The investment company that owns the Peyton Building, located at 10 N. Post in downtown Spokane, recently completed the last of more than $360,000 worth of energy-efficiency and other upgrades to the historic seven-story structure, says Kiemle & Hagood Co., of Spokane, which manages the building.

The largest share of that money—about $150,000—went to replacement of the building's original steam boiler with two new high-efficiency boilers in a configuration that allows one unit to perform backup duties if the other one goes offline, Kiemle & Hagood says.

The owner of the 74,500-square-foot building will receive more than $20,000 in Avista Corp. energy rebates and a $1,500 federal tax credit for investing in energy-savings projects.

"It's like going from a Model-T to a Prius. This was the last large system in the building that needed attention," says David Johnston, Bellingham, Wash.-based co-owner of Peyton Building LLC, which bought the downtown building five years ago.

Shortly after buying the structure, Peyton Building LLC got it placed on the local, state, and national registers of historic places and launched a number of improvement projects. Other improvements have included electrical, lighting, fire-system, restroom, elevator, and conference-room upgrades.