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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Group’s Lawsuit Takes Aim At Glenrose Annexation Plan

Editor’s note: Because of some last-minute changes in laying out Friday’s paper, the jump for this story was left out. The story is being rerun here in its entirety.

Plans to annex part of Glenrose Prairie hit a snag this week when neighbors filed a lawsuit against the city of Spokane.

“You don’t take a rural area and turn it urban unless you have to,” said Steve Eugster, attorney for the 200-member Glenrose Neighborhood Association.

“It’s another example of the city knowing what is right and avoiding doing the right thing.”

The lawsuit charges the annexation violates the state’s Growth Management Act, which guides where urban growth should take place. Spokane County is in the midst of drawing its urban growth boundaries, which should be set by October 1996.

By annexing about 100 acres of the prairie, the city is “trying to get a jump on urban boundaries by annexing an area clearly rural in nature,” Eugster said.

The annexation isn’t necessary to meet the city’s projected urban growth needs for the next 20 years, he said.

Pat Dalton, assistant city attorney, said he hadn’t reviewed the lawsuit filed in Superior Court on Wednesday and couldn’t comment until he had.

Council members voted 4-3 last month to annex a section of the southeast Spokane prairie that is loosely bounded on the north by 37th Avenue, on the south by Glenrose Road, on the west by the city limits and on the east by a faint ridge.

Mayor Jack Geraghty and Councilmen Chris Anderson and Orville Barnes voted against taking the area, largely over concerns that a city in the throes of growth management shouldn’t be annexing new territory.

The Boundary Review Board must review the Glenrose annexation before it becomes final.

Earlier this month, the council set a Sept. 1 deadline for accepting any new annexation proposals until urban boundaries are set.

Hearings on the Glenrose annexation brought out nearly 100 people, with the majority opposed to the plan.

Most weren’t happy with the prospect of joining the city. They argued annexation jeopardizes the prairie’s wildlife, rural values and open areas.

Proponents said the area southeast of the city is perfect for urban development.

, DataTimes