At the corner of S Alaska St. and Martin Luther King Jr. Way S in Columbia City is BDR Capital LLC’s newest building, Encore. It is a certified Built Green 4-Star, 96 unit, transit-oriented, mixed-use, apartment development.

Encore’s sister building, the Sonata, is located across the street previously profiled in a 2019 Built Green case study. The two buildings provide 187 units that straddle the Columbia City LINK Light Rail Station. Residents will enjoy a short 15 minute commute to downtown Seattle and South Lake Union job centers and 20 minutes from Sea-Tac airport via light rail. With the opening of the Eastlink expansion in 2024, residents will also be connected to Eastside tech job centers as well. A bus stop next to the building connects residents to Columbia City’s vibrant cultural center.

Some of the Built Green credits that aided them in achieving their high score were using low-emitting products, no added urea formaldehyde (NAUF) millwork and cabinets and CRI Green Label Plus carpets throughout the building. Part of their energy savings comes from the centralized high efficiency gas water heater, the extra roof insulation above the sheathing, and the small rooftop PV array and green roof. Outside of the building, all landscaping is drought-tolerant, 27% of the site’s stormwater is infiltrated onsite, and 12 of the 14 existing trees were preserved to maintain tree canopy and reduce heat island impacts.

Other than the building’s green features, Encore offers a mix of studios, 1-bedrooms, and 2-bedrooms along with an abundance of amenities for the tenants. Amenities include a Rooftop deck with Mount Rainier views, BBQs for grilling and a pet relief station. Within the building, you’ll find a heated bike storage room and tuning station, onsite storage, and community lounge with kitchen, outdoor fireplace, lounge, and dining area.