Hidden Gems at Riverstone

At the entrance to Coeur d’Alene proper, you can’t miss the Riverstone development that encompasses the “live-work-play” atmosphere.

The development, which began in 1999, is still very much in its prime and still growing. The 150-acre corporate park, shopping center and residential conglomerate was a much welcome change to the area, which had been the site of an old lumber mill and gravel pit.

Things changed when John Stone purchased the land in 1999 as John Stone Development.

Much of the new development, however, is credited to John Stone who left SRM, one of John Stone’s companies, in 2010 and started Riverstone Holdings, LLC.

“Riverstone Holdings made a commitment to bring the area back to life after the economic downturn,” said Nikole Cummings, the office manager at Riverstone. “We currently have just one lot left to be developed or sold.”

Riverstone manages the buildings on Main Street that have both residential and retail components, with shops on the street level and condos up above.

To say that Riverstone has much to offer is probably an understatement. The development includes Riverstone Park, a five-acre community park with BBQs, picnic areas and an amphitheater that hosts the Riverstone Concert Series in the summer.

Retail stores on Main Street include the 14-screen Regal Cinemas, the J Miller Salon, StudioTen20, the Solar Flair Sun Salon, Zumiez, Buckle and several specialty apparel stores. Shoppers won’t go hungry with a selection of conventional and ethnic eateries, such as Red Robin, San Francisco Sourdough Company, the Ugly Fish Asian Bistro, the Azteca Southwest Grill and Bardenay restaurant and distillery.

“There’s a lot to offer here. It’s a live-work-play (area) where you can kind of get it all,” Cummings said. “Visitors can park and walk around and have the best of both worlds.”

She said the ratio of residential living spaces to businesses is about 60/40. There are 132 condominiums spread among three buildings: the Village West, Village North and Village South. There are hundreds of apartment units existing and lots of new construction this season. Among the new growth Riverstone is experiencing is of new apartments as well as new retail and business construction. Needless to say, Riverstone attracts businesses of all kinds.

Under construction is a 55+ community by Whitewater Creek, Anthony’s Restaurant, an 80-unit post surgical center by Advanced Health Care and 23 homes being built by Active West. Aspen Homes, Pinkerton Investments and the technology company, Rohinni are all building offices here too.

Not only does Riverstone bring to Coeur d’Alene a central business and residential community, it has created thousands of jobs and contributed to the local economy as well.

“It has created 2,682 construction jobs alone, and of employees, 3,600 are employed by businesses that have built here,” Cummings said.

Some Riverstone retailers are cultivating an “after hours” night life where visitors can relax and enjoy an event. Of those is Culinary Stone, which offers cooking classes in its store and the Paint Buzz that offers painting classes while you can enjoy a glass of wine or beer.

Sandra Gunn, owner of the Culinary Stone, has been at Riverstone two years this month. "We chose Riverstone because of accessibility. People can easily come in and out. The area creates a very unified shopping area. It's friendly and accessible," she said.

She said business has increased since she moved here and also derives a portion of her profits from the surrounding commerce. Gunn opened the Culinary Stone with little marketing beforehand but has seen her business grow in part because of the location.

"The appearance has improved since day one, it's clean, well kept, nice flowers, which really helps people feel comfortable shopping,” she said. “We opened a large store with no previous brand name, and we're improving on our opening day projects, which is great. In two years, we've seen our deli really get a lot busier. A lot of businesses in the area get lunch here or have us cater for them,” Gunn said. “Within the last year, we've really seen a lot of traffic from businesses whether it's catering, making a welcoming basket for realtors, or doing corporate gifts.”

Moving to Riverstone brought Orvis/Northwest Outfitters from possibly going out of business. But with the support of developer John Stone, the business is not only surviving but thriving now.

"I initially thought we were going to have a fire sale, close up, and I'd be looking for a new job, but we were approached by John (developer) and we decided to open a new location here," said Pat Way, co-owner of the 20-year-old business. He moved the business to Riverstone in the fall of 2008.

He said that Stone backed the business from the start, and they purchased it from him outright in 2010. Although the area was quiet at the time, Orvis’ brand attracted their customer base.

"It was pretty quiet initially here on the Westside with just us and Boardwalk Boutique. Fortunately, we were an already recognized business and had a following from the previous location," he said. "If we had been brand new, especially in 2008 and 2009, it would have been really tough."

As with Culinary Stone, Riverstone’s accessibility also helped increase customer numbers through their doors.

"You really had to make an effort to go to the old location, here the parking is ten times better, and we see way more foot traffic," Way said.

Some of the newer businesses that have moved in offer in-store events which has attracted more people to Riverstone.

"I love the feel of the area now with events going on at the Paint Buzz and Culinary Stone, and the concerts. I really believe Culinary Stone moving in here was the best thing to happen here," he said. "Overall I don't think there's anywhere else we'd rather be. Riverstone isn't an unknown anymore and people know what is going on down here for the most part."

Next time you drive into Coeur d’Alene, make it a point to drive through Riverstone, especially this Christmas season as the stores brighten up the sidewalks with lights. You just might find something that you like!

For more information, visit riverstonecda.net.

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