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.
Continue reading "Touching Base: Fuller Academic Center gets glassy" »
COEUR D'ALENE - When you don't have an interstate bisecting your downtown and your city grows enough to fill in between, the development opportunities can get interesting. Lest you think it's all condos in Couer d'Alene take a gander at Northwest Boulevard. Revamped a few years back by the Lake City Development Authority, what was primarily a boring four-lane arterial into the downtown has been greatly improved aesthetically...with cool feathers. The addition of sculptures, an extension of the Centennial trail, and gobs of attractive landscaping has made a difference to this gateway: some significant office projects have cropped up and are filling in the gaps.
Continue reading "Northwest Boulevard: Aesthetic gateway = investment?" »
[NOTE: Embedded video was disabled on YouTube-you can view it via this link ]
WEST PLAINS - OK, let's see a show of hands: How many of you out there were aware we're in the process of fund raising for a new museum...ahem...an aerospace museum? That's what we thought. We'd heard bits and pieces but only recently saw the sweet 3D video-clip on YouTube of what the place might look like, and we like what we see. It's to be located on the West Plains adjacent to I-90 at the intersection of Electric Ave & Geiger Blvd [GMAP]. If you've ever driven by the Spruce Goose down in McMinville, OR you'll understand why.
The complex is big measuring in at around 123,000-square-feet when all phases are completed, and will have loads of glass that should help display the thirty-two suspended and parked aircraft from the collection. One that won't be 'under-roof' will be the massive B-52 parked out in front of the building. Still, it should make for a pretty memorable landmark for visitors entering Spokane from the West (e.g. "...and take the exit after the big plane..."). To date only $1.3 million of the $5.8 million Phase I cost has been raised. The project overall is expected to run upwards of $30 million when complete. It's also expected to attract between 50,000 and 100,000 visitors annually according to the Journal of Biz. If you're interested in seeing what local players have kicked in to help this thing get built you can view the list [pdf]. If you're interested in having your name added feel free to donate.
If Extreme Makeover had an office building edition this would be it. The former Selkirk Building (506 W. 2nd) and the adjoining parcel sold last year for the tidy sum of $770K. The new owners, Sun Devil Development, look to be dropping some change to spruce the place up. The reconfiguration will mean two retail condos, four office condos, and a basement space. The upside: The 13,000sqf building is losing the fancy sheet metal, revealing the transoms, cleaning up that brick, adding a new side entry, and throwing in some nice awnings. The downside: That side entry will front on the ample new surface parking for 32 (There's a parking shortage downtown, remember?). Eh, can't have it all. BUS DRIVER - MOVE THAT BUS!!!
The news a couple weeks back that the Spokane Art School would be putting their building up for sale was quite the downer. If nothing else, the school and location was a pretty good manifestation of art in Spokane for the past 23 years. The thousands of classes taught over the years exposed people of all ages to a very basic concept: get out there and create something.
But we're convinced this turn of events doesn't have to be the death-knell for art in this building. How about a conversion to live-work condos? Now before you start ranting about overpriced condos hear us out. The concept would be to target these live-work spaces at artists, but above all make them affordable. The devil is in the details as the big challenge would be to take this relatively small building (10,000 sqf) and make it pencil. Funds are out there that in all reality could be used to help make something like this happen. With a future science/children's' museum proposed down the street, and a couple other condo projects as well, such a project could add some depth to this interesting part of downtown. Yeah, we're idealists...
It seems like just last fall we were fawning all over the completed Kennedy Apartments-Phase I. Phase II is underway and growing like a weed over on Boone and Ruby. More important though is how this group of buildings is transforming that intersection. It's a smart site plan that is respectful of it's urban setting (built to the curb-parking in the middle-permeable facade). Compare it to this.
Architect ALSC [ALSC homepage]
Boone and Ruby [GMAP]
More views below...
For anyone who's ever pondered Spokane's Skyline the Paulsen Medical and Dental Building is easily one of the most recognizable landmarks. At the top of the fifteen-story skyscraper sits perhaps Spokane's most exclusive (if not highest) private residence. The solitary penthouse was home to members of the Paulsen Family for over seventy years, and a few weeks back we gained access to the now vacant residence to have a look around.
