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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Spokane City Council dist. 3

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Proposed city budget contains some raises

At the same time he has proposed eliminating 100 jobs, Spokane Mayor David Condon is calling for big raises in the 2013 budget for administrators in the city’s finance division. The increases have sparked concern among some City Council members, especially since the raises weren’t mentioned during a City Council briefing about the finance department’s proposed budget last week.

Council OKs Anthony’s bid

Anthony’s has been sold to Anthony’s. The Spokane City Council voted 4-3 Monday afternoon to award the city-owned restaurant property overlooking the Spokane Falls to Bellevue-based Mad Anthony’s Restaurants for $3.9 million. That’s the same company that leases the building for its Anthony’s seafood restaurant.

Spokane’s first police ombudsman’s term extended

Spokane’s first police ombudsman will keep his job for another year. Mayor David Condon decided in August against renewing Ombudsman Tim Burns’ three-year contract. The move angered some City Council members, who questioned Condon’s willingness to let the city go without an ombudsman even as the city works through recent scandals involving police misconduct.

Condon relents on ombudsman

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Spokane city leaders settle with detective, apologize

City leaders have apologized to a police detective fired last year for what officials described as a “troubled work history.” The Spokane City Council voted 5-1 on Monday to approve a $350,000 settlement with Detective Jeff Harvey, who was rehired earlier this year.

City apologizes to fired detective

City leaders on Monday issued an apology to a police detective fired for what officials described as a “troubled work history.”

Council to consider $350,000 firing settlement

The Spokane City Council on Monday will consider paying a fired and rehired police detective $350,000. Former Police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick fired Detective Jeff Harvey in July 2011, citing what city leaders said was a “troubled work history.”

Alcohol impact area dropped

West Central store owners who feared they’d no longer be able to sell high-octane beer have gotten a reprieve. The Spokane City Council on Monday voted 4-3 to eliminate the Alcohol Impact Area it created less than a year ago at the request of the West Central Neighborhood Council.

Condon presents 2013 budget

Spokane Mayor David Condon got right to the point in his required address regarding the city’s “conditions and affairs.” “Our conditions are stable in a time of financial uncertainty,” he said Monday night in the second sentence of the speech, which is required annually by the City Charter.

Spokane will end consumer protection program

Spokane Mayor David Condon has decided to dissolve the oldest weights and measures department in the state.

Downtown’s Beignets closes, blames loiterers

Owners of a downtown Spokane restaurant are closing their doors and blaming teens and adults who they say loiter on the block and harass customers. Judie Sowards, who owns Beignets on Wall Street between Main Street and Riverside Avenue with her son Ryan Sowards, said her son once counted 110 children, teens and adults hanging out near the restaurant. The crowds have repelled customers and cut the restaurant’s business to less than a third in three weeks, she said.

Support wanes for beer limits

Last year, Spokane’s West Central Neighborhood Council wanted restrictions on the sale of high-octane beer. Now it doesn’t.

Anthony’s bid highest

The company that owns Anthony’s restaurant in downtown Spokane has submitted the highest bid to buy the city-owned building the restaurant occupies overlooking Spokane Falls. But some Spokane City Council members say they remain open to considering the only other bid the city received for the land, a proposal from Lawrence B. Stone, who owns Spokane-based silo and steel stud manufacturer SCAFCO.

Council will consider repeal of beer restrictions

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Spokane shrinks tax subsidy area

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Subsidy zones to be cut

A program aimed at boosting development downtown and in key neighborhood centers has perhaps been an even bigger boost to the fringes of town. That’s one reason why the Spokane City Council on Monday will consider shrinking the boundaries where it will allow developers of condos and apartments to receive tax subsidies to build.

Straub gets show of support

Tired of hearing negative things about the man he selected to be police chief, Mayor David Condon and his top administrator personally paid to fly four Indiana residents to Spokane to vouch for him. The four, including the former editor of the Indianapolis Star and the leader of the Indianapolis fire union, told the Spokane City Council on Monday night that Condon’s pick, Frank Straub, is a hard-working, caring reformer who listens to the community. Straub last month left his job as Indianapolis’ public safety director after a controversial two-year tenure.

Condon pays to fly four to Spokane to back Straub

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Spokane council picks Straub to lead police

Tired of hearing negative things about the man he selected to be police chief, Mayor David Condon and his top administrator personally paid to fly four Indiana residents to Spokane to vouch for him. The four, including the former editor of the Indianapolis Star and the leader of the Indianapolis fire union, told the Spokane City Council Monday night that Condon’s pick, Frank Straub, is a hard-working, caring reformer who listens to the community. Straub last month left his job as Indianapolis’s public safety director after a two-year, controversial tenure.