Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

County conservation program looking for public input

Paul Knowles walks on the Etter Ranch trail near the Spokane Valley on May 25, 2021. Volunteers are in the process of building trails on the 230-acre parcel of land. Those trails are expected to open to the public in October.  (Eli Francovich/The Spokesman-Review)

The public will have a chance to comment on Spokane County’s current conservation futures nominations.

The conservation futures public meeting for the 2021 nomination round is scheduled Thursday from 5 to 7:30 p.m. and will be conducted via Zoom.

“It’s just an opportunity for the community to provide input directly,” said Paul Knowles, the county park planner.

There are  eight nominated properties in this year’s conservation futures round. During Thursday’s meeting, each nominated property will have a 10-minute comment period. Individuals will have, at most, 2 minutes to comment.

The Spokane County Conservation Futures Program has acquired more than 8,875 acres of land since its inception in 1994. The acquisitions are funded through a voter-approved property tax levy to preserve the county’s open space, streams, rivers and natural resources.

Following the public comment session, the Land Evaluation Committee will tour each nominated site and review evaluation criteria before ranking and scoring each property.

The final ranked list of recommended purchases will be finalized Oct. 27. In November, the Spokane County Board of Commissioners will review and vote on the purchases.

“I’m curious to see how things shake out,” Knowles said. “We only had eight nominations but they are all pretty good nominations.”

To watch Thursday’s meeting visit us02web.zoom.us/j/84923466415 or call 1-877-853-5257 | Meeting ID: 849 2346 6415.

To submit written comments visit survey.alchemer.com/s3/6489087/Conservation-Futures-2021-Nominations-Public-Comment-Survey. Written comments will be shared with the Land Evaluation Committee.

Meeting documents, including the agenda and a nomination preview presentation, can be found on the Conservation Futures Homepage at spokanecounty.org/1592/Conservation-Futures.