Councilwoman’s Husband: Pulling Air Monitor My Decision

The owner of Empire Ford says it was his decision not to renew the lease for an air quality monitor in downtown Spokane.

“The lease ran out in July and I decided not to renew it because of the negative publicity that the monitor generated,” said Nate Greene.

Greene’s wife, Roberta, is a Spokane City Council member, but had nothing to do with the decision not to renew the agreement with the Washington state Department of Ecology, he said.

“I decided that because of the controversy over the monitor that it wouldn’t be in the best interests of the business to continue having the monitor on the property,” Nate Greene said.

The air quality monitor at Third and Washington has been the subject of much discussion in Spokane as the city struggles to avoid a designation as a city with one of the worst carbon monoxide problems in the country.

The ecology department is looking for another downtown site for the monitor.

, DataTimes