CIVICS | City Council wants to know if he gave business leaders improper access. Plus, WSDOT may shut down turn lanes on I-195.
There are no County Commissioner meetings this week and the City Council agenda was so light, they’re just meeting for the 3:30 p.m. briefing session (skipping the usual 6 p.m. meeting). But have no fear, because there are plenty of other public bodies having important meetings this week.
There’s a community forum of elected leaders to share updates on the 90-day due diligence period to create a regional framework for homelessness. But if you’re just now hearing about it… surprise, you already missed it! The forum was at 9 a.m. this morning. Not a time that really screams: “we want you to be here.” In fairness to organizers, this isn’t their first public event and the others were in the evening and drew good crowds. If you want to catch up on the goings on with the proposed regional homelessness authority, the Spokane Public Library will have a live stream recording of the event available on their YouTube.
Public Infrastructure, Environment, and Sustainability (PIES) Committee
Investigation into Police Chief Miedl
The PIES committee will discuss a resolution to investigate Spokane Police Chief Craig Miedl after a December 2022 Office of Police Ombudsman (OPO) investigation found that Miedl was giving downtown business owners what some are calling special access to the chief, police personnel and police services. The report detailed hundreds of email exchanges between Miedl and business owners and the level of access he gave them, including crime data and preliminary reports that weren’t ready for public release. There was a lot, so read Nate Sanford’s thorough report on the whole situation for the Inlander here.
Since the report, local activists, including the Spokane Community Against Racism (SCAR), have called for the resignation of Miedl and an investigation. The mayor’s office has hasn't indicated that it would investigate the chief and only instructed the police department to adopt the recommendations in the OPO report.
The resolution that the PIES committee will discuss and the council will later vote on would direct the City Attorney to investigate whether Miedl or any city employees violated any laws or city policies, including anti-bullying, harassment and electioneering policies. It would assign the investigation to the City Attorney’s office and require a report on its findings no later than August 31, 2023. It also asks the mayor to direct human resources to hire an outside investigator and special counsel to assist the City Attorney by the end of May.
TRAC bathrooms and showers for $1.45 million
On the consent agenda, the PIES committee is set to approve a capital project to add permanent bathroom and shower facilities to the Trent Resource and Assistance Center (TRAC) for $1.45 million. Yes, the city’s main homeless shelter still uses porta-potties and shower trailers for the up to 350 people staying there. The monthly costs of renting the temporary facilities is about $80,000 to $90,000 per month, so adding permanent facilities would save nearly $1 million in operating costs per year.
The city is expecting to pay for this using up to $1 million from Real Estate Excise Tax (REET 2) funds and $450,000 from ARPA. This includes a 25% contingency of $250,000 for unanticipated costs.
Division BRT update
The PIES Committee is set to get an update on the Division Street Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line, which would go from downtown Spokane, down Division Street for nine miles, to the Mead area. The STA staff is going to review the proposal with the city council and get their input and the STA Board of Directors is scheduled to vote on it May 18.
Finally an answer on Fluoridation?
The PIES committee will get a final update on the study that is supposed to tell us how much it would cost to add fluoride to Spokane’s water supply. The official report is expected in June.
Back in 2020, the city council accepted a $4 million grant from the Arcora Foundation to implement water fluoridation in Spokane. Arcora is the foundation of (and primarily funded by) Delta Dental of Washington and focuses on oral health. In August 2021, the city amended the grant agreement to allow up to $600,000 of that money to be spent on an engineering study to find out how much it would cost to implement fluoridation.
The whole process has gotten a lot of public backlash, as Spokane voters have voted down fluoridation in the past. The mayor and city council have promised to have a transparent and public discussion. Read Emry Dinman’s story in the Spokesman here.
GFCs update
As part of the update to the General Facilities Charges (GFC) and the resolution to do more public outreach that the city council passed in late March, the PIES committee will get an update from Public Works on their progress.
So far, Public Works has been working to establish a citizen committee for the next GFC update and they are soon going to bring forward an ordinance that would remove part of the city code that specifies meter sizes for duplexes and triplexes. According to the agenda sheet, the plumbing code covers what meter sizes would be used for these housing types.
Agenda here.
Monday, April 24 at 1:15 p.m.
Council Chambers in the Lower Level of City Hall.
808 W Spokane Falls Blvd, Spokane, WA 99201
The meeting is also live streamed.
Spokane City Council
Light agenda
The Monday City Council meetings are usually broken up into two parts: the 3:30 briefing session and the 6 p.m. legislative session. Sometimes, like this week, the legislative agenda will be so light, the council will decide to just do all of their meeting during the briefing session, according to Council President Breean Beggs.
Other than some property transactions with the Spokane Airport, the council only has two Special Considerations.
WSDOT may shut turn lanes down in 195 corridor
This agenda item is a bit cryptic, it just says “considering a letter to Michael Frucci, P.E., regarding request to coordinate discussions on funding options for the Highway 195 Corridor,” but luckily for you we read the agendas and can keep you up to date.
In last week’s council packet, there was a dueling pair of letters between the city council and Michael Frucci, the acting administrator of the Washington Department of Transportation's (WSDOT) Eastern Region. The gist is that WSDOT doesn’t want to see more development in the I-195 corridor until traffic safety concerns, which will be exacerbated by adding more housing to the area south and west of downtown, are addressed by the city. The state is considering removing turn lanes from 195 at Hatch, Meadowlane and 16th if the city doesn’t take any measures to improve traffic safety and tinkering with the ramp meter where 195 heads east onto I-90 and downtown Spokane.
