The Blockhouse consortium has its sights set on its next development, to be dubbed the Blockhouse|Life at Doomsday Hill, according to predevelopment applications on file with the city of Spokane.

The minds behind the first Blockhouse development, currently under construction in Spokane’s South Perry District, now are exploring a 10-cottage development at 1757 N. West Point Road, which is on the Spokane River side of north Pettet Drive near where Pettet crests Doomsday Hill, as that section of the Bloomsday race route is called.

A representative of the project declines to comment on the potential project at this time.

The project is located on about 3 acres of vacant land owned by 303 Bridge St LLC, according to the Spokane County Assessor’s database.

Preliminary site plans show the developers are planning a total of 16 living units, with six of the 10 cottage buildings to be duplexes. Plans show five of the units will be one-bedroom units, each with 480 square feet of living space. Five of the units will be two stories with three bedrooms at 960 square feet each. Six of the units will be single-story studios, each with 240 square feet of living space.

Overall, the project totals just over 13,400 square feet of residential space.

No construction cost is listed for the Doomsday development. However, the South Perry District Blockhouse development, which consists of eight buildings with a total of 14 units, has a construction cost of $2 million.

Construction at the Doomsday location is expected to begin in summer 2020. No completion date is listed.

Plans show site improvements including pedestrian pathways and landscaping are planned, and each unit will include 200 square feet of private outdoor space with a covered porch. At least 12 parking stalls are to be included as well.

The structures will be built using cross-laminated timber, a construction material made from gluing several layers of wood together, according to plans. The Doomsday project likely will use the same technology as the Perry project where the CLT panels were fitted with plumbing and electrical wiring during the manufacturing process in which the kitchens and bathrooms were attached on opposite walls. 

The walls will also have voice-activated software included that will control smart home features such as temperature control, remote door locks, and programmable lighting, according to the Blockhouse website. Vaagen Timbers LLC, of Colville, is manufacturing the CLT panels and Spokane-based Vestis Systems Inc. is the manufacturer behind the smart walls.

Blockhouse started as a collaboration between Andy Barrett, chairman of Spokane Valley-based remote camp shelter manufacturer Berg Manufacturing Inc.; Russ Vaagen, founder and CEO of Vaagen Timbers LLC; Matthew Collins, founder and principal architect of Uptic Studios; Dave and Cody Coombs, co-owners of DMC Properties; and Brian Valliant, senior vice president of construction at Baker Construction and Development Inc. 

Since then, the consortium has expanded to include at least 10 other Spokane-area companies, including Avista Corp., DCI Engineers, and Linc Foods.