Liberty Lake Road Proposal Runs Into Opposition From State Developers Would Pay Majority Of Expenses

State transportation officials oppose a developer-devised plan to upgrade roads in the Liberty Lake area.

Their stance has left the developers and county commissioners angry and confused.

A group of eight developers and county staff spent two years writing the Harvard Road mitigation plan.

The plan calls for improving roads serving Liberty Lake before they become clogged with traffic expected to accompany rapid growth forecast for the area.

Estimates show another 3,000 homes and 7 million square feet of industrial space being constructed at Liberty Lake over the next 20 years.

The $5 million road plan calls for extending Country Vista Road from Liberty Lake Drive to Appleway and for rebuilding Interstate 90’s Harvard Road interchange to accommodate more traffic.

The developers, including Metropolitan Mortgage and Greenstone Corp., have agreed to pay for 85 percent of the costs of the projects.

The state and county would split the rest.

Greenstone president Jim Frank told county commissioners during a public hearing this week that the proposal was a good one for all concerned.

The county and state get a break on the cost of the improvements, Frank said, while the developers get roads that can handle the traffic their projects will generate.

“We’ve really taken it upon ourselves to address this problem early,” said Frank, whose company developed the MeadowWood subdivision.

County engineer Bill Johns told commissioners this was a good example of a public-private partnership that could work to benefit the community.

“To us, it’s the way of the future,” Johns said.

But Leonard Cash of the state Department of Transportation threw cold water on the idea.

While Cash agreed that public-private partnerships were a good idea, he said this particular project was not.

The regional planning engineer told commissioners there were too many unanswered questions about the cost of the project and said he doubted the state would be able to chip in any money at all.

“There are no dollars to participate in this plan,” Cash said.

He asked that county commissioners delay a vote on the plan until the state’s concerns are addressed.

If they don’t, Cash said the state would “pursue all avenues of recourse” available to stall the project.

He did not rule out a lawsuit.

That prompted angry retorts from Frank and Mike Taylor, president of an engineering company that helped devise the plan.

Frank said the Transportation Department was being short-sighted.

“True planning is dealing with a problem before there’s an emergency,” he said.

Taylor said the estimated $5 million price tag was conservative and that it would likely cost much less to complete the improvements.

Commissioners decided to postpone a vote on the plan until Dec. 12. But commissioners appear likely to ignore Cash’s comments and approve the project.

Commissioners Steve Hasson and Phil Harris are staunch advocates of local control and have voted in the past to defy state and federal agencies.

New commissioner John Roskelley said he was disappointed the state wasn’t going to sign off on the proposal. “This is a great plan,” Roskelley said.

, DataTimes MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: Comments? Spokane County commissioners will accept written comments on the Harvard Road mitigation plan through Tuesday. A copy of the plan is available in the county engineer’s office, 1026 W. Broadway. Comments should be sent to the county commissioner’s office, 1116 W. Broadway, Spokane, WA 99260-0100.