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Mike Prager

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News >  Spokane

Center for Justice calls oversight in proposed city, police union contract ‘a travesty’

Public-interest law firm the Center for Justice has seen a copy of the tentative labor contract between Spokane and its police union and called the provisions for oversight of the department “a travesty.” The agreement doesn’t comply with a City Charter amendment requiring the city to give the ombudsman power to independently investigate police wrongdoing, the law firm’s executive director said in a letter Thursday to Spokane Mayor David Condon and Council President Ben Stuckart.
News >  Spokane

Spokane City Council races escalating with PAC money

Two independent political action committees seeking to influence the outcome of Spokane City Council races this fall have raised more than $100,000 combined in what could be the most expensive council campaign in city history. Reports filed with the Washington Public Disclosure Commission show an escalation in the fundraising competition between the two PACs in recent weeks.
News >  Spokane

Spokane County payroll delay blamed on holiday

Spokane County workers got an unpleasant surprise Tuesday when the pay they were scheduled to receive failed to show up in their bank accounts. A Columbus Day federal and bank holiday on Monday caused a delay in electronic delivery of employees’ pay to accounts at some 90 banks and credit unions, said Auditor Vicky Dalton.
News >  Spokane

Greenstone disavows ad campaign attacking Mumm, Snyder

The president of Greenstone Corp. has disavowed any connection between his company and a negative television campaign against Spokane City Council candidates Jon Snyder and Candace Mumm. At the same time, business interests funding the ad campaign upped the ante on Monday, adding another $25,500 to the independent television ad buy for a total of $48,700.
News >  Spokane

Getting There: Council releases 2040 transportation plan

Population growth and an expanding economy are expected to bring a 37 percent increase in vehicle travel in the Spokane area by 2040. In the same time, demand for transit will rise 27 percent, said Kevin Wallace, executive director of the Spokane Regional Transportation Council.
News >  Spokane

STA Plaza remodel planning under way

The cavernous second floor of Spokane Transit Authority’s downtown bus station could find a new use in a remodeling project planned by the agency. A consultant hired to look at potential uses for the space considered retail, a food court and offices, but none of those is currently feasible, said Susan Meyer, STA’s chief executive officer.
News >  Spokane

Jon Snyder, Candace Mumm target of PAC-funded attack ad

A group of business-backed political action committees has launched a new television attack ad against two candidates for Spokane City Council, marking the opening salvo in what could become the most expensive council races in city history. Councilman Jon Snyder and candidate Candace Mumm, seeking separate seats in this fall’s general election, are targeted by a PAC called Jobs & Prosperity for Spokane, which received funds from three other PACs to help pay for $23,000 in television advertising against them. The ads began appearing on Spokane TV stations last week.
News >  Spokane

Spokane County votes to reorganize garbage service; residents shouldn’t notice

Spokane County commissioners voted Tuesday to reorganize the county’s solid waste system in such a way that should not affect garbage service and rates to customers. The city of Spokane has been running the countywide solid waste system under agreements reached nearly 25 years ago. The agreements are set to expire in November 2014.
News >  Spokane

Spokane City Council pares down police oversight ordinance

Spokane City Council members voted unanimously Monday to create a new citizen Police Ombudsman Commission to oversee future investigations of officer misconduct and police performance. Council members backed away from a proposal to empower the existing police ombudsman to conduct independent investigations.
News >  Spokane

Spokane Mayor Condon’s budget focuses on public safety, street repairs

Spokane Mayor David Condon’s 2014 budget would hire 25 new police officers, restore fire service at Station 9 on the South Hill and put $2.5 million more into street maintenance. The fire station at 1722 S. Bernard St. would be returned to full fire protection capability with the filling of four new firefighter positions.
News >  Spokane

Road planning should change with definition of mobility, group says

As state lawmakers ponder the funding of transportation in Washington, an advocacy organization is calling for them to look to the future as they make their decisions. Young people, especially those in urban areas, are abandoning the old dream of mobility – owning a vehicle – according to a new study put out by WashPIRG, a public interest research group. Instead, they are embracing mobile technology, public transit and vehicle sharing services.
News >  Spokane

