Valley Hall May Be Leased

Opportunity Township Hall may soon be bustling with activity.

The 87-year-old stucco building at 12112 E. Sprague is filled with history, but for years it sat empty.

This week, the Spokane County Parks and Recreation Department, which owns the hall, began lease negotiations with Spokane Valley Fire District’s union, Local 876.

“I think it will be a great opportunity for both sides,” said firefighter Harold Kellams, who has been working for years to find a meeting hall for the union.

Kellams said he approached the parks board about about a year ago, knowing that the union’s tiny office on Progress Road wouldn’t cut it for meetings.

But tons of red tape and the steep price tag kept the union and others at bay.

Last January the parks board sent out a letter to 300 area nonprofit, community-service and youth-based organizations letting them know the Spanish colonial-style building was available.

But there were few bidders.

The firefighters union offered $350, considerable less than the $700 a month rent the county was asking for.

County officials, as well as the leasing agency, Kiemle & Hagood, wanted more than what union officials offered, so they kept negotiations open.

Still they had no takers.

The 2,500-square foot building is perfect for the union, Kellams said. He envisions adorning the walls with historic firefighting photos. He thinks the hall will be perfect for meetings, pancake breakfasts or spaghetti dinners.

Because the 1912 building is listed on the Spokane Register of Historic Places, the tenant cannot make structural or nonreversible changes to it. If it’s painted, the color must match the exterior, and any repairs or replacements must match the original.

That’s fine with Kellams. He said the union only wants to have a gathering place in the Spokane Valley. They don’t plan on hanging a gaudy sign out front or revamping the hall.

“For the union, we really don’t care. We want it for the building. We’re not trying to sell something,” he said.

After the lease is hammered out between the county and the union, it must then be advertised and go to a public hearing, said county Parks Director Wyn Birkenthal.

Currently they’re trying to work out details on serving alcohol to members.

Kellams said he wants to make sure they don’t have too restrictive of a lease. For example, they might want to hold a spaghetti dinner for members and serve wine at the event.

All sides agree, cutting through the red tape of government has been like trying to cut down a tree with a fingernail file.

Says Commissioner Kate McCaslin, who would have loved to see the hall used as a sheriff’s SCOPE station: “Yeah, it sure takes a long time.”