Catch some waves in Kellogg

Surfing finally is coming to Kellogg, Idaho.

The waves will be machine-generated and hundreds of miles from an ocean. Yet a new, 42,000-square-foot indoor water park under construction at Silver Mountain Resort is slated to offer a “continuous-wave” FlowRider surfing system when it opens in mid-May or June, said Chris Stuart, water park manager. Located in the resort’s gondola village off Interstate 90, Silver Rapids also is expected to feature a lazy river, family raft ride, seven waterslides and a children’s area.

Would-be surfers and bodyboarders might recognize the wave contraption from cruise-line commercials. It shoots a two-inch-thick sheet of water up an incline, and riders’ weight takes them against the flow.

“You’re standing still, but the illusion is you’re going 35 mph,” Stuart said.

The park, which broke ground in November 2005, experienced construction delays and a redesign meant to keep it within budget, Stuart said. He declined to disclose a price tag for the project, citing company policy by operator Jeld-Wen Communities.

“It’s a complicated building, that’s for sure,” said Stuart. “Not only because it’s multilevel, but because of the air-handling systems, the humidity control systems, the water slides, the plumbing.”

Silver Rapids is the latest attraction at the resort, which recently opened a new arcade. Competition includes water parks in Hayden, Athol and Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

Inside the building, a mezzanine will hold hot tubs and a full-service bar, Stuart said. A special roofing technology will let in light and provide insulation, he said.

Guests at Silver Mountain’s Morning Star Lodge will receive access. Other prices haven’t been set, Stuart said. “The purpose of the water park is to fill the lodge,” Stuart said.

Galena Ridge, an 18-hole golf course with home sites, also is under construction but is not expected to open until next year.

Oz Fitness remodeling

Oz Fitness temporarily closed its south Spokane gym starting Wednesday night, beginning a roughly $3 million remodel that will add a second story to part of the building.

The facility, at 5501 S. Regal St., will reopen Monday morning and stay partially open during the remodel, expected to be finished by Sept. 1. When completed, the club will sport new locker rooms, a co-ed spa and sauna, new cardio and spinning rooms and a children’s play area.

“This has been a project that we’ve tried to do a couple times, but we wanted to take the time to make sure that we got the right game plan,” said Chris Templeton, regional facilities manager.

The gym will have the look of Oz Fitness’ remodeled downtown facility, in the former J.C. Penney building, and amenities similar to its Spokane Valley club, Templeton said. It will serve about 7,000 members, he said.

The South Hill club was one of several purchased from 24 Hour Fitness in 2004.

Credit union building

Global Credit Union expects to finish a new, two-story building for a Coeur d’Alene branch by November.

The 27,400-square-foot building, 320 E. Neider Ave., will house about 12 employees, replacing a leased space on Appleway Avenue, Senior Vice President Ed Neunherz said. Spokane-based Global also hopes to lease about 7,800 square feet to other tenants, including a potential small restaurant or coffee shop, he said. The project is estimated to cost $4.8 million.

f5 Networks expands

A Seattle-based corporation that makes equipment and software to manage and route computer network traffic has moved in to its recently finished building expansion in Liberty Lake.

The roughly 30,000-square-foot addition accommodates f5 Networks Inc.’s mounting work force of 65 engineers and 15 other workers, said Greg Davis, senior director of hardware and development.

A research-and-development team there designs all of the company’s “Application Delivery Networking” devices, aimed at keeping applications such as e-mail and Web sites secure and accessible to many users.

“We actually had engineers sitting in hallways,” Davis said.

The facility includes special testing equipment that stresses devices with heat and vibration, Davis said.

The company ranked No. 9 last year in Business 2.0 magazine’s list of the 100 fastest-growing technology companies.