The Esplanade to Break Ground

Thea’s Landing is getting a neighbor!  The Esplanade is about to break ground on 176 waterfront condos plus retail space in the large dirt lot to the North of Thea’s.  From the TNT:

“Let’s go as fast as we can go now,” said Mark Ossola, a Los Angeles-based developer.

Large tractors are coming in next month to start driving the first of 600 piles that will secure the $75 million project, which should be completed by the summer of 2007. 

Does Tacoma need more high end condos?  We’ll see.  Does that area need more mixed use buildings.  Absolutely.  Give us a reason to go down there for something other than martinis at the Blue Olive or a Museum of Glass opening. 

As a side note/rant:  The developers used a Salt Lake Based web company to design the Esplanade website.  While it is very nice looking, its use of popup messages to tell you the site isn’t ready for prime-time is extremely annoying.  Either bring the site up at full speed or provide a stripped down site until the rest is ready.  If I click on something I expect something back.  Don’t give us ten links that go nowhere but a popup message telling us to find a specific link.  Drive us there yourself. 

Link to The News Tribune

Link to the Esplanade