Sheriff’S Office Buys Substation

The Spokane County Sheriff’s office became a homeowner on Tuesday.

Spokane County commissioners approved spending $59,000 from the county’s general fund to buy the SCOPE Edgecliff substation for the Sheriff’s Office.

SCOPE Edgecliff had shared the converted house at 522 S. Thierman Road with county engineers since June of 1999. The county purchased the house to give engineers a place to work during construction of the Valley couplet.

With the couplet work finishing up, commissioners had to decide whether to sell the house or buy it. The money was originally purchased with Transportation Improvement Board money that needed to be repaid, Commissioner Kate McCaslin said.

“We looked around to see if there were less expensive things available and there weren’t,” said McCaslin of the search for a home for the community policing group.

Edgecliff SCOPE member R.J. Wood said the permanent home is an encouraging sign that the county believes in what they’ve been doing in the neighborhood.

“It’s an accomplishment,” she said.

McCaslin said the county doesn’t have immediate plans to purchase any other SCOPE Edgecliff stations.

“It was just the timing,” she said of the decision to purchase the station at Edgecliff.