Mike Prager

County commissioners ended more than a year of controversy Tuesday, voting unanimously not to seize control of the Spokane County Health District. Instead, they voted to rename the district and expand its governing board.

Park Board members turned thumbs down to a developer's request for access to property near Downriver Golf Course. The action could block the construction of 16 homes on land once occupied by the Riverpark Convalescent Center just west of the golf course along the Spokane River.

Spokane County Commissioners Tuesday approved an agreement with Union Pacific Railroad to upgrade a crossing near the old Walk in the Wild Zoo. Commissioner Steve Hasson said the crossing improvements are needed for a new community center proposed for the old zoo site known as Mirabeau Point.

Ted Presley was sitting with his buddy Joe Rango in the oil fields of Alaska a few years ago when they struck on an idea. They decided to open their own restaurant in the Lower 48. They chose Spokane after Presley's wife moved here to get away from the boredom of rural Alaska.

The street running along the crest of the North Hill west of Division is being beautified through an $80,000 community development project. On Monday, the Spokane City Council approved plans for improvements to the viewpoint on Glass Avenue between Calispell and Howard.

At North Hill Auto Repair, Jim Sills sees the carnage. Broken struts and shocks, worn bushings, loose tie rod ends. "Cars are designed to go down a nice, smooth road," said Sills, who is taking over the repair shop from his father. Smooth is not the word to describe many North Side streets. A few blocks from Sills' shop is one of the worst stretches in Spokane.

Art Putnam collects memorabilia from the Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railroad. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

Spokane County's prosecutor and District Court judges are suing county commissioners in an ongoing battle over union rights. Representatives of the two offices traveled the wheat fields of Eastern Washington this week seeking an outside judge to hear the case.

A hunk of land surrounded by pine forest and river rapids could be turned into idyllic home sites for 16 families, but not if Spokane park officials can prevent it. Private developers want to build a small residential neighborhood on 2.5 acres near Downriver Golf Course. "Who wouldn't want to live in the middle of a park?" said Bruce Winer, agent for the developers.

The city's effort to pave gravel streets moves ahead in three neighborhoods. The Spokane City Council on Monday scheduled hearings for final assessment rolls in three local improvement districts. A hearing was set for 1 p.m. on Sept. 4 for paving of the alley between Queen and Olympic avenues from Nettleton to Belt streets. Another hearing was set for Sept. 5 at 7 p.m. before the hearing examiner on paving of Princeton Avenue from Freya to Florida; Longfellow Avenue from Freya to Florida, and Rich Avenue from Freya to Florida. A third hearing was set for 2 p.m. Sept. 10 for paving of the alley between Columbia and Joseph avenues at Standard Street.

Chris Carlson prepares a batch of potato salad. Photo by Shawn Jacobson/The Spokesman-Review

The berry fields and fruit orchards at Green Bluff haven't been so easy to get to this summer. Earlier this season, the county closed two of the main access routes to this popular destination in the shadow of Mount Spokane. Strawberry pickers had trouble getting to the fields, and the midseason income of some farmers is down compared to last year, growers said.

Holy Family Hospital hosted an ice cream social for its neighbors Tuesday night, and more than 800 people showed up. "We're always looking for something fun to do," said Shelley Mader, who went with her son and daughter. They got their free ice cream sundaes, the big draw of the event, and the kids ran a small obstacle course while they waited for an appearance by McGruff, the crime-fighting dog.

The rapid rise in the cost of college is bringing a new call for more financial aid money. The state's Higher Education Coordinating Board agreed Wednesday to seek $69 million more for student aid over the next two years. That represents a 50 percent increase over the current budget. If approved by lawmakers, the increase would help some 20,000 additional college students, on top of the 43,000 currently being served by state aid.

City officials are moving ahead with plans to buy a former nursing home site next to Downriver Golf Course. The Spokane City Council Monday approved an agreement with Dr. Hrair Garabedian to give the city an option on the 2.5 acres of land just west of the golf course. Garabedian also has been in negotiation with private developers who want to build 16 homes on the site of the former Riverpark Convalescent Center.

Spokane County officials are getting serious about finding property for a park in the Gleneden area north of Wandermere. Residents of the area have complained over the years about a lack of recreational opportunities there. The county is looking at a piece of undeveloped land near the Blackhawk and Legacy Hills developments for a park of 10 to 20 acres.

Hillyard's annual festival kicks off Friday night with a dinner and live country music at Harmon Park. Probably the most popular event of the Hillyard Hi Jinks is the Saturday morning parade on Market Street from the intersection of Market and Wellesley to Harmon Park. The parade starts at 11 a.m. and will feature the Air Force Marching Band and Color Guard from Fairchild. As many as 7,000 people are expected to line the route. "The streets are just packed out here," said Chris Carlson, one of the organizers of the event and president of the Hillyard Festival Association. "This is really big stuff around here." Most of the Hillyard area is getting involved in the three-day event Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The COPS Northeast station at 5208 N. Market will have an open house to celebrate its third anniversary. The Hillyard Heritage Fire and Rail Museum at 3202 E. Queen, which includes a 34-year-old caboose, will be open for tours. The Veterans of Foreign Wars post at 3004 E. Queen also will host an open house on Saturday and offer a barbecue and live music in the afternoon. The open house begins at 10 a.m. The Masonic Temple at Diamond and Market is planning a huckleberry pancake breakfast Saturday from 7 a.m. to noon. The cost is $3 for adults and $1.25 for children. All of the fun starts at 5 p.m. Friday with live music at Harmon Park and a golf tournament at Esmeralda course. The prime rib dinner in the park is at 6 p.m., and a country music show begins at 7 p.m. with the Herricks and Heaven Bound. Music and food aren't the only fun. Carnival rides, games, crafts, bingo, kids booths, helicopter rides and clowns are all part of the annual celebration, which dates to the end of World War II. The annual festival has gone by different names in past years, but this year's committee decided to go back to the Hi Jinks moniker that was used years ago. Carlson said Hillyard residents and merchants are trying to preserve the history of the working-class neighborhood, so using the former festival name is consistent with that effort. She said this year's festival will have some games for children that won't cost parents much money. "It's going to be cheap enough for people to do things," she said. The spirit of the festival shows that Hillyard is a good neighborhood with a lot of decent people, Carlson said. "Everything you hear about Hillyard is negative, but it's not that way at all," she said.

Cars will be waiting for trains at the Argonne crossing until October under the latest construction schedule. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

There is not much happening in Clyde Timboe's northside neighborhood that he doesn't know about. Photo by Sandra Bancroft-Billings/The Spokesman-Review

Jeanine Spangle is trying to preserve the history of an old-fashioned soda fountain she moved to her espresso shop. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

Professor Steve Simmons and his students are on a mission to stamp out bad sound. They're using mathematics and computers to clean up the pops, snaps and hiss found on old vinyl records. Their research may also spawn technology capable of cleaning up the sound from "live" sources, such as intercoms and public-address systems.

Looking to avoid more racial hatred on campus, a Gonzaga University task force outlined Tuesday a plan to combat the problem. The task force report follows repeated harassment against black law students over the past 16 months.

The past week of cool, rainy weather should become a soggy memory as summer temperatures heat up the Inland Northwest. Highs in the 80s are forecast starting Sunday and should continue through the Fourth of July holiday weekend. "It's going to warm up," said Lyle Hammer, forecaster with the National Weather Service in Spokane. "It should be real nice Monday and Tuesday."

Residents awakened by a shooting in their neighborhood watch police and media surround a home on North Regal. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review