The second building at Tumwater Craft District is finished. Here’s what happens next
The second building at the Tumwater Craft District site is finished and ready for tenants to improve their spaces so they open, the co-owner of the project said this week.
John Peters expects those businesses to open this summer.
The district’s first business, Heritage Distilling, opened in the first building at the site at Capitol Boulevard Southeast and E Street in 2021, joining South Puget Sound Community College, which uses the space for production and its craft brewing and distilling program.
The second building, which is closer to Capitol Boulevard, is set to be filled by the following tenants: Left Bank, Pattaya Thai, Julie Kluh Art, Tacos and Taps (working name right now), Finn River Cidery, Percival Creek (the brewing, distilling and cider making brand operated by SPSCC), Sweetlee’s Ice Cream and Olympia Seafood Co.
Those businesses are opening second locations and are not moving from their current sites, Peters said.
A third building will be home to an expanding Ember Goods, which also operates a downtown coffee shop and store, and America’s Credit Union, he said.
As many as three food trucks also are planned for the site, Peters said. Two will be featured regularly while a third truck will be brought in for events. Peters doesn’t want to have too many trucks because he doesn’t want to create too much competition for the existing building tenants.
One of those trucks might offer wood-fired pizza and a healthier food option, he said.
Don Juan’s Mexican Kitchen, known for its restaurant in Tenino, is operating a truck at the site now, but it will eventually go away when the Don Juan’s family opens Tacos and Taps, Peters said.
Other business happenings
Rhonda Smith, a licensed mental health counselor associate, has opened an office in west Olympia at 2604 12th Ct. SW, Suite A3, she announced in an email to The Olympian.
Her business is called Counseling and Consulting for Individuals and Families, PLLC.
“I offer mental health counseling to children, adolescents, and teens in the community and am currently accepting new clients,” she writes.
She currently is a student at Antioch University Seattle in the Center for Play Therapy program to become a Registered Play Therapist, and is also a certified provider of Autplay therapy for neurodiverse children, ages 3 to 18.
More information about Smith can be found in a profile in Psychology Today.
Real estate
Interested in owning a home with chicken barns? Well, this just might be the property for you.
The state Department of Fish and Wildlife is putting a 7-acre property southwest of Olympia up for sale through a closed bid process. The address is 9125 Gate Road SW, which is between Littlerock and Rochester.
The property includes a single-family home, detached garage, pump house, and three chicken barns, all of which will be included in the sale. The minimum bid is the appraised value of $375,000.
All bids must be accompanied by a deposit to be considered, according to the state, and all buildings will be sold in an as-is condition. The successful bidder will be responsible for connecting utilities.
Property viewing is by appointment only. Interested bidders can request to view the property, or obtain a bid package, by emailing surplusproperties@dfw.wa.gov. Completed bid forms and payments must be received, and date stamped by WDFW by 5 p.m. May 30. Bidders will be notified in early June.
By selling the property, the state says it can pursue other land acquisitions that support the WDFW mission. The Fish and Wildlife Commission authorized the property’s sale last August.