It's a decent-sized space inside with two bedrooms, three baths, and a servants quarters tucked way in the back. The kitchen is modest by today's standards, and the living room and dining/sun room are quite large. As you'd expect, the views from inside are pretty much unmatched by any residence in town (yes, even Upper Falls), but the real fun begins when you step outside onto the wraparound patio. Long gone is the sixty year old arborvitae that was a landmark itself (In 1996 it partly fell to the twelfth floor roof during the ice-storm). Still, it's all about the view. From up there, and in every direction, you're looking at Spokane in an unfamiliar way. It's like seeing your city for the first time again and it's pretty cool.
Highlight - The gun closet directly across from the wet bar.
If you've wandered by Post and Riverside lately, it's no secret that SRM and Dunn & Black's overhaul of the three-story Grant Building is well underway. The fences are up, the facade is down, and the renderings dropped in our inbox give us tremendous hope for design downtown. The architects at Nystrom-Olson-Collins have taken what was a looming windowless void and opened it way, way up. Add in some muted colors, plenty of glass on the street (our fav) more up above, and this building is (finally) giving something back to this street corner.
More renderings below...
Continue reading "Grant Building: Let it breathe, baby..." »
Seasons come and seasons go, and with the passing of each we look forward to the progress of the Cathedral Point condos. Our last update focused on the deconstruction that had taken the original building down to literally a nub with a wall. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes CP has not only been reborn, but has matured and appears to have reached its final height. The only difference we can tell is the large rectangular wall on the right. Elevator relocated to the west?
[The end of days? Nay. Just an advertisement for the nearly complete Washington Trust Building in 1973.]
"Standing tall on Spokane's skyline and in the community the magnificent Washington Trust building will soon enter actively into daily life. The soaring sixteen-story tower will be filled with busy banking and business offices. Adjoining parking for 260 cars will facilitate your using our expanding full service banking.
Computer programmed elevators will whisk you to all-floor destinations in this complex that crowns over 70 years of service to our city, our people, our industries and businesses.
With our eight community locations, the Washington Trust Bank tower and office complex will make it pay you more than ever to be a Washington Trust Banker. Come bank with the tallest bank building in town and enjoy a new dimension in personal service. Soon!"
It used to be that the center of commerce for Spokane was
along Riverside, not along it’s aptly named “Main Street.” How things have
changed: over the last decade Spokane has seen Main Street become the shopper’s
destination, much of that because of sizable financial and architectural
investment. Along Main in the last ten years River Park Square was redeveloped, the streetscapes enhanced, a new
Nordstrom added, and 809 W Main was 'adaptively reused', this time with windows. Even the old
Crescent building is undergoing major changes including a new restaurant in February of 2008, “The
Melting Pot” to be located on the second story corner of Post and Main [GMAP].
Continue reading "Is Macy's in need of a facelift or a gutting?" »
A much needed face-lift of the three-story 42,000 sqf Grant Building at Post and Riverside has started. The fencing and jersey-barriers are in place and the odd exterior material is already filling the dumpsters. Downtown office employees everywhere were heard quietly mumbling something about the benefits of windows. Architects Nystrom Olson Collins are taking full ownership of the design.
Over in the Chief Garry neighborhood Habitat for Humanity is putting the finishing touches on one of their recent "Blitz Build" projects. The idea is to construct a project in a rapid time frame (usually weeks). This project was a nine unit development. Habitat is one of our
favorite charitable organizations and worthy of support. The question is, looking at this project can the goals of low income housing be achieved with innovative and compassionate design? Are they completely separate and unattainable outcomes?
Samuel Mockbee approached the same question in rural Hale County, Alabama starting back in 1993. As a professor of architecture his 'rural studio' brought architecture
students to the county to design and build homes for needy residents in what is one of the poorest areas in the country. The designs are innovative, push the envelope, are built very cheaply, but they're also 'noble', as he put it.
