Work underway to re-build The Oval Office in Post Falls

 Perhaps a bit unlike some legislation in the real Oval Office, there has definitely been progress at site where The Oval Office Bistro & Martini Bar once stood in Post Falls. The popular restaurant & bar was housed in a converted former house at 620 N. Spokane St for several years. It was demolished in 2022 after being planned to close for a remodel, that instead became removing the structure, likely due to the amount to repair.

The front porch and signage we're left on the site with a promise to re-build by the owners on social media. And they are keeping that promise as in August construction fences went up and work is now progressing to build a new Oval Office. Site work is ongoing and early work for a foundation has also now commenced.

We reached out to the owner via email about when the business might re-open but did not receive a response as of my writing this. Noteworthy however is the planned new building will be larger than the original as permit data on file with the City of Post Falls shows the new building will be a 3,348 SF structure being built at a cost of $502K. If data is correct this would be triple the size of the original restaurant.

RH Contracting is the general contractor for the project and ML Architect looks to have done the architectural work for the new building. During construction both of the Oval Office's sister restaurants also do remain open, The White House Grill about one block north of the site at Seltice & Spokane St in Post Falls and The Pentagon Bistro & Martini Bar at Mission & Meadowwood Ln in Liberty Lake.

The Bagel Authority opening in Downtown Spokane

 A new locally owned bagel shop is now just days away from opening in Downtown Spokane. The Bagel Authority is a new business that is planning to open on Monday (Sept. 25th) on the ground floor of The Empire State Building at 903 W. Riverside, corner of Riverside and Lincoln. Additionally, they are also planning to do a soft opening for a time before opening day as well.

The Bagel Authority's menu will offer a good selection of steamed bagel sandwiches. They plan to be open 7-4 Mon-Fri and 8-2 on Sat initially and will offer both breakfast and lunch bagel sandwiches options. In addition to the bagel's the new restaurant will also offer coffees, lattes, espresso as well as beers of draft and a limited bar of bloody marys and mimosas.

Monthly seasonal specials are also planned to be featured. For more info on The Bagel Authority find them via social media on Instagram

The Human Bean coming to Spokane

 The Human Bean, a Medford,OR based chain of drive thru coffee stands is planning to open next year in Spokane. A local franchisee is planning to construct the new stand at 2503 W. Northwest Blvd on the site of a former car detailing business that was recently demolished. This will be the chain's first location in the Spokane market.

Building permit filings show the plans call for a new construction 614 square foot Human Bean coffee stand to be built at the site. Volro Construction of Mead will be the general contractor and we're told the new coffee shop is currently planning to open around the winter of 2024.

The Human Bean is a growing chain of coffee stands with approximately 150 locations in multiple states around the nation. This includes already established locations operating in Coeur d' Alene and Hayden in Kootenai County. The company's menu consists of coffees, smoothies, teas, infused energy drinks and more.

For more info on The Human Bean visit their website at http://www.thehumanbean.com

Paper St. Coffee Co. opens in the Logan neighborhood

 A unique kind of coffee shop has come to the Logan neighborhood. The new locally owned Paper St. Coffee Co. is now open at 1307 N. Hamilton, nearby Gonzaga University. The space has been used as a couple of other similar business over the last few years and was last a place Roots Coffee Kitchen.

Paper St. Coffee Co. is a fulfillment of a dream for one of the owners to own his own place after falling in love with the hospitality industry ever since starting as a dishwasher in a small Italian restaurant at a young age. He also mentions they place keep the place always changing and growing.

Guests will find a full espresso set up featuring coffees from DOMA Coffee Roasters, lotus energy drinks, hot and cold sandwiches, salads, real ice cream milkshakes, a cereal wall of bulk dispensers filled with cold cereal and granola plus more. They also plan for the place to be part mercantile also. With few exceptions everything on the customer side of business is available for purchase from art on the walls, the chairs and even books is available. And, they are open to feedback from their customers.

Watch for more on Paper St. Coffee soon as I hope to check them out and get something on the Inland Northwest Business Watch social media pages soon. In the meantime, for more info on Paper St. Coffee Co. check them out on their social media sites - Facebook or Instagram

The Small Biz Shoppe is making a big move into former Mobius Museum space at River Park Square

 The Small Biz Shoppe is making a big move. While not far from their current location on the second floor of River Park Square mall the locally operated business will be soon be a much larger space and filling a space that has been underutilized recently.

The Small Biz Shoppe is currently in the process of renovating and relocating to the basement level of River Park Sqaure. This is the former home of the Mobius Childrens Museum before it moved over to their current location along Post St. near the city hall. It has sat mostly empty since Mobius left in 2020.

