Jonathan Brunt

Fresh off settling one lawsuit over the placement of a tower adjacent to Peaceful Valley, the city is facing another. Five Peaceful Valley residents and a group called Neighbors for Accountable Government in Spokane filed a lawsuit in Spokane County Superior Court last week against the city. They allege that the City Council inappropriately gave permission to developers Mick and Shelley McDowell to build Riverview on Riverside, a 17-story residential tower, near Wilson Avenue and Cedar Street.

Mayor Dennis Hession and two City Council members on Wednesday traded accusations of playing election-year politics with public safety over a plan to build a new fire station. Mayoral candidate and Councilman Al French, Councilman Brad Stark and the Fire Department's union president on Wednesday called on the city to spend $2 million in reserves to build a new fire station in the Latah Valley, where firefighter response times are below average compared with the rest of Spokane.

The company picked by a Spokane committee to operate cameras that would catch red-light violators is facing bribery allegations in Canada and has faced other scandals in the United States. Affiliated Computer Services, which is based in Dallas, was rated as the highest of the three companies that submitted bids to run Spokane's still nonexistent camera program.

One of City Hall's longest-serving administrators was forced out by Mayor Dennis Hession last week over disagreements over the running of the Community Development Department. Mike Adolfae, who worked for the city for 32 years, including the past 26 as community development director, remains on the city's payroll as he eats up remaining leave time. Hession said he and Adolfae had discussed the departure over the past few weeks and decided his last day would be April 20.

Eastern Washington University will no longer perform archaeological work for the city of Spokane. After a passionate plea from the Spokane Tribe of Indians, the Spokane City Council voted this week against a city staff recommendation to approve a $250,000 contract with the university for archaeological investigations and digs required before construction projects can begin. The city chose a Montana company to do the work instead.

Spokane public works employees have received a partial reprieve from the staffing cuts recommended earlier this year by a consulting firm hired by the city. The final version of Matrix Consulting Group's proposals to make city operations more efficient was given to Spokane officials on Saturday. Most of the more than 150 changes that were recommended in the draft report released in January remain intact – including the elimination of 10 to 29 firefighters and 10 police officers.

After several weeks of growing tension between the Spokane Park Board and City Council, the two bodies talked things over Friday. The City Council recently rejected two nominees from Mayor Dennis Hession to serve on the board – decisions that some Park Board officials say is playing politics with a body that's supposed to be independent.

Spokane County will pay lower utility taxes to the city of Spokane – and eventually none – if a lawsuit settlement announced on Thursday is approved by City Council and the County Commission. "I'd like to see more resolutions like this," said Spokane County Commission Chairman Mark Richard. "This represents a strong, equitable compromise."

The chairman of the Spokane Park Board has issued an apology – called for by Mayor Dennis Hession – for making a racially insensitive remark. But it may not be enough to keep the episode from becoming a campaign issue.

Mayor Dennis Hession on Monday called for a public apology from the chairman of the city's park board for a racially insensitive comment. "Members of our community were offended by these remarks, and I want to assure them – and all of our citizens – that the city of Spokane is equally troubled by them," Hession was quoted as saying in a press release.

Spokane County's air agency has avoided what many scientists say is the most important air pollution problem facing the globe. That's largely because state and federal pollution laws the Spokane County Air Pollution Control Authority enforces don't regulate greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide.

A proposed condo tower vigorously opposed by many Peaceful Valley residents won the unanimous approval of Spokane City Council on Monday night. The decision will stop legal action against the city brought last year by the developers, Mick and Shelley McDowell, after the city's hearing examiner ruled against their Riverview on Riverside tower and adjacent townhouses project.

The first of several entries into the races for Spokane City Council was made official Thursday. Donna McKereghan, a member of the state Legislative Ethics Board, is challenging Bob Apple for his seat representing northeast Spokane.

Spokane County's building and planning director last year improperly authorized a day-care center to be placed in an airport crash zone at the request of a developer, according to findings of a four-month investigation. Results of the investigation released Wednesday also found that the director, Jim Manson, improperly rezoned eight acres of land being developed by the same developer, Richard Vandervert, without a public hearing.

The Spokane City Council will wait a week to rule on a proposed 17-story condominium that would overlook Peaceful Valley. A couple dozen people signed up in opposition to the Riverview on Riverside project at a hearing Monday night.

By the end of the year, dropping coins into city of Spokane parking meters will get slightly easier. The City Council tonight is expected to approve the replacement of Spokane's remaining mechanical parking meters with electronic ones.

There's more than a controversial 17-story condo in an agreement the City Council will consider Monday night. If the Spokane City Council agrees to allow Mick and Shelley McDowell to build the Riverview on Riverside tower and adjacent townhouses, it also must agree to lease them land on the other side of downtown where they hope to build an office building with more square feet than the Wells Fargo Building.

Spokane's recently fired deputy mayor could get almost $90,000 for severance and unused sick and vacation time, city officials said Wednesday. That's on top of his city retirement package that nears $1,200 a month. Jack Lynch was fired in February by Mayor Dennis Hession, who said he needed someone in the post who could perform at "a higher level than Jack was."

Jerome Alford, the transient shot to death by police Saturday, started showing up to the House of Charity late last summer. He rarely stayed overnight but came almost every day to eat, shower, pick up mail and read.

The Spokane City Council on Monday grudgingly bowed to Mayor Dennis Hession's wishes not to fund additional firefighter and police positions. Council members voted 6-1 to remove $439,000 from the budget they approved in December, saying that since the mayor has declined to fill the eight jobs, they didn't want him to use the money for something else.