The November 2013 Splash

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NOVEMBER 2013

Today, there is a shiny new road and a lot of in-ground infrastructure. Tomorrow … this?

A glimpse at the plans — and the unique financing — behind the future of Liberty Lake’s River District PAGE 16

SVFD SITE SEES HURDLE IN CITY CODE PAGE 14

THEIR SPOT IN LOCAL HISTORY: CEMENTED PAGE 34

VOLLEYBALL SUCCESS BUILT ON YOUTH PAGE 38

NEWS

2 • NOVEMBER 2013

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SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

When not immersed in his studies or working part-time to save money for college, Jim Frank once bounded over hurdles as a letter-winner in track at Gonzaga Prep High School.

Years later, the same work ethic and tenacity that carried Frank down the cinder straightaway would bode him well as one of the Spokane area’s most original and dynamic developers.

The oldest of four kids, Frank was raised in a humble home where he learned the value of a reliable work ethic — not shortcuts.

His father supported the family as a brickmason. In high school and college, Frank held a slew of part-time jobs at places like Kaiser Aluminum, a drive-in restaurant, a clothing store and the Lutz Bakery, where he was employed as a janitor and later a cook.

This year marks the 30-year anniversary of Greenstone Homes, the company Frank Member SIPC launched while still working as an attorney practicing land use and environmental law.

The communities he has developed over the past three decades span from Spokane to North Idaho, but it is his wide-ranging influence on the Liberty Lake area that has emerged as Frank’s signature work.

In the early 1990s, a decade before Liberty Lake incorporation, Frank formed the groundwork for a community that would distinguish itself from surrounding areas by emphasizing traits like plentiful shade trees, pedestrian access, well-designed parks and grassy medians. The origins of the newly formed residential grid could be traced back to the time Frank spent growing up in the Emerson Garfield section of north central Spokane, where Corbin Park was the heart of the neighborhood and eclectic civic life emerged from real estate charted on a diverse scale of price points.

From the resident-generated impact fees that covered street upgrades on Harvard and Country Vista when Spokane County could not foot the bill to the summer concert series that draws thousands each year to Pavillion Park, Frank has been central to key initiatives that now define the character of Liberty Lake. The central Greenstone office on Meadowwood Lane sits directly adjacent to the site of the Liberty Lake Farmers Market, another project championed by Frank over the years.

An avid cook, cyclist and baseball fan, Frank lives just outside municipal limits, south of Sprague Avenue near the shores of Liberty Lake. He has three kids and 10 grandchildren. When the idea of Liberty

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The Splash

Lake forming a city began to gain momentum in the late 1990s, Frank paid for the feasibility study. After the vote for incorporation passed in 2000, he leased the ground floor of his office to the city at a bargain price.

Frank’s emergence as one of the region’s most successful developers involved a circuitous route. The Spokane native earned a degree in chemical engineering from Gonzaga University and signed on with Monsanto after graduation, relocating to Idaho and addressing work in air and water pollution control. While at Monsanto, Frank enrolled in the MBA program at Idaho State but eventually found his way back to Spokane to attend Gonzaga Law School.

Law degree in hand, Frank found employment at the Spokane County Air Pollution Control Authority, where he worked for four years before opening his own legal practice specializing in land use and environmental law. In 1983, he established Greenstone Homes, juggling both law and real estate development for close to a decade before closing down the law office.

Over the years, Frank has never been the self-promoting type, opting instead for a quiet profile that steadily makes a difference. He served for years on the board of Spokane Valley (now Greater Spokane County) Meals on Wheels and has provided technical and financial support to groups like Spokane Housing Ventures and Habitat for Humanity. He formed the Greenstone Foundation to assist a variety of community causes.

The Splash caught up with the Greenstone CEO recently to chat about 30 years of home and community building, Liberty Lake incorporation, urban vs. suburban living and more.

Q. A.

Greenstone opened shop in 1983. What do you remember about that first year?

I was a lawyer at the time. I was practicing land use and environmental law. I was familiar with the industry, having represented people from both sides of the issue. I represented some developers and business owners, but I also represented a lot of neighborhoods.

So, I think I gained from that a really good

See FRANK, page 4

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 3

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The Splash

4 • NOVEMBER 2013

NEWS

FRANK

Shown here on a bench overlooking Trailhead Golf Course, Jim Frank is celebrating the 30-year anniversary this year of the business he founded, Greenstone Homes.

Continued from page 2

perspective on what the issues were on both sides of the coin. I learned that those sides have a lot more in common than people generally give them credit for. Mostly people who are developing are trying to do the right thing, and they’re trying to follow regulations. And, very often, people who are in a community want to see economic development happen; they just want to have it happen the right way.

Q: Looking back on three decades of building homes and developing communities, what are you most proud of?

A: I’m most proud that it’s here 30 years later. We’ve been able to build an organization that has some sustainability to it. That’s due to a lot of people. There aren’t a lot of businesses that last 30 years. Sometimes, (what I’m proud of is) something as simple as a tree. I look at a tree and say, ‘That’s a tree that’s worked out. It was put in the right place, and it’s been there now for 20 years and it looks nice there.’ It’s not just that we build nice houses; it’s caring about those types of things.

Q: With all your success, I’m guessing you’ve probably always been the ambitious type. What kind of kid were you in high school?

A: I was probably a nerd. I mean, it wasn’t that I was never involved in athletics. I did get a letter in track in high school, high and low hurdles. Mostly, I was probably nerdy and intellectual, pretty studious.

Q: You’ve talked in the past about growing up in the north central part of Spokane where parks, sidewalks and housing diversity really created a strong sense of community. How do you think living in that neighborhood affected some of the priorities that you have instilled at Greenstone?

A: I think my experiences growing up in that neighborhood really formed the foundation for a lot of the thinking that we have as a company about what it takes to have a great neighborhood. Having grown up in a very strong and stable neighborhood and looking at the things that made it so and trying to take those factors and apply them in the context of a modern neighborhood.

You can’t go back and redo the past, but you can take lessons from the past. There were things there that made that neighborhood work. Parks were kind of the focal point of that community. So, we’ve really looked at parks and open spaces at being critical center points for the communities we develop.

The other part of it was just walkability. You walked to things, and those neighborhoods were a bit more mixed use so stores were close by.

Q: Do you think Liberty Lake has succeeded in being the sort of walkable, mixed-use community with accessible open space that you’re talking about?

“When I first moved to Liberty Lake, there were 3,000 people here. These were the people who built a sewer plant, who created trails, who built Pavillion Park, they got HP out here. I saw the power of people working together to make their community stronger.”

— JIM FRANK

SPLASH PHOTO BY CRAIG HOWARD

A: Liberty Lake has a really nice mix of uses in the community, so things are close by. I’ve asked people ‘Where would you live in Spokane County if you didn’t have a car?’ And honestly, Liberty Lake is one of the few places that you could live and not own a car. Liberty Lake has employment within walking distance, grocery stores and more. I grew up in an area where there was a strong sense of neighborhood where lower density and higher density housing could co-exist with commercial and office uses. It really comes down to a design and the details of that. When you look at Liberty Lake, the details of that have been implemented pretty well, so you’ve got residential , for example, across the street from the Meadowwood Technology Campus.

That’s a very nice pedestrian corridor there, and I think the things that are happening on the commercial side of it actually support and enhance what’s happening on the residential side of it.

Q: Where did the vision for the Liberty Lake community originate?

A: It started with a mixed use plan that Bill Main had conceived. It consisted of a retail center and a business district and the residential all merged together in a mixeduse community. HP (Hewlett Packard) was the first commercial tenant. That was the late ’70s. Then it was a decade before anything of any consequence came in because you just got caught in the very difficult times for real estate in the early ’80s, when interest rates were sky high. It wasn’t until 1990 when you saw more residential and the commercial, and they both developed side by side. From 1990 over basically the next 25 years, both of them grew at kind of an equal pace. Telect came in and Itron and lots of others at the same time the residential was growing. We have an aerial picture of Liberty Lake in 1994, and there was virtually nothing here.

Q: What can you tell us about Bill Main and his role in believing what Liberty Lake could become?

A: I got to know Bill way back in the

days when I was doing land use and environmental work. He was a real estate developer. He was a visionary. He had some great ideas about land use. The original concept of Meadowwood, which we eventually built out, was the concept that Bill initially had.

He got derailed by the very difficult real estate times of the 1980s. He got Meadowwood approved in 1975 but wasn’t really able to develop it until 1995. In the meantime, Bill survived all of that. We had a good partnership for about 20 years until Bill retired. I think Bill is proud of the way Liberty Lake turned out.

Q: How did the incorporation of Liberty Lake in 2001 affect the course of development here?

A: Liberty Lake formed late so they were able to come in with a set of development regulations that had a real urban character to them. Most jurisdictions have suburban development regulations where these mixed uses don’t take place. They don’t encourage parks and open space and bike trails or narrow streets and traffic calming. They really were designed for very low-density, automobile-oriented development. (Former Liberty Lake Community Development Director) Doug Smith was instrumental in designing the original set of development regulations for Liberty Lake and I think, by and large, Liberty Lake has done a good job under Doug and other people with the city and the planning commissions we’ve had. We made a provision for a lot of these things we are talking about — narrower, more pedestrian-oriented public right-ofways, higher density residential regulations that allow for townhouses. Even things like roads standards — you have cities that require big, wide roads. You look at Molter, for example, it has a collector, arterial status but once the residential area begins, the road narrows and you have those center islands and it really slows the traffic down. It’s the same thing with Country Vista. It’s only 32 feet wide, and it’s tree-lined. You have islands. These things slow traffic down.

Q: Is it fair to say that the city of Liberty Lake essentially followed Greenstone’s

lead as far as establishing regulations that would determine how the city continued to develop?

A: I think they adopted the concept of mixed use, of walkability, of parks and open space. They saw that and said, ‘That’s the direction we want to go.’ They could have gone a different direction. They could have said we want to be more suburban — we don’t want this mixed-use stuff. I think they made a decision that this was the city we want to be. At the end of the day, the people that were involved in forming the city supported that approach. We were all on the same page. I think that’s part of the reason that Liberty Lake is turning out the way it is. We’re all trying to accomplish the same thing.

Q: How do you think incorporation has worked out overall?

A: I think it’s been fantastic. First of all, you look at the level of service. It’s far superior to what we would have with the county.

We have our own library. We have a fantastic police department. We have a fantastic police chief. I think it has also strengthened our sense of community. I think we feel like we are a place, that we belong to something.

I think that all of us recognize that we are Liberty Lakers. That sense of community has enabled us to move forward with things like Pavillion Park and Rocky Hill Park and the Farmers Market and all kinds of things.

Just look at the roadwork that’s been done over the summer.

Q: The latest Greenstone project that we’re hearing a lot about is Kendall Yards, just outside downtown Spokane and actually only about a mile south of where you grew up. Do you think Kendall Yards will have a galvanizing effect in that area in the way a development like Meadowwood did in Liberty Lake?

A: I think there are two or three levels at which Kendall Yards will have an enormous impact. One level is that it’s going to open up public resources that have never been open to the city before. The city has a lot of parkland in the Spokane River gorge. They had a plan and a vision for the river gorge but it was put away on a shelf for 100 years.

It really goes back to the Olmsted brothers and the original vision for a parks and open space corridor through the gorge. What

See FRANK, page 7

The Splash

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6 • NOVEMBER 2013

NEWS

The Splash

LLSWD evaluating funding for sewer plant upgrade Rate hikes among many items on table to pay for $12.5 million improvement

By Craig Howard

SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

The past year has been a time of transition for the Liberty Lake Sewer and Water District.

To begin with, the award-winning utility was faced with the task of replacing a pair of institutional pillars in longtime Commissioner Frank Boyle, who passed away last fall, and veteran General Manager Lee Mellish, who retired this spring.

While the successors for Boyle and Mellish — Commissioner Kottayam V. Natarajan Jr. and General Manager BiJay Adams — have continued the district’s tradition of reliable leadership, another significant shift is on the horizon for the organization known throughout the region as a leader in environmental stewardship.

As usual, LLSWD is addressing the latest challenge with a proactive approach.

The Board of Commissioners meeting on Oct. 8 included a presentation by district engineer Dennis Fuller of Century West Engineering Corp. outlining the agenda for phase two of the district’s reclaimed water plant upgrade. Along with other wastewater dischargers throughout the state, LLSWD will be required to implement plant improvements to meet standards for reduced phosphorous, ammonia and biochemical oxygen demand in the Spokane River.

The upgrades must be completed by 2018 to meet increasingly stringent requirements for wastewater discharge outlined in LLSWD’s most recent operating permit. The new guidelines are being established to safeguard water quality in both the Spokane River and Lake Spokane in response to high concentrations of phosphorous, ammonia, oxygen-reliant pollutants and low river flows that wreak havoc on fish and the accompanying ecosystem.

“Basically, this is a compliance schedule with certain milestones along the way,” said Dan Grogg, chief operator at the LLSWD water reclamation facility.

The sewer plant first went online in 1982 and underwent a major expansion in 2006. The first phase of upgrades seven years ago ran just under $12 million with the purpose of achieving higher levels of phosphorous removal. The district paid for the project through cash reserves and a loan from the state public works trust fund.

Adams noted that LLSWD was ahead

SPLASH PHOTO BY CRAIG HOWARD

Liberty Lake Sewer and Water District General Manager BiJay Adams (left) discusses a proposed reclaimed water plant upgrade with Dan Grogg, chief operator of the plant at LLSWD headquarters. of the curve in 2006 when it came to meeting required standards.

“We could have waited; we just took the initiative to do it earlier,” he said.

The latest restrictions will set the allowable level of phosphorous at 50 micrograms per liter, a level Grogg says “our engineers are confident we can meet.”

The district received a $900,000 loan from the Washington State Water Pollution Control Revolving Fund to address design work on phase two of the plant upgrade. The blueprint includes a new filtration building with submerged membrane filtration, ultraviolet disinfection system modifications and other minor improvements. The design is expected to be complete by this time next year.

“It’s pretty minimal compared to what was done in 2006,” Adams said.

The district is also monitoring the growth rate in the Liberty Lake area and its impact on reclaimed water treatment.

Compared to Spokane County’s rate of 1.26 percent per year, Liberty Lake is growing at a pace of 6.23 percent each year. On the commercial side, the rate in the LLSWD service area is 6 percent.

LLSWD Commissioner Tom Agnew said “there have been no real surprises” thus far in reports pertaining to the impending upgrade.

“We’re pretty optimistic we’ll be able to treat our wastewater in a superior fash-

ion,” Agnew said.

Cost for the latest plant upgrade has been established at $12.54 million. Adams said the district will first seek to cover the cost through a loan from the same revolving fund being accessed for the design work. The second option would be to tap into the public works trust fund utilized for phase one upgrades. Rate increases and issuing bonds have also been mentioned as revenue sources.

“It will most likely be a mixed bag,” Adams said.

Agnew said that while the public works trust fund has historically offered a more favorable interest rate than issuing bonds, a decline in that fund has meant many utilities throughout the state seeking support elsewhere. He expressed hope that the fund might be bolstered during the next legislative session.

“We’re seeing more communities not as eligible for the public works trust fund,” Agnew said. “Everything is still on the table, though. I just know that the sooner we get this thing financed, the cheaper it’s going to be. Interest rates are not going down.”

The district does not qualify for hardship grants to pay for the project based on its current low rates and income levels of the area it serves. Adams added that rate hikes could be part of the overall funding scenario at some point.

“Rates are probably going to increase because we’ll have to pay the loan back,” he said. “We just don’t know when and how much.”

As for the three-year gap between the deadline for plant improvements and implementation of the restrictions, Adams said regulators like the Department of Ecology understand the transition will take time.

“It will be the best available technology out there to remove phosphorous,” Adams said. “We’re changing the dynamic of the plant. They’re giving us until 2021 to ramp up.”

Ultimately, filtration improvements at the plant will result in the discharge of Class A reclaimed water that could be utilized for irrigation purposes. Adams said areas that could benefit from such irrigation include local golf courses, parks and agricultural land near the treatment plant as well as Saltese Flats to the west.

The district has already installed 4,500 feet of reclaimed water line, commonly referred to as “purple pipe.”

Adams said the transport of water to a site like Saltese Flats would be more cost-effective than delivery to a closer property such as the Meadowwood Golf Course.

“Saltese is twice as far away as Meadowwood, but you’re not digging up roads,” he said.

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 7

NEWS

FRANK Continued from page 4

happened was the railroads were already on that property when the Olmsted brothers created that report. The railroads shut that property off. There were three major railroad lines through there, so it became a factory railroad yard. Now that area can be accessed. I think the second thing that Kendall Yards will do is demonstrate the viability of urban neighborhoods, that they are wonderful places. We didn’t really have a strong urban neighborhood before Kendall Yards. I think people will look at Kendall Yards and say, ‘These townhouses are working. The concept of mixing residential and commercial is working.’ I think that will be transforming over the next 20 years. I think the final thing that Kendall Yards is doing is injecting an enormous amount of investment into the West Central neighborhood.

As a result, I think you’ll see some real changes in that neighborhood.

Q: Speaking of mixed use development and transforming a neighborhood, what is your opinion on the idea of a central business district in Liberty Lake? The idea was introduced a few years ago but we haven’t heard much about it for a while.

A: I think it’s still in the plan. You have to recognize that to make that change is going to take time. Once the new freeway interchange is in, I think narrowing Liberty Lake Road to two or three lanes makes sense.

There’s no reason for it to be five lanes.

That’s going to open up an open space pedestrian corridor there that makes it easier to get to the bridge over the freeway. I think it opens up the opportunity, as properties there are developed, to create street fronting, retail uses. You have a lot of uses on that street already, so it’s really just a matter of how those uses are going to redevelop. It’s not that complicated. It would be a variation of what’s already there, but by narrowing that street you can start to create a center for Liberty Lake, and that’s one thing we don’t have right now.

Q: The most talked about property in Liberty Lake — the 6.4 acres owned by the city — sits right outside your office. The city has revisited a plan for a townsquare park recently, but are you disappointed that nothing has been developed there yet?

A: I think over time, some things can happen to an area that could be an urban core for the city. If some level of municipal services can happen there, it will probably be a good thing. It could probably be used for some kind of mixed-use development once the city decides what it’s going to do. I don’t think the city can use the entire 6.4 acres.

Some of it they could use for city functions and the rest of it could go to urban infill kind of uses. There’s open space there that could allow the Farmers Market to expand and become more viable. There’s been talk that it would be a good place for a new post

office. I think it’s all part of an evolution there, but I don’t think it’s going to happen over a five-year period; it’s going to be 10 or 20 years. A big key to that is a new freeway interchange, because all the traffic will then not be on Liberty Lake Road. Some of it will be on a bridge that will be located to the west. When that happens, there’s no reason for Liberty Lake Road to be four lanes anymore. The city has to have a vision. I think they do have the right vision for what that downtown core will be over time.

Q: It’s clear your company is about more than just building homes. Themes like conservation, preservation and restoration seem to emerge often when Greenstone is involved in a development. Why is a priority placed on these pursuits?

A: There are assets that every community has that are irreplaceable. You want to make sure that the things that make you special and unique stay there. I think there are a lot of things we’ve done in Liberty Lake as a community that fall into that conservation category. Part of it is protecting the lake watershed. I think we’ve done a good job of that. The community as a whole, the sewer district, the city, the people who live around the lake, everyone has been a contributor to preserving that lake watershed.

There are some important corridors from the lake to the freeway. That corridor along Liberty Lake Road that serves as outlet for the lake, stormwater control, open space and pedestrian space is another important corridor that’s been preserved. Then, along the Spokane River, just recognizing that the corridor and the habitat along the river are irreplaceable. All of those things have been a big part of Liberty Lake and a big part of our philosophy as a company. You have to recognize what’s important and try to maintain that. When we developed Rocky Hill, we saw that rocky knoll and realized this could be a very special place. It’s been part of this land for a long time, so we wanted to protect that. At Rocky Hill Park, four acres of that park are that rocky knoll.

