City Help Sought For Davenport Project Developer Wants $75,000 Break On Permit Fees; Council Seems Willing To Help Worthy, Others

For a renovation project estimated to cost $15 million, a $75,000 break on public permit costs would be puny.

But Walt Worthy, new owner of the Davenport Hotel, believes the city should cut some fees as a “contribution” to the project.

The City Council appears to agree and asked city staffers on Monday to draft an ordinance to help Worthy and other developers of historic buildings in downtown Spokane.

“It could be an opportunity for the city to contribute and do their part to fix the hotel up,” said Worthy. “Think of the revenue that the hotel will generate with room taxes on the hotel.”

Failure to waive the fees “is not going to stop the development of the hotel, but it appears to me to be a good show of faith for the city,” he said.

The ordinance is still in draft stage, without final City Council approval, and criteria still are being debated.

Dave Mandyke, the city’s director of general services, said the ordinance could help developers remodeling buildings in the city core that are on the city or state historic registers and cost more than $2 million to fix up.

The city planned to charge Worthy $25,000 to review his plans and $50,000 to close sidewalks and streets around the Davenport while work is in progress. But city staffers drew up an ordinance to help Worthy specifically, retroactive to July 1.

“It’s a very difficult project, and I think Mr. Worthy will need the cooperation of everyone he works with to make it work,” Mandyke said. “Historically, the City Council has tried to encourage this (Davenport development) in any way they could.”

Councilman Steve Eugster suggested the city should develop a policy rather than act on a case-by-case basis.

“The economic benefits to the city would be tied to the economic development of the central core area,” Eugster said at Monday’s council meeting.

Eugster suggested that projects such as the rehabilitation of the Fairmont Apartments and the Montvale building could be candidates for similar assistance.

A broader ordinance “would be a lot fairer for everyone concerned,” he said.

Ron Wells, who has proposed remodeling the fire-damaged Fairmont Apartments into office space, said even a small break could encourage other developments.

“Some of these projects, like the Davenport and the Fairmont, are difficult to pencil out anyway,” said Wells. “Any incentive makes it more likely to not only do the project but to do a better job.”

Mandyke said the financial impact of a broader ordinance has not been determined. The proposed ordinance would not waive fees such as for building inspections, which are labor-intensive.

Staffers are researching approaches other cities have taken to encourage renovation of historic buildings.

Staff writer Oliver Staley contributed to this report.