Powers Plans To Research Before Acting Newly Elected Mayor To Hold Meetings, Assemble Advisers

John Powers said he will begin the process of becoming Spokane’s strong mayor by listening before acting.

He will start the transition with a series of meetings with city staff and elected officials and by beginning to assemble a team of his own advisers that will represent a wide swath of Spokane, Powers said Wednesday after his election victory over Mayor John Talbott.

“I have ideas I want to share with them and get input from them on,” he said. “If you’re going to make a good decision, you need the input, and that’s what the process is about.”

Powers also said he plans to review the 2001 budget with City Manager Hank Miggins and to attend a City Council strong mayor transition team meeting.

His most important tasks, he said, will be launching searches for a chief administrative officer to help run the city and a city attorney to replace Jim Sloane, who is retiring.

For the first position, he said he wants someone with experience in city administration. For the second, he wants someone able to provide him with unbiased opinions.

“What I’m looking for is someone who can really give the mayor and administrative offices very objective legal advice devoid of the politics that has made that a very difficult place to sit,” said Powers, himself an attorney.

He said he will not be asking for the resignations of department heads.

“That’s not to say each department won’t be evaluated,” he said.

Powers became mayor by winning 34,331, or 55.2 percent, of the votes cast Tuesday, compared with 27,791, or 44.7 percent, for Talbott.

He locked up the South Hill, winning all 57 precincts south of Interstate 90 and scoring decisive victories of more than 100 votes in 21 of them. But he also made inroads on the North Side, winning 52 of the 126 precincts north of I-90.

With absentee votes yet to be counted, Talbott is apparently holding out hope for a turn of events.

Talbott and Powers spoke briefly Wednesday, but Powers would not say if the mayor conceded defeat. That question should be directed to Talbott, Powers said.

Talbott could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

For the next two months, Talbott will remain on the council. Powers said he will try to convince him and suspicious members of the City Council majority that he will not undermine attempts to reach an equitable solution to the River Park Square dispute.

That may take some doing, however.

Councilman Steve Eugster said he was skeptical about how Powers would manage the litigation, given his ties to the Downtown Spokane Foundation, which issued the garage bonds. Powers’ campaign treasurer, Mike Ormsby, is the foundation’s attorney and one of the foundation’s directors, David Broom, is a partner in Powers’ law firm, Paine Hamblin.

“I would say Mr. Powers has some very direct conflicts of interest,” Eugster said.

While the council voted to initiate the city’s lawsuit, it will be Powers’ decision whether to retain special counsel O. Yale Lewis Jr., Eugster said.

“We got a new guy and it’s his show,” he said. “He’s going to be running the litigation.”

Powers, who has maintained that those ties won’t influence his decisions, said he hoped the council would give him a chance.

“It’s about earning their respect and trust,” Powers said. “All I ask is that they keep an open mind and allow me a genuine opportunity to do that. If I extend people the benefit of the doubt, I hope they will do the same.”