Q: What’s the best part about living in Liberty Lake?

A: We are all neighbors, we support each other, we work together to solve problems.

When I first moved to Liberty Lake, there were 3,000 people here. These were the people who built a sewer plant, who created trails, who built Pavillion Park, they got HP out here. I saw the power of people working together to make their community stronger.

Part of it is creating opportunities to gather.

It’s really trying to understand what it takes to build community. You throw mud on the wall and some of it sticks and some of it doesn’t. I really think the Farmers Market is mud on the wall that stuck. It’s really been fantastic for building that sense of community. It’s become an institution out here.

People come to the market just to gather. It’s kind of having a vision and working to find an answer that works for everyone. We’ve been fortunate here in Liberty Lake — a lot of it’s worked.

Vote

Debbi Haskins

for City Council

Position One

Investing in the Future of

Liberty Lake

debjohaskins@gmail.com E N D O R S E M E N T S

NATIONAL LEGISLATOR Former Congressman George Nethercutt STATE LEGISLATORS Former Representative Lynn Schindler Former Representative David Buri

LIBERTY LAKE ELECTED OFFICIALS Mayor Steve Peterson Mayor Pro Tem Patrick Jenkins (Former) Council Member Dennis Paul (Former) Council Member Joanna Klegin (Former) Council Member Tim Shea (Former) Friends of Liberty Lake: Duane and Andre Alton Nancy and Matt Alton Barry and Sheri Baker Bob and Christana Boyle Pat and Linda Dockrey Dick Edwards Elaine Edwards Mary Edwards Wadie Elaimy Wayne Frost Bob and Barbara Gamble Silvia and David Gnotta

COUNTY ELECTED OFFICIALS County Commissioner Shelly O’Quinn County Commissioner Todd Mielke County Commissioner Al French

COMMUNITY AND BUSINESS LEADERS Bill and Judi Williams – Telect Founders Harry Mielke – Arbor Crest Dan Osborne – Premier Manufacturing Brian and Judy Jorgensen – Heartland Mall Bob Samuel – Samuel and Company Barry Baker – Baker Construction Koegen Edwards LLP Bobby Brett – Brett Sports and Entertainment

Harry and Joyce Hansen Bob and Melissa Haskins Bob and Vicki Haskins Robin Hendrick Stan and Karina Jochim Kevin and Tracy Kendrick Betty and Mike Kennedy Roy Koegen Debbie Lowthan Mike and Pat Lutzenberger Mary Kay Mace Holli Parker Rich and Cindy Perry

Marcus Poland Linda Schneider Jeff and Gaye Severs Bailey Shepherd Halle Shepherd Ben Small Bob Vaudrey Sunil Wahdwani R. PhD. Tracy Wahdwani R. PhD. Don and Nancy Walker Nick and Leslie Zilka Charmaine, “PECOS” and “RICO” Peterson

The Splash

8 • NOVEMBER 2013

NEWS

Police Report The following incidents, arrests, calls for service and citations were among those reported by the Liberty Lake Police Department between Sept. 23 and Oct. 21. The incident report is listed in chronological order.

Incidents and arrest • Fraud — At 4:30 p.m. Sept. 23, LLPD responded to the 1200 block of North Liberty Lake Road for a fraud complaint.

The complainant called to report the manager of Safeway had contacted her regarding a man who came into the store and tried to pass a check in the amount of $208.69 under her name. The man had passed the check to the store clerk, who had called the manager over to approve the check after noticing that his name had been added on top of hers on the face of the check. The manager took a picture of the check and the man’s identification, and at that point he ran out of the store.

Charges of identity theft and fraud were forwarded to the prosecutor for review.

• Family dispute over spanking — At 8:04 p.m. Sept. 23, LLPD was dispatched to the 25000 block of East Hawkstone Loop in regards to child abuse. The complainant reported an intoxicated male was hitting her grandchild. Upon arrival, officers made contact with the male subject, who reported that he was babysitting for a neighbor and when the grandmother of the child arrived he started to act up and the male subject spanked him on the rear-end with an open hand. The grandmother reportedly did not like this and contacted police. The mother of the child reported that she did not believe the male subject had done anything wrong as her son becomes obstinate to not listen and becomes upset easily. The mother also reported that the grandmother dislikes anyone who is brought around the children. Officers also tried to speak with the child, who appeared extremely tired and would not talk with them. His mother asked him several times to go to bed, and he would not listen and remained on the sofa. An officer advised him to listen to his mother, and he went into his room.

No crime committed, but the babysitter was advised it would be best if he did not physically punish the child.

• Assault — A 34-year-old Liberty Lake man was arrested at 6:26 p.m. Sept. 24 at the 23000 block of East Boone for assault.

A witness reported the man threw his girlfriend off of the porch and onto the ground. The female got up but appeared to have hurt her ankle. Officers arrived and spoke to the female, who reported that she had been residing with the man and dating for the past seven months and started arguing when he requested she move out, as he intended to make amends with his ex-wife. The female victim then reported she became upset and threw water at the man and kicked

holes in the wall. The man reportedly hit and shoved the female but said he only did so to keep her away from him. He said he only threw her to the ground in order to keep her from damaging the walls.

Officers arrested the man for assault, and he was booked into Spokane County Jail.

Charges were also forwarded to the prosecutor for the female victim, who may be charged with malicious mischief dependant on the prosecutor’s decision.

• Assault — A 26-year-old Liberty Lake man was arrested at 5:40 p.m. Sept. 25 at the 22000 block of East Country Vista Drive for assault. LLPD was dispatched regarding a possible domestic violence in progress. Upon arrival, the victim reported she and her boyfriend had lived together for five years and an argument had started when she had asked him to stop playing video games and help her. He reportedly struck her in the back of the head with his arm. When the victim tried to contact 911, he attempted to remove the phone from her face by placing his hand inside her mouth causing a tear to the inside of her mouth. The victim reported the man had been violent in the past. Based on the evidence and injuries, the man was transported to the Spokane County Jail, where he was booked for assault.

• Child luring — At 6:50 p.m. Sept. 25, LLPD responded to the 24000 block of East Desmet Road in response to a child luring incident. The complainant reported he and his brother were playing in the front yard of their neighbor’s residence when he heard the sound of a girl scream somewhere west of the location. A couple minutes later, he observed a white older model van parked approximately 100 feet away near the mailboxes. The complainant observed the male driver of the van exit the vehicle, then open and close the back doors before getting back into the van. When the complainant looked over at the male driver, the male would look away and act as though he was doing something. The two boys decided to go inside their house and as they were approximately 30 feet from the front door, the van started to drive towards them. As the male drove by them, he put his arm out the window and yelled, “Hey.” The boys went inside and heard tires “screech” before observing the van drive away westbound. The van is described as being an older model, white in color with tinted windows. Complainant reported that although the windows were tinted, you could still see inside them. There were no visible markings on the van, and the boys did not think the van had a front license plate. Neither of the two boys had seen the van in the area before. The driver is described as being a white male in his 40s with a skinny build, short hair and a black beard. If you see this van or the driver in the area, please contact law enforcement immediately given the recent luring inci-

dents reported in Spokane County.

• Child luring follow-up — At 11:27 a.m. Sept. 26, LLPD initiated a traffic stop for a vehicle matching the description of a vehicle implicated in the recent child luring incidents in Spokane County at Interstate 90 and North Liberty Lake Road. Upon contact, the officer observed all the seats had been taken out of the back. When asked about this, the driver claimed he didn’t have seats in the back due to his part-time job of moving elderly with wheelchairs. When asked why he didn’t have a ramp, the driver claimed the lift and ramp were currently out of the vehicle. An incident report was taken.

• Vehicle prowl — At 5:15 a.m. Sept.

27, LLPD responded to the 1800 block of North Caufield for a vehicle prowl.

The complainant reported someone had entered his vehicle during the night and stole $10 in change. There were no signs of forced entry, and the complainant said the vehicle was unlocked. The complainant reported an incident of the same nature a few weeks prior where his wallet was taken from his vehicle and a gas card used at a local gas station. The complainant was advised to keep his vehicle locked.

• Theft — At 5:55 p.m. Sept. 29, LLPD responded to a theft at the 1900 block of North Aladdin Road. A victim reported his vehicle had been entered overnight and a 38-caliber black revolver had been stolen along with a $400 pair of prescription sunglasses. The victim reportedly locked the vehicle so was unsure of how the person entered his vehicle. No serial number for the firearm could be located.

• Harassment — A 38-year-old Kent, Wash., woman was arrested at 11:13 a.m. Sept. 29 at the Spokane Airport for harassment that took place at the 25000 block of East Hawkstone Loop.

The victim reported being in a current custody battle with his ex-girlfriend (the arrested woman), who threatened to have him killed and threatened to assault his current girlfriend. An LLPD officer arrived and spoke to the victim, who reported the woman has been telling drug dealers and gang members from the west side of the state that the victim is an informant and should be killed. A voicemail message was played for the officer where the woman made threatening remarks, but was not very clear as she was yelling loudly. The officer decided that based upon the information provided, he would detain the woman at the airport for interview. Upon arrival at the airport, the woman was escorted to an interview room and advised of her Miranda rights. After the interview, the officer placed the woman under arrest for domestic violence threats to kill, at which point she cursed and yelled at the officer. She was transported to the Spokane County Jail. Charges were also forwarded to the prosecutor for harassment in regards to threats to assault the

Calls for service Reported by the Liberty Lake Police Department from Sept. 23 to Oct. 21 Agency assist 1 Alarm 2 Burglary 7 Business or license violation 1 Child abuse or neglect 1 Citizen assist 4 Citizen dispute 3 Deceased person 2 Domestic violence 5 Drug sale/manufacture 1 DUI 5 Fraud 1 Fugitive 1 Harassment 2 Lost or found property 1 Malicious mischief 3 Property theft 3 Recovered stolen vehicle 1 Resisiting/interfering with police 1 Suspicious person/circumstance 5 Threatening 2 Traffic accident 3 Traffic offense 20 Vehicle prowl 4 Welfare check 4

Citations Reported by the Liberty Lake Police Department from Sept. 23 to Oct. 21 Assault IV 4 Defective muffler 2 Driving without license/ID 1 DUI 5 DWLS 22 Effective windshield wipers 1 Expired registration 13 Failure to obey traffic control 1 Failure to stop/yield 1 Fugitive of the state 1 Liability insurance 21 Solicitor/peddler license 1 Speeding 36 Speeding in school zone 1 Theft 1 Use of cell phone 1 victim’s current girlfriend.

• Burglary — At 5:01 a.m. Oct. 2, LLPD responded to the 23000 block of East Valleyway for an occupied residential burglary. The complainant reported that during the night, the residence had been entered and an estimated $1,260 in items taken. The complainant’s family reported being asleep while the burglary was taking place. No signs of forced entry were found, and it was determined the door may have been left unlocked. The incident was referred to the LLPD detective.

• Stolen vehicle — At 3:39 a.m. Oct. 3, LLPD recovered a stolen vehicle at the

See POLICE, page 9

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 9

NEWS

POLICE Continued from page 8

2300 block of North Madson Road. An officer driving through the parking lot of the Quality Inn and Suites noted the driver’s side door of the vehicle was open. After running the plate and coming back as stolen, the registered owner was contacted.

At the request of the owner, the vehicle was searched and an air soft pistol that had been painted black was taken into evidence. At 7:20 a.m., the owner of the vehicle called 911 to report the vehicle had been stolen again, but after making contact with an officer, it was discovered the owner had gone to the wrong motel to pick up the car. The officer waited on site with the car until the owner took possession of the vehicle. At 11:27 a.m., a female made contact with LLPD in regards to finding out if her vehicle had been towed. The female suspect stated she woke up and her vehicle was gone and wanted to know if it had been towed by an officer. After questioning, the subject became evasive and when asked for a location an officer could meet her and take a report, a male subject in the background could be heard saying, “hang up.” Both individuals were identified and the incident was placed under further investigation.

• Golf cart dispute — At 7:28 p.m. Oct. 4, LLPD made contact with two subjects

in regards to a threat at East Country Vista Drive and North Legacy Ridge Drive. A complainant’s 13-year-old daughter was picking up school children from a bus stop in a golf cart, when a female subject stopped the girl and began yelling and threatening her. Both parties involved were given information on the rules and regulations to driving a golf cart.

• Garage burglary — At 10:04 a.m. Oct. 6, LLPD was dispatched to the 20000 block of East Deschutes Avenue in response to a residential burglary. Upon arrival, the complainant reported leaving the garage door open during the night and finding in the morning that a bike valued at $800 and a weed eater were missing.

• Unattended children — At 11:20 a.m.

Oct. 6, LLPD received a call for a welfare check at the 25000 block of East Hawkstone Loop. The complainant called and requested police check on his child, as he believed he and his siblings had been left alone overnight. Officers arrived and spoke to the 10-year-old, who reported his mother had gone to the grocery store and left him with his 7-year-old and 11-month-old siblings. He became concerned when she didn’t return home. He reportedly called his mother and texted her multiple times with no response.

When he woke up in the morning, his mother was still not home. Officers made contact with the mother, who reported she had been to the casino and

had stayed there until 2 a.m., when she returned home and went to sleep. She reported waking up at 7 a.m. and going back to the casino. She reported she did not make contact with her children during that time. Officers advised the subject it was inappropriate to leave her children unattended overnight. This report will be forwarded to another agency for review.

• Stolen property — At 8 a.m. Oct. 8, LLPD was dispatched to the intersection of East Mission and North Molter in regards to a theft. A complainant reported that sometime during the night, a portable light stand that belonged to Wm. Winkler Co. was stolen from a worksite. Officers were provided with the VIN number and license plate information along with photographs of the trailer, which is valued at $9,000.

The case was put under investigation.

• Drug arrest — A 32-year-old Otis Orchards woman was arrested at 12:46 p.m. Oct. 8 on eastbound Interstate 90 for possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver — heroin, 100 grams. She was booked into Spokane County Jail.

• Golf cart accident — At 3:50 p.m. Oct. 11, LLPD responded to the 21000 block of East Country Vista Drive for a golf cart accident. Officers spoke to witnesses, who reported a boy sitting on the lap of another rider had fallen out of the cart and struck his head on the asphalt when the driver took a turn. The victim incurred a cut to the back of his head.

• Burglary — At 12:11 a.m. Oct. 13, LLPD responded to the 1600 block of North Cirque Lane for a burglary. The complainant reported going outside and noticing the garage door was open, her vehicle dome light was on and a purse was missing. Officers arrived, and the complainant reported a mountain bike, a pair of ski boots, a wine picnic backpack and a set of keys in her purse had also been taken, estimating the loss at $160.

• Shoplifting — A 47-year-old Spokane Valley woman was arrested at 1:06 p.m.

Oct. 13 at the 1200 block of North Liberty Lake Road for theft. She reportedly tried to leave a local store with $44.76 in products but was caught and was being detained. An officer arrived and placed the woman under arrest for theft.

• Burglary — At 5:45 a.m. Oct. 16, LLPD responded to the 1600 block of North Holl Road when a complainant reported that someone had entered his garage overnight and stolen two mountain bikes, a wrench and socket kit, a reciprocating saw and ammunition. The items were valued at $1,100.

• Burglary — At 2:21 p.m. Oct. 16, LLPD took a report of a burglary at a home construction site at the 20000 block of East Glenbrook. The complainant reported that a $1,500 gas fireplace had been stolen sometime between Sept. 22-23, causing $200 in damage. The matter was placed under investigation.

For Balanced Growth And Economic Development Retain

Lori

CAITLYN EWASKO

OLANDER Liberty Lake City Council, Position 1

NO CAVITY CLUB WINNER!

Winner of a $25 Toys R Us gift certificate

If you are too busy with family and careers to follow or get involved in politics, let me be your spokesman.

I will continue to stand for the following: • A smaller government that lives within its means • Maintaining funding for public safety, streets, parks and trails • Encouraging economic growth by decreasing the utility tax and actively recruiting businesses • Developing a plan for growth that maintains the community feel as the city doubles in size over the next several years

Endorsed by We Believe ~ We Vote Dr. Ross Simonds

Dr. Amanda Roper

22106 E. Country Vista Dr. Suite D

893-1119

www.LibertyLakeDental.com

I would like to hear how you want your tax dollars spent … pool, parks, community center?

lolander@libertylakewa.gov

The Splash

10 • NOVEMBER 2013

Haskins Olander

POSITION 1

Severs Sitton

POSITION 2

Langford Tedesco

POSITION 4

Candidates work to make case to voters

Oct. 2 forum among few opportunities to deliver message

By Josh Johnson

SPLASH STAFF WRITER

Of the six candidates vying for the three contested Liberty Lake City Council seats in the Nov. 5 election, four are new faces to city government. Outside of old-fashioned door-belling and sign-waving, an Oct. 2 forum organized by the Greater Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce presented one of the few opportunities to visit with voters.

A crowd of about 50 people attended to hear from five of the candidates — Position 1 challenger Debbi Haskins missed after an unexpected four-day stay in the hospital, for which she has recovered.

With ballots already mailed to voters and the election less than a week after publication date, The Splash pulled from comments at the forum as well as separate interviews with each of the candidates to shed light on the topics being discussed in each race as the finish line approaches.

While many topics were covered, this article will specifically highlight three: 1.

What uniquely qualifies the candidate; 2.

The candidate’s view of the utility tax; and 3. One person or thing the candidate admired from recent City Council history.

Candidate qualifications Position 1 Lori Olander, 50, a nurse anesthetist who is retired from serving in the U.S. Navy, may not have had her opponent at the forum, but she worked hard to distinguish herself nonetheless with a mantra of “small government, low taxes and balanced growth.”

Appointed as a Council member is June 2012, she has been one of the most consistent critics of the utility tax, stating at the forum that “all of services we want to provide need to be paid for with the sales tax.”

She said she is nervous about rapid growth — especially residential growth that

is outpacing the capacity of local schools — and said the city’s “biggest challenge is retaining that feel as a small city as we surge ahead anticipating a doubling of our size.”

Haskins, 51, works as a paralegal for Koegen Edwards LLP, a job she said has provided a wealth of experience in the world of municipal finance. The law firm represents Spokane County and many cities and towns — although, she made clear, Liberty Lake was not among them — all experience she believes would suit her well for a role on the finance committee.

“I’ve been to numerous (meetings of) county commissioner, City Council, school board, library board, fire district — a lot of work with government,” she said. “We are doing bond issues so we’re doing things and we’re helping people, so I get to see the good side of what can happen.”

Haskins, who was born and raised in Spokane Valley and moved to Liberty Lake three years ago, met Mayor Steve Peterson through her job. She talked to Peterson before deciding to interview for a vacancy on the Council last year, and when she decided to run for election this time, Peterson endorsed her candidacy.

Position 2 The only position without an incumbent — Council Member Josh Beckett chose not to seek another term — this will be the first political office for either Hugh Severs, 27, or Jeff Sitton, 36.

Severs runs a financial strategies group with Northwestern Mutual and has a degree in landscape architecture. As a resident of the River District, he said he wants to be a part of maintaining the traits that caused he and his wife to choose Liberty Lake to raise their two sons, ages 6 and 3. “(They) are the inspiration for my desire to make our community as awesome for them as it is for us,” he said.

Sitton owns Spokane Roofing Co. and is also the father of two young children, ages 5 and 3. He emphasized his experience making difficult decisions and abilities as a communicator as reasons he would do a good job.

“I feel that as a City Council member,

I will bring forth a common-sense approach, a positive, proactive attitude and a willingness to get the job done,” he said.

Position 4 Incumbent Odin Langford, 61, has served as a Council member since 2007. His challenger, Mike Tedesco, 35, has a master’s degree in urban planning and has held various jobs focusing on economic development.

The age disparity between the two led to one of the lighter moments at the candidate forum, when Tedesco joked that “part of my (campaign) approach is bringing a fresh perspective — because I’m really trying to accentuate the age difference between us.”

