By Ken Urman, Realtor

From Sleepy Town Center to Urban Renaissance: The Revitalization of Mercer Island’s Downtown

If you have lived on Mercer Island for 15 years or more, you’ve seen many changes as Mercer Island built out and continued to define itself as an upscale and sophisticated community. Islanders value the many parks and other green space areas scattered throughout the island, as well as a relaxed lifestyle with many desired amenities. What has been lacking was a vibrant downtown community where people live, work, do business, and enjoy dining and entertainment venues.
The character of the island’s neighborhoods have traditionally been suburban single-family homes where children can learn and grow, where the practice of all religions is honored and respected, where the arts and local artists are cherished, and where nature provides numerous venues for entertainment and activity. The island school district is one of the best in the state and the nation, providing opportunities for each child to learn in an optimal atmosphere. There are also many community activities, and facilities for many and varied interests.

Many of the most significant changes on the island in the last 15 years have occurred in the Town/City Center or Downtown area. As growth continued, developers were forced to turn their attention to the downtown area as the only part of the island that could accommodate expected future growth. Greater impetus cam, however as a result of the state’s 1990 Growth Management Act (GMA). The GMA required of the city a growth plan to create 1,437 new housing units for 3,000 new residents by the year 2022.

A growth plan of this scope requires many changes in the downtown sector. The first change was an upgrade of building height limits to accommodate four- to six-story structures. The second change will be creation of a neighborhood with a uniquely high population density. These two changes will, of course, bring a number of other changes and adaptations, not least of which are concerns about adequate parking and increasing need for changes in traffic flow patterns.

These changes in downtown Mercer Island also provide several opportunities for the city and for all residents of the island. In short, growth provided the impetus to move forward from “sleepy town center” to urban renaissance by thoroughly revitalizing the neighborhood. With a large number of new residents, there must be new places to shop, conduct business, and enjoy the entertainment venues desired by Mercer Island’s residents. Rather than leaving the island for good restaurants, it is possible to find restaurants in downtown. Indeed, as my next post will discuss, many of the new structures in the downtown area feature first-floor businesses with apartments or condominiums on the upper floors.

Mercer Island’s downtown neighborhood may consist mostly of mid-rise buildings, but the easygoing lifestyle will not be lost. With Mercerdale Park located on the south side of downtown, new residents will have immediate access to all of the facilities and in the park, including the skate park.   The very popular Mercer Island Youth and Family Services Thrift Store will also be convenient to residents. 

The downtown area began as a field of mud and tree stumps. During the population boom of the 1960s and 1970s, redevelopment was accomplished with quickly-built strip malls. The new growth accommodation has come with sufficient advance warning to enable the city to plan for both population growth and simultaneous transformation of the downtown area. Thus, the city has been able to manage the transition from an area of failing businesses and empty parking lots to a robust center of community life.

Change always brings challenges, be they finding additional parking spaces, transitioning from four-way stops to traffic lights at some intersections, to anticipating new needs and planning proactively. The residents of Mercer Island have embraced this change and met challenges as they arose. Although there may be some residents who do not agree with every detail of our downtown revitalization, most embrace both the opportunities and the new face of Mercer Island’s downtown area.

This post is the first in a three-part series on the downtown neighborhood of Mercer Island. The next post will examine The New Look of Downtown, and the third will introduce the Downtown Population.

If you have other questions, or you are interested in a residence in Mercer Island’s downtown area, I would be happy to help you. Please call me at 206-230-0833. And, remember, I’ll bring the coffee.