Washington Voices

Picture Perfect Custom Framing and the Cheney Emporium will host the photography of Michael Ault, a Cheney firefighter and landscape photographer, on May 29. A meet-and-greet will be held from 5 to 9 p.m., and Ault’s work will be on display from noon to 9 p.m. The event will be at 1010 1st St. in Cheney.

Community Colleges of Spokane is offering a number of summer classes for beginning and intermediate golfers. For those who would rather try their sea legs, there is also a basic sailing course. The class list and information includes:

Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, 8441 N. Indian Trail Road, will present Watoto Children’s Choir today at 7 p.m. and Friday at 10:30 a.m. Watoto, the Swahili word for “children,” is a church-based organization that helps orphans and widows in Uganda. The choir travels around the world to raise awareness about the organization. All of the children are from Uganda.

The Freeman and Liberty school districts may not be facing shortfalls of millions of dollars like large school districts because of state budget cuts, but they will still have to tighten their belts and trim staff. “We have not had to RIF anyone,” said Liberty Superintendent Bill Motsenbocker. “The cuts that we’re making are going to be outside of that area.”

Franklin Elementary School is turning 100 years old. The school will celebrate its birthday with a two-day Centennial Festival, beginning today. Alumni will have the opportunity to catch up at a reception from 4 to 7 p.m. at the school today, where they will be entertained with a video of pictures, put to music, displaying the school through the years. The Tap Grandmas will also perform. The former students can be taken on a historical tour of the school, put on by 18 students who have been preparing for the festival for a number of weeks.

There is evidence that global weather patterns are influenced by the warming and cooling of ocean waters off the west coast of South America and along the equatorial regions in the south-central Pacific Ocean. Since late 2008, sea-surface temperatures in that region were much cooler than normal. This phenomenon, combined with low sunspot activity, may be to blame, at least in part, for the record snows in the Inland Northwest during the last winter season.

OLYMPIA – The next time you’re buying apples, potatoes or cherries, the state wants you to buy locally. “Next time you shop, look for Washington products or ask your grocer for them,” Gov. Chris Gregoire says in a commercial on the state-backed Heart of Washington Web site. “It’s a delicious way to help support our local farmers.”

Today ”The Magic of Getting Kids to Listen” - Hosted by Spokane Child Abuse Network. This parent education class will discuss how to encourage good behavior. Curriculum is based on the book “1, 2, 3 Magic” by Thomas W. Phalen, Ph.D. Child care will be available. Registration is required. 4-6 p.m., East Central Community Center, 500 S. Stone St. Free. (509) 458-7445.

Spokane County Fire District 8 swore in three new staff members this week, including the district’s first full-time female firefighter-paramedic. Deputy Chief Tony Nielsen said the district has had some female volunteer firefighters, but Amanda Jordan is the first woman on its paid force.

Spokane County commissioners will take public testimony Tuesday on numerous parking restrictions proposed for unincorporated areas around Liberty Lake. Commissioners say the restrictions were proposed by the Spokane Valley Fire Department for safety reasons. In most cases, parking would be banned only on the paved portion of roadways, but no parking at all would be allowed in three areas.

Perseverance paid off Tuesday for some of the staunchest critics of Spokane Valley’s proposed Sprague-Appleway Revitalization Plan. Among other last-minute changes, the City Council agreed to remove Susan and Jim Scott’s Lark Inc. business at 205 S. Evergreen Road, from the plan.

The plan to raise planning and building fees in Liberty Lake was debated again at Tuesday’s City Council meeting, with the council narrowly approving the most expensive option. In previous discussions council members all agreed that the fees needed to be changed, since they haven’t been adjusted since the city was formed in 2001. City staff had considered four different fee options and recommended the fourth and most expensive option, which gave several council members pause. This week’s discussion focused on whether to use that option or the cheaper third option.

The Medical Lake City Council has decided to move forward in negotiations with the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office to discuss whether or not the city should contract for police services. The city has been searching for a police chief for around a year and a half with no success. In March, Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich spoke to the council about what it would mean if the city used his department’s services.

For 05-21-2009