A pair of projects is expected to be completed this year in what is being cast as an emerging civic center in Spokane Valley.

Spokane County Library District is building the new Spokane Valley Library at 22 N. Herald Road, on the northeast corner of Sprague Avenue and Herald Road, across Sprague Avenue from Spokane Valley City Hall.

Construction of the library began in April 2022 and is expected to be completed early this summer, possibly in June, says Jane Baker, communications and development director for SCLD.

The new library will have about 28,000 square feet and sit upon 2.8 acres of land. The project is valued at nearly $15 million, Baker says.

Kilgore Construction Inc., of Colbert, is the contractor on the project, and Integrus Architecture PS, of Spokane, designed it.

The building will include a community room with a seating capacity of 200, four study rooms, and an audio-visual studio. The library also will house mobile library services. A plaza outside of the community room, a learning trail with reading prompts, and a parking lot also are planned.

Next to the new Spokane Valley Library will be the Balfour Park expansion project, at 105 N. Balfour Road.

The city of Spokane Valley is adding 5.6 acres of undeveloped, city-owned land to the current Balfour Park. The expanded park will occupy 8 acres of land, not including the parking lot on its western edge that will be shared with the new library.

Construction of the $5.5 million first phase is expected to begin this spring and be completed in September or October, says Spokane Valley city engineer Gloria Mantz. The first phase of the project is valued at $5.5 million.

Spokane Valley-based Cameron Reilly LLC will be the contractor on the project, and Spokane Valley-based Clearwater Summit Group Inc. will provide landscaping services.

Mantz says plans for the first phase of the expansion consist of demolishing the current playground and restrooms, installing the main infrastructure, and adding a parking lot on the park’s east side. It also will involve constructing a multipurpose building that will have an office for the Spokane Valley Police Department, creating an events plaza, and building a veteran’s memorial.

Phase 2 of the expansion project will include the installation of picnic shelters, a splashpad, a new playground, sports courts, and an amphitheater. However, the second phase hasn’t been funded yet, so a timeline hasn’t been established for that portion of the project.