Permit applications have been submitted to bring a Dave’s Hot Chicken restaurant and an O’Reilly Auto Parts store to the North Spokane retail center that formerly was home to Babies R Us, at 6104 N. Division. 

A predevelopment conference application has been filed with the city to build a Dave’s Hot Chicken restaurant at the northeast corner of Division Street and Dalke Avenue, in the parking lot of the old Babies R Us. 

The hot chicken restaurant will be opened by franchisee company RSM Hold Co. LLC, which is based in Valleyford, Washington.

“Dave’s Hot Chicken is a fast growing, electric brand,” says Kevin Eggen, CEO and co-owner of RSM Hold Co. “It has a ton of excitement around it.” 

Eggen also is CEO and co-owner of Bonney Lake, Washington-based Rock Solid Restaurants LLC, the parent company of Hops N Drops, a restaurant chain with locations in North Spokane and Spokane Valley.

Pasadena, California-based Dave’s Hot Chicken has similar values to Hops N Drops, Eggen says, prompting RSM Hold Co. to enter a franchising agreement through which it plans to open a total of four of the hot chicken restaurants. In addition to the North Division location, Eggen says his company hopes to open another location in Spokane, as well as locations in Yakima and Tri-Cities, Washington.

“The food is amazing, and the brand itself has a ton of potential,” Eggen says.

Construction is expected to begin by August, says Eggen, who hopes to open the Dave’s Hot Chicken restaurant in late 2024 or early 2025. He estimates the project will cost about $1 million to complete.

The roughly 2,800-square-foot building will include a drive-thru, Eggen says. The Spokane location is expected to employ a mix of about 80 full-time and part-time employees, he adds.

Colbert-based Kilgore Construction has been selected as the contractor for the Dave’s Hot Chicken project, and Seattle-based CB Anderson Architects PLLC is the architect. Spokane-based Storhaug Engineering Inc. will handle engineering services.

Dave’s Hot Chicken’s menu centers around chicken tenders and chicken sliders that are available in seven different spice levels, ranging from “No Spice” to “Reaper,” which requires customers to sign a waiver before ordering, the company’s website says.

Side items include fries, mac and cheese, and kale slaw.

Dave’s Hot Chicken, which now has nearly 200 restaurants worldwide, was founded in 2017 by a group of friends in an East Hollywood parking lot before gaining popularity through social media and a food-focused Los Angeles publication, the website says.

The North Division eatery will add to a trend of quick-service chicken restaurants opening in Spokane in recent years.

A Chick-fil-A restaurant opened on North Newport Highway in late 2020, and another location is being planned at the southeast corner of Ruby Street and Mission Avenue, near Gonzaga University, records on file with the city of Spokane show.

A third Chick-fil-A restaurant has been proposed for a site at the southwest corner of East 29th Avenue and South Regal Street, records show.

In November of last year, a franchisee opened a Houston TX Hot Chicken restaurant at 1839 N. Ruby, not far from where the second Chick-fil-A has been proposed.

Eggen has taken notice of the apparent rise in popularity for chicken restaurants in the Inland Northwest, he says.

“The chicken segment has been on the rise,” he says. “It’s comfortable for everybody—everybody enjoys chicken sandwiches.”

On the same land parcel, a permit application on file with the city of Spokane shows an O’Reilly Auto Parts store moving into the former Babies R Us building, at 6104 N. Division.

The remodel project, which has a proposed valuation of $1.6 million, will include construction of new interior partitions, doors, ceilings, electrical, mechanical, and plumbing work, as well as new finishes and fixtures, the application shows.

Exterior modifications will include new paint and updates to the storefront and entry portal.

Hopkins, Minnesota-based Wilkus Architects PA PC and Sparks, Maryland-based KCI Technologies Inc. are handling architecture and engineering services, respectively.

Small Bites

*A pair of Spokane business owners are planning to open a mom-and-pop style sandwich shop at 1505 N. Ash, on the north side of Maxwell Avenue. Expected to open in July, Tawney’s Sandwich Shop will offer hot and cold sandwiches, soup, chips, baked goods, and possibly ice cream, says Dwayne Tawney, who will co-own the eatery with his business partner Mike Stephens. Tawney and Stephens also own Junk-N-Dump LLC, a Spokane-based full-service junk removal company.

*A renovation project at the Super 1 Foods grocery store in Post Falls, at 805 E. Polston, was completed last month. Improvements to the store include the relocation of public restrooms, an updated customer service area, and an expanded beer and wine sales floor. The upgrade project began in July 2023 and was completed by Spokane-based Meridian Construction & Development Inc.