The Dirt: New housing planned near Kendall Yards; Salish School readies for relocation

More housing construction is expected in the bustling Kendall Yards area.

Plans submitted to the city of Spokane show two three-story buildings totaling 10 units of housing, according to city records.

At 2114 W. Falls Ave., the 0.29-acre property is just east of Olmstead Brothers Park and the Hello Sugar donut shop.

Each building will have a footprint of roughly 1,920 square feet. One building, accessed via Ohio Avenue to the north, will feature four units of housing. The southernmost structure, accessed via Falls Avenue, will have six units.

No parking is planned to be provided for residents.

The estimated cost of the project is $3 million, plans show.

The property has been owned by the Swan Living Trust for decades. Stephanie Swan, treasurer of the West Central Neighborhood Council and longtime resident of the area, is the trustee of the property, according to Spokane County property records.

Plans were submitted as part of the pre-development process, which gives developers the opportunity to garner feedback from city building officials before applying for construction permits.

Evan Verduin, principal and owner of Spokane-based Trek Architecture, submitted plans for the project. He did not return correspondence by publication deadline.

Salish School submits permits for three buildings

The Salish School of Spokane has filed construction applications to build a three-story residential building, a two-story cultural center and school. Each building is expected to cost roughly $2 million.

The development will be at 2720 W. Elliot Court, located on a peninsula just across the Spokane River from Doomsday Hill. It will be called the River Family Haven and replace the current Salish School at 4125 N. Maple St.

The project keeps a promise made in April by Christopher Parkin, principal of the school that teaches a typical K-12 curriculum in indigenous Salish languages.

“Compared to our location now that has no kitchen, no gym or even a room big enough to fit all our students in one space, the new development will be a phenomenal improvement,” Parkin told The Spokesman-Review in April. “The site itself is way better than ours that is on an arterial, especially considering the outdoor education opportunities we will have.”

The Haven property was gifted by Catholic Charities of Eastern Washington, an asset worth about $500,000, according to Spokane County property records.

The residential building will feature 12 one- and two-bedroom housing units. The structure will encompass about 13,300 square feet, plans show.

The cultural building will span about 11,300 square feet and include a gymnasium, cafeteria, commercial kitchen and classrooms.

The school building, which will serve K-12, will be about 9,400 square feet and consist of classrooms, administrative offices and an outdoor play area, plans show.

Rob McCann, president and CEO of Catholic Charities of Eastern Washington, said in June when plans were first submitted that his organization’s legal transfer of the land was made within the context of history.

“In my mind, everyone should be doing something like this to offer one little drop in the bucket in terms of making it right,” McCann said.

With some help from Catholic Charities, the Salish School of Spokane has been working to raise nearly $11 million to fund the new campus.

So far, they have raised nearly $8 million, Parkin said.

Parkin is actively trying to raise the remaining $3 million. He is working with Waters Meet Foundation and Inatai Foundation for program related investments. He is currently pursuing another $9 million of funding from private investors and government grants to reach their goal.

“We have a lot of irons on fire,” Parkin said. “Whether it be private or public, it’s a matter of building relationships which takes time, especially considering the economic climate as of late – people are a little nervous.”

Parkin said the project is planned to go to bid next week.

He anticipates having a contractor in place to break ground by February.

Construction is estimated to take 24 months, he said.

“Hopefully we can be moving in during our spring break of 2028,” he said. “Maybe earlier.”

But the last piece of the puzzle is acquiring the remaining funding.

“The dream is to have this thing built with no debt to pass along to the next leaders of the Salish School of Spokane,” he said. “It’s a tougher economic environment than it was 18 months ago, but we have a beautiful project – we’ll get there.”

The school’s current location at 4125 N. Maple St. has been listed for sale with an asking price of $1.25 million, Parkin said.

Architecture All Forms of Spokane designed the new campus, plans show.

Seven residential buildings planned for Five Mile Prairie

About a dozen commercial construction permit applications were submitted last week to the city of Spokane for residential structures and garages, city records show.

The project, dubbed Avey Townhomes, includes seven middle housing buildings, each with either three or four units.

All buildings will stand three-stories tall and range from about 4,800 to 7,000 square feet, plans show.

Also part of the project are four detached garage structures.

At 7724 N. Austin Road, the 2.5-acre property is owned by Justin and Rachel Avey, Spokane property records show.

Justin Avey is the president and CEO of Spokane-based Avey Construction Group, which is contracted to build the development.

The estimated cost of construction is $6.5 million, according to application documents.

Press Architecture, based in Spokane, designed the project.