All area ski resorts opening today

Turkey-laden snowboarders and skiers will have their pick of slopes today. Thanks to the heavy snow, every ski area in the Inland Northwest plans to be open.

Mt. Spokane, Schweitzer Mountain Resort, Silver Mountain and 49 Degrees North will kick off their season this morning. Lookout Pass already has opened.

Nearly 2 feet of snow has fallen on the Mt. Spokane since Wednesday. The storm was expected to dump at least a foot on the other ski areas by morning. And more is coming this weekend, according to the National Weather Service.

Although the ski resorts are all planning to open, most will operate only a limited number of chairlifts this weekend.

Post Falls

Leaves in streets not advisable

Post Falls is asking residents not to rake leaves and pine needles into the streets because doing so could clog storm drains and cause flooding and freezing problems.

The city doesn’t have a leaf pickup program because there isn’t enough money to buy the equipment and pay staff, said Mayor Clay Larkin in a press release.

Residents are asked to either compost leaves or bag them for garbage collection.

Post Falls Sanitation charges extra for bags that don’t fit in the garbage totes. The charge is $3.75 for the driver-assist fee and $1.69 per extra bag or box. To avoid extra charges, the city advises breaking down leaves and needles into smaller bags over a two- or three-week period.

For more information, call Post Falls City Hall at (208) 773-3511.

Spokane Valley

Man arrested in building-site theft

Deputies sorted through tools, hardware, appliances and even a kitchen sink Wednesday at the Spokane Valley home of a man they believe stole construction supplies worth tens of thousands of dollars from unfinished houses.

“The house is just full of stuff,” said sheriff’s Sgt. Dave Reagan.

Officers were busy cataloging and removing dozens of items from a modest but newly remodeled house at Alki Avenue and Bessie Road.

The search followed the arrest of the property’s 32-year-old owner, Jesse D. Coughlin, about 2 a.m. the same day.

In the backyard, deputies found a water heater, stacks of lumber and 30 ladders, many with the names or initials of construction firms on them, Reagan said. Six compressors were found in the garage. Custom windows found at the residence were from a construction site in Post Falls, he said.

A small box truck in the driveway also held power tools that Reagan said someone had scratched the serial numbers from – a crime in Washington.

Coughlin’s house was being watched by property crimes detectives because of information from a man suspected of stealing items from Evergreen Elementary School last summer while working as a janitor there.

Driving through a new subdivision near Barker Road and Trent Avenue early Wednesday, Deputy Travis Pendell saw Coughlin and Andrew C. Niccolls, 29, enter a house under construction, Reagan said. Both were arrested on suspicion of second-degree burglary after Pendell saw they had moved tools toward the door.

Spokane

Five-hour standoff ends in arrest

Spokane police arrested a robbery suspect late Wednesday, ending a five-hour standoff on the city’s North Side.

Jomo K. Martin, age unknown, was arrested at 1317 N. Madelia after a SWAT team used tear gas to force him out. Martin was booked into the county jail on suspicion of first-degree robbery. Police said he is a suspect in several robberies.

Police went to the address about 6 p.m. and saw Martin reach for a handgun, according to a police press release. Nearby houses were evacuated and streets blocked from Mission to Boone and Helena to Pittsburgh.

From staff and wire reports