Council Considers Moratorium

The Indian Trail neighborhood may go another six months without new development if the Spokane City Council agrees tonight to extend the building moratorium in the area.

Residents are asking that the ban on new housing applications be kept in place until October while they complete their neighborhood specific plan.

Increasing concerns about fastpaced growth in Indian Trail caused the council to grant the first sixmonth moratorium last fall.

For years, residents have complained that growth is outpacing services in the North Side neighborhood. Streets are crowded. Water pressure is low. There’s no community park.

The council last year approved developer impact fees to help pay for growth throughout the city, but the fee schedule isn’t in place.

A neighborhood task force is in the process of completing the area’s specific plan, which designates land for apartments, parks and services.

Also tonight, the council will consider:

Setting a hearing for April 10 on an initiative petition designed to use taxpayer money to pay for dog and cat spaying and neutering services.

Approving the sale of $1.9 million in bonds to develop a geographic information system and make repairs to the Spokane Opera House and Convention Center.

The geographic information system is a digital mapping system consisting of several layers that detail such things as property boundaries, building locations and zoning.

The mapping system would cost about $965,000. Repairs to the Convention Center and Opera House roofs, as well as replacing the orchestra pit, will cost about $990,000.

The bonds, known as councilmanic bonds - which can’t exceed 1.5 percent of the city’s total assessed valuation - don’t require a public vote and are paid back with city revenues.

The council briefing starts at 5:30 p.m. in the fifth-floor conference room of City Hall, 808 W. Spokane Falls Boulevard. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. in council chambers.