Spokane7
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March 3, 2010 in City
Original bidder wants YMCA
Development proposals also include museum
The developer who originally wanted to build a 12-story condo tower on the site of the former downtown YMCA has submitted one of three proposals for redeveloping the facility under city ownership.
The proposal by developer and real estate broker Mark Pinch is “way different” from the plan he had in 2006 when he offered to spend $5.3 million for the former YMCA building, he said on Tuesday.
He did, however, decline to discuss details of his new plan until the city makes the proposals public.
His original plan for a condo next to the lower Spokane Falls was killed when the Spokane Park Board exercised a right of first refusal to purchase the property.
That move in 2006 set the stage for an ongoing controversy about the best use of the property.
City Council members are now seeking private redevelopment proposals as a way to finance the $5.3 million acquisition, completed last summer.
In a second proposal, developer Ron Wells wants to turn the top three floors into apartments and the ground floor into commercial use.
In the third proposal, a graphic arts designer and former museum employee wants to see the facility used to display Spokane’s world-class collection of Native American artifacts.
“I am not a developer or anything like that,” said Jennifer Childress, of Spokane. “I am coming as a concerned citizen.”
She said she has no money or expertise to invest, but wants to make her suggestion part of the discussion.
A collection of more than 25,000 Native American artifacts has been held in storage through the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture since the 1991 closure of the former Museum of Native American Cultures next to Gonzaga University.
Childress had worked as an assistant there, and she said the collection deserves to be on display.
Pinch’s 2006 plan to develop the condo tower came at the height of an emerging market for downtown condominiums, a market that has slumped in the national recession.
The YMCA has since moved to 930 N. Monroe St.
Pinch said he has no way of knowing whether his tower would have been built since it was contingent on pre-sales of condo units.
Pinch operates his own development company, which would undertake his current proposal to the city, and is a commercial real estate broker with NAI Black.
City spokeswoman Marlene Feist said officials at City Hall are reviewing the proposals and plan to release them this week.
The City Council is holding a workshop session on the proposals on Monday, she said.
Wells previously said he would like to recruit Spokane Public Radio into the lower floor of the former YMCA. He said he has requested to lease the building for 50 years with the city taking 80 percent of the cash flow after his expenses are covered.
The city has an offer from the county commissioners that is good until March 31 to use Conservation Futures funding for the purchase, but only if the land is returned to a natural state.
Returning farmland to a state of nature 
Hank___Tingler on March 03 at 8:40 a.m.
That Google map is off about a mile.
MrNatural on March 03 at 9:22 a.m.
Raze the Y building, allow the sun to shine on the falls, design a public place for a spiritual and awe inspiring experience, and enhance the quality of life for everyone. Near Nature Near Perfect Damn it!
This developmental greed is beginning to look like the worst aspects of human nature; like fighting over some fetid carcass to see who gets the fullest belly.
MrNatural on March 03 at 9:27 a.m.
The Falls needs to be preserved for all to experience and enjoy. This is a rare and wonderful opportunity to reclaim Spokane’s most beautiful natural attraction. I’ve gathered by reading the Spokesman that some influential citizens want this site strictly to turn a profit and that money and privatized greed is at the forefront. I would go as far as saying that the Spokesman is influencing council members by some covert pressure. I despise this when the Spokesman has an agenda contrary to the will of the citizens of Spokane. Open Spokane Falls for its natural beauty let the sun shine across the spray for a rainbow of awesome splendor and we can attest to being near nature near perfect.
rterrylynch on March 03 at 9:54 a.m.
For my 25 cents worth I would urge the city of Spokane to take the County of Spokane up on the use of Conservation Funds to return the YMCA property to a natural state. This gem that is owned by all the citizens deserves to be put back to a natural state. The park can’t be duplicated but in this instance it can be added to at little to no expense for the city.
This is truly a conservation opportunity uncommon. The building of commercial or housing on this site is outrageous.
child69 on March 03 at 11:48 a.m.
The YMCA site should be something for the people by the people…not reserved for the use of an elite few.