WDFW eyeing Downs Lake property

State officials are taking a hard look at buying waterfront property on Downs Lake, southeast of Sprague.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife included a 277-acre parcel owned by the Tule Land Co. in its proposals for its Lands 20/20 acquisition program, which the agency uses to identify properties it wants to buy.

It is far from a done deal. On Thursday, WDFW will present their list of more than 20 land acquisition proposals – including a small pond property in Whitman County and a 2,440-acre property in Asotin and Garfield counties – to the Fish and Wildlife Commission’s habitat committee.

Next Friday, the full commission is expected to review the list. Based on their review, the WDFW director will decide which projects the agency should pursue.

Once that is done, WDFW goes looking for money. Lisa Coffman, WDFW’s Lands 20/20 and acquisition funding coordinator, said acquisition cash normally comes from grants, and that the process for any individual acquisition could take years.

That has not stopped people around Spokane from getting excited about the prospect of a Downs Lake acquisition. A purchase would restore public access to the lake and conserve a valuable piece of the channeled scablands, said Todd Dunfield, with the Inland Northwest Land Conservancy.

“The channeled scablands are a highly climate resilient landscape, and those are the kind of lands we want to see protected,” Dunfield said.

The 320-acre lake is surrounded by private property. The parcel WDFW is looking at is on the north side of the lake.

A duck hunting club owns the land, including a small resort that for years allowed public access in the summer for a small fee. It is known as a good warmwater fishery, particularly for largemouth bass. Public access was closed off this year.

WDFW had been stocking trout in the lake but stopped after access ended, said Chris Donley, the agency’s eastern region fish program manager.

Dunfield said the land conservancy learned the duck club was interested in selling and pointed them toward WDFW.

Members of the club declined to comment for this story.

Coffman said WDFW is now mulling whether the purchase makes sense for the agency, but that it was “looking really good.” A public comment period was held last month, and Coffman said most of the comments were supportive.