Cabela’s near deal with Post Falls

Post Falls appears to have hooked Cabela’s.

After months of playing coy, company officials confirmed that final negotiations are under way for a mega sporting goods store that could open by fall 2007.

The Sydney, Neb., retailer strives to turn its stores into tourist attractions with museum-quality displays of wildlife and aquariums filled with native fish.

According to Post Falls Mayor Clay Larkin, Cabela’s Utah store attracts more visitors than the Mormon Tabernacle – a claim that could not be verified Thursday evening.

In Post Falls, plans call for a 125,000-square-foot showroom devoted to outdoor pursuits. The centerpiece would be “Conservation Mountain,” a fake peak that spouts rushing streams and waterfalls.

The store would also include a world-class gun library, an indoor archery range and a deli serving wild-game sandwiches, according to a Cabela’s press release. About 250 people would work there. Officials at the company’s Nebraska headquarters did not return calls Thursday.

Cabela’s would anchor The Pointe at Post Falls, a retail development near the Stateline exit of Interstate 90. The developer is Foursquare Properties Inc. of Carlsbad, Calif., which builds many of Cabela’s western stores.

Cabela’s, which also operates a catalog and Internet business, bills itself as one of the world’s sporting good retailers, with nearly $1.8 billion in annual sales. The company has 17 stores across the U.S., including one in Boise, and plans for a dozen more.

Cabela’s also has a reputation as a shrewd negotiator, winning tax concessions in the states where it does business. Idaho, for instance, is allowing Cabela’s to omit sales tax on catalog items sold in the state despite a retail store presence here. Other retailers, such as Coldwater Creek, must charge sales tax.

Cabela’s interest in the area prompted spirited bidding between Liberty Lake and Post Falls. The company hinted that it preferred Post Falls, but its commitment hinged on a new freeway exit leading directly to the store site. Cabela’s was willing to pay $12 million to $15 million to build the exit if the company could recover part of its sales tax over a five-year period. North Idaho lawmakers introduced the proposal, but it didn’t progress through the Legislature this year.

State Rep. Bob Nonini, R-Coeur d’Alene, said the legislation will be introduced again. Thursday’s announcement, however, indicates that Cabela’s is committed to building even without the assurance of a new exit, he said. “I think it’s pretty official,” Nonini said.

Cabela’s will bring a significant economic boost to the city, Mayor Larkin predicted in an interview last week. Tour buses stop for four or five hours at the stores to let people shop, he said.

Larkin expects the Post Falls Cabela’s to attract outdoors enthusiasts from Western Montana, Canada, the Tri-Cities and Yakima. Because of the strong tourist influx, most of the sales will be new business as opposed to revenue diverted from smaller sporting goods outlets in the area, he said.

Cabela’s rapid expansion plans have led to some speculation that the store’s cachet and tourism draw may fade over time.

“I’ve asked myself that question, too,” Larkin said.

But even if Cabela’s eventually builds in Seattle or Missoula, the Post Falls store will still be on I-90 in view of thousands of travelers daily, he said.