Jim Moore, the new Spokane-based property manager for San Antonio, Texas-based Cotter Ranch Properties' holdings here, claims the company owns a good mix of desirable commercial properties, but too few potential tenants know who owns the buildings.

Moore says it's his job now to change that, and he's starting by making the company's presence more visible through its first marketing campaign here, new signage on the buildings, and other improvements at each of the properties.

Cotter Ranch Properties owns and manages six commercial properties here with a total of more than 325,000 square feet of commercial floor space. In all, the company owns 71 commercial buildings in six states with a total of more than 2.8 million square feet of leasable floor space.

"We have great buildings, but people here don't know who we are," Moore says.

Cotter Ranch Properties' base here is located in the Argonne West I & II office complex, at 1121 N. Argonne, which the company owns and manages.

The company employs four people here who oversee property administration and facility maintenance.

James F. Cotter, the company's founder, entered the Spokane-Coeur d'Alene market in 2000 with the purchase of Post Falls Factory Stores, at 5065 W. Riverbend, in west Post Falls, for an undisclosed price.

Over the following three years, Cotter bought five Spokane-area properties—one each in downtown, on the lower South Hill, on the West Plains, on the North Side, and in the Valley—for a total of $22 million.

Old City Hall, at 221 N. Wall, is one of Cotter's favorite acquisitions because of the character of the building, which is across Spokane Falls Boulevard from Riverfront Park, Moore says.

Cotter bought the six-story, 102,200-square-foot structure in 2001 for $7 million.

"It has a lot of charm," Moore says. "It has a lot of wood and views of the park."

He says Old City Hall, which was built in 1913, has so much wooden trim and accents that at one time, one woodworker's full-time job was to care for it.

An Olive Garden restaurant is a longtime ground-floor tenant in Old City Hall, and one of its most recent tenants is Spokane law firm Keefe, Bowman & Bruya PS.

Moore declines to disclose how much the company spends on building improvements and maintenance, but says Cotter Ranch Properties recently upgraded the cooling system at Old City Hall and installed new carpet there, and is continually working on painting and cosmetic upgrades. The company also is installing high-efficiency lighting in all of its buildings, he says.

Cotter acquired the Argonne West complex in 2001 for $3.4 million. The complex includes a pair of two-story buildings with a total of 51,800 square feet of office space connected by a skywalk.

Tenants there include Summit Rehab Valley Corp., Pinnacle Professional Services Inc., and TechGroup Inc.

Also in 2001, a Cotter company bought the two-story, 23,000-square-foot Garden Springs building, at 1717 S. Rustle on the West Plains, for $2.5 million. Tenants there include Kirkpatrick & Startzel PS and McFarland Cascade Holdings Inc.

In 2002, Cotter bought for $3.4 million, the nine-story Sixth Avenue Medical Center—formerly known as the QualMed Plaza—at 508 W. Sixth, on the lower South Hill.

Tenants in the 45,200-square-foot tower include Sixth Avenue Pharmacy, The Center for Reproductive Health, and a number of other health-related concerns.

Moore declines to disclose Cotter Ranch Properties' vacancy rate here, but says that revenues are moving upward.

The company has secured 14 lease renewals in the last three months, says Moore, who was promoted to property manager here in April.

"I've gotten every renewal so far that's been out there," he asserts. "That means the properties are managed right. If the tenants are happy, I'm happy, and the owners are happy."

The company faces some big challenges, though.

The Post Falls Factory Stores, which is Cotter Ranch Properties' only North Idaho holding, has had a chronically high vacancy rate since the company bought it. The property, which includes about 61,000 square feet of commercial space, is the portion of the outlet mall that's on the south side of Riverbend Avenue in west Post Falls. The rest of the mall is under separate ownership.

"Business as usual is over," Moore says of the Post Falls property. "With the advent of Walmart and Costco, the outlet concept is out the window."

He says Cotter Ranch Properties is working with Kootenai County economic development organization Jobs Plus with the idea of converting the Post Falls property to a business park to complement the neighboring Riverbend Commerce Park.

"With Buck Knives in the Riverbend Commerce Park and other industry there, we're looking at light industrial and manufacturing," Moore says.

He says Cotter Ranch Properties also is in talks with a potential tenant for a call center there.

The Beck Road interchange, which is under construction, will provide another Interstate 90 access to west Post Falls and connect to Riverbend Avenue west of the outlet mall to help drive business to the area, Moore says.

"I think it's going to be one of our hotter areas," he says.

One completely vacant Cotter Ranch Properties holding is the 35,300-square-foot Francis Building, at 1925 E. Francis, which Cotter bought in 2003 for $3.8 million. The Washington state Department of Social and Health Services, which had been a longtime tenant there, vacated the building in January as part of an effort to consolidate operations and save costs.

Moore says the building is suited for a single tenant, such as a call center.

Cotter Ranch Properties recently brought in its own roofers from Oklahoma City to put a new roof on the single-story building.

"We use our own people when we can," Moore says.

The company also has built a strong local network of vendors and service professionals it uses, he adds.

For example, Spokane commercial real estate brokers Joel Crosby, of Coldwell Banker Tomlinson South, and Matthew Byrd, of Cornerstone Property Advisors LLC, are leasing agents for Cotter Ranch's Spokane-area properties.

Moore says the company has printed up the company's first fliers specifically to market its properties here collectively. He's also posted the company's logos and contact information in elevators, near building entrances, and on building directories, to make the company's brand more visible.

Moore says he visits most properties once or twice a day, and he tries to look at them through fresh eyes on every visit.

"You have to maintain a constant vigil on keeping things looking good and squared away," he says. "We work on a lot of common-area improvements."

Moore is a Ferris High School graduate with ties to the area. He's worked for Cotter Ranch Properties for five years and until recently was in charge of maintaining the facilities. He had been based in Seattle for eight years with another commercial property company before Cotter interviewed him for a job here.

"When I had the opportunity to move back, I jumped on it," Moore says.

He says he feels as if he's working directly for James F. Cotter and his sons rather than for a corporate entity.

"He still signs every check," Moore says of the company founder.