Top Multi-Asset-Class Development Management Firm and Apartment Developer Starting Two Major Multifamily TOD Projects in Shoreline; Company Continues Strong Growth Trajectory in Seattle’s Dynamic Real Estate Market
SEATTLE — Spectrum Development Solutions, LLC, announced today that it has consolidated the ownership and executive-leadership team at the firm, widely known for its high-impact development, investment, and real estate advisory and owners-representation services. Spectrum is now wholly owned and operated by Jake McKinstry and Gabe Grant, long-time principals at the Seattle-based company. Founder Hal Ferris officially retired from Spectrum on Dec. 29, 2021, and McKinstry, who has been with the company since 2011, is now Managing Member.“
With so much recent growth in our urban communities, we find ourselves at a critical juncture in our cities’ future,” said McKinstry, a Seattle native and renowned expert in mixed-use and affordable housing. “This transition perfectly positions us to help manage that growth in a sustainable way, and for a wide range of community stakeholders.”
Grant, another life-long Seattleite known for managing complex real estate transactions and a deep commitment to civic affairs, added, “We’re extremely excited about our robust real estate portfolio, especially our recent deliveries and new ground-up development projects. Together, these assets will positively impact local neighborhoods for decades to come.”
The announcement comes at a time of tremendous growth for Spectrum, which is starting two large-scale Transit Oriented Development (TOD) apartment projects adjacent to Shoreline’s future South Light Rail Station, both of which will be targeted to workforce renters earning between 70% and 120% of AMI. Burl, a 172-unit community slated for completion in Fall 2024, will break ground later this year. Spectrum’s other new Shoreline development, Shed, is scheduled to deliver approximately 210 units in late 2025. Both projects will target LEED Gold Certification and benefit significantly from convenient proximity to mass transit, major employment centers and Shoreline’s award-winning public school district. Spectrum created a new investment platform for its Shoreline mixed-use portfolio and is partnering with Snowball Investment and other likeminded investors attracted by the once-in-a-generation opportunity to develop high-quality apartments immediately adjacent to the new light rail station.
Spectrum was started in 2008 with the goal of delivering projects that make communities morevibrant, inclusive, and healthy. Wearing multiple hats as a trusted real estate advisor, owner’s representative, and developer, the company takes an entrepreneurial and socially conscience approach to real estate, specializing in a wide range of product types, including multi-family, student housing, healthcare, and higher ed, not to mention civic-oriented and environmentally sustainable buildings. Spectrum’s completed and in-development portfolio includes over 1,200 apartments, approximately 8,000 beds of student housing, more than 500,000 square feet of healthcare space, and almost 200,000 square feet of civic space — all in the Puget Sound marketplace.
This past fall, Spectrum completed Orenda at Othello Square in partnership with Laird Norton Properties. The mixed-use building features 176 units of workforce housing and a new 50,000-square-foot Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic and Tiny Tots Daycare serving the Southeast Seattle community. Moreover, an impact-equity investment from Seattle Children’s allowed Spectrum to double the affordability at Orenda — providing nearly half of the units at 80% or less of AMI for 20 years. It’s an innovative Impact Equity structure and a major milestone given the ongoing housing-affordability crisis in Seattle.
Spectrum also recently delivered Stateside, a 270,000-square-foot student-housing project at Bellingham’s Western Washington University, also in partnership with Laird Norton Properties. The two-building Stateside project features 513 beds, thoughtfully designed common areas, robust amenities — including a fitness center, study room, rooftop deck, and community kitchen, to name just a few — and convenient access to local mass transit, downtown Bellingham, and the University. Stateside also includes a new center for community-based engagement called the Western Washington University Community Commons, created to inspire connection and coalition building between WWU’s 15,000 Bellingham campus students and community partners.
Spectrum’s Northwest Kidney Centers – Rainier Beach Clinic project recently received the distinguished National Top 10 AIA Cote Award recognizing sustainable design excellence. Designed by Mahlum, the 12,000-square-foot building provides local residents with a much-needed dialysis center in a highly sustainable environment. Spectrum is pursuing LEED Silver Certification for the project, the first of its kind to incorporate an indoor courtyard offering restorative properties to patients.
About Spectrum Development Solutions, LLC
Spectrum Development Solutions is a mission-driven real estate development and advisory company with a diverse, cross-sector focus spanning multifamily and workforce housing, student housing, higher ed, healthcare, civic, and non-profit projects. All of Spectrum’s projects have a strong community focus with an emphasis on transit-oriented and environmentally sustainable development.
