Town Center Parking Project

In 2019, the City acquired property at 7810 SE 27th St, which includes a parking lot and small building that currently sits vacant due to its poor condition. As part of the City's efforts to best utilize this property for the community, the City is developing a surface parking lot to deliver vehicle and bike parking in Town Center. The project will also include new and widened sidewalks, improved pedestrian connections to the light rail and bus station, better lighting, and increased green and park space.

This page will provide background information, City Council meeting materials and presentations, and track the project through its completion.

News feed

March 13, 2025 Update

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This week, OMA Construction crews continued excavation work along the north side of the site and within the old cul-de-sac area of Sunset Highway. Crews also continued to haul in new aggregate for base under the new parking lot. The old Tully’s Coffee building was fully demolished and the debris was hauled off site. Next week, crews will begin excavation and grading within the old Tully’s parcel.
March 17 Construction Update - Former Tully's Coffee Building Demolished

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Last week, OMA Construction crews continued excavation work along the north side of the site and within the old cul-de-sac area of Sunset Highway. Crews also continued to haul in new aggregate for base under the new parking lot. The old Tully’s Coffee building was fully demolished and the debris was hauled off site. This week, crews will begin excavation and grading within the old Tully’s parcel.
Council to Receive Presentation on Parking Regulations for Town Center Parking Area

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Mercer Island City Council will receive a presentation about the parking regulations at the new Town Center Parking Area at its regular scheduled meeting on March 18, 2025. Staff recommend providing a user with two hours of free parking upon registration and having the option to extend their parking to a twelve-hour maximum for a paid fee at the new parking area. Staff recommend using a rate of $2.50 per hour and instituting a daily maximum rate of $12.50.
This agenda item is discussion only and no formal action will be taken by the City Council. Staff will incorporate feedback and return to the City Council for approval before implementation.
Agenda materials for the meeting are available here (Agenda Item #13). The March 18, 2025 hybrid meeting will be broadcast live on MITV Channel 21 and live streamed on the City Council’s YouTube Channel.
March 6, 2025 Construction Update

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This week, OMA Construction crews continued excavation work along the north side of the site and started importing new aggregate and topsoil for regrading. A portion of the old cul-de-sac area has been removed as well as some of the street lighting. Several light poles are being reinstalled on the project. Next week’s work will include continued excavation and demolition of the old Tully’s building.
February 27, 2025 Construction Update

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Construction activity at the former Tully’s Coffee site started this week. The City’s contractor, OMA Construction, installed construction fencing around the site and began excavation work at the north end of the site. Crews also started demolition of the old building with removal of the windows and doors. Next week, crews will continue excavation and removal work at the site and will start importing gravel to grade the site for the new parking lot.
Construction on Town Center Parking Facility Begins

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Construction activity for the Town Center Parking Facility at the former Tully’s Coffee site started last week. The City’s contractor, OMA Construction, installed construction fencing around the site and began excavation work at the north end of the site. Crews also started demolition of the old building with removal of the windows and doors. Next week, crews will continue excavation and removal work and will start importing gravel to grade the site for the new parking lot.
A Letter from the Project Team to Neighboring Residents on Construction Start and Informational Meeting

