Vibrant Cities Starts Pivot Project In Pike/Pine

Vibrant Cities recently broke ground on its diamond-shaped, mixed-use building Pivot on an irregular lot located on the edge of downtown and Capitol Hill in the Pike/Pine neighborhood. 

The eight-story building will include 71 apartments, 4,500 SF of retail space and 11K SF of office space. Designed by Tiscareno Associates, the building’s lower floors feature masonry that blends in with the former auto-row history of the neighborhood. The upper residential section of the building is pivoted to take advantage of the views. The upper section’s exterior has a lighter contrasting motif.

The building name is a reflection of how the upper portion of the building is pivoted from its base. It also represents the fact that the building sits on the border of downtown and Capitol Hill, a neighborhood undergoing a transition from automotive industrial to residential.

Vibrant Cities felt a responsibility to design Pivot in a way that emphasizes the vibrancy, hipness and uniqueness of the Capitol Hill neighborhood, Vibrant Cities co-founder and CEO James Wong told Bisnow.

Pivot is going to be one of the tallest eight-story buildings and will be seen by most of the buildings in downtown, he said. 

“The design is forward-looking, attractive and adds to the vibrant neighborhood,” Wong added.

The Pivot building is also part of a micro-unit movement that makes Seattle the city with the smallest apartments in the country. It has a rental unit average of  711 SF, according to RENTCafé. Pivot also includes micro-office space. Vibrant Cities, which specializes in developing smaller units, is also planning two multifamily projects in Portland with an average of 250 SF per unit.