Bemiss, Spokane

Hays Park in late October

The intersection of Empire Avenue and Crestline Road, two arterials that meet near the center of the neighborhood, is 4.2 miles by road from Spokane City Hall in Downtown Spokane. Wellesley Avenue, a major arterial on the north side of town, is the neighborhood's northern border. Market and Haven Streets, also major arterials on the north side of town, delimit the eastern border. To the south the border is irregular, following North Foothills Drive to Napa Street, Illinois Avenue to Crestline Street, the Spokane River to Smith Street and then back along Illinois Avenue to Market Street. The western border runs down Perry Street to Euclid Avenue and Napa Street to Illinois Avenue.[5]

As of 2017, the population of Bemiss was 8,633 in 3,263 households. 49.2% of those households are rented, compared to 45.3% of households citywide. 29.1% of Bemiss residents are age 19 or under and 11.6% are age 65 or older. The median household income is $34,565, below the citywide average of $44,768. 74.7% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch. 37.2% of residents have a high school diploma only and 8.7% have a bachelor's degree or higher. The unemployment rate is 10.3%.[1]

Of the residents, 85.8% were born in the United States. The top countries for the foreign born population are Ukraine, accounting for 54.4% of all foreign born residents, followed by Mexico at 9%, Belarus at 5.1% and Canada at 4.4%.

The adjacent neighborhood of Hillyard was once a separate city and the present day Bemiss neighborhood grew up as part of both Hillyard and Spokane. Hillyard was platted in 1892, incorporated in 1907. In 1907, the area northeast of Rich Avenue and Crestline Street, the northeastern corner of the current neighborhood, was incorporated into Hillyard. The rest of the neighborhood was incorporated into the City of Spokane that same year. Spokane annexed Hillyard in 1924.[4]

Rail trolleys and streetcars connected the neighborhood to downtown Spokane, to the southwest, and the rest of the Spokane area.

Bemiss is served by Spokane Public Schools. The neighborhood is home to two public elementary schools, one middle and one high school. Bemiss Elementary, located in the neighborhood, serves the bulk of the neighborhood. Regal Elementary, also located in the neighborhood, serves the northern section of the neighborhood. Longfellow Elementary, in the adjacent North Hill neighborhood, serves Bemiss east of Helena between Glass and Rich. Logan Elementary, in the adjacent Logan neighborhood, serves the far southern portion of Bemiss along the river south of Illinois. Bemiss, Regal and Longfellow all feed into Shaw Middle School, which is located in Bemiss, and then into John R. Rogers High School, also located in Bemiss. The Logan district feeds into Yasuhara Middle School in Logan and then into North Central High School in Emerson/Garfield. The On Track Academy, an alternative public high school, is located in Bemiss adjacent to Regal Elementary and Shaw Middle School.[6][7]