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This letter was mailed to neighboring residents of the project site. The information meeting is also available to anyone in the community.
February 13, 2025
Dear Resident:
We are writing to provide an update on the construction project happening at 7810 SE 27^th St. (former Tully’s Property). This project involves the demolition of the existing building and constructs a new parking facility at the site of the former Tully’s Coffee shop building. The facility will include 35 new parking stalls, bike racks and lockers, sidewalks, illumination, and landscaping.
Construction of the Town Center Parking Project is tentatively expected to begin the week of February 24, 2025, as the contractor will begin mobilization and setting up construction control methods. The City’s contractor, OMA Construction, Inc., will begin full construction operations soon after. Construction is anticipated to be completed by the end of June 2025. During this time, no parking will be allowed in the existing Tully’s lot or in the Sunset Highway cul-de-sac.
We understand that any construction near your home or business may raise questions and concerns. As we prepare for work to begin, we want to ensure you have the information you need and the opportunity to have your questions addressed.
We have scheduled an informational meeting on February 24th at 3:30 PM on site at 7810 SE 27th St (former Tully’s building). Members of the project team will be present to share project details, discuss potential impacts, and answer any questions you may have. If you are not able to attend this meeting, this information will also be posted to the City’s website, which is linked below, or you can reach out to Customer Service for assistance.
In addition to the meeting, a project page has been created on the City’s website, where you can find regular updates, key milestones, and important details throughout the construction process: https://letstalk.mercergov.org/town-center-parking-project.
We encourage you to visit this page to stay informed.
If you have any immediate questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the City’s Customer Service Team at 206-275-7600 or email at customerservice@mercerisland.gov.
Sincerely,
Ian Powell
Street Engineer
Direct: 206.275.7813
E-Mail: ian.powell@mercerisland.gov
Project Update

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At the January 21 regular meeting, the City Council awarded the Commuter Parking Facility contract to OMA Construction. Construction of the Commuter Parking Facility is scheduled to begin in late February 2025 and be substantially completed by the end of June 2025. You can view the final facility site plan here. City staff will keep the community updated as to progress with the construction of the facility.
This project involves the demolition of the existing building and foundation and removal of all existing pavement and sidewalks. This also includes capping and abandoning existing building utility services. Followers of this project will recall that the former Tully’s Coffee shop building has been in poor condition for several years, stripped of all furnishings and inoperable, used only for storage in recent years.
The project will regrade the site, construct 35 parking stalls, construct new pavement and sidewalks, construct a new surface water treatment system, improve the site’s illumination, provide infrastructure for future electric vehicle charging capability, and install new plantings along with a new irrigation system.
Later this year, the City Council will review operations policies related to the new commuter parking lot. This discussion is tentatively planned for March 2025, when the City Council will also continue discussions about the new Town Center parking regulations.
In addition to awarding the construction contract, the City Council also converted areas of the Commuter Parking Project lot to right-of-way to allow parking enforcement to be performed by the Mercer Island Police Department by adopting Resolution No. 1669.
Design Finalized

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The project team has nearly completed the design of the Town Center Long-Term Regional Transit Commuter Parking Project and are excited to share the next steps with the community.
The final design includes the development of a surface parking lot to deliver convenient commuter parking in addition to bike lockers, bike racks, and other amenities for commuters. The Commuter Parking Project site consists of three different parcels acquired and assembled over multiple years - including the former Tully’s Property - for the purpose of providing long-term regional transit commuter parking.
The design integrates several transit-oriented development features that support transit ridership and a pedestrian-oriented downtown. These design features include a widened sidewalk along SE 27th street and a new direct pedestrian pathway between downtown, the regional I-90 trail, and the light rail station, and improved lighting between downtown and the light rail station. Additionally, this design supports community use for community events that currently use this space, such as the annual Mercer Island Art UnCorked event. These events will benefit from the improved pedestrian environment and regional accessibility by light rail. These improvements are necessary to continue investing in the vision for Mercer Island’s Town Center as a walkable, pedestrian–oriented retail, commercial, and housing hub for the community, with accessibility by transit for regional employment and other opportunities.
Specific effort was taken to develop a design that maximizes the use of space while supporting the adjacent Greta Hackett Outdoor Sculpture Gallery. While the park’s layout will change as part of this project, there will be an overall increase in park and green space and the project will result in a net reduction in hardscapes and impervious surfaces- see the greenspace diagram here.
The project will be going out to bid in the coming weeks, with construction expected to begin in Q1 of 2025 and concluding in the summer of 2025.
Design Progress Update

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City staff has been working with the architecture firm Northwest Studio to continue planning for the construction of the commuter parking area. Work includes incorporating feedback from City Council into conceptual designs, continuing the design process, preparing an engineer’s cost estimate, and drafting parking regulations and an enforcement policy.