Wheatland Bank buys Yakima building

A Spokane-based community bank began its expansion plans by buying the building where it opened last April.

Wheatland Bank, which specializes in commercial and agricultural lending, purchased Park Square, a 10,000-square-foot building at 211 E. Yakima Ave. for $1.9 million earlier this week.

Susan Horton, the bank's president and CEO, said the building will undergo a renovation that will double the bank's space. That will provide room for services such as a teller line and drive-thru service. It will also construct spaces for other tenants.

The bank has been seeking a permanent location. The bank realized that it would be more feasible to purchase the building and remodel it than constructing a new building, Horton said. The renovation is expected to cost between $300,000 and $400,000.

She also liked the idea of remaining downtown, where the bank has gotten off to a good start. Since opening in April, Horton said the bank has received about $26.5 million in new business activity.

"We're excited that we're part of the renaissance going on in (downtown) Yakima and we just love the property," Horton said.

The building was previously a Petco store. Michael Nelson, a Redmond, Wash., commercial real estate property manager, purchased the building for $950,000 in September 2007. He then spent several months remodeling the building.

Even with the renovations, Nelson got a very good return on the building, said Chris Waddle of Creekside Commercial, who represented Nelson in the recent sale.

Nelson is in the process of purchasing two other buildings in Yakima, Waddle said. "He's definitely remained interested, and even is excited about Yakima as a viable place to invest his real estate dollars," he said.

Waddle is now representing Wheatland Bank in securing tenants for the two remaining spaces. There is a letter of intent from a national restaurant franchise for one of the spaces.

Waddle expects a deal to close in the next few weeks.

But with the building renovation, the new tenant spaces would not be ready until summer, Horton said.

* Mai Hoang can be reached at 577-7685 or mhoang@yakimaherald.com.