Construction resumes on $130 million Marina Square project downtown

BREMERTON — Construction on Marina Square, the $130 million housing development on the Bremerton waterfront, resumed this month after a nine-month shutdown.   

The massive two-tower project was initially planned to include residential apartments and a Cambria hotel built over a three-story parking garage. Developers Sound West Group paused construction in April 2020 while they redesigned the project as short-term housing for Navy contractors.

“We all want a hotel on the waterfront and we'd love to see that happen, but this was a practical direction given the time and circumstances, but we're still looking to utilize at least part of it for the short term stay,” Sound West Group CEO Wes Larson said.

The north tower will remain a 125-unit market-rate apartment complex. The south tower will be 155 units of “workforce housing” – mixed-use suites and studios aimed at Navy personnel and shipyard workers. Forty-five units will be set aside as “interim stay” suites for temporary government contractors.

Floorplans for units in the south tower will stay the same, keeping the possibility of a hotel open in the future. The south tower will be a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom units starting at $1,370 a month, according to Larson.

“Everything is there in place and we could pivot and do a hotel,” Larson said.

The 363-stall parking garage is complete and will be available for Marina Square residents, commercial tenants and Port of Bremerton tenants.

The new designs replace a planned restaurant and bar area with additional rooms, but Larson said the infrastructure for a restaurant will be built in to allow for a potential eatery in the future.

“The whole point was to keep it flexible, keep the options open and go forward on that basis,” Larson said.

Sound West Group paused construction while redesigning the project and reapplying for permits. Financing the project was also a challenge – the COVID-19 pandemic has decimated the hospitality industry and made it difficult to get loans for hotel projects, Larson said.

“It’s a quasi-multi-family hospitality asset, you know workforce housing, and that’s a novel concept and most banks don’t have a category for that type of loan,” Larson said.

Sound West Group was ultimately able to finance the rest of the construction. Larson estimated that developers spent $1.5 million over the last eight months to keep the rented crane on the property and pay construction contractors. He estimated the new price tag of the project would come in around $130 million. 

Larson estimated construction will take between 16 and 18 months, with an expected opening date in spring 2022.