Riverside State Park long-term planning begins with public meetings
OUTINVOLVED – Riverside State Park is inviting the public to “brainstorm” potential changes and updates to the popular Spokane-area gem during long-term planning meetings that begin this week.
Two initial planning meetings that will cover the same material will start at 6 p.m. as follows:
Wednesday, at Lakeside Middle School, 6169 Highway 291, Nine Mile Falls (directions)
Thursday, at Shadle Park High School, 4327 N. Ash St. in Spokane (directions).
This planning effort will focus primarily on park-managed land surrounding Lake Spokane, said Mark Hankinson, State Parks planner.
Discussions through the year-long process will cover a variety of topics including classifying or zoning the lands and determining appropriate uses, he said. A second round of public meetings set for September will boil down ideas that emerge in the first meetings.
The park manages three boat access points and two campgrounds around Lake Spokane including Nine Mile Recreation Area, It also manages 10 boat-in campsites.
The updated plans will augment – not replace – the existing Riverside State Park Management Plan completed in 2005, Hankinson said.
“We’re going into it with eyes wide open, wanting to hear concerns of stakeholders and the public, so we don’t have specific proposals,” said Diana Dupuis, State Parks area manager at Riverside since June.
In addition to the Centennial Trail, Bowl and Pitcher area and Little Spokane River area, among others, Riverside State Park comprises a patchwork of public and private lands adjacent to Lake Spokane – the reservoir created by Long Lake Dam and operated by Avista Corporation.
Parks staff will provide background about the park and properties at the meetings before letting participants comment on what is important to them and to get a sense of the range and types of issues that should be considered and possibly addressed through the planning process, Hankinson said.
Comment directly to the park planner at (360) 902-8671, email michael.hankinson@parks.wa.gov.