Langford responded by recalling a quote

by Ronald Reagan: “I will not use (age) to my advantage, nor will I ever declare that his youth and inability and inexperience is an issue.”

Both men emphasized public safety.

Langford has a master’s degree in criminal justice, and Tedesco said his urban planning expertise is also useful in this area, citing the example of how planning for mixed-income housing correlates with lower crime. Like Severs, Tedesco is seeking to be the first Council member from the River District.

Langford also distinguished himself from other candidates by making a point to talk about paying off all long-term debts.

Utility tax Position 1 Olander said at the forum that while she hadn’t though much about the utility tax when she first joined the Council, it “has kind of become a topic I’ve championed.”

She called the link between the tax and the street maintenance program it is now linked to “a little bit artificial.”

“We never had it for our street fund before; it’s just that amount of money has freed up the general fund to build up a fairly large amount of money that’s not reserves and that’s available for spending on projects,” she said, adding that growth should provide an influx of sales and property tax to pay for these needs.

She added that the tax hurts business recruitment, using Spokane Valley as an example of a city that only taxes telephone.

Haskins said that in her view, the city is running really well at present, “and if something’s going well, don’t try to change something.”

“I know the big taboo word right now is the utility tax, but I think that’s what’s helping this community,” Haskins said. “It doesn’t mean we need to keep it at what it is right now.”

She said that as far as the argument that a prior Council planned for the utility tax to be phased out, “it’s pretty difficult in this environment to ever know what’s going to happen in this economy.”

She said she would want to study more to know what rate she thinks the tax should be charged at, but that she is “definitely opposed to raising it.”

Position 2 Sitton and Severs both expressed an interest in maintaining the tax at its current 3 percent rate — at least for now.

Sitton did say he would be open to “tweaking” the tax to make it more business friendly.

“We want to attract businesses,” he said.

“In regards to the utility tax, I believe it brings in about $660,000 per year ... and $40,000 of that is paid by Huntwood, I understand. You know, that’s a chunk of change for any business.”

Severs praised city staff and the research and expertise that went into recommending the continued need for the tax in conjunction with street maintenance.

“Maybe (in the future) we are able to lower it, I don’t know. That will be a topic I’m sure we’ll be looking at maybe 5, 10, 15 years from now,” he said, emphasizing that the need to keep the city on track with great infrastructure was paramount for the time being.

Position 4 Tedesco’s approach to the utility tax was unique from other candidates in that he

See ELECTION, page 21

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 11

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M|Tu|W|F 8-5 Th 10-7 Closed Sat & Sun

Elect a City Council (Pos 2.) member with common sense, ethics and real world experience who will fight for:

Annual Homeowner’s Meeting Wednesday

Nov. 13th 7:00 pm City Hall

22710 E. Country Vista

There will be a drawing for gift certificates for those in attendance www.meadowwoodhoa.com

• Family-Oriented, Safe, Clean Community • Strategic & Efficient use of Government Resources • Business Friendly, Economically Stimulating Environment

Endorsements Individuals:

Fmr. Congressman George Nethercutt Mayor Steve Peterson Barry Baker Wayne Frost Mike & Pat Lutzenberger Andy Olson Charmaine Peterson Bob Wiese Bill & Judi Williams

Organizations:

We Believe We Vote

“ I love raising my young children

in Liberty Lake, but I’m concerned about where improperly planned growth can take a city. As your Council member, I’ll strive to make Liberty Lake even better than today for our children and grandchildren.

— Hugh

”

12 • NOVEMBER 2013

NEWS

Mayor presents council with balanced, diverse budget for 2014

project — $450,000 — would be covered by allocations from the real estate excise Mayor Steve Peterson and representa- tax. The Spokane Transit Authority — tives of the Liberty Lake City Council which operates a bus park-and-ride lot on sported new lapel-pin microphones at the site — would cover $80,000 of the cost.

“We do have a plan,” Allen said. “This their meeting on Oct. 15. shows you what the project would look While the enhanced sound system may like and how we would pay for it.” have magnified the conversation around the dais, it was Peterson’s introduction of While controversy over the utility tax the 2014 municipal budget from the po- swirled throughout 2013, the 3 percent dium that stole the show. toll on cable, phone, gas, electric and waste With a priority on “staying ahead of the management is slated to continue as a cencurve,” the mayor told the governing board tral revenue source for 2014. Funds from the tax are now dedicated that the financial game plan to road preservation such for next year would “focus as the kind seen on Valleyon transportation and retail ONLINE ONLY way and Mission this year. sales development” while The Liberty While no street capital projalso addressing improveLake City ects are scheduled for 2014, ments at city-owned propCouncil Allen said the city would erties like Pavillion Park like to address renovation met Oct. 29 and the Liberty Lake Police designs for Appleway and (after the press deadline precinct.

Liberty Lake Road next year for this month’s Splash) “In 2012, I came into ofwhile aiming for construcfor a special budget fice and set about to impletion in 2015. meeting.

Read about it ment a plan,” Peterson said.

Next year’s budget will online today at www.

“We’ve listened to citizens also allot funds to drivand tried to respond.” libertylakesplash.com. ing range improvements The mayor’s overview at the Trailhead at Liberty of the budget for next year Lake Golf Course as well as the purchase began with a list of municipal highlights of maintenance equipment and golf carts. from 2013, including the installation of The city will continue to pay down the the Fallen Heroes Circuit Course at Rocky Hill Park, construction of the Harvard debt on the golf course in 2014 but see the Road roundabout and the arrival of Vivint debt retired on City Hall in June of next year. Through three quarters of this year, Inc. Trailhead revenue is exceeding expendi“Vivint chose Liberty Lake because tures by $120,000. of the people here, because they like the Parks and open space will also benefit community,” Peterson said. from the addition of half-a-dozen seasonSpending priorities for 2014 will address al workers in 2014, bolstering the main“the issues of today,” Peterson told the tenance crew to 20. At Rocky Hill Park, council. Expenditures for next year will money has been set aside for the renoinclude upgrades to lighting, landscaping vation of an historic barn for equipment and drainage at Pavillion Park ($265,000) storage. as well as the first phase of the Liberty On the public safety side, $130,000 is Lake Sports Fields ($885,000). Consisting of 19 total funds, the 2014 budget tops out earmarked in the police capital fund for a records management system and a potenat nearly $10.8 million. tial replacement of the roof at the precinct City Administrator Katy Allen described building. how the city plans to move ahead with the Along with a banner year in permit revdevelopment of a townsquare park at the center of the city in 2014. The $655,000 enue — the total for 2013 is projected at project would cover two of the 6.4 acres $450,000 — new construction in Liberty along Meadowwood Lane and include a Lake will translate to good news on the 39-space parking lot, amphitheater, land- property tax front. The city added roughly scaping and stormwater improvements $32 million in assessed valuation this year. and walking trails. Greenstone Inc., whose The influx of permitting work will also main office sits adjacent to the property, mean moving a part-time building inspecwould cover street upgrades. tor to full-time status with benefits in 2014.

The bulk of the city’s portion for the Council Member Cris Kaminskas raised

By Craig Howard

SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

IN THE BOOKS, ON THE DOCKET A look back and ahead at business conducted by the Liberty Lake City Council

By Craig Howard

SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

In the Books (October) • Council heard a report from Kevin Wallace, executive director of the Spokane Regional Transportation Council, on the agency’s 20-year transportation plan known as “Horizon 2040.” Wallace said the document would address the diverse transportation needs of the community while placing a priority on economic vitality and job growth. Public comment on the plan began Oct. 18, with the SRTC board expected to grant its approval by Dec. 12. Liberty Lake Mayor Steve Peterson is currently serving as chair of the board.

• Bob Wiese and fellow members of the Fallen Heroes Circuit Course committee gave a report of the ribbon cutting ceremony at the first installment in Rocky Hill Park on Sept. 21, thanking the mayor, council and city staff for their support of the project. The course will eventually consist of five installments honoring each branch of the military with the next feature planned for Pavillion Park.

• Council unanimously approved the second reading of Ordinance No. 207, amending the city development code and the River District Specific Area Plan Overlay. The list of 14 amendments had been recommended by the Planning Commission.

• Bob Schneidmiller, president of Friends of Pavillion Park, announced the ticket price for the FOPP Holiday Ball in December will be reduced from $100 to $75. The event serves as the organization’s main fundraiser for the park’s summer concert series. Schneidmiller also said that FOPP has begun seeking sponsorship support from local businesses for specific events during the summer. Schneidmiller called 2013 at the park, “the best year ever.” one of the few concerns about the budget at the Oct. 15 meeting when she questioned the amount of $100,000 set aside for public art at the Harvard Road roundabout. Council will continue to funnel their inquiries to city staff through a program called “Mayor’s Budget Questions” introduced last year. Prior to the passage of the 2013 budget, the governing board generated a total of 53 MBQs. “Send us your questions,” Peterson im-

The Splash

• Council unanimously approved an interfund loan for the Harvard Road Mitigation Fund. Finance Director R.J. Stevenson said the loan will be utilized for two objectives — to fund the Harvard Road roundabout project and as a match for the Local Infrastructure Financing Tool.

• Council unanimously approved the second reading of Ordinance No. 208, establishing Aquifer Protection Fund 411. The fund will include the city’s portion of revenue from a $15 fee per household earmarked for protection of the Spokane Valley/Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer.

• City Administrator Katy Allen passed along the recommendation of the city’s salary commission regarding compensation for elected officials. The pay for mayor has been advised to increase from $750 to $1,250 per month, with council salaries going from $250 to $400 per month. There is a 30-day window for public feedback on the recommendations, expected to be included as part of the 2014 budget. The salary commission will provide a detailed report at the Nov. 5 council meeting.

• Council Member Shane Brickner applauded city staff at the Oct. 1 council meeting and, in particular, Planning and Building Services Manager Amanda Tainio, for quick reaction to a business that was going door-to-door throughout the city on Sept. 27. The company had not received permission from the city and was told to refrain from further canvassing.

On the docket (November) • A full report from the salary commission regarding the recommendation of pay raises for the mayor and City Council.

• A presentation from the Liberty Lake Rotary Club.

• Public hearings on the 2014 budget (Nov. 5 and 19 City Council meetings).

• A possible second read ordinance for a budget amendment regarding the Liberty Lake Ball Fields.

• Based on budget discussions, the possible awarding of a contract for public art at the Harvard Road roundabout.

• A resolution levying property taxes. plored at the end of the budget overview.

Allen added that the unveiling of financial strategies for next year sets the stage for feedback and discussion from council members.

“We have a lot of time to answer your questions and go over what’s in the budget,” she said.

Council is required to pass the 2014 bud-

See COUNCIL, page 13

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 13

NEWS

COUNCIL Continued from page 12

get by Dec. 31. A special budget meeting was held Oct. 29 at City Hall, while the first public hearing on the document is set for Nov. 5. Citizens will have another chance on Nov. 19 to provide feedback on the budget.

Sports field project re-bid Meanwhile, the starting date for the first phase of the Liberty Lake Sports Fields landed just outside the foul line last month.

At the Oct. 1 City Council meeting, City Administrator Katy Allen told the governing board that construction of the muchanticipated site would need to be re-bid due to a protest by one of three companies vying for the project.

“The third lowest bidder has protested the bid and in reviewing the RCW (state law), if the protest is legitimate, we cannot award the bid,” Allen said.

Allen explained that the snag occurred when a separate line item for excavation work was left out of the original bid. While AM Landshaper Inc. came in with the lowest bid at a sum within the city’s budget, the entire process would reconvene at the starting line later in October.

Welch Comer Engineers, the Coeur d’Alene firm involved in the design of the project, will absorb the rebidding cost.

Meanwhile, awarding of the design and construction of the second phase of the Sports Fields to Welch Comer was also tabled for consideration at a later date.

In June, council voted to move ahead with development of the western portion of a 20-acre lot purchased from the Central Valley School District last year. The plan calls for a pair of baseball diamonds, a picnic shelter, concrete walking paths and 79 parking spaces with a total price tag of $800,000. At the same meeting, council checked off on Welch Comer to design the first phase of the work at a cost of $44,000.

On Oct. 1, Allen said numbers are still being crunched on the second phase of the project — to include flexible sports fields — with a goal of including cost estimates in the 2014 budget process. Council has identified the development of the eastern plot as one of three municipal priorities for next year. The second phase hinges on plans Central Valley School District has for a potential school on the site.

While Allen shed light on the status of future sports fields, another topic on the city administrator’s agenda required some illumination of the solar variety.

Since mid-August, the city has been talking with a company called Western Renewable Energy about a project that would add solar panels to the building that houses the Liberty Lake Municipal Library and the Liberty Lake Police Department. Allen told council on Oct. 1 that a feasibility study and design work would cost the city

SPLASH PHOTO BY CRAIG HOWARD

Liberty Lake Mayor Steve Peterson introduces the municipal budget for 2014 at the Oct. 15 meeting of the City Council. $4,000, followed by another $11,000 if the project moved forward.

All of the expenditures on the city’s side would eventually be reimbursed following installation of the panels. The overall cost of the project has been estimated at $750,000.

Investors in renewable energy projects involving public buildings like a library, City Hall or police station are able to earn tax credits while the municipal entity realizes significant savings in utility charges.

Allen said the police/library project “could take the building off the grid.”

Allen noted that Western Renewable Energy had recently completed installation of solar panels on the campus of Whitworth University and cities like Spokane and Spokane Valley are currently looking into similar projects.

In addition to a scenario that “would mean no power bill at the end of the day,”

according to Allen, the Liberty Lake Library Foundation, a certified 501c3 organization, would benefit from the arrangement by collecting funds from investors in the project, loaning it back to them and collecting the interest.

“This is a $750,000 project and you’re getting it for free,” said Pat Dockrey, a member of the library foundation board who spoke in support of the installation at the Oct. 1 meeting. “I think it’s worth spending the $4,000.”

Josh Beckett in expressing concern about the delay in council being informed about the project as well as the upfront cost — also questioned Allen about whether or not the city had negotiated the price for the feasibility study and design. Allen acknowledged that Western had first discussed a cost of $6,250.

Last year, City Council members agreed to grant Mayor Steve Peterson authority to approve any expenditure of $5,000 or less without a council vote.

“We feel we’ve done our due diligence on this,” Allen said. “We wanted to have our ducks in a row before we came to council.”

With no council approval required for the $4,000 expenditure, the governing board backed off from its opposition. Allen said she would provide council members with a letter and an analysis report from Western the following day.

“At the end of the day, there is no specific ask of the council,” Beckett said. “Let’s just keep our fingers crossed that this doesn’t fall through.”

Council Member Shane Brickner thanked Allen, the mayor and staff for bringing forward the issue even when Peterson could have signed off on the expense without discussion.

“This shows the transparency we’re trying to move forward with,” Brickner said.

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NEWS

The Splash

This vacant parcel at 22010 E. Country Vista Drive is owned by the Spokane Valley Fire Department, which has long planned to build a new fire station on the site. However, city development regulations in effect on that stretch of Country Vista are causing SVFD to consider other options.

SVFD examines site options for new LL fire station Story and photos by Craig Howard SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

Liberty Lake’s plans to create a pedestrian-friendly, tree-lined Country Vista Drive are causing the Spokane Valley Fire Department to rethink building a fire station on a long-proposed site.

The department owns a vacant parcel at 22010 E. Country Vista that is now little more than brush and weeds. It has planned to build a new station there to better serve the north and south sides of the freeway for improved fire protection in the fastgrowing community, Deputy Chief Larry Rider said.

The city’s capital facilities plan for 201318, however, has put a kink in that proposal.

The capital facilities plan calls for boulevards, curbs, landscaping and other pedestrian-friendly amenities on Country Vista and Appleway. But a tree-centered turn lane on Country Vista near a fire station could present issues for emergency vehicles headed to and from calls. The city’s development code also dictates a building’s width, which could be problematic for the proposed station.

“We still think this is the right area for us,” said Rider, adding that he respects the city’s desire for a “walkable” community.

“We’re not trying to interfere with the city’s development concepts; we just know that would be trouble if we were trying to get on and off the street.”

Both city and fire officials emphasized the need to work together to either make the Country Vista site amenable to a fire station — or to find an alternate location.

SVFD is discussing backup plans on halfa-dozen sites in case the current parcel does not pan out.

Rider speculates that the department will emerge with a final decision on the site by the end of the year.

Liberty Lake City Administrator Katy Allen expressed confidence that the two sides could work together on a compromise that puts safety first.

“I can tell you that we’re more than willing to work with them,” she said. “I think their concern is to have full access at that property. Whatever changes we design on Country Vista will incorporate the fire district’s needs.”

Rider said the new Liberty Lake station would require an apparatus bay at least 54 feet long. The city’s development code specifies that 25 percent of a building’s width must be within 25 feet of the street.

Rider said the department has identified six alternative sites in Liberty Lake where they could build, including four plots along Country Vista not far from the current property. The remaining two are located along Appleway, one in an industrial area and another on the 6.4 acres owned by the city that could become the future home of a town square park.

The existing SVFD station in Liberty Lake was built in 1997 and is located at

Since 1997, the fire station in Liberty Lake has been located at 2218 N. Harvard Road.

2218 N. Harvard Road, a half mile away from the Country Vista site. The department is planning to move that station to the Country Vista property in combination with the construction of another station at Barker and Euclid. The Barker station and the Country Vista site would be three miles apart, providing balanced coverage for a growing community. Rider said the emergence of an area like the River District is the primary reason the department is expanding its current cadre of 10 stations.

SVFD purchased the Country Vista land, which encompasses 58,370 square feet, for $317,862. Rider said SVFD began taking a proactive approach to acquiring land for facilities in 2003. The three-acre

site at Barker and Euclid was purchased from Avista for $230,000 in 2007.

“You have to be ready with the land,” Rider said. “It takes a year to build a station.”

Liberty Lake Mayor Steve Peterson, who recently attended a three-day strategic conference sponsored by SVFD, says he has been impressed with the department’s “strategy in moving forward to respond to the needs of the community.”

When it comes to the prospect of a new station, Peterson said the city will listen to SVFD. “We’ll work with them to make sure they have the access they need,” he said.

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16 • NOVEMBER 2013

Liberty Lake, Part II

COVER STORY

The Splash

Infrastructure forms foundation for emerging River District

By Craig Howard

SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

There were no bells and whistles to celebrate the debut of Harvest Parkway this fall.

Unlike the well-publicized Harvard Road roundabout to the east, the recently completed road off Mission Avenue was not the project of honor at a ribbon-cutting ceremony nor at the center of a clamor for funds regarding complimentary public art.

Instead, road crews quietly went about the task of polishing up the first lanes of access into an area that will become the commercial heart of Liberty Lake’s emerging north side. Situated on prime retail real estate fronting Interstate 90, Telido Station is slated to become “a major retail center,” according to Jim Frank, CEO of Greenstone Homes, the company developing the land owned by Centennial Properties. The project is a subsection of the River District, a 650-acre mixed use development spearheaded by Greenstone.

“It would help establish Liberty Lake as what I call ‘a surburban town center’ so it brings an urbanness here,” said Frank. “We have a lot of jobs being created here; we have a lot of houses. The next key is to be able to get those services here to support all that employment and houses. We want to reduce the need for people to be traveling in cars for those services.”

Back in August 2009, Drew Benado of Greenstone led a group of representatives from the Liberty Lake City Council and municipal staff on a motorized tour of the River District. The excursion featured residential elements of the project, including the Bitterroot Lodge apartment complex as well as a description of plans for Telido Station. In October of that year, council approved the River District specific area plan, a road map for the community over the next 20 to 25 years.

Amanda Tainio, Liberty Lake Planning and Building Services manager, said the SAP has been established as “a mini-development code for the River District.” Along with plans for parks, trails and open space,

SPLASH PHOTOS BY CRAIG HOWARD

Harvest Parkway was put in this year in Liberty Lake’s River District. The project, funded with special financing tools intended to promote economic development, provides infrastructure to recruit businesses to what the area’s developer, Greenstone, refers to as the Telido Station commerical development.

