Incumbent Wants To Hold Line On Taxes

The issue citizens tell city Councilman Scott Grant about most is improving parks and recreation, and he’s listening, he said.

“We need to fulfill that need without raising taxes,” Grant said.

Grant, 43, is running for re-election to one of the two available four-year terms on the City Council. If elected, this will be his last term under term limits.

The other candidates are Councilman Clay Larkin, Vicki Caughran and Paul Settanni.

Councilman Ron Jacobson is running unopposed for the one available two-year seat.

“It’s interesting and it’s enjoyable, and I get a lot of satisfaction out of it,” Grant said.

Among his goals for parks are finishing the park at 21st Avenue and Idaho Street, finishing Black Bay Park and improving the 9 acres of land the city is obtaining from the school district in a land swap.

He supports building a new police station and thinks the city can do it without raising taxes, he said.

The city has kept the tax rate the same or lower every year Grant has been on the council except one: the year voters approved the new library.

“I don’t believe in using foregone taxes unless the voters tell us it’s OK,” Grant said.

Idaho law prohibits taxing agencies such as cities from raising taxes each year more than 3 percent plus the amount attributable to new construction. Foregone taxes are taxes they could have asked for but didn’t. Cities have the right to tap into that amount when they need it.

Grant said he wants to see street improvements in Post Falls, including completing Idaho Street north to Poleline, improving the intersection of Mullan and Idaho streets and extending Bay Street out to Seltice Way. The latter would alleviate congestion on Greensferry Road, he said.

Downtown Post Falls needs to be finished, and it should be a downtown designed for pedestrians, he said.

“You can encourage that in the planning process,” he said.

The city has done well to prepare for growth through implementing impact fees and staff planning, Grant said.

He’s a board member of Kootenai Perspectives, a group of community and business leaders who work to improve the county’s infrastructure. The group also is part of Jobs Plus, which recruits businesses to the area.

He’s pleased with the city’s use of urban renewal money and its work with Jobs Plus to attract businesses to Post Falls.

“One of the goals I have is that when my children graduate from college, that there will be jobs for them around home,” he said.

Helping to get the new library is one of the accomplishments Grant is most proud of in his time on the council.

While on the council, he’s also worked toward improving the amount of money the council allocated toward parks and recreation, creating and implementing a comprehensive plan for the city and planning for how growth would affect various city departments, he said.

His nine years of experience as a city councilman set him apart from other candidates, he said.

Grant has lived in North Idaho for 22 years and Post Falls for 15. He and his wife have two children.

He’s a supervisor for the Idaho Department of Correction’s Probation and Parole division. He has a degree in sociology and social work from Northwest Nazarene College in Nampa, Idaho. In the past, he’s worked for the passage of school bonds, been a volunteer coach and is the council’s liaison to the library board.

“I have a sincere interest, and I don’t have an agenda,” Grant said. “You can’t pick just parks or just police. You have to do everything” as a City Council member.

“Being on the council is more than coming to meetings every two weeks.”

This sidebar appeared with the story:

Scott Grant

Resume: 43 … Has wife, two children … Has lived in Post Falls for 15 years … Has served on City Council for nine years … Liaison to the library board for the council … Board member of Kootenai Perspectives … Supervisor for the Idaho Department of Correction’s Probation and Parole … Degree in sociology and social work from the Northwest Nazarene College.

Issues: Continue to improve parks and recreation without raising taxes … Build new police station without raising taxes … Work on street improvements around town that would improve congestion … Encourage businesses to come to Post Falls … Continue to plan for growth.

This sidebar appeared with the story: Post Falls at a glance Post Falls is a city of 15,732. … Its population has grown 114 percent in the 1990s. … Major issues are related to growth: street repairs, increased school classroom space and recreation facilities for young people. This is the final installment of profiles on Post Falls City Council candidates. Four candidates are competing for two four-year terms in next week’s election.