Post Falls visionary Bob Templin dies

POST FALLS — When Post Falls was stagnant, Bob Templin invested in it.

As a result, the businessman also watched the city grow up.

Templin, whose name is synonymous with the resort and convention center on the Spokane River, city center properties and Post Falls' historical roots, died on Tuesday at Hospice House. He was 93.

"Post Falls has had few visionaries of the caliber of Mr. Templin," said Kerri Thoreson, a longtime family friend of the Templins and a City Council member. "Bob was a tireless advocate of the business community, of tourism and preserving the history of his adopted hometown. Mostly, he was a gentleman with a kind heart. He will be missed."

In his later years, Templin became known for his projects in Post Falls, including what is now Red Lion Templin's Hotel. He and his wife, Mary, founded Templin's Resort and Marina in 1986.

"Bob's big heyday in Post Falls was the mid-’80s to the mid-’90s," Thoreson said. "Investing in the hotel was a bold move because Post Falls only had 6,000 or 7,000 people at the time."

Former Post Falls mayor and city administrator Jim Hammond agrees.

"Bob Templin made a substantial investment in Post Falls during a very slow economic period," Hammond said. "He and Mary moved to Post Falls and worked to build the economy of the city."

Beyond the resort, Templin owned and sold several city center properties in the Spokane Street corridor, including where Roger's Ice Cream, the Falls Park Apartments, Post Falls Brewing and St. Joseph's Ear, Nose and Throat are. He built the Milltown Center with its name recognizing the city's timber heritage.

He served on committees that developed a vision for Post Falls' future city center and organized revitalization efforts.

"It's been my dream to have the blight (from the former downtown) cleaned up and the downtown redeveloped," he told The Press in 2009.

Templin led a citizen effort opposing tearing down the former City Hall when the new one was built, on the grounds the old building was still functional. He rooted on the ambitious Post Falls Landing project along the Spokane River in hopes it would spur other city center development before it stalled and the economy tanked.

Joe Doellefeld, former owner of Stateline Speedway, said Templin welcomed him to the community in 1988 when he was staying at Templin's Resort.

"He invited me to have breakfast there and helped get me involved in the Chamber of Commerce right away," Doellefeld said. "He was a one-on-one kind of person."

Doellefeld and Templin worked together on efforts to promote tourism in Post Falls.

"We talked a lot about how growth and tourism could affect us in a positive way," Doellefeld said. "When we started growing, he taught us to look at all sides of an issue, not to overreact too quickly and think things through with proper planning. And, as a community, that's what we have done."

When Templin was the guest speaker at a Post Falls Historical Society event last year, Doellefeld said he learned Templin managed 15 hotels in various small communities.

"He had a lot more going on than people realized," Doellefeld said. "He worked quietly and not boastfully."

Templin's business roots in the region date back 70 years. Templin owned the Circle T restaurant in Ritzville before moving to Coeur d'Alene in 1946 and opening Templin's cafe on the corner of First and Sherman. In the mid-1950s he built Templin's Waterfront Lodge near where The Resort clock tower is now located.

Jerry Jaeger, president and co-owner of Hagadone Hospitality Co., called Templin "a true pioneer of Idaho's tourism industry."

Jaeger's parents, Joe and Maureen Jaeger, were partners with the Templins and Bill and Jean Reagan. They built the North Shore Motor Hotel (now the site of The Coeur d'Alene Resort) in the early 1960s. Later, Jaeger took over his family interests and became a partner in the organization.

In June 1983, Duane Hagadone bought the Templin and Reagan interests and Hagadone Hospitality was formed.

"I learned a great deal from him and appreciated his knowledge and leadership," Jaeger said of Templin. "Our thoughts and prayers are with him, Mary, Barbara, Blythe, Bobby and their entire family."

Templin later developed business and historical ties in Post Falls.

Bob’s and Mary's trips to Herborn, Germany — Post Falls' associate city and the birthplace of Frederick Post — started a relationship between the cities that included the Herborn Big Band making trips to the River City.

Templin, a Historical Society charter member, lobbied that the nonprofit's museum be located on the City Hall campus in the historic brick building at the corner of Fourth and Spokane that was the former police station.

"Bob respected the elders of the Coeur d'Alene Tribe and worked hard to form a good relationship between Post Falls and the Tribe that exists today," Doellefeld said.

Kim Brown, who worked with Templin on history efforts, said Templin teamed up with Alice Martin Williams, Post's granddaughter, and displayed her artistic rendition of Treaty Rock at his hotel.

"Whenever the society needed a display area to share local history, he provided space," Brown said. "I always kidded him about his economic impact following in the shoes of Frederick Post. He walked the same streets, he envisioned the potential rebirth of economic development in the old downtown. His understanding of people, their roots and their impact was keen."

For being visionary leaders in business and tourism, a mural of the Templins was erected on the side of the Chamber of Commerce building that is part of a history walk tour in the city center. Templin was also recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Chamber for his promotion of tourism.

Templin supported many community efforts, including helping form a committee that made Falls Park a reality.

Post Falls Mayor Ron Jacobson said he remembers Templin working with Earl Warren to transfer what is now Earl Warren Park to the city.

When a bond finally passed to build Post Falls High School, the Templins hosted a reception at their home to celebrate, inviting many who worked on the campaign, Jacobson said.

Templin was a frequent visitor to Post Falls City Council meetings.

"Whenever he spoke at the meetings, he would bring copies of Press articles dealing with whatever topic he was addressing the council on," Jacobson said. "He must have had a huge collection of newspaper articles."

Templin, a Korean War and World War II veteran, had 71 years of continuous American Legion membership. He and the late Frank Henderson, a former state legislator, mayor and county commissioner, were honored as Veterans of the Year in Post Falls in 2014.

"Bob was a proud veteran and attended many ceremonies honoring those who served," Jacobson said.

Hard work and helping others was ingrained early on with Templin, who grew up on a farm in eastern Washington. In a Press article, he said he remembers his family donating food to his church, needy neighbors and strangers.

Templin was a founding member of Christ the King Lutheran Church in Coeur d'Alene in 1955. He served the church in several capacities, including on the board and with building projects.

"He was a tireless worker and never complained," said Bill Hemenway, former pastor of the church. "He wasn't afraid to plant trees or sit in the meetings. He had a good deal of insight and could do it all."

For three years during his high school days in Ritzville, Templin lived in a small hotel, paying $10 a month for room and board in exchange for hotel chores.

Those hard-work, careful-how-you-spend values carried through his entire life.

"He was a true country gentleman," Doellefeld said. "You'd see him in jeans and a checkered Wrangler shirt and never know he owned a hotel."

Templin services

Services for Bob Templin will be on Saturday at 11 a.m. at Christ the King Lutheran Church in Coeur d’Alene. In lieu of flowers, donations to Hospice House are encouraged.