The City of SeaTac announced Monday (Jan. 4th) that it has purchased a 4.23 acre chunk of land with commercial structures on it at 15247 International Blvd. for $12.7 million.

According to a press release, the property, which is located directly across the street from the new Tukwila Sound Transit Link light rail station, will be used to “construct public roads, open space and infrastructure as set forth in the Capital Improvement Plan for the Light Rail Station Area at S. 154th Street.”

The transaction closed Thursday, December 31, 2009.

“This is a fantastic opportunity for the City of SeaTac,” said Mayor Ralph Shape. “The City was able to purchase a critical piece of property for future public use at $4 million less than a recent appraised value, and more than $6.4 million less than the current tax assessed value. At the same time the community will realize significant net operating income in the coming years from the current leases at the property.”

Fifteen tenants currently occupy 61,641 square feet of space at SeaTac Center, including Monte Carlo, Refugee Women’s Alliance, Pabla India Cuisine, and Pacific Highway Chiropractic.

In December 2006 the SeaTac City Council adopted the “South 154th Street Station Area Action Plan” which called for this area to be developed as a “vibrant, mixed use residential neighborhood that connects people of various backgrounds.”

The station area was envisioned to be pedestrian-oriented, visually pleasing, easily accessible, and integrated with the new light rail station across the street.

The adopted plan provided for the city to acquire property in order to build the required infrastructure such as roads and sidewalks. In May of 2009 the property went into foreclosure proceedings, and SeaTac worked through a commercial broker to ascertain the value of the land and the current tenant lease agreements.

The City of SeaTac will retain a third-party firm to manage the property.

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Thursday morning (Dec. 17th), Sound Transit held a “sneak peek” ride for the press on the section of the Link Light Rail between the Tukwila and Sea-Tac Airport stations (which opens this Saturday), and Photographer Michael Brunk was able to stowaway on board, where he took these pics:

Click to View Michael Brunk’s Photo Slideshow

From Sound Transit’s website:

The extension of the popular light rail service means holiday travelers will have a reliable, one-seat ride between downtown Seattle, the city of SeaTac and the airport, taking only 36 minutes. This new station provides a smooth, green travel option for the 20,000 people who work at the airport and the 30 million who travel in and out of it every year.

The SeaTac/Airport Station is connected to the fourth floor of the airport’s main parking garage. A covered, level walkway separated from the main parking area will lead passengers to the main terminal. Station amenities include boarding pass kiosks, and in the near future, a flight time information display.

The first 13.9 miles of Link opened in July with service between downtown Seattle and Tukwila. Link service runs from 5 a.m. to 1 a.m. Monday through Saturday and from 6 a.m. to midnight on Sundays.

SeaTac/ Airport Station opens just in time for the holidays: Sound Transit is the official transportation sponsor for The Radio City Christmas Spectacular, starring the Rockettes.

For Central Link light rail service info, visit http://www.soundtransit.org/linkschedule

Artworks at the station
The new Sea-Tac Airport Station features four art installations. “Flying Sails,” by artist Werner Klotz, spans the mezzanine and platform levels of the station. The plates feature the names of First Nation tribes from Washington state and cities from around the world that share the latitude or longitude of Seattle.

Other works include Fernanda D’Agostino’s “Celestial Navigation” at the International Blvd. plaza; Christian Moeller’s “Restless” along the International Blvd. pedestrian bridge; and an exhibit on Northwest tribal culture on the mezzanine’s north end. The interpretive exhibit by Pacific Studios showcases a cast concrete canoe, and a display explaining the history of the Native American presence in the Puget Sound region.

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The Port of Seattle alerts us that the north entrance to the Sea-Tac Airport Garage will close overnight for four nights beginning tonight (Monday, Dec. 14) and continuing through Thursday, Dec. 17th.

It will close at approximately 7pm each evening and will reopen each morning at approximately 5am.

The reason for the closure is that contractors will be removing the scaffolding below the pedestrian bridge between the Sound Transit Link Light Station and the Airport Parking Garage.

Link light service to Sea-Tac begins this coming Saturday, Dec. 19th.

During the north entrance closure, vehicles will be detoured via the upper drive (Departures level) to the south entrance of the garage. Rental car returns will be detoured to a temporary access road. Traffic exiting the garage will not be affected. Drivers should watch closely for the temporary directional signs.

