WATCH: Spokane City Council candidates take questions from Inlander and other local media during KSPS debates

Bored of watching the same three Halloween movies over and over again? Looking to spice up October with some real-life spookiness? Now is a great time to tune into local political debates.

Earlier this month, the Inlander teamed up with the Spokesman-Review and Spokane Public Radio to grill the people running for Spokane City Council this year. The televised KSPS debates ran about 25 minutes each and touched on a variety of local policy issues.

It was a fun time! The candidates were mostly civil with each other, and everyone had interesting things to say about their vision for the city.

See below for links to each of the debates and a few highlighted answers we found interesting. Remember: Ballots are due Nov. 7.

CITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT — KIM PLESE vs. BETSY WILKERSON

Two small business owners are competing to be Spokane's first elected female City Council president. Betsy Wilkerson currently represents south Spokane's District 2 on City Council, and is the owner of Moore's Assisted Living, a residential care home. Her opponent, Kim Plese, is the former owner of Plese Printing. She unsuccessfully ran for an open Spokane County commissioner seat last year.

The candidates took questions from Spokane Public Radio's Brandon Hollingsworth and myself on Oct. 18.


The Trent Shelter

The city's 350-bed homeless shelter on East Trent Ave. is a big point of contention in this year's election. Some candidates say it's ineffective and financially unsustainable, and want to wind down the shelter next year. Others say the shelter is giving people a roof over their heads and providing vital services.


One week prior to the KSPS debate, Plese had suggested the city consider doing cutbacks and only serve two meals a day at the shelter instead of three. Plese seemed to walk the idea back when asked what reducing the number of meals would accomplish and if there were any other cutbacks she would consider.

"That was just a suggestion, and I did get a lot of comments about that that said that's not going to do much to cut back," Plese says. "I think that the Salvation Army people that are serving at that facility, they're doing the best they can."

Plese added that she's heard there are people at the shelter who are still doing drugs, and that she wants to see more accountability.

The shelter still lacks indoor bathrooms and running water. As a cold winter approaches, the people staying there are using outdoor porta-potties. Wilkerson and other city council members voted to approve funding to install indoor bathrooms and showers in May, but the plans seem to have stalled.


When asked why the plans stalled — and whose job it was to make that happen — Wilkerson blamed two factors: The Woodward administration and an uncertain future caused by regional homeless authority discussions.

"We funded that. That got sent to the administration to send out the request for proposals for that work to be done, they said it was stalled," Wilkerson said.

Wilkerson said that, as conversations about regionalizing homeless services started heating up, the future of the shelter became more uncertain.

"We know we cannot continue to fund that center," Wilkerson said. "And currently, in the budget, it's only funded through next June. So even if we put in bathrooms, we would not have return on our investment."


Woodward and Brown

The mayor's race is casting a big shadow over this year's City Council president race.

Plese has aligned herself with Mayor Nadine Woodward's reelection bid, and Wilkerson has been campaigning as a ticket with Lisa Brown. The Council president candidates clearly agree with their chosen mayoral candidates on a lot, but are there any issues where they disagree?

Wilkerson said she and Brown actually disagree on a lot of issues, namely the sustainability action plan.

"She's talking about how we can move that faster, we're looking at what is the process and funding to do that?" Wilkerson said, adding that she also disagrees with Brown on some public safety issues.

Wilkerson said City Council is not a "rubber stamp," and stressed that disagreement with the mayor's office is a healthy part of local democracy.

Plese said she and Woodward have disagreed on "a few areas of spending and things like that," without going in to further specifics. Plese said she's tired of the public fights between City Council and the mayor's office, and that she'll do a better job of communicating with whoever is elected.

In advertisements and campaign material, Plese frequently stresses that crime and homelessness have increased in recent years. When pressed on whether or not any of that blame falls on Woodward — who has been in power for the past four years — Plese pointed to City Council.

"It really does fall on the City Council and the City Council president," Plese said. "I think they could have done a much better job."

