Time To Bloom Anew

Spring, like progress, does not come easily in Spokane. But when the trees unfurl their blossoms and the birds begin to sing, the doubts and gloom of winter melt away like a tired old snowbank.

Over and over, spring has come. Over and over, the prophets of pessimism have melted into pathetic little piles of gravel in the parking lots of local politics. These prophets predicted doom and failure, should the city build a new airport, a world’s fair, a Riverfront Park, an Ag Trade Center, an Arena. They were wrong.

Today, after a winter of political discontent that dragged on through three years of hearings and lawsuits, construction workers stand ready to build Spokane a new retail center.

The City Council is scheduled tonight to clear a final hurdle.

Those who have fought the project claim, disingenuously, that they merely have “questions” about costs and risks. But after three years of questions, and answers, there comes a time to move forward. There are other costs and risks that the critics refuse to face - the costs and risks of urban decay.

A majority on the Spokane City Council have identified bickering and stagnation as a risk greater than the risk of investing in new quarters for successful, sought-after retail establishments.

The Council has spent years scrutinizing the project, negotiating refinements in response to public concerns. The local family that owns this newspaper has stepped forward to shoulder the risks and make the investments, for the sake of new jobs, new business opportunities and a stronger community.

Soon, if this project continues, the day will come when downtown blooms with new life and the critics will seem as superstitious as those who fear the arrival of spring.

, DataTimes The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = John Webster For the editorial board