King County and Alliance Wasatch I, LLC, a joint venture between Alliance Property Group Inc. and Wasatch Advantage Group, LLC ("Alliance") joined Sound Transit, the City of Burien, and Pankow Builders in hosting a groundbreaking Oct. 23 for the park-and-ride expansion project at the Burien Transit Center.

The ceremony at the Burien park-and-ride lot, kicked off construction of a multi-level, 462-stall garage and an adjoining 43-space surface lot that will add 164 spaces to the transit center's parking capacity.

A key element of the county's effort to create a sustainable transportation hub in Burien, and the city's overall vision for downtown, the $20.5 million project represents the second phase of the county's three-phase redevelopment of the transit center.

When completed late next year, the garage will occupy the north end of the county's park-and-ride lot and include 10 charging units for electric vehicles with capacity for 40 additional charging stations.

Project partners said they are looking forward to breaking ground on a project that will create well-paying jobs in South King County at a time when effects of the recession are still being felt.

"This is a very exciting milestone for the City of Burien," said Burien Mayor Joan McGilton. "We have worked with King County Metro and Sound Transit for several years to make this project a reality, and we are pleased and grateful that it is officially getting underway. This is another positive step in Burien's effort to make our downtown a true regional growth center."

The third and final phase of the transit center redevelopment includes a transit-oriented development (TOD) project with commercial retail space and affordable housing at the south end of the lot, adjacent to the new garage.

The county has awarded Alliance an exclusive right to negotiate with the county for development of the TOD project. Due to the downturn in the economy the TOD portion of the project is on hold. However, while opportunities for TOD are being pursued, Alliance must pay the County $5,000 per month, which constitutes fair market rent for the property, for a period of two years.

The Transit Center provides Metro and ST Express connections for commuters and residents to downtown Burien, Highline Community College, Sea-Tac Airport and the Tukwila/International Boulevard Link light rail station. The transit center will also be the western terminus of the Metro RapidRide F Line.

In addition to $14.7 million from Sound Transit, the county has secured $7.3 million in Federal Transit Administration grants for project design and construction. Charles Pankow Builders, Ltd., of Oakland, California is the design-build contractor for the garage.