This discussion is a fine line to be walking. But given that there is a tent city not four blocks from here, it's a timely topic. The need for low income housing is essential, but visiting the site yesterday and seeing how it turns it's back on the neighborhood, how it isolates rather than integrates into it, makes us wonder what the outcome will be in 5, 10, or 20 years from now.
Spokane area businesses seem to be getting more and more recognition lately for innovations in sustainability. For starters there's Commuter Cars, manufacturer of the innovative electric vehicle The Tango (located in the University District) and the uber-sustainable Saranac Hotel. We can now add to that list the new Mountain Gear facility.
Just like the Saranac, Mountain Gear took a long under-utilized building and retrofitted it with a keen eye towards sustainability. The company's efforts were noticed as last month the State of Washington awarded Mountain Gear the Governor's Award for Pollution Prevention and Sustainable Practices. According to the Department of Ecology website, "Mountain Gear was the first commercial company, and is still the largest private company, to remodel their building in Eastern Washinton following the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards."
The impact of Mountain Gear integrating sustainability into their project? How about: Conserve 248,000 gallons water/year, remodel reduced energy use by 60%, and salvaged or recycled 50% of their construction debris. Nice!
North of Downtown sits one of Spokane's most recognizable buildings - The Boulevard. Less known by name and more known by location, anyone familiar with Spokane knows of the The Boulevard and exactly where it's located - Northwest Blvd and Monroe.
So how do you help revitalize a tough part of town along one of the busiest arterials in the City?
What was once Colonial Bowl has been reborn as the Kennedy Apartments-after a fire setback the opening. Slated for occupation this fall, the presence of hundreds of new students is going to give new life to a neighborhood that is home to a great collection of warehouses. The building also boasts a Gonzaga bookstore and a cafe on the street level.
Continue reading "Kennedy Apartments-Suddenly Ruby St. looks a little better" »
One of the smartest things our city fathers did was adopt a building code that required all new buildings downtown be made of brick. This, of course was after the city was gutted by the great fire in 1889. Because of that code we have a good inventory of brick structures in our downtown that continue to function much as they did when first built. First Ave. has a perfect example of such a structure in the Morris and Company building near 1st and Jefferson.
Last time we checked in on the Cathedral Point Condos things were pretty sleepy. However, that was a few months, and a few sawzalls back. As of yesterday the project appears to be somewhere between 'before' and 'after'. Now that we think about it, it almost seems the building has regressed and is a little bit before 'before'. The formerly pleasant foursquare now is 3/4 1/2 the building it once was. A new foundation is in, as is some plywood sheathing. We're looking forward to watching this one transform into the pagoda-esque foursquare the rendering promised.
A tipster alerted us to the rash of 'suspicious' fires that seem to be occurring in ever increasing frequency in West Central. Said tipster recently hit the streets of the WC and made notes of those places of which they were aware had been the victim of a fire. The result is the map you see here. Over the past two years, since this person has moved to the neighborhood, they've witnessed/heard about fifteen fires that have damaged or leveled homes in the neighborhood. We're no Dale Cooper, but fifteen fires in two years seems a bit excessive. While not all the fires started under 'suspicious' circumstances, it does beg the question: If this were happening elsewhere in the City, and on this scale, would it be getting more attention? We're just askin'.
Our tiki heritage can be summed up in two remaining locations: The Trade Winds Motel on 3rd and Lincoln and the old Tiki Lodge on 2nd and Maple. Everyone who's been downtown via the Lincoln Street exit knows the Trade Winds by the large mural (now mostly obscured by a tree) painted on the backside of the building.
For a company that's a wholesaler of hardware tools Jensen-Byrd is synonymous with some pretty cool buildings in downtown Spokane. Aside from the obvious hulk of a warehouse in the University District, it is their other warehouse/office space downtown that has no doubt had the eye of most developers in Spokane at one time or another.
Aside from the Riverside & Peaceful Valley neighborhoods, Browne's Addition has probably undergone the most dramatic changes in the past few years. Two big, pricey condos - all the rage along Riverside Avenue in Browne's Addition - are going head-to-head with one high-end historic home.
Continue reading "Browne's Addition: Condos & Historic Home face off on Riverside Ave." »
