Council renews building-height talk

Spokane City Council members on Monday voted unanimously to reopen a debate over maximum heights for apartments and condos along the West Riverside Avenue bluff overlooking the Spokane River gorge.

The council decided to ask the City Plan Commission to hold a new round of public meetings that could lead to the easing of height restrictions north of Riverside Avenue, down into the historic Peaceful Valley neighborhood.

The commission was asked to consider appropriate building heights in an area that is being eyed for high-rise condo projects. The reconsideration will involve the area north of Riverside between the Monroe Street and Maple Street bridges.

Several Peaceful Valley residents asked Spokane City Council members on Monday to protect their neighborhood from high-rise condo towers that would block sunlight.

Height restrictions were imposed in Peaceful Valley several years ago to protect the neighborhood.

Without the restrictions, developers could build any size structure they want. A hot new real estate market for downtown condos has given developers new incentive for building skyward.

“Please preserve the integrity of Peaceful Valley and the surrounding historical districts,” said Jan Yoder, a resident living in a neighborhood that was originally developed as working-class housing for the city’s economic expansion a century ago.

An advocate for downtown residential development said the area should be opened for higher density housing, including high rises.

“The downtown plan says we want high-density housing,” said Jim Kolva, who is working as an agent on a proposed 17-story condo tower within the area affected by the existing height limitations.

He said great downtowns all over the world are vibrant because of the presence of downtown residents who support the shops, art galleries and restaurants. “We want density,” Kolva said.

“If you can’t build higher housing downtown, where can you build it?” he asked.

Mick McDowell, who is proposing the 17-story condo tower near the Maple Street Bridge, has applied for a variance to allow his project to exceed height limitations north of Riverside Avenue. McDowell testified in support of reopening the debate on height limitations in the area where he wants to build the tower.

Currently, there are no height restrictions within the first 100 feet north of Riverside Avenue. Beyond the 100-foot mark, projects must comply with a height formula designed to protect low-lying Peaceful Valley and its residents from huge towers next to them.

In other business, the City Council voted unanimously in favor of a resolution backing House Bill 2322, which would essentially eliminate phosphorus from dishwashing detergents.

The ban would help protect water quality in the Spokane River, which has suffered from excessive levels of phosphorus during low-water flows in the summer and fall.

Phosphorus triggers algae growth in Lake Spokane and robs the water of oxygen needed by trout.

Phosphorus was banned from laundry detergents more than a decade ago.