Children’s Investment Fund Lends $450M on Seattle Luxury Condo Tower

Bloomberg first reported news of the financing.

“Seattle is one of four core cities in which Westbank has chosen to focus its efforts, along with Vancouver, Toronto and Tokyo,” said Ian Duke of Westbank. “We’re drawn to Seattle because we see an opportunity to contribute positively at a pivotal moment in the city’s build-out. We have three large projects currently under development downtown, including the residential tower First Light, and are continuing to explore new opportunities.”

Located at 300 Virginia Street in the heart of downtown Seattle, the tower will feature 459 luxury residences designed by James K.M. Cheng Architects and include 115,000 square feet of ground-floor retail and podium office space. The property is located blocks from the city’s famous Pike Place Market, and a 10-minute walk from the Space Needle. 

Building amenities include a screening lounge, a “floating” rooftop pool, a wellness center and a secret garden.  

“The Seattle/Bellevue market is one of the strongest in the country and one of the few major markets that is still early in the condo cycle,” Karson said in prepared remarks. “We had an overwhelming response for high-leverage financing and ultimately chose a lender that wanted to hold the entire loan on book.”

The London-based lender “demonstrated a shared understanding of Westbank’s vision for the project and was able to provide a seamless whole loan execution at very compelling terms, which removed syndication risk and increased the efficiency of the facility,” Moyer added. 

The 548,951-square-foot development is Vancouver-based Westbank’s third Seattle project. Construction is expected to be completed in 2022. 

 Officials at The Children’s Investment Fund could not immediately be reached for comment.