Letters To The Editor

Storm water fees just feeding bureaucracy

I recently received a mailing from the Spokane County Stormwater Utility in regards to the Glenrose and Central Park runoff problem.

About 10 or 12 years ago, this same committee met with several Central Park residents, and wanted to implement a runoff program.

The consensus of the people serving on the committee then was that the storm water utility wanted to create an “empire” for themselves, by creating runoff districts. That would give them the right to collect fees from all the residents in an area.

Even after this past winter, I have not seen any runoff problems, except in a couple of small places.

I don’t believe that we have to collect millions of dollars - yes that is what it will amount to - to fix a small problems, that only affects a few houses.

There has to be a better and cheaper way to do this job. Remember, when these districts are set up they will be for perpetuity.

The storm water utility has been collecting $10 per house and more from businesses for 10 years or so. What has that money done except pay for more bureaucracy, to figure out ways to collect and spend more money? Has any money ever been spent on a problem? Ed Weilep Spokane

‘Tussle for Yardley’ comes as no surprise

There is something eerie about seeing a well-publicized prediction become a reality. I am referring to the article “Tussle for Yardley” (Valley Voice, June 27).

Through two campaigns to incorporate the Spokane Valley, proponents warned that failure to incorporate would result in losing Yardley, which provides a substantial portion of the tax base supporting the Valley Fire District and the library district.

Of course this warning was no match for the downtown power brokers, who threw down a big check and said, “Kill incorporation.” The media blitz that followed scared the majority into thinking that incorporation meant “higher taxes” instead of “protecting taxes.”

Without incorporation, the city of Spokane will follow that rich vein of tax revenue right out the industrial and commercial corridor from Yardley to Kaiser to the Industrial Park and the new regional shopping center at Sullivan and Interstate 90.

That will leave the bedroom area of the Spokane Valley trying to support fire and library districts and a road system on a residential real estate tax base. If you think taxes are high now, just wait!

Fortunately, there is one bright spot on the horizon. As pointed out in the news article referred to above, County Commissioner Steve Hasson, who has always championed the interests of the Valley, is in a position to stand as a bulwark against the city’s imperial designs to annex the cream of the Valley’s tax base.

If we in the Valley are not willing to incorporate to protect our tax base, then we should make sure that Steve is there to do the job for us. Howard Herman Opportunity