Public Periscope
Shovels full of what?
Over on the West Side of the state, the University of Washington shocked legislators with a request to raise tuition by 29 percent. To punctuate their request they trotted out schoolchildren as a reminder that more college students are coming in the future … The Huskies’ public relations pros equipped a dozen third-graders with hard hats and purple shovels to break ground on a small classroom building at the UW-Tacoma branch campus. UW admits that the event, which included a cake and marching band, was a publicity stunt “to represent the dramatic growth UWT must undergo to meet projected demand for seats between now and 2010.” … They may need all the PR the department can gin up. The U is asking legislators for $157.2 million in tax dollars equal to the cost of three Spokane Arenas to design and construct more buildings in the next two years.
He ain’t heavy
Among the county electronic mail examined by The Spokesman-Review recently was one from Commissioner Phil Harris to Commissioner John Roskelley. It included no words, just an illustration of a dove carrying an olive branch … Harris, who rarely uses e-mail, said he had inappropriately “snapped” at Roskelley earlier that day. “It was just my way of saying, `Peace, brother.”’
Roads to influence
Tuesday: County staff holds an open house on the Evergreen Road Improvement Project. 4:30-7:30 p.m., Vera Water and Power offices, 601 N. Evergreen Rd.
Friday and Saturday: Spokane Council of Ecumenical Ministries co-sponsors sessions on ways to influence the Legislature and advocate issues based in one’s faith. 6:30 p.m. Friday, 8:30 a.m. Saturday, First Presbyterian Church, 318 S. Cedar.
The latest television drama
We’re betting the recent addition of Cindy Omlin to the City/County Cable Television Advisory Board will be a cure for boring meetings … Two years ago, Omlin was among those fighting to force Spokane cable providers to black out Spice and Playboy, rather than just scrambling the pictures in homes that don’t pay for adult entertainment channels. More recently, she wrote a public letter congratulating KREM-2 for not airing Dr. Kevorkian’s killing of a terminally ill man … County commissioners appointed Omlin to the post last week.
No freebies
Want free cable television? Join Omlin on the cable advisory board. But make sure you’re appointed by the Spokane City Council, rather than county commissioners. … So far, commissioners have opted not to let their appointees in on the deal, worth about $7 a month. Commissioners Roskelley and Kate McCaslin contend that folks who get gifts can be accused of showing favoritism … “If anything, the city should revoke the free service” rather than the county adding the perk, said Roskelley. “Just because somebody’s doing something wrong doesn’t mean everyone else has to,” agreed McCaslin, who said she returns free ball-point pens and other gifts.
McCaslin notes that she accepts campaign contributions. “But that’s a necessary evil.”
Bureaucratic mumbo-jumbo
See if you can decipher this statement: “PATH uses decision analysis techniques as a structured framework for looking systematically at the outcomes of management actions under several alternative hypotheses about biological mechanisms that link actions to possible outcomes” … Here’s a hint. It comes from the federal Plan for Analyzing and Testing Hypotheses report.
Give up? It means scientists studied ideas for saving Snake River salmon.
Web site of the week
The Spokane Human Rights Commission’s Web page now includes a complaint form … Citizens can use the site to report an incident, view statistics and check for scheduled meetings. There is also a section for questions and comments. … Complaints filed online are handled the same as a walk-in or mailed complaint forms. Check it out at www.spokanecity.org/humanrights.
Pre-council Entertainment
Bet most of you didn’t know the City Council Chamber is the scene of regular entertainment, even before the council meeting gets under way. No, council members don’t juggle, sing or practice ventriloquism. They invite a community or school group to perform … Tonight’s pre-meeting entertainment will be provided by the Northwest Christian School Choral Group. Show starts at 5:30 p.m. in the City Council Chamber, lower level of City Hall.