DISTRICT 1 — MICHAEL CATHCART vs. LINDSEY SHAW

The race to represent northeast Spokane pits conservative incumbent Council member Michael Cathcart against Lindsey Shaw, a progressive advocate and former chair of the Logan Neighborhood Council. They took questions from Emry Dinman with the Spokesman-Review and myself during an Oct. 10 KSPS debate.



Regional homeless authority

Local leaders are working on a proposal to pool resources and unite local jurisdictions under a regional homeless authority. Pretty much every candidate running for office this year says they’re excited about the proposal, often while avoiding answering questions about their own plans for homelessness. But amidst all the excitement, are there any aspects of the proposal the candidates are concerns about?


Cathcart said he’s concerned about the governing model: Who will be in charge? Who appoints people to the board? How much sovereignty will the individual jurisdictions keep?

“Government bureaucracy run amok is always something I’m concerned about,” Cathcart said. “But on the other hand, I honestly believe this is the path to success.”

Shaw said she’s especially concerned about bringing people who’ve experienced homelessness to the table and making sure it’s not a “top-down” approach.

“People without the experience are well-intended, but I think their solutions are out of touch,” Shaw said.


Traffic calming fund

In Spokane, money collected by things like red light and speeding cameras goes to a dedicated pot of money called the Traffic Calming Fund, which is traditionally used for infrastructure projects like stop signs and speed bumps. This year, however, Woodward has proposed using some of that money to fill gaps in the police department’s overtime budget.

Both candidates think that's an inappropriate use of the fund.

Other than crime, Cathcart said traffic calming is the top concern he hears from voters. He said raiding the traffic calming fund is fiscally unsustainable — a gimmick to “essentially kick the can and delay things and push it down the road.”

Shaw agreed.

“For the city to think they can take those funds to cover their budget shortfalls I feel is a little insensitive to neighborhoods,” Shaw said. “I think it’s very much against what’s best for the community.”

Transit

We tried to quiz the candidates’ local transit knowledge by asking them about when they last rode the bus and how much it cost. Unfortunately, this turned out to be an accidental softball: Both said they last rode the bus during the City Line opening ceremony earlier this summer, when the fare was $0.

The debate ended before we had a chance to follow up and see if they know how much fare usually is. Just for the record: a 2-hour adult pass is $2.

DISTRICT 2 — PAUL DILLON vs. KATEY TRELOAR

Two newcomers to elected office are running to represent south Spokane's District 2. Paul Dillon is a progressive activist and the former vice president of public affairs for the local Planned Parenthood. He's also worked as a legislative aide for state Sen. Andy Billig and former City Council member Jon Snyder.

Katey Treloar previously worked as an educator for Spokane Public Schools, and is the founder and owner of Executive Function Coaching, which coaches individuals with ADHD and other neurodiverse diagnoses.

The candidates took questions from the Spokesman-Review's Dinman and myself during an Oct. 10 KSPS debate.


Latah Development Moratorium

Latah Valley residents are calling for a moratorium on new development on the city's west flank because they're concerned about road and fire infrastructure not being able to keep up with population growth.


Dillon said he supports a moratorium. He said he used to live in the Grandview/Thorpe neighborhood and saw firsthand the challenges associated with a lack of infrastructure.

"We shouldn't be building more housing in a wildfire zone, especially after this summer," Dillon said. "I am absolutely committed to getting that fire station built in my first term."

Treloar also committed to getting a station built by the end of her term, but she's wary of supporting a moratorium without a larger plan in place.

She wants to put together a committee of various stakeholders that can create a comprehensive plan with "timelines and accountability."

"If that plan includes a moratorium, then I will support a moratorium," Treloar said. "But I do not support a moratorium as a plan to make a plan."


Budget

The candidates have different approaches when asked how they would balance the city budget, which is facing an unusually large $20 million shortfall this year.

