Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, a Lakewood, Colo.-based grocery store chain, recently completed lease negotiations for its planned store at 4511 N. Division, says Colin Conway, a commercial real estate broker involved in the transaction.

The specialty grocery store will occupy 16,000 square feet of retail space, a portion of which will be newly constructed, says Conway, of Spokane-based Kiemle & Hagood Co., adding that the existing portion of the leased space will be remodeled.

The $2 million project includes remodeling 7,000 square feet of floor space and constructing a 9,000-square-foot addition for Natural Grocers.

Baker Construction & Development Inc., of Spokane, is the contractor on the project, and Cortner Architectural Co., also of Spokane, designed it.

Site work is expected to be completed in November, and the total project is scheduled to be finished in April.

Natural Grocers separately announced plans for the store in a brief press release late last month, saying that the store would bring about 25 new jobs to the area.

The brokers negotiating the transaction were Conway; Marshall Clark, of Spokane-based Clark Pacific Real Estate Co.; and James Craddock, of Lakewood, Colo.-based Craddock Commercial Real Estate LLC.

Meantime, Office Depot has renewed its lease for 16,000 square feet of retail space it currently occupies in the same building, reducing the size of its store slightly, Conway says.

Office Depot had occupied 23,000 square feet of space there, but is following a trend of office supply stores that are reducing their brick-and-mortar retail space as they seek to expand their online retail sales. 

Baker Construction also is the contractor on a $210,000 Office Depot remodel project there.

Office

Pioneer Human Services, a Seattle-based nonprofit social services provider, has leased the 4,500-square-foot upper level of the two-story Diamond Point office building, at 910 W. Boone, for a new outpatient services program, which will be in place by late September. Chris Bell, of NAI Black, and Levi McCormick, of SDS Realty Inc., handled the transaction. Pioneer Human Services owns and operates Spokane housing and rehabilitation facilities at 925 W. Broadway, 222 S. Howard, and 3400 W. Garland.

Education

C&S Management LLC, a Post Falls-based private-school operator, has bought a 10,000-square-foot office building at 1303 Third, where it plans to open an elementary school in December. Craig Hunter, Rob Kannapien, and Wes Smith, all of Coldwell Banker Commercial Schneidmiller Realty, handled the transaction. C&S Management’s other schools are A Developing Mind Montessori school, and The Circle of Care developmental preschool, both in Post Falls.

Investment

Ritzville Partnership LLC, of Seattle, has bought as an investment the West Side Motor Inn, at 407 W. Main, in Ritzville. Dallas Lightner, of NAI Black, handled the transaction.