Anderson Is Back, But Just For A While

After a five-month absence, Spokane city Councilman Chris Anderson took his council seat again Monday to announce he’ll be leaving for good at year’s end.

“I’m proud of my service to all of you, and in spite of my frustrations and disappointments, I will resign Dec. 31 feeling good about my efforts,” said Anderson, reading from a four-page statement.

Anderson has missed 21 meetings since he left his council post May 28 to drive a truck on the “Dante’s Peak” movie set in Wallace, Idaho. He moved with the film crew to Los Angeles in September.

He has continued to cash his $1,500-a-month council paycheck.

Anderson - contemplative and quiet during much of the council’s afternoon briefing session - came out swinging during the evening meeting.

He called the city an “ailing patient … with greed, corruption, self-serving deal-making, inefficiency and a complete disdain for the people spread throughout it like a cancerous lesion…”

And he accused his colleagues of engaging in “inefficient, immoral, unethical and sometimes illegal” activities that he has tried to expose.

“All these things, and the raging personal battle that the powerful puppet masters have undertaken against my family and I, financially and otherwise, are the basis for my decision to resign,” he said.

Anderson cited several accomplishments during his three years on the council, including sponsoring a citizen’s retreat and getting local government information to the public via the Internet.

“Many of my hoped-for initiatives never came to be, though, since … I more often than not found myself in the position of ‘the lone vote’ on this body,” he said.

Some council members looked pained and uncomfortable during Anderson’s speech. Others focused their eyes on paperwork or stared off into space.

No one commented on Anderson’s statement when he finished.

Mayor Jack Geraghty lightly jabbed Anderson at the start of the meeting, saying, “It’s nice to have a full house after five months or so.”

In September, Anderson called a “town hall” meeting to defend his absence, which has prompted sharp criticism from his colleagues and the public.

The city’s charter calls for remaining council members to choose someone to fill a vacant seat. Anderson said he hoped to take part in that process during his final days on the council.

“It will be handled by the mayor and this very City Council … so watch closely and, for God’s sake, be involved,” Anderson said. “If you’re not, the machine will simply once again run roughshod over all of you.”

Anderson didn’t say what he planned to do after leaving office.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo