The Salish School of Spokane and Catholic Charities of Eastern Washington are partnering to develop a $33 million project on the Spokane River that will provide a new home for Salish language studies and affordable housing.

Chris Parkin, principal and business manager at the Salish School of Spokane, says the collaborative project is currently in the design phase. The goal, he says, is to have permit applications submitted by July for the two concurrent developments, which include a supportive housing development by Catholic Charities and educational and cultural facilities by the Salish School of Spokane.

"We have this vision to reestablish a Salish village on the river that would have schooling and housing and services ... kind of a Salish town idea," says Parkin.

The development site is located on a peninsula on the Spokane River, at 2720 W. Elliott Court, adjacent to about 30 acres of permanent conservation forest on the river. The project site is on a portion of a 33-acre property previously owned and occupied by the Sisters of the Holy Names convent. Catholic Housing Services of Eastern Washington, which owns and manages affordable housing properties in the region, purchased the convent property in 2016. 

Catholic Charities is planning a 72-unit supportive housing development, dubbed River Family Haven, on half of a 6-acre parcel of vacant land. The Salish School of Spokane is planning an eight-classroom school with associated office and conference spaces, in addition to a cultural and recreational community center on the remaining half of the property.

The 10,000-square-foot community center, dubbed the CRCC, will have a commercial kitchen, a gym, and other flexible indoor spaces for cultural activities and classes. Outside the facility, playgrounds and other gathering spaces, such as an animal hide preparation site, drum circles, and sweat lodges are envisioned.

"That forest will become another one of our playgrounds, another one of our classrooms for forest ecology and restoration and some awesome culture-based science field work," Parkin says. "We'll have room to grow."

The new Salish School will have between 20,000 and 25,000 square feet of space and accommodate up to 125 students, significantly larger than the 12,000-square-foot school at 4125 N. Maple, which is crowded with 48 students from 1 years old through eighth graders, he says.

The larger facility also will provide the space to expand classes for students from age 1 to 12th grade. 

The collaboration between the Salish School of Spokane and Catholic Charities of Eastern Washington is addressing some historical complexities between Indigenous people and Catholics while at the same time heralding a long-held vision of reestablishing a Salish community on the Spokane River.

Initial plans to develop the site called for the construction of multifamily housing to be operated by Catholic Charities and have the Salish School occupy space in a building free of charge, in a deal valued at $2 million. However, school leaders declined and countered to purchase the land outright, says Parkin.

"We don't want to be somebody's charity case," Parkin says. "The dream is to have a permanent home for our Salish language and culture that we're working hard to bring back after that history of colonization and genocide."

He adds that Robert McCann, Catholic Charities of Eastern Washington's president and CEO, was upfront and understanding of the difficult history of genocide and colonization, Parkin explains. 

"We just told them, we're meeting with you because you guys build housing and villages and that's what we want to do someday. That's our dream," says Parkin.

There was some pushback from a few community members and some individuals serving on the school's board, but a vote in favor of moving ahead with the development kept the project alive. At a follow-up meeting between the two organizations, Parkin says Catholic Charities declined the sale and instead offered to donate the land to the school for development. 

"We've been plugging away on this since the fall of 2023, getting serious about it, looking at the funding model," he says.

Construction of the school is estimated to cost $10.7 million, of which $7.7 million has been secured through state and federal grants. Additional funding is anticipated from the sale of the school's current facility, which is valued at about $1 million, and a capital campaign to be launched by May 21 to raise the remainder.

"All told, this project comes in at about $33 million, if you count everything that will serve Catholic Charities and their clients, and everything that will serve the Salish School of Spokane and the Native American community," says Parkin.

Additional savings of about $1 million are expected by building concurrently with Catholic Charities through a cooperative bidding process, he says.  

Spokane-based Architecture All Forms Corp. is designing the project. Spokane-based Inland Construction & Development Co., which does business as Inland Group, is serving as a project consultant. A contractor has not been selected yet, Parkin says.

Groundbreaking for the development is expected next February. The estimated construction will take no more than 24 months, he says.

Collaborating with Catholic Charities also provides an opportunity for the Salish School to purchase the entire development after a 15-year investor period.

"It's a really unique partnership that kind of levels the playing field," Parkin says.

School leaders have also dedicated some space for the future development of a Salish immersion housing project that will accommodate between 12 and 15 residential units for housing people and families who are relearning the Salish language in a live-in program to learn, promote fluency, and community culture.

"When we get this done, then we have the next big thing where we could bring some much needed housing for the Native American community and to support our language work," says Parkin.

Project updates:

Long-time commercial real estate broker Eric Peterson has launched Activ8 Real Estate LLC, a Liberty Lake-based commercial real estate brokerage, in February.

The business operates an office at the Mode Campus, located at 2110 N. Molter Road, in Liberty Lake, which is part of the Meadowwood Technology campus.

Activ8 Real Estate's clients are owners, tenants, and investors who are served by the company's proprietary technology platform that includes tools to manage operating costs, improve lease structures, and help prepare assets for long-term performance, Peterson says in a press release.