News

City's wastewater treatment plant, crosswalk, parks will advance this October By RYAN LANCASTER Staff Reporter The Airway Heights City Council set the ball rolling last week on the second-phase of the new wastewater treatment plant and a safer pedestrian crossing on US Highway 2, both to begin construction in October. City manager Albert Tripp said the council rewarded a $26.8 million contract to AMCO General Contracting for Phase 1 B of the wastewater treatment project. Public works director Brian St. Clair said Phase 1 A of...

CHENEY Sept. 14 Police were informed of a runaway juvenile. The subject returned home. Second-degree theft of a wallet was reported on the 1700 block of Seventh Street. Possession of a weapon was reported at Cheney High School. A 16-year-old male had a knife at school. A suspicious circumstance was reported on the 1000 block of Salnave Road. Salnave Elementary staff handled a student with a laser pointer. Sept. 15 An abandoned vehicle was reported on the 300 block of Buena Vista Street. The 1999 silver Ford Escort was...

The Cheney branch of Ready Money is moving down the street. The office, formerly located at 723 First St. will move to 502 ½ First St., next door to the Cheney Federal Credit Union. Manager Wendy Wright said reason is simple: their lease was up. The building is being renovated and Wright said she hopes to open there Sept. 28. Ready Money has been offering payday loans in Cheney since October 2004....

By RYAN LANCASTER Staff Reporter If all goes according to plan the city of Medical Lake will delegate law enforcement duties to the Spokane County Sheriff's Department sometime in early November, according to City Administrator Doug Ross. “We sent the contracts off to the county, now we're just waiting to receive them back with mark-ups,” Ross said. Although the city made a few changes to the deal in recent weeks, including an agreement to allow for the hiring of five officers instead of four, Ross said he doesn't for...

By BECKY THOMAS Staff Reporter Choices for Cheney, the city's proposed comprehensive plan, will be the subject of the first of several public workshops on Sept. 30. The workshop, running from 6-8 p.m. Wednesday in the Viking Room of Betz Elementary, is open to everyone interested in shaping Cheney's future. “We're trying to establish some planning priorities,” community development director Brian Jennings said recently. Jennings is hoping for a big crowd at the workshop, which will focus on creating a vision for the fut...

Vote approving expansion of Miller Pond by 2,000 square feet is delayed until next monthly meeting pending resolution of legal, financial issues By BECKY THOMAS Staff Reporter It's time for code cleanup at the Cheney Planning Commission. City planner Elisa Rodriguez spoke to the commission during their Sept. 14 meeting to request more maintenance of the city's municipal code. “We need to look at it regularly to make sure it's up to date,” she said, adding that annual code maintenance would help in many areas of gov...

The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission is seeking nominations to its Boating Safety Advisory Council. The commission is looking for individuals to represent educators, anglers and hunters. The deadline for submitting nominations is Oct. 12. The council assists and advises the commission on administration of its boating safety program, which provides information and education on safe and environmentally sound boating practices to agencies, organizations and individuals statewide. The program also works closely...

Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge and Spokane Audubon Society is hosting a community work party on Saturday, Oct. 10, from 9 a.m. to noon at the refuge located five miles south of Cheney on the Cheney-Plaza Road. This is part of an on-going community effort to restore native riparian habitat to benefit birds and other wildlife species. The refuge has more than 50 native saplings to plant, and fencing to build at the project site to protect the trees from deer, elk, and moose browsing. A potluck lunch will follow at noon...

Choices for Cheney will be holding the first public workshop for the city's 2030 comprehensive plan on Wednesday, Sept. 30, beginning at 6 p.m. at Betz Elementary School. Cheney Mayor Allan Gainer, City Administrator Arlene Fisher, the City Council and the Planning Commission invite all Cheney residents to this first citywide meeting. The meeting will take place in the cafeteria, and should run no longer than 8 p.m. The comprehensive plan will address the following topics: Mobility (pedestrian, bicycle, transit, auto),...

By BECKY THOMAS Staff Reporter The road to expansion is long. The Cheney Care Center is planning to build additional housing for seniors on an adjacent plot, but a proposal to rezone the land from general residential to multi-family residential is waiting for Cheney City Council approval. “It's just kind of the process,” said Cheney Care Center administrator Keith Fauerso. The process began in 2005 after the Sessions Village project was completed. “It's always been the board's desire to provide retirement housing for Chene...