The new space is 15,000 SF allowing The Small Biz Shoppe to expand to 90 vendors. The existing vendors will be able to move over into the new space along with opening up space for new vendors to join. The business allows local small businesses, artists, crafters, etc. to take space within the store to sell their products. These are vendors that one might often find on sites like etsy or at art festivals, selling their products in a more permanent showplace.

Currently the owners of The Small Biz Shoppe plan to open in the new space in October. For more information on their shop or how to contact them for vendor information find them on social media via Facebook 

Recent Real Estate Transactions - Sept 2023 edition

 I'm sorry it's been a long time since I did a real estate transaction report. This once was a more regular featured post on the site but due to time constraints it got abandoned. So, this time's post might be a bit more lean then in the past if you've been reading my site for awhile.

The following are as they we're reported to us...

Byrd Real Estate Group,LLC reports Ben-Ko-Matic CO. dba Owen Equipment/Cal-line NW has leased +/- 7.330 SF at 1602 S Williams Spokane,WA

Byrd Real Estate Group,LLC reports Spokane Bins has leased +/- 2,732 SF at 5320 E. Sprague Ave Suite 400 in Spokane Valley, WA.

Byrd Real Estate Group,LLC reports Reclaim Project Recovery has leased 13,000-15,000 SF of space at 16814 & 16816 E. Sprague Ave in Spokane Valley, WA

New business Ruda Construction leased 3,016 SF of space at 12018 E. 1st Ave in Spokane Valley, WA. Rob Kannapien of Coldwell Banker Schneidmiller CCIMTEAM handled both sides of the transaction.

Thank you for the brokers who continued to send me updates! If your involved in CRE in the Spokane / Coeur d'Alene area please include us in your reports / press releases at matt.behringer@inlandnwbusiness.com

Construction ongoing for a new Multicare Primary Care facility in Airway Heights

 Construction is now well underway near the eastern edge of Airway Heights for a new larger Multicare Primary Care facility. The new facility, which will be located at 9834 W. US 2 in front of the North 40 Outfitters store. The clinic will replace the existing smaller Multicare primary care practice under a mile west of the new site.

Courtesy photo of the planned new Multicare Primary Care facility.

Set to open in the Spring of 2024 the new clinic will be approximately 8000 SF with 16 exam rooms, one behavioral health room and one treatment room. The new clinic is to be staffed by 12 Physicians/APP's allowing current patients to be able to continue their care from their current provider and adding four physicians/APP's

A rep. with Multicare tells me on the company's principal pillars is creating greater access to care. Since Multicare became a part of the Inland Northwest community in 2016 they have consistently expanded their services and locations. In fact, this new facility is just steps away from the Airway Heights location of Multicare Indigo Urgent Care that just opened towards the end of 2021.

For more info on Multicare, visit their website at http://multicare.org

Construction starts for another mixed use building at Millworx Development in Post Falls

 Once home to a large lumber operation called Idaho Veneer, the Millworx development along 4th Ave just south of I-90 in Post Falls is coming together quickly. The project which is being developed and built by Spokane based A&A Construction & Development is planned to be an urban center which once built out promises to have 685 living units and 104,000 SF of new commercial space. The project will offer townhomes, apartments, stores and restaurants in a style similar to Spokane's Kendall Yards development.

The initial phase of townhomes is hitting the market now, and the on-site apartment community called Heartwood at Millworx recently started leasing their studio, 1 and 2 bedroom rental units. A small group of business are also opening there as Shift Fitness recently opened in the same building as the apartments and the former offices of Idaho Veneer are now home to a hot yoga studio and a mental health clinic.

Rendering of the planned new building now under construction at 949 E. 4th Ave in Post Falls. Courtesy of project architect Wolfe Architectural Group.

But, what's opening now at Millworx is just the beginning as construction has also recently commenced on the north side of 4th Ave for a large new mixed-use building. Planned at 949 E. 4th Ave the new building will have commercial space on the ground floor and three floors of new apartments built over top. This new building will offer 67 additional apartments and five bays of commercial space for new stores and restaurants, although it's too early to predict exactly what businesses will one day call these spaces home.

Currently the developers plan to have this new addition complete sometime around the Spring of 2025. Additionally, construction is actively continuing immediately to the west of the 949 construction site for a new building that will house Kindred & Co. which will be a bookstore with a cafe set to open later this year. To the east, closer to the corner of 4th & Seltice Way construction is in the planning stages for a new four story 151 room Hyatt Place hotel which should start construction during the spring of 2024 and open in late 2025. 

