Proposed Road Assessment Causes Grave Concerns Cemetery Association Says Possible $15,000 Bill Beyond Its Means In/Around: Cheney

The dearly departed of New England Cemetery in Cheney can’t help the city raise money for road construction just outside their final resting place.

Nonetheless, city officials are talking about taxing the nonprofit cemetery for a share of the project.

Cheney’s Public Works Department has lined up a series of government grants for the $1.2 million widening of Highway 904 at the southwest end of the city.

The city’s local matching share of $235,000 would come from a local improvement district to include properties along the 6,000-foot stretch of road.

The cemetery occupies about 1,000 feet of land along one side of the highway and, thus, could be facing an assessment of more than $15,000.

“We just don’t have the funds to pay for it,” said John Boots, a member of the Cheney Cemetery Association.

The association assumed ownership of the old cemetery several years ago and operates the 13-acre graveyard with donations and a Memorial Day breakfast fund-raiser every year.

Boots agrees the city needs the street improvements, just not at the expense of the cemetery.

He said there are other property owners, including a farmer and a mobile home park, who would be hard-pressed to pay for the road improvements as well.

City Public Works Director Paul Schmidt said he’s looking for other alternatives so the cemetery won’t be burdened.

The proposal calls for widening the roadway from 34 feet to 50 feet and adding a center turn lane, bike lanes, curbs and sidewalks from Mullinix Road to Cheney-Plaza Road.

He said a strong financing package has been assembled.

The state Transportation Improvement Board has agreed to pay $738,000. The Spokane Regional Transportation Council is kicking in $100,000. The state Department of Transportation is adding $100,000.

The Spokane Transit Authority is contributing $78,000 through its project to build a superstop in downtown Cheney at the northern end of the widening.

As a result, city property owners would be asked to pay about 20 percent of the cost, Schmidt said.

The city is planning to seek petition signatures from the property owners to form the special taxing district. State law requires that owners representing 60 percent of the property sign the petition.

Schmidt said the influx of new jobs to the Johnson Matthey plant and other employers at the southwest end of the city has increased pedestrian traffic along the highway.

Construction is still at least a year away.

The city is also getting money from the state for $2.3 million in safety improvements to Betz Road and Highway 904 at the northeast end of Cheney.

The money is coming from the Urban Arterial Trust Account, which is earmarked for safety projects.

It will go for new rail crossings with signal gates on Highway 904 and Betz Road; new turn lanes for university traffic heading north to Spokane; and sidewalks along Betz Road to the Cheney Middle School.

The project also is slated for construction in 1999.