Ray Erwin is awaiting sentencing hearing that could jail him for three to nine months By PAUL DELANEY Staff Reporter Contrary to the Crimestoppers Northwest website, and reports from the Spokane County Sheriff's office, former Medical Lake High School student and athlete Ray Erwin is neither a wanted fugitive nor in jail. Following an appearance in Spokane County Superior Court this past Monday, Erwin was released on his own recognizance. “The judge felt that he didn't pose a flight risk,” Jeremy Benson, Erwin's attorney, sai...

By CRAIG HOWARD Spokane Valley News Herald Deputy Travis Pendell of the Spokane County Sheriff's Office arrived at last month's presentation on investment fraud with a simple message – be smart with your money and be smarter with those who try to invest it. Caution and research can make all the difference between holding on to your savings and being the victim of a scam, Pendell warned. “Don't be fooled,” he said. “These people will talk you through hoops with promises of big returns and no risk.” The Aug. 25 meeting s...

By MIKE HUFFMAN Spokane Valley News Herald Managing Editor Stormwater in Spokane County is flowing into some new territory. With the loss of the department's manger to retirement and the erosion of the county's urban territory to recent annexations and incorporations, Spokane County commissioners sat down with affected department heads Tuesday morning to discuss the future of the stormwater utility. Actually, that was part of the discussion. For the past four years, the county's stormwater program – which seeks to address h...

The Spokane Regional Health District's Public Health Clinic is now scheduling appointments for seasonal flu shots. Flu shots are available by appointment only. At this time, the Health District only has seasonal flu vaccine suitable for adults ages 19 and older. For flu shots for children, parents are urged to call their healthcare provider. When information on flu vaccine for children is available, the Health District will update their website and their Flu Hotline recording. This flu season, people are being asked to get...

Officers in the Commercial Vehicle Division (CVD) of the Washington State Patrol will be conducting Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance inspections focusing on driver qualifications through the Labor Day weekend. These inspections are aimed at reducing collisions by verifying drivers have followed the rules on allowable drive time and are qualified to operate the vehicles they are driving. Any indications of driver impairment will also be closely watched. CVD officers would like to remind motorists that commercial motor...

CHENEY Aug. 30 Kiesha M. Nesdahl, 19, was arrested on the 500 block of West Sixth Street for domestic violence. Third-degree theft was reported on the 800 block of West First Street when a bicycle and a scooter were taken. Residential burglary was reported on the 2800 block of Al Ogdon Way. Video games were taken. Christopher T. Streeter, 28, and Phillip M. Pearson, 38, were both arrested for fighting/mutual combat on the 2200 block of First Street. Aug. 28 Phone harassment was reported on the 3200 block of Meadow Glenn...

By CRAIG HOWARD Spokane Valley News Herald Each summer for the past four years, family and friends of Justin Haeger have gathered at Spokane Falls Community College to take part in a memorial run. Haeger passed away in 2006 at the age of 22 from a methadone overdose, one of 308 deaths in Washington state that year attributed to the prescription drug. Another 102 people died in 2006 from oxycodone overdoses while 71 deaths involved hydrocodone. Ron Haeger, Justin's father, said the family decided to launch the Justin C. Haeger...

By CRAIG HOWARD Spokane Valley News Herald It's been nearly 12 years since Stacey Womack created a refuge for victims of domestic violence. During that time, the group known as Abuse Recovery Ministry and Services has provided a source of hope in the face of fear and isolation, a reliable haven that Womack describes as “a safe environment of change.” Today, there are A.R.M.S. affiliates in eight states, including Washington. A support group in Spokane will be joined soon by branches in Spokane Valley and Liberty Lake. Wom...

Despite the moderating weather conditions across much of the state, the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is urging campers, recreationists, woods workers, and other forest visitors to be especially careful with fire this weekend. Even with small amounts of rain, firefighters have been busy on both sides of the state putting out fires. “We want people to be aware that even if we've had a few scattered showers, wildfires can still occur because of the very dry landscape,” Commissioner of Public Lands Pet...

CHENEY Aug. 23 Brian L. Morrissey, 20, was arrested at lower Salnave Park for first-degree robbery. Additional arrests are pending Jason C. Oleson, 22, was arrested on the 2500 block of Al Ogdon Way for physical harassment. Third-degree malicious mischief was reported on the 100 block of Seventh Street when a vehicle was keyed. Aug. 22 A green, 1995 Subaru Legacy that had been abandoned since Aug. 7 was impounded from the zero hundred block of Columbia Street. Aug. 21 Residential burglary was reported on the 2200 block of...