Is there new life for the old Nordstrom building in Anchorage?

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Mayor Suzanne LaFrance’s administration introduced an ordinance at Tuesday’s Assembly meeting that could begin the process of breathing new life into the old Nordstrom building in downtown Anchorage.

The building has sat vacant on the corner of Sixth and D Streets ever since the company announced it was shutting its doors in 2019 after more than 50 years of doing business in the brick-and-mortar store.

The ordinance would transfer the city owned property, which includes the majority of the building and the land underneath it, to the Anchorage Community Development Authority (ACDA), which in turn would begin the process of putting together a development plan, finding a developer and redeveloping the building.

“This building was once a landmark of retail growth,” Mayor LaFrance said during the meeting. “This transfer is an important step toward advancing a project to reimagine an iconic building and encouraging further economic development.”

“It is our goal to turn that building into something that can be used,” ACDA Executive Director Mike Robbins said.

Robbins said that could include housing and specialty retail stores, adding there has been quite a bit of interest from developers since word got out that the project is happening.

“I had three texts from developers this morning [saying], ‘I’d like to make sure I’m involved, I’m on the list, I want to know,’“ Robbins said.

Robbins said there would likely be incentives for developers including property tax breaks as well as discounts on the building lease to make sure that the eventual project pencils out.

Tuesday’s meeting scheduled a public hearing on the ordinance for the Assembly meeting on March 24, so that the Downtown Community Council can discuss it themselves during their March 4 meeting.

If the ordinance passes, Robbins said, he expects the property will be transferred to ACDA in March, which will begin work immediately on a development plan. If all goes well, he said there could be activity inside the building by the end of this year.

See a spelling or grammar error? Report it to web@ktuu.com