What’s being built there? $11M Holiday Inn + $46M Tri-Tech remodel

Welcome to “What’s being built there?”

This regular Tri-City Herald feature gives brief descriptions of building projects shaping the future of the Tri-Cities and beyond.

Suggest projects you’d like to see included at news@tricityherald.com, and we’ll dig into the local building reports for more information.

Kennewick

Holiday Inn Express at Columbia Center

7715 W. Quinault Ave.

Tri-City Hotel Corp and Ignite Hotels, led by Gurbir Sandhu, have begun work to build a long-planned Holiday Inn Express on property next to the Red Lion Columbia Center Hotel.

The four-story building will feature 96 guest rooms and other amenities.

Varitone Architecture designed the project. Baldwin General Contracting Inc. is the contractor for the project, which is valued at $11 million.

McDaniel (Sun Downs) Arena

Benton County Fairgrounds

The city of Kennewick issued building permits for the upgrades to McDaniel (aka Sun Downs) Arena at the Benton County Fairgrounds earlier this month.

The project includes upgrading the 5,500-square-foot buildings associated with the arena. New grandstands will seat 6,000, double the old 3,000.

Restrooms are being modernized, as are air and sound systems. The county wants to attract more concerts, truck shows and other fee-paying events.

The arena work is the second phase of a $15 million package of projects that aim to remake the fairgrounds.

The fairgrounds are home to the annual Benton Franklin Fair and Rodeo and is used by countless other events throughout the year.

The first phase was a $3 million parking lot overhaul that wrapped up before the 2025 fair in August.

Meier Architecture Engineering is the designer. Fowler General Construction is the contractor for the project, which has a construction value of $1.65 million.

Blueberry Bridal Boutique (Update)

625 Crosswind Blvd.

Amber Keller, owner of Blueberry Bridal Boutique in Kennewick, and Cherry Tree Lane LLC are building a 4,000-square-foot boutique in the Port of Kennewick’s Vista Field for her business.

Keller broke ground on the 4,000-square-foot boutique in April after purchasing Lot 18 from the port. She is one of the first investors to build at Vista Field, the 103-acre former municipal airport that is being reinvented as a mixed-use neighborhood with residences, walking trails and commercial businesses.

Workers recently installed church-inspired semicircular clerestory buildings on the rising structure.

Studio CH designed the building. Kaizen Construction & Development is the contractor.

The project has a declared construction value of $1 million.

Tri-Tech Skills Center

5929 W. Metalline Ave.

Tri-Tech Skills Center is undergoing a $46 million renovation that will replace utilities and key infrastructure, modernize classrooms and reconfigure the layout of the main building, originally constructed in 1981.

Tri-Tech is a tuition-free technical and professional training academy. It is owned by the Kennewick School District and serves all Tri-Cities students between ages 16 and 20, who have not yet received a high school diploma.

Chervenell Construction is the contractor for the project, which began in July and should wrap by next summer.

Richland

CarMax Auto Superstores

1261 Tapteal Drive (Update)

Richmond, Va.-based CarMax Auto Superstores Inc. is building its first Tri-Cities used car dealership in the Columbia Center area.

The $7.5 million project includes a 7,600-square-foot building.

T.D. Farrell Construction Inc. is the contractor.

CarMax purchased the five-acre site in 2022. The city of Richland approved the project in June.

Wendy Culverwell

Tri-City Herald

Reporter Wendy Culverwell writes about growth, development and business for the Tri-City Herald. She has worked for daily and weekly publications in Washington and Oregon. She earned a degree in English and economics from the University of Puget Sound. Support my work with a digital subscription