Complete streets safer, saner

Our mayor and City Council finally approved an overdue Complete Streets Ordinance to help Spokane catch up with other cities making streets safer for walkers and cyclists. Then what does The Spokesman-Review do? You immediately call to diminish the program!

What? Spokane’s unregulated sprawl drives away skilled young people looking for lively neighborhoods; it costs too much to maintain; and it will cost area residents even more as we begin to tackle carbon pollution. Cutting funds for sidewalks and bike lanes in order to build more streets for more shoddy, far-flung subdivisions is like eating Twinkies to lose weight.

We kill a lot of walkers and cyclists in this city – far more per capita than in busier Seattle or Portland. Each Spokane taxpayer also spends much more on street upkeep than do residents of those cities, because each taxpayer here has twice as many miles of streets to maintain. Our addiction to cars and sprawl is literally killing us.

The recent city decision to adopt Complete Streets was a breath of fresh air to those of us who would like to see Spokane mature and thrive. I only wish The Spokesman-Review’s owners would support this rare step rather than undermine it.

David Camp

Spokane