Image6_2I attended Escala’s ground breaking event yesterday morning. The sales center for this ultra-high end condo in Midtown (Seattle’s largest residential Tower) is currently under construction; however, the sales center did showcase a full scale 2,600 square foot model home.

Some tidbits:

  • Custom designed Italian cabinetry system
  • Premium appliances from Bosch
  • Gaggenau gas stoves
  • Kohler multiple shower heads in the bathroom
  • Semi-private elevators
  • 9 ½ to 12 foot ceilings height
  • Most units will have expansive outdoor terraces

Photo Gallery.

Here are a couple of questions that I asked Sam Cunninghan, Escala’s sales manager.

How did the developer decide what type of amenities go into the building?

We listen to homebuyers’ needs. We had a focus group two years ago and a group of homebuyers were invited to take part in the planning of Escala amenities. We let homebuyers tell us the type of amenities that they are looking for in a condo. We put the information together and came up with the amenities that are the most appealing and important to them.

How is Escala different from Cristalla?

Cristalla is a really nice building, however, Escala has more comprehensive and luxurious amenitites. Our 25,000 square foot city club features a full service gym with a spa, lap pool, bar and lounge with a large, south facing terrace lined by a dramatic water feature, theater, event center, game room, meeting room, and wine cave with storage. Home owners can store their wine collection in the wine cave at no cost. In Cristalla, owners have to pay for it. The dinner club is also for the exclusive use of the residents. If they want to host a holiday dinner, they can use the club and send the bill up to their room. This is also something that is not available in Cristalla.

Another difference is that Cristalla has an above-grade parking while Escala’s parking will be contained in eight floors of subterranean garage giving the building exterior a cleaner look. Rising from the two-story base is a contemporary glass tower with sleek, rounded ends.

The number of options to customize their interior finishes or terrace is another difference. Homebuyers have the option to choose the type of Pedini cabinetry that they would like to install in their kitchen or bedroom. They also have the option for a built in barbeque pit, entertainment system, double sided fire place and flat screen TV hook up in the expansive terrace.

So what will the completed sales center offer?

Beside the full scale model home, there will be an extensive display of bathroom and kitchen vignettes. We found that small sample of the finishes is not enough to help our homebuyers visualize the final finished product that they are going to see in their new home. Large slab of granite countertops and finishes will be display to help them.

The sales center is scheduled for completion in March when home sales will start. The building features 265 residential units. To date, Escala has received a total of 140 reservations (some in back up positions), with a few owners looking at combining two units into one home.

Homes range from 950 square feet to 3,000 square feet.  Prices start from mid $500,000s to more than $5 million. Penthouse pricing is available upon request.

SCR Scorecard

Exterior        Excellent

Interior        Excellent

Location      Very good

View             Good

Amenities     Excellent

Value          Average

Overall       Very Good

Pros

-Comprehensive and luxurious amenities

-Walking distance to Downtown, Belltown and Pike Market

Cons

– Smaller floor plans are not available in this building

Final thoughts:

Escala is definitely taking condo living to the next level with its unique design and luxurious amenities.  Even for someone like me who looks at condos every day, it’s hard not to be impressed with Escala’s potential. Previous post.

-Wendy

Technorati Tags: Cristalla, Escala, Lexas, Midtown condos, Downtown condos, midtown condo, downtown condo, 4th and virginia, 2nd and Lenora