Seattle architecture firm PUBLIC47 has completed State Street Lofts, a mixed-use development at a prominent corner that serves as a threshold to one of the city’s most culturally rich and rapidly evolving neighborhoods. The project balances the area’s light-industrial heritage with contemporary needs for urban housing and street-level activity.
Wrapped in brick, the building presents a durable, familiar presence. Recessed balconies and varied window patterns introduce depth and lightness across the facades, keeping them from feeling uniform.
“We approached the project with an acute awareness of its position at the gateway to a neighborhood rich in cultural history and poised for change,” says Kevin Tabari, partner at PUBLIC47. “The design needed to honor both.”
At the ground level, the team carved back the first two stories to create a wide, sheltered pedestrian zone, an “elevated stage” for retail and live-work lofts. The move draws on the district’s industrial past and supports today’s entrepreneurial energy and everyday foot traffic.
Along the north facade, a “memory walk” by Seattle artist Kenzan Tsutakawa-Chinn is cut into the rising grade, weaving neighborhood history directly into the site and reinforcing the project’s role as both landmark and neighbor.
Density, Humanized
Creating more homes without sacrificing livability was one of the principals guiding the design. “Higher density was essential to the mission, both to expand housing options in the neighborhood and to make high-quality construction feasible,” Tabari says. “Our aim was to make that scale feel generous and livable.”
Courtyards carved from the building bring light and fresh air into the interior and soften the transition to the neighboring townhouses. Upper-level setbacks create shared outdoor rooms. At street level, active frontages and live-work units encourage everyday interaction between residents and the broader community.
Detail Over Default
A major technical challenge was keeping the brick facades free of mechanical clutter. Market-rate apartments often show “facade acne”, the scattered terminations for dryer, range, and bath exhausts. “Contractors push for horizontal discharge to avoid the cost of two-hour rated shafts with fire and smoke dampers, but the results are often disappointing,” Tabari notes. “On this project, we tucked all these terminations back within the balcony recesses behind louvers.”
This required careful coordination near the balcony doors, but the results have been worth the effort. The brick fronts stay clean, the recesses shape the facade, and the covered sidewalk keeps the corner active.
A Clear Role on the Block
State Street Lofts shows how new housing can add real capacity while respecting the scale and stories of the neighborhood. The building gives the corner a generous sidewalk porch, puts shopfronts and live-work units to work, and links everyday life to local history through the memory walk. It is a practical piece of city building that feels rooted in place and ready for daily use.