Candidates position
| Position 2 | Question | Position 3 | ||
| Taylor: “Spokane Valley is one of the greatest places imaginable to raise a family. The city’s natural beauty, low crime rate, strong employment base and friendly citizens are all exemplary reasons for living in Spokane Valley. There are so many opportunities available for work, outdoor recreation and general service needs. It’s the quality of the natural environment with the conveniences of modern urban living.” | Towey: “I have traveled the U.S. and abroad and find that we Valley people have a unique attitude, which is warm and distinctive. I am honored to say I grew up in the Spokane Valley. I met my wife here. I raised two children here. I was employed for 32 years here. I love the Spokane Valley – that’s why I am running as a write-in candidate for Council Position No. 2. | Why do you live in Spokane Valley? | Crosby: “I was born in the Valley and have found that this is the place that I feel at home. | Dempsey: “I was born and grew up in Coeur d’Alene. I married an Air Force chaplain, and we lived in a number of different places in the U.S., Germany and Japan. After retirement from the military, his work brought us to Spokane Valley, where we bought our first home in 1987. When he retired for the second time, we realized that Spokane Valley had all we wanted or needed for a good life. |
| Taylor: “Straight A’s across the board. The council is diverse in its opinions and make up, but always acts civilly when discussing the public’s business. Once decisions are made, no matter what side a member falls on during the debate, the whole council is there to support the final product for the betterment of the city. Simply put, the council gets the job done.” | Towey: “With all due respect I give the council a C. I believe the people of the Spokane Valley have a different vision for the future of our city – an attractive city they can be proud to live in, with reliable, reasonable zoning, adequate roads, better and enforced new development regulations, more parks. The lack of communication between the people and our council is of great concern to the people of the Valley. | If you were a teacher and had to grade the current City Council, what grade would you give and why? | Crosby: “I would give them a C+. I think that they have been very fiscally conservative (this is good). However, I am watching Spokane Valley having problems with permitting for all citizens, not just developers. I am also watching us not have housing available for all our citizens.” | Dempsey: “Spokane Valley is a young city, and the work of the City Council is barely begun. They need however, to put on their “listening ears” when the people come before them. They tend to dismiss the concerns of their constituents, to forge ahead with their own plans. The City Council gets a grade of incomplete from me.” |
| Taylor: “The vision is not just for a city center, but the revitalization of the entire Sprague/Appleway corridor. Spokane Valley has the opportunity to develop a town center which will be unique to the Spokane region. The mixed-use concept has been very successful throughout so many other cities in the nation. Sprague Avenue is ripe for re-development and the full retail/office/residential concept anchored by a city hall and library will ultimately establish Spokane Valley’s identity. | Towey: “The city should always be careful as to where they are spending our hard earned tax dollars. The real question should be: Is the cost of this project in the best interest of all the people of the Spokane Valley or benefiting special interest. It would be irresponsible to build a new City Hall on land not owned by the city. If we can’t buy the land, we should seek other properties.” | The council is preparing to invest public money in a city center that would include shopping, office space and housing. Do you feel the city should develop a sizable retail and civic center in partnership with landowners and a developer, or should Spokane Valley simply build a city hall next to a new library to encourage businesses grow around them? | Crosby: “City Center will not just be building a City Hall or Library and allowing for development to happen. We will need to develop the infrastructure for the growth to happen and also develop the zoning overlay to help with the development of the City Center. The city should not be in partnership to build any retail development.” | Dempsey: “Wait! Wait! First things first! Leasing the University City land for a grandiose city center is folly. Have we learned nothing from Spokane’s parking garage scandal? The Pring property, just west of the fire station, has been offered for $10 per foot. It is adjacent to a small park, across the street from high density housing, easily accessible, and it would be our land, our city hall, our city center. Sure makes sense to me.” |
