Tacoma officials have tentatively agreed to build a 300-stall parking garage and furnish a government loan to help a developer turn the landmark Elks Temple downtown into a McMenamins restaurant and hotel.
The Tacoma City Council on Tuesday night authorized city staff to complete a letter of intent with Tacoma developer Grace Pleasants and her business partner Rick Moses, formalizing the city’s role in the project. The council will vote on a more detailed development agreement for the project later this year.
The planned city parking garage will sit adjacent to the Elks Temple on Broadway, forming a foundation for a six-story development that Pleasants and Moses intend to build above it. That development is to include a grocery store and apartments.
City officials estimate the municipal parking garage will cost $9 million.
The Elks Temple building itself is to be renovated by Mike and Brian McMenamin, the brothers behind the popular McMenamins chain of Northwest brewpubs. The rehabilitated building would also include a 40-room hotel and a theater.
The developers, Pleasant and Moses, are asking the city to grant them a government loan to help them acquire the Elks Temple and the adjacent property.
Council members said the Elks Temple project could make history in Tacoma, revitalizing the north end of downtown. The city has tried to find a developer to redevelop and preserve the historic building for years.
“This is going to be a landmark project for us,” said Councilwoman Marilyn Strickland.
“It’s historic preservation, it’s retail – it’s all the things we need.”
Mike McMenamin said he’s excited to get working on the project. Pleasants and Moses estimate that the mixed-use project could begin construction in fall 2010 and be finished in spring 2012.
“We’ve wanted to be involved in Tacoma for many years and have looked at many buildings,” McMenamin said. “We certainly appreciate the support.”
Melissa Santos, The News Tribune
Article originally published on July 29, 2009.
