State Nixes Grant For Ben Burr Park Development

Undeveloped Ben Burr Park in southeast Spokane is probably going to stay that way for now.

For the sixth straight year, the city of Spokane has failed to win a high enough ranking in statewide competition to obtain any state grant money for the park.

Without a grant, city parks officials said they cannot afford to build the 8.5-acre park, which is estimated to cost about $640,000 to construct.

Paul Crutchfield, a park administrative assistant, said Ben Burr Park once again ranked somewhere in the middle of a list of about 75 proposals from local governments for park development.

The state has money to provide grants for only those that rank near the top, he said.

In 1990 the city purchased property at 44th and Havana for a neighborhood park. If the land is ever developed, it would include a playfield, shelter, basketball court, restroom, pathways and play equipment.

The fast-growing area of southeast Spokane does not have a neighborhood park. The nearest parks are Thornton Murphy at 27th and Ray and the South Side Sports Complex at 46th and Regal.

The last neighborhood park in the city to win a grant from the state is at 14th and Cherry, adjacent to Historic Cannon’s Addition.

That park ranked high in state competition because it went into a developed neighborhood with a lot of lower-income residents.

The neighborhood steering committee put a large amount of federal community development money toward property acquisition and construction, which helped in the competition for a state grant.

Now, residents in southeast Spokane are left with the option of trying to build a park by raising their own money.

Crutchfield said a group of residents recently has been meeting to plan a fund-raising drive. The Parks Department has offered to create what it calls a “park starter kit.”

If the neighborhood raises $10,000, the city would match that amount to pay for initial improvements of about $20,000 to make the property more usable.

A similar effort is occurring at Albion Heights in southwest Spokane.

A long-range solution could come if the city decides to ask voters to raise money through an excess property tax levy. A multimillion-dollar bond issue would finance neighborhood park construction, renovation of the Riverfront Park Pavilion and expanded recreational facilities.