Then and now: Safeway stores

The Rev. Samuel M. Skaggs, born in Tennessee in 1861, was adamant that stores should not offer credit to their customers, a traditional courtesy because of the seasonal income of farmers. But Skaggs said credit made customers dependent and hampered businesses who had to wait to get paid

Section:Gallery

Sun., Oct. 25, 2020

1939: A modest new Safeway store opens at Third Avenue and Cedar Street in downtown Spokane. The one-story building was a typical store of the era, though the Safeway built in 1930 near Division Street and Garland Avenue was much larger. This Safeway was closed in the mid-1950s as grocery stores trended toward larger stores with mid-century modern architecture. The building became a state liquor store until 1976, when it became a Chinese restaurant called Ding How, Chan’s Dragon Inn and the Red Dragon.

The Spokesman-Review Photo Archive
Present day: The Red Dragon restaurant at 1406 W. Third Ave. began life as a Safeway store built in 1939, one of many buildings built by, or for, the giant grocery chain. The grocery store was closed vacated in the mid-1950s and the building became a state liquor store until around 1976. In 1978, a Chinese restaurant, Ding How, opened there. It was later called Chan’s Dragon Inn. Today, it’s the Red Dragon.

Jesse Tinsley The Spokesman-Review