A new bar/lounge is in the planning stages at the wee-small building located at 215 W. Main [GMAP]. Officially known as The RIFF, the bar will be the first for bartender Nick Squires and a friend, and as such the size seems just about right. In what is quite possibly the smallest habitable building in downtown Spokane, the place measures a bountiful 308 square feet according to assessor records which translates into a capacity of only around 18 people.
It's official: Google Streetview has finally made it to the mean streets of Spokane. Not all of the streets have been mapped but there's enough to keep you busy for hours.
In order to burn up more of your work day, we'll be accepting your top Spokane Streetview Sightings. Here's what you'll need to do:
This question arrived in the MetroSpokane inbox yesterday so we thought we'd throw it out to our knowledgeable readers for some perspective. A regular reader is trying to make a choice between a condo in the West End or East End:
"I would love to see a discussion about whether it is better to
buy at the west end (1st Ave-Fox District) or east end (University District) taking into
account the differences in prices, the nearby
attractions currently, and the likelihood of appreciation over the next 5-10 years based on the UD
expanding and the arts district expanding (which seems hard to predict). I would also like to hear people's thoughts regarding what and when things will happen
in the UD (foot
bridge, light rail, etc)."
Your points of view in the comments section below, and your questions heartily accepted at MetroSpokan@gmail.com.
Notice something missing from the above photo? All seems quiet on the Kendall Yards front - too quiet. When we happened by the site yesterday something was amiss. What? Where? How? Now just when in the hell did they do that?
In a rather unceremonious manner a pretty significant milestone has been achieved on the site as the main Avista trunk line is no longer suspended across Monroe Street. We're going to assume they've finally buried them with the only reminder being the freakishly large power poles that now more closely resemble a limbed ponderosa.
The 'art' of the flip is still very much alive and well. Aside from the popular Flip that House TV show YouTube can also be a wonderful resource. Take for example 27 E. Bridgeport here in Spokane. Last purchased on 12/14/07 for $61K (according to County records), it's now on the market for...$144K and there's room for you to build a garage. We smell a bargain.
On the one hand we have Forbes magazine who loves us, and on the other hand we have the American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA) who thinks Spokane need some help. Earlier this month the APMA released it's 2008 listing of America's Best Walking Cities, and out of 500 cities ranked across the US they ranked us #215. Sure we're no Venice, but certainly we're better than #215, aren't we?
So have you ever wanted to own your own theater? Now's your chance...kind of. The Interplayer's building is up for sale for the asking price of $1.1 million. The one condition is that the theater organization will be able to lease back all of their existing space critical to putting on performances. That arrangement should still leave about 5k-7k sqf to do whatever floats your boat.
Our choice: buy it, lose the wall of glass blocks, lease back space to Interplayers while opening a bar/lounge restaurant on the ground floor. Theaters generate large volumes of people wanting to spend money on good food and drink (NOTE: AMC, Fox, Magic Lantern, Crosby). And anyways, wouldn't more evening foot-traffic of the positive kind be nice south of the viaduct?
The Census Bureau released annual population estimates yesterday and a quick look shows that from July 1, 2006 to July 1, 2007 Spokane County's population grew 1.9% or about 8,800 people (456,175). This was slightly higher than the state's growth rate of 1.4%. Looking back to 2000, which is the base year, our growth has remained pretty steady varying between .2% and last year's 1.9%, and has tracked the state's growth quite closely.
Curiosity led use to compile the data since 2000 for some of our friends inside and outside of our region. Let's just say if you're in Franklin County (Tri-Cities) you've probably new neighbors. They've been maintaining a growth rate of at least 5% since 2003.
We've always known Spokane's a great place to live (we have our own selfish reasons), but actually Spokane's a great place for your business and career...at least Forbe's thinks so. Forbe's, one of the ultimate aggregators of arbitrary "Best of" lists has once again released it's Best Places for Business and Careers and in doing so has anointed Spokane as #9. Yes #9 - there's no '0' missing, and that's up from #20 last year. But hey, compared to 2000 (#159) and 2003 (#100) we'll take it.
[Images from the 2007 Tour de Bronx] Runners have Bloomsday, B-Ballers have Hoopfest, bicyclists have...? We think it's high time an event that is Spokane centric and specifically for bicyclists takes place. Why not a Tour de Spokane? Imagine an entire weekend day dedicated to cycling the streets of Spokane? We've talked about the need for a Ciclovia Spokane event previously, but it seems that Spokane really does well with annual events like the ones mentioned above.
