Changes are coming for downtown convenience stores. On Monday night, the Spokane City Council voted 6-0 (Council President Betsy Wilkerson was absent) to establish an alcohol impact area and a community health impact area in the downtown police precinct. The alcohol impact area will ultimately restrict the sale of off-premises alcohol in downtown after midnight. This does not include bars or restaurants, and will start with a six-month voluntary compliance period for retailers. "This is something that we had for over a decade," Council member Paul Dillon said during Monday's meeting. "We saw really positive results. When it did lapse, we saw a large spike in violent alcohol-related crimes." The community health impact area, a new idea, will require downtown retailers that sell drug paraphernalia to buy the overdose reversal drug naloxone, or Narcan, and provide it free to anyone who buys paraphernalia. Store owners may now opt to stop selling pipes rather than provide naloxone. Local medical students testified that the move would have negative public health impacts. "The provision of clean glass is a form of harm reduction that reduces communicable diseases and overdose deaths," said Katelyn Costanza, a medical student at Washington State University. Council member Kitty Klitzke expressed hesitation, too. "I do hear ... this is a risky path that we're taking," she said. "However, the city does have limited tools to use." Klitzke suggested CHAS and Spokane Regional Health District should supply safe smoking supplies. (ELIZA BILLINGHAM)
VOTES FOR VOLZ
This week in a special meeting, the Spokane County Board of County Commissioners heard from the three candidates nominated by the Spokane County Republican Party to become the county's top financial officer. The party got to pick who might replace previous Republican Treasurer Michael Baumgartner, who vacated the position after he was elected to Congress. After more than two hours of interviews and private deliberation, the Spokane County commissioners unanimously voted to name state Rep. Mike Volz, R-Spokane, county treasurer. Volz has been the county's chief deputy treasurer for more than a decade, and he's also represented District 6 in the state House since 2017. "It's been an honor to serve with you over the years, you've been not only a great steward of taxpayer dollars, but you've been a good ally, and I deeply appreciate your friendship," Commissioner Al French said before Monday's vote. Volz will serve in both roles and run for treasurer this November. If elected, he can finish the final year of Baumgartner's term and continue the second year of his own term as a state lawmaker. Since Washington state law doesn't allow candidates to appear on the ballot twice, Volz says he plans to seek election to only the county treasurer position in 2026. (COLTON RASANEN)
FOUNDATIONAL IMPROVEMENT
At the Spokane Valley City Council meeting on Jan. 28, City Manager John Hohman presented the history of the city's litigation over City Hall's improper construction and brought forward the final agreement from a lawsuit that began in 2020. City officials found structural problems shortly after staff moved into the completed $14 million building in 2017. The Spokane Valley City Council unanimously approved an $11.75 million settlement with Meridian Construction, which was the general contractor for the City Hall's construction. Spokane Valley previously received a combined $2.18 million in settlements with the architectural firm Architects West and the project management firms Allwest Testing & Engineering and Eight 31. "We are thankful to recoup taxpayers' dollars and to see this process come to a close, as this settlement not only reimburses the money spent on critical repairs but also ensures that we can address all remaining work needed for our City Hall," said Mayor Pam Haley in a press release. "It's a significant step forward for Spokane Valley as we move on from these challenges and focus on our 2025 city priorities." In 2023, Spokane Valley awarded Garco Construction a $4 million contract to repair critical infrastructure issues. That work was completed in August 2024. (VICTOR CORRAL MARTINEZ) ♦
