Salish to build ‘first-class’ center

Published 1:41 pm Thursday, October 2, 2008

SNOQUALMIE – The Salish Lodge and Spa, known for its luxury and view of Snoqualmie Falls, wants to attract a different kind of guest – one with an expense account and possibly a slide-show presentation or two.

To do that, the Salish hopes to build a 250-room hotel and conference center on land it owns across State Route 202 from the lodge. There, executives from Microsoft and other companies could retreat to discuss product lines and stock prices amid the scenery of the Snoqualmie Valley.

“The region really does not have a first-class conference facility, and it’s ripe for it,” said Rachel Nathanson of Nathanson Associates, project manager for the proposed Salish expansion. Salish Lodge and Spa is part of the Chicago-based Coastal Hotel Group.

In addition to the 250 rooms, the hotel and conference center would have about 25,000 square feet of conference space, restaurant and lounge and a fitness area. Overall, the building would have a maximum of 240,000 square feet of space and be no more than five stories tall.

The center would be constructed on land currently in the city of Snoqualmie’s urban growth area. Owned by the Salish, the two parcels are zoned Planned Commercial/Industrial d Planned Residential. They total 53 acres, with 13 of those acres lying inside city limits.

The Salish is asking the city to annex the land, identified as the Morgan and Tokul parcels. Last year, the City Council agreed to allow the Salish to file an annexation petition. In the coming months, council members will vote on several other steps that must take place before the land, currently part of unincorporated King County, can be annexed by the city.

Those steps include designating the zoning of the land, which would become effective upon annexation; approving an annexation implementation plan, which sets the policies that would apply to the annexed land; approving zoning code amendments for the Planned Commercial/Industrial and Planned Residential zoning; and approving a developer agreement, which would list the city’s conditions for accepting the development.

Finally, the City Council would vote on whether to ratify the annexation petition.

Nathanson gave a presentation of the Salish expansion project at the Monday, March 11, City Council meeting, providing highlights of an environmental analysis that was conducted. She said if the annexation is approved, the smaller of the two parcels, the Tokul parcel that lies between SR 202 and Southeast Mill Pond Road, would be preserved as open space.

“That would protect the gateway to the city from the northern entrance,” Nathanson said.

The project would also cause the realignment of Tokul Road, creating a T-intersection where it meets the state highway. Nathanson said the Washington State Department of Transportation favors the change.

“It would provide a safer intersection with 202, being a perpendicular intersection,” she said.

According to a study, peak traffic to and from the hotel and conference center would occur from 9-10 a.m. and 8-9 p.m., missing the more congested early morning and evening commuter traffic hours. The center would also employ a shuttle bus that, for example, could be used to take guests to tournaments at TPC Snoqualmie Ridge.

Nathanson said the project would use low-impact development methods to construct the hotel and conference center. All stormwater would be infiltrated back into the ground on site, using features like rain gardens, swales and infiltration ponds, which would recharge the underlying aquifer.

The new Tokul Road, she said, would actually decrease its impervious surface, although constructing it would impact a small wetland.

“I think we created something exemplary of how development can go in the future,” Nathanson said.

The design of the building would use natural colors so it blends into the surrounding landscape. The roofline would be varied, and visitors to Snoqualmie Falls Park would not be able to see the building, Nathanson said.

She added the project would benefit the city financially. The hotel and conference center would employ 198 people, and it would bring more visitors to Snoqualmie.

“We expect those tourists to spend dollars in the city,” Nathanson said.

She said if the annexation is approved by the City Council, it would take about six months to design the hotel and conference center and another 18 months for construction.

You can reach Barry Rochford at (425) 888-2311, or e-mail him at barry.rochford@valleyrecord.com.