Central Waterfront

When an evergreen tree was placed atop the Seattle Marriott Waterfront Hotel in August 2002, it celebrated not only that the highest point had been reached in the hotel's construction, but also the approaching completion of the Port of Seattle's central waterfront revitalization project.

View of Anthony's restaurant and Bell Harbor Marina taken from the rooftop public plaza above the Odyssey Maritime Discovery Center.

More than a decade in the planning, Seattle's central waterfront is a prime example of how judicious real estate development and mixed uses can paint a new economic picture for an area.

In the decades following World War II, many of the fishing and cargo companies that lined the waterfront closed their doors. Piers fell into disrepair and the waterfront, which should have been an attraction, became an eyesore. Several proposals for revitalization failed until, in 1985, the Port of Seattle began planning to redevelop Port property along the waterfront and acquired additional property east of Alaskan Way.

This put nearly 17 acres of contiguous waterfront property under public ownership.

An extensive series of public meetings and development ideas resulted in a central waterfront revitalization design that melded traditional waterfront uses with the tools of modern international trade.

At a glance, the Central Waterfront now includes:

Anthony's Restaurants: Three levels of service, from fast food to fine dining, all specializing in fresh seafood.
Bell Harbor International Conference Center: Offering built-in simultaneous interpretation capabilities, meticulously designed meeting rooms and state-of-the-art audio-visual services.
Bell Harbor Marina: Providing short-stay moorage for vessels, with easy access to downtown, shopping and sports stadiums.
Bell Street Pier Cruise Terminal: Providing a comfortable and attractive passenger terminal with 1,900 feet of pier apron for cruise ships.
Marriott Waterfront Hotel: The 358-room, eight-story hotel is the second hotel on the downtown waterfront.
Odyssey Maritime Discover Center: Providing interactive exhibits to inform visitors about the intricacies and importance of today's maritime industry.
Public Plazas: A rooftop plaza on the main building with sky bridge crossing Alaskan Way, and a pier-level plaza with an interactive children's fountain and street access to Pike Place Market via the Lenora Street pedestrian elevator and bridge.
World Trade Center offices: Serving organizations that develop and facilitate international trade, and housing trade-related non-profit organizations.
Waterfront Landings condominiums: Just south of Lenora Street, providing 240 homes facing Elliott Bay.

Add to these improvements the Port of Seattle's Pier 69 headquarters completed in 1993, and the recently refurbished Edgewater Hotel, and you have an appealing, revitalized central waterfront that bolsters the area's economic health by attracting local residents as well as tourists, and adds to the city's cultural vitality through its mixed uses and interests.