Spokane Valley Mayor Tom Towey and his Pekinese, “Buddy”, get ready to ride Wed. evening, Aug. 18, 2010, along with Spokane Valley Cyclists FOR the Broadway Safety Project in a “Pedal with the Politicians”, to look first hand at bike lanes and safety issues in the Spokane Valley. Former councilman Bill Gothman (blue helmet) also participated in the ride. SR file photo.

A pancake breakfast to celebrate Bike to Work Week is planned for 7 to 9 a.m. Thursday at CenterPlace, 2426 N. Discovery Place. If you plan to attend by bike, CenterPlace is right next to the Mirabeau Point trailhead on the Centennial Trail. And I'm sure no one would mind if you arrived by car. The breakfast is free, so stop in to support our cycling community.

This is just a reminder that the city of Spokane Valley will officially dedicate their new gateway sign during a ceremony at 11 a.m. Wednesday. The new welcome sign and landscaping are on a triangle of land at the intersection of Thierman Road and Appleway Blvd. that was donated to the city by Spokane County. Mayor Tom Towey will speak briefly during the ceremony. Attendees can park in the Display House parking lot just west of the sign.

There is definitely more road work going on and some new projects have joined the ranks in Spokane Valley in Liberty Lake. Traffic is down to one lane in each direction on Pines Road between Sprague and Broadway for signal conduit work, which is slowing traffic. That will continue Monday through Thursday until July.

Of course, Sullivan Road construction is ongoing between the Spokane River and Trent. Traffic there is also down to one lane in each direction, so expect slow going. Knox is shut down just west of Vista for utility work. A detour is in place for the project, which should be done sometime tomorrow.

New this week is a partial shutdown of the Harvard Road bridge over I-90 in Liberty Lake. Work starts today to repair the bridge joints and will continue through Thursday. The bridge will be limited to single lane alternating traffic directed by flaggers, so expect a wait if you have to go through that area.

I will be out of the office next week, so expect the blog to go dark. You can still check out our great Valley Voice stories here while I'm gone. Enjoy the sun!

Gonzaga University student Derek Desrosier works a Pulaski on a trail in the Dishman Hills Natural Area in a project organized by the Dishman Hills Conservancy on April 21. He was among about 200 volunteers who showed up to help create a series of new trails. SR photo/Rich Landers

If you haven't had a chance to check out today's paper, let me bring to your attention a story by outdoors writer Rich Landers on the trails in the Dishman Hills Natural Area in Spokane Valley. Volunteers have been trying to decommission some old trails and at the same time creating several miles of new trails. But not everyone has gotten the message. People are removing the debris placed on the old trails and using them again. Read Rich's story to get the full details and see a map of the new trails.

This is just a reminder that there is no Spokane Valley City Council meeting tonight. It was cancelled in part because this is the fifth Tuesday of the month and also because there really wasn't anything on the agenda. Next week's agenda, however, looks like it should be lively.

Southbound University Road will be closed between Trent and Fairview in Spokane Valley between 9 a.m. and noon Monday for railroad crossing work. Southbound drivers will have to detour to Pines or Argonne, so plan ahead if that road is part of your normal route.

The Spokane Valley Police Precinct will be hosting another prescription drug take back and shred event Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. You can also drop off over the counter medications, vitamins, ointments and inhalers. Items not accepted include needles, syringes and thermometers. People can bring up to three boxes of documents for shredding, so now is the time to clean out your files. The precinct is located at 12710 E. Sprague.

The city of Spokane Valley will host a public meeting tonight to discuss a planned stormwater improvement project on 14th Avenue between Custer St. and Carnahan Road. There has been a problem of erosion in the area after rains. The meeting will be held from 6:30 to 8 p.m. tonight at the Park Place Assisted Living Center, 511 S. Park Road. There will be time for residents to ask questions.

The planned work include adding curbs, putting in an underground stormwater pipe system and connecting driveways to the edge of the new curb. The work will take place sometime this summer and will last between four to eight weeks.

There's a rollover accident currently backing up traffic on eastbound I-90 near the Pines exit. Expect delays until firefighters and WSP troopers clear the scene. Photo courtesy WSDOT traffic camera.

12:15 p.m. update: The Washington State Patrol is reporting that one person is trapped inside that flipped car and another was ejected in the accident.

Yesterday Spokane Valley Mayor Tom Towey announced that he plans to run for the Washington State House of Representatives 4th District seat currently held by longtime Republican legislator Larry Crouse. Crouse is considering retiring, which would leave the seat open. But Towey isn't alone in his interest: current Spokane council member Nancy McLaughlin has indicated she may move to Spokane Valley to run for the seat and former Spokane Valley Mayor Diana Wilhite has also expressed interest. The election isn't until November 2014, but it looks like things are heating up already. Click here to read today's story. SR file photo.

The basement meeting room at the Spokane Valley Library was packed last night as people told the city and the Spokane County Library District what they would like to see in an expanded Balfour Park. The city is partnering with the library district to expand the park and build a library on land across from the old University City Mall. Everyone seemed pretty excited about a new park. People were turned loose with markers to draw what they wanted to see in the park on maps of the site. There was nearly unanimous support for features like a farmers market, walking paths, a veterans memorial, a picnic shelter and a reading garden. Check out my story in Thursday's Valley Voice for full details.

