Second Office Building Planned At Sunset, Assembly

A real estate developer plans to build a high-tech office building just west of Sunset and Assembly.

It would be the second of two office buildings at that location. The first was constructed last year.

Greg Arger of G. Arger Co. Inc. said the new four-story building will be wired with fiber optic communications cables to accommodate the high-tech industry.

“There isn’t a more modern office building in Spokane,” he said.

Spokane County Hearing Examiner Mike Dempsey gave verbal approval to the project on March 11. A formal ruling has not been issued yet.

Arger received a zone change from semirural residential use to light industrial. He also asked Dempsey for a variance from the county’s building height limit, which Dempsey approved.

Arger said he has had no opposition from the neighborhood.

The proposed building will be four stories at 54 feet in height. The county’s limit without a variance is 40 feet.

The new office project will go up on about five acres just west of Arger’s 1700 Building, which opened last year to house Farm Credit Services in Spokane.

Both buildings offer tenants panoramic views of the city from a rocky bluff at the top of the Sunset Hill.

The new building will provide class-A office space that can be custom designed for each tenant.

The building will have computer-controlled heating and air conditioning that allows tenants to match room temperatures to their preferences.

Temperature adjustments for each part of the building could be made by a computer modem from Arger’s management office on Mullan Avenue in the Spokane Valley.

“It’s a big thing,” Arger said. “The comfort for the tenant is very important.”

The new building is being designed with a back-up power generator.

The architect is John Aylor of Spokane.

Construction is expected this summer.

Arger is known in the Valley for the series of five cedar-clad office buildings just north of Mullan and Sprague.

Those buildings are named by their street numbers, and Arger is carrying that concept to the West Plains.

The new project is being called the 2100 Building.

Arger said the West Plains is becoming more desirable as an office location because of its proximity to downtown, the freeway and the airport. The road system is not congested - another plus, he said.

The two building projects will share the same campus and will have parking. The landscaping includes walking paths and outdoor break areas.

Windows in the building will extend to the ceilings, allowing for more natural light inside the offices.

Arger said he has two potential tenants interested in moving into the new building but is looking for more businesses to lease space.

Class-A office space in Spokane leases for about $17 to $18 per square foot a year, he said.

, DataTimes