Inland Northwest Health Services, the nonprofit health-services provider owned jointly by Spokane's two main hospital systems, says it will buy 60,000 square feet of floor space it occupies in the Wells Fargo Center for $10.1 million.

The purchase will include the second, fourth, fifth, sixth, and 12th floors and parts of the first floor and a basement level in the 17-story building at 601 W. First, says INHS spokeswoman Nicole Stewart.

Owning the space as office condominiums will cost less than continuing to lease it, Stewart says. "The purchase lowers INHS' monthly cash payments and reduces expenses," she says.

INHS has occupied the space since September 2006, having moved there from scattered locations in Spokane. Prium Companies LLC, of Tacoma, owns the building.

The transaction will close by the end of June, Stewart says. Prium is handling the sale of the space to INHS, she says.

About 325 of INHS' 1,042 employees work in the Wells Fargo Center. That number isn't expected to change because its space there is fully occupied, Stewart says.

INHS' space there houses its administrative offices, Information Resource Management division, Northwest TeleHealth videoconferencing network, Community Health Education & Resources information and screening resource center, and Center of Occupation Health & Education.

At other facilities, INHS operates St. Luke's Rehabilitation Institute and Northwest MedStar air ambulance service.