Habitat for Humanity-Spokane has a new $8 million, 25-unit affordable housing development underway at 228 S. Carnahan Road in Spokane Valley.

As planned, the development, dubbed Lee Wade Landing after a prominent community leader, will be comprised of two duplex buildings and seven triplex structures for people who earn less than 80% of the area median income, says Habitat for Humanity-Spokane CEO Michelle Girardot.

Duplex building site plans call for the construction of two, two-story structures featuring 1,500-square-foot, three-bedroom units with two bathrooms and a covered patio for each unit. Design plans for the seven planned triplex structures are underway, Girardot says.

Habitat for Humanity plans to pair net-zero insulated concrete construction materials with solar panels, to help keep utility costs for future residents to an estimated range of $30 to $40 per month, she says.

Lee Wade Landing also will feature a courtyard and parking spaces fronting each unit, site plans show.

The 1.5-acre vacant development site is located at the northwest corner of Third Avenue and Carnahan Road, north of Interstate 90 and three blocks south of Sprague Avenue. 

The development is named in honor of Lee Ada Wade, a community leader in Spokane's East Central neighborhood who turned 99 the day before a July groundbreaking ceremony for the property, Girardot says. Wade has been an advocate for access to resources that support working families and early childhood education opportunities.

"Until recently, we referred to the project as Carnahan and First because of the location," Girardot says. "As we moved towards groundbreaking, it really mattered that the community have a name rooted in the history and the leadership of the broader area, and so community members with deep generational ties unanimously recommended honoring Lee Ada Wade."

The first residential units at Lee Wade Landing are expected to be available in 2027, says Giradot, adding that all 25 units are anticipated to be completed in 2028.

Separately, a planned pedestrian bridge spanning I-90 will connect Habitat's new housing development to the southern portion of the East Central neighborhood in an effort to increase walkability in the community, Girardot says. 

The bridge is one of several currently under development with the Washington State Department of Transportation, according to its website.

The development site was purchased by the city of Spokane Valley for $630,000 in 2024. In 2025, Habitat for Humanity was awarded the property from the city, following a request for proposal process for a housing project, she says.

“We really wanted to make sure that the work that we do is for the long term and that we’re a good steward of those donor and public funds,” says Girardot.

Habitat for Humanity is the development contractor and will work with employees and its volunteer base to complete the project, which also will help keep the final costs down for future homebuyers, she explains. 

The nonprofit offers new homeowners the opportunity to purchase through a land trust model, in which the organization owns the land and the homeowner owns the residence. The cost to purchase a Habitat for Humanity home is more affordable, since homebuyers are purchasing the unit, excluding the land, she contends.

Future buyers can expect to spend an average of $230,000 for a duplex unit, Girardot says.