Commissioners Delay Plan For Shop

Saying they want time to consider turning over sewers to private operators, Spokane County commissioners put the brakes on a plan to build a large Valley shop.

County utilities director Bruce Rawls on Tuesday asked permission to pay $200,000 for 3.5 acres east of Millwood owned by Hugh and Anita Smith. The Utilities Department would spend another $300,000 to build a 8,000-square-foot shop.

The county now leases a 5,000-square foot warehouse, with no outside storage space, near Felts Field. That lease costs $1,500 a month, and may increase when it’s re-negotiated in October, Rawls told commissioners.

The county’s sewerage system is expected to grow from 210 miles of pipe to 750 miles of pipe in 18 years. That means more staff and more equipment, which will require more space, Rawls said.

Building a shop on public land would save taxpayers more than $500,000 over 20 years compared to the cost of leasing, Rawls said.

Commissioner Kate McCaslin said the shop will not be needed if the county contracts with a private firm to manage and maintain the sewers.

Rawls said county officials don’t think privatization would be costeffective, based on a comparison that shows the county’s sewer program is more efficient than the city’s. That comparison did not look at private operation.

Commissioners denied the purchase until Rawls can study the cost of privatizing.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Map of area.