Spokane police, mayor reach contract with ombudsman deal

The Spokane mayor’s office and Police Guild last week reached a tentative agreement on a new labor contract that changes the way the police ombudsman provides oversight of officer misconduct, but may not go as far as establishing the independence called for by voters in February. At the same time, the Spokane City Council is scheduled to take up a new ordinance to create an independent ombudsman with capability to launch investigations under the authority of a new five-member citizen Ombudsman Commission.
News >  Spokane

Spokane County may take control of area garbage system

Control of Spokane’s regional garbage management system would shift from City Hall to the county courthouse under a reorganization intended to improve the system’s political fairness. But residents aren’t likely to see any change in their service, officials say. Commissioners have scheduled a public hearing Tuesday to consider the future of garbage across the county.
News >  Spokane

Public offers variety of strategies for meeting transportation costs

Public testimony before state legislators in Spokane Valley Wednesday night offered contrasting views on how to fund and build Washington’s transportation system at a time when gas tax collections are on the decline. One group called for a transportation funding package, with higher taxes to pay for local roads, transit, bicycle and pedestrian paths and maintenance as well as big-ticket items like the North Spokane Corridor.
News >  Spokane

City Council approves parks department restructuring

More managers in the Spokane Parks and Recreation Department will be subject to hiring and firing outside of the city’s civil service system. In a restructuring approved Monday night, the City Council agreed to designate the parks department a division of city government consisting of four departments, each of which gets two mayoral appointments.
News >  Spokane

Council balks at barista cover-up

Spokane City Council members Monday night rejected a proposal aimed at scantily clad baristas. The 4-2 vote against modifying unlawful public exposure laws brings an end to a passionate public debate that blurred political parties, gender and business.
News >  Spokane

Couple restores barn, farmhouse; seeks Spokane County recognition

A historic house and barn on Orchard Prairie are being restored by a Spokane-area couple whose family has occupied the property since the early 1900s. If approved by Spokane County commissioners next week, the property will become the first local historic register listing in the unincorporated portion of the county in at least five years, said Kristen Griffin, Spokane’s historic preservation officer.
News >  Spokane

Spokane City Council rejects barista ordinance

Spokane City Council members rejected a proposal aimed at scantily clad baristas. The 4-2 vote against modifying unlawful public exposure laws brings an end to a passionate public debate that blurred political parties, gender and business.
News >  Spokane

Washington Senate tour lets public share transportation priorities

Completing the North Spokane Corridor from Francis Avenue to Interstate 90 remains a top priority for local elected leaders seeking state funding for the project. On Wednesday, two state senators will bring a statewide transportation listening tour to Spokane Valley to hear what improvements residents want, and elected officials said that includes the new freeway’s completion.
News >  Spokane

Centennial Trail gets grand addition

One of the biggest gaps in the Centennial Trail was officially filled Friday with the opening of a scenic mile-and-a-half-long stretch of new trail through Kendall Yards. The trail segment features a stunning view under the Monroe Street Bridge toward the lower Spokane Falls as well as a bird’s-eye view of the river from the edge of the downstream gorge.
News >  Spokane

Fairchild buffer zone gets county OK

Protecting Fairchild Air Force Base from encroachment, as well as from potential snipers or other threats, was the goal of emergency action by Spokane County commissioners Wednesday. Commissioners adopted an interim zoning law that will bar development on 400 acres on the base’s eastern border, a fix to their recently adopted expansion of the urban growth area.
News >  Idaho

Longview coal port skeptics want thorough study

Inland Northwest residents turned out in force in Spokane on Wednesday evening to persuade officials that a proposed West Side shipping terminal’s potential environmental impacts reach far beyond its site on the lower Columbia River. “The environmental impact statement should include environmental impacts in Spokane,” Spokane City Council President Ben Stuckart told representatives of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington state and Cowlitz County at a hearing at the Spokane Convention Center. “Spokane deserves to know how these terminals would affect our quality of life.”