Verner taps Eadie to fill park job

Spokane Mayor Mary Verner has opted against making another change in the leadership of the Spokane Parks and Recreation Department. After firing one director in 2007 and forcing the resignation of another late last year, Verner has nominated interim Park Director Leroy Eadie to take the position. On Thursday, the Spokane Park Board unanimously endorsed her recommendation. The Spokane City Council will have the final say. Verner appointed Eadie the interim park director in October after she asked Barry Russell to quit. “I was familiar with Leroy’s professionalism, grasp of big concepts, and ability to juggle a myriad of details,” Verner wrote earlier this month in a letter to the Park Board. “However, I was pleasantly surprised as he transitioned smoothly and successfully into this new role and the range of responsibilities that come with it.” Eadie, 42, started work at the city in 1994 in the planning department. Mayor Dennis Hession appointed him planning director in 2007. Eadie, who grew up on the Colville Indian Reservation and lives in the Cannon Hill neighborhood in Spokane, holds an urban and regional planning degree from Eastern Washington University, but lacks a background in parks. “We have that expertise in the department,” said Eadie, in an interview after the board’s vote. “What I’m bringing to the department is leadership experience.” Verner waived a national search for the park position, which marked a departure from how she handled the search process that led to Russell’s hiring. “There’s no reason to go through the process of a national search if you feel the person you have is the right person for the job,” said City Administrator Ted Danek. Also Thursday, the Park Board named Ross Kelley, who has served on the board since 2008, its president in a unanimous vote. He replaces Gary Lawton, who served in the position for two years. Kelley, 66, is the retired Spokane County engineer and is the part-time office manager of the Spokane office of HDR Engineering. He lives in the Northwest Neighborhood.