate. The PSE easement alone makes this the wrong site for a multi-story hotel. Cramming it up against the Parkway makes this the wrong site for a multi-story hotel. The limited access to this parcel makes this the wrong site for a multi-story hotel and commercial park. If they tried, I doubt they could have found a worse place to cram a hotel. Wouldn’t this have been more conveniently located on the land in front of the new Hospital? Or any of the other open land near I-90 (where there is much more freeway traffic and hotel customers)? The city had to break the rules to get this done and they did it. This is on them; it was their decision.
I agree Mike, well said.
I love the location, convenient access to local restaurants and easy free way access. The views of Mt Si should be spectacular as well. If you believe the government violated a law then file a lawsuit. Losing a few trees that will fall during a wind storm is not a large price to pay. Besides, looks like they will be replacing them anyways. Would you of rather had a warehouse or office building occupy this location? The trees would of been removed for either way. My motto is develop while the iron is hot so during the next down turn we have already cashed in. Besides beating North Bend to the punch will really help this community(local taxes) as well. I’m sure you will all be happy to vote to increase the hotel taxes in the future to pay for parks, schools and lawyers to defend the city from legacy trouble makers.
Will, I suggest you do some more reading on this subject. The city council reduced the buffer space from 50 feet to an “average” of 15 feet. There was no remaining room for trees after that. Look at the other warehouse downhill from this site – they kept many of the trees because the buffer was maintained; removing only those required to regrade the property, and then planting new replacement trees. The trees they removed yesterday were not going to fall down during a windstorm – they have been there for 50+ years.
If you have the money to fund the lawsuit, please donate it to the cause. Lawsuits are not cheap, and only those with deep pockets can afford to file a suit like this.
This hotel is top notch and will be a great asset for the good of the entire community. I personally believe the project enjoys wide spread community support and I would rather have a good mid-class hotel than the dump North Bend is going to end up with (I’ve heard its a new brand called “Pie in the Sky”) Since I haven’t heard any credible arguments from the opposition, it’s time to quit bickering and move on.
NOT top notch, it’s a motel/hotel. No, while it’s not a Motel 6, (oh the horror) it’s definitely NOT a hotel. That’s why they call it an Inn. It reminds me of a motor lodge. If we had to put up with the loss of all the natural beauty of the trees and view, at least it could’ve been a high-end hotel. It simply is all wrong, the location of this huge structure on the corner or our neighborhood community, besides the way they went about it. The whole thing appears shady. I had been traveling the back way recently past Salish. OH MY GOSH, when I came home via I-90 and looked at that corner with all the trees destroyed and electrical wires being the most prominent view, it was so sad to me. The Mayor and City Council REALLY blew it in a major way. To alter a gorgeous area like ours in this manner is beyond disappointing. Every time you look at that unsightly corner, think carefully about who you’ll be voting for. If they can do this, just think about what might be in the offing.
Will Rogers and Mike, a group of residents did try to gather money for a lawyer. We spent the initial money for a lawyer to look into the case. He said that we had a very good chance of winning, considering that the city violated its own municipal code. However, he estimated that it would take at least 10 times as much money to pay for filing the suit and taking it to trial, and none of us had enough money for that. A developer may be able to pay many thousands for lawyers when I project will earn them millions. Most of us residents can’t afford to do that – and why should we have to sue our own city to make them obey our own laws?
Willy S, I think we have a lot of support for a moderately priced hotel for Snoqualmie, if it is located in the right place. However, I don’t think positioning it up close to the parkway has widespread support. Our same group of people who tried to scrape up money for a lawyer has also talked to a lot of residents. Once people hear the details of the project (especially how close it is to the parkway and how tall it is), well over 90% were against the project.