Brooks Sports, Inc., the parent of Brooks and Moving Comfort, will be relocating its headquarters from Bothell, WA to Seattle's Fremont/Wallingford area. With a move-in date slated for late 2013, Brooks Sports will occupy roughly 80,000 usable square feet of a new 120,000-square-foot building, which is located across from Seattle's Burke-Gilman Trail. The ground floor of the building will also house the brands' first ever retail concept shop
The five-story building, which is part of Seattle's Living Building Pilot Program that encourages sustainable construction, is being developed by Skanska USA. A subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., Brooks is headquartered in Bothell, WA.
“We have an incredible opportunity to create a new home for our leading performance brands that exemplifies who we are and ingrains us in the local running community,” said Jim Weber, president and CEO of Brooks Sports, Inc. “Brooks' mission is to inspire people to run and be active, and it's our hope that we become a welcoming trailhead along the Burke-Gilman Trail. We believe runners, walkers and others will gather at Brooks to meet friends, start their workouts and celebrate a good run.”
Recently named to Outside magazine's fourth annual “Best Places to Work” list, Brooks Sports, Inc., is experiencing double-digit, year-over-year growth. In the running category, Brooks passed all competitors to take the No. 1 market share position in specialty running, a leadership shift that hasn't occurred in more than 15 years. Sports bra and women's fitness apparel brand Moving Comfort holds the No. 1 market share position for sports bra sales in the specialty run channel.
“We are excited to have found a community and a tenant, whose company aligns so well with ours and the deep green strategies planned for this building,” said Lisa Picard, executive vice president of Skanska USA Commercial Development's Seattle office. “All of us are committed to vibrant placemaking within our urban communities.”
Skanska USA Commercial Development has signed a long-term ground lease with Suzie Burke, a major landowner in Fremont, at the intersection of Stone Way N. and North 34th St.-adjacent to the Burke-Gilman Trail. The site offers the developer a unique opportunity to create a meaningful trailhead-a gathering place for the community and trail users-that is anchored by Brooks, a brand that promotes an active lifestyle.
“Brooks Sports' decision to locate in Seattle means 300 new jobs. That's a big deal for us right now. It shows that Seattle has what it takes to attract significant new investment even in these tough economic times,” said Mayor McGinn. “And Skanska's response to the Seattle Living Building Pilot Program is evidence of regulatory reform facilitating job creation in Seattle. This is a win for business and a win for Seattle.”
The 3400 Stone project is Skanska USA's first development effort in the Seattle market. The project is participating in the City of Seattle's Living Building Pilot Program, which encourages the implementation of sustainable strategies toward the Living Building Challenge. Designing a building to the requirements set forth by the City's Pilot Program-for example, water and energy use must be reduced by more than 75-percent-is rigorous and risky for today's developers. Such projects provide benefits to tenants and the community by lowering energy use, providing greater access to daylight and strong ground-floor community connection. 3400 Stone is the second project since 2010, and the first market-rate project, to pursue the City's Pilot Program.
