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Press Release

Lennar Multifamily Communities Announces Start of Construction on Atlas

Atlas rendering 11 x 17

Lennar Multifamily Communities Announces Start of Construction on Atlas, the First Multifamily Community Approved Under the Central Issaquah Plan


SEATTLE (Feb 18, 2015) – Lennar Multifamily Communities began excavation this week on its Atlas multifamily community in Issaquah. Located west of downtown Issaquah at NW Gilman Boulevard and 7th Avenue NW, Atlas will include three five-story buildings containing 344 apartments, approximately 450 parking stalls, including 310 secure underground stalls, a variety of indoor and outdoor amenities, and a large area of landscaped open space. Atlas will be the first major apartment community to be developed in Issaquah’s urban core under the new Central Issaquah Plan.

The purpose of the Central Issaquah Plan is to guide the transition of Issaquah’s urban core from a low-rise, low-density collection of strip retail centers, office buildings, and parking lots into a more sustainable urban area that emphasizes higher densities, jobs, housing, environmental protection, and rapid transit.

“With this project, Issaquah is sending a message to the region that we are open for investment. Atlas is one of the first significant redevelopment projects in our commercial core, where we’re adding homes, jobs, and amenities to create a walkable, urban neighborhood with an outstanding quality of life,” said Keith Niven, Economic Development Director at the City of Issaquah. “Not only will this project add needed housing options, it will also expand our ‘green necklace’ of public open space throughout Issaquah.”

Atlas will feature studios, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom units in a range of sizes. Community amenities will include a state-of-the art fitness center with a yoga room, meeting and collaboration areas with wi-fi access, numerous areas for cooking, movie watching, and gathering, and two large outdoor patios with barbecues and a fire pit.

"We are excited to be a part of the Issaquah community," said Brad Reisinger, Division President of Lennar Multifamily Communities for the Pacific Northwest. “ Atlas will be a life- style community for residents who seek urban walkability in a suburban market with great schools and a very quaint downtown. We were specifically drawn to this location due to the walkable access to both the main street retail along Front Street as well as the larger retail presence along Gilman Boulevard.

According to Reisinger, young professionals, small families, and empty nesters who value both access to job centers and proximity to outdoor recreation comprise Lennar’s target market for Atlas. “You can bike from your front door to world class mountain biking terrain or be on the ski slopes in under 30 minutes,” he said.

One of Atlas’s unique features is that the 6.3-acre site borders Issaquah Creek, which supports a thriving salmon run— Chinook, coho, and sockeye salmon as well as coastal cutthroat trout and steelhead. A 1.5-acre portion of the property will be dedicated to the City of Issaquah as a park. As part of its contribution to the City, Lennar is reconstructing the shoreline area and restoring native plantings to improve habitat for salmon, while also incorporating a trail system for residents and the public to access and enjoy the stream environment.

“The project achieves a delicate balance of improving Issaquah Creek and stream buffer habitat with building a new residential development,” said City of Issaquah Environmental Planner Peter Rosen.

Atlas was designed by the Seattle architecture and landscape architecture firm GGLO and is being constructed by Andersen Construction.

About Lennar Multifamily Communities 


Lennar Multifamily Communities is a real estate investment started by the Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN), one of the nation’s leading homebuilders, as an initiative to combine its financial and entrepreneurial strength with favorable apartment fundamentals nationwide. Founded in mid-2011, Lennar Multifamily Communities is focused on assembling a geographically diversified portfolio of institutional quality multifamily rental properties using both a development and value-add acquisition strategy in selected U.S. markets. Lennar Multifamily Communities co- invests with both institutional and private equity partners, providing the partnerships with fully integrated service capabilities, including construction management, asset management and property management. Lennar Multifamily Communities’ investment strategy is a market research based approach, focusing on risk-adjusted yields on properties in quality urban, Transit Oriented Developments and suburban locations. For additional information about Lennar Multifamily Communities, please visit the "Investor Relations" section of the Company's Web site, www.lennar.com.

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Emi McKittrick

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Emikom@pastakiallc.com