Parkwood Expands At Riverbend Park Company Plans To Build 40,000 Square-Foot Facility

The 300-acre Riverbend Commerce Park in Post Falls has attracted another major building with the addition of up to 40,000 square feet by Parkwood Business Properties.

The Coeur d’Alene firm will build the facility on property facing the Spokane River. A.C. Data Systems plans to take up 16,000 square feet in the project by year end.

“They wanted to get out here as soon as possible because they’re growing so fast,” said Pat Leffel, project manager for the commerce park. “And Parkwood is looking at expanding its presence at Riverbend.”

Parkwood eventually could purchase three prime lots for projects at the commerce park, he added.

Prior to the announcement that GTE Northwest was moving into 50,000 square feet at Parkwood’s CdA Tech Center later this spring, A.C. Data Systems had leased a portion of that space along U.S. Highway 95.

“Essentially, we’ve just moved our final location from the tech center to Riverbend,” said Brad Herr, director of finance for A.C. Data.

A.C. Data Systems worked with Parkwood to make the entire building available to GTE, which eventually could employ up to 400 in a national order-processing center opening in April.

“We have roots here and we wanted to give a little back and do what was best for the community,” Herr said. “This was a chance to do that.”

Construction at the Riverbend site is scheduled to begin this spring, and the manufacturer, which makes surge-suppression equipment for the telecommunications industry, hopes to be in the new building by December. In the meantime, A.C. Data will relocate to 6,000 square feet in the Kaniksu building now being completed at Riverbend.

The firm had sales of $4.2 million in 1997 and will increase its current staff of 40 with the move.

“We expect over the next year to add at least three sales people and 15 on the manufacturing side,” Herr said.

When the 36,500-square-foot Kaniksu building opens in mid-March, A.C. Data will join Smart Shop Software, the University of Idaho’s research center and the headquarters for the Jacklin land and property divisions as the most recent additions to Riverbend.

, DataTimes