County officials won’t revisit Valley snow removal decision

Spokane County officials stood firm Friday on their decision to terminate the snow removal contract with the city of Spokane Valley. But commissioners also pledged assistance to help the city establish its own crew.

Spokane Valley Mayor Rich Munson asked commissioners last month to reconsider their December decision to end the contract with the county that deals with snow removal. As a result of the county’s decision, city officials began reviewing all contracts with the county.

But the commissioners reiterated Friday their intention to end the deal.

“I want to move forward with the Valley taking over that part of the contract,” said Commissioner Mark Richard, who has much of Spokane Valley in his district. “But I don’t want their citizens fearful that they will be without snow removal service.”

Commissioner Todd Mielke said the contract was structured in such a way that it required the county to have staff and equipment ready to plow Spokane Valley when it snows. But the city is not required to reimburse the county for those costs unless the crews actually plowed.

As a result, the county has paid crews to be on standby without recouping the personnel costs.

“When the snow subsides, to have staff on hand is a financial burden,” Mielke said. “To cover that cost, we are taking funds away from other programs.”

The commission asked county engineer Bob Brueggeman to study how many pieces of equipment the county would need to dedicate a crew full-time to handling the needs of Spokane Valley.

Brueggeman said for a normal winter, the city would need about 12 workers, one supervisor, three road graders, two sander trucks with plows, one de-icing truck and another dump truck with a plow.

The city may have to rely on private contractors during unusually harsh winters, he said.

Neil Kersten, Spokane Valley public works director, said he inquired about purchasing and assembling the needed equipment, and learned the process takes about six months.

In addition, working out contractual agreements to hire a city staff or contract with private crews “will take a few months. Getting it done by this winter is really tight,” Kersten said. “Next year is very feasible.”

Mielke said the transition will have to happen at some point.

“I don’t think there is ever going to be a good time to do it,” he said.

In the end, the commission voted to have Brueggeman offer help with purchasing equipment and providing expertise in crafting public-private contracts.

If Spokane Valley documents its efforts and still is not able to field a crew to remove snow, the county would back them up for one more winter.

Under the last scenario, Richard said, city officials would be required to repay the costs of any county crews and maintain existing levels of service.

“I don’t want this to be viewed as a crutch,” Richard said. “For the benefit of both parties, it’s important that we see that you are doing everything you can to solve this.”