ON THE COVER SUBMITTED RENDERING

Greenstone promotes Telido Station, a commercial development planned in Liberty Lake’s River District, with this artwork imagining what the development could one day look like. the agenda calls for 2,700 dwelling units.

“The key is to make sure the community stays connected,” Tainio said.

True to its history of championing greenspace, Greenstone included provisions for the River District that emphasize increased space in front of commercial areas, a buffer between the community and the freeway and treating landscape as anything but an afterthought. Section 3 of the SAP describes how the development “is designed as a compact, complete community” with a priority on mixed use, pedestrian access and “greenway corridors” that connect to parks, open spaces and the Spokane River.

Liberty Lake City Administrator Katy Allen said the addition of infrastructure such as water and sewer lines as well as streets represents the ground floor for the River District.

“I think we’ve all driven by that field for decades where Harvest Parkway is now,” Allen said. “The land can’t develop until there’s infrastructure like utilities and streets. This is the first step of that land

development. Now you can market it. We hope that it’s going to grow and be successful and be a contributing part of our community. It’s very, very positive to see the infrastructure going in after so many years of no activity.”

Frank says the River District’s commercial land could be broken down into a hodgepodge of uses, starting with “a strong retail element.”

“The piece we’ve developed (Harvest Parkway) wouldn’t be the heart of the shopping area, it would be more of the peripheral area that could go to offices, light manufacturing and warehousing activity,” Frank said. “Harvest Parkway is the first phase. It’s going to be a little of what you see out there with the car dealerships and RV dealerships. It’s the first step in that retail center. The market is not ready right now for a major retail center. We just have to wait for the right time for that to happen.”

Upgrades along Indiana While the emergence of Telido Station

might be a few years down the line, the River District is far from a ghost town.

The Courtyard development —featuring 15 townhomes and 32 apartment complexes — cropped up earlier this year next to Bitterroot.

Part of the Courtyard project involved extending Indiana Avenue in front of a row of stately townhomes. Frank pointed to the further expansion of Indiana, both east and west of Harvard Road, as well as an upgrade of Mission Avenue as the two main road projects remaining in the River District.

“Indiana at Harvard Road will eventually become a signalized intersection and become the major access point into the River District,” Frank said. “The other piece of it is improving Mission. Mission has been improved to a little bit past Bitterroot Road. We’re looking at making those same improvements from Bitterroot all the way down to basically Harvest Parkway, so you’ve got the major road infrastructure that’s necessary to service not

See PART II page 17

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 17

COVER STORY

PART II Continued from page 16

only the residential side, but the commercial side.”

Allen said the River District adds a welcome dimension to Liberty Lake, one that features riverside development, housing diversity and another layer of greenspace.

“The River District is unique in many ways,” said Allen. “You look at its proximity to the river obviously, and when you start putting people over there whether they’re working, living, walking on trails, enjoying a park — it’s part of our community.”

Funding the infrastructure According to Kevin Schneidmiller of Greenstone, completion of Harvest Parkway will mean “more aggressive marketing” of the area to potential business tenants.

“We’ve had some interest, but nothing concrete,” said Schneidmiller. “We’re trying to generate more serious interest.”

Infrastructure such as roads and utilities in the River District and throughout Liberty Lake benefit from a pair of funding mechanisms known as Tax Increment Financing (TIF) and Local Infrastructure Financing Tool or LIFT (see sidebar). Funds from TIF finance public infrastructure based on increases in property tax valuation and revenue, while LIFT provides reimbursements for the city and developers like Greenstone for water and sewer facilities and roads like Harvest Parkway.

Mayor Steve Peterson has described LIFT — which includes a generous state match of up to $1 million a year — as “the city’s capital account.”

“It’s a tool to create retail development,” Peterson said. “If Greenstone puts in infrastructure like Harvest Parkway, then you can develop buildings and lots along that road that create jobs, increase property tax valuation and generate retail development and sales tax.”

Earlier this year, representatives from the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee visited Liberty Lake and the other two communities — Bellingham and Vancouver — that instigated the first LIFT programs in Washington.

“The feedback we got was that our program was the most successful, the furthest along,” Allen said. “I think it has to do with some of these jurisdictions tying their development into public projects, and the projects have not moved forward. Ours is all tied to public infrastructure and private development.”

Frank estimates that approximately onethird of the River District’s infrastructure has been built to this point.

“We’ve built a lot already, and there will be more coming in the next couple of

See PART II page 19

PHOTO CREDIT

This map shows the placement of the Telido Station commercial development. Work was also completed this year along Indiana Avenue near Harvard Road. According to plans, Indiana will eventually connect Harvard west through the Half Moon Park roundabout and beyond.

Infrastructure Funding 101 A TIF/LIFT tutorial

By Craig Howard

SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

They are two of the most commonly uttered acronyms in the Liberty Lake lexicon, but to the average citizen on the street, TIF and LIFT might as well be a set of head-scratching hieroglyphics.

Despite their relative obscurity, Tax Increment Financing and Local Infrastructure Financing Tool have been catalysts in the development of Liberty Lake over the past several years, funding widespread infrastructure improvements that serve as the foundation for current and future growth.

TIF California was the first state to implement TIF back in 1952 as a subsidy to pay for community improvement projects. Since then, every state but Wyoming and Arizona has installed some form of TIF as a mechanism for development.

The TIF functions when increases in property value and private investment generate a boost in property tax revenue.

Surplus proceeds beyond the established

rate are then channeled to public and private redevelopment projects intended to add another layer of value within an established TIF district.

The city of Liberty Lake joined Spokane County, the Spokane Valley Fire Department and the Spokane County Library District in creating a local TIF district in 2006.

The TIF will generate an estimated $365,000 in 2013 and be in place for 15 years or up to a total of $15 million, whichever arrives first.

LIFT LIFT was established in Washington as part of the 2006 legislative session and was put in place to support public infrastructure projects, create jobs and spur economic growth. In contrast to the state’s frequently criticized business and occupation tax, the introduction of LIFT was seen as a boon to towns and cities hoping to draw private development and new business into their communities.

“It’s the state of Washington creating incentives you might find in states like Idaho and Oregon,” said R.J. Stevenson, finance director for the city of Liberty Lake.

Finally implemented in 2008, LIFT began with three cities — Bellingham, Vancouver and Liberty Lake — selected as trial jurisdictions. The program will run through 2034 and includes a match of up to $1 million a year by the

state. Cities and private developers like Greenstone Homes are eligible to receive reimbursements through LIFT for infrastructure projects such as roads and utilities in designated locations called Revenue Development Areas.

Following the money Spokane County remains the entity that oversees and distributes both TIF and LIFT dollars. Each fund is administered separately under the county umbrella.

For a time during the thick of the recession, TIF funds were used as the local match for LIFT due to lagging sales tax. The last two years, Liberty Lake has been able to generate enough of its own money to achieve the $1 million match.

While TIF is connected strictly to property tax revenue, LIFT draws from a variety of areas, including sales tax, the city’s general fund and other sources.

The Liberty Lake Sewer and Water District contributed to LIFT last year from a looping fund.

“Infrastructure development drives retail development, economic growth, sales tax and jobs,” said Liberty Lake Mayor Steve Peterson. “This is a financial vehicle that helps us pay for infrastructure. So far, to date, Liberty Lake has been the most successful of the LIFT demo projects. We’re moving in the right direction.”

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The Splash

PART II Continued from page 17

years,” Frank said. “We’re dealing with two water districts there (Liberty Lake Sewer and Water District and Consolidated Water District). We’ve got a major connection line we’ve put in, so there are two water sources there. On the sewer side, we’ve got one pump station done, but we’ve got two sewer basins there. Part of the project will go to the county system, the other part will go to the Liberty Lake system.”

Frank said there are plans to construct another pump station in the eastern part of the River District “in the next year or so.”

Interchange will eventually feed into River District While utilities continue to crop up in the River District, interest continues to build for another project that will impact the community down the road.

In a Sept. 10 letter to Darryl McCallum of the Washington State Department of Transportation, Peterson described the “collective support for a new interchange east of I-90 on Barker Road.” The letter referenced a meeting on June 13 attended by property owners in the area who stand

SPLASH PHOTOS BY CRAIG HOWARD

The massive River District currently stretches from Indiana near Harvard Road and Bitterroot Lodge (above) west to the city limits with Spokane Valley. Below, Planning and Building Services Manager Amanda Tainio points out areas of planned development.

NOVEMBER 2013 • 19

COVER STORY behind the idea. The guest list included representatives from Centennial Properties, the Department of Natural Resources, the Liberty Lake Land Co. and the city of Liberty Lake.

“Though there are already interchanges at Harvard and Greenacres roads, we support a full interchange at Henry Road to the west of Harvard Road,” Peterson wrote.

“We understand that this project will take a number of years to develop, and we are willing to work with you and DOT during those years.”

The letter was signed by Betsy Cowles (Centennial Properties), Rod Rennie (DNR), David Fluke (Liberty Lake Land Co.) and Peterson.

“Building the interchange keeps us ahead of the curve,” Peterson said. “Missing an opportunity to build this infrastructure will cost all of us in the long run. Putting it in as soon as possible creates jobs, minimizes congestion, prepares us for retail growth and thereby helps the city financially in providing necessary services.”

While Frank supports the concept of an interchange that would provide better access to the River District, he says actual construction of such a project is “probably about 10 years away.”

“I think there’s a good concept for the

design of that interchange, but we’re some time away from it still, just because of all the logistics involved,” he said. “You start with just getting the design done, then the design has to be approved by the Federal Highway Administration, then it’s got to get put into the funding cycles of the Washington State Department of Transportation. At the same time, the improvements that we’re putting in and the work that’s being done — incrementally improving the transportation system — I believe is going to be adequate to handle the growth that’s going to take place in the next 10 years.”

Whatever developments occur over the next decade, Allen and others seem to concur that the River District — with its well-funded foundation of infrastructure — will have a transformative effect on the Liberty Lake community.

“I think that’s what we all are striving for right now,” she said. “It has to do with jobs and a lot of amenities. The nice thing about the River District is that there is potential for growth and development of services over there, from retail to restaurants, and then there’s the proximity to the Centennial Trail and I-90. It’s got a lot of things going for it.”

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The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 21

NEWS

Dignitaries turn out for roundabout ribbon cutting

By Craig Howard

SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

Vehicles moved efficiently in the background as Liberty Lake Mayor Steve Peterson stepped to the microphone to reflect on the most talked about transportation project in the city’s history.

A ribbon cutting ceremony for the Harvard Road roundabout took place Oct. 25, drawing around 50 people on a brisk midmorning in the parking lot of True Legends, adjacent to the circular intersection.

“The project was a partnership,” Peterson told the crowd. “We’re going to continue to move forward and invest in infrastructure.”

Keith Metcalf, WSDOT administrator for the Eastern Region, said the ribbon cutting event was about “celebrating the completion of a successful project.”

“This new roundabout is really going to smooth out traffic,” Metcalf said.

Work on the project began Aug. 16 and was operationally complete by Oct. 11.

Traffic flowed through the busy juncture over the entire two-month span, an average of 18,000 vehicles a day.

“There’s going to be an impact to the traveling public with a project like this, but traffic never stopped,” said Darrel McCallum, project engineer with the Washington Department of Transportation. “I thought it went well.”

George Gee, namesake of three auto dealerships just west of Harvard Road, admitted he “wasn’t so sure about the roundabout” when the city first brought up the idea. Gee was one of several business owners who showed up at a roundabout open house at City Hall last spring to provide feedback and gather more information.

ELECTION

SPLASH PHOTOS BY CRAIG HOWARD

Above, Washington State Department of Transportation Eastern Region Administrator Keith Metcalf addresses the crowd alongside Liberty Lake Mayor Steve Peterson Oct. 25.

The event was dubbed a “Celebration of Prorgress” regarding the recently completed roundabout, and it drew many local leaders.

“We really didn’t see much impact,” Gee said after the ribbon cutting. “I thought they did a very good job. It’s handling traffic well.”

Daryl Hagseth, manager of Storage Solutions, had concerns prior to the project about “traffic flow and the roundabout getting people across the bridge and onto

City action admired

part of the city,” she said.

Continued from page 10

Position 1

called for it to go to a public vote. He said this would allow for both accountability for what the funds are used for as well as security for the funding source.

The Splash asked the candidates if there was a moment from recent City Council business or a Council member’s individual actions that they particularly admired.

“Hands down, it’s Josh Beckett,” Olander said of the outgoing Council member. “I’m impressed by his willingness to speak his mind, get the conversation going, and he stands up for a different opinion. I’m not saying I agreed with everything he always said, but I really think his tactics for conversation were useful, and I’m going to miss it.”

Haskins expressed admiration for projects the city has taken on, singling out the Fallen Heroes Circuit Course installation.

“I think it shows how Liberty Lake feels about their citizens and what’s important to them, and that makes me proud to be

“The unpredictable nature of the tax has got to be tough on businesses,” he said. “It goes to Council for renewal once a year.”

Langford said the use of the utility tax as a funding source for street maintenance was important for everything from the economic development gained from a wellkept infrastructure — to vehicle alignment.

“The city has 90 miles of road lanes, and they don’t take care of themselves,” he said. “... If you get off on (Spokane exits) Lincoln, Division, any of those, you better stop and get a realignment. That doesn’t come free.”

Position 2 Severs brought up a meeting he attended over the summer when a heated discussion broke out over the content on a sign regarding the city’s 6.4-acre parcel. He said he admired the passion of the discussion and the checks and balances of the system. Severs also expressed his admiration for Council Member Dan Dunne’s approach to debates.

Harvard Road.” Hagseth manages two sites near the roundabout, one on Harvard and another on Mission.

“We heard the occasional comment from customers who said they’d be glad when it was done,” Hagseth said. “But we didn’t have anyone say they wouldn’t come see us because it wasn’t done.”

Hagseth said the roundabout has made the busy intersection a lot safer.

The list of attendees on Oct. 25 featured a number of local luminaries, including Spokane County Commissioner Al French, Cheney Mayor Tom Trulove, Cheney City Manager (and former Liberty Lake Finance Director and City Clerk) Arlene Fisher, Spokane Valley Fire Chief Bryan Collins and Liberty Lake Police Chief Brian Asmus.

WSDOT was part of an expansive construction team that included Wm. Winkler Co. as the primary contractor. North Star Enterprises was responsible for navigating traffic while Anderson Masonry installed the 360-degree brick wall that serves as the centerpiece of the roundabout. Mike Terrell — Landscape Architect provided the design for the structure and landscaping.

“I thought the Winkler people and WSDOT did an incredible job,” Hagseth said.

Other subcontractors on the project included Inland Asphalt, Central Pre-Mix, Spokane Rock Products, Eller Corp., Porter Yett, Road Products Inc., Trecon, Colbico Electric and Ace Landscaping.

Overall cost of the project was $1,624,159, with the bulk ($953,000) covered through the Federal Surface Transportation Program. The city of Liberty Lake contributed $671,159 from the Harvard Road Mitigation Fund while WSDOT pitched in $192,629.

“My commitment to Liberty Lake is that, if elected, I will be one of the most active Council members around,” he said.

“I will dedicate myself to Council just as I do to my business.”

Position 4

“I don’t know Dan personally, but when he speaks, I always go, ‘Gosh, I think he’s trying to get a solution,’” Severs said.

Tedesco said the project that will improve the long-vacant field next to Liberty Lake Elementary School — working with the Central Valley School District to build ball fields on a site that wasn’t slated in the near term for development — receives his nod as most-admired city action.

Sitton, who was on the tail end of a busy summer roofing season for his business when asked the question, said he couldn’t think of a past city action or a person he admired. Later, at the candidate forum, he was asked about his shortage of prior attendance at City Council meetings.

“Without a doubt, the hiring of a city manager has made and will continue to make this city more professional, and I think that’s what we all ultimately want is a professionally run city,” he said.

Langford didn’t hesitate with his response.

COMMUNITY

22 • NOVEMBER 2013

The Splash

Community Briefs

Calendar of Events

Enroll in IT Academy at library COMMUNITY EVENTS Oct. 31 | Harvest Party 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., Word of Life Community Church, 6703 N. Idaho Road, Newman Lake. The public is invited to this free event with games and goodies in a safe, fun environment. For more: 226-5148 Oct. 31 | Corn Maze 6 to 10 p.m., HUB Sports Center, 19619 E. Cataldo Ave. Three sportstheme mazes plus a haunted trail of fear are available across 10 acres. For ticket prices and more: www.hubsportscenter.org/CornMaze Nov. 1 & 2 | Leap Motion classes 4 p.m.

(Fridays for kids) and 2:30 p.m. (Saturdays for adults), Liberty Lake Municipal Library, 23123 E. Mission Ave. Leap Motion is a new way of interacting with computers that uses a device which translates hand motion in the air into activity on the computer screen. Classes will be held on Fridays and Saturdays throughout November, and sign-up is required by calling or stopping by the library. For more: 232-2510 Nov. 1 | Great Candy Buy Back 4 to 8

p.m., KiDDS Dental, 1327 N. Stanford Lane, suite B, Liberty Lake. A local dental office buys unopened Halloween candy for $1 per pound and sends it to troops overseas during this sixth annual event. Goodie bags, prizes and letter writing to troops are also part of the event. For more: 891-7070 or www.growupsmiling.com

Nov. 16 | Spaghetti Feed & Silent Auction 5:30 to 9:30 p.m., Newman Lake

Grange Hall, 25025 E. Heather, Newman Lake.

This fundraiser benefiting the Liberty Lake Lions Mitey Mite Team will include dinner, drinks and live music by The Buck Lopez Band.

Tickets for this 21 and older event are available for $20 and can be purchased at the door or at libertylakelions.blogspot.com. For more: 869-6981

Nov. 24 | Free Thanksgiving meal 1 p.m., Otis Orchards Food Bank, 4308 N. Harvard Road, Otis Orchards.

Nov. 28 | Thanksgiving Liberty Lake

Municipal Library will be closed Nov. 28-29.

Nov. 28 | Free Thanksgiving dinner

11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Otis Grill, 21902 E. Wellesley Ave., Otis Orchards. The restaurant will be accepting donations to help local families who are in need. For more: 922-9136

Dec. 6 | Winter Festival 5:30 to 8:30

p.m., City Hall, 22710 E. Country Vista Dr. Mark your calendars for the city’s annual tree lighting ceremony and other festivities including hayrides, live music, pictures with Santa and more. For more: 755-6726 or www. libertylakewa.gov/winterfest

Dec. 7 | FOPP Holiday Ball Davenport

Liberty Lake Municipal Library, 23123 E. Mission Ave. Books, movies and CDs will be available during the Friends’ largest book sale of the year.

Donations of books published no later than 2000 can be dropped off at the library desk prior to the sale.

Hotel, Spokane. Tickets are now on sale for this sole fundraiser for summer concerts, movies and events hosted by Friends of Pavillion Park. Reservations are limited and will be accommodated on a first-come, first-served basis. Cost is $75 per person and can be purchased online. For more: www. pavillionpark.org

Nov. 8 | Veterans Day program 10:30 a.m.,

Recurring

Nov. 2 | Used Book Sale 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.,

New Life Assembly of God, 109 E. Sprague Ave. Valley Christian School students will perform patriotic music and drama, and all veterans will be honored. The public is invited to attend. For more: 924-9131

Nov. 8 | Veterans Day assembly 1:30 p.m.,

Liberty Lake Elementary School, 23606 E. Boone Ave., Spokane Valley. All veterans and their families are invited to the school assembly.

Friends of the Liberty Lake Municipal Library 4 p.m. the last Tuesday of every

month, Library, 23123 E. Mission Ave.

Kiwanis Club of Liberty Lake 6:45 a.m.

