Washington Voices

For 10-06-2012

For the week of Oct. 8-12. Monday – Option 1: Chicken and wild rice casserole, vegetables, coleslaw. Option 2: Tuna pasta salad, vegetables.

A Spokane Valley resident learned recently that cigarettes and oxygen don’t mix. The Spokane Valley Fire Department responded to a call in the 100 block of North Tschirley Road on Monday after a woman’s oxygen tubing caught fire as she was smoking a cigarette, said Assistant Fire Marshal Bill Clifford. The woman’s son helped her out of her home and threw water on the couch, which had also caught on fire, Clifford said. The woman was not seriously injured.

Students from Valley Christian School spent three hours Friday volunteering throughout the community as part of their first Friday of the month service hours. Both students and staff volunteered at Spokane Community Warehouse, Women’s and Children’s Free Restaurant, Ross Point Conference Center in Post Falls, the HUB Sports Complex, Spokane Valley Food Bank, Valley Meals on Wheels, Spokane Christian Academy and at their own school.

For 10-06-2012

Fairfield City Council – There was a public hearing on the town’s proposed 1 percent property tax increase. The council then voted in favor of the increase, which will bring in an additional $846.47 per year. A workshop on the proposed 2013 budget is scheduled for Oct. 9 at 6:30 p.m. at the Community Center. The town’s new recycling program has been a success and has not generated any complaints. The council also agreed to allow FirstStep Internet to install two small antennas on the town’s water tank to provide broadband internet service to the Fairfield Library. (Source: Town Clerk Cheryl Loeffler) Rockford City Council – A representative from the Spokane County Department of Emergency Management spoke to the council about an updated interlocal agreement. The council voted to award the town’s lagoon project to apparent low bidder General Industries. The council also discussed projects that could qualify for Community Development Block Grant funding in 2013. A public hearing on possible CDBG projects will be held at the next council meeting. (Source: Town Clerk Darlene LaShaw)

September 2012 has gone into the record books with no measurable precipitation, and just two days with trace amounts. Spokane usually gets 0.67 inches of precipitation in September. Since 1889, the only other years without measurable amounts of rain in September were 1990 and 1999. Because of the extreme dryness, fire danger levels are still high despite the cooler temperatures. As I mentioned last week, when September is very dry, October is usually drier than normal as well. The latest long-range computer models show very little, if any, measurable moisture through the middle of the month, thanks to a strong ridge of high pressure locked in over the Western U.S. Normal precipitation at the airport for October is 1.18 inches.

The Washington State Auditor’s Office recently released an audit finding stating that the city of Spokane Valley failed to follow proper procedures when awarding two contracts. Both contracts were funded by an Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. When spending federal grant money, cities are required to verify that the company receiving the money is in good standing, either by having the company sign a document saying they are not “suspended or debarred” or by checking the Excluded Parties List that includes all companies banned from doing business with the federal government for whatever reason. In both cases that requirement was not followed.

The annual Cheney coat drive is in full swing. Carol Kriegh, one of the organizers, said this is the 16th year churches, Kiwanis and community organizations in Cheney are having a coat drive. Collection bins are located at Cheney schools and businesses through Oct. 12.

Miryam’s House of Transition – For women moving through life crisis; (509) 747-9222. Spokane Human Rights Commission – Responds to discrimination complaints based on race, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, disability, familial status and other factors; 1330 N. Washington St., (509) 568-3196.

Things were a little calmer for the Liberty Lake Police Department the week of Sept. 24 to Oct. 1, but the old standbys of copper theft and car prowls popped up. A contractor called police Sept. 28 to report the theft of copper from a house under construction in the 20000 block of East Indiana Avenue. The wiring was removed from the walls and copper pipes were cut in an effort to remove them, said Police Chief Brian Asmus. The walls were also damaged by water from the cut pipes.

Spokane County commissioners are seeking volunteer applicants for several boards and committees. Single openings are available on the Civil Service Commission, Spokane County Shooting Advisory Committee, Housing and Community Development Advisory Committee and Solid Waste Advisory Committee.

Lewis and Clark High School Tiger Drama will kick off the season with “Opening Night” on Friday in the auditorium. The performance starts at 7 p.m. The evening will feature selections from classic and modern musicals, such as “Thoroughly Modern Millie” and “Edges” and plays such as “The Glass Menagerie” and “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead.” The cast will also perform pop music ranging from Michael Bublé to Lady Antebellum.

The Spokane Valley City Council got its first look Tuesday at a preliminary list of street preservation projects for 2013. There are 17 roads on the list that are scheduled for a grind and overlay or just an overlay, including sections of Sprague Avenue, Sullivan Road, Adams Road, Park Road, Saltese Road, 32nd Avenue, Argonne Road, Eighth Avenue and 24th Avenue. Public Works Director Eric Guth said city engineers evaluated the roads scheduled for improvement in 2013 in the city’s pavement management plan. “There were a few we didn’t necessarily agree with,” he said. He recommended delaying some projects and moving up other projects scheduled for later years. “We believe these projects are in worse shape than some of those slated for 2013,” he said.