Treloar said she would start by examining the City Council. She noted that the council's budget has grown in recent years, and said she would want to find redundancies in positions that overlap on both the council and administrative side of city government. She also pointed to downtown as a revenue source the city needs to protect.

"It is essential that we have a clean and safe downtown," Treloar said, adding that Spokane needs to support the businesses there so they don't flee.

Dillon pushed back on Treloar's call to cut the council's budget, arguing that the council's staff has grown in recent years because council members are being asked to do more. He said he wants to pass a "budget that helps working families that does not come at the expense of service cuts."

But avoiding service cuts requires finding more money to fill gaps. Dillon proposed convening a "revenue stabilization workgroup" to find new sources of money. The workgroup, Dillon added, would include business entities, small businesses, Avista and nonprofits.

DISTRICT 3 — EARL MOORE vs. KITTY KLITZKE

The race to represent northwest Spokane’s District 3 on City Council pits Earl Moore, a retired respiratory therapist, against Kitty Klitzke, who has spent much of her career advocating for environmental and land use causes through her work with organizations like Futurewise and the Lands Council.

The candidates took questions from the Spokesman's Dinman and Rebecca White with Spokane Public Radio during an Oct. 17 KSPS debate.



Matt Shea

In late August, Woodward appeared on stage at a Christian worship and concert event and accepted a hug and prayer from former state Rep. Matt Shea, a Spokane Valley Republican who has been tied to religious extremist groups and was accused of participating in domestic terrorism.


Much of the scrutiny following the event has been cast on Woodward, who said she didn’t know Shea would be there and that his political views are a “threat to our democracy.” But Woodward wasn’t alone on stage — Moore was there too.

Moore didn’t seem thrilled when asked to explain her attendance at the event. She referenced the statement she sent out immediately after the event, which said she didn’t know Shea would be there and that she stands “strong against hatred of any kind.”

“I had no idea he was there, I went to pray,” Moore said.

When pressed on whether or not she denounces Shea’s ideology, Moore said she had been given a copy of Shea’s infamous “Biblical Basis for War” manifesto, but had not read it.

“What I have heard after the fact? Of course I denounce that,” Moore said. “But again, I want to make it very clear: I had no idea, none whatsoever, when I chose to go to that prayer meeting with over 3,000 other people in our community.”

Police ombudsman

The candidates were asked if they think the Spokane Office of the Police Ombudsman is sufficiently empowered to provide oversight, and if they support granting the office authority to compel officers to submit to interviews during misconduct investigations.

Moore wasn't totally sure.

“I would want to look more at the features that they are asking for,” Moore said. “I’m all for the transparency and knowing what’s going on. But I think I am okay with how it is right now.”

Klitzke supports giving the ombudsman power to compel interviews. She said it would add transparency and accountability and improve things for both the community and police officers.

Klitzke wasn’t totally sure when pressed on whether or not she would be willing to vote against renewing a contract with the Police Guild if the contract didn’t include authority to compel interviews with officers.

“That’s a tough one. Probably, if there wasn’t something else that would get us closer to that,” Klitzke said. “I don’t want to be completely recalcitrant and inflexible, but I do think that that’s a really important piece that our community is missing. And I think it will help both the community and the police.”


Defund the police

During racial justice protests in 2020, Klitzke held up a sign that said, "Defund the police." Is that a position she still holds?

“No, it’s not a position that I still hold, because we’ve made some progress since then. That was three years ago,” Klitzke said. “I think everybody deserves to feel safety and belonging in our city. But right now, people don’t because of poor 911 response times, lack of sufficient mental health, drug treatment and co-occurring facilities and a perception that police prioritize some neighborhoods over others.”

Klitzke added that she supports a “comprehensive approach” to public safety. She wants to see the fire and police departments fully staffed, reduce overtime and bring back neighborhood resource officers and traffic patrols and “upstream causes to crime and poverty.”

“I will bring a can-do attitude to these challenges for public safety,” Klitzke said.