The Burien Council agreed on March 6 to allow Bartell Drugs for Town Square construction. to stay at its present downtown location for an additional six months.

The parcel at 601 S.W. 150th St., where the Bartell store is located, has been condemned by the city for development of the Town Square project.

By allowing Bartell to remain on the condemned property, lawmakers temporarily extended locally the viability of the business.

“This is a far cry from where I thought we were several months ago, when I thought Bartell was out the door and my heart was breaking because they have a long history with [Burien],” declared Councilwoman Rose Clark.

“I’m totally delighted that we have come to this point where we know they will be here.”

During the meeting, council members approved two motions to help facilitate the store’s transition.

The first motion authorizes Interim City Manager David Cline to execute an amendment to the Disposition and Development Agreement between Urban Ventures Burien LLC -- the private developer of Town -- and the city.

This agreement, adopted by the city last summer, requires that all property for Town Square be purchased and vacated no later than December 31, 2006, to clear the way for construction.

But since then, Cline said, it has become necessary to extend the closing date for the Bartell parcel to facilitate the store’s move to its new location.

Council members then authorized an extension of the closing date to June 1, 2007.

“With [this] agreement we get to retain a key business in our downtown zone,” Cline declared.

Burien Economic Development Director Dick Loman noted the amendment simply lets Bartell remain at the present location for another six months, and that nothing else in the agreement has changed.

He added that this agreement also required the cooperation and accommodation of Urban Partners.

“We’re still on schedule. We are still very excited that this project is moving forward,” said John Gunn of Urban Partners.

Gunn said that, within the context of the original agreement, Urban Partners intends to start work on Town Square with demolition of the old Gottchalk's building in October and construction beginning next January.

The existing city hall will not be taken down until March 2007 to allow for a transition period for the council to move out of the building, he added.

Councilwoman Sally Nelson asked Gunn if this amendment would adversely impact Urban Partner’s ability to move forward.

“The amendment only impacts the schedule slightly,” he replied. “The original intent was to start construction in April 2007, so moving it to June is not a big inconvenience for us.”

Deputy Mayor Jack Block Jr. thanked Urban Partners for their flexibility in working with the city, observing that the agreement “is another sign that this is going to be a successful project.”

The second motion approved by the council states that the city agrees with Bartell remaining at its present location through June 2007.

Lowman said this action was required because the city already has filed an eminent domain lawsuit to condemn the property.

Aside from the legal technicalities, Lowman said the critical factor is that the city is keeping a business downtown by providing enough time for Bartell to build a new store.

“It’s a win-win situation for everybody,” he said.

Clark said now that the agreement is in place, the city can work on the cost and what they will pay Bartell for the lease.