The city’s response letter says that they can’t just shut down new development indefinitely, especially given the current housing crisis. The letter also acknowledges that WSDOT has gotta do what it’s gotta do in terms of lane closures. The city cites several projects it would like to see implemented to improve traffic flow, including better bus service to Latah Valley and a two-way connection between Empire Way and 195 that would create another option for residents south of the city to come and go from downtown Spokane without having to get onto I-90. In closing the city asks for continued partnership with WSDOT in addressing traffic safety concerns in the area.
Locating an opioid treatment center
We’re not sure if it’s supposed to be this week or next week, but the council will soon vote on whether they will sign their names to a letter opposing the relocation of the Spokane Regional Health District’s opioid treatment center. The proposal is pending with the state health department and SHRD was supposed to consult with the council before they submitted the application with the state but didn’t, according to the agenda packet.
The letter states that the new proposed location, 312 W. 8th Ave., is near a high school “and raises the specter of an unhealthy interaction between high school students and program attendees.” The new location is roughly 4 blocks from Lewis and Clark High School and near Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital. The new location also doesn’t have good parking and isn’t as centrally located as the current location, according to the letter. The location is somewhat near transit, but wouldn’t be the easiest spot to access by bus coming from downtown and parts north, east or west.
Ballot initiative on camping near schools
The city council is set to consider a ballot initiative that was filed April 14 that would prohibit encampments near schools, parks, playgrounds and child care facilities. This item is basically meant to inform the city council that someone has filed a ballot initiative and they can decide whether to pass the measure as a law right away, they can reject it and propose another one that deals with the same thing as a law or another ballot initiative, or they can let it go through to the City Hearing Examiner who will decide if the proposed measure is legal.
This initiative would extend the prohibition on unauthorized camping to within 1,000 feet of any public or private school, public park, playground, or licensed child care facility. Violating this would be a misdemeanor. Right now, the city code prohibits camping underneath or within 50 feet of any railroad viaduct in downtown and within three blocks of any congregate shelter.
Agenda here
Monday, April 24 at 3:30 p.m.
Council Chambers in the Lower Level of City Hall.
808 W Spokane Falls Blvd, Spokane, WA 99201
The meeting is also live streamed here.
Mead School District Board of Directors
Budget cuts planned
Budget documents show the Mead school district has some major cash flow issues. Last month the board passed a resolution to cut spending, due in part to financial challenges they attribute to Washington’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. This week, the superintendent has outlined nearly $5 million in budget cuts. For context, the district’s 2022/23 annual budget is about $158.6 million, so this is about a 3% cut. The proposal, laid out on page 77, includes cutting 10 full time positions (which may include teachers but could also be administrative staff, paraeducators or facilities people). It also includes cost cutting measures like buying fewer laptops and cuts to the district’s administrative staff.
here
Monday, April 24 at 6 p.m.
Union Event Center
12509 N. Market St. Bldg. D, Mead, WA 99021
Watch via Zoom here.
Spokane Plan Commission
Comprehensive plan updates
Spokane is in the process of renewing its comprehensive plan. This plan guides development patterns in the city. In the last year, Spokane became a statewide leader in residential zoning reform by making the construction of up to a four-plex legal on lots that previously only allowed single-family residences. This interim ordinance was meant to address the housing crisis by increasing the density of developed neighborhoods in the city. Since Spokane passed this “middle-housing” ordinance, the state followed our lead and created a statewide zoning standard that allows fourplexes on residential lots in larger cities.
There isn’t a lot of policy being proposed at this point. Instead, staff are answering commission questions and sharing survey results. A theme in the staff reports, as well as RANGE’s reporting, is that a tight housing market is making it hard for people to not only to find housing but also stay in housing.
Short Term Rental Code Update?
We wish we knew what they’ll be talking about when it comes to short-term rentals, like AirBnB and VRBO, which can reduce the housing supply for renters. But, there’s no info other than the workshop title in the meeting agenda.
Agenda here
Wednesday, April 26 at 2 p.m.
Public Works Building
1026 W Broadway, Spokane, WA
Commissioner’s Hearing Room, Lower Level
Spokane Regional Health District Board
Correcting the budget
There’s just one action item on the health district board’s agenda this week and it’s a resolution to correct a mistake in the final 2022 SRHD budget that showed a nearly $2 million gap. According to the resolution, the board made two amendments to the budget in 2022: one in June and one in December. When they made the amendment in December, they accidentally used the original budget of $47,872,911 rather than the June revised budget of $51,872,911, making the final budget number wrong. This resolution will correct it to what it should’ve been, which is $53,182,411.
Agenda here
Thursday, April 27 at 12:30 p.m.
Auditorium, First Floor
1101 West College Avenue
Watch online here
Central Valley School District Board of Directors
Agenda here
Monday, April 24 at 6:30 p.m.
Learning and Teaching Center (district office)
Board Room at 2218 N Molter Rd, Liberty Lake
Watch via Zoom here.
Spokane City Parking Advisory Committee
Agenda here (once posted)
Tuesday, April 25 at 2:30 p.m.
City Hall Lobby, Tribal Council Room
808 W Spokane Falls Blvd