Stay tuned as we plan to keep track of all new construction and developments at Millworx in the coming months. For more information about the project, check out their website at http://millworx.community

India House Authentic Cuisine opens new location on the South Hill

 A new option for Indian food has opened on the South Hill. India House Authentic Cuisine is now open in the former China Garden Restaurant space at 4410 S. Regal and offers dine in, carry out and delivery via the normal delivery apps.

Courtesy photos

India House is a locally owned and operated business with other locations operating in Wenatchee and Post Falls. Husband and wife owners Deepika Dhawan and Manoj Kumar also operate Karma Indian Restaurant on N. Monroe in Spokane as well as in Moscow,ID. , making this the couple's fifth restaurant all together.

The menu of the new South Hill restaurant will be similar to other India House locations, but they do tell me the recently added several new entrees. Like, Fish Pakora, Soya Champ, Daal Fire (rum), Chicken Angara and many more. A lunch buffet is also available at the new restaurant from 11am-2:30pm (closed Monday's).

For more information follow the South Hill India House location on Facebook

Killer Burger applies for a building permit in Spokane Valley

 A popular Portland based quick service burger joint appears to be planning to open soon in Spokane Valley. Killer Burger, which also opened a location in Hayden,ID back in 2021 has filed for tenant improvement building permits for a new restaurant at 15705 E. Broadway.

The Hayden Killer Burger location, seen here on it's opening day in October of 2021.

This address is the now vacant former Valley Sweeto Burrito building in front of Wal-Mart. The permit has only been applied for a not yet approved. We reached out to Killer Burger for more details including a possible opening date but as of my writing this have not received a response, we will post an update should we learn more.

A Spokane area Killer Burger has been a rumor of a bit now as the chain's Hayden location has proven to popular. When that location opened, they told us that creativity and tradition collide perfectly on their menu. Burgers on Killer Burger consist of everything from a classic burger to their popular peanut butter pickle bacon burger and more. Chicken sandwiches, several sauces, kids menu items, etc... also round out the offerings at their restaurants.

The chain presently has a little more than 20 locations, mostly in Oregon. For more information about Killer Burger find them online at http://killerburger.com

Houston TX Hot Chicken to open on Ruby, north of Downtown Spokane

 A Las Vegas based chain of hot chicken restaurants has its sights set on opening a new location in Spokane. Houston TX Hot Chicken will soon remodel the former Sweeto Burrito location at 1839 N Ruby to open a new restaurant there sometime during the fourth quarter of this year.

The company prides themselves on all-natural and never frozen chicken on a menu that features hot chicken in the form of sandwiches, tenders and more. In the Las Vegas area the company's locations has gathered attention, including being ranked as a "Top Place to Eat in Vagas" in 2021 by Yelp. And, although the restaurant's menu includes chicken of all spice levels, they have been noted in the media for their "Houston, we have a problem!" spice level which at 2m SHU requires customers to sign a waiver to purchase.

The restaurant's menu also include house lemonades, shakes and platters / party packages for groups looking for catering. In recent years, HHC has experienced rapid growth with locations nationwide in Arizona, California, Nevada, Texas and many more currently in the pipeline. The Spokane location will be the company's first to open in Washington state, although an HHC restaurant is also set to open this Fall to our south in Meridian,ID.

For more information, including a look at the menu of Houston TX Hot Chicken check out their website at http://hhc.ooo

Where to find Spirit Halloween stores in Spokane / Coeur d' Alene in 2023

August might have just started as of my writing this but "spooky season" is just as around the corner. And, the ever-popular Spirit Halloween chain has already negotiated leases for their Spokane/Coeur d' Alene area stores. In fact we've heard a couple of their stores are already open for business.

The New Jersey based chain of "Halloween superstores" is known for opening stores in abandoned storefronts all over the country. A recent article with the website Bisnow indicates the company plans to open in more locations then it ever has before. Reportedly over 1500 stores are planned to open chainwide with a flagship located in Egg Harbor Township,NJ.

In the Spokane and Coeur d'Alene area expect to see four stores, a couple in the same locations as last year. If you're looking for to visit Spirit Halloween locally, here's where you should look...

Coeur d' Alene   507 W. Kathleen (former BMC lumber) 

Spokane Valley  14720 E. Indiana Ave. (former Sears store at Spokane Valley Mall)

Spokane N. Division   6302 N Division (former Petco)

Spokane Wandermere   12312 N. Division (former Albertsons)

Additionally, Spokane has a local alternative to national Spirit chain. Halloween Express is a locally owned and operated store that also opens during the Halloween season each year, on social media they have indicated their location announcement is coming very soon and they have also already started hiring to staff a store on the north side of Spokane.