Avista buys headquarters for $19 million

Avista Corp. recently paid $19 million to buy back its corporate headquarters, after selling the property on East Mission Avenue in Spokane for $19.5 million in 1986.

For the past 20 years, the Spokane energy company has been leasing the property at 1411 E. Mission for an average of $2.3 million per year.

“The current owner is interested in selling it now for their own economic reasons,” said Jesse Wuerst, an Avista spokeswoman. “It made long-term financial sense for us to repurchase it.”

The company decided to sell the building in 1986 in order to retire some high-interest debt. The bonds being paid off came with a requirement that they could only be retired through the sale of one of the utility company’s assets, Wuerst said.

Avista is buying the building back from the same company it was sold to, though the entity’s name has changed. In 1986, The Spokesman-Review reported that Avista, then Washington Water Power, sold its building to Irving Leasing Corp., a subsidiary of a New York Bank. That company’s name has been changed to IRP-WWP, Inc., Wuerst said.

In 1986, Avista struck a deal to sell the building and lease it back for 25 years, expiring in 2011. At that point, the company would have an option to repurchase the building or extend the lease, news reports said.

However, Wuerst said, IRP-WWP “was ready to sell. They approached us” with the sale offer.

Jon Eliassen, then-Avista vice president for finance, said in 1986 that the sale of the building would allow the company to pass savings on to its ratepayers. Eliassen now directs the Spokane Area Economic Development Council.

Wuerst said Avista plans to keep its headquarters on East Mission Avenue for the foreseeable future. The building has been well-maintained, she said, and its elevators were replaced three years ago.

“We have no plans to move anywhere,” she said. “This campus is well-situated and we’re an integral part of the neighborhood here.”