Urban Outfitters may open local store

First women, then millennials.

A Philadelphia-based retailer has twice in the last month announced downtown Spokane stores aimed at two coveted shopping demographics.

Following last month’s announcement that Anthropologie, a woman’s clothing and home furnishing retailer, would be opening in downtown Spokane, this Friday brought news that Urban Outfitters plans to locate on the northwest corner of Main Avenue and Wall Street in River Park Square.

The store is popular among a younger demographic due to its bohemian and hipster clothing and housewares and expects to be open in fall 2016.

First, however, the downtown mall must win approval to vacate a portion of Wall Street, and some city officials have voiced concern about a loss of pedestrian access and of favoring one business owner over others.

River Park Square is owned by the Cowles Co., which also owns The Spokesman-Review.

Bryn West, general manager of River Park Square, said she’s been trying to lure Urban Outfitters to town “for four years.” What finally won over the company, which also owns Anthropologie, was a study put together by the Downtown Spokane Partnership showing that about 75,000 undergraduate college students live within 90 minutes of downtown Spokane.

“They were looking for more student population, and there’s a ton of students around here when you really look at it,” West said.

To accommodate the 12,000-square-foot store, River Park Square plans to expand to the east with a two-story addition at Main Avenue and Wall Street. The new 10,000-square-foot building would house the Urban Outfitters retail store, which also would go “up and over” into the space previously held by an annex of Auntie’s Bookstore. The Saad building that currently stands there would be demolished. Property records indicate the building, 702 W. Main Ave., was built in 1966.

To accommodate the building frontage required by the Urban Outfitters chain, the new building will expand into Wall Street, if approved by the city.

The proposed street vacation includes 10 feet of sidewalk and 7 feet of Wall Street. Wall would remain open for two-way traffic, and would be “just a foot less than what is currently the narrowest part of the street,” West said.

The city vacated a portion of Post Street for the $100 million redevelopment and expansion of River Park Square, which was finished in 1999.

River Park Square’s manager, Centennial Properties, is submitting an application for the vacation to City Hall, where it was tepidly received Friday. Centennial Properties, a Cowles Co. subsidiary, will pay the city the assessed value of the vacated right-of-way.

“First it was 10 feet, then it was 15 and now it’s 17 feet,” said Councilman Jon Snyder. “It’s right in the middle of downtown and it’s purposely for one landowner and for luring one tenant. … I’d like to see some broader support behind it. I don’t want to appear that we’re advantaging one property owner unless there’s significant public interest there.”

Snyder said the proposed vacation made him “concerned about pedestrian access there.”

Councilwoman Candace Mumm echoed Snyder’s concern, but noted that no formal discussions had yet taken place because the council was “waiting for them to file before we worked on a proposal.”

“The council will look at what they’re proposing and we’ll have a discussion about that,” she said. “I want to keep as much public benefit as possible, because streets belong to the public.”

Mumm said Wall Street was being considered as another gateway to Riverfront Park, which will have an ice rink near City Hall and Wall Street next winter.

“The timing could work out really well” for a street vacation, Mumm said, but noted that “River Park Square is not the only stakeholder there,” pointing to Macy’s, the Spokane Transit Authority and other store owners in the neighborhood.

Laura Howe, store manager at the downtown Macy’s, said she supported Urban Outfitters coming to town.

“The more the retailers that come into downtown, the better it is for everyone down here,” she said.

Karl Otterstrom, director of planning for the STA, agreed. The transit organization has pushed to keep Wall Street available for bus lines and, potentially, the proposed, streetcar-like Central City Line.

“We, like all the other downtown partners, are excited to see more retailers and the activation of Wall Street,” he said. “The DSP has facilitated conversation to make sure the site is compatible with existing transit. When we look at the Central City Line, that route hasn’t been finalized yet, but we’re sure that this will be compatible.”

Mark Richard, president of the Downtown Spokane Partnership, said the store “means a growth in everybody’s bottom lines,” but he noted it wasn’t a done deal.

“The council still has to make a decision,” Richard said. “Our goal is not to put undue pressure on them. They have to do what is right for the entire community. Of course, we’re hopeful that they approve it.”