Council hears options for CWU-owned facility as residents push thrift shop and senior uses

City staff told the Sammamish City Council on May 13 that Central Washington University will vacate the city‑owned facility at 122 20th Avenue NE at the end of the school year and presented three broad options for the building’s future: find a single anchor tenant to lease the entire facility, sell the property, or keep ownership and operate the building as a city or community facility.

The issue matters because the building is currently a subleased community hub that houses programs including the YMCA, tutoring groups and a Microsoft commuter parking program; it sits on roughly 22 acres adjacent to wetlands and will require zoning or a new conditional use permit for continued community use. Staff told council the short‑term transition costs if the city maintains ownership are estimated at $175,000–$275,000, with ongoing basic operations about $190,000 a year and an additional planning estimate of roughly $350,000 annually if the city amortizes the facility condition needs identified in a 2022 assessment (about $5,000,000 over 15 years).

At the start of the meeting, multiple members of the public urged the council to use the CWU property for community services. Sally Farrell, introduced as the board president of Sammamish Friends, said the nonprofit has a formal proposal for a thrift shop and wants space at the CWU campus. "We will have a formal advisory board for the thrift shop, and we want it to be under the oversight of our 501(c)(3)," Farrell said. Joyce Botenberg described an Edmonds example and said an off‑site thrift shop produced substantial gross sales there. High school volunteers Ayush Agua and Andrew Wang told the council they expect the thrift shop would engage youth volunteers and generate revenue to support local programs.

City staff described the building’s background and constraints. Janie Walzer, management analyst in Parks and Recreation, said the building was constructed in 2008, measures about 31,000 square feet, and that the city purchased it in 2015 "for a little over $6,000,000." Walzer said the site is zoned residential, and the university operated under a conditional use permit (CUP) issued in 2017; once CWU vacates, the building will be nonconforming and may operate for up to 12 months before being considered abandoned unless the city rezones or secures another CUP. Walzer added that the 2022 facility condition assessment identified roughly $5 million of needs over a 15‑year horizon, and that the transition‑related expenses presented to council do not include potential additional deficiencies the city may find upon takeover.

Staff outlined tradeoffs among the three options. Leasing the facility to an anchor tenant could approach market rent that might bring the city close to breaking even but would still leave the city responsible for capital needs and management; selling would remove future capital obligations but is complicated by wetlands, residential zoning and unknown market interest; retaining ownership would allow community programming but requires new staffing, operating budget and a longer public engagement process to define community uses and capital improvements. Staff noted possible interim uses, such as converting a classroom to records storage to eliminate Iron Mountain off‑site storage costs (estimated at $30,000–$40,000 per year), and emphasized that expanding uses now would require adding staffing resources that are not in the current work plan.

Council members spoke in favor of maintaining ownership and exploring community uses while recognizing costs. Council member Sid Gupta said he "supports the city maintaining ownership and operations" and asked whether market rent for a single tenant would be enough to avoid subsidy; staff estimated annual market rent in the range of $400,000–$500,000 but said even full market rent would likely just approach breakeven. Council member Rosheen O'Farrell urged the city to "imagine what the future of this building could be" for teens and seniors. Council member Stewart asked whether removing and reinstalling a commercial kitchen would be included in the $5 million assessment and whether the city has considered contracting staffing rather than hiring; staff said kitchen re‑fit costs would be additional and that contracting is a potential option to evaluate.

Staff requested council direction on next steps; they said short‑term work to secure basic functionality (new locks, back‑lot safety lighting, safety inspections) is needed before July 1 when CWU vacates, and that a fuller program and budget proposal would follow in the fall if the council directs the city to maintain ownership. Staff also noted rezoning or a new CUP would fall to Community Development’s work plan. Several council members suggested pursuing a community co‑created planning process, seeking grant funding and engaging volunteers and nonprofits to help with implementation and fundraising. No formal vote on the building’s disposition occurred; staff explicitly asked for direction and said they would return with more detailed cost estimates and a community engagement plan if council chose to retain ownership.

Ending: Council members repeatedly said they saw the property as an opportunity to fill gaps in local meeting, senior and teen space even as they acknowledged the building will require ongoing subsidy and capital investment. Staff will proceed to document short‑term transition work needed to take over operations July 1 and return in the fall with options for staffing, permitting and longer‑term planning if the council directs the city to retain ownership.