Wednesdays, Liberty Lake City Hall, 22510 E. Country Vista Drive. For more: www. libertylakekiwanis.org

Liberty Lake Centennial Rotary Club

Nov. 11 | Veterans Day Liberty Lake

Noon Thursdays, Meadowwood Technology Campus Liberty Room, 2100 N. Molter Road.

Nov. 13 | Meadowwood Homeowners Association annual meeting 7 p.m., City

Liberty Lake Lions Club Noon on the

Municipal Library will be closed.

Hall, 22710 E. Country Vista Dr. There will be a drawing for gift certificates for those in attendance. For more: www.meadowwodohoa. com

Nov. 16 | Beach and Leaf Pick-up

Employees from Liberty Lake Sewer and Water District and the city will pick up bagged leaves set out on the curb. For more: 922-5443 or www. libertylake.org

Nov. 16 | Heritage Program luncheon, fundraiser and silent auction 11:30 a.m.

to 1:30 p.m., Opportunity Presbyterian Church, 202 N. Pines Road, Spokane Valley. Join the museum to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War with a luncheon, period music and living history presentation by Civil Ware re-enactors. Cost is $20, and RSVP is required as seating is limited. For more: 922-4570

second and fourth Wednesdays of each month, Barlow’s Restaurant, 1400 N. Meadowwood Lane. For more: 869-7657

Liberty Lake Municipal Library 23123 E. Mission Avenue. 4 p.m. Mondays, Lego club; 10:30 a.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays, toddler/ preschool story time; 10:15 a.m. Fridays, baby lapsit story time; 11 a.m. Friday, toddler/ preschool story time and songs; 1 p.m. Fridays, story time and crafts for preschoolers; 10:30 a.m. Saturdays, Knitting Club; 10:30 a.m.

Saturdays, computer classes; 2 p.m. Saturdays, kids craft. For more: 232-2510 Liberty Lake Toastmasters 5:45 to 7 p.m.

Wednesdays, Liberty Lake Sewer and Water District building, 22510 E. Mission Ave. For more: 208-765-8657

Senior Lunch programs 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Monday through Friday, Talon Hills Senior

Complex, 24950 E. Hawkstone Loop. Seniors age 60 and older invited; recommended donation $3.50.

Spokane Valley Writer’s Group 6 p.m.

the first and third Thursdays of every month, Liberty Lake Municipal Library, 23123 E. Mission Ave. This supportive critique group welcomes adult writers. For more: 570-4440

MUSIC & THE ARTS Nov. 2 | Let’s Hear It Spokane competition 6:30 p.m., Liberty Lake Portal,

23403 E. Mission Ave. A few lucky high school students will be selected as the opening act for Brigham Young University’s Vocal Point concert Nov. 16 and North Idaho College. Admission is free, but tickets must be reserved to attend the competition at www.marriottschool.byu.edu/ mgtsoc. For more: 343-0103

The Liberty Lake Municipal Library is among a number of public libraries in Washington state that will offer patrons the opportunity to enroll in the Microsoft IT Academy.

The program, which provides free access to Microsoft information technology training courses, begins Nov. 13. The courses can be taken at one’s own pace and can result in certification as a Microsoft Office specialist, technology associate or certified professional.

Thursday skiing group forming A Liberty Lake group is forming for the purpose of hitting the slopes on Thursdays this winter.

For more information, call 928-0919.

Nov. 2-3 | Giant Fall Arts & Crafts Fair 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Central Valley High School, 821 S. Sullivan Road. Admission is $2, and proceeds benefit the CV band programs. For more: www.cvsd.org

Nov. 16 | Holiday craft show 10 a.m. to 3

p.m., Meadowwood Golf Course Clubhouse, 24501 E. Valleyway Ave. Crafty gift ideas will be for sale including Christmas comforter sets, barbed wire crosses, homemade breads, jellies and soaps and more. Proceeds benefit the Wounded Warrior Project. For more: renebbc@ hotmail.com

be installed. Doors open at 11:30 a.m.; program is at noon. Cost is $40 for members and guests; $50 for non-members. For more: www. spokanevalleychamber.org

Recurring Central Valley School board meeting

6:30 p.m. on the second and fourth Mondays of each month, CVSD administration building, 19307 E. Cataldo, Spokane Valley.

Liberty Lake City Council 7 p.m. on the

Recurring

first and third Tuesdays of each month, City Hall, 22710 E. Country Vista Drive.

Liberty Lake Art Society Third Wednesday

Liberty Lake Merchants Association

of the month, various times and locations.

Create, learn and explore new art avenues, as well as display, sell and network your art. No jurying board, no bylaws, no pressure. Work on projects to benefit Liberty Lake and surround communities. Dues are $10 per year, and you do not need to be a local resident to join. For more: 255-9600

7 a.m. Tuesdays, Liberty Lake Portal, 23403 E. Mission Ave., Suite 120. Open to business professionals interested in promoting business in the Liberty Lake and Spokane Valley areas.

Networking begins at 6:45 a.m. For more: 230-5152

Liberty Lake Municipal Library board meeting 10:30 a.m. the first Thursday of each

Mirabeau Blues 9 p.m. to 1 a.m., Max at Mirabeau Restaurant and Lounge, 1100 N. Sullivan Road, Spokane Valley. Fall into the House of Blues during the month of November with Bobby Bremmer (Nov. 1-2), Martini Brothers (8-9), Usual Suspects (15-16) and Laffin Bones (22-23 and 29-30). For more: www.maxatmirabeau.com

month, 23123 E. Mission Ave.

CIVIC & BUSINESS

Liberty Lake SCOPE 6:30 p.m. on the first

Nov. 8 | Women Executives of Liberty Lake (WELL) 12:45 to 2 p.m., Liberty Lake

Sewer and Water District, 22510 E. Mission Ave. Guest speaker Cheloye Penwell, owner/ agent with Lakeshore Insurance, will discuss the ins and outs of Obamacare. Arrive early to “shop” the table displays. For more: www. womenexecutivesoflibertylake.com

Nov. 9 | Library Board of Trustees planning retreat 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Liberty

Lake Portal, 23403 E. Mission Ave. The public is welcome to attend. For more: 232-2510

Nov. 15 | Greater Spokane Valley Chamber Annual Meeting Luncheon

11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Mirabeau Park Hotel, 1100 N. Sullivan. Tony Bonanzino will be the featured speaker, and new board members will

month, 23123 E. Mission Ave.

Liberty Lake Library Foundation meeting Noon the first Wednesday of each Liberty Lake Planning Commission 4

p.m. on the second Wednesday of each month, City Hall, 22710 E. Country Vista Drive.

Wednesday of each month, City Hall, 22710 E. Country Vista Drive

Liberty Lake Sewer and Water District board meeting 4 p.m. on the third Wednesday

of each month, 22510 E. Mission Ave.

HEALTH & RECREATION Oct. 31 | Life Line Screening Services 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Lakeside Church, 23129 E. Mission. For more: 210-9779

Nov. 2 | Basketball Clinic Noon to 1 p.m. (3rd-5th grades) and 3 to 4 p.m. (6th-8th grades), Total Sports, 25023 E. Appleway Ave. Cost is $25. For more: 922-1330 Nov. 2 | Spokane Chiefs Washington

See CALENDAR, page 46

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 23

COMMUNITY

Book Review

Anticipated ‘Bone Season’ ambitious, but won me over

Congratulations to Conner!

The November Current is on newsstands

He’s the latest

KiDDS Dental No Cavity Club winner!

Conner won a $25 gift card and a photo session with

By Daniel Pringle

LIBERTY LAKE MUNICIPAL LIBRARY

In the year 2059, it has been 200 years since Victorian London became Scion London, a society organized around rooting out clairvoyants—or “unnaturals”—who threaten civilization by communing with spirits to commit all manner of crimes, from petty thievery to assassination.

The persecution of this enemy class of voyants has created an underground of those with special powers, who cannot live in mainstream society in their true forms. It has also created a police state run by a secretive power that harvests voyants captured in “bone seasons” every 10 years and uses them in a war against the netherworld.

Paige Mahoney is one of these voyants captured after she loses control of her powerful gift and kills two police as they attempt to apprehend her. She is taken to a hidden penal colony, where she discovers the truth about Scion and the fate of the voyants who have been disappearing without a trace for two centuries.

Mixing fantasy with noir and dystopias like “1984” and “The Hunger Games,” young author Samantha Shannon’s “The Bone Season” is the first in an already highly-anticipated series that has drawn comparisons to “The Hunger Games” and Harry Potter.

With a nine-page glossary and a two-page chart showing the many orders of clairvoyance, she faces a daunting task establishing her world while telling an exciting story. Apart from an overwhelming array of characters going by several nicknames and numbers, all with different varieties of powers, and some slow patches explaining the historical path leading to Scion, she succeeded in drawing me into a classic struggle of a band of rebels fighting for freedom from their rulers and an exploration of conformity and prejudice in an unjust world.

Daniel Pringle is adult services and reference librarian at the Liberty Lake Municipal Library.

Call our office to schedule an appointment to see if your child is cavity-free!

Grow Up Smiling!

891-7070

HEART OF THE VALLEY

1327 N. Stanford Lane, Suite B, Liberty Lake 509.891.7070 www.GrowUpSmiling.com

Find out about all of our events and contests on Facebook!

A trio of stories on breast cancer awareness month, a Thanksgiving meal for strangers and the response to a tragic accident all spotlight the spirit of the community.

CHOO CHOO PIZZA

New restaurant opens in restored train alongside Sprague Avenue.

ELECTION COVERAGE

With five days to go before votes are tallied, a check-in on local races, including the race for Spokane Valley Fire Department commissioner

ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION The Wave, sponsored in the Valley

by KiDDS Dental, peeks in at one school’s mission to be the “greenest in the state.”

MILLWOOD MAINSTAY RETIRES The Valley edition of The Fountain, sponsored by Evergreen Fountains, tells the story of Cleve McCoul, who is retiring after spending more than half his life working for the city of Millwood

“Informing , connecting and inspiring communities”

509-242-7752

www.valleycurrent.com

24 • NOVEMBER 2013

HISTORY

The Splash

Government of region has amended over time

By Ross Schneidmiller

LIBERTY LAKE HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Congress passed the bill creating Washington Territory on March 2, 1853. The original boundaries of the territory included all of the present-day state of Washington, as well as northern Idaho and Montana west of the continental divide. The name for the territory was going to be Columbia; however, in the U.S. Congress it was argued that it might be confused with the District of Columbia. Ironically, they chose the name Washington in honor of the first president, which, as any Washingtonian knows, is often confused with Washington, D.C. Spokane County was created by an act of the Territorial Assembly in 1858, the same year as the Indian wars in the Inland Empire. In 1864, Spokane County was absorbed into Stevens County with the county seat at Colville. The reason for retaining the name Stevens and not Spokane was due in part to the sentiment of honoring Isaac Stevens. Stevens, the first Territorial Governor of Washington, had volunteered his services to the Union cause in the Civil War, and was killed in action in 1862 at the Battle of Chantilly.

Spokane County was reestablished in 1879 under the influence of the man known as the “Father of Spokane,” James Glover, with Spokane Falls being named the temporary county seat. When Stephen Liberty, the lake’s namesake, filed his naturalization papers for U.S. Citizenship in 1886, he did so at Cheney and not Spokane Falls. The reason for this was Cheney was the county seat—or so its residents contended. In 1880, an election was held to determine the permanent location of the county seat. Both Spokane and Cheney claimed to be victorious. Late one night when the majority of Spokane Falls was celebrating at a wedding dance, some of Cheney’s prominent citizens snuck into town and took the county records, along with the county auditor who had been working late. Armed with six shooters, they stood guard over the records for six weeks until Cheney’s claim was conceded. Later in 1886, after Steven Liberty had filed his papers, another election was held, and the county seat returned to Spokane Falls. This time there was no dispute as Spokane Falls had substantially outgrown Cheney.

The earliest settlers in the region had to fend for themselves because they had little in the way of law enforcement. This was demonstrated through encounters between Joseph Herring and Isaac Kellogg. Herring, along with Timothy Lee and Ned Jordan, built the first bridge across the Spokane River at what would become the town of Spokane Bridge. Timothy Lee, soon to be named postmaster of Spokane Bridge, stated the following in the Walla Walla Statesman in April of 1866: “Kellogg came on the Spokane (River)

DID YOU KNOW? • The first Post Office established in present day Spokane County was at Spokane Bridge in 1867. The first Post Office established at Liberty Lake was in 1901 in Willis Kisinger’s General Store. The store burned down a few days after it opened; Kisinger claimed he would rebuild at once, but it appears he never did. Rural delivery to settlers in our area began in 1902 and ran out of the Moab (near Newman Lake) Post Office. In 1909, the Liberty Lake Post Office was reestablished in the Liberty Lake Train Station. It moved to Liberty Lake Grocery on Melkapsi in 1912 and remained on that street housed in different buildings for more than 70 years.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE FAMILY OF ERNEST WRIGHT

This certificate names Ernest Wright as the postmaster of the Liberty Lake Post Office in 1912. It was located inside Liberty Lake Grocery on Melkapsi Street; Wright was the proprietor.

Wright was also a Spokane County Justice of the Peace. So you could get your groceries, mail a letter and resolve a dispute with your neighbor all in one place. Now that is the true definition of a convenience store. with the intention of building a bridge one mile below ours. He built a house and commenced selling whiskey to the Indians with impunity. The Indians were drunk all the time and made it dangerous for quiet residents of the prairie. Herring, at the request of the Indian Chiefs, wrote to the (Indian) Agent at Colville about the matter.

The Agent answered Herring’s letter telling him to warn Kellogg, which he did.”

Kellogg did not care and continued his practices. This was the beginning of bad blood between the two men, which culminated in Herring and one of his hired men killing Kellogg in a gun battle. Herring claimed self-defense, while Kellogg’s men said it was murder. It would be several months before a deputy sheriff would travel nearly 200 miles on horseback from Walla Walla to Spokane Bridge to arrest Herring and his hired hand for the killing of Kellogg and take them back to Walla Walla’s district court to stand trial.

When the Territory was created in 1853, a judicial system was also established. It consisted of the territorial Supreme Court, district court, probate court and justice court.

There were three judicial districts, with Eastern Washington being one of them.

Walla Walla was the only town of this district where district court cases were heard.

Because of the hardship of traveling there,

many defendants were absent from trial.

This was a significant problem because this court had original jurisdiction in all cases arising under the U.S. Constitution and the laws of Washington Territory. This burden was lessened some by the justice courts.

The justice court heard petty criminal and civil cases, where less than $100 in debt or damages was involved. Justices of the peace often heard the original complaint in a case and then referred the case to the district court due to lack of jurisdiction.

Some of the motivation for statehood was a need for a judicial system that was more convenient and representative. Statehood was achieved in 1889 and with it the benefit of court cases being held in Spokane Falls.

Since the town had won back the county seat from Cheney three years before, the county sheriff, his deputies and the county jail moved back too.

The Liberty Lake area stayed under Spokane County control until 2001, when a portion of the community was incorporated into the city of Liberty Lake. The city is now protected by an entire police department — a big improvement from what our early settlers had!

Ross Schneidmiller is president of the Liberty Lake Historical Society and a lifelong resident of the community.

• Liberty Lake precinct was formed in 1902 by Spokane County after residents of Spokane Bridge and Saltese precincts asked that part of each of these be taken to form a new voting district.

• Rasmus and Anna Madsen, homesteaders at Liberty Lake, sued the Spokane Valley Land & Water Co. after the extension of the lake they used to water their cattle was drained during the formation of the Corbin irrigation ditch that ran out of the northwest end of the lake. The case, which dealt with riparian (water) rights, went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, reversing the decision of the court of origin and deciding in favor of the water company.

A 12-part series from the Liberty Lake Historical Society, appearing in The Splash each month in 2013.

JANUARY: Relocation of the

Coeur d’Alenes

FEBRUARY: Formation of the Coeur

d’Alene Indian Reservation

MARCH: Transportation Overview APRIL: Railroads MAY: Homesteaders JUNE: Homesteaders in the hills JULY: Utilities AUGUST: Church SEPTEMBER: OCTOBER: NOVEMBER:

DECEMBER:

School Commerce Government Medical

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 25

Serving Liberty Lake and the greater Spokane area since 1998 Bill White Broker, CNHS, RCC

509-879-8710 wlxwhite@msn.com

www.WhiteSellsSpokane.com I’m here to help you with all of your real estate needs.

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The Splash

26 • NOVEMBER 2013

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We are proud supporters of the Great Candy Buy Back this Halloween by KiDDS Dental to support our Troops through Operation Gratitude

North Idaho Dermatology is pleased to welcome Dr. Hilary H. Hill to the team!

Dr. Hill joins North Idaho Dermatology after finishing her residency at the Medical College of Wisconsin where she completed her training in general adult and pediatric dermatology, advanced dermatologic surgery and advanced dermatopathology.

Now Accepting New Patients in our offices in Liberty Lake, Coeur d’Alene, Sandpoint and Moscow

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The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 27

Kids, color and cut out this picture and bring your artwork to Papa Murphy’s Take ‘N’ Bake Pizza in Liberty Lake to receive a free Mini Murph one-topping pizza!

1318 N. Liberty Lake Rd. 509-926-7272

Brought to you by

TEAM HIGHLIGHTS Liberty Lake Lions Mitey Mite team members shared some of their best memories from the season so far: “That time when I almost made the interception.”

Connor Echelberger “Having fun and spending time with friends.”

Aaden ‘Taz’ Anderson

By Brenna Holland WAVE CONTRIBUTOR

The Liberty Lake Mitey Mite Lions football players like to tackle. They enjoy scoring touchdowns and celebrating their friends’ touchdowns.

And they love to win.

The Liberty Lake Mitey Mite Lions are currently undefeated and enjoying a shutout season (meaning no opponent has scored against the team).

Due to this incredible season, the team has been invited to play in the Mitey Mite Bowl, held in conjunction with the Pop Warner Super Bowl, this December in Orlando, Fla. “It’s just humbling,” L.T. Young said. “Out of all the teams, we’re the ones going.”

The excitement among the players was evident as they enthusiastically talked about their upcoming trip to not only play football but enjoy the area.

“I’m looking forward to going to Harry Potter Land and staying in the same suite as my best friend Connor,” Colby Hair said.

Other players are enthralled by the opportunity to play in a unique location. “(We get to) Play in Disney World!” Jack Rogers said.

Some of the boys have played together since the Mitey Mite League began in the area. Ben Abshire, who coaches the Liberty Lake Mitey Mite Lions, has loved every moment coaching the boys.

Although the boys on the team are only eight or nine years old, Abshire said they are learning skills that will last them a lifetime.

“Coaching is an opportunity to affect lives,” Abshire said. “Football can change kids. The number one job more important than football is to mold young men.”

“Watching my friends get touchdowns.”

Andrew Sprackman “Beating the G-Men.” Wyatt Curl “Being with the team and growing.”

Gage Bucher “Winning.”

Connor Andreas “Making my first touchdown.”

Garrett Santoro The Mitey Mite Program provides interested boys and girls with the fundamental skills of playing football. The program sponsors good sportsmanship and the chance to play against other boys and girls who are the same age.

Lorie Bucher, who serves as team manager and travel coordinator, is pleased with the coaching and guidance her son and peers have received at such a young age. Bucher and her husband donated pink laces to the team for Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October. All the boys have threaded the vibrant pink shoelaces through their shoes to honor the month.

“The team builds men, not just players,” Bucher said.

FOR MORE… To follow the Liberty Lake Mitey Mite Lions, go to www.facebook.com/LibertyLakeLions.

For parents interested in supporting the team, check out the Nov. 16 Spaghetti Feed & Silent Auction (more information on page 22).

SUBMITTED PHOTOS

The Liberty Lake Mitey Mite Lions football team has enjoyed an undefeated season and is currently preparing to play in the Mitey Mite Bowl in December.

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 29

COMMUNITY

The art of upcycling Brenna Holland

WAVE CONTRIBUTOR

Upcycling is the act of using old or discarded materials to create objects of higher quality or usefulness. Upcycling can also mean using common objects to create new items with a different purpose. It’s reducing, reusing and recycling with a fun twist!

