Liberty Lake development aiming for green certification

A 100-acre, mixed-use development under way in Liberty Lake is slated to incorporate environmentally friendly elements as the first regional development to shoot for certification through Inland Northwest Built Green.

Developer Whitewater Creek, of Hayden, boasts its master-planned Hawkstone project will follow the standards, which are being developed by the Spokane Home Builders Association. The development, located south of Interstate 90, is approved for more than 800 residences, several acres of parks and a commercial hub.

The standards address issues such as retention and treatment of storm water and using fast-growing native vegetation for site heating and cooling, said Paul Warfield, the association’s community affairs director. The program also requires each building within the development to meet Built Green requirements, he said.

“Hawkstone was fortunate to get funding before the economic turmoil hit,” Warfield said. “There’s just not a lot of master-planned communities that are moving forward.”

Whitewater this spring began building the 75-unit First Liberty Apartments. The company also plans 60 units of affordable senior housing in the first phase.

The entire development could cost $200 million to $300 million and be built over five to seven years, co-owner Todd Prescott said previously.

“It’s a cool thing to take the environment and sustainability into consideration,” Prescott said in a prepared statement. “It would be great if we could just slow down the degradation of the environment.”

Church remodels thrift store

A former West Central neighborhood thrift shop is undergoing renovation into a coffee shop and meeting hall by an unlikely developer – a local church.

The Porch, a spinoff of Garland Avenue Alliance Church, purchased the building at 1804 W. Broadway Ave. It is just blocks away from the proposed Kendall Yards mixed-use development, in a neighborhood where church leaders see a need for economic redevelopment.

“We really do want to use this space well for this community,” said Dave Wilkinson, pastor. “We love West Central; it’s a pretty cool place. There’s lots of potential.”

The church already has put a modern façade on the roughly 7,000-square-foot building.

The Porch’s 70 or so attendees plan to meet in the building; other space will be leased to an independent coffee shop, Indaba, which could open in a couple months. The rest of the building will be offices and meeting space.