Belltown, which includes the Denny Regrade neighborhood, is a half-mile strip between the Seattle Center and Elliott Bay. Over the past few years, numerous apartment and condo projects have popped up to take advantage of the growing number of Seattle's urban dwellers and the high rents commanded in Belltown.

Joseph Strobele, VP of development for Legacy Residential's northwest region, tells GlobeSt.com that Belltown was selected for the development because "even though it is still in CBD Seattle, it has a more residential feel," and high rents commanded in the area "make it ideal" for the high-end residential project. The targeted demographic sectors for the Olympus, within blocks of both Seattle Center and Pike Place Market, are Seattle's affluent techies and professionals, more and more of whom are being drawn to, and can afford, up-scale urban living.

According to Strobele, Legacy has been able to do more with the project in comparison to other residential developments in Belltown because its site is a full city block (flanked by Elliott and Western Avenues). "The Olympus is a condominium-quality project as far as location and spec level," says Strobele, with the towers oriented to provide 75% of the units with at least some view of Elliott Bay. The VP says comparable condominiums would be very expensive and believes Legacy has built a "better mousetrap" by building condo quality apartments, which will be affordable by its target tenants.