Huntington Park will close Monday for crane assembly

Huntington Park in downtown Spokane will be closed Monday while a crane is assembled on site, according to Avista officials.

The crane will be used to remove rocks and gravel that accumulated on the upstream side of the Monroe Street Dam. Huntington Park is expected to reopen to the public the same day, after the crane is in place and the work area has been secured.

Avista removes the rocks and gravel about every two years to prevent damage to the intake structure and interference with power production. The work is expected to take two weeks and is done in accordance with federal and state permits, company officials said.

“Redistributing the materials back into the river will allow them to continue to serve as a potential gravel source for trout spawning habitat in the Spokane River system,” said Speed Fitzhugh, Spokane river license manager for Avista.

Once the work is complete, the park will close again while the crane is taken apart.