The Dirt: New retail, restaurant, warehouse development planned in Liberty Lake

A new development with retail, restaurants, warehouses and an RV wash could be coming to Liberty Lake, according to an application filed with the city.

Steve Peterson filed a land-use application with the city last week to divide a more than 3-acre site at 19501 E. Appleway Ave. into eight lots for The Point at Liberty Lake, a development that would include four, 4,000-square-foot warehouses; a 2,000-square-foot RV wash; two retail buildings spanning a total of 6,830 square feet; and a 3,750-square-foot fast-food restaurant with a drive-thru.

The development would be built in four phases, with the warehouses and RV wash to be constructed next year. Subsequent phases are expected to begin in late 2021 and 2022, according to an environmental review for the project.

Peterson and his wife, Charmaine, along with Stanley and Karina Jochim purchased the property for $651,658 in January, according to the Spokane County Assessor’s Office.

Peterson is the former mayor of Liberty Lake.

The development is estimated to create 60 jobs, according to the environmental review.

CHAS Health plans $1.9M plans expansion

CHAS Health is planning a $1.9 million expansion of its Market Street clinic that will include seven exam rooms, a conference center and a larger pharmacy with a drive-thru.

CHAS Health applied for a building permit last month to construct the exam rooms and conference center, and relocate and expand its existing pharmacy at 5921 N. Market St.

The expansion will take the clinic’s size to 9,200 square feet.

The expansion was prompted by a need for additional capacity, said John Browne, CHAS Health’s chief financial officer.

“It’s been one of our busiest clinics as long as I can remember, and we’ve always had a need for additional capacity there,” Browne said.

Another reason for the expansion is to improve workflow efficiency, Browne said.

“We just had a need to also evolve our clinic space to provide a better workflow for staff and patients,” he said. “The needs of that area continue to grow, and we have been at capacity there for a while.”

The expansion is funded by CHAS Health reserves as well as grants and donations from the Sunderland Foundation and Innovia Foundation.

The organization is expecting to break ground on the Market Street expansion this month, depending on weather. The project is expected to be completed by July, Browne said.

Bouten Construction Co. of Spokane is the project contractor. Spokane-based ALSC Architects is designing the project.

Light of Gospel Church constructing new building in Spokane ValleyLight of the Gospel Church is planning to break ground on a new church building, according to a building permit application filed in November with Spokane County.

The congregation is building a more than 18,000-square-foot church with a 2,000-square-foot mezzanine and, in addition to a new parking lot, driveways and sidewalks at 5716 N. Progress Road, according to documents filed with the county.

The site on Progress is home to an existing Light of the Gospel Church, but the congregation has outgrown the 6,000-square-foot facility. The church plans to split off a half-acre of the site for a future single-family caretaker residence or other approved development, according to project documents.

The building permit is valued at $2.5 million, according to the application.

Construction is expected to begin in the spring and is slated for completion in fall 2021, according to the environmental review.