The Dirt: 40 housing units planned for Perry District

A housing developer has plans to build a four-story apartment building with 40 units of housing in the Perry District north of Grant Elementary School.

The building will span a total of roughly 39,000 square feet at 1217 E. Newark Ave., according to a construction permit application filed by with the city of Spokane.

The site used to house Southside Church of Christ, a small but recognizable white building with a peaked roof that faced Newark Avenue where it begins curving south to become Perry Street.

The church grounds were accompanied by two lots to the west that feature tall ponderosa pine trees and oftentimes piles of rubbish from illegal dumping.

The residential development, to be called Perry Street Apartments, will cost an estimated $5 million to build, application documents show.

The plans were submitted by the owner of the property, Andrew Helmstadter, a Spokane lawyer, real estate broker and property manager, according to the website of his firm, ALH Law.

Helmstadter could not be reached for comment.

Spokane Valley-based TW Clark Construction has been hired to build the structure and Pondera Architecture, a Spokane-based firm, designed it, documents show.

Two vacated downtown buildings to get new life

A remodel permit application has been submitted to the city of Spokane to overhaul the Jefferson and Norman buildings, which have sat vacant for years, according to city records.

Forty units of housing and four commercial spaces are planned for the $4.5 million project.

At the southeast corner of First Avenue and Jefferson Street, the two buildings sit across the street from the Parsons Apartment building and a block east of Brisk West Brewing.

The Jefferson building, located on the corner, was built in 1909 and the Norman building, located immediately east, was constructed a year prior, according to Spokane County property records.

At 115 S. Jefferson St. and 1121 W. First Ave., the buildings were once a modern hotel with private telephones in each room. They were touted as being “Spokane’s exclusive family hotel,” according to Spokane County Preservation Office. The hotel was also operated as low-income housing before it was vacated.

The properties were jointly sold in November for $1.1 million to Chris Batten, owner of Spokane-based real estate company RenCorp Realty.

Batten has been recognized by the Spokane Journal of Business as a 2026 person of influence due to his contributions to downtown Spokane’s revitalization over the past 25 years.

RenCorpRealty aims to build 200 to 250 new housing units in downtown Spokane over the next three to five years, with 130 units currently in various stages of development, he told the Journal in August.

According to plans for the Norman and Jefferson buildings, the street-level floor will be divided into four commercial units and the upper floors will be apartments.

Batten is planning to renovate the basement of the conjoined buildings to include bike storage for its residents.

Both the upper floors will host 20 units consisting of two studios, 14 one-bedroom units and 4 two-bedroom units, plans show.

Spokane-based Olson Projects designed the project.

No contractor has been named yet.

Developer plans 19 townhomes in north Spokane

A development firm is planning a high-density residential project near Gonzaga Prep, according to plans submitted to the city of Spokane.

Called Cleveland Townhomes, the plans involve dividing a 1-acre lot into 19 individual properties. These types of projects are referred to as unit lot subdivisions.

Cities around the country have begun expanding their building codes to incentivize more unit lot subdivision projects including in Spokane, which saw an ordinance signed into law at the beginning of 2024.

Each lot of the Cleveland Townhomes project will span roughly 2,225 square feet, plans show.

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

The site at 553 E. Cleveland Ave. consists of seven undeveloped properties owned by the estate of William “Bill” Tombari, an accomplished Spokane attorney and founder of real estate development firm Tombari Properties, according to Spokane County property records.

The estimated cost of subdividing the properties and connecting all properties to utility lines is estimated to cost $1.9 million, plans show.

Plans were submitted by Todd Whipple, president of Spokane-based Whipple Consulting Engineers.