Tod Stephens: The Dirt: 5M Apartments planned for Five Mile Prairie

Mar. 29—Developers are planning to construct the 5M Apartments, which will bring four, 12-unit apartment buildings to the Five Mile Prairie Neighborhood.

On a roughly 2-acre parcel at 7601 N. Five Mile Road, buildings will be three stories tall, according to Andrew Spelman, who is part owner and a member of the development team.

An estimated $9 million will be spent on the project that will eventually offer one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom units, he said.

"We intentionally went for bigger units and more high end finishings. It's not luxury but an upper end, middle market product," he said. "We want families to move in and see what Five Mile has to offer."

The apartments will be market-rate price except for a few to be in accordance with the multifamily tax exemption program, he said. The initiative gives property tax breaks to developers to encourage them to implement more market rate and affordable housing in project.

Spelman said a few aspects of the project are focused on the neighborhood. They kept the project at 48 units, instead of the maximum 60 allowed by city code for the size of property, to respect density concerns by neighbors and to allow for more open space, he said.

That extra space has prompted developers to consider amenities to the project like a park, patio and barbecues that can be accessed by the whole neighborhood, Spelman said.

Developers devoted extra funds to the façade of the project including the exterior of the buildings and landscaping to ensure it is an aesthetic-pleasing addition to the neighborhood.

"We understand that some people are not excited about this, so we constantly asked ourselves how we can be good neighbors," he said.

Neighbors have complained to the city over their worries that the project could cause congestion and slow emergency response times, he said.

"We're completely cognizant of those concerns and we had them, too," he said. "But the city set them to rest by showing fire response is acceptable and EMS is acceptable. But we hope this project can spur more services to the area."

Currently residing on the property is a century-old homestead house that is expected to be demolished. Spelman said much work has been done to try and relocate the 1906 home because it is "in good shape," he said.

He and the development team offered to donate it to the city and other potentially interested receivers to no avail. If the whole house cannot be preserve, they intend on salvaging aspects of it to be either implemented in the 5M Apartments project or to be donated.

The projects is currently in its environmental impact review, Spelman said. If permits are issued by the city, he estimates it will take a year of construction to erect the four buildings.

Sandwich shop on Ash

It has been a service station, violin store, hair salon and most recently, a used care dealership. But this summer, the small building and parking lot at 1505 N. Ash St. will be converted into a sandwich shop, according to Dwayne Tawney who co-owns the property.

Tawney and his business partner, Mike Stephens, purchased the property around five years when it was leased by Next Gen Auto Sales. After the owners of the dealership decided the relocate, the partners decided to open their own operation.

The inspiration came from Tawney's brother, David, who used to own Caffe Capri and Pacific Pizza in the Browne's Addition.

"I've always wanted to do something like that," Tawney said.

Open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Tawney's Sandwich Shop will have a simple, but delicious, menu Tawney said. It will include both deli style and hot hoagie sandwiches.

No coffee will be served, but Stephens and Tawney hope to eventually offer beer on draft.

"This will be the first time Mike and I have been in the food industry," Tawney said. "So we're going to start out simple."

Little work is required to convert the 865-square-foot building from selling cars to subs, he said. Much of the work will be done to construct a walk-up countertop and to install ovens.

The partners are use the success of their other business, a trash removal company called Junk-N-Dump, to fund the sandwich shop.

"That's our main business and we're really proud of it," he said.

He said he hopes to open Tawney's Sandwich Shop on June 1.

Numerica Credit Union opens branch

Almost two years since it was planned, Numerica Credit Union has opened its Five Mile branch on North Maple Street.

The new branch, at 6281 N. Maple St., replaced the previous branch at 1916 W. Francis Ave.

"This branch reflects our continued investment in the well-being of the Five Mile community," Numerica President and CEO Carla Cicero said in a news release ahead of its ground breaking ceremony in May 2023.

Featuring a modern design, the new branch includes a drive-thru ATM and 18 parking stalls according to plans submitted to the city of Spokane.

Based in Spokane Valley, Numerica has 21 branches and more than 170,000 members across Eastern Washington and North Idaho, according to a release from the company.

"I'm incredibly proud of the focus our team puts into improving service and convenience to our members," Cicero said ahead of the ground breaking. "We have 10 branches across the Spokane region, each one living out our core purpose of enhancing lives, fulfilling dreams, and building communities."