Close to the 405 corridors and the heart of downtown Kirkland sits the Rose Hill Shopping Center: a 40-year-old retail center and mall area growing more outdated by the day. The seven-acre site, which lacks residential or green spaces, was ready for a transformation, one that would help holistically foster a healthy, walkable community and support the growing tech company campuses nearby.

Madison Development Group partnered with MG2 to master plan, design, and develop the new Rose Hill: an innovative multi-block, mixed-use community campus project. Bringing to life seven unique buildings connected by a walkable, pedestrian-centric courtyard experience, Rose Hill will play host to over 830 residential units, 84,200 sq/ft of retail and grocery space, and 1,049 parking stalls, creating a memorable destination for the entire city of Kirkland and beyond.

One of the largest multifamily residence projects in the Seattle area, MG2 designers were tasked with establishing a livable community that felt like it’d always belonged there. The topography’s steep grading—a challenge our team has worked with before—was cleverly used to the site design’s favor, creating multiple entry points to the tiered complex. The central pedestrian plaza, a lush, tree-scaped, walkable courtyard bordered by active retail, is publicly accessible via a grand terraced staircase from 85th Street. The parking structure’s first floor features open-air, landscaped elements which blend seamlessly with the rest of the complex.

Moving through the campus, which is designed to encourage interaction, exploration, and curiosity, residents and visitors can easily see the variety of amenities and landmarks the property offers. Amenities are purposefully dispersed across several buildings, each of which is crafted to radiate their own personality inside and out while still speaking the same design language. The contextual significance of Rose Hill helps foster a sense of place; as one of the most pedestrian, walkability-focused projects in the neighborhood, this top-of-mind awareness of personable facilities and amenities fosters familiarity as well as continued inquisitiveness.

MG2’s unique cross-market expertise, integrated services packages, and long-standing relationships with retailers like PCC, Costco, and Target ensured that our team understood the intricate nuances of how a diverse, thriving, healthy community like Rose Hill would need to be designed for future success. Partnering closely with the client on timelines, the project has been broken down into a three-phased approach, ensuring that no detail is overlooked as we add 783 new multifamily homes and 77,000 SF of retail space to the community.