The city of Spokane Valley will put on a community meeting tonight to get input on the expansion of Balfour Park and the proposed new Spokane County Library District branch planned for the site at Sprague Ave. and Herald Road. After a presentation, those attending will be asked to get into small groups and brainstorm ideas on what features should be included in the park.

The meeting begins at 6 p.m. tonight at the Spokane Valley Library, 10024 E. Main.

The city of Spokane Valley is doing a study on whether it should put in some sort of I-90 orverpass at University Road. Residents are invited to come to a public meeting tonight to discuss whether an overpass is needed and if it should serve pedestrians, cyclists, cars or all three. Any such project would be years away, but this is your chance to speak up about whether an overpass is needed or not.

The meeting will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. tonight at the Spokane Valley Fire Department Administration Building, located at 2120 N. Wilbur Road next to Fire Station 8.

If you have library fines piling up, the Spokane County Library District will reduce the amount you owe in exchange for donations of non-perishable food items for the Second Harvest Food Bank. Anytime through Saturday you can bring your donations to any library banch, including the ones in Spokane Valley, Otis Orchards, Fairfield and on Argonne Road. The library will forgive $1 in fines for each donated item up to a maximum of $10. So raid your cupboards and head to your local library, though you might want to check the living room for any overdue books you might have first.  

There will be a bunch of road construction projects underway next week that could affect your normal driving route, so you might want to start planning alternate routes. There will be sidewalk work on 24th Avenue between Adams and Sullivan between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays. The project will continue through mid-May.

Park Road will be down to one lane just south of Valleway on Tuesday only. Utility work will be underway from 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Work will continue on Pines Road near Alki. Signal work will create northbound curb lane closures on Sullivan bewtween Sprague and I-90 beginning Monday.The work will be done between 6 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays.  

John Loucks, a board member with the Christian Conference Center, walks through a sanctuary overlooking Liberty Lake, near the historic Zephyr Lodge. The property may be put up for sale. SR photo/Dan Pelle

You can't go wrong with a cute cat and we've got one for you in today's Valley Voice. The students and staff at Broadway Elementary call the black and white cat Kudo, though apparently that isn't really his name. The cat lives near the school and appears twice a day to help the crossing guards as children cross the busy street. He's often out there waiting before the crossing guards get there.

The historic Zephyr Lodge on the shore of Liberty Lake may go up for sale soon. It's owned by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and there isn't enough money to run and maintain the 52 acre property that also includes a softball field, volleyball court, trails and and outdoor chapel.

The city of Spokane Valley is prepariing to adopt new maximum exemption levels that will reduce the number of proposed building projects that have to go through a State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) review. The new maximum will sharply increse the number of multi-family units allowed before a SEPA review is triggered.

It must be spring, because road work is starting in Spokane Valley. Yesterday I drove down Pines Road and stormwater improvement work has begun near Alki. Yesterday crews were working in the southbound lanes and traffic was down to one lane. After the work is complete, the giant puddle that forms in the northbound lanes whenever it rains should be a thing of the past.

Work is starting today on the Sullivan Road corridor between Sprague Ave. and I-90 and on Sprague between Sullivan and Evergreen Road. Crews will be working to install traffic management cameras and link the traffic signals together. The westbound Sprague curb lane and the northbound Sullivan curb lane are closed, so there may be more congestion than usual. The project is expect to last through mid-May and access to businesses will remain open.

Michelle Schimmels, special education teacher at McDonald Elementary School, works with first-grade student Cooper Brummett during recess March 29. SR photo/Dan Pelle

Good Monday morning everyone. Let's start off the week by taking a look at some highlights from Saturday's Valley Voice. Reporter Lisa Leinberger has a story in McDonald Elementary School special education teacher Michelle Schimmels, who recently received a Meritorious Service Award from the Central Valley School District after seven different people nominated her. She works with high needs children and was lauded for having a way of understanding what the children need.

Community gardens are booming in Liberty Lake. The city recently finished adding 12 raised garden beds to its garden at the arboretum. There are also 11 raised beds at Rocky Hill Park and demand has been high. The city provides everything except the seeds.

The Spokane Valley City Council had a special meeting last week with Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers. They used their time to lobby for help in getting the final bit of funding to replace the west Sullivan Bridge and to ask about moving the Bridging the Valley railroad overpass projects back to the forefront.

Making a scene: Quinn Johnson, who plays Bobby Strong, and Shelby Horton, who plays Hope, in the University High School drama department production of “Urinetown” perform a scene during a dress rehearsal March 29 at U-Hi. SR photo/Colin Mulvany

I was driving home yesterday when I realized I hadn't posted highlights from that day's Valley Voice. Whoops. So here we are with an entry in the “better late than never” category. The city of Spokane Valley is looking at changes to several law enforcement related contracts it has with Spokane County. Both jurisdictions are interested in making changes that will save the city money.

Reporter Lisa Leinberger has a story on the University High School production of “Urinetown” that opens on April 11. She also has a story on the National Geographic Bee at Pacific Lutheran University that will include several local students, including two from Spokane Valley.

Lisa did triple duty and also has a story on longtime Inland Northwest Blood Center volunteer Ernie Dieterich, who died recently. If you donated blood at the organizations' mobile donor coach, you might have seen him. He would drive the coach, hand out juice and do whatever else was needed.