Westin Includes Cda Among Finalists In Search For Service Center Site

With the efforts of Jobs Plus, Coeur d’Alene is one of three finalist locations for the Westin Hotel’s centralized service center. The list was narrowed from 60 cities to three - Coeur d’Alene, Denver and Colorado Springs.

Landing the business here would be a real coup. It would begin with 100-150 employees and could expand to between 500 and 1,000. The business here would have two major functions, accounting (now in Seattle) and reservations (expanding from Omaha).

“We’re looking at the availability of sites, people and incentive dollars,” said Jim Purvis, Westin’s vice-president of human resources. “We would need to begin with about 50,000 square feet with room for expansion.”

Purvis and other executives looked Coeur d’Alene over in October.

“There are a few existing buildings we looked at,” he said, without naming them. Properties, which could include buildings not yet constructed, included the Hecla commercial complex near Hayden, Riverbend Commerce Park in Post Falls and the Spokane River acreage on Northwest Boulevard in Coeur d’Alene.

In any case, Westin will choose its new office location at its December board of directors meeting and will begin moving employees into the new service center in January. If a new building is to be constructed or an existing one modified, Westin is open to be fully into the new location by summer.

Purchased earlier this year by East Coast companies Goldman Sachs and Starwood Capital, Westin has about 85 hotels around the world.

Although Westin plans to be adding a new hotel a month to its inventory in the near future, no plans exist for a smaller hotel in Coeur d’Alene.

“We do like to have a hotel presence wherever our service center may be,” Purvis said, “but it isn’t mandatory.”

But a Westin Hotel to Coeur d’Alene?

Wow (with no explanation mark). If so, it’s light years away. Everyone knows the Lake City (geez, what a schmaltzy nickname) already has a glut of hotels and motels.

The rumored location for the giant, quality hotel is the Spokane River old mill site across Northwest Boulevard from Gibbs Tavern. Supposedly a major company (possibly the Westin) has put earnest money on the huge-acreage site, or at least part of it. Purvis said he knows nothing about it, that his company owns no land in Coeur d’Alene.

Realistically, the Spokane River property is an unlikely site for Westin or any other major hotel chain.

1. It may be a monumental project to clean the property environmentally.

2. The Coeur d’Alene sewage plant is a neighbor.

3. It’s too far for customers to walk to Coeur d’Alene’s amenities of the beach, Tubbs Hill and downtown.

4. Hagadone Hospitality wouldn’t like that competition.

However, as another observer said, conventioneers only worry about where the lounge is.

I didn’t have a clue. Pure as I am, I guess that’s why I’m always on my own at conventions. I thought everybody else was just lost.

What’s new at the malls for the holidays?

Art Unlimited established holiday shops in both Silver Lake Mall and NorthTown Mall. Still with its main shop at 315 Sherman Ave. in Coeur d’Alene, the store offers limited edition prints, bronze sculptures and carved wooden carrousel horses in its inventory.

The store’s Silver Lake Mall location is in the former Jean Nicole women’s wear space between Kay Bee Toys and Maurice’s. Owners are Kandi and Alan Scott, who also offer custom framing at the Sherman Avenue store.

Izod sportswear is in the Factory Outlets Mall for the second time. The company opened there with the mall, but left a few years ago. Now, it’s back with men’s and women’s sportswear, high quality logo apparel and specializing in gold apparel and accessories.

Formerly with Cape Isle Knitters, Izod now is with Phillips Van Heusen Corp. and is located next to the Kitchen Collection shop. Manager is Audra McClintock.

The Bass Western Wear building at 348 Bosanko Ave. (off Highway 95) in Coeur d’Alene is doubling in size to include new tenants.

One will be Apollo Spas, which will occupy 4,000 square feet. Building owner Bob Bonuccelli said other tenants are interested in the remaining 2,200 square feet. Owned by Colin Taylor of Spokane, Apollo has about 15 locations in the Northwest.

Construction should be complete in less than 90 days. Bonuccelli also owns the neighboring Sunset Mall property.

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The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Nils Rosdahl The Spokesman-Review