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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883
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Jonathan Brunt

Jonathan Brunt

Current Position: Asst. Managing Editor (Govt)

Jonathan Brunt joined The Spokesman-Review in 2004. He is the government editor. He previously was a reporter who covered Spokane City Hall, Spokane County government and public safety.

Email
jonathanb@spokesman.com
Phone
(509) 459-5442

All Stories

News >  Spokane

City using contractors to help clear the streets

Spokane’s decision to call in private grader operators to help clear roads adds an extra financial burden in an already cash-strapped year. But officials say the need to maintain passable streets is one of the few good reasons to dip into reserves. The city put grader contracts out to bid this fall and is paying seven companies between $95 and $125 per hour for each of a dozen graders. That’s for use of the equipment and the staffing to operate them. The city also is using its plows and 10 of its own graders.
A&E >  Entertainment

City considers bid for Carlyle Care Center

Spokane leaders believe they finally have a viable buyer that will maintain the Carlyle Care Center as stable downtown housing serving people with mental illness. The city bought the Carlyle in 2006 from US Bank for $3.2 million, using federal Department of Housing and Urban Development money, in an effort to prevent dozens of vulnerable people from being forced onto the streets.
News >  Spokane

Deal saves Spokane firefighting jobs

Spokane won’t lose a fire station and firefighters won’t face pink slips for 2011. The Spokane firefighters union voted last week to accept Mayor Mary Verner’s request to forgo raises next year and to pick up any increased costs of employee medical benefits above 4 percent in 2011.
News >  Spokane

Schoolchildren join ranks of library branch supporters

Nearly 50 Spokane students got a lesson in local government Monday as they arrived at City Hall to share their disapproval of the proposed closure of the East Side Library. The students took a chartered bus from Sheridan Elementary, where most of them attend, to appear at the City Council meeting.
News >  Spokane

Verner takes lead in longevity

In the decade since Spokane began electing strong mayors, none had served more than three years – until this week. Mayor Mary Verner didn’t even need to finish her term to become the city’s longest-serving strong mayor.
News >  Spokane

City of Spokane weighs development taxes

Potential taxes on new development approved two years ago would finally be collected under a proposal being considered by the Spokane City Council. The taxes are one-time “impact fees” paid by developers of homes, businesses and other projects that are expected to generate additional traffic demands on city services. The fees would have to be paid before building permits could be issued.
News >  Spokane

Deal with firefighters would preserve jobs

Spokane firefighters avoid layoffs under a tentative agreement accepted this week by Mayor Mary Verner. If the deal is approved by union members and City Council, Local 29 of the International Association of Fire Fighters would become the first of the city’s bargaining groups to strike a deal this year to save jobs.
News >  Spokane

Firefighters make concessions to save jobs

Spokane firefighters avoid layoffs under a tentative agreement accepted this week by Mayor Mary Verner. If the deal is approved by union members and City Council, Local 29 of the International Association of Fire Fighters would become the first of the city’s bargaining groups to strike a deal this year to save jobs.
News >  Spokane

Political opposites align for sake of at-risk library

They disagree on many – perhaps most – of the major issues of the day, but Louise Chadez and Cindy Zapotocky are united on at least one: They strongly oppose the proposed closure of Spokane’s East Side Library. Chadez, a liberal Democrat who ran unsuccessfully this year for state Legislature, and Zapotocky, the conservative chairwoman of the Spokane County Republican Party, were among about 15 people who testified against the possible closure during a Spokane Public Library Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday.
News >  Spokane

City Council delays vote on tab tax

Motorists in Spokane soon could have to pay an extra $20 a year to license their vehicles. But a final decision on whether to impose the local tab tax was delayed Monday by the Spokane City Council to wait and see if city’s largest employee union will agree to budget-balancing concessions being sought by city leaders.
News >  Spokane

Battalion chiefs’ pay soars with overtime

A plan aimed at cutting city spending to help balance the budget has become an unexpected windfall for some Spokane firefighters. Most of the Spokane Fire Department’s nine battalion chiefs have earned nearly $40,000 each in overtime pay so far this year, pushing the annual earnings of most of them to about $170,000 or higher, city budget documents show.
News >  Spokane

Spokane fire chiefs’ overtime soars

A plan aimed at cutting city spending to help balance the budget has become an unexpected windfall for some Spokane firefighters. Most of the Spokane Fire Department’s nine battalion chiefs have earned nearly $40,000 each in overtime pay so far this year, pushing the annual earnings of most them to about $170,000 or higher, city budget documents show.
News >  Spokane

Voters vent frustrations with GOP gains in county, state

Democrat Chris Marr conceded defeat Wednesday night in the record-breaking million-dollar battle for a Spokane County state Senate seat. Marr made up some ground in the second day of ballot counting against Republican Michael Baumgartner, but he said it was too little to make a difference.
News >  Spokane

Man cited for drugs, reckless driving

The man who knocked over a stoplight, a three-story light pole and a tree Sunday when he crashed his 1983 Chevrolet El Camino in downtown Spokane was cited for reckless driving, possession of marijuana and for having no insurance, police said. Anthony J. Casados, 23, said he was at Zip’s on North Division Street when a man approached him with a gun.
News >  Spokane

City jobs on the line as mayor presents budget

Spokane Mayor Mary Verner presented her grim 2011 budget to the City Council on Monday still without having achieved union concessions. That means the loss of 120 city jobs remains possible, if not likely.
News >  Spokane

Costumed canvassers try to scare up voters

Most trick-or-treaters ask for candy. But on Sunday, several dozen in Spokane requested civic engagement. About 80 people in costumes canvassed city neighborhoods Sunday encouraging younger adults to mail in their ballots.
News >  Spokane

High-speed crash topples poles, tree

A motorist apparently speeding through downtown Spokane in a Chevrolet El Camino on Sunday night crashed into a stoplight, toppling it, a tree and a three-story utility pole like dominoes. The driver, whose identity was not immediately available, was able to walk after the crash but was taken by ambulance to Deaconess Medical Center with injuries not expected to be life-threatening.
News >  Spokane

Neighbors alert one another to apartment fire

At least a couple dozen people lost their homes Sunday night when a devastating fire destroyed much of an apartment building in north Spokane. Spokane Fire Chief Bobby Williams said all 85 residents of the 29-unit building were safe and accounted for. But much of the southern side of the I-shaped building was gutted.
News >  Spokane

Truths, half-truths and other campaign claims

More than a million dollars has been spent fighting for one Spokane seat in the state Senate – and the election season isn’t even over. The milestone was reached this week in the 6th Legislative District fight between incumbent Democratic Sen. Chris Marr and Republican challenger Michael Baumgartner, according to records from the state Public Disclosure Commission.