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Depending on the viewpoint, three out of 10 ain’t bad.
A trio of Spokane Valley locations has made the latest site list for a potential Spokane County corrections facility. However, two of those properties – both located near Spokane Industrial Park – were eliminated during the first “essential public facility” siting process nearly two years ago.
Under the current EPF rankings, none of the sites east of Havana Street are in the top five on the list. A location on Tschirley Road at the Industrial Park ranks sixth, while Washington State Department of Transportation property on Flora Road north of the Spokane River scored the lowest (10th).
Most controversial of the eastern Spokane County properties is in the city of Liberty Lake on Appleway at Simpson Road. However, that location is eighth on the list and has been downplayed as an unlikely choice by Liberty Lake city officials.
At a workshop on Dec. 10 to discuss the latest EPF list, Liberty Lake City Council Member Odin Langford questioned the logic of ranking the Appleway site at all.
“I haven’t had any constituents come forward and being in favor of a jail being located in the city of Liberty Lake,” Langford said. “I’m concerned. Liberty Lake is a bedroom community and not equipped with the housing necessary.”
Langford added that an apartment complex “across the street” houses seniors and the distance from the county court rooms make the location detrimental.
While the Appleway property is ranked low, its appeal would rise exponentially if officials in Kootenai County – who are also looking to construct a new jail – were interested in somehow partnering with Spokane County. Those talks have yet to take place on a serious level.
Proximity to the courthouse is why the downtown county campus has again risen – as it did two years ago -- to the top of the EPF score sheet. However, the $265 million price tag to build a second tower north of the existing jail, built in 1986, prompted county commissioners to again reopen the search process. Such a tower would cost about $45 million more than building a “horizontal” facility on rural land somewhere else.
County and sheriff’s officials say a new jail is needed by 2013 as the current facility is overcapacity. Also, corrections facilities at Geiger will no longer be available once the lease expires at Spokane International Airport.
“(Geiger) doesn’t fit in with the long-term business plan there,” said sheriff’s Lt. Mike Sparber, who is heading the effort to develop a new jail. “(The airport’s board members) don’t think a correctional facility is good for business.”
The second- and third-ranked spots on the list include locations on McFarlane Road, west of Hayford Road, near the airport, and on Medical Lake Road, west of the Medical Lake exit on Interstate 90, respectively. Other locations include acreage on Geiger Boulevard, Flint Road and Highway 2, and a gravel pit near Sprague and Russel in Airway Heights.
All of those sites are in the West Plains, which didn’t sit well with outgoing Airway Heights Mayor Matthew Pederson, who said there is already a high concentration of corrections facilities in that area. Further, he said, any more building near Fairchild Air Force Base’s “crash zones” could threaten the military facility’s future.
“Has anyone at Fairchild been consulted about this?” Pederson asked.
None of the jurisdictions on the EPF list can refuse a new jail, as county commissioners have the final say. However, local leaders could negotiate terms before any construction starts.
There were some who attended last week’s workshop who believe that Spokane County is embarking on the wrong path by looking to build more jail space in the first place.
“The best site may be no site at all,” said Michael Pollin. “(Jails) are evidence of societal failure. It ends up being more costly in the long run. Every person you incarcerate eventually comes out.”
Sparber said he had no argument with that assessment, and that’s why any new jail facility would be augmented with a renewed emphasis on community corrections facility and other programs to reduce recidivism.
“We know that keeping someone in jail for 20 or 30 days and then letting them out and expecting they’re going to change is nonsense,” Sparber said. “I couldn’t agree more.”
In a follow-up report to the commissioners on Tuesday, Sparber reiterated that there was a “loud message” of concern over simply locking up inmates. He requested the commissioners allocate funds for a public-information campaign in order to get the word out regarding the need for an upcoming bond vote for a new jail.
Although Commissioner Mark Richard agreed by saying “we’ve yet to tell our story” to the public, which believes “we’re just building jail cells,” he said he was reluctant to pay for PR efforts until it becomes clearer when a bond request will appear on the ballot. Tentatively, Spokane County voters are set to decide on the matter in the November 2010 general election.
Board Chairman Todd Mielke said he is concerned the courthouse location has again risen to the top of the EPF list when it’s clear it will be the most costly because the jail will only be able to be built vertically.
“There’s a $40- to $50-million difference between the vertical and horizontal configurations,” he said. “At the end of the day, I do have a bias – it has to be the most cost-feasible option or voters won’t approve it. That’s my bias.”
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By
Mike Huffman
