Neighborhoods in Spokane, Washington

Spokane c.1914

Neighborhoods in Spokane, Washington range from the late Victorian-era to the contemporary. The neighborhoods officially recognized by the City of Spokane with a neighborhood council are listed alphabetically under two geographical divisions: those north of the Spokane River and those to its south. This division does not fit with the street grid of the city, since Sprague Avenue divides the north and south sides of the grid, yet it lies south of the river. Neighborhoods not recognized with a council are listed within the official neighborhood in which they are located.

North side

The north side of Spokane extends eight miles (13 km) north, from downtown into the suburban Mead area, and from the Spokane River Gorge in the west, eight miles (13 km) to Beacon Hill in the east. The north side is mostly residential, but contains several large retail districts as well as Gonzaga and Whitworth Universities. Retail centers such as the Northtown Mall and Northpointe Plaza lie along Division Street, the city's north-south meridian which splits into U.S. Route 395 and U.S. Route 2 near the city's northern edge.

  • Corbin Park — Located two miles north of downtown, Corbin Park is one of two local historic districts in Spokane. The site, once belonging to the Washington-Idaho Fair Association, was the city’s first fairgrounds, and included a central racetrack. Horses, bicycles, and people raced around the oval track while spectators cooled themselves with lemonade. The fair and the races lasted from 1887 to 1890 and the races continued until 1899 when the owner of the land, D. C. Corbin, razed the grandstand, and gave the sixteen city blocks to the City of Spokane for one dollar. The 1899 plat of the Corbin Park Addition included the former racetrack as a park in the center of the residential district. In 1916 a formal park design was prepared by the Olmsted Brothers, Landscape Architects of Brookline, Massachusetts. Today, most of the park has been adapted for current use as a baseball diamond and playground areas.
  • University District — There are two campuses northeast of downtown, Gonzaga University, and the Riverpoint Campus, which contains branches of Washington State and Eastern Washington Universities, as well as an extension of the University of Washington medical school. The Biblical Studies campus of Moody Bible Institute is also located here with most students living in the Logan neighbourhood. Plans call for increases in the student population in coming years, as well as additional housing, services, and entertainment geared toward a young, professional audience. Significant renewal and renovation, primarily of professional and medical business, is occurring in the area east of Division, west of Hamilton and north of the I-90 freeway.
  • Garland — The Garland Historical District is a mid-20th century neighborhood located 2 miles (3.2 km) north of Downtown. The area (also known as the Garland Business District) is considered a walkable community with many local shops, pubs, and restaurants lining Garland Avenue, which runs east-west through the district. Notable businesses and attractions include Ferguson's Café, the Garland Theater (a popular independent movie theater), and the Blue Door Theater, which bills itself as "The Inland Northwest's Premier Improv Company". Fergusons Café, which first opened in the 1930s, was featured in three movies: Vision Quest, Benny & Joon and Why Would I Lie?. On the night of September 25, 2011, the Milk Bottle restaurant, and the historical Ferguson's Café, located next door, were heavily damaged in a fire. Fire investigators believe the fire started in a walkway between the two restaurants.[1]
Spokane Sash and Door Company Flats

South Side

The leafy west end of South Hill is one of Spokane's oldest residential areas. From Downtown, the view of the South Hill is dominated by evergreen trees and two large man-made features: Sacred Heart Medical Center, which is Spokane's largest hospital, and the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, seat of the Episcopal Diocese of Spokane, and a magnificent example of modern English Gothic architecture.

  • Cannon's Addition — Cannon's Addition was named for and originally platted by Anthony McCue Cannon. The need for housing was great after the Fire of 1889 and many architects moved to Spokane to take advantage of the rapid growth. The primary development of Cannon’s Addition occurred between 1900 and 1925. The first streets that were developed included Third, Fourth and Fifth Avenue. The northern portion of Cannon’s Addition, located closest to the city’s downtown core, quickly evolved into an area where the houses of prominent Spokane citizens were constructed. In the original 1883 platting of Cannon’s Addition, the streets only went as far south as Tenth; Eleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth and Fourteenth being added later.[4]