| Taylor: “The city’s sign ordinance has gone through three sets of deliberations by an ad hoc committee of citizens and stakeholders and was recently approved in the city’s Uniform Development Code. These regulations are living documents and can be amended whenever necessary. I believe the current ordinance balances the needs of businesses to adequately deliver their message to consumers with the importance of maintaining Spokane Valley’s aesthetic beauty.” | Towey: “The city’s sign ordinance is too restrictive. On one hand, we encourage new and existing businesses to choose the Spokane Valley; on the other hand, we are restricting their ability to advertise their goods and services. I have met with business owners throughout the Valley and find them to be responsible, honest, hardworking, industrious and creative people. We have a strong business community leadership. We should encourage business instead of restricting business. | Is the city’s sign ordinance too restrictive, too loose, or should it stand as written? | Crosby: “The city sign code has been revisited a couple of times. I believe that the current sign code is good.” | Dempsey: “Perhaps I’m the only person left in the world who likes signs. When a business is easy for me to find, I’ll use it. If I have to hunt for whatever small sign there might be in order to patronize a particular business, I give up quickly and head for the mall instead. The sign restrictions not only hinder business owners, they hinder the customers. As materials and advertising trends change sign rules should be revisited.” |
| Taylor: “Yes. The billboard advertising community has willfully agreed to capping the number of billboards in Spokane Valley to its current number. I am opposed to singling out one type of business for additional restrictions on its right to provide advertising messages to the public. No billboards may be moved into residential areas or aesthetic corridors. I believe retail and industrial corridors are appropriate roadways in which to locate this type of off-premise sign.” | Towey: “I believe billboards with some location restrictions should remain in the Spokane Valley. Billboards convey a message to the public that in many cases cannot be expressed in any other way.” | Should new billboards or replacements for existing billboards that fall down be allowed in Spokane Valley? | Crosby: “This is part of the existing sign code. The cap and replace policy allows for this with the provision that they must find a new location within a certain amount of time or they will not be able to replace that billboard.” | Dempsey: “Here again, I’m a billboard lover. They’re great for telling you what is happening and where. They’re also good for giving directions, i.e. ‘2nd right after the big blue du-flippit sign.’ They’ll tell you about happenings and sales and new products. Why not? Dilapidated ones should be repaired, replaced or removed.” |
| Taylor: “The City Council deliberated heavily over how residential zoning should occur throughout the entire city. The debate over zoning in Greenacres covered the difference between the currently-allowed 4.35 units/acre and the newly-approved 4.93 units/acre. Low-density residential zoning decisions must take into account the need to accommodate projected growth throughout the entire city, rather than singling out certain neighborhoods at the expense of others.” | Towey: “I believe Greenacres should be returned to R-2 Zoning agreed upon in 2005 between the City Council and the north Greenacres neighborhood. Government should live by its word. Absolutely nothing has changed to warrant the up zoning of that community. To instill confidence in the people of our community, we must make zone changes only when circumstances change in the zoning area.” | The City Council recently voted to decrease new lot sizes in Greenacres over the objections of many residents who live there. How would you like to see the Greenacres neighborhood zoned? | Crosby: “Greenacres is a very eclectic mix of uses. You still have farming in some of the neighborhood, while you have some very nice new neighborhoods that are built to the 7,500 square foot lot size. This is one of the areas that has a good amount of open space that could serve well for the infill that the Growth Management Act calls for.” | Dempsey: “This is the same council that granted the rezone just two years ago after these residents jumped through all the hoops, paid $1,800 for the process which was supported by 71 percent of the landowners. To keep faith with the system, the council must honor its own zoning decision of two years ago and restore the four homes per acre zoning in Greenacres.” |
| Taylor: “Yes, Spokane Valley is being prudent in the acquisition and operations of new parks. Mirabeau Point is our crown jewel, and major improvements are being made to the city’s pools. New parkland has been acquired for the fast-growing Greenacres neighborhood, and the city’s new Uniform Development Code has significant provisions for open space required of new development. We must never forget that school playgrounds and sports facilities are also available to the public for use.” | Towey: “No. New parks are a vital part of our community, and they add value. They bring beauty to our city and provide a place to bring the community together – kids at play, family picnics, community gatherings. We have only a fourth of the recommended parks space in our city. Parks should be a major consideration in our new growth and development.” | As more of Spokane Valley’s open spaces are developed, is the city providing adequate funding for new parks? | Crosby: “The city is not providing adequate funding for parks.” | Dempsey: “Clean, well-maintained parks are vital for the growth and well being of us all. They make our city more attractive, inviting to those who might relocate here. We need an urban forestry program to plant and maintain trees. We need pocket parks throughout all our neighborhoods. We need grass, we need flowers, we need trees. We need more funding for parks.” |
