The Dirt: Proposed apartment complex overlooks Indian Canyon Golf Course

A large complex of apartment units will be built on the western edge of Spokane, just south of the Indian Canyon Golf Course, according to permits issued by the city.

City View Apartments, 1403 S. Assembly Road, will contain 144 units spread over three large buildings. A separate clubhouse also be built.

The $24.7 million project, being developed on rocky and partially wooded vacant land just north of Sunset Hill near the Motel 6 on Rustle Road, has been in the works for decades by Bill Lawson, a longtime Spokane contractor who owns A&A Construction & Development.

The 5-acre property at Assembly and Deska Drive overlooks Indian Canyon Golf Course to the north and has partial views of the downtown area.

Prior to 1999, the property had been considered for apartments and is zoned for that type of use. But that year, Lawson led a team that considered constructing office buildings on the Assembly property. The idea reverted to an apartment project, and Lawson’s development company applied for building permits in 2008.

According to documents filed with the city in 2016, the three residential buildings will be four stories. Two of the buildings will be larger than 75,000 square feet, and the third will be 65,000 square feet. Underground and surface parking will be built on-site.

Site plans show the four buildings sitting at different angles in the sharp elbow between Assembly and Deska.

The project’s general contractor is A&A Construction & Development, of Spokane Valley. It was designed by Chris Weiland of Spokane’s Architecture All Forms. The engineer is DCI Engineers, also of Spokane.

Work to start on new home

for Behan crisis nursery

Work will begin soon on the Vanessa Behan Crisis Nursery on East Sprague Avenue, according to city permit data.

Permits for site grading and preparation and for the 32,000-square-foot building’s foundation were issued this week. When complete, the building will house the crisis nursery, which provides 24-hour emergency care for children up to 6 years old and is a safe shelter for kids who are in crisis situations stemming from families dealing with substance abuse, domestic violence or homelessness.

The new location will help the nonprofit increase its services to abused and neglected children.

The property at 2230 E. Sprague Ave. is on the eastern edge of the Sprague revitalization project, which has seen continued private investment since the city started targeting public dollars there. While currently vacant, the lot was the site of a Safeway built in 1966. The Safeway was designed by architect Kenneth Storment, who also designed the Bon Marche building in downtown Spokane, now called The M, as well as a number of other Safeway stores in the region.

After the grocery store closed, the building was used as a Spokane Youth Sports Association bingo hall for more than 25 years. SYSA Bingo moved out in February 2016. The building sat empty until its demolition earlier this year.

Vanessa Behan bought the building in October 2017 for $1.3 million.

The project’s general contractor is Bouten Construction, of Spokane. It was designed by NAC Architecture.

Bouten plans

new headquarters

Bouten Construction Co. is building a new two-story office structure to house its corporate headquarters, according to permits issued by the city.

The $3.2 million building will be on the same 3-acre, east Spokane parcel that houses its current corporate offices at 627 N. Napa St. The land is owned by Sparwood Properties, which is in turn owned by Bill Bouten. The completed structure will be 15,665 square feet.

The seven buildings on the Chief Garry Park neighborhood property were built between 1945 and 1952. According to the city, a garage and commercial vestibule were demolished to make way for the new building.

Bouten Construction has long helped build Spokane. Among the many buildings it’s raised are the new Inland Northwest Behavioral Health hospital at Fifth Avenue and Browne Street, the Spokane Regional Health Building, and expansions of Deaconess, Sacred Heart and Holy Family hospitals in the 1960s and ’70s.

Bouten is the project’s general contractor. It was designed by Wolfe Architectural Group, of Spokane. LSB Consulting Engineers, also of Spokane, did the engineering.