UNIVERSITY DISTRICT - A quick jaunt through the U-District this morning revealed the progress the new Nursing Building is making along Spokane Falls Blvd. Lots of glass, brick, and concrete like most of the other signature buildings on campus, but this one is by far the most urban and less 'office-parky' (yes that is a word) of them all. Close to the sidewalk, permeable facade, and loading ramp in the back is what good urban development is all about. This one is changing the feel of the street in a great way. Division Street doesn't seem so far away from campus now.
Tucked away in a back corner of Riverfront Park lies a treasure-trove for anyone seeking relics from the World's Fair. Sitting there in plain site, locked behind a cyclone fence may quite possibly be the largest collection of vintage Expo '74 gondolas ever. These are a far cry from today's cozy lilac-colored rides. Up until a few years ago it was you versus the elements in nothing but a fiberglass shell hanging out there, over the Falls, exposed for a full 15 minutes. Your life in the hands of the teenager running the ride, while the audio track blares at you from speakers mounted to each riblet you pass...Ahhh the good ol' days.
On a recent trip to Neato-Burrito we spotted evidence of someone taking the cultivation of Spokane literally into their own hands by doing a little guerrilla gardening. Guerrilla gardening has been around for quite awhile and is a pretty simple yet rewarding act. The idea is to identify your target, usually a neglected piece of
public right of way, pull together some volunteers, planting material,
tools and go for it. The riskiest maneuvers require a bit of
clandestine perhaps done in the
cover of darkness, but more often than not its done in the open.
Internal demo is underway at Pioneer Park Place the mod-looking mixed-income project on the lower South Hill. Actual construction should begin shortly as final costs and specs are firmed up. When all is said and done the project will be sportin' twenty-six condo units ranging from 600 to 1500 sqf. The top floor is reserved for approximately three to four penthouse units.
The third over-the-top intersection is our favorite if only because it includes a heli-port. Yes, a heli-port. We're not sure why residents would need to land a helicopter near the intersection of Division and North River Drive, but there it is. And who would be flying in to the North Bank of downtown anyways? Looking at these images (from 46 years ago), one thing is for certain, and that's how the unobstructed movement of the personal auto was primary. Any sense of urbanity and the human scale has been completely stripped away.
For our second installment of "Thank God they never implemented that", we bring you the West Central Cloverleaf. Bringing a little bit of Los Angeles love to West Cent, they were clearly forecasting that a lot of traffic would be heading east and west by 1980. As for the shape, it was quite possibly a premonition of things to come...
A few weeks back we posted about the 1961 Ebasco Plan and how its twin-loops solution for traffic pretty much screwed up downtown. But for all that negative impact there's so much more in the plan that was never implemented. Most obvious are the grandiose on-and-off ramps that were designed to create an 'outer ring' of limited access roads drivers could use to bypass downtown and (supposedly) congestion.
U-DISTRICT - We remember the good ol' days when the Globe Building was home to the first and shortly thereafter the last organic grocery store in downtown. Though brief, we felt so alive being able to buy soy milk on Division and Main of all places. Now the iconic Globe Building and accompanying parking lot are on the market - Asking price: a cool $2.9 million. But hey there isn't a higher-profile property in the U-District so quit your complaining.
Via the SRTC Transpo Blog light rail has a new face in Spokane...and a new website. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes of a horribly worded initiative, the Inland Empire Rail Transit Association (IERTA) is taking on the need for a more balanced transportation network in our region. That means increasing the role that rail and transit can play as we grow. If nothing else, with gas prices at all time highs it's a timely and healthy discussion to be having.
With the capping of the Browne's Addition hole sometime last year things just haven't been the same. Fortunately the demolition of the apartments at 211 S. Cedar (a mere six blocks away) has all but remedied that. It's tough to see from the street but hidden behind all the bling parked along the sidewalk is one big hole. The good news: yellow-caution tape and orange construction cones have been deployed. The bad news: you'll find them in the bottom of the hole when you fall into it. Note: Watch that second right out of the liquor store parking lot into the alley.
