If you’ve been wondering what new businesses are planned for the renovation of the old Recreation building, at least part of the answer was revealed at last night’s Columbia Gateway Urban Renewal Area board meeting. Todd Carpenter and Carla McQuade, who upgraded the old Vault building into The Last Stop bought the Recreation property some time ago, and have been working on gutting and rebuilding it. Todd Carpenter had this to share with the agency:
“We’ll try to bring in an artisan co-op or a craftsman co-op, something like they have in Hood River of a bunch of artists to be in there — some kind of made in the gorge, made in The Dalles kind of thing for travel and tourism. The downstairs side, the furthest east area where the old archery range was, can only be used for storage. Under the middle building, the Horn Saloon, we’ve got that pegged as a recreation-type facility, so billiards or an arcade, a family-friendly kind of thing for the community.”
And back at the sidewalk level, they plan an ice cream and candy shop, a sweet topping to the story. Look for work on the next phase to begin as early as next week, with completion by the end of the year.
What’s next for the Recreation Building
