In Brief: Discarded cigarette suspected as cause of Silverwood fire
A discarded cigarette is suspected as the cause of a fire at the Silverwood Theme Park Sunday that destroyed a restroom next to the Boulder Beach water park, according to the Timberlake Fire Protection District.
The fire started in an employee-only access area in the rear corridor of the restroom, according to a Timberlake Fire news release. Idaho State Deputy Fire Marshal Bill Steele assisted with the investigation.
The water park remains open, said Silverwood spokesman Mark Robitaille. The restroom will be rebuilt before Boulder Beach opens for the season in 2015.
Parks staff lowering Mirror Pond water level
Spokane parks staff has begun lowering the water level of Mirror Pond, also known as the duck pond, in Manito Park. The level will continue to drop through the weekend and will remain low for two months while changes are made in an effort to improve water quality.
The project includes shoreline improvements to prevent erosion, landscape improvement on the north side of the pond and an auto-fill water system, the parks department said in a news release. The work is expected to be complete by the end of October, after which the pond will be refilled.
The work is being funded by the Friends of Manito, the Spokane Parks and Recreation Department and the Washington state Department of Ecology.
Avista Corp. to begin Lake CdA drawdown
Avista Corp. will begin its annual drawdown of Lake Coeur d’Alene on Tuesday.
The lake will be lowered about a foot by the end of September and an additional foot and a half per month after that, until it reaches its winter level, a news release from Avista said.
Property owners and boaters should take measures to secure docks and boats for the winter.
Avista’s federal license to operate its dams on the Spokane River requires that it maintain the level of Lake Coeur d’Alene at or near the “full-pool” elevation of 2,128 feet from early spring until the Tuesday after Labor Day.
The river should be open to recreation until November; however, river users should be aware of fluctuating levels.
People can see water flow information at avistautilities .com/waterflow or by calling (509) 495-8043 in Washington or (208) 769-1357 in Idaho.
Man accused of robbing Wal-Mart arrested
A man accused of spraying store employees with pepper spray as he attempted to steal items is now in the Spokane County Jail on multiple robbery charges.
Shane F. Martinez, 27, was ordered held on $30,000 bond this week on his most recent charge for first-degree armed robbery. Martinez is accused of entering the Wal-Mart in Airway Heights on July 24, loading a plastic tote with several items and attempting to leave the store. Martinez allegedly sprayed an employee in the face with pepper spray in a successful attempt to get away, according to court documents.
Martinez was arrested Aug. 5 on a charge of second-degree robbery in connection to a similar incident in the city of Spokane on July 30. After his arrest, police created a photo lineup and showed it to a Wal-Mart employee, who picked Martinez’s photo from the lineup.
Martinez admitted taking clothing, tools and hair clippers from Wal-Mart, court records say.
PORTLAND – As he wraps up his work, a corporate turnaround expert initially hired for $100,000 to fix Oregon’s troubled health care insurance exchange has billed the state for nearly $600,000 under an expanded contract, the Oregonian newspaper reported.
The current deal between Clyde Hamstreet and the state sets a ceiling of $750,000 for work on Cover Oregon.
The state spent more than $200 million in federal money on the effort, including the website and a campaign to enroll people by paperwork when online signups failed.