The largely vacant building at the corner of Davidson and Goerig streets in Woodland could see some activity later this year as plans to revitalize the property are now in discussion.
During the Aug. 21 meeting, the Woodland City Council had a workshop on what to do with the city’s property at 100 Davidson St. The building was previously the home of what is now known as Clark-Cowlitz Fire Rescue when it served as the district’s station within city limits. The fire district moved into its new facility at 250 E. Scott Ave. near the city’s police station in 2017.
The discussion on the building was spurred on by Councilor John “J.J.” Burke, who was curious about ongoing expenses for the building and plans for future use.
“What is our intention to do with that building?” Burke asked. “If we can’t fix it up and use it, then we should get rid of it.”
Mayor Will Finn said since he has been in office, he did not feel the city needed to take care of another vacant building downtown. Previous ideas about redevelopment petered out, such as a brewpub and a theater, but they were not feasible, he said.
Currently the building requires about $400 of maintenance per month. A large amount of that is wrapped up in mold remediation, which cost about $23,000 in total, city Public Works Director Tracy Coleman said.
The current concept for the property is to turn it into a temporary location for food carts. A lot of food cart operators have come to the city’s Planning Department to operate in the city, Coleman said.
Instead of those carts popping up on vacant lots, Coleman, alongside city Community Development Director Travis Goddard, reasoned that having a central location made sense where the city could generate rental revenue. That temporary funding would go into the building and also the city’s parks fund.
The location makes it a prime spot for a congregation of food carts, as any permanent food cart pod requires a restroom facility, Goddard said. A pod could exist at the 100 Davidson St. address because the city owns an existing restroom facility across the street.
“This is like the lucky site of all sites,” Goddard said.
At the end of the year, the City Council could consider if making the food cart operation a permanent fixture is something they want to do. The rental revenue could be used to make building improvements, eventually allowing for small business space in the existing structure.
Coleman said the city doesn’t want to raise taxes or take out a loan, instead focusing on fixing the building up enough for it to generate income through leases to make it sustainable.
“While it might be slow, they can be done,” Coleman said about the repairs.
She said the food carts could be in place at the site in a matter of weeks, with three owners already expressing interest for the site. One, Mark Amerman, wishes to bring Flavor Burst ice cream to the spot.
He said the closest location someone can get that type of ice cream is at the Cascade Locks. Part of his desire to open in Woodland is its proximity to water, in this case Horseshoe Lake.
“You can’t be much closer to the water than the building you want to revitalize,” Amerman said.
Coleman testified on the draw that having Flavor Burst would bring.
“There is a line down the road no matter what time of year I’m driving there,” Coleman said about the Cascade Locks location.
One party doesn’t want to be left out of the conversation — the Port of Woodland.
Port Executive Director Jennifer Wray-Keene read a letter from the port commission to council asking to meet about downtown redevelopment efforts. Part of the conversation was on the purchase of the Davidson property.
Wray-Kenne said the property is estimated to cost about $940,000 for building and land, according to the county assessor’s office, and it needs about $1 million for updates to make it usable.
“It could be an excellent win-win for the port and city to accomplish a multitude of improvements in a joint effort to improve this community,” Wray-Keene read.
The Davidson property was not exclusively where the port would eye redevelopment in the downtown area, Wray-Keene said, though it is at the forefront of its focus.
“The commission desperately wants to work with the city on this project,” Wray-Keene said.
Councilor Terry Hall believed the Davidson property was the best location out of any in Woodland.
“This is something the city needs to own, and we need to pursue this vision,” Hall said.
A few of the councilors were open to all options, including discussions with the port.
“A meeting is just a meeting. It’s not agreeing to anything,” Councilor Monte Smith said.
As it was just a workshop, no votes were taken on the future of the property. Any major decision will come back before a vote by the council.
