U-Haul will turn old JC Penney at U-City Mall into storage units

U-Haul International Inc. has purchased the old JC Penney building at University City Mall in Spokane Valley and will convert the space into storage units, company officials said.

U-Haul bought the 108,766-square-foot building at 10412 E. Sprague Ave. at the end of June. Plans call for 835 indoor climate-controlled self-storage units with security features. The first phase of the units will be available early next year.

“The storage business is very bullish,” said Manny Mendez, president of U-Haul of Inland Northwest.

U-Haul of Inland Northwest has about 3,100 units. Occupancy rates are running about 99 percent, Mendez said.

The trend is driven by retirees who are downsizing and young people who live in apartments and need more storage, he said.

U-Haul of Inland Northwest is headquartered at 1616 S. Russell St., Airway Heights.