At the September 30 City Council meeting, the City Council approved the terms of a Letter of Intent (LOI) with Imagine Housing for “The Approach at Kenmore,” an affordable housing development slated for City-owned property at 7010 NE 181st Street. This is an important milestone in the City’s ongoing commitment to addressing housing needs for residents of all income levels.

Project Background: 

The City Council’s #1 priority for 2024 (and #2 priority for 2025) is to increase and preserve the options for affordable housing. In support of this priority, in September 2022 the City purchased the Holt property at 7010 NE 181st Street with the intent of selling the property for an affordable housing project. In 2023 the City released a request for proposals for the development, and the City Council approved the selection of the proposal submitted by Imagine Housing in December 2023. At that meeting, the Council provided staff direction to initiate negotiations for necessary agreements, including a purchase and sale agreement. 

City staff and Imagine Housing have met regularly since the proposal selection, and at the September 30 City Council meeting, the Council approved a Letter of Intent with Imagine Housing that outlines key terms for moving forward with the Purchase and Sale Agreement in the first quarter of 2025.  

Key terms included in the Letter of Intent: 

Purchase Price: $1.5 million 

Project Components:

Project will consist of rental units (at least 103) and ownership units (at least 18), and will contain a mix of studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom units.

Affordability shall remain in effect for 50 years and development will have an income threshold range of 50%-60% AMI (Area Median Income) for rental units and 80% AMI for ownership units.

Financing for the development, including ongoing operations, shall not require any tenants are “homeless upon entry” and shall not require that the development provide permanent supportive housing, homeless shelter, or emergency shelter housing. 

The rental unit building will contain a community/commercial ground floor space and a good faith effort will be made to lease that space to a non-profit service provider.

Preliminary Timeline:

2025: Community engagement leading to execution of Purchase & Sale Agreement (early 2025) and property sale/transfer (anticipated no later than the end of 2025).
2027: Imagine Housing submits all City of Kenmore permits and secures project funding
2028: Imagine Housing closes on construction financing and secures all necessary permits
2031: Certificate of Occupancy obtained

City staff anticipate returning to the City Council in the first quarter of 2025 with a Purchase and Sale Agreement for this development. 

Imagine Housing will be hosting multiple community engagement events, including a Community Information Session on Thursday, February 6, from 6 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. at City Hall. They will also be at the Kenmore Winterfest event on December 14 to share about their mission, current properties, and resident services approach. 

The Letter of Intent and additional information on this project can be found on the City’s website, kenmorewa.gov/theapproach. Imagine Housing also has information available online at imaginehousing.com, including an email list to sign up for project updates.