Updated: Tri-Cities developer with dreams of adding boutique hotel atop Thompson Hill has died
The Kennewick developer who lived atop Thompson Hill and long dreamed of building a hotel where guests could enjoy the spectacular views has died.
Jose Chavallo died May 5 at Trios Southridge Hospital. He was 60.
Chavallo and his family, including his wife Tammy Steel Chavallo and son Jordan, were active developers in Kennewick.
Thompson Hill, where they own a home as well as vacant land, was his passion.
He won his long-running battle in late 2022 when the Kennewick City Council voted to change the comprehensive plan to allow him to seek a rezone for the parcel where the home sits.
Neighbors below had objected to altering the face of the hill and to the potential traffic. He’d been trying to make the change in 2009, 2010 and 2011 and was turned down until the current council, with members more inclined to support development, took office.
Even so, Chavallo expressed surprise at his success.
“It took 16 years to get here. It worked out this time,” he told the Tri-City Herald in April for a report on the status of development on the prominent hill.
He had not pursued a zone change, but confirmed he was actively meeting with potential hotel partners.
Chavallo told the Herald he welcomed the opportunity to give the public access to the views his neighbors on the ridge enjoy from their private decks.
His hotel and bar, he said, would be a place where ordinary Tri-Citians could enjoy a meal or bring visitors.
“Most people have never seen the view,” he said. “We’re sitting at about 1,100 feet and city is at 400. It depends on what day it is, it always gives the most spectacular view. Clouds, lightning. It is just amazing up there.”
Chavallo, also known by his nickname, “Fred,” was in the news again a few weeks later, when his security cameras caught a cougar passing by the house. “That doesn’t look like a dog,” he remembered thinking when he first spotted the feline.
The Benton County Coroner’s Office confirmed Chavallo’s death after some posts on social media.
Hundreds weighed in to mourn his death and share memories of his support and generosity. A family member shared the post and added three black hearts.
The Chavallos own about 50 acres across several parcels on Thompson Hill, including land owned through Citadel Estates, where they intend to develop homes.
The city issued a statement remembering Chavallo for his work building medical office and multi-tenant commercial spaces.
“His projects have always been some of the better-designed commercial buildings that the city has reviewed. Mr. Chavallo was always concerned with the small design details and often expressed his desire to make sure the buildings he built were going to look good and function well for his tenant,” it said.
The city noted he hoped to expand into residential development but had not completed one before his death.
The Chavallo family has widespread development interests and holds ownership stakes in Chavallo Construction, as well as numerous limited liability companies that hold their real estate investments in Kennewick.
This story was originally published May 8, 2023 at 2:40 PM.