Hearing Examiner Fred Kaufman recently approved — with basic conditions — the plans for a downtown apartment and retail building that would take up five downtown lots anchored by Jet City Espresso, at the southwest corner of South Second Street and Main Avenue South.

The proposed six-story building is called 2nd and Main Apartments. Designed by TSA Architects, the building is planned to contain one level of underground parking, one story of retail space and five stories of apartments, totaling 101 units. The building’s footprint would be just over 26,000 square feet.

The hearing examiner was required to approve the building’s site plan as well as a conditional use permit. TKaufman’s four conditions for approving the plan for the 2nd and Main Apartments relate to the appearance and safety of the building.

One condition states that a piece of public art must be prominently displayed at the northeast corner of the building. This public art piece is a tradeoff for the complex’s increased density.

City officials are tagging the U-shaped 2nd and Main Apartments as a gateway to a revitalized downtown.

N & C Investments LLC is the project’s developer. The Bellevue company owns the five downtown lots. Permits still need to be filed, but construction is planned for August or September.

“We are thrilled and excited about the approval of the 2nd and Main Apartments by the hearing examiner, and look forward to being a part of the revitalization of the Downtown area,” Iolanthe Chan-McCarthy wrote in an e-mail. Chan-McCarthy is one of N & C’s principal owners.

Jet City is the only business occupying the lots. The coffee shop’s future is uncertain.