Taylor: “Any changes in the direction of flow for Sprague and Appleway should be made in conjunction with the Sprague/Appleway revitalization plan. Initially, for the development of city center, Sprague and Appleway between Argonne and University should most likely be turned into two-ways. The most traveled portion of the couplet between the I-90 interchange and Dishman-Mica Road should remain one-way to accommodate the heavy evening traffic returning home from work.” | Towey: “Let’s face the facts: one-way streets move traffic from place to place efficiently, but hurts or restricts business. Two-way streets encourage business but moves traffic much more slowly. If I had to choose between a vibrant business environment or moving traffic from one place to another, I would choose businesses.” | Would you support or oppose the city turning the length of Sprague and Appleway into two-way streets? | Crosby: “Sprague and Appleway should be two way again, and they should be extended all of the way to Liberty Lake.” | Dempsey: “Patronizing businesses along Sprague would be a whole lot easier if it were turned back into a two-way street, with a turn lane in the middle. Appleway could be a two-way arterial that would handle traffic going from point A to point B. The cost of doing this would be minimal. Maybe it’s time to admit it was a mistake and correct the problem.” |
| Taylor: “Citywide council elections are best. The citizens are able to choose all of their local leaders, rather than one or two who are from their particular district. Council members elected citywide consider and respond to issues from a citywide perspective versus a limited parochial perspective. Citywide elections allow for the largest and most experienced pool of candidates to stand before the voters. District elections are limiting in nature.” | Towey: “I support council elections by districts. We cannot have true representation unless the people of the Spokane Valley vote for a representative who lives in their area. It does not make sense for example, to have three council people from one area and none from the others.” | Do you support citywide council elections or election by district and why? | Crosby: “I have not thought about this issue. There are pro and con both ways.” | Dempsey: “We have many varied neighborhoods in Spokane Valley. Election by district would insure the council members knew their districts. Citywide elections would provide broader identification with the whole city. Perhaps if we adopted a plan of five district council members and two ‘at large’ members, we could have the best of both worlds.” |
Taylor: “I am open to exploring the concept of a uniform mitigation fee program for transportation infrastructure. Before implementing this program, the city needs to conduct a comprehensive traffic study to assess the long-term need for roads that accommodate growth. State law does not allow existing road capacity deficiencies to be paid for by new development. I am opposed to impact fees for schools, parks, fire, etc. These costs are traditionally borne by the entire taxing districts who benefit perpetually from the value of growth and development through the collection of property taxes. | Towey: “Impact fees are a way in which revenues are collected from new development to help pay for services such as transportation, parks and schools. It is the old question of who is going to pay for our needed growth. I believe impact fees help divide the cost of new developments so that it is not solely directed at the taxpayer.” | Do you support impact fees on new development? If so, for what services? (transportation, parks, schools etc.) | Crosby: “Impact fees sound good on the surface. They are a feel good type of reaction. In reality, they do not fund what the citizens think they will. They provide very little in the way of funding for any of those services. They do very much impact the cost of housing and not just new construction. An impact fee will add thousands of dollars to the price of all housing in your market and will allow for some home buyers not to qualify for their first home. There are better ways to fund the infrastructure than impact fees.” | Dempsey: “I absolutely support impact fees on new development for transportation, parks, and especially schools. All of these must be ready for new residents, yet the cost of this infrastructure is borne by the taxpayers. Impact fees would lessen this burden for taxpayers and allow breathing room for all as new residents’ transition into the neighborhoods.” |