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The City of SeaTac will be hosting an Open House from 5pm to 8pm on Monday, Dec. 7th to showcase new plans for downtown development.

Here are the details:

WHAT: Open house to see what the future holds for the city’s downtown, with city leaders including the City Manager and representatives from the Departments of Public Works and Planning. Consultants from KPG (engineers/architects), Heartland, LLC (analysis/project management/development), and Seth Harry & Associates (architect/urban design)

WHEN: Monday, December 7, 2009, 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

WHERE: Holiday Inn Conference Center, located at 17338 International Blvd., SeaTac, Wash. 98188

INFO: From a press release:

Help shape the future of your community.

This is your chance to review maps and renderings of the planned downtown and experience the vision for the future of the City of SeaTac.

Talk to city leaders and development experts.

Learn where the project is headed and share your thoughts.

Sound Transit’s Link Light Rail Station will be opening December 19, 2009 at International Blvd. and S. 176th Street is located at the entrance to the envisioned SeaTac Downtown/City Center.

Families are welcome. Refreshments will be available. Free parking will be provided.

For additional information please contact the City of SeaTac at 206-973-4820.

Incorporated in February 1990, the City of SeaTac is located approximately midway between the cities of Seattle and Tacoma. The City of SeaTac is 10 square miles in area and has a population of 25,230. The City of SeaTac is a vibrant community, economically strong, environmentally sensitive, and people-oriented. The City boundaries surround the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, (approximately 3 square miles in area) which is owned and operated by the Port of Seattle.

For more information contact Jeff Robinson, Economic Development Manager, at (206) 973-4812.

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On Tuesday, Aug. 18th, the Port of Seattle hosted members of the press at a tour of the reconstruction project that is in the final stages of completion on the first (as well as oldest and longest) runway, also known as “16L/34R.”

Approximately 80% of the concrete has already been poured for the new runway, and finishing touches will be completed over the next month. The original concrete runway, built in 1944, is being crushed and recycled as the gravel sub-base for the new runway. This sub base is 12 inches, topped by a 4-inch asphalt layer and then the 20-inch concrete runway.

In comparison, Sea-Tac’s third runway is only 17-inches thick.

This re-construction is the main reason why the airport’s third runway has been in use so much recently.

Photographer Michael Brunk was there to capture these photos:

Click to View Michael Brunk’s Photo Slideshow

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The Port of Seattle tells us that the exit from the Airport Garage is being changed on Tuesday morning, July 28th, at approximately 5 a.m. to accommodate construction of the new pedestrian bridge that will connect the Link Light Rail station to the Airport.

Drivers leaving the garage are advised to make an immediate right to enter the northbound Airport Expressway. This route gives drivers access to the exit to South 170th Street, which connects to both Air Cargo Road and International Boulevard (SR 99).

The Light Link Rail connection between downtown Seattle and Sea-Tac Airport will be completed by the end of 2009,

Drivers should use extra caution exiting the toll plaza, drive slowly and pay close attention to signage on the new route.

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Sea-Tac Airport is re-opening a new, larger Cell Phone Waiting Lot at 9am on Monday, July 27th, just north of the old lot on Air Cargo Road

This new lot includes nearly 100 spaces for vehicles, doubling the size of the old one.

The Cell Phone Waiting Lot is a free service courtesy The Port of Seattle that allows drivers to wait up to 30 minutes until arriving passengers have deplaned, collected luggage and called to be picked up outside of Baggage Claim. Drivers must stay with their vehicles.

The Port cautions however:

“Please be aware there is no parking or waiting allowed on the airport roadway shoulders at any time.”

The previous lot was closed for six weeks in order to facilitate a new air cargo operation in the cargo terminal building next to the lot. The building now houses a number of air cargo airline operations that ship freight of all kinds, including exports of Washington state’s bumper cherry crop. The Port of Seattle estimates lease and cargo related earnings of $40,000 per week from that facility during the closure period, or over $240,000 in total. The new lot was not available to open until Monday.

