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February 8, 2010 in City
John Higgins
Mayor supports state institutions, but not a new jail, in Medical Lake
Medical Lake Mayor John Higgins hopes to save the Pine Lodge Corrections Center, and the jobs it provides.
(Full-size photo)
The Medical Lake City Council unanimously approved a resolution last week opposing any new jail in the city. City officials also have threatened legal action if Spokane County or the city of Spokane attempts to use the Pine Lodge Corrections Center for Women, which Gov. Chris Gregoire has proposed closing. Mayor John Higgins explains the city’s position:
Q.Why do you oppose any Spokane County or city of Spokane corrections operation in Medical Lake?
A.At this point, we’re trying to save Pine Lodge. There’re 82 people that work at Pine Lodge, and probably a quarter of those people live in the city of Medical Lake. We don’t want to see what we have gone so they can move the (county) jail out here and change the whole dynamics. We could go from 300 to 1,200 (prisoners) in a matter of a year.
Q.Is it mainly new prisons or jails that you don’t want? What about Eastern State Hospital, the Westlake center for dementia patients and Lakeland Village for the developmentally disabled?
A.The institutions go back a hundred years. We’ve learned to live with them. They’ve brought a lot of jobs to our community. But a jail brings a different type of people that move into your town, and we’re just not willing to go that route.
Q.Why do you want the state to bring back Pine Lodge inmates who were transferred to Western Washington?
A.They just do a number of things in our community that are positive. (Pine Lodge women run the city recycling center, grow vegetables for the food bank and make quilts for children’s charities.) They take pride in what they do, and they do a good job.
Q.Didn’t a previous mayor promote the creation of the Martin Hall regional juvenile detention center?
A.I think Sharie Stearns was the mayor at the time, and I think she promoted it – which we would today also. … We’ve had no problems since it’s been open.
Q.How would you describe Medical Lake? What’s your vision for development of the city?
A.We’re kind of a laid-back town, kind of a bedroom community. We don’t have a lot of commercial or retail. We have lakes for skiing and fishing. We do five triathlons a year … .We have a bluegrass festival that brings people from all over. We have very little crime. … It’s just a nice place to raise your kids. Medical Lake is not against development, but we want controlled development. We don’t want to outgrow what we can afford. We would like to have a medical place come out here, a billing place or something like that, but it’s tough to attract them.
Jim Kershner’s This day in history » On the Web: spokesman.com/topics/local-history 
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gabreilgael8 on February 08 at 1:33 a.m.
thousands of jobs in medical billing needs to be filled find a local school to get a degree from http://bit.ly/aS68sz
lewis8457 on February 08 at 8:52 a.m.
we need some one like this mayor in spokane, sounds like he has his head on straight.
bobk on February 08 at 8:52 a.m.
Medical Lake is a peaceful,quite city. We don’t have the killings every night like Spokane. Too bad some company couldn’t see the advantage of putting their office or light industry out here. We have a great labor pool,both young and old. We have a rail line. We like our women prisoners and want to keep them. Male prisoners are a whole different matter. We used to have male prisoners. They were forever damageing our recycle equipment. They were lazy, never kept the place clean, they would badger women who came there. There were always escapes. Women living in the city didn’t feel safe. Now they do.
tlundy on February 08 at 1:38 p.m.
I wish Colville’s Mayor Dick Nichols could take lessons from Mayor Higgins. Medical Lake has a great Mayor and they are going in the right direction. We need small towns to do their own thing and not try to become big towns.
ladydy709 on February 08 at 5:50 p.m.
Common sense in an elected official? Medical Lake, you are so fortunate to have Mayor Higgins.
sixandseven on February 09 at 6:55 a.m.
There is a difference between a Jail and a Prison. Higgins appears to know the difference.
Jpublic on February 09 at 3:40 p.m.
The number of inmates at Pine Lodge does not merit the costs. Closing Pine Lodge is one of the few smart choices the state has made.
waaaghboss on February 13 at 9:03 p.m.
It sounds like you are fighting to keep this tiny state funded facility open, so you can keep 20 jobs in your city. Jobs are important. I can see that. Then you turn around and fight the county when it wants to save the facility by making it the county prison, which would probably bring in 4 times as many jobs?