Pratt Hills preparing to go vertical in Royal City
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year AGO
The Pratt Hills development in Royal City is beginning to take shape. Construction on the homes is expected to begin at the end of this month, with infrastructure complete by the end of October.
R. HANS MILLER/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
Saddle Creek, east of Royal City, is under development by CAD Homes. The lots there are larger than CAD’s usual development and are sold independently of the homes.
Joel Martin has been with the Columbia Basin Herald for more than 25 years in a variety of roles and is the most-tenured employee in the building. Martin is a married father of eight and enjoys spending time with his children and his wife, Christina. He is passionate about the paper’s mission of informing the people of the Columbia Basin because he knows it is important to record the history of the communities the publication serves. | September 5, 2025 3:15 AM
ROYAL CITY — Some long-awaited homes are finally about to take shape in Royal City.
“We’re hoping to be started by the end of September with vertical construction, and then the civil infrastructure done probably by the end of October,” said Drew Scott, owner and manager of CAD Homes, which is developing the Pratt Hills neighborhood in the middle of Royal City.
The development has been a while in the making. Pratt Hills was originally proposed in October 2022, according to Columbia Basin Herald archives. Stormwater drainage issues created delays, CAD Land Development Manager Sara Prather said in an October 2023 interview. CAD had already built the neighborhood immediately adjacent to Pratt Hills in 2019, according to Prather.
Nest Realty is handling sales on the development, Scott said. There are 19 different floor plans available, according to the real estate website Zillow. Nest’s website had one home listed in Pratt Hills Wednesday, an 825-square-foot home priced at $297,210. About half the prospective homes have been sold, Scott estimated, even before construction began.
Besides Pratt Hills, CAD has another development in the works in the Royal City area. Saddle Creek, about 4 miles east of town across from the Royal City Golf Course, will consist of 14 homes on 5-acre lots with community water and irrigation, Scott said. The arrangement at Saddle Creek is a little different from CAD’s usual process, in that CAD is partnering with a local landowner to sell the lots separately from homes. The buyer can have a CAD home built on the site, or go with another builder, or just leave it empty if they like. About five of the 14 lots in that development have sold, Scott said.
Farther west, CAD has a development underway in Mattawa, Bodrero Estates, which is selling quickly, Scott said.
“We’re just about done there,” he said. “It has slowed down with interest rates creeping up, but it’s still been steady Eddie.”
Mattawa and Royal City have both been in need of housing for a long time, Scott said.
“I don’t know if anyone’s actually done a subdivision in my lifetime in Mattawa,” he said.
Saddle Creek, east of Royal City, is under development by CAD Homes. The lots there are larger than CAD’s usual development and are sold independently of the homes.ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Quincy National Night Out scales down
QUINCY — Quincy’s National Night Out was more compact this year, which worked out well, said QPD Sgt. Joe Westby, who’s in charge of event planning for the Quincy Police Department. “National Night Out is a big event, and the fact that we’re able to shrink it up is like a breath of fresh air,” Westby said. “If you're always doing the same thing, it's kind of nice to switch things up and see how it works.” National Night Out took place Thursday on the block of C Street next to the police station, a shift from previous years when it was held at Lauzier Park. The smaller space meant fewer emergency vehicles for children to explore, but it also meant less walking for attendees. Grant County Fire District 5 brought a fire truck, and the Grant County Sheriff’s Office had a patrol boat. Renew, the Grant County behavioral health agency, had a booth and so did Quincy Partnership for Youth. Veterans Operation Creation sang the national anthem, and the Quincy Animal Shelter brought kittens that piled over each other making friends with passersby. As before, the QPD served grilled hot dogs.
Quincy Police retirements leave big shoes to fill
QUINCY — There are some big shoes to fill at the Quincy Police Department. “We’re losing 48 years of experience between them,” Quincy Police Chief Ryan Green said at the retirement party for Capt. Jorge Trujillo and Det. Damon Powell Thursday. Trujillo, who grew up in Sunnyside, has been with QPD for 19 years, he said, coming on as a patrol officer fresh out of the military. From there he served as a field training officer, a detective and finally captain. “I consider him my left-hand man,” Green said. “He runs the operations side of the house … He knows the agency very well, and he knows the community.” Trujillo has some projects around the house to tackle now that he’s retired, he said.
Big fun on a small scale
Wheat Land Communities’ Fair opens Thursday
RITZVILLE — The Wheat Land Communities’ Fair isn’t as big or as flashy as some of the county fairs around central Washington, but the folks who keep it going like it just the way it is. “It’s somewhere you can go and get an old-time traditional feeling, and you’re comfortable letting your kids roam the grounds and experience all that it has to offer,” said Board Member Lori Williams. “It’s more of a feeling than (one) specific thing,” The fair starts Thursday in Ritzville and runs through Sunday. Starting Friday, the 56th Ritzville Rodeo will take place alongside the fair at the rodeo grounds. This year the entertainment budget was expanded, Williams said, to be able to offer more fun that’s covered by the cost of admission. For the kids, there’s face painting, balloon art, Lego crafts, races, contests and games. Children can also ride on a little train towed around the fairgrounds behind a tractor.