Old mason jars is one example of how an item can be upcycled and repurposed. Here are a few ideas: • Paint the jars to store crayons in a new creative way. Match certain hues with the correctly painted jar—you’ll never have to worry about losing an essential crayon color again!

• Print letters of different fonts or select some cool images to insert into upside down jars to create a lovely message for all to see.

• Create your own terrarium and bring the outdoors indoors for colder months.

• Store your Legos in decorated

mason jars, and there will be no more stepping on painful Lego pieces! You can even paint the jars to resemble a Lego man’s yellow head.

Here is some further inspiration for creative crafts involving upcycling: • The simplest craft that incorporates upcycling is some oldfashioned finger painting. Use an old cardboard box as a canvas, and have fun getting messy!

• Create fun insect friends with recyclable egg cartons. Use paint, googly eyes, glitter, pom poms and other decorations to create a variety of bugs buddies! Follow the instructions at http://www.firefliesandmudpies. com/2013/04/12/recycled-eggcarton-insects/ • Make shorts out of worn pants (maybe add a little bling?) by following these instructions: http:// www.sewsnbows.com/summerdenim-refashion-for-girls/

WAVE PHOTOS BY SARAH BURK

Ordinary household items such as egg cartons, mason jars and soup cans can easily be upcycled. Decorate them with ribbons, papers or other craft items, and then use them to store buttons, beads, pencils or paintbrushes.

America Recycles Day America Recycles Day, celebrated on Nov. 15, is the only nationally-recognized day dedicated to encouraging Americans to recycle and buy recycled goods.

Spokane Regional Solid Waste System will host a variety of activities, including the America Recycles Day annual student poster contest and a recycling day at Mobius Kids. The top 30 finalists of the poster contest will be featured in Riverfront Park Square in downtown Spokane Oct. 28 through Nov. 15.

On Nov. 11 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Mobius Kids Museum will offer fun recycling activities. With paid museum admission, kids can make recycled paper, explore the world of compost and worms, play “Trash Grabbers” by sorting recyclables and nonrecyclables, use magnets to test metals and more. For details, go to www.mobiusspokane.org.

You could consider adding to the festivities by hosting a recycling lesson or special assembly at your school. If you would like to join the 42,000 Americans who have taken the pledge to recycle more, go to www. americarecyclesday.org.

And be sure to not just celebrate on Nov. 15, but do your part to help the earth for the rest of the year as well!

DID YOU KNOW? Check out these fun facts about recycling: • A variety of different materials can be recycled including paper, plastic, glass, metal, textiles and even electronics.

Don’t let your money scatter in the wind. We can teach you how to gather a big pile of cash for saving, spending and sharing with the STCU Money Jar and Journal.

• Powerful magnets sort through metals at the recycling plant.

Order your Money Jar and Journal today at www.stcukids.org (click on “Free stuff ”) or call (509) 326-1954.

• Glass recycling is usually separated into colors because glass keeps its color after recycling.

(800) 858.3750 | www.stcu.org

• A glass bottle can take 40 centuries to be broken down if not recycled.

• When a tree is cut down, only a quarter of it will actually be turned into paper.

• The first year that more paper was recycled in the U.S. than dumped into landfills was 1993.

• If Americans recycled all their newspaper, that would translate into 250 million trees a year.

Sources: www.sciencekids.co.nz/ sciencefacts/recycling.html and www. greenenergysavingtips.com/recyclingfacts-for-kids/

Federally insured by NCUA.

The Splash

30 • NOVEMBER 2013 Brought to you by

About and for Liberty Lake seniors

Ruefs’ passion fueled in part by their appreciation of past

By Jocelyn Stott

Ray and Karen Ruef’s many travels have included Norway, the backdrop here, where Karen’s family heritage can be traced.

Similarly, Ray’s grandparents were immigrants from Switzerland.

SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

Ray and Karen Ruef have built their own local legacy with a tip of the cap to their past. The Ruefs — he is 80, she is 75 and they celebrated 50 years of marriage this year — both have grandparents who came to the country from Europe.

The Ruef name is Swiss. Ray said his family immigrated to the United States in the 1890s. Ruef ’s grandfather and his two sisters knew their family farm near Bern, Switzerland, would not be able to support them all, so they sold it and bought first-class tickets to New York City to start anew. From there, Ray’s relatives began the business of farming again near Silverdale, Wash., raising produce to be hauled into farmers markets like Pike’s Place Market in downtown Seattle.

“Where the real farmers sold — not just the touristy ones you see now,” said Ray with a chuckle.

Ray didn’t inherit the farming business, however. His father worked in the shipyards of Bremerton, and Ray eventually graduated from University of Washington with a degree in business administration and foreign trade.

“I wanted to get into countries that were closed to missionaries, like Afghanistan and the Middle Eastern countries for some reason, and I thought this would get me there,” he said.

Instead, Ray was drafted into the military in 1956 and served in Germany in the finance corps despite applying for stints as an Army chaplain, for which he had also trained. As his tour of duty was finishing, Ray said he felt a “burden and a call on my heart to pursue ministry — that’s what those earlier tugs were about — slowly building.”

So at 24 years old, he began the fouryear process of becoming a pastor at Dallas Theological Seminary. After a pastoral internship near Seattle, Ray’s first assignment was Liberty Lake Community Church, a journey, he was advised, “would probably only last about three years.”

Karen’s grandparents were also immigrants, traveling from Norway to North Dakota, whether they began farming near Minot for many of the same reasons: economic opportunity and diminishing prospects for

FAST FACTS RAY AND KAREN RUEF Married 50 years Family Three adult children (Marilyn, Steve and Janice), 10 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren One thing that has changed for the better during your lifetime Karen: Children are learning to socialize at a younger age through preschool programs.

Ray: Liberty Lake has developed into a vibrant, flourishing community over the years.

One thing you wish hadn’t changed Neighbors need to connect and take care of each other, rather than living in isolation.

Secret to 50 years of marriage Karen: Compromise. Care about the other person as much as yourself.

Ray: It’s wise to know when to keep your mouth shut!

SUBMITTED PHOTOS

Ray and Karen Ruef were married in 1963. This summer, friends and family gathered for a celebration of the couple’s 50th anniversary. the family farm at home. Karen grew up in Butte and, later, Polson, Mont., the daughter of a small businessman. She attended Seattle Pacific College (now University) and began teaching fourth grade in the Shoreline School District.

Karen met Ray while he was doing an internship at her community church. They soon married. Shortly thereafter, in October 1965, Ray was hired as pastor at Liberty Lake Community Church. The couple made the move east when their oldest daughter, Marilyn, was 6 months old.

Around 1979, Karen began a 24-year career of teaching and developing the Liberty Lake Community Church preschool, the first childcare/early education center in town. Karen said she is particularly blessed to have taught children who are now grown and have their own.

In addition to teaching, she also worked with the Beachcomber Garden Club, which,

she says with a laugh, “was started by young women who wanted to beautify public facilities. Now we’re all old and we raise funds and support our community in other ways.”

After retiring as pastor of Liberty Lake Community Church, Ray later ministered at Deer Park Community Church for five years and spent another 12 at Valley Fourth Memorial Church in Spokane Valley.

Why is all this family history important?

Karen says as a young person, she didn’t care much about her heritage, but as she grew older she felt that learning where they came from helped her understand her parents and how their values had been shaped by their experiences.

“There was hard work, love of a country that lets you start fresh,” Ray said. “They didn’t expect anything to be provided, and if they didn’t have enough, they just went without.”

Karen added her respect for their grandparents’ generation: “Imagine what that must have been like to leave everything behind that you know and move somewhere where you don’t even know the language.”

A passion for history and heritage is part of what has driven Ray and Karen to travel extensively, including trips to re-discover family in Europe. Ray has also organized four trips to Israel and Egypt as well as numerous bus trips for seniors to national parks and monuments in the U. S. Ray and Karen have visited the Ruef homestead in Switzerland. It’s now a duplex, and the land has been divided and developed. Several years ago, Ray, Karen and their three children traveled to Norway to meet distant relatives there.

The history they have witnessed as part of their local community is also a passion. Ray is a founding board member of the Liberty Lake Historical Society.

After nearly 50 years in Liberty Lake, building a church into a community center where children are nurtured and neighbors brought together, the Ruef family legacy may also be looked upon by their grandchildren’s children — an example of marriage, community and family that is one for the history books.

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 31

COMMUNITY

Value of Civil War letters debatable ‘Collecting’ column by Larry Cox KING FEATURES SYNDICATE

Q: I have copies of a series of letters written by my fifth-generation grandfather in Washington County, Ky., to his son in Rushville, Ind. The letters were sent over a period of time from 1851 to 1874 and cover such topics as crop problems and the impact of the Civil War. I am wondering if they have any monetary value or what significance they would be to 19th-century American histories. — Bob, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.

A: I spoke to several document dealers, who seem to agree that while your letters sound interesting, they would not be worth a great deal of money. For example, one told me that he had just sold a packet of two dozen letters from a Confederate soldier to his family in Mississippi, covering 1862

TRIVIA TEST

1. GEOGRAPHY: Where is the Levantine Basin found?

2. ART: Who created the work titled “Twittering Machine”?

3. LANGUAGE: What does the Greek word “dactyl” mean?

4. GENERAL KNOWLEDGE: How long is a giraffe’s tongue, on average?

5. THEATER: Actor Richard Burbage was closely associated with which famous playwright?

6. LITERATURE: Who wrote the book “Where the Wild Things Are”?

7. TELEVISION: Who played the lead female character in “The Bionic Woman”?

8. MEDICAL: What is the common name for “tinea pedis”?

through the war’s end. The collection sold for $750, and I suspect your letters might be worth about that amount.

The significance to the history of Washington County, Ky., however, is another matter. Two sources that might be helpful are the Historical Societies of Kentucky, P.O. Box H, Frankfort, KY 40602; and the Washington County Historical Society, 107 Carolyn Court, Springfield, KY 40069.

Q: I have a six-pack of J.R. Ewing private stock premium beer, which was brewed in San Antonio by the Pearl Brewing Company in 1980. What is the value? — Mary Lou, Albuquerque, N.M. A: Not much. Both the J.R. Ewing and the Billy Beer from the Jimmy Carter era sell for less than $20 for an unopened sixpack. Both are curiosities, but not very valuable ones.

Write to Larry Cox in care of King Features Weekly Service, P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475, or send e-mail to questionsforcox@aol.com. Due to the large volume of mail he receives, Mr. Cox is unable to personally answer all reader questions. Do not send any materials requiring return mail.

9. ANIMAL KINGDOM: What does a lepidopterist study?

10. MEASUREMENTS: How much champagne does a magnum hold? © 2013 King Features Synd., Inc.

Answers to Trivia Test 1. Mediterranean Sea; 2. Paul Klee; 3. Finger; 4. 18 inches; 5. Shakespeare; 6. Maurice Sendak; 7. Lindsay Wagner; 8. Athlete’s foot; 9. Butterflies or moths; 10. Two standard bottles

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32 • NOVEMBER 2013

LOCAL LENS

The Splash

Shutterbug snapshots

SUBMITTED PHOTOS

Above: Michael Hassett captured this Downy Woodpecker while mountain biking above Liberty Lake.

At left: Jim Klosterman shared this photo he took of the fall foliage along Country Vista outside of Liberty Lake City Hall.

‘Heart for the Arts’

An international service

SUBMITTED PHOTO

Children from the Matsiko World Orphan Choir dance and sing at Lakeside Church on Sept. 29.

The choir made a stop at the church on Mission Avenue near the end of their national tour.

Family thanks LLCTA SUBMITTED PHOTOS

Liberty Lake Community Theatre director Jennifer Ophardt cuts the ribbon flanked by Greenstone CEO Jim Frank and Liberty Lake Mayor Steve Peterson during the “Heart for the Arts” gala event on Sept. 28. The night included the one-act play “Well Written,” music, hors d’oeuvres and auction.

The Ham family recently showed appreciation to Liberty Lake Community Tennis Association leaders by treating them to dinner.

Local Lens Share your snapshots for The Splash’s photo page. Email photos@libertylakesplash.com with scenes from around town, community events and Splash Travels.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 33

LOCAL LENS

A troop tribute

Teaching technology

SUBMITTED PHOTO

Boy Scout Pack 413 recently honored David Merriman for his dedication as troop committee chairman with a framed copy of this photo.

Outpouring of love SUBMITTED PHOTOS

The Liberty Lake Municipal Library recently purchased three iPads for the children’s area that are loaded with educational apps. According to library staff, the iPads are available anytime the library is open and have been very popular.

The library would like to expand the availability and would gladly accept any eReaders or tablets that are in excellent working order.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

Friends of Josie Freier and McKenzie Mott stopped by Simonds Dental Group to pick up toys for a memorial service for the girls. Dr. Simonds wrote that in only four hours their office collected over 30 toys to honor the U-Hi girls who were killed in a tragic car crash in early October.

Students thank Itron

Curtain call

Pioneer School, led by Liberty Lake resident Betty Burley-Wolf, would like to recognize Itron for sponsoring the school’s Math is Cool team.

Their generous donation supports students including Liberty Lake residents Austin and Olivia Christensen, San Jana Sharma, Cameron and Connor Simonds and Neha Kid.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

The cast of “Death by Chocolate” recently put on two weekends of shows at Liberty Lake Community Theatre.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

BUSINESS

34 • NOVEMBER 2013

Paving the way

The Splash

Winkler brothers Brian (left) and Chris are the major cogs in the current Wm. Winkler wheel. Brian serves as president and Chris is project engineer.

Roundabout contractor’s work spans nearly a century of concrete

By Craig Howard

SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

If you have walked, cycled or jogged along a sidewalk in Spokane County, chances are you’ve traversed a surface installed by the Wm. Winkler Co. Nestled in a bucolic section of Newman Lake known more for horse pastures and rustic farms, the concrete contractor has been a mainstay in the local construction scene since 1919. The company’s founder and namesake, William Vincent Winkler, got his start by replacing the wooden planks in Spokane with concrete sidewalks at a time when the city was transitioning from mining boomtown to industrial hub and challenging Seattle as the urban epicenter of the Northwest.

“He really saw an opportunity,” said Brian Winkler, company president and third generation Winkler to lead the business.

Sidewalks, gutters and curbs served as staples for Wm. Winkler up until about 2000 when the company’s portfolio began to include paving for more commercial, public works, government and industrial projects. From data centers to bridges to airfield pavements, if a job requires concrete, chances are there is a red and white Winkler truck on the scene.

“We think we deliver quality and value and keep a lot of people working,” Brian Winkler said. “If it wasn’t for our people, we wouldn’t have success.”

During the seasonal peak, Winkler employs around 150 people. The 14-acre d an Gr ing n e Op

home base on Starr Road in Newman Lake became the company’s headquarters two years ago after the consolidation of sites in Spokane and in Coeur d’Alene. Prior to Winkler, the Newman Lake property was home to the S.A. Gonzales construction company. Winkler also maintains a small office in the Tri-Cities.

Beyond traditional work like pouring the foundation for the new Central Valley High School over a decade ago, Winkler tackles unique challenges like the ground floor of an ice rink and an original grout for a roller coaster track. Outside of Washington, Winkler has been the concrete catalyst for projects in states including Alaska, North Dakota, Illinois, Montana and Oregon.

Chris Winkler, Brian’s brother, works as project engineer for Wm. Winkler and brings a wealth of experience from the Washington State Department of Transportation, where he worked for 15 years.

Since mid-August, Chris has overseen the company’s work on the Harvard Road roundabout project in Liberty Lake, an effort coordinated by his previous employer.

“The great thing about working here is the commitment to integrity,” said Chris, who has a degree in civil engineering from the University of Idaho. “We’re not afraid to put our name on our work.”

Winkler began work on the Harvard Road roundabout on Aug. 16. The project — which included the rigors of dealing

See PAVING page 36

SPLASH PHOTOS BY CRAIG HOWARD

Sidewalks embossed with the Wm. Winkler logo can be found throughout the Greater Spokane area, including this one outside Banner Bank in Rockford. The concrete contractor got its start in 1919, when wooden pedestrian planks were being replaced by concrete surfaces.

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The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 35

BUSINESS

In Biz Peterson tabbed to lead Liberty Lake Tire Rama

John L. Scott offices welcome Montgomery

Josh Peterson took over as manager of the Liberty Lake Tire Rama, 22117 E. Country Vista Drive, in early September.

“It has been my privilege to meet the people of Liberty Lake and the surrounding area,” Peterson said. “As the new manager of the store, I want to inform the people of Liberty Lake that along with PETERSON new management, there is also a more honest, loyal, local business in your area.”

Peterson moved to the store from Great Falls, Mont. Based in Montana, Tire Rama has expanded in the past few years, including purchasing Alton’s Tire locations in 2008, including the Liberty Lake location.

Mark Montgomery , who has more than 12 years real estate experience, joined John L. Scott Real Estate recently, working from the Liberty Lake and Coeur d'Alene offices.

Licensed in Washington and Idaho, he will focus on resale.

He previously worked in Coeur d'Alene for Coldwell Banker Schneidmiller Realty and Blackrock Real Estate, as well as Sullivan Homes in SpoMONTGOMERY kane.

Twisp announces staff promotions, winter hours Alex Triplett was recently promoted to head barista at Twisp Cafe and Coffee House, 23505 E. Appleway Ave. Triplett has worked for the cafe since April.

In addition, Ian R. Nelson joined the Twisp crew as a barista Sept. 30. While at a previous job in 2012, Nelson won the Thursday Night Throwdown Inland Northwest contest for latte art.

Twisp recently changed to winter hours, open Monday through Friday 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., and closed Sundays.

Jorgensen joins Farmers Bill Jorgensen became a Liberty Lakebased independent contractor with Farmers Insurance Group office Sept. 1.

His office is housed at the Liberty Lake Portal location of Farmers Insurance District Manager Tracy Niles, 23403 E. Mission Ave., Suite 225.

Jorgensen can be reached at 924-1860 JORGENSEN or 991-2396.

Itron unveils new smart gas meter Itron Inc. of Liberty Lake unveiled its new smart gas meter at the European Utility Week in Amsterdam Oct. 15-17.

Featuring plug-and-play installation, the “Ecora” gas meter is an “all-in-one device with embedded communications and sensors to help utilities streamline operations and reduce costs,” according to a company news release.

Gingras promoted at firm Scott A. Gingras of Liberty Lake was one of two associates recently promoted to principal by the multidisciplinary regional law firm Winston and Cashatt.

Gingras joined the firm in 2011. His practice focuses on civil litigation, with an emphasis on employment and labor law, personal injury, products liability, medical negligence, insurance law and GINGRAS insurance defense.

Gingras is vice president of the employment and labor law section of the Idaho State Bar. Along with Collette C. Leland, Gingras was recently elected by the firm’s board of directors to become principals effective Oct. 1. Winston & Cashatt has offices in Spokane and Coeur d'Alene.

Splash staffers honored Liberty Lake Splash Graphics Editor Sarah Burk and Editor and Publisher Josh Johnson both won first-place awards in the annual Washington Better Newspaper Contest organized by the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association.

Burk was honored for the best large ad promoting a sale or event among the community newspapers in WNPA’s largBURK est two circulation categories (Group III and IV); Johnson’s award was for the best business feature story among WNPA newspapers in circulation Group III, those which distribute 5,001 to 12,750 copies.

In Biz features Liberty Lake-connected business items. Contact The Splash with business news at editor@libertylakesplash.com.

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The Splash

36 • NOVEMBER 2013

BUSINESS

PAVING Continued from page 34

with 18,000 vehicles a day through the intersection — was wrapped up by Oct. 11.

Liberty Lake City Administrator Katy Allen said Winkler “brought the resources and experience to the project.”

“They work very efficiently,” Allen said. “It was good to see a Newman Lake company get awarded the project here in town. They are a company that hit the ground running. They put a great deal of resources into the project and that made a difference. The project moved quickly.”

