Fairchild and Spokane County join forces for new facility

FAIRCHILD – An innovative partnership between Fairchild Air Force Base and the Spokane County Sheriff's Office (SCSO) to build a shared secure educational and training facility is finally coming together.

The project has been in the works for eight years.

Todd Mielke, chief administrative officer with the SCSO, explained how unique the partnership is.

"This is the first public to public partnership of its kind," Mielke said. "It's a totally new process for the Air Force."

The facility, which addresses the needs of both entities, will be located at 13033 West State Route 902 and comes with a hefty $42 million price tag.

The initial engineering estimate in 2017 set the expected costs at $40 million, but that was before COVID, and prices have fluctuated since then.

"The supply chain shortages drove estimates higher-closer to $50 million," Miekle said."That changed, and now active bids are back under $42 million.

According to Mielke, close to $10 million of the included costs will cover sales tax, design fees, furnishings, and other construction-related costs such as dump fees.

"There are two components to the facility," Mielke said. "The first is a 21-lane small arms indoor firing range, and the second part is the training facility focusing on classrooms."

Fairchild will primarily utilize the small arms range. The sheriff's department will use the training area.

Mielke said both service members from Fairchild and officers need to periodically re-certify, and this training facility will allow both parties to do that.

With Fairchild being the primary users of the range, the base agreed to pay a substantial portion of its costs, according to Mielke. The base has also agreed to a 10-year renewable lease, with Fairchild effectively paying $17.9 million, including interest and principal. Fairchild will cover 80% of the operating costs of the small arms range, which Mielke estimates will initially run close to $400,000 annually.

The small arms range lanes are 50 meters long but can be customized to fit different training exercises. Other complex features will include indoor and outdoor K-9 training areas, an emergency vehicle driving course, a rappel tower, and a "firearms training house."

"We are also implementing a type of simulated training in which the participants put on a headset and train in a virtual setting," Mielke said. "It will allow officers to virtually train in certain real-world situations and give them a better chance at making the best circumstantial decisions.

The facility, according to Mielke, will be set up to implement other technologies because as officers re-train and re-certify, they must learn how to use new technologies.

The training component won't simply be to train local officers either.

"We invite other agencies in to participate in the training as well," Mielke said. "We have and will continue to work with other agencies in the state, across the country, and even with some international representatives."

The county will begin negotiating contracts within two to three weeks, with construction expectations starting in mid to late spring.

"The goal is to be operational by October of 2023," Mielke said.