Q: Is Topgolf still coming to Hub@Everett?
A: According to Brixton Capital, the mall’s owner, yes — Topgolf is still a possibility. But a pre-application permit filing from April 2026 showed self-storage and office space on the Topgolf footprint, contradicting that claim. The two positions are actively in conflict. A pre-application meeting with the city is scheduled for May 19, which may clarify the actual direction.

Topgolf Isn’t Dead at Hub@Everett — But Brixton Capital’s Competing Plans Reveal the Uncertainty at Everett’s Biggest Mall Bet

Less than a week after we reported that Brixton Capital appeared to be replacing the long-promised Topgolf facility with self-storage and office space, the mall’s owners are pushing back — publicly insisting Topgolf is still on the table.

And that contradiction is itself the story.

When Brixton Capital filed an April 2026 pre-application permit with the city of Everett, the site plan omitted Topgolf and showed an alternative use on the 68,000-square-foot, three-story footprint where the golf entertainment venue was supposed to go. The pre-app filing suggested the Topgolf pivot was real. But when HeraldNet asked Brixton Capital directly this week, the company’s response was clear: the permit filing was “just one option on the table,” and Topgolf “could still arrive in Everett in the future.”

Topgolf’s own spokesperson declined to comment and referred questions back to Brixton Capital. Which tells you something.

Why the Contradiction Matters

When a company submits a pre-application permit to city planning staff showing a specific site plan — including new structures, uses, and parking configurations — that filing is not nothing. Pre-application meetings cost time and money. They represent a developer saying: here is a specific direction we are exploring seriously enough to bring to the city’s planning desk.

What Brixton filed shows a self-storage facility and an office building on the Topgolf site. What Brixton is saying publicly is that Topgolf remains possible. Both of those things cannot be equally true at once. Either the permit filing reflects genuine contingency planning on a deal that isn’t closed, or the public statement is a way of managing expectations while the company pivots away from the headline tenant.

We don’t know which. And neither does anyone else right now — including, arguably, Brixton Capital itself.

The Background on Topgolf at The Hub

The Topgolf saga at what is now Hub@Everett has been running for years. Mayor Cassie Franklin confirmed the Topgolf interest at a 2024 meeting. Plans firmed up through 2024. City staff formally approved building permits for the Topgolf facility in January 2025 — 68,000 square feet, three stories, a driving range, the full concept. Those permits were real.

Then Topgolf entered a period of corporate restructuring. That’s the company-level explanation for why the Everett location has been on hold. Topgolf Callaway Brands, the parent company, has been working through financial restructuring that has affected expansion decisions across its portfolio. The approved Everett permits sat unused. And in the background, Brixton Capital started looking at alternatives — including the permit filing that shows up in April 2026 with self-storage and office where the golf bays were supposed to go.

Brixton insists the May 19 pre-application meeting is about “one option” and that Topgolf is parallel-tracked. But a company that was confident in its anchor tenant doesn’t typically explore replacing that anchor in a city planning filing.

What’s Actually Open and Working at The Hub

It’s worth stepping back from the Topgolf question to note what HAS happened at Hub@Everett, because the coverage of the Topgolf limbo can obscure real progress on the rest of the site.

The former Sears box — a massive anchor space that sat empty for years — now has Ulta Beauty and At Home as tenants. Both are open. The relocated Mall Station bus transit center opened in December 2025, a $2 million move that actually improved bus connectivity to the site. The outdoor pedestrian walkways that Brixton planned as part of the mall’s “outdoor lifestyle” redesign are in various stages of completion.

The 11-acre site has more happening on it than the Topgolf uncertainty suggests. But the entertainment anchor question is real: without a destination draw that gets people to make a special trip, Hub@Everett risks becoming a transit point and errand destination rather than a place people plan to spend a Saturday afternoon.

That’s what Topgolf was supposed to solve. Self-storage and an office building don’t solve it.

The Development Implications for South Everett

Hub@Everett’s outcome matters beyond the mall’s own 11 acres. The Twin Creeks neighborhood around the site, and south Everett broadly, has been watching the Hub redevelopment as a signal of whether the city’s south end is attracting serious investment. The tightest retail market in Puget Sound — Snohomish County’s 3.4% vacancy rate — suggests tenants are out there. The question is whether south Everett’s largest available footprint can attract the right ones.

If Brixton proceeds with self-storage and office, the site becomes a different kind of anchor than what was promised. Self-storage generates rent without generating foot traffic. That matters for the surrounding retail environment — nearby tenants who counted on Topgolf drawing customers benefit less from a storage facility next door.

The broader story of Everett’s physical transformation is one of ambitious redevelopment ideas meeting the reality of capital markets, corporate restructuring, and financing constraints. The Hub@Everett situation is a live example of that tension — the gap between what a city wants from a site and what a developer can actually finance.

What to Watch on May 19

The pre-application meeting scheduled for May 19 is a city planning process step, not a public hearing. It’s where city staff and the applicant talk through whether a proposed project is feasible under current zoning and code. The outcome won’t be a public vote — but it will likely generate documents that clarify what Brixton is actually proposing.

If the May 19 meeting produces a site plan that includes Topgolf in some form, the public statement holds up. If the meeting proceeds with self-storage and office as the application, the permit filing tells the real story. Either way, the pre-app meeting is the next datable event in what has become one of Everett’s most watched development sagas.

We’ll have the update when it’s public.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Topgolf and why does it matter for Hub@Everett?

Topgolf is a golf entertainment venue chain that combines driving range technology with food, drink, and event space. A Topgolf would have been a major entertainment anchor for Hub@Everett — the kind of destination tenant that draws customers who stay for hours and generate spillover for adjacent businesses.

Why did Topgolf stall at the Everett Mall?

The most cited reason is corporate restructuring at Topgolf Callaway Brands, the parent company. Despite approved building permits from January 2025, the company has not broken ground. Corporate restructuring decisions can pause or cancel individual expansion locations.

What is Brixton Capital planning to put there instead?

A pre-application permit filing shows a self-storage facility and an office building on the Topgolf footprint. Brixton Capital says this is just one option being explored, not a confirmed decision.

When is the next milestone for Hub@Everett?

A pre-application meeting with city planning staff is scheduled for May 19, 2026. This is an internal city process step, not a public hearing, but the documents it generates will clarify what Brixton is actually proposing.

What else is open at Hub@Everett right now?

Ulta Beauty and At Home have both opened in the former Sears anchor space. The relocated Mall Station bus transit center opened in December 2025. Outdoor pedestrian walkway improvements are ongoing across the 11-acre site.