The Dirt: New office space for Clearwater Paper in Spokane

A project that would remodel two floors of the Bank of America Financial Center is being planned that would provide new office space for Clearwater Paper in downtown Spokane.

David Anderson, who manages the property for Redstone Group, which owns the 20-story building at 601 W. Riverside Ave., is seeking a remodel permit to redo a 2,393-square-foot lobby on the second floor and about 18,000 square feet of office space

According to the permit request filed with the city of Spokane, Uptic Studios is the architectural firm that will design the changes and FV Contracting of Mead will do the actual work.

The projected cost of the conversion was listed at about $4 million.

Anderson, who works for Redstone Group, could not immediately be reached last week for comment.

In 2018, the Redstone Group purchased the building for $47.7 million from Unico Properties LLC, a subsidiary of Unico Investment Group LLC in Seattle, according to records filed with Spokane County.

The Bank of America Financial Center was constructed in 1981 and at 288 feet is the tallest building in Eastern Washington.

The building site is steeped in banking history. Traders National Bank built a five-story building after the Great Fire of 1889. The bank merged with Spokane and Eastern Trust Co. in 1914.

Joel E. Ferris, a prominent figure in Spokane history, became the bank’s president in 1931. That same year, the bank was razed for a seven-story Art Deco building, which The Spokesman-Review called “one of the most distinctive buildings in the Northwest.”

During the Great Depression, the bank merged with Seattle First National. The modern 20-story Seafirst Financial Center was constructed in 1981, and, following a merger in 1998, the building’s name was changed to Bank of America Financial Center two years later.

Redstone Group, one of British Columbia’s largest private commercial real estate companies, has a varied portfolio of commercial office buildings in California, Arizona, Washington, Colorado and Canada.

Frontier Behavioral Health project

A building permit request was filed last week for the new clinic that is a joint venture between Frontier Behavioral Health and CHAS Health on East Sprague Avenue.

Frontier purchased the 0.37-acre plot, at 130 E. Sprague Ave., for about $1.2 million in July 2023, according to Spokane County property records.

The new clinic is designed to be about 10,000 square feet and include about a dozen exam rooms, a few break rooms, a waiting area and a pharmacy.

The new clinic is being designed by ALSC Architects and Bouten Construction, both of Spokane, is listed as the contractor. According to the permit, the work is expected to cost about $6.7 million.

Frontier spokeswoman Carla Savalli said the previous building on the site has already been demolished, but both organizations continue to try to secure funding for the project.

“I don’t know that we have a start date,” Savalli said. “We are hoping from sometime in 2025. Because it’s a partnership with CHAS, we can’t unilaterally move forward.”

She was not sure how long construction would take once funding has been secured.

New bakery on South Hill

Igor Yorke submitted a change-of-use permit request with the city of Spokane last week that would convert the former Brain Freeze Ice Cream into a bakery and coffee shop on Spokane’s South Hill.

Yorke, who is listed as the owner-applicant, said the project at 1230 S. Grand Blvd., will begin once the necessary permits have been obtained.

“I want to do a small bakery,” Yorke said.

If all paperwork gets approved, Yorke said he hopes to open the business at the end of spring 2025. “It depends on the permits,” he said.

Big Blue Design Build LLC of Spokane is listed as the contractor. The project is next door to Sushi Blossom, located at 1228 S. Grand Blvd.