STA is collecting community feedback on key components of the comprehensive plan, Connect Spokane. The plan sets forth a vision and policy framework to further the mission of STA for the next 30 years.
The survey takes 5-10 minutes and consists of mostly multiple choice questions. The information collected will help guide the evaluation of existing goals, policies, and strategies of Connect Spokane as part of a 3-year scheduled update.
Please share the survey with others! The survey will close May 8th.
Thank you for taking the time to provide feedback. To learn more about Connect Spokane or to follow the project please visit the STA website.
The last major update of the City’s long range / 20 year transportation plan occurred as part of the development of the 2001 Comprehensive Plan. The first steps of the 2017 update were to review the adopted plan and the implementation of strategies it recommended over the past 16 years. Overall, the theme and guiding values of the draft update to the transportation plan has largely stayed the same.
In order to achieve a vision that lives within a future with limited funds for transportation, this plan outlines an approach to developing a balanced multi-modal transportation system.
The Open House will review proposed changes to:
the Arterial Street Plan Map,
the Bicycle Master Plan Map, and
the city’s approach to build, maintain or repurpose our streets to achieve a balanced multi-modal transportation system.
The City of Spokane is seeking input from citizens on the elements of a project to improve North Monroe Street that’s planned for construction in 2018. The project runs from just north of Indiana to Kiernan near the top of the Garland hill.
A citizens advisory board met for about six months in 2016 to refine the project, which is designed to create a more livable community that serves all users of the street—from business and property owners to pedestrians and neighborhood residents to motorists and transit users.
“This project is about balancing four considerations—safety, traffic needs, business health, and neighborhood health,” says Scott Simmons, the City’s Public Works & Utilities Division Director. “This corridor has long been identified for revitalization, and this project will serve multiple transportation needs while providing for economic health, neighborhood beautification, and safety.”
The project includes a reconfiguration of the street to two travel lanes with a center turn lane, down from four tight travel lanes and a narrow center lane today from about Shannon to Cora. The project also will include curb bumpouts at intersections that reduce pedestrian crossing distances, enhanced crossings at three locations with flashing yellow beacons, pedestrian lighting, and a climbing lane on the hill. The current tight on-street parking will be widened for easier use and spaces will be added. Sidewalks will be widened.
In addition to the open house, the City is developing an online feedback tool that describes the various elements of the project, and then provides a survey for citizens to fill out. The online tool is expected to be launched about a week prior to the public meeting. More information on the project is found on the City’s web site.
Public transportation expert John Robert Smith will be speaking on Wednesday, May 4 starting at 8:30am (doors 8am) on how public transit has the potential to attract and retain a talented workforce and enhance downtown vibrancy. The talk will be held at the Philanthropy Center (1020 W Riverside). A light breakfast will be served.
Public transit is one factor that the Spokane area has recognized as important to long-term economic viability. As Chairman of Transportation for America and former mayor of Meridian Mississippi, Smith will speak about what other cities across the country are doing to enhance downtown vibrancy with bus rapid transit and other strategies.
This event is sponsored by Avista, McKinstry, CH2M, Downtown Spokane Partnership, WSU Spokane, City of Spokane, Transportation for America, Futurewise and Empire Health Foundation.
Smith currently serves as Chairman of Transportation for America, where he advises on strategy, capacity building, and national outreach. Prior to his role there, he served as mayor of Meridian, Mississippi for 16 years.
During his tenure as mayor, Smith received acclaim for his aggressive facilitation of the public-private partnerships that resulted in over $430m of infrastructure projects that bolstered the economy and quality of life for the people of Meridian. A recognized authority on public and private transportation and development funding, he guided the development and construction of the Southeast’s first multimodal transportation center, Meridian Union Station.
This is a recap of the Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood Council meeting that took place on Wednesday, September 9.
In response to concerns about an increase in crime, Officer Tracy Ponto of the Spokane Police Department addressed neighborhood crime statistics over the last month. The reports include West Central as well parts of North Hill, so there is no distinction from Emerson-Garfield, but they do indicate some downward trends. Sexual assault is down this month. Commercial robbery is down, and robbery of a person is slightly down as well. Domestic violence has seen a year-on-year decrease. Total property crimes have shown a decrease of 16% from last month, and 9.56% from this time last year.
As for incidents of concern, there was a drive-by shooting on W Euclid, which was suspected to have targeted the wrong house. There was also a report of an elderly couple’s home being booby-trapped by an intruder who had settled in their garage.
To report squatters in vacant or abandoned houses, the Office of Code Enforcement is reachable at (509) 625-6083. For post-crime calls, call CrimeCheck at (509) 456-2233. When witnessing a crime in progress, please call 911. Officer Ponto stressed that reporting crimes will influence the future patrolling of an area.
Judith Gilmore from the Fulcrum Institute reported on recent progress at the Ash Street Workforce Training Station, to which the Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood Council has allocated Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds. All three of the one-bedroom affordable apartments have now been completed and rented. The retail area is finished and tenants are being recruited to fill all three training bays. The store, called The Station, will have a beverage bar and a retail counter. There are 80 adults (parents to some 59 children) from our neighborhood who are being serviced by the station.
Michael Cathcart, representing the Alliance to Protect Local Jobs, spoke on the subject of Proposition 1 on the upcoming November general election ballot. This is the fourth ballot measure in our area proposed by the same group, and none of the other three measures was successful. In response to some of the provisions of the proposed ballot measure, Cathcart said that employers who have as few as 150 full-time employees (or 300 half-time employees) would be required to pay a vague minimum wage (approximately $18.30/hour), which is higher than in any other city. If the city did not enforce the minimum wage, then the minimum wage would rise to $23/hour. The measure would also prohibit wage increases based on experience or seniority, which may reduce retention. Furthermore, there is also no definition of the effort, skill, or responsibility used in its language, which could lead to frivolous lawsuits.
The action item on the agenda was the reallocation of the $17,865 in 2015 CDBG funds that had previously been allocated towards a bus shelter on North Monroe. It was proposed that the council direct $10,000 towards Fulcrum and $7,865 toward the West Central Community Center, two of the EGNC’s top priorities as determined by vote during the August 2015 meeting. This would give the council an additional $17,865 to allocate for the 2016. The motion was passed unanimously with no abstentions.
The two traffic-calming requests that were submitted by the neighborhood council in February were addressed. The City responses were included among the meeting agenda.
The future of the North Monroe Street revitalization was broached and discussed. There were questions over the delay in construction until 2018.
Jonathan Martinez reported on the past several meetings regarding landlord and tenant issues. The role of City of Spokane Code Enforcement was also discussed; our neighborhood’s representative is Officer Chappie. Additional attendance on the rental property committee is encouraged.
