David Wasson

The return of Skyfest will have to wait. Fairchild Air Force Base, which had planned to revive the popular air show this year to coincide with the 75th anniversary of Spokane’s Lilac Festival in May, confirmed Monday that Skyfest will be canceled because of federal spending cuts.

The Thunderbirds precision flying team has canceled its Spokane appearances in May, citing budget cuts that likely will doom what was supposed to be the return of the popular SkyFest air show this year to Fairchild Air Force Base.

Kevin O’Grady was the kind of guy who was never late. “If he told you he’d pick you up at 5 o’clock, he’d get there by 4:59,” the Air Force veteran and upholstery expert’s youngest daughter, Katy O’Grady, recalled. “He was always early.”

This would be the last winter you could use studded snow tires if Spokane City Council President Ben Stuckart and others have their way. Frustrated with the millions of dollars in damage caused by the metal cleats chewing up pavement, Stuckart is hoping state lawmakers would finally agree to ban studded tires if they knew Eastern Washington’s largest city is backing the effort. But if that request falls short, he’s hoping to at least persuade them to impose hefty user fees on the tires to help offset the cost of repairing the damage.