Woodinville considers plans for Old Schoolhouse project
On May 9, the Woodinville City Council looked at two plans for preserving Woodinville’s Old Schoolhouse, and developing the campus occupied by the old building. Council members are looking for a developer to work on the three-acre site.
The city previously hired consultants to create plans showing how the project could look, and those plans were shown to the council at the May meeting. Council members had provided feedback in March when they saw the proposals for the first time.
Both plans preserve the schoolhouse and Woodinville’s recreation center, and call for a civil plaza next to the present city hall. They also suggest commercial spaces for businesses, shops and restaurants; five-story buildings that could be used as housing; and walkways for pedestrian travel.
The differences in the plans are in the number of housing units suggested, and the type of parking. One wants to put parking below ground, while the other suggests surface parking. These two factors are important, according to Brian Vanneman, who is with Leland Consulting Group, which was hired to help come up with a strategy for developing the site.
Vanneman said parking and housing have a significant impact on such projects. Adding more housing means the city can charge the developer more, but underground parking would make the project more expensive for the city.
Projects like this can benefit if officials work with a newsletter printing company to create a newsletter for residents, explaining the issues.
The city previously hired consultants to create plans showing how the project could look, and those plans were shown to the council at the May meeting. Council members had provided feedback in March when they saw the proposals for the first time.
Both plans preserve the schoolhouse and Woodinville’s recreation center, and call for a civil plaza next to the present city hall. They also suggest commercial spaces for businesses, shops and restaurants; five-story buildings that could be used as housing; and walkways for pedestrian travel.
The differences in the plans are in the number of housing units suggested, and the type of parking. One wants to put parking below ground, while the other suggests surface parking. These two factors are important, according to Brian Vanneman, who is with Leland Consulting Group, which was hired to help come up with a strategy for developing the site.
Vanneman said parking and housing have a significant impact on such projects. Adding more housing means the city can charge the developer more, but underground parking would make the project more expensive for the city.
Projects like this can benefit if officials work with a newsletter printing company to create a newsletter for residents, explaining the issues.