Driving Directions To the Cell Phone Lot:

• From the Southbound Airport Expressway: Take the Air Cargo Rd./Cell Phone Lot exit, turn right onto 170th, turn right onto Air Cargo Road and follow that road until you see the Cell Phone Waiting Lot on your left.
• From Southbound International Blvd: Turn right onto 170th, turn right onto Air Cargo Road and follow that road until you see the Cell Phone Waiting Lot on your left.

From the Cell Phone Lot to Baggage Claim (Arrivals Drive):
Take a right out of the Cell Phone Lot and make left on Air Cargo Road (sign reads to terminal). Follow signs to Arrivals.

For more information on Sea-Tac Airport’s parking options, visit their website: http://www.portseattle.org/seatac/ground/

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The Port of Seattle Monday announced that an estimated 3,000 jobs will be restored when the airport “Consolidated Rental Car Facility” parking garage construction begins again.

The Port of Seattle, the City of SeaTac, Turner Construction and representatives from the Washington State Building & Construction Trades Council and King County Labor Council will officially re-start the construction at a press conference and media photo opportunity on Wednesday, July 22nd at 10:30am.

Construction on the $419 million, 23-acre site will generate more than 3,000 local, family-wage jobs and nearly $2 million in tax revenue for the City of SeaTac over the life of the project. At least 1,000 jobs are expected to be created by the end of 2009. The facility is scheduled to open in spring of 2012.

The Sea-Tac Airport Consolidated Rental Car Facility will support all airport-related rental car operations at one convenient location. It is designed to meet the current and future demands of the traveling public. The facility will be a five-story structure that will greatly improve the size, space, and efficiency of rental car operations that are currently spread out from the main terminal garage and multiple off-site locations. In addition, the facility will open up two floors of public parking, more than 3,200 spaces, in the main terminal garage.

The project was temporarily suspended in December 2008 due to the meltdown in the global credit market. The Port of Seattle Commission approved the successful sale of $317 million in revenue bonds in late June in order to re-start the project.

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Monday afternoon (June 15th) a class-action lawsuit was filed on behalf of area residents who are upset with Sea-Tac Airport’s third runway against the Port of Seattle, claiming that noise and vibrations from aircraft are over and above what the Port has promised.

The class action lawsuit claims that as the runway was being developed and built, planning documents stated that it was to “only be used as an alternate runway to reduce delays in bad weather.”

Lawyers from the firm Pfau Cochrain Vertetis Kosnoff, PLLC contend that the port mislead residents to believe that the statement in the documents would be followed. However, since the runway’s opening, the plaintiffs claim that the port is now using the third runway for both departures and arrivals, bad weather or not, and at all hours of the day.

The third runway is currently being used more due to the re-construction of the first runway, which is supposed to last through the summer. Lawyers say that a statement on the Port of Seattle’s website claims that the FAA, which maintains control over all runways, will not restrict the use of the third runway.

The lawsuit is seeking damages for lowered property values and also to prohibit airplanes from using the third runway on weekends and between 10pm and 9am on weeknights.

The suit also intends to restrict planes from flying lower than 1,500 feet above the plaintiffs’ homes and only allow no more than one plane to fly over their neighborhoods per hour.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE:

• Residents Plan To Sue Port Of Seattle Over 3rd Runway
• Third Runway Litigators Will Meet April 19th
• Re-Construction Of Runway Begins At Airport
• SeaTac Airport’s Third Runway Opens

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On Tuesday, June 9th, Sea-Tac Airport will close its Cell Phone Waiting Lot for about a month in order to replace it with a location nearly double in size.

The new location, just north on Air Cargo Road, will create nearly 100 spaces for vehicles, doubling the size of the current lot. It is expected to open in early July.

The closure will allow the modification of the new lot with barriers, striping and signage.

The Cell Phone Waiting Lot is a free service from The Port of Seattle that allows drivers to wait up to 30 minutes in the lot until arriving passengers have deplaned, collected luggage and called to be picked up outside of Baggage Claim. Drivers must stay with their vehicles.

Please be aware there is no parking or waiting allowed on the airport roadway shoulders at any time.

The alternative for drivers who normally use the Cell Phone Lot is to use the Hourly Parking at the Terminal Main Garage, which charges $2 for 30 minutes.

For more information on Sea-Tac Airport’s parking options, visit their website here.

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