UNIVERSITY DISTRICT - Long pined after, the W.P. Fuller building finally became a Gonzaga asset last fall for $1.4 million. Prior to that it sat idle after briefly housing an awkward public/farmers market, and playing host to one detached "Ultimate Bagel" sign which taunted nearby college students for what seemed like years.
"See the brief post here included as an addition to an article our own
Mike Edwards is having published in next month’s issue of Parks &
Recreation Magazine. (The full article will cover both Pittsburgh and
Spokane, of course)."
[Mike Edwards was the previous president of the Downtown Spokane
Partnership and is now the President and CEO of the Pittsburgh Downtown
Partnership.]
Check out the post. It's a quick Q&A on the positive impact that high quality public spaces (specifically sites for parks and recreation) can have on a local economy. We're looking forward to getting our hands on the full length article.
While our region is blessed with a bounty of natural assets and recreation opportunities, it's often those just around the block from your house that can benefit you and your neighborhood the most. Think Joe Albi, city pools, skateparks, bmx parks, public gardens, etc. You're throwing down $43 million in tax dollars over the next few years on pools and play fields among other things. Now is the time to give your opinion.
We like this little video homage someone put together showing downtown at night. It's looking at our city through a slightly different lens than usual, focusing more on those side areas just off the side of the road. Whether the person who made it realized it or not they've done a nice job at capturing the practice of psychogeography.
[View of the YWCA site looking south] NORTH BANK - An old post mentioned the proposed SRM development of the YWCA condos at 829 W. Broadway on the North Bank of the Spokane River. With the combined YMCA-YWCA building well under way just up the street, there's no time like the present to get to work on the design for YWCA site. Upper Falls Condos meet your new neighbors, a 150' tower (not wall). According to the SRM website the 'proposed' project is all mixed use including condos, retail, and commercial. Phase one will focus on a residential condo tower on the eastern most portion of the site. No start date given, but it's likely a couple years out.
On North Monroe the decades long battle between antique stores and bail bond shops rages on. But in what may represent the changing face of the corridor an old antique business is being overhauled and retrofitted. Monroe St. Bridge Antiques closed for good recently after about 16 years in business. Now the owners Chris and Tery Garras are ramping up the for the opening of Metro Home Furniture On Consignment.
A tipster sends in this photo and raises an important question: When selling your home at what point should you emphasize the amenities of the garage versus the house?
"I just couldn't resist snapping a picture of this "For Sale" sign on 57th and Crestline. 8 car garage. Thats no garage; thats a warehouse! Shouldn't the sign should read:"
Garage 4 Sale:
4 person home
448-2401
Follow-up question: Does the duct-tape and spray-paint sign instill confidence?
Pullman, Butte, Walla Walla, Wentachee, and Astoria. During the period from 1969 to 1986 these were a few of the cities serviced by a Spokane-based commuter airline that was one of the largest in the United States. The airline's name was Cascade Airways, and back in the day it wasn't uncommon
for people to hop on a flight from Lewiston to Spokane for business, or to catch a flight at
Pendleton and connect at Portland or Spokane for Chicago. How about
flying nonstop between Pullman and Astoria for the weekend? Cascade
Airways had you covered. The map above shows just how far their reach was
Like most of these things there's a website
(design impaired but great info) that catalogues some of the history of this unique piece of Northwest
aviation history. Information about the cities Cascade Airways served,
good photos of aircraft, the snappy fashion of
the 1970's and 80's, and a number of articles that detail the airline's rise and fall in the Inland Northwest.
[Image courtesy of some long forgotten Mead XC website hosted on an old Tripod member account] Long time residents may recall the People's Billboard that was once a prominent downtown fixture during the 1980s and early 90s. An old bridge abutment from the former rail line that crossed the Monroe St. bridge, it sat on the current Kendall Yards site and greeted drivers to the northbank on Monroe Street until it was demolished in the late 1990s. At the busiest of times the message would change more than once per
week and was a pretty decent reflection of local happenings and
thoughts.
A new bar/lounge is in the planning stages at the wee-small building located at 215 W. Main [GMAP]. Officially known as The RIFF, the bar will be the first for bartender Nick Squires and a friend, and as such the size seems just about right. In what is quite possibly the smallest habitable building in downtown Spokane, the place measures a bountiful 308 square feet according to assessor records which translates into a capacity of only around 18 people.
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