Historic Spokane Club flat roof covered with TPO single-ply membrane roofing
Historic Spokane Club Flat Roof Covered With TPO Single-Ply Membrane Roofing

It only figures that when Spokane’s oldest and most prestigious business and social networking organization needed a new roof, it turned to Spokane’s oldest and most established roofing contractor, Spokane Roofing Company®.

The historic Spokane Club has a few years on Spokane Roofing—the club was founded in 1890, while SRC has “only” been around since 1907. The two companies have a longstanding relationship, in which Spokane Roofing provides regular inspection, maintenance, and repair services on an increasingly aging commercial roof.

SRC owner Jeff Sitton is not sure how long the previous roof had been atop the Spokane Club structure, but his crews removed four layers of old roofing material. In the process, they uncovered skylights that had remained hidden for decades.

It was a big job, said Sitton. Not only did it involve a complete demolition and removal of old roofing, but along with IRS Environmental, we had to conduct asbestos abatement. It was one of those roofing projects where you do not know what you have until you get into it.

Challenges Faced Replacing Spokane Club Roof

Describing it as a major project hardly does justice to the scope of the challenges faced by Spokane Roofing at the Club. SRC had to:

  • Obtain street obstruction permits in order to close off Main Avenue for 6 hours,
  • Rent a crane to load old roof debris off the top of the building,
  • Install new substrate and shingles on an architecturally unique structure,
  • Install a new, flat roof around rooftop offices, chimneys, elevator shafts, vents and HVAC equipment.

This was a high-profile job for an organization that is really important in the community. It was rewarding for us because the Spokane Club hosts numerous events, has a great deal of community exposure, and they were happy with our work.

Applying the roof was not even necessarily the biggest part of the project. It required strategic planning, coordination of the various players involved, and some serious legwork to make it go. Big commercial roofing projects like this one can only be handled by a big company with successful experience. I am proud to say that we are one of the few commercial roofing companies in Spokane that can get that done. – Jeff Sitton, Spokane Roofing Company

Commercial Roof Replacement Project Details

The entire commercial roof replacement project took four weeks to complete. Working from the top down, crews removed debris from each pitched section of the roof, bag by bag. These bags were lowered to the ground with the crane. Plywood substrate sheets had to be cut in half to get them into the service elevator. Eventually, the roofers applied IKO Cambridge architectural shingles over the substrate. The new, laminate roofing shingles are state of the art and designed to look like wood shakes.

On the much larger main flat-roofed section of the building, Spokane Roofing’s crews laid Insulfoam EPS roofing insulation, then GAF TPO single-ply membrane roofing. TPO has a longer life expectancy, better dimension and texture than polymer blend membranes.

GAF® Master Select™ Commercial Roofing Contractor

It looks great, Sitton said. We used black shingles, which is the modern trend, and the shingles are consistent with the architecture of the building. The color really makes the building pop. We worked to ensure the folks at the Club would be happy. Picking a style and color are big decisions, because you are responsible for the look of the building for the next 30 years.

I’m happy to say that this was a successful project — the Spokane Club was satisfied, and so were we.

Does Your Historic Building’s Roof Leak?

Is your historic building’s leaky roof affecting your business? Then call Spokane Roofing at (509) 838-8633 about a new roof. Our team of experienced commercial roofers will install a replacement roof that looks great and lasts decades.