When Amazon chose downtown Seattle for its massive urban campus, John Schoettler, Amazon’s vice president of global real estate, wanted to create a thriving “18-hour” neighborhood.
To some extent, Amazon has succeeded. In a decade, nonstop development has transformed Seattle’s South Lake Union and Denny Triangle from a sea of parking lots, car rental agencies, motels, and warehouses to gleaming office towers and luxury real estate.
Restaurants, gyms, cafès, and even medical clinics have moved in, drawn by Amazon’s ever-expanding workforce and the promise of high-salaried residents due to move into the thousands of newly-built luxury apartments.