Stark, Rush have different outlooks

He was the youngest person ever elected to Spokane City Council, but after a term in office, Councilman Brad Stark is in a tough fight to become the youngest member re-elected.

Despite the power of incumbency and an edge in fundraising, Stark came in second in a four-way primary for the seat.

Richard Rush, a neighborhood activist who challenged the city’s decision last year to cut trees on Bernard Street, came in first.

Rush argues he’ll be a fresh voice who will be guided by the city’s long-term growth guide, the comprehensive plan.

Stark labels Rush as a one-issue candidate who isn’t informed on important public safety and other issues.

While he’s passionate about trees and the environment, Rush says, he’s more than a one-topic man.

He argues that the city must start living by the comprehensive plan, which was created in a long public process and considers everything from street trees to fire service to low-income housing.

Meanwhile, Stark’s detractors say he’s immature and a pawn of developers and real estate interests.

Stark admits some missteps but says he’s learned from his mistakes and calls himself “the idea guy” who works to get the job done. He points to his proposal earlier this year to divert cash made from infractions caught by red light enforcement cameras to pay for street-calming changes, like crosswalks and redesigned intersections.

The money race

While more people have contributed to Rush’s campaign, big donations from developer and real estate interests have helped Stark easily out-raise Rush in campaign funds.

Just this week, Stark reported an $11,000 in-kind contribution from the state Realtor’s political action committee. Stark said the donation paid for a brochure that will be mailed to voters. He also has received $5,000 from Kendall Yards developer Marshall Chesrown or from companies he runs.

“Somebody’s clearly trying to buy this election,” Rush said.

Stark responds that he’s beholden to no one but the voters.

“We’re talking about quality-of-life issues here,” he said.

Rush is an Alabama native and stay-at-home dad who meditates every day – a practice he says gives him clarity. He and his wife moved to Spokane about 10 years ago when she took a job at Avista.

Much of Rush’s platform centers on the environment. He says a better environment will promote a better economy by attracting folks to live in Spokane. Earlier in the campaign, he proposed a park bond to pay for street trees. He has since said that a bond may not be necessary to fill the 27,000 empty places for street trees because the cost could be spread over a couple decades by not planting them all at once.

Still, Stark calls Rush’s street tree idea over-the-top, especially considering the city’s other needs. Stark also accuses Rush of wasting city resources by challenging in court the city’s decision to remove 17 trees along Bernard Street during a reconstruction project last year.

Rush said he believed the city was in clear violation of the comprehensive plan and that he might have won his case in front of the Eastern Washington Growth Management Board if he’d had an attorney argue it.

Stark took some criticism in the August primary after he said, “this is where my heart and passion is at this moment and probably will be for the next four years.”

Critics said the word “probably” didn’t convey the sense of commitment necessary for the job. He says people are reading too much into a simple quote.

“I can’t predict the future,” Stark said. “I fully intend to serve out my term on City Council.”

Last year, Stark showed interest in another office; he lost a close bid in the GOP primary for county assessor.

Stark was an ally and friend of former Mayor Jim West, and the two campaigned together when he ran for office in 2003.

After West was shrouded in scandal, Stark accused the rest of the council of wasting time on the issue. Still, he joined the rest in calling for West’s resignation. He believes he struck the proper balance.

“I stood by my friend at a difficult time,” Stark said.

He had, until recently, been a frequent and loud critic of West’s successor, Mayor Dennis Hession. In a much publicized flap over animal control policy earlier this year, Stark even publicly accused Hession of lying to the City Council.

But he’s now backing Hession’s bid for re-election.

On the issues

Rush and Stark support Police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick’s recent plan for hiring more officers and implementing neighborhood policing. They also agree that the city needs to create an ombudsman for oversight of the police department.

But Rush said the City Council shouldn’t wait before implementing the ombudsman plan.

“We ought to do it by ordinance before negotiating with the Police Guild,” Rush said.

Stark said negotiations with the union have to come first.

In May, Stark and Councilman Al French proposed spending part of last year’s budget surplus to build a new fire station to serve the growing residential area in the southwestern portion of the district.

This summer, a report by a consultant hired by the fire department indicated there are 7,000 to 10,000 residents in the Latah Valley whose homes would be considered “unprotected” for fire insurance purposes because they are more than 10 minutes from a fire station.

The department usually pays for new significant fire infrastructure with a fire bond every 10 years. But the city still is a few years away from asking voters to pass a new bond, and Stark says the council should find another way to fund a new station, even if it only provides medical response.

“We shouldn’t have to wait for Latah station on a 10-year schedule,” Stark said. “We’ve got to find a way to provide better medical response times in a more efficient manner.”

Rush, however, notes that Fire Chief Bobby Williams has said the department’s priority is restoring what was lost to the department in cuts in 2004 and that the station will be built in due time, after more population has settled into the valley.

“To me, it’s more election-year politics than anything else,” Rush said. “We need to pay a little closer attention to the professionals we have to do the job.”

Rush said he’s not sold on the need for a north Spokane freeway. He said he’s open to hearing from freeway supporters, but considering the disruption to neighborhoods, cost and urban sprawl it might promote, it may not be the best way to spend transportation money.

“If the future is not car-dependent, is that a wise investment?”

Stark has promoted state funding for the freeway.

“We absolutely need the north Spokane freeway,” Stark said.