Wheels are turning at the Flour Mill

A Spokane gem that hovered in a sleepy state for the past few years is re-emerging as a trendy hub.

Spokane’s Flour Mill, longtime home of Clinkerdagger Restaurant, is sporting a diverse menu of shops and restaurants, with its latest arrival, Polo’s Café, opening recently.

“I think the building has regained its stature as to where it was,” said Alex Waterbury of Presidio Development Partners LLC. The San Francisco-based company is developing the building in conjunction with the owners, G.V.L. Investors, also of the Bay Area.

Waterbury said retail is nearly full, adding, “We’re very happy with the way things are going at the Flour Mill.”

But the opening of new shops and restaurants is just part of the story.

Several months ago, Kiemle & Hagood Co., which manages the building, announced the sale of condos within the 111-year-old mill. Since then, a third of the office suites in the seven-story building have either sold or are in the process of selling, Waterbury said. Companies that have purchased the condos specialize in accounting, personnel and construction.

While the concept of office condos is well established in big cities like San Francisco, it’s a relatively new type of property ownership in Spokane, Waterbury said.

The resurgence of life in the Flour Mill comes after a downturn that resulted in multiple vacancies and empty shops. At its height, in the 1980s, the historic mill was a destination retail establishment that housed two dozen specialty shops and restaurants.

In 2001, the economy lagged, retail suffered and vacancies increased. In 2003, a popular kitchen store, Copper Colander, closed. Two years later, Pottery Place Plus moved across the river and into the Auntie’s Bookstore building.

To make ownership and leasing of space at the Flour Mill more appealing, Presidio and G.V.L. refinished hardwood floors, upgraded the elevator and added riverfront landscaping with improved access for tenants. They recently started adding modern security conveniences.

With the Upper Falls Condominiums next door nearing completion, and two more condo projects proposed for the area, the building has added appeal.

In addition to longtime staples like Wonders of the World, Old Joe Clark’s Portrait Studio, Tobacco World, Ho Ho Teriyaki and Marguerite’s Nail Boutique, this past year saw the arrival of A Gifted Touch Massage, XS Jewelry, Chocolate Apothecary and Kitchen Engine.

Now Polo’s Café has added to the mix its assortment of fresh baked goods, espresso drinks and other breakfast and dinner items.

“It’s neat to see the Flour Mill kind of coming back to life,” said Eric Fugitt, who opened the restaurant with Debra Fugitt, his wife and business partner.

“It’s always been my wife’s dream to open up a place like this,” he said.

The couple looked at places at Liberty Lake and on Indian Trail Road before deciding on the Flour Mill. While the nearby condos that are currently under construction weren’t a deciding factor, it has been a pleasant surprise as additional projects, such as the one on the YWCA property, have been announced, Fugitt said.

LDS to build new chapel

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is building a new chapel at 63rd and Regal.

Dick Waide, project manager for the local LDS Church, said the single-story, 16,400-square- foot building will blend with the area and has brickwork with a composition roof. “We try to build something that will add to the area,” he said.

Spokane County lists the building’s value at $1.8 million. A baseball field and outdoor basketball court will remain on the property, which, when completed, will have a chapel, indoor basketball court and rooms for youth groups and the relief society, he said.

Waide expects construction to be completed sometime around April.

The Moran Prairie Ward will share the building with two other wards, easing a crunch for parking at the 43rd Avenue and Havana Street center, he explained. That meeting house will now serve two, instead of three, wards.