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.
Spokane, like most cities, is loaded with history. A quick glance around Downtown, Hillyard, Garland, or East Sprague and it become evident very quickly that there are some stories to be told. During a recent trip west, we found ourselves on the Ave in Seattle visiting the farmer's market there. While waiting for friends to finish up their shopping we spied this wayfinding/historical marker on a street corner. On each side (photo above) was a different piece of info:
A map of the neighborhood with key landmarks identified
A map of the greater Seattle area with "Your are here" indicated
Historical information with a few old photos of the neighborhood
Description of the neighborhood (we think)
In a matter of minutes we understood all of the above information, learned a thing or two about the neighborhood, and now had a connection with this place where we'd spent the last hour. Take downtown and Hillyard; looking around you'd have no concept of your location in the overall city, and certainly you'd have no sense for the dramatic influence the railroad has had on both neighborhoods. To visitors the clock tower looks just like a tall structure oddly located.
Things like these (a.k.a. City Comforts) enhance the public space not only for those who live here, but also those who are visiting. They build and strengthen our connection to our neighborhoods and it doesn't take much. A pretty good return on the investment we think.
Downtown housing was going vertical in the early 70s downtown Spokane. If you were over 62 and needed subsidized housing then this was your place. As a building, the Park Tower is just kind of there. It really doesn't add or detract from the skyline. It's more neutral than anything. At the street-level (where it really matters) it relates quite well. Funny how the rendering emphasizes what is really the alley-side of the building.
"Construction has started on the 20-story Park Tower apartments on Trent and Bernard just south of the Expo '74 site. It will provide 185 apartments for persons 62 years or older under a federal subsidy program reducing rents for most units. Long slanted roof at the left is the Washington State Pavilion on the exposition site. On the right is the design proposal for a 15-story Sheraton Motor Inn of Spokane. Park Tower is scheduled for completion in late 1974."
It's 2008. Have you reserved your Smartfortwo yet? We saw one parked in the Riverpark Square parking garage recently and spent about five minutes walking around and looking at it. It was the first one we've seen up close although we've spotted another one tooling around town.
You first notice just how incredibly small it is, but an up close look at the interior reveals a roomy space (The guy getting into it later was around 6'4"). Parked nearby was a five year old Explorer and in comparison it's shocking how little space the Smartfortwo consumes. We figured it at about half.
LOWER EAST END - Washington and 2nd has proven that the boutique approach to retail has legs. We dropped by Uptown 410 recently and found a great little place. It's absolutely packed with custom footwear, shirts, DVDs, jackets, and a smattering of Japanese pop culture paraphernalia. And if you can't find it they'll order it. The place was small but comfy - more like hanging out at a friend's place than shopping.
For what it's worth, shopping in Spokane is usually associated with one
of the big malls and the big national chains that anchor them. The
climate-controlled goodness is comfortable, but blocks and blocks of
skywalkin' just sucks the life out of you. What we're looking for is
streetlife and small boutique shops that spill out on the street. This emerging district makes us believe that's on the upswing.
LOWER EAST END - The holidays may be over, but the bargains are still available if you dig a little. We spotted this 'little' gem on a drive-by the other afternoon. All said it's a block and a quarter. OK, it's more like 2.25 acres, and no it's not Wendel Reugh's surface-parking-bonanza on Riverside it's Roses & More.
As the Lower East End continues to be a hot-bed of small business and redev activity, adding this little nugget to your portfolio pretty much gives you your own urban playground. Owned by RJH III, LLC and Pacific Avenue Properties, the 2.25 acres was originally platted as twenty-seven individual parcels and contains a mix of warehouses (Old Roses & More Bldg), multi-story apartments, commercial buildings, and vacant land to boot. A stone's throw to Ichiban, LazerQuest, Thomas Hammer, and the House of Charity, it's yours for the taking at $5.4 million. Bidding begins now.
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?
Did you know that by 2020 passenger levels at Spokane International Airport are projected to double from 1.7 million to 3.3 million? That's huge! In order to handle that growth, back in 2000 a new Airport Master Plan was developed and resulted in a number of recommendations that focused on Terminal Improvements. These included:
Add approx. 12 new aircraft gates to enhance competition through expansion of Concourse C.
Expand the Air Carrier Apron to allow for additional aircraft parking.
Expand the automobile parking facilities (either garage or surface).
Improve the surface access system to increase safety and eliminate congestion.
Improve intersections through grade-separation, signalization or other methods.
Provide for potential development of light rail or other mass transit access to the airport.
Improve capacity for commercial users (e.g. rental car companies, taxis, etc.).
That first item is seen above in bright yellow and compared to the existing old terminal (red) it's a big'un. Of course that means a sweet new 13,000' x 150' runway [RFQ/RFP-PDF] to service it. Just last year the largest and newest air traffic tower in Washington went up and now the RENT-A-CAR Renovation [RFQ/RFP-PDF] is out for bid and should be completed by October 1, 2008.
This one's a bit of a flashback, but if you weren't around the Inland NW you missed the buzz that was going on over in Kellogg, Id that Memorial Day. From I-90 not much is visible of the massive mining complex that was once Bunker Hill. Millions of cubic yards of contaminated soil, the temporary rerouting of the South Fork of the CDA River, and well over 200 buildings demolished in what was a huge mitigation and cleanup of a mining superfund site. What most people remember though was the day the stacks came down.
On Memorial Day May 27th, 1996 the towering stacks (610 and 715 feet tall) were demo-ed in a public event witnessed by thousands. Fortunately we stumbled across some home video footage taken by a spectator from the hillside across from the stacks. At first thought you might not think a few smelter stacks coming down has much to do with Spokane. But take one look at our skyline and in it you can see reflected the fortunes that
were made and consequently shaped the urban environment we
experience everyday. The Paulsen Buildings, the Great Northern clock tower, the Old National Bank Building, the Spokesman/Chronicle Buildings, and the twin smelter stacks at Bunker Hill. This stuff is our heritage.
The best minute-and-a-half you'll spend on YouTube all week.
Highlight: At 0:42 the guy yelling, "HOLY SH#T, LOOK AT THAT THING GO!"
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.
