Two newcomers join council race

A member of a South Side neighborhood council and a member of the city’s cable advisory board each filed for their first political campaigns Monday, running for spots on the Spokane City Council.

Richard Rush, a member of the Cliff/Cannon Neighborhood Council, filed for the City Council’s South District seat, which is held by Brad Stark.

Rush, 55, said he participated in the city’s rewriting of the Comprehensive Plan and supports its call for neighborhood planning, smarter growth and more environmentally friendly development. But that hasn’t happened, he said.

“The main issue (for the campaign) is, are we going to implement the Comprehensive Plan or not?” he said after filing for office Monday. “The council has chosen to ignore the Growth Management Act.”

If elected, he said, he would be active in having the city support environmentally friendly policies.

A native of Tuskegee, Ala., with a graduate degree in business management, Rush has lived in Spokane since 1994, and is currently a stay-at-home parent of two children.

John Waite, the vice chairman of the Cable Advisory Board and owner of Merlyn’s Science Fiction and Fantasy Store, said he was entering the race for the council’s Northwest District seat because he thinks “things need to be done a little differently” in the city.

Waite believes citizens are paying too much for services and would like to see more police officers and firefighters “on the street.” He realizes those are the most expensive items in the city’s general fund.

“I think our tax structure in this town has us completely locked up. I don’t know the answer, but I think something needs to change,” he said.

He’s leery of tax increment financing for projects like the proposed Kendall Yards. While that may be a good idea in theory, he wonders if citizens will get enough for the benefits that businesses will receive.

Waite, 42, is originally from Miles City, Mont., has lived in Spokane since 1973 and served on the cable board for about two years. He’s running for a seat held by Rob Crow, who was appointed to the spot and has said he may run for council president against incumbent Joe Shogan.