In brief: Fox Theater to get new official name
The historic Fox Theater in downtown Spokane is going to be officially known as the Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox in honor of the wishes of an individual Spokane benefactor whose early $3 million gift set the stage for restoration.
Woldson, an immigrant from Scandinavia, rose from farm hand to railroad construction contractor for James J. Hill’s transcontinental railroads through Spokane, pivotal elements in the city’s growth.
His daughter, Myrtle Woldson, a successful businesswoman in her own right, donated money early in the Fox restoration campaign, in part because she wanted to commemorate her father’s name through the $31 million project.
Because of the historic nature of the restoration, the Woldson name is not being added to the historic neon signs. Rather, new signs above the entrances and inside the “founder’s gallery” lobby space will carry the theater’s new formal name.
When the Fox opens on Nov. 17, it will become the new home of the Spokane Symphony Orchestra. Symphony leaders organized and planned the restoration through a nonprofit Fox Theater entity. The project began in 2000 with the purchase of the 1931 theater, made possible by an initial $1 million gift from Myrtle Woldson.
Man suspected in eight robberies
A man arrested Sunday after a West Central pursuit is connected to at least eight recent robberies throughout Spokane County, police said Thursday.
Keith W. Parkins, 39, faces eight charges of first-degree robbery plus one charge of attempting to elude police. Authorities allege he held up at least eight businesses – mostly convenience stores – at gunpoint between Oct. 25 and Sunday.
Additional charges are pending, Spokane police Officer Jennifer DeRuwe said. The Major Crimes Unit is still investigating.
Early Sunday, patrol Officer Paul Buchmann spotted a Chevrolet pickup that matched the description of a vehicle connected to robberies at two Zip Trips, a Shell station, Olive Oilz restaurant, a Hollywood Video and the Wall Street Diner, among others. Buchmann tried to pull over the truck at Ash Street and Shannon Avenue, but the driver sped off, launching a pursuit, according to court documents.
Officers stopped the truck, and the driver got out and ran. When officers caught him, they identified him as Parkins.
“It’s not often that, on patrols, we get to catch a bad guy like that,” DeRuwe said of spotting a flagged truck.
Five arrested in SWAT team raid
A SWAT team raided a northeast Spokane home early Thursday, finding baggies of meth and arresting five people for various crimes.
The Spokane County sheriff’s Property Crimes Task Force carried out the operation at 1008 E. Princeton Ave., calling for a sheriff’s SWAT team when investigators determined at least two residents had guns, according to a Sheriff’s Office news release.
The house had video surveillance of the backyard and a police scanner in the kitchen, which may have led one of the suspects to flush some meth down the toilet. Executing their search warrant without incident, officers were able to find residue on baggies and 2 more grams of meth in another part of the home. They also found two pistols, a rifle and an illegal sawed-off shotgun.
Authorities arrested residents Roger D. Lewis, 39, and Dezarae R. Anderson, 41, on suspicion of second-degree unlawful possession of firearms. Another man in the house, 43-year-old William Ellis Brinton, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for escaping from community custody, the Sheriff’s Office release states.
Allen Colby Thompson, 23, reportedly walked into the scene with a stolen amplifier and was arrested on suspicion of possession of stolen property. Two people were sleeping in a car behind the house, and officers arrested one of them, 28-year-old Allen C. Green, for suspected possession of meth.
Two children who live at the house were not present during the raid.