Downtown future growth discussed

Nearly 100 people turned out on a cold Thursday night last week to talk about the future of downtown Spokane.

The crowd included civic leaders, developers, property owners, residents and business executives, all with an interest in guiding future growth in the inner city.

The Downtown Spokane Partnership in conjunction with the city of Spokane is undertaking an update of a comprehensive land-use plan adopted by the City Council in 1999.

“What a great turnout for a planning process,” Mayor Mary Verner told the gathering at WSU Spokane’s South Campus facility.

Since the plan was adopted nearly nine years ago, the downtown area has seen significant investment in projects such as the restored Davenport Hotel, new convention center, university campus expansion and condominium conversions.

“You’ve done extremely well in putting together the last eight or nine years of revitalization,” said Daniel Iacofano, a Berkeley, Calif., consultant who worked on the 1999 downtown plan as well as other land-use plans in Spokane.

“When you step back, it’s really breathtaking all that has changed,” he said.

With that change has come calls for new ways to deal with a growing downtown population.

Jim Kolva, a land-use consultant who lives in a loft-style condo downtown, said he hopes the updated plan will emphasize walking, bicycle riding and other alternate forms of transportation to reduce the city’s energy use. Bringing even more residents into the downtown area makes more efficient use of resources, he said.

The update will encompass the expanding University District on the east side of downtown and the Kendall Yards commercial and residential project on the north bank of the river on the west side of downtown.

Building heights, view corridors and shoreline setbacks are on the agenda.

The plan should also address parking, redevelopment of vacant sites, historic preservation, Riverfront Park and connections between downtown and adjacent residential areas.

According to the downtown partnership, downtown “lacks a clear identity and unifying character. There is a clear need to enhance streetscapes, add street trees and create gateways that foster a sense of place and extend a warm welcome to people entering downtown.”

Downtown as a market remains largely untested. Its 2,000 residential units comprise only 3 percent of the housing stock in the city. But the city draws nearly 11,000 students to college programs at WSU Spokane, Eastern Washington State University and Gonzaga University. Health care institutions alone employ 8,400 people, the partnership said. The central city has about 13 percent of all jobs in Spokane County.

Results of the planning effort should lead to changes in zoning and land use, including potential new standards for building construction, officials said.

Planners are taking comment from the public through Dec. 14. Comment cards and comment forms may be downloaded from the Downtown Spokane Partnership Web site at downtownspokane.com/

downtownspokane/.