Nordstrom Oks Plan To Reopen Skywalk Passage From Library Will Stay In Its Current Location

At least one detail of Spokane’s River Park Square project appears to be settled: the downtown library’s skywalk will reopen in exactly the same spot.

The three-year-old skywalk, which closed in May because of construction on the project, will lead to the new Nordstrom building planned for the corner of Lincoln and Main.

The skywalk has been a point of contention because originally, the plans for the $100 million River Park Square project showed the library’s skywalk leading to the development’s parking garage.

It also was unclear who would pay for its removal and reinstallation.

“The library skywalk will go back where it was. That has been resolved,” said Betsy Cowles, president of the two companies that own River Park Square, said Friday morning at a Spokane Area Chamber of Commerce meeting.

The developers also have agreed to pay for any costs associated with moving or replacing the skywalk, said project manager Bob Robideaux.

The skywalk is due to reopen when the project opens in the spring of 1999.

Allowing a skywalk to enter a Nordstrom store is a rare occurrence, Cowles continued, because the Seattle-based retailer limits the number of entrances into stores for security reasons.

“This is a very unique thing for them to allow into their store,” Cowles said. “They recognized that as a significant community issue. They deserve a lot of credit for that.”

The new 130,000-square-foot Nordstrom store will be the cornerstone of the development, which will include a multiplex cinema, an open air atrium and other shops and restaurants. River Park Square is owned by Citizens Realty Co. and Lincoln Investment Co., affiliates of Cowles Publishing Co., owner of The Spokesman-Review.

“We’re really pleased they’re making a commitment to retain the skywalk,” said Nancy Ledeboer, the library’s deputy director for public service. “We really need a skywalk.”

The skywalk and library opened in January 1994, funded by a $28.9 million library bond. Library patrons still can enter the library from its street-level entrance at Lincoln and Main, and through its parking garage on Spokane Falls Boulevard.

Other parts of the project also seem to be taking shape. The multi-plex cinema, originally envisioned at 24 screens and 5,000 seats, now has been set at “at least 22 movie screens and 4,000 seats,” Robideaux said at Friday’s meeting.

, DataTimes