WAM Enterprises Inc., of Spokane, has agreed to buy the Deer Park Fairgrounds and is envisioning a mixed-use development at the 12-acre site.


Meanwhile, the city of Deer Park is working with the Deer Park Fair Board to relocate the fairgrounds, which currently are located along Main Avenue near the citys center.


Bruce Miller, vice president of WAM Enterprises, says he hopes to complete the land purchase and start work on the first building in WAMs planned development there early next year. As envisioned, the first structure would be an 8,000-square-foot retail building located on one acre at the southern end of the fairgrounds property, at the northeast corner of Main Avenue and H Street. The value of that structure is expected to be about $2 million, Miller says.


If work starts as scheduled, the building likely would be completed in May or June, Miller says. He says hes talking with a number of interested retailersincluding some that have stores in Deer Parkabout moving in to the new location, but its still unclear whether a single tenant will take the entire planned building, or if multiple tenants might lease space there.


Panco Construction Inc., of Spokane, will be the contractor for that project, and Atwood Hinzman Inc., of Spokane, is designing it. Chad Carper, of Clark Pacific Real Estate Co., of Spokane, is handling the fairgrounds purchase and is marketing the planned building for lease.


At its Nov. 17 meeting, the Deer Park City Council agreed to sell the fairgrounds to WAM for $625,000, says Roger Krieger, the citys community services director. Also, the council agreed to give the Deer Park Fair Board $250,000 of the sales proceeds to move and rebuild the fairgrounds.


Deer Park has offered to sell to the fair board 20 acres of vacant land in the city, Krieger says. The fair board hasnt accepted or rejected that offer yet, he says.


Aside from the acre that WAM will develop initially, the fairgrounds will remain intact for about a year so that the Deer Park Fair can be held there again next year. The new building isnt expected to encroach significantly on the fair facilities, Miller says.


After the fairgrounds moves, Miller says WAM will look at developing additional buildings on the 12-acre site and will consider selling parcels to users or other developers.


Itll probably be a little of each, he says.


In all, the fairgrounds currently is divided into seven parcels, Miller says. He envisions retail or office buildings on five parcels that front on Main Avenue and H Street and some sort of multi-unit developmentan apartment complex, a motel, or an assisted-living facilityon a five-acre parcel in the interior of the fairgrounds site.


WAM initially was looking for one acre on which it could develop a retail building in Deer Park, but later decided to approach the city about buying the entire fairgrounds.


Deer Park is located about 15 miles north of Spokane and has a population of just over 3,000 people.