Public Periscope

From the mouths of babes

Rep. George Nethercutt had just explained how Congress works to a group of Arlington Elementary sixth-graders and opened the floor to questions. “Have you met the president?” one asked. Republican Nethercutt was bipartisan in explaining he had, about eight times, and thought the Democratic president was “a very friendly person. He has a nice personality” … Next question: “Would Bill Clinton be president if he inhaled?” After a brief pause, Nethercutt said he didn’t know the answer to that one, but didn’t want to pass up the opportunity to address the bigger issue: “The important thing is that you should never use drugs.”

Winners get to do this

Mayor-elect John Talbott is giving all the people who didn’t contribute to his campaign before the election a chance to do so now. He’s holding a “celebration and debt retirement” soiree on Tuesday, called The Affair at the Falls. Donations requested … That’s not unusual post-election. What’s interesting is the location, the former Salty’s restaurant. You know, the place the city had to buy because of the possible problems with the possible Lincoln Street bridge - a project Talbott opposes.

Fast talk

The two camps of the citizens advisory committee charged with reviewing the Lincoln Street bridge proposal got 20 minutes to present their cases to the City Council as opposed to the 45 minutes they expected … As he approached the podium, former state Sen. John Moyer said the time crunch helped him understand how Spokane officials must have felt when they traveled to Olympia to see him and his colleagues … “This reminds me of when you used to travel 450 miles to talk to us and we would say ‘You have two minutes,”’ Moyer said. City Manager Bill Pupo jokingly disputed Moyer’s memory. “It wasn’t that much.”

Saved by his term

A proposal to sell a section of Adams Street to a dry cleaners on Northwest Boulevard created quite a fuss with nearby Emerson-Garfield neighbors, who protested to the City Council last week … The controversy prompted Councilwoman Roberta Greene to ask that the decision be deferred. “Deferred for how long?” asked Geraghty. “Next year,” Greene said. “That’s fine with me,” said Geraghty, who leaves office Jan. 1.

Par for the course

Buying a season pass to play golf on Spokane County’s three courses can be a bargain or a budget buster, depending on how many rounds the golfer chooses to play … A report given to county commissioners last week showed that one young player turned a $330 junior pass into the most expensive round of golf played on a county course … He golfed just one time all season … But a senior golfer took up where the junior player left off, playing 161 rounds on his $495 dollar season pass. That’s just $3.07 a round.

Safe disclosure

Community groups or organizations that plan to support or oppose upcoming school bonds or levies can attend a special training session this week put on by the state Public Disclosure Commission … The commission will teach people how to register as a political committee, file campaign disclosure forms and comply with the “do’s and don’ts” in the law. The free session takes place Thursday at 6 p.m. in the Bryant Center, 910 N. Ash.

Sign up

The Spokane County Planning Commission is looking for volunteers to review the county’s sign regulations. The committee will meet six times in three months. Anyone, including long-haired freaky people, can apply. But only if they do so by Dec. 15. For information, call county planner Stacy Bjordahl at 456-3675.

, DataTimes MEMO: “Public Periscope,” published Mondays, is compiled by Jim Camden from staff reports. You can write us at The Spokesman-Review, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane 99210; or send e-mail to jimc@spokesman.com or send a fax to (509) 459-5482.

This sidebar appeared with the story: Hot Topics Spokane’s Plan Commission will hear from Spokane Horizons members about their progress on the city’s new comprehensive plan. The meeting takes place Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. in the second-floor conference room of City Hall, 808 W. Spokane Falls Blvd.

The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Compiled by Jim Camden from staff reports