Timeline

1868: Leonard P Smith and his wife land on Alki Point, staking their claim as some of Seattle’s first European settlers. Leonard P Smith

1948: One credit shy of graduating from the University of Washington, Hans Martin Smith, Greg Smith's father, is hired by the late Henry Broderick and mentored as a property management specialist. Henry Broderick

1974: Martin leaves Henry Broderick to form his own real estate company, Martin Smith Inc. (MSI). Martin Smith

1980: Greg Smith begins working for MSI. Greg was amongst the first to bring computer evaluation software into the workplace, performing investment analyses on the computer. Thanks to Greg’s avant-garde mentality, MSI was given a competitive edge in the 80’s when most real estate companies were still performing guesswork.

1995: MSI is the second largest property manager in the Puget Sound area, managing close to six million square feet (Real Estate Quarterly, 8/4/95.)

1995: Greg founds MSI Development.

1995: An entity led by Greg Smith acquires the Millennium Tower development site for $2,000,000.

1997: Greg Smith brokers the sale of US Bank Centre to Bentall Capital for a record setting $265 price per square foot.

1998: MSI Development breaks ground on the $69 million Millennium Tower project.

1999: MSI Development announces the sale of the IDX Tower site for a record $800 per land foot.

1999: An LLC led by Greg Smith acquires a 300,000 square foot development site located on the west side of the Qwest and Safeco Fields, commonly referred to as WOSCA or Stadium West.

2000: Greg and his two partners at MSI acquire more than $100 million in local assets.

2002: An entity led by Urban Visions acquires The Reedo Building for redevelopment after the Nisqually Earthquake leaves it in shambles.

2002: An entity led by Urban Visions acquires the 500 Fairview site in South Lake Union.

2003: Greg Smith leaves MSI to form Urban Visions (formerly Gregory Broderick Smith Real Estate.)

2003: A partnership, led by Greg Smith, sells the Millenium Tower office building to Metzler North America for a record $324 per square foot.

2004: Urban Visions acquires a 7 acre development site on the East side of Qwest Field and Safeco Field, now referred to as Stadium East or Stadium Auto Center.

2004: Dana Beckley becomes a Principal of Urban Visions.

2004: Urban Visions acquires a 20,000 square foot development site located at the intersection of 2nd & Pike.

2004: Beacon Capital selects Urban Visions to manage the strategic renovation of its newly acquired 901 5th Avenue office tower; an affiliate of Urban Visions, Silverback Development, is also selected as the construction manager for the 24 story 5th & Madison condo tower.

2005: Urban Visions sells its 500 Fairview office site for $257 per rentable square foot.

2005: Urban Visions leases the 11,000 square foot retail portion of the Reedo Building to Elysian Fields.

2005: Construction begins on 5th & Madison Condominium Tower.

2006: Construction on the 53,600 SF Reedo Building is completed.

2006: Urban Visions leases the remaining 42,000 square feet of the newly renovated Reedo Building to Starbucks’ IT Department.

2006: An entity led by Urban Visions acquires the Liberty Building, a 13,500 square foot retail structure along Pike Street between 1st and 2nd Avenue. The existing tenants, which included a pawn shop and adult bookstore, were evicted in order to clean up the area.

2006: The Reedo Building is a finalist in the SIOR 2006 Office Development of the Year awards.

2007: Beacon Capital sells the 901 5th Avenue parcel and Condominium Tower for a hefty profit.

2007: Urban Visions sells half of a 7 acre property located along 1st Avenue near the Stadiums to the Washington State Department of Transportation for $195 per land foot.

2008: Urban Visions leases the Liberty Building to The Hard Rock Café.

2009: Urban Visions sells the remaining 4 acre Stadium West assemblage to the Washington State Department of Transportation for $258 per square foot.

2010: The Hard Rock Café opens at the Liberty Building - the newly renovated structure is LEED certified, and includes a retail store, restaurant, concert venue, and rooftop lounge.