Today's headlines:
- Spokane County Fire District 9 will have a levy lid lift and a bond on the ballot this November.
- The City of Spokane will provide free asbestos testing for wildfire survivors without the insurance that covers the service.
- Washington voters are starting to receive their ballots for the midterm election in the mail.
- SPR's Lisa Leinberger attended a community celebration in honor of Indigenous Peoples' Day. Indigenous tribes and organizations partnered to host the gathering at Spokane’s Riverfront Park.
________________________________________________
Spokane County Fire District 9 will ask voters to approve a levy lid lift and a $70 million bond this November.
Matt Vinci is the fire chief for District 9.
MATT VINCI: "The focus of Proposition 1 and 2 is really — number one, protect the public, provide high levels of service. And number two, protect the folks that provide the service."
The district’s Proposition 1 is a six-year levy lid lift that would cost voters about a dollar fifty for every thousand dollars of assessed property value. That’s the maximum allowed under state law. It would replace aging equipment and provide more training and support for crews.
Proposition 2 is a capital bond meant to improve fire stations and address long-term infrastructure needs. It would cost voters about 39 cents per thousand dollars of assessed property value.
District 9 covers about 125 square miles north of Spokane and Spokane Valley.
The district has not asked voters to approve a levy lid lift for its regular fire levy in more than 45 years.
________________________________________________
The City of Spokane will provide asbestos testing at no cost for wildfire survivors whose insurance doesn’t cover the service.
It’s the latest in the city’s ongoing efforts to roll back regulations and offer funding as people rebuild homes that were damaged or destroyed by the Old Trails fire.
Spokane City Council member Zack Zappone cosponsored the resolution that allows the city to contract with asbestos surveyors.
ZACK ZAPPONE: "So with fire victims, we see lots of different situations of people, for rebuilding and being whole after the fire. Each case is different based on what insurance is going to pay out."
Zappone says his resolution, which passed last week, aims to address those differences.
ZACK ZAPPONE: "So some people, their insurance will cover it and they'll be okay. And other people are missing it. And we only have, you know, a finite amount of resources that people have donated to the city and city resources. And so we're trying to get those resources to the people where they're at and where there's gaps in coverage."
Homeowners are required to test their properties for asbestos, a dangerous mineral, before they can clear debris and rebuild.
People who have already conducted asbestos surveys without insurance can request up to $1,600 in reimbursement on the city’s website.
Funding for reimbursement and for no-cost surveys will come from the city’s Wildfire Housing Assistance Funds.
________________________________________________
Spokane