Havermale Park builds new tradition
An artisan-style bakery plans to open up shop in the Havermale Park complex on the east side of downtown, where construction crews are rapidly changing the look of several buildings.
La Tazza Artisan Bakers plans to move into 2,000 square feet of space at 225 W. Riverside in mid-February, said co-owner Dena Carr, a Spokane native who has been studying artisan baking in San Francisco for the past year. She is opening the business with Harlow Morgan, who recently moved here from Seattle.
“Artisan bread is going to be the heart of our business,” said Carr, 33. “To us that means a lot of time and attention paid to the quality of ingredients as well as the process. There’s not a lot of machinery to create the bread. There’s a lot of hands-on shaping. It’s a pretty European, traditional-style bread.”
Construction crews also are creating apartments and renovating buildings for lease on the block bounded by Riverside, Sprague, Browne and Bernard. Havermale Park is a multimillion-dollar project encompassing most of the buildings on the eastern end of that block. La Tazza will join ComedySportz, Brazilian clothier The Girl from Ipanema and Lutheran Community Services as the first tenants.
La Tazza will be a commercial bakery as well as a retail café. The owners are planning seating for 40 and an open kitchen so customers can watch bakers at work. La Tazza plans to be open for breakfast and lunch, serving pastries, Doma coffee, soup, sandwiches and salads. Beer and wine will also be available.
Carr said Morgan has a cooking background and has owned other businesses. The pair met through a mutual friend who knew both wanted to start a new business, Carr said. They started calling real estate firms looking for space and found Havermale Park, which is being developed by ConoverBond Development.
Carr said ConoverBond President Rob Brewster’s persistence pulled them into Havermale Park.
“He just kept calling and calling and calling. He worked hard to get us into his space,” Carr said.
ConoverBond Vice President Chad Hutson said 28 apartments being constructed in the upper floors of three of the buildings should be available in January. The buildings are the Mearow, at 225 W. Riverside, the Hale, at 227 W. Riverside, and the Richmond, at 228 W. Sprague. The studio and one-bedroom apartments will range in size from 500 to 1,000 square feet and in price from $550 to $1,100 per month, Hutson said. Some of the larger units also will offer home-office space.
Leasing activity is also ongoing in the recently renovated National building, on the southwest corner of Riverside and Browne, Hutson said. The second and third floors of that building will be office space, while the first floor will be reserved for retail, most likely a restaurant or bar, he said.
Work is also progressing at another ConoverBond project on the other side of downtown. Hutson said the Montvale Hotel, a 36-room boutique hotel at the corner of Monroe and First, is aiming for a Dec. 15 “soft opening,” with a grand opening planned in January.