When representatives from surrounding businesses stopped by Liberty Lake City Hall to discuss access to commercial sites during the roundabout’s construction, Allen said Winkler handled the inquiries promptly.

“Winkler was very responsive and approachable. Business owners had some logistical questions, some schedule questions and wanted some information about detours,” Allen said. “Chris was able to answer all their questions. Then he gave them his card and so if they had any other issues, they could call him directly.”

Coping with the continuous flow of traffic descending on a construction site

is nothing new to Winkler. Last year, the company was awarded the “Concrete Community Award” by the Washington Aggregates and Concrete Association for its work in removing and replacing an antiquated street in Asotin situated in the heart of the city’s commercial district. Winkler’s award portfolio includes recognition from WACA for “Pavement Project of the Year” and the Associated General Contractors of America for “Project of the Year” and “Special Project of the Year.”

The roundabout in Liberty Lake now joins a list of signature Winkler projects in the Greater Spokane area including intersections on Sullivan Road in Spokane Valley, pedestrian upgrades along Argonne Road in Millwood and smaller roundabouts at intersections like Flora and Broadway and Flora and Mission.

While the company now handles complex projects in fields like transportation, energy production, wastewater treatment and industrial manufacturing, the curb and sidewalk work still encompasses around half of the company’s workload.

“Concrete has changed a lot over the years,” Chris Winkler said. “But it’s still a job for a skilled craftsman. We still do a lot of hand-forming and hand-setting.

You look at a cement mason or a laborer and it’s a great skillset.”

SPLASH PHOTOS

BY CRAIG HOWARD

Wm. Winkler headquarters are located on Starr Road in Newman Lake on a site once occupied by the S.A. Gonzales construction company.

Winkler’s fleet includes more than 50 vehicles.

One of Winkler’s main projects this year involved construction of a roundabout on Harvard Road in Liberty Lake (pictured at left).

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The Splash

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SPORTS Young CV volleyball team looks to net experience

The Splash

38 • NOVEMBER 2013

By Mike Vlahovich

SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

Youth will be served. Or in the case of Central Valley High School’s volleyball team, it is youth doing the serving.

The Bears’ roster only has two senior players, and the coach, Amanda Bailey, also is in her first year. While experiencing some growing pains in the vaunted Greater Spokane League, the team also has shown promise — and a few surprises, including an early-season upset over Mead, a perennial GSL powerhouse.

Sitting in fourth with one game remaining, the Bears could go into the Class 4A postseason as a second seed.

“I keep telling the girls I want to win at the end of the season so it’s OK to struggle early,” Bailey said. “They are hustling and trying hard. We have made some mistakes that are indicative of our youth.”

The team began the league play with three wins before losing to rival and then-unbeaten University in the annual Flying Cow spirit match last month.

CV went 5-2 at the Linda Sheridan Classic, finishing 18th out of 64 teams.

The Bears were part of a fourway, first-place tie until Mead returned the favor, winning in four games during their GSL showdown two weeks ago.

“I’ve been a little naïve,” Bailey said. “I didn’t know the history or that Mead was supposed to be creaming everybody. When people were shocked we beat Mead I didn’t think anything of it.”

Nov, Liberty Lake Splash

SUBMITTED PHOTO

The Central Valley High School volleyball team only has two seniors, but the Bears have put together an impressive season, including a win over perennial powerhouse Mead.

This has been a good year for a young team to gain experience; half the GSL schools have new coaches.

Bailey arrived with an open mind, having moved here last summer from Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi. Her husband took a civil service position at Fairchild AFB. Bailey was hired at CV without an available teaching position, and then later she took an opening at North Pines Middle School.

“I think they must have thought I was the right personality for what they were looking

for,” she said. Her coaching philosophy derives from a negative high school experience.

“I didn’t want to be that kind of coach,” Bailey said. “I want to be good, want to win and have the kids succeed. But I also want to go about it in the right way. I think the girls are going to take my demeanor on the court. I’d rather them being relaxed and comfortable and have a good time with them.”

Central Valley still struggles to find its identity, Bailey said.

And there hasn’t been that “goto” player to carry the Bears at crunch time.

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Still, CV’s lone seniors have been key contributors. Natalie Ford is the libero, setting the tone from the back row. Alaina Gentili, though limited with a balky knee, has been a force in the middle.

Juniors Kazlyn Roullier and Kara Nitteberg, Bailey said, provide power up front, and four talented sophomores are the future.

“I would like her to be a big strong power hitter,” Bailey said of Roullier. “She can really put the ball away and wants to play in college. Kazlyn will develop into a great player.”

“I’ve been a little naïve. I didn’t know the history or that Mead was supposed to be creaming everybody.

When people were shocked we beat Mead I didn’t think anything of it.”

— FIRST-YEAR CV COACH AMANDA BAILEY

Roullier has led the team in kills several times, including 17 in the win over Mead.

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The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 39

SPORTS

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At left: Kazlyn Roullier (6) has led the team in kills during many of the season’s matches.

Here, she puts the ball away against University.

Above: New Central Valley volleyball coach Amanda Bailey jumped right into the spirit for the annual Flying Cow rivalry match against U-Hi in October.

VOLLEYBALL Continued from page 38

Nitteberg does everything well, Bailey said.

“I’ve been pushing certain shots. She’s really taken to that and made it part of her arsenal,” Bailey said.

Another junior who impressed at U-Hi is RaShasa Montgomery, a leaper with a powerful swing.

Meghan and Jade Rockwood are sophomore setters. Meghan Rockwood leads the team in assists.

“She’s been working really hard making good decisions to keep her hitters happy,” Bailey said.

Sophomore Keann White is a diamond in the rough in the middle, said her coach.

“She has a goofy arm swing, but jumps out of the gym and can put the ball inside the 10-foot line or take somebody’s head off,” Bailey said.

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The Splash

40 • NOVEMBER 2013

SPORTS

Longtime educator Ferger leaves legacy

By Mike Vlahovich

SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

Memories of high school basketball can be fleeting, but what Paul Fletcher recalls clearly is the person: longtime East Valley teacher and basketball coach Bill Ferger.

“I will always remember Bill Ferger for emphasizing teamwork and the team aspect of it,” said Fletcher, now a retired Air Force major general. “What a positive guy he was. He always had a smile on FERGER his face. Even when he was mad at us, it

wasn’t going to last long. He was a very, very good mathematics teacher. I remember him being excited about life.”

Ferger, 78, died Oct. 6. The Liberty Lake resident had a 37-year career as a teacher, coach and administrator in the East Valley School District.

Ferger graduated from Post Falls High School and then went on to earn bachelor and master of education degrees. After taking the East Valley High basketball team to state in 1968, he moved on to work in administration at the elementary school level.

He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Lila, his son, Bill Ferger Jr., and daughter, Nikki Holbert.

Ferger took the Knights basketball team to state in 1968; it was the second — and

last — time in their history.

At state in Tacoma the Knights went twoand-out, losing to Prosser 81-66 and Eatonville 84-68. The Knights’ other appearance came three years prior.

They were playing in the Northeast A League at the time and as a few of Ferger’s players recalled, he taught three up-tempo offenses — Tom, Dick and Harry — geared to get the ball to an open player, usually Fletcher, a leading scorer.

“He was not much of a defensive coach, but he understood offense really, really well,” Fletcher said. “We ran relentlessly.”

John Clift, a member of the 1968 state qualifying team, said Ferger made practices and school enjoyable.

“He always jumped in and played and kids would be wrestling with him on the floor. He was a big kid himself,” said Clift, who taught Ferger’s son, Bill Jr., at Central Valley.

Fletcher wrote a note to Lila Ferger upon learning of Bill Ferger’s passing: “I have many fond memories of Bill from the classroom to the basketball court and baseball diamond. I learned a lot from him, not just academically, but for lasting and important lessons about leadership and tenacity, working hard and the value of teamwork. I remember about him being excited about life, living in the moment, being positive and setting the example about how to lead.

I will forever be fortunate to have learned from him and known him.”

LOCAL LENS

Boys celebrate season

Crazy-haired winners A local team won the Crazy Hair Tournament for the U9 division (and also tied as winners for the crazy hair contest) put on recently by the Spokane Foxes FC. Pictured are (front row) McKinley Ullman, Makayla Beckett, Josie Miller; (back row) coach Will Miller, Libby Awbery, Kylee German, Jersey Measel, Lucy Lynn, Teagan Colvin and Corinne Westby.

Boys U-7 Team U.S.A. recently wrapped up their fall soccer season. Pictured are (back row) Kellen Hossack, Kellan Long, coach Dan Duer, Daimon Duran, Preston Rothrock; (front row) Damian Drew, Brock Duer, Connor Simonds and Joshua Parker. (Liberty Lake residents are highlighted in bold.)

SUBMITTED PHOTO

Running into the fall

SUBMITTED PHOTO

Fastpitch champs

SUBMITTED PHOTOS

Local residents earned shirts and enjoyed gathering together during the last month of runs for the Liberty Lake Running Club.

At left: Windemere Marathon race director Elaine Koga-Kennelly poses with her shirt.

At right: Liberty Lake Running Club member Cory Edwards finished the Spokane Marathon in October.

The U16 Liberty Lake Lightning won the Pumpkin Classic Fastpitch Tournament championship in Selah, Wash., in early October.

Pitcher Kelsey Gumm had 54 strikeouts, and the team hit over .400 for the entire tournament, led by Alex Surby with a .555 average.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

Pictured are (back row) head coach Dan Harder, Kelsey Gumm, Hannah Conant, Aubrey West, Riley Barnes, Shayden Clark, coach Lynette Harder, coach Chris Gumm; (front row) Sydney Jones, Jordan Schneidmiller, Alex Surby, Haley Proper, and (seated) Ashley Hoover. (Liberty Lake residents are highlighted in bold.)

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 41

SPORTS

Giving thanks … and being sore for it

By Chad Kimberley SPLASH COLUMN

As the calendar turns to November, many of us become like Pavlov’s dog as we start salivating at the idea of a Thanksgiving holiday filled with our favorite foods and family, but we would all be remiss to not pause and give thanks as the calendar first reads Veterans Day before it reaches Thanksgiving Day. So on a cold and foggy Sunday morning, my family and I headed to Rocky Hill Park to both remember and work out.

As a history teacher, I couldn’t help but think of the many battle scenes through time painted on a similar backdrop. But instead of it being the fog burning off the ground, it was the smoke from cannons and muskets being fired or the ground literally shaking, rattling and spewing dust from our modern methods of warfare.

The pages of American history include a continual thread of battle after battle, from the Revolutionary War continuing to this day, while our nation and armed forces battle the war on terrorism.

I was trying to convey this reality to my kids as we arrived at the park and took time to reflect on the young man, Marine Corporal Joshua R. Dumaw, who lost his life in Afghanistan. I explained how a group of folks from our community are creating this Fallen Heroes circuit of remembrance and exercise to honor those who have served and given their life for the freedoms we enjoy in this country.

So with a small lesson on American history in their minds, we set out to get a little sweat going in the morning as we tried out this circuit of events.

I immediately was reminded of the upper body weakness I have spent years trying to hide. The past few months have been widely used to get into a regular running regiment, which culminated in the completion of my first half-marathon. But all of this came at the expense of doing any upper body workouts, and boy could I tell it right off the bat.

Now I have never been one who has enjoyed doing pull-ups. In fact, all the way back to my junior high years I was that kid who just hung off the bar while throwing my legs up into the air repeatedly in hopes that it would spur my arms to actually pull my chin over the bar. It never worked, and I

eventually chose the inglorious path of the failed trapeze artists by falling to the ground in a mix of shame and ineptitude.

This unremarkable feeling came back to me as I hung on the bar for a few seconds before quickly realizing it was time to move onto other parts of the circuit. The kids and I enjoyed several aspects of the circuit, but a few of them stood out for various reasons.

“Stand and spin,” as it became known to us (more properly referred to as “step and twist”), reminded me of those old exercise machines that you stood on, wrapped a thick belt around your waist and then allowed the equipment to “jiggle” the weight off while you stood there. In essence, it didn’t do anything for me. I am sure this was supposed to build my core muscles, but I believe the problem was that I do not have a core — or at least an athletic core.

We moved onto the seated lat pull, which has always been a favorite exercise of mine as it allows me to work on my lack of upper body strength while sitting, which traditionally has been the most common exercise I have done. The kids equally enjoyed the machine as they would take turns placing one of their siblings in the seat while the other two took the outside positions to raise their brother or sister up and down. Hey, whatever works.

Over the course of my adult life, I have gone through periodic times of lower back pain (this could be from the equally periodic front stomach gains), so I truly enjoyed the back extension, which allowed me to stretch out my back while also trying to shrink down my front. I admit I probably looked more like a fish flopping on the bottom of a boat as I went through several repetitions, but that was a burn that felt great.

One of the final stations we covered was the one in which my lack of strength manifested itself to the highest degree — the parallel bars. The kids at first enjoy using the parallel bars as a tumbling and flipping device until I explained to them the goal is to support yourself using your arms and to slowly “walk” down the bars using your arms.

My collective family was not strong at this — not even remotely close. We may have to start a push up regiment as part of the going-to-bed routine. I figure if we use the distance that each individual member of the family made it across the bars as a collective whole, we would have made it about … halfway across.

With a sufficient amount of sweat expended and the kids having moved onto the park and the basketball court, it was time to head home. But on our way to the parking lot, I stopped by and reread the quote that is

SEND YOUR ANNOUNCEMENTS!

on the memorial for Corporal Dumaw.

“Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. The Marines don’t have that problem.”

This November, make sure you thank not only the Marines but also all the men and women serving in different military branches for making a difference in our world. And if you get a chance, also say a word of thanks to those who have begun the work on this Fallen Heroes Circuit Course

for helping to make a difference through remembrance and exercise in our community.

So let me start off by saying thank you to all my friends, neighbors and those I may never meet who have served and are currently serving our country. And most importantly, thank you Corporal Dumaw.

Splash columnist Chad Kimberley is a resident of Liberty Lake, teacher at Valley Christian School and girls basketball coach at Freeman High School.

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The Splash

42 • NOVEMBER 2013

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The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 43

SPORTS

Cross country among many CV teams eyeing state

By Mike Vlahovich

SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR

The revelation wasn’t quite a lightning bolt from on high when Central Valley girls track and cross country coach Dennis McGuire welcomed then-freshman Briegan Bester into the fold, but it could have been.

Early in this cross country season, he reflected on how when Bester arrived to his track team last spring he had no idea who she was or where she came from. He knows now.

“She didn’t run (cross country) for me last year,” he said. “No one knew about her.

Do you think I was excited to have her in track? She’s a phenomenon.”

All Bester did in her freshman debut was place twice in the State 4A middle distances, so he was all smiles when Bester joined the cross country team. The defending Greater Spokane League champion Bears became even stronger.

Bester won the season opener in 19:44 during a sweep of Mead. The next week, adversity struck when, at Liberty Lake County Park, she failed to finish the race and was later diagnosed with mononucleosis.

Bester returned to action in the seasonending GSL race for a league championship repeat. They compete in the regional state qualifying meet at Wandermere Golf Course Nov. 2.

But Bester isn’t the only newcomer on the team that led CV to another title.

“Three girls on junior varsity were on varsity last year,” McGuire said at the CVUniversity meet that September afternoon.

“And we were pretty good last year.”

Junior Sarah White and sophomore Kayla Boyer took turns as CV’s No. 1 runner in Bester’s absence. And in CV’s next-to-last GSL race there were four freshmen in the lineup.

With Bester’s return, the Bears are a good bet to earn the state trip that eluded them last year.

Playoffs abound Central Valley’s volleyball (see story, page 38) and girls cross country teams aren’t the only ones seeking a regional playoff berth.

It’s been a good fall all around for the Bears.

CROSS COUNTRY — The defending state champion boys cross country team is after a return state trip. Their glitches this year came in mid-October.

The Bears were stung by Mt. Spokane at home, losing 27-28 and beaten by multileague champion North Central. Both are

3A teams going their separate ways during state qualifying.

Corey Hunter has been healthy and CV’s No. 1 runner all season. Spencer Jensen and Briton Demars have been right behind on a team that has as many as five runners returned.

FOOTBALL — The Bears got off to a sluggish 1-2 start, before winning four straight to put them back in the chase for a postseason playoff spot.

They play at Gonzaga Prep Nov. 1 for the second 4A postseason berth.

Coach Rick Giampietri lamented the fact the Bears let the Mt. Spokane game get away.

But there have been bright spots.

Junior running back Spencer Miller developed into the workhorse. He had gained 795 yards rushing and scored 10 touchdowns before suffering a concussion in a loss to Shadle Park. The engine that drives the bus, Adam Chamberlain has added 597 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns and thrown for 1,299 yards and five more scores, with Hayden Wolrehammer a main target.

GIRLS SOCCER — The Bears ran afoul of Mead, losing 3-2 for the only blemish on the season. The team is readying for the playoffs.

They had a couple of close matches, including a shootout win over last year’s 3A state finalist, Mt. Spokane, but shared the GSL title with the Panthers.

With district concluded Nov. 1 and regional tournament Nov. 5 and 9, the Bears seek a return to the 4A state tournament in which they reached the quarterfinals last year.

Freshman standout Kelsey Turnbow led CV in scoring heading into the season finale, and had two hat tricks. Savannah Hoekstra (see article in October issue of The Splash) was right behind and the team assists leader.

Hoekstra is one of just four seniors on the team, including Sara Grozdanich, who had a five-goal match this year.

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44 • NOVEMBER 2013

OPINION

Citizenship education — the responsibility of all Americans

By George Nethercutt Jr. SPLASH GUEST COLUMN

Citizenship education is the responsibility of all Americans. It binds our nation, helping us understand the concepts that made the United States unique throughout history.

For at least a generation, Americans have been undereducated about civic learning and engagement, routinely failing standardized surveys testing their civic knowledge. Citizens with a basic knowledge of America, and the active citizenship it produces, are essential to our democracy’s prosperity, particularly when multiculturalism and globalism have complicated what it means to be American.

To most Americans — today, and in decades past — to be a good citizen has meant to take pride in being an American, a patriot, to love our country, to know its history, its state capitals, what the branches of government are and how they work together, to vote in elections, to work hard at our job, to pay our share of taxes and to volunteer and participate in our community.

To be patriotic and a good citizen should not mean saber-rattling or chestpounding, but rather a willingness to sacrifice, in battle or at home, to support decisions of our government leaders or take issue without rancor. It also means to take pride in the American story and its everevolving culture, and to participate in civic affairs, whether that means attending town meetings, marching on Washington,

About the Opinion Page The Splash opinion page is intended to be a community forum for discussing local issues.

Please interact with us by sending a le er to the editor or Liberty Lake Voices guest column for considera on.

Le ers to the editor of no more than 350 words or guest columns of about 700 words should be emailed to editor@libertylakesplash.com.

Views expressed in signed columns or le ers do not necessarily reflect the views of this newspaper or its staff. Editorials, which appear under the heading "Splash Editorial," represent the voice of The Splash and are wri en by Editor/Publisher Josh Johnson.

D.C., writing your congressman or simply voting in elections.

Citizenship and patriotism create a sense of unity, of belonging to something bigger than us, of accepting all-for-one and one-for-all, while at the same time celebrating, and respecting, our differences. The argument could be made that too many Americans, particularly among the young, are citizens of no country, no continent and no world — except perhaps the United Friends of Facebook. Too many can’t identify Arizona or Nebraska, Iraq or Brazil, on a map. They can’t state who was president during World War I or II, or what the Battles of Bunker Hill or Antietam were about. Even current elected officials seem clueless about the precise amount of our national debt, how taxpayer dollars are really spent and how federal policies affect domestic and international economics. Clearly, there’s a massive disconnect between Americans’ love of country and what they know about it.

Studies show that citizens with a workable understanding of the American system are more likely to vote, become active in community affairs, have stronger families and engage in the discussion and debate of political issues.

