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Good things come to those who wait.
That, at least, seemed to be the prevailing attitude Tuesday night, as the Spokane Valley City Council agreed – as originally planned – to hold off on making a selection for Steve Taylor’s replacement until Aug. 4.
Sixteen potential candidates stepped forward to fill the void of Taylor, who left the council to be the city administrator of Connell on June 30. Three candidates – Ian Robertson, Diana Sanderson and Ben Wick – were interviewed by council members in public session on Tuesday. A fourth, Fred Beaulac, took himself out of consideration last week for undisclosed personal reasons.
After the interviews, Mayor Richard Munson asked the five remaining council members if any would consider making a motion to make an appointee that evening. After Council Member Gary Schimmels did just that – with a second by Bill Gothmann – after some brief discussion it was decided to take a week to mull the matter over.
“We’ve been blessed with some nice candidates with some excellent credentials,” said Council Member Dick Denenny. “To make a decision two seconds after they’ve been interviewed would be disingenuous.”
Since the council had initially planned to take next Tuesday off for National Night Out celebrations, it was decided that the appointee choice would be the only item on the 6 p.m. study session agenda. It was also decided that any deliberations would be done in open session.
“I don’t believe it’s necessary,” Denenny said.
The chosen candidate will serve as an interim council member until voters make their choice in the November general election. A special filing period – Aug. 26-28 – for potential candidates has been set, and it’s expected that many of those who applied will decide to run at that time. The winner of that election will fill the remainder of Taylor’s term, which ends Dec. 31, 2011.
Each potential council member had a list of potential questions given to them beforehand and was able to consult notes if necessary. All three, however, were asked about their feelings regarding extending Appleway, whether or not a new city hall should be built, the scope of the Sprague-Appleway Revitalization Plan and why they want to be a council member.
First up to be interviewed was Ian Robertson, a retired pastor with the Spokane Valley Nazarene Church who serves as chairman of the city’s Planning Commission. Robertson said he would give the city “110 percent” of his time commitment if chosen.
While Robertson said the city needed to find potential funding sources for the $4 million estimated that is still needed to fund ongoing street maintenance he would not be in favor of outlaying any more cash to acquire the right-of-way needed to extend Appleway Boulevard farther east past University Road.
“The short answer is no,” he said. “I think we’ve got plenty on our plat right now.”
He also said that he is “not sure” if the city should build a new city hall.
“I don’t want to take any property of the tax rolls,” he said. “Let’s see if we can work out something with developers so they pay the taxes on it.”
As he was leading the Planning Commission during the development of the Sprague-Appleway Revitalization Plan – known as the SARP – he is in favor of the direction that the city is going, but said he is disappointed that the council removed a lot of the “sustainable community” elements of the plan that made it more “about people than buildings.”
Sanderson, an adult education minister/coordinator, said she wants to get on the council to further her public involvement and to show that the city is the most viable form of government.
“I have some friends on the disincorporation group,” she said. “I appreciate that they’re not apathetic – they’re energetic.”
While she said she understands the need for the telephone utility tax to help pay for road maintenance, she said she thought of an idea where everyone would pay $50 for each garage door they have.
“We’re providing houses for our cars,” she said. “It’s a reminder that we’re all using the streets. I don’t think adding more to our car tabs or whatever is going to do it. We need to come up with a new one.”
Sanderson did say she would be in favor of paying for the Appleway right-of –way “all the way to Barker.”
“We’re going to want that land,” she said. “Land is important.”
She added that, as a retiree, she was prepared for the time commitment being a council member would take.
“I totally believe I can do it,” she said. “I need to do some studying. I need a good brush up on some of the issues.”
Ben Wick, an information systems engineer with Goodrich Aerospace, currently serves on the Spokane County Fair Board and was a candidate for City Council after Spokane Valley first voted to incorporate.
“No offense,” Wick said to his then-opponent Munson.
While supportive of the telephone utility tax, Wick said it is important to increase the city’s tax base in order to sustain road funding. He said he would also be in favor of extending Appleway, but believes it is necessary to better the city’s relations with Spokane County government.
“We’ve had strained relations,” he said. “That needs to change.”
He said that contracting with the county or private business should continue “as long as it makes sense.”
That line of thinking also extends to a new City Hall.
“We should acquire the land, but I don’t know if we need to build a 30-story building,” Wick said.
As far as the SARP goes, Wick said “it’s a vision for the future,” but that it will “definitely cost some money.”
He added that it might be better received by the public if the city’s Web site was easier to navigate and explained the plan better.
“That’s something I could help with,” he said.
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By
Mike Huffman
