Japanese restaurant coming to Vista Field. Will a bridal shop & eye clinic be neighbors?
Vista Field, the blank canvas in the middle of Kennewick, has three confirmed businesses eager to start construction on new buildings — a Japanese restaurant, a wedding dress shop and an eye care center.
Kuki Izakaya, a Japanese restaurant, closed a land deal with the Port of Kennewick this summer.
This week, two more future tenants finalized agreements to buy sites from the port, which wants the old air field to become an urban mixed-use neighborhood.
Blueberry Bridal Boutique of Kennewick and the owners of Richland’s Columbia Point Eye Care have 90 days to buy land after the port’s commissioners signed off on purchase-and-sale agreements at its Sept. 24 business session.
The agreements start the clock, giving both two years to complete construction and move in.
The port closed the 103-acre airport in 2013 and has worked since then to set conditions to attract private investment to the area, which is east of Columbia Center mall.
“We’re going to have a lot of ribbon cuttings to go to if this all comes to fruition,” Commissioner Ken Hohenberg observed.
Kuki, Blueberry and the eye clinic all picked vacant sites near the center of Vista Field, where an artificial stream fronts Crosswind Boulevard and connects to a fountain on Azure Drive.
Blueberry Bridal
Blueberry Bridal Boutique is a Kennewick business owned by Amber Keller. Keller first expressed interest in being part of Vista Field more than two years ago, when the port agreed to negotiate a deal to sell her a site.
Negotiations flagged as Keller struggled to secure financing amid rising interest rates, port officials said.
The port credits her “tenacity” for keeping her dream alive. Today, she has a bank, Baker Boyer, and has preliminary approval for a construction loan backed by the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Keller will pay about $74,300 for the site at 625 Crosswind Blvd. and will build a 4,100-square-foot bridal shop that will include tuxedo rentals.
Keller couldn’t be reached about her plans, but port officials report Kaizen Construction will build the project for her.
Columbia Point Eye Care
The eye care clinic is backed by optometrists Royce Barney and Brandon Furness of Cantley Vision Inc. Cantley operates clinics under the name Columbia Point Eye Care.
The duo will pay about $143,300 for a site at 6737 W. Azure Drive, between the fountain plaza and future residential development.
The Vista Field clinic will be a two-story structure that will house their practice, as well as 1,500-square-foot retail space that will be available for lease.
The doctors have hired Hummel Construction & Development to build the clinic. They could not be reached Tuesday about their plans.
Kuki Izakaya
The two businesses are a half step behind Isabelle Yuri Na, aka Nah, who paid $95,000 for a site at 697 Crosswind Blvd.., last month.
Na and partner Bumki Hong will build Kuki Izakaya Restaurant at Vista Field.
The partners applied for a building permit for the nearly 3,500-square-foot restaurant in March. The permit, which values construction at $702,000 is pending with the city of Kennewick.
Construction Services of Washington LLC will be the contractor.
Additional deals
Two other developers have pitched plans for Vista Field but have not closed their deals.
Akula Group of Vancouver wants to build an $8 million, 40,000-square-foot apartment and retail building.
BlueChart Homes of Western Washington wants to build 300 single family homes on sites along the former runway over a span of seven years.
The port previously invested nearly $5 million in roads, sidewalks, street lights and a water fountain and stream to encourage private development. The first sites were put up for sale in 2022.
Keller, of Blueberry Bridal, was the first to express an interest, approaching the port’s real estate director about her shop during a public celebration.
Anyone who builds at Vista Field must comply with design standards meant to create a walkable village with a cohesive look.
The port views Vista Field as a major economic development initiative that will generate hundreds of millions of dollars in private investment and support tax rolls.
Go to vistafield.com.