Rimrock Drive faces closure

A scenic gravel parkway overlooking the Spokane River could soon be closed to through traffic to stem an increase in criminal activity.

The Spokane Park Board is scheduled to vote today on a recommendation from its Land Committee to close Rimrock Drive through Palisades Park beginning July 4.

Robbi Castleberry, a member of the Palisades Neighborhood organization, said illegal dumping and other criminal activity have been problems for years in the 464-acre conservation park, but now the trouble has escalated with nighttime drug dealing and gang activity.

Castleberry last week asked the Land Committee for a permanent closure, and won the unanimous approval of the group, which will forward its recommendation to the full Park Board at 1:30 p.m. today in Council Chambers at City Hall. The session will be televised live on cable Channel 5.

Castleberry said gang graffiti has been painted on rocks, trees and the ground, indicating the likelihood that gangs are competing for turf. The Spokane Sheriff’s Office reported 110 calls to the park in 2005 and 188 calls last year, Castleberry said, an indication that problems are worsening.

Drug needles and syringes and even a lead-filled polymer pipe have been found, she said. The park is owned by the city but located in the county.

“We feel it is a threat to the health, safety and welfare of people using the park,” she said. “There’s drug dealing up there like crazy.” Prostitution has also been evident in the past, she said.

Under the closure proposal, the southern end of Rimrock Drive would remain open for a short distance north of Greenwood Drive to give motorists access to a viewpoint overlooking the city.

The roadway would be blocked where it enters the heart of the park, which is made up of basalt cliffs, forest, shallow wetlands and intermittent creeks. A roadblock would also be established at the north end of the park.

A request to close the park 15 years ago was rejected by parks officials after residents complained that closure would rob them of one of the city’s best scenic vistas.

Castleberry and other neighborhood residents annually clean up illegal dump sites. During the first cleanup, volunteers took out 22 tons of trash, some of it difficult to retrieve because it was dumped down cliffs. Each year since, the cleanup has netted about three dump-truck loads, Castleberry said, adding that more than 2,000 hours of volunteer time have been donated to the park.

Bressler said he does not anticipate a public outcry against closure of Rimrock Drive this year because of the seriousness of the crime problems there. “I think it’s going to be OK,” he said.

For the past five years, Rimrock Drive has been closed on the July Fourth holiday to prevent the risk of wildfire from illegal fireworks use.

Bressler and Castleberry both reported that the city is on the verge of obtaining a donation of land on the north side of the park from the estate of Gil Baker, who was a longtime park supporter. His two parcels, which include one small house, total 20 acres, Castleberry said.