Answering call to serve

If the Spokane City Council wanted to send a message that ethics and family values are important qualities in local government, they couldn’t have found a better candidate than Rob Crow. At 36, Crow is a successful small-business man, father and regular churchgoer.

A resident of the fast-growing Five Mile Prairie neighborhood, Crow was named recently to fill a council seat vacated after the recall of Mayor Jim West last December.

In his application for the District 3 council position, Crow listed “family” as his No. 1 personal interest ahead of travel, skiing, movies and computers.

He and his wife, Ruth, have three daughters – Danielle, 11, Anna, 10, and Kara, 5, all of whom are involved in sports and other activities.

A devout Roman Catholic, Crow said he applied for the appointment because “I felt a call to serve. I feel I can make Spokane a better place.”

He comes with the recommendation of his wife, who described her husband as well-rounded, intelligent and a quick thinker. But more important than that, she said, “He’s got a quick sense of humor. That will help.”

Crow also enjoys support among the Spokane Regional Chamber of Commerce, where he serves as a member of the Manufacturer’s Roundtable.

Crow and his father, John Crow, operate a bakeware manufacturing company at Spokane Industrial Park in Spokane Valley. They produce anodized aluminum baking pans for pizza companies as well as a line of bakeware for home use marketed under the brand name, “Ugly Ware.” They have 35 employees.

Council President Joe Shogan said Crow’s strengths as a businessman complement his other skills.

“Certainly, a strong moral and ethical base are important,” Shogan said. “This council has that base, and Rob adds to it.”

Shogan and Crow both attend Assumption Roman Catholic Church in the Indian Trail area, although they did not become acquainted until Crow applied for the council opening. At church, Crow delivers one of the liturgy readings during the 10:30 a.m. Masses on Sundays. His girls attend Christian classes there.

Crow and his wife also work as volunteers to provide classes to prospective newlyweds. They stress the importance of communication and the need for compromise – skills that could come in handy for a council member.

Crow also is enrolled in this year’s Leadership Spokane class for training young community leaders.

The political turmoil at City Hall over the past decade has created a strain between city government and city residents, Crow said.

“You have a history of infighting among council members,” he said, but the current council appears to be moving away from the heated rhetoric that damaged its image over the past decade.

Crow acknowledged that he lacks political experience. “I wouldn’t say I have any specific agenda,” he said, but he believes the council should focus on getting the city moving in a positive direction.

He said he does not have a position yet on a call by some of his neighbors to impose a building moratorium on home construction in the Five Mile Prairie and Indian Trail areas of northwest Spokane. Neighborhood activists want to give the city time to catch up on street building and other traffic improvements. However, city staffers have said a moratorium is not necessary because traffic improvements are being made as more houses are built.

Crow also has not formed an opinion yet on a proposal to streamline any future recalls of elected city officials by giving the City Council the power to place a recall directly before the voters in lieu of the state’s requirement for gathering signatures. He said he is leaning in favor of a proposed City Charter amendment, which could go on the ballot this year.

Crow’s arrival at City Hall is directly related to last year’s recall of West for personal misconduct.

After West’s removal in mid-December, the City Council appointed former Council President Dennis Hession to fill the two years left on West’s term. In turn, the council appointed Shogan to take over Hession’s job, leaving the vacancy in council District 3 of northwest Spokane. City Charter gives the council authority to make appointments to fill those jobs.

Crow will serve the two years remaining on Shogan’s term. He will have to run for the job in 2007 if he wants to remain on the council.

Crow said he considered running for the seat that was won by Nancy McLaughlin last year but wasn’t ready to mount a districtwide campaign.

He’s spent much of his time over the past several years raising his family and building his business, which was started in 1996. As the company’s vice president, Crow is in charge of the computer system and describes himself as something of a computer geek.

Born in Arcadia, Calif., Crow lived in Spokane for two years as a teenager before returning with his family to California. He graduated from the University of Southern California in 1991 with a business degree. He and Ruth moved to Spokane in 1993 because they saw this area as a better place to raise a family. Since then, other family members have joined them here.

“I honestly wouldn’t want to live anywhere else,” Crow said.