City To Pay Ousted Engineer For Testimony

The city of Spokane has agreed to pay former city engineering director Phil Williams for his testimony in the upcoming trial against the city by 45 Colbert-area residents.

The residents are suing the city for locating a compost facility near their homes.

Williams will get $150 an hour if he’s called to testify during the trial, said City Manager Bill Pupo.

Williams was the city official in charge of choosing a location for the compost facility in 1993. Neighbors began complaining about its smell within months of its opening.

The agreement to pay Williams for his testimony was originally part of this week’s settlement of his $2 million lawsuit over his firing in 1997, Pupo said.

“It was taken out because we didn’t want to guarantee him anything. It just got too complicated to include in the settlement,” Pupo said.

On Thursday, city officials agreed to pay Williams $135,000 in cash and $40,000 in attorney’s fees incurred since he was fired.

City Councilwoman Cherie Rodgers said Friday she objected to including the payment for Williams’ testimony in the settlement.

“I told Bill Pupo I can’t agree to this. Williams is not credible, and it makes it look like we’re buying his testimony,” she said.

Pupo said Williams is the pivotal witness in the upcoming Colbert trial because of his role in choosing the compost plant location.

Williams was fired in 1997 for conflict-of-interest issues posed after The Spokesman-Review reported his personal relationship with a scientist hired to conduct a $300,000 study of Spokane’s trash incinerator, which he supervised.