Nordstrom Plans $70 Million Tower

Nordstrom and Clise Properties plan to build a $70 million office tower downtown on the former site of the Music Hall Theater stands, the companies announced Friday.

The building - near the old Frederick & Nelson building, a 1918 structure being refurbished for use as Nordstrom’s flagship store - will be used to consolidate many of the retailer’s scattered regional and corporate offices. Nordstrom employees are expected to occupy about 90 percent of the new tower.

The planned 380,000 square-foot office building will be at least 20 stories tall and is expected to be ready for occupancy in 2001, said Brooke White, company spokeswoman. Construction is to begin in 1999.

Nordstrom employs about 2,000 people in its corporate and Washington-region offices, currently housed in six downtown buildings.