Historic Properties of Spokane
Hotel Collins
The Hotel Collins in Spokane, Washington, is a notable example of a Single Room Occupancy (SRO) hotel, built in 1910 during a period when many such buildings were erected to accommodate the city’s growing working-class population. The hotel holds significance under Category A for Commerce due to its role in the commercial development of downtown Spokane. It also represents Category C in Architecture, embodying the SRO property type. The building site, formerly known as the Drumheller site, changed ownership several times before being acquired by D.C. Collins in 1909 for $50,000. Collins planned a four-story hotel with a budget of around $60,000. The fourth floor was never added. The project was designed by architect C. Harvey Smith, who had established his architectural practice in Spokane by 1903 and had previously partnered with other architects before working independently. The contractor for the project was George Groshoff, a skilled brick mason and contractor who had been active in Spokane since 1889. Groshoff’s notable projects include the Spokesman-Review Building, the County Courthouse, and the Sacred Heart Hospital, among others. The Hotel Collins is being rehabbed into 42 small apartments on the two upper floors and commercial/non-profit space on the street level.