They are more patriotic.

The fabric of American society — an enlightened society — can be enhanced by a civically knowledgeable younger generation. As the next generation of leaders, young people particularly are charged with perpetuating the American system, for the best kind of patriotism is that which embraces national values and lives them through citizen actions.

Attend a naturalization ceremony celebrating new American citizens. Ask them what American citizenship means to them. Their answers will help all of us appreciate our citizenship and rich heritage even more.

George R. Nethercutt Jr. is a former member of Congress from Eastern Washington. His nonprofit foundation, The George Nethercutt Foundation, is sponsoring a Citizenship Tournament this fall for 4th-, 8th- and 12th-graders to win up to $10,000 scholarships and a trip to Washington, D.C. Visit www.nethercuttfoundation.org for more information. He wrote this column as part of a series highlighting the Partners Advancing Character Education (PACE) trait of the month. The trait for November is “citizenship.”

The Splash

Editorial Cartoon

Letters to the Editor Clarifying the utility tax debate Overall, I enjoyed reading the articles in The Splash. However, I think you got the utility tax debate wrong. The discussion on Sept. 10 was only about changing the amounts for each utility, cafeteria style, but the total amount of utility tax to be collected was decided in a vote of the entire council at the retreat in August.

At the retreat, the Council voted four in favor of remaining at the $660,000 collection mark, two opposed (Beckett, Olander) and one abstained (Kaminskas). If the opposition vote had carried, the discussion would have been open to decreasing the amount of tax collected — or increasing it, for that matter, but I have never heard anyone suggest that.

I have been consistently opposed to the utility tax and have lobbied, unsuccessfully, to get it reduced or eliminated. My argument has been that we are charging a rate that is twice that of our neighbor Spokane Valley (they charge 6 percent on phone service only), and that is not good for economic development here. Our finance director says he would not have recommended the tax if he had been in his current position then; Mayor Peterson openly opposed it at the time but now has a number of ways to spend it.

We are just entering into the budget discussion, and I am hopeful we will be able to bring down the utility tax in a way that benefits both residents and businesses.

Personally, I would like to see a drop in electricity and gas rates to 1 percent or 1.5 percent so that everyone benefits. The decrease in revenue can come from the general fund or REET over the next few years to maintain the street maintenance program. As the city grows, there will be

an increase in the number of households and businesses paying the lower rate, and we will surpass the $660,000 goal in a very short time to free up the general fund.

My two cents.

Lori Olander

Member, Liberty Lake City Council

Langford worthy of vote In any election, it can be challenging to know the candidates and where they stand on the issues. I have reached my decision for Liberty Lake City Council Position No. 4.

Having had the opportunity to serve with Odin Langford on the City Council, I know the value he brings our city. He has three qualities that make him the obvious choice.

1. Morals: He cares about the families of Liberty Lake and doesn’t shy away from issues that challenge our public conscience, and he does so without concern for himself. He has a moral compass!

2. Experience: For the past six years, he has demonstrated a deep understanding of the issues that our city faces. He knows how we feel about our libraries, parks and city planning. I have watched him balance the demands of homeowners and developers to ensure that both parties were given fair treatment. He understands how the city operates and which direction it ought to be headed.

3. Fiscal Responsibility: I trust Odin with my pocketbook. We don’t have to look far to see the toll that fiscal irresponsibility has taken on our state, country and the world at large. Odin isn’t out to needlessly increase revenues or find “special”

See LETTERS, page 45

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 45

COMMUNITY Volume 15, Issue 14

EDITOR/PUBLISHER

Josh Johnson

josh@libertylakesplash.com GENERAL MANAGER

Tammy Kimberley

tammy@libertylakesplash.com BUSINESS MANAGER Kim Johnson

kim@libertylakesplash.com

GRAPHICS EDITOR

Sarah Burk

sarah@libertylakesplash.com

CIRCULATION Sandy Johnson Mike Wiykovics

circulation@libertylakesplash.com CONTRIBUTORS

Hope Brumbach (editing), Brenna Holland, Craig Howard, Chad Kimberley, Daniel Pringle, Valerie Putnam, Ross Schneidmiller, Jocelyn Stott, Mike Vlahovich On the cover: Submitted rendering; page design by Sarah Burk

LETTERS Continued from page 44

projects. He understands the city’s purse is financed from our pockets. He monitors very closely what our money is spent on.

He ensures that we don’t throw money at every project proposed. He knows that priorities must be set and choices made.

When the city does engage with a developer, he fights to make sure that the city is supplied the most competitive bids possible so that we aren’t paying a premium for the services we receive. He is focused on paying off all of the city’s debts, not incurring new ones.

For these three reasons, I trust this man. When it comes to my ballot, I won’t hesitate to cast it for Odin Langford.

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About The Liberty Lake Splash 2310 N. Molter Road, Suite 305 Liberty Lake, WA 99019 Phone: 242-7752; Fax: 927-2190 www.libertylakesplash.com The Splash is published monthly by or before the first of each month. It is distributed free of charge to every business and home in the greater Liberty Lake area. Additional copies are located at dropoff locations in Liberty Lake and Otis Orchards.

Applause for roundabout The new roundabout is looking great and fits nicely within the Liberty Lake landscape with the added brick work and landscaping.

I wanted to take the time and congratulate Mayor Peterson and Council members as well as the city staff for making this section of road much safer for the commuters. Kudos and keep up the good work!

Wendy Van Orman

Liberty Lake

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Subscriptions Liberty Lake residents receive a complimentary copy each month. Subscriptions for U.S. postal addresses outside of the 99019 ZIP code cost $12 for 12 issues. Send a check and subscription address to P.O. Box 363, Liberty Lake, WA 99019.

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Gift of trip inspires pride On Oct. 5, Bill and I attended the "Hoedown for HOPE.” This is the major fundraiser for Spokane HOPE School.

This school teaches listening and spoken language to children with hearing loss (birth to 5 years old). It is the only one of its kind in the Inland Northwest. The school is located in the University District of Spokane. It is a 501c3 non-profit serving children.

The grand prize of the evening was a Hawaiian vacation. This included a one-week stay at a condo and $1,000 toward airfare.

Mary Anne Frank won the trip. Now here is the best part: Mary Anne and Jim Frank gave the prize to a local family that has three children (ages 2, 4 and 6) that were born with hearing loss. Now that was real class!

Just one more reason my husband and I are glad we purchased our home from Greenstone Corporation, a Liberty Lakebased company founded by Jim Frank.

We are grateful to live in a community where the right thing happens without even a second thought. Thank you, Mary Anne and Jim Frank, for again caring about those around you.

Your support makes Liberty Lake THE place to live!

Jan Krogh

Liberty Lake HOPE School Board Member

Barlows Family Restaurant • City of Liberty Lake • Clark’s Tire and Automotive Family Medicine Liberty Lake • George Gee • John L. Scott Real Estate KiDDS Dental Liberty Lake • Liberty Lake EyeCare Center Liberty Lake Orthodontics • STCU • Sunshine Gardens

Index of advertisers Following are the local advertisers in this issue of The Splash.

Amaculate Housekeeping Avista Utilities Banner Furnace & Fuel Barlows Restaurant Bestway Lawn & Tree Care Black Jack Limousine Broadway Court Estates Casey Family Dental City of Spokane Valley Clark’s Tire & Automotive Cornerstone Pentecostal Church Crown Media & Printing Cullings Family Dentistry Edward Jones Liberty Lake Evergreen Fountains Family Medicine Liberty Lake Friends of Pavillion Park Garden Plaza of Post Falls Healthy Living Liberty Lake Hong Kong Buffet Inland Imaging

36 19 11 25 20 37 25 15 35 18 34 5 3 2 31 39 39 36 37 5 25

John L Scott - Marilyn Dhaenens 41 John L Scott - Pam Fredrick 37 Karen Does My Hair 2 Kathrine Olson DDS 13 KIDDS Dental 23 Lakeshore Insurance 3 Lakeside Vision PLLC 11 Liberty Lake Athletic Club 15 Liberty Lake EyeCare Center 3 Liberty Lake Family Dentistry 5 Liberty Lake Orthodontics 3 Liberty Lake Pet Sitters 36 Liberty Lake Portal 42 Liberty Lake Sewer & Water District 43 Liberty Lube 37 Live Real Estate - Sandra Bartel 43 MAX at Mirabeau Restaurant & Lounge 23 MeadowWood HOA 11 North Idaho Dermatology - Stephen Craig MD 26 Northern Quest Resort & Casino 48 Northwest Insurance Brokers 34

Papa Murphy’s 27 PEMCO Insurance - Bryan Jarrett 11 Sayre and Sayre 43 Simonds Dental Group 48 Simonds Dental Group - No Cavity Club 9 Spokane Chiefs 38 SportClips Haircuts 43 Sterling Bank 35 STCU 29 Summerfield Salon 5 Therapeutic Associates 2 Total Sports 41 Vote Debbi Haskins 7 Vote Hugh Severs 11 Vote Lori Olander 9 Windermere Real Estate - Bill White 25 Wounded Warriors Project Fundraiser 13 Zephyr Lodge & Conference Grounds 2

Service Directory 46

Of note: This thank you message was produced by The Splash’s advertising team, which works its tail off on behalf of partner businesses, helping them share their messages through advertisements. This is an independent function from The Splash’s editorial team, which has its own evaluation process to determine the community news stories and features it pursues. For more information about a win-win partnership that expertly markets your business to thousands of readers (while making this home-grown community newspaper possible), email advertise@libertylakesplash.com. With story ideas, contact editor@libertylakesplash.com.

The Splash

46 • NOVEMBER 2013

SERVICE DIRECTORY HANDYMAN SERVICES HANDY MANNY ...

Music instruction LESSONS IN YOUR HOME!

... is your neighbor and is ready to complete your home project (big or small) with skilled craftsmanship at an affordable price. Winterize and organize. Who needs shelves? Call Manny at Pop’s Dream Creations, 499-4845, or Phil 280-9912. Licensed, bonded, insured.

POPSDDC873L8 • popsdreamcreations.com

Music To Go! — Beginner through intermediate piano and guitar lessons available for Liberty Lake, Newman Lake, Otis Orchards and Spokane Valley.

Since 1994. Recently relocated from SF Bay area.

Please call Bobbie Marie Smith for more info at 509.474.9432 or email mus2go@yahoo.com.

Handyman services Heinz Painting & Handyman

Odd jObs The Clean Up Bros!

www.theartchalet.com 509-255-9600

BBB accredited, hardworking, honest, and on time. Free estimates! I have the time and tools to get the job done right.

Call today! Dave Heinz, 509-953-8093.

Licensed, bonded & insured, HeInzpH924Bw. Many satisfied Liberty Lake customers.

Zach (age 15) and Isaiah (age 12) are two hard working young men looking for odd jobs to earn extra money.

Our Rate: Pay us what you think the job is worth.

How cool is that? To hire us please call 255-9194 or email: TheCleanUpBros@gmail.com

AUTO RESTORATION

House Cleaning serviCes

Painting

ART INSTRUCTION

Veteran’s Day & Holiday Gift Workshops (ages 5+) $28.00

…because every Home Maid woman deserves Household Services LLC

Home Maid Household Services LLC J.M. Garden’s body and refinishing work awarded “Best in Class” at the prestigious Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance event

J.M.Garden Restorations Award-winning partial and complete restoration and refinishing services for Vintage • Classic • Customs 1 40+ years experience, 20+ years in business 1 Reasonable labor rate

509-257-2881

(Please leave a message)

CHILDCARE EXPLORERS DAYCARE Before and After School Care available with Licensed In Home Daycare. Snack, reading time and homework time provided.

Plenty of references available. Care provided for Winter and Spring Break as well.

Contact Jamie 499-9141

a housewife!

House cleaning and more! Organizing, grocery shopping, laundry, meal prep, errands. Licensed, Bonded and Insured.

509-230-7503 • homemaidhousewife.com

Heinz Painting & Handyman BBB accredited, hardworking, honest, and on time.

Free estimates! Now is the time to get your house painted. Call today! Dave Heinz, 509-953-8093.

Licensed, bonded & insured, HeiNzpH924Bw. Many satisfied Liberty Lake customers.

HOUSE CLEANING SERVICES

SPRINKLER BLOWOUT

Need help with cleaning?

Mention this ad and get $5 OFF

HELP IS ON THE WAY!

Affordable professional & personalized cleaning Eco friendly cleaning supplies Our goal is to make you proud of your home again

GRASSMASTERS LAWN & SPRINKLER

CONTACT: Julia at (503)309-5759 or yuliya06wa@gmail.com Free estimates Residential Houses • Offices • Auto Interior Pre and post party clean up

Licensed & Bonded • 20+ years experience

Please call to set up an appointment

924-LAWN

GOLF CARTS

LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE

TAXI SERVICE

FALL GOLF CART SELLDOWN

• Weekly/Bi-weekly Lawn Care • Fall/Winter fertilization & Weed Control • Fall pest control/Spider Barriers • Sprinkler blowouts/Adjustments/Repairs • Fall cleanups/Raking/Leaf Removal • Fully licensed/Insured — Satisfaction guaranteed!

AIRPORT TRANSPORTATION

---- Will Finance Till May Of 2014 With No Interest ------ 13 Carts under $2400 with guarantee thru 2014 --22 rental returns from Spokane Business — From $995 ’03 Yamaha 4 pass with new 48V batteries — $2495 Older E-Z-Go gas•top•lites•w/s•runs perfect — $995 Gas E-Z-Go•4stroke•top•w/s•rear flip seat — $2595 ’04 E-Z-Go•new Trojan batt.•w/s•auto chgr. — $2295 ’09 E-Z-Go•auto fill batt. system•48V•Guar. — $2995 3 - ’08 E-Z-Go gas•4stroke•split w/s•choice — $3295 ’06 E-Z-Go•bag cvr•split w/s•Trojan batt.•chgr. — $2650 Very Hot ‘06 E-Z-Go•lifted•fancy wheels•cool — ?????

4 Used tilt trailers•good tires•all sizes — From $750 Will trade — all financing in-house — no credit check!!

4508 E. Sprague (2 Blocks east of Havana on Sprague) Open 7 Days a Week • 999-8989 any time of day or nite

FREE ESTIMATES As always, first mow FREE

New 2013 non-smoking van.

Liberty Lake area to (GEG) Spokane International Airport, $45 one way or $80 roundtrip (up to 5 people), 7 days a week. Reservations recommended.

TOM’S AIRPORT TAXI (509)

509-218-1775 Pacific-Lawn.com

270-3115

Taxi service also available to Spokane.

Advertise in the Service Directory — This is your place to connect with potential clients! Priced affordably, as little as $10 gets a business into 7,000 copies of The Splash that is delivered into every Liberty Lake home and business. Call or email to learn more: 242-7752 or advertise@libertylakesplash.com

CALENDAR Continued from page 22 Army National Guard Buck Night & Cheerstix Giveaway Join other hockey fans for $1 hot dogs, Coca Cola and popcorn. The first 5,000 fans will receive a set of cheerstix.

For more: www.spokanechiefs.com

Nov. 2-3 | Boo Ball Fall Classic Basketball Tournament HUB Sports

Center, 19619 E. Cataldo Ave. For more: www. spokaneaau.com/fall-classic

Nov. 7 | Liberty Lake Running Club final season run The run will start and end at the

Whybrew’s house with an end-of-the-year party.

For more: 954-9806 or kathyawhybrew@msn.com

Nov. 16 | Complete Woman’s Wellness Super Saturday This all-day workshop is sponsored by Healthy Living Liberty Lake. For more: 924-6199

Nov. 28 | 2nd annual Turkey Trot 8 a.m.,

Trailhead Golf Course parking lot. Join the Liberty Lake Running Club for a 3-mile walk/ run. Runners are asked to bring donations for Blessings Under the Bridge. Items needed are socks, mittens, gloves, hand warmers, toiletries and cocoa mix. For more: 954-9806 or kathyawhybrew@msn.com

Nov. 30-Dec. 1 | Turkey Shoot-Out Futsal Tournament HUB Sports Center,

19619 E. Cataldo Ave. Boys and girls teams U7 through U14 are invited for some indoor futsal action. Registration is $250 per team (if registered by Nov. 5). For more: www. hubsportscenter.org

Recurring Liberty Lake Athletic Club During the month of November, donate to the 2nd Harvest food drive and receive half off the club’s enrollment fee. For more: 891-2582 or www. libertylakeathleticclub.com HUB Sports Center 19619 E. Cataldo Ave. Various classes, activities and events occur throughout the week. For more: 927-0602 or www.hubsportscenter.org.

All calendar listings were provided to or gathered

by Splash staff. If you would like your event considered for the community calendar, please submit information by the 15th of the month to calendar@libertylakesplash.com.

Correction A breakout box description of Bombshell Boutique was incorrect in the story “Boutique blooms out of personal challenges” on page 39 of the October Splash.

Located at 21950 E. Country Vista Drive, Suite 500, Bombshell Boutique sells clothing, hand-crafted accessories, organic skin care items and home décor.

Clarification An additional step for vehicles using roundabouts was left out in “Rules of the roundabout” (page 10, October Splash).

The Washington State Department of Transportation also urges drivers to use a turn signal when exiting the roundabout.

The Splash

NOVEMBER 2013 • 47

COMMUNITY

CVSD community unites, responds

SUBMITTED PHOTOS

McKenzie Mott was LL resident FROM STAFF REPORTS

A tragic Spokane Valley car accident Oct. 5 claimed the life of two University High School sophomores, Josie Freier and McKenzie Mott. Mott was a resident of Liberty Lake.

A third student, 16-year-old driver and friend Preston Maher, was injured when the vehicle lost control and hit a tree on a residential road.

The accident led to an outpouring of unity and support in the Central Valley School District and beyond. CVSD Public Information Officer Melanie Rose said the response of the community was overwhelming, listing several responses just within the CVSD community. Among them: • Hundreds of Central Valley High School students wore Titan colors on Oct. 7.

• Throughout the district, students promoted and collected donations for the Toys For Titans drive, delivering them to U-Hi for an Oct. 11 assembly.

• The CVHS community designed and produced crimson stickers for football players to wear on their helmets for the annual Greasy Pig rivalry game Oct. 11.

U-Hi players also wore the stickers on their helmets for the game. CVHS leadership students also cut and assembled indi-

vidual crimson and gold ribbons on safety pins for CV students to wear at the game.

• CVHS leadership students helped U-Hi students decorate their gym for UHi’s Oct. 12 homecoming dance.

• CVHS Principal Mike Hittle and Assistant Principal Brandon Deyarmin helped organize a district-wide toy drive and offered to collect donations to deliver to U-Hi Friday morning. The drive became so large that CVSD trucks were brought in to collect the toys. Hittle and Deyarmin attended the assembly and helped move toys in and out of the gym.

• Proceeds from CV’s October blood drive were earmarked for Maher.

• Toys From Titans donations flooded in from schools across the district, including a drive at Greenacres Middle School that covered an entire stage.

Mott, a varsity soccer player at U-Hi, is survived by her parents Larry and Connie Mott; siblings Joshua (Jessica) Mott, Jeremy (Felicia Gumm) Mott and Mallory (Sean Lanphere) Mott; her grandmother, Lucille Mott; and many extended family members.

Funeral services were held Oct. 12 at Redeemer Lutheran Church, and memorial contributions are suggested to the Redeemer Lutheran VBS.

After a tragic accident claimed the life of two University High School students on Oct. 5, the entire Central Valley School District responded. A week normally reserved for a football rivalry game instead saw CV students uniting to wear Titan colors (above) on Oct. 7, and an outpouring of support in honor of Josie Freier and McKenzie Mott.

After Freier’s family asked that toys be donated to Toys for Tots in her honor, “Toys for Titans” drives throughout the greater Spokane area eventually filled the University High School gym for a special assembly Oct. 11. Among the drives were those organized at Central Valley High School (left) and Greenacres Middle School (below).

The Splash

48 • NOVEMBER 2013

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