In brief: Democrat to run for House against Sali
A North Idaho Democrat once again plans to run for the 1st District congressional seat in 2008 against Idaho Republican Rep. Bill Sali.
Rand Lewis, the former director of the Martin Institute at the University of Idaho, said his experience as soldier, educator and small business owner give him the experience needed to represent the 1st District in Congress.
Lewis, 59, lives in Worley and owns a family real estate appraisal business in Coeur d’Alene.
He briefly ran for the same seat in 2006, which at the time was held by Republican Rep. Butch Otter, who is now governor.
A week after announcing his candidacy, Lewis opted out of the heavily contested race. He instead decided to run for the District 2 Idaho House seat. The Idaho secretary of state disqualified Lewis because he hadn’t been a registered voter in the district, which includes portions of Bonner and Shoshone counties, for at least one year.
In a press release, Lewis said many difficult issues face Idahoans, such as the war, education, health care, taxes and quality jobs.
Coeur d’Alene
Kootenai County growth topic of meeting
Water and sewer district representatives are meeting with the Kootenai County Planning Commission on Monday to discuss the rewrite of the county’s growth plan.
The workshop is part of the commission’s ongoing work to revamp the comprehensive plan, which is the foundation of all land-use decisions.
On May 21, the commission will meet with area transportation representatives including the highway districts and the Kootenai Metropolitan Planning Organization.
On Monday the commission also will finalize the map for individual growth plans in the region, which will cover areas that have unique characteristics, such as Mica Flats and Athol.
The commission also will meet the county’s newly hired planning and building director, Scott Clark.
Both workshops are from 8 to 11 a.m. at the Kootenai County Administration Building, 451 Government Way. For more information, call (208) 446-1070.
Environmental group to help draft plans
The Kootenai Environmental Alliance is having a two-day workshop to help people living in various areas of Kootenai County hash out a growth plan for their neighborhoods.
The idea is to present the individual neighborhood plans to the Kootenai County Planning Commission. KEA hopes that the commission will use the neighborhood plans in the rewrite of the county’s comprehensive plan, the foundation of all land-use decisions.
KEA member Wes Hanson said the workshops will give residents another chance to meet and brainstorm about how they want their neighborhood to grow and what kinds of land use are acceptable.
“If we are going to have sub areas, we need to hear from the people who live in those areas,” Hanson said.
The workshop is May 19 and June 9.
The May 19 session is from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Harding Family Center, 411 N. 15th St. in Coeur d’Alene.
The location of the June 9 session hasn’t yet been announced.
For more information, call the Kootenai Environmental Alliance at (208) 667-9093.
NIC plans free tours of raffle house
Free tours of the house being raffled off in the North Idaho College Foundation’s 14th annual Really Big Raffle will be given Sunday from noon until 4 p.m. at the home site, 1649 Umpqua Court in Post Falls.
Raffle tickets will be sold for $100 a piece, and ticket holders can register for a chance to win a free ticket.
The drawing is July 11. The grand prize is the home, a $300,000, 3,400-square-foot house under construction by NIC carpentry students in the Montrose subdivision in Post Falls.
Other winnings include first prize, a $20,000 car; second prize, a $10,000 boat; third prize, a $3,500 travel package; and fourth prize, a $2,000 shopping spree.
All proceeds go to North Idaho College.
Post Falls
City Hall to close for electrical work
Post Falls City Hall will power down Tuesday in a planned outage to allow for construction work.
City Hall will close for business from 8 to 11 a.m. for electrical work on the new City Hall going up next door. Phone service will be out during those hours, according to a city news release.
The Post Falls government cable channel also will be unavailable Monday and Tuesday mornings.
The new City Hall is expected to open in spring 2008.
Spokane County
15 reptiles seized from county home
Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Service confiscated 15 reptiles Friday from a northwest Spokane County residence after reports of dangerous reptiles and dead animals on the property.
The seized reptiles included an American alligator that had been kept in a bathtub and two rattlesnakes.
Traci L. McDonald, 42, was cited for harboring and/or owning a dangerous reptile without a license.
It’s illegal to own venomous snakes, crocodiles and alligators in Spokane County unless they are registered.
SCRAPS initially discovered McDonald’s “Reptile Rescue” operation at 23012 W. Four Mound Road because of complaints about dead animals on the property.
Officer David Daley responded last week and found several dead reptiles, including a 16-foot python, four tortoises and two snapping turtles. He also saw dead chickens and a dead calf. Two alligators had recently been buried there.
In addition, Daley reported reptiles being housed in unsanitary and potentially cruel conditions.
McDonald had until Monday to remove the dangerous reptiles from Spokane County or register them. McDonald killed one of the rattlesnakes over the weekend, but turned the remainder over to SCRAPS this week. The seized alligator and remaining reptiles were taken Friday by the Monroe, Wash.-based Washington Serpentarium, which operates a reptile education center.
From staff reports