    In 1887 J.T. Davis and Henry Brooks opened a brickyard on South Monroe between what would later be known as Cannon Hill Park and Cannon’s Addition.[5] The site was rich in clay deposits, and the brickyard was later developed into the Washington Brick, Lime & Sewer Pipe Company. By 1900, Cannon’s Addition began to experience increased growth and evolved into a middle class residential neighborhood; over the next fifteen years Spokane grew from a city of 30,000 to a population of 100,000.[6] Once the site of the brickyard had been exhausted of its clay deposits, the company moved its operations elsewhere and by 1909 the site was being developed into residential properties and Cannon Hill Park. After 1920, construction in Cannon’s Addition was minimal. The houses constructed during the development of Cannon’s Addition ranged in style from the American Foursquare, Tudor Revival and Neoclassical to more modest Craftsman and bungalow style houses.
  • Vinegar Flats -
    Latah Creek from Chestnut St., the South Hill rises in the background.
    Located on the valley floor, Vinegar Flats is the longest inhabited area of Latah Valley. Inland Empire Way, which connects the area with the rest of the city, is the main arterial in Vinegar Flats. This area is a patchwork of small homes, empty lots, greenhouses, riparian areas along the creek and city parks. Immediately to the north of the neighborhood are the high bridges over the creek of I-90, Sunset Boulevard, and the BNSF railroad. Located beneath and around those bridges is the aptly named High Bridge Park. The park is mostly undeveloped along the hillside and creek but has a picnic shelter, maintained grass area, and a disc golf course.
  • Qualchan/Eagle Ridge — This area is composed of two separate but adjacent suburban style developments located along the hills in the southwestern portion of Latah Valley. This is the most modern part of the neighborhood as these two developments are still expanding. An unofficial neighborhood, the boundaries are roughly the intersection of Cheney-Spokane Road and U.S. 195 in the north, the city limits on the south and west, and U.S. 195 on the east. At the northern end is the commercial center of Latah Valley with a new grocery store, a gas station, restaurants and other small shops.
Main article: Downtown Spokane
Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes
  • Downtown is home to Spokane's city and county government offices, most notably the Spokane County Courthouse, built in the style of a French chateau, featuring large turrets and spires. A similarly historic structure houses the Spokane Athletic Club, housed in a Georgian-style building designed by famed Spokane architect Kirtland Cutter. The Club sits just across Riverside Avenue from the Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes, seat of the Catholic Church in the Inland Northwest, and just across Monroe Street from the Thomas S. Foley United States Courthouse. The recently rebuilt Monroe Street Bridge, over Spokane Falls, is a notable symbol of the city, long featured in the city logo. Nearby is the modern main branch of the Spokane Public Library, with its expansive views of the Spokane River. Just down Monroe Street is the Fox Theatre, an art-deco movie theater that recently underwent a multimillion-dollar renovation to become the new home of the Spokane Symphony. At the north end of Riverfront Park is the 12,000 seat Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena, home to the Spokane Chiefs Hockey Club and Spokane Shock Arena Football Club. In addition to numerous local and regional events, the Arena hosts events such as NCAA March Madness, numerous big-name concerts, and in 2007 and 2010, the U.S. Figure Skating Championships. Across Mallon Avenue from the Arena is the Flour Mill, a converted structure that once produced flour in abundance but now houses a variety of offices, shops, and restaurants.
Cambern Dutch Shop Windmill
  • Sunset Hill -
    Sunset Hill
    South of Indian Canyon is the Sunset Hill neighborhood. Sunset Hill is an old neighborhood, thanks to its proximity to the city center, especially when compared to the rest of West Hills. Located immediately west of Latah Creek from Browne's Addition, near to the east of Spokane International Airport, Sunset Hill features older neighborhoods with smaller houses, as well as new subdivisions; however, some of the lower parts of the hill are very poorly zoned areas with dirt roads, grass lots and very small, dilapidated homes. Sunset Hill is bisected by I-90 and Sunset Boulevard, which represents one of the remaining sections of the old U.S. Route 2, once the main road between Spokane and Seattle prior to the completion of Interstate 90. In fact, I-90 features one of the most striking views of the city and Mt. Spokane behind it in the distance, as seen by travelers heading east along the freeway upon reaching the crest of the Hill on their way down into the city. John A. Finch Arboretum, an expansive park filled with a variety of tree species and wildlife, is located on Sunset Hill. Those highways are located in a valley carved by Garden Springs Creek which runs down the middle of the arboretum. The grade carved by the creek is the least steep route from the Spokane River valley onto the Columbia Plateau, and is conveniently located just west of the city center. Interstate 90 is the city's official division between the West Hills and Grandview/Thorpe neighborhood, though the unofficial Sunset Hill neighborhood straddles that division.

References

  1. http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2011/sep/26/milk-bottle-fergusons-badly-damaged-fire/?prefetch=1
  2. Taylor, Kevin (2005-08-10). "Native Habitat". The Pacific Northwest Inlander. Retrieved 2013-03-30.
  3. Petit, Stefanie (2007-06-14). "Landmarks: Drumheller Springs park once site of Indian School". The Spokesman-Review, Spokesman.com. Retrieved 2013-03-30.
  4. Spokane City/County Historic Preservation Office, Historic Resources Inventory: Historic Cannon’s Addition (Spokane: The Office, 1992), unpaged.
  5. Lora Olson, “Cannon Hill Area Has Rich History,” Spokesman Review, July 21, 1988, S-9.
  6. Lora Olson, “Cannon Hill Area Has Rich History,” Spokesman Review, July 21, 1988, S-9.
  7. Albert, Jacob. "Vinegar Flats area ready for revitalization". www.spokesman.com Published: May 27, 2010. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
  8. Hallenberg, Pia. "Group works to maintain High Drive Bluff environment". www.spokesman.com Published: 6/12/2012. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
  9. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106387/locations
  10. City of Spokane – City Government
  11. http://spokanegolf.org/Golf/page/341/

External links

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