This day in history: State considered trading 3,100 acres near Mount Spokane; construction was set to begin on Gonzaga’s DeSmet Hall

From 1975: Spokane’s state legislators were not exactly on board with a confusing land swap deal involving Mount Spokane State Park.
Under a State Parks and Recreation Commission proposal, 3,100 acres of state land near Mt. Spokane would be exchanged for 100 acres on Blakely Island.
Those 3,100 acres were not directly connected to the current boundaries of Mount Spokane State Park – but they were close to it.
State Rep. Margaret Hurley of Spokane was not convinced that those acres should be declared “surplus,” and traded away.
“Who can say we might not want to trade this land” for acreage adjoining the park, she asked. She said there were growing demands for use of Mt. Spokane State Park by cross-country skiers and other recreationists.
She requested that the land swap be delayed, and was “pretty sure” her fellow Spokane-area legislators would support her request.
From 1925: Plans for DeSmet Hall, the newest building at Gonzaga University, were in the final stages. Construction was scheduled to begin in March.
The $115,000 building was “designed to harmonize with the present buildings,” with a “Neo-Gothic style, plain but solid.”
“This hall will be a home of comfort for 120 students,” The Spokesman-Review said.
Also on this day
(From onthisday.com)
1981: Fifty-two Americans held hostage by Iran for 444 days arrive back in U.S.
2004: NASA’s Opportunity rover lands on the surface of Mars.