Planning Commission members reconfirmed

The Spokane Valley City Council reconfirmed three members of the Planning Commission and reviewed its hearings policy for dangerous dogs at Tuesday night’s meeting.

Planning Commissioners John Carroll, Ian Robertson and Marcia Sands were reappointed by the mayor and confirmed by the council for three year terms.

The incumbent commissioners were the only people who applied for the positions.

Another council motion put into law the yearly spending recommendations of the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee. Seven organizations could receive a total of $382,500 to promote Spokane Valley and events here.

The budget available to the committee charged with spending room-tax receipts is significantly higher than what’s been allocated, and Councilman Mike DeVleming encouraged the committee to seek additional applications for the money in the spring.

Finally, a city attorney briefed the council on proposals to take Spokane Valley’s dangerous dog appeals off the County Commissioners’ plate.

The director of Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Services determines whether a dog is dangerous or potentially dangerous. If the dog’s owner wants to appeal that decision, it goes before the county hearing examiner who holds a hearing and either accepts, modifies or rejects the director’s decision.

After the city incorporated, the County Commissioners agreed to continue hearing and ruling on the hearing examiner’s conclusions. Recently, though, the commissioners indicated they no longer want to handle the appeals for Spokane Valley.

The City Council’s options include delegating the final hearing to someone else, taking over the hearings for the commissioners or making the SCRAPS director’s determination the final decision, which can be appealed to District Court.

At Tuesday’s meeting the council told city lawyers to explore further an option that would make the hearing examiner’s decision the final word from the city.

The city contracts with the same hearing examiner the county uses, and the process would change little except that owners could no longer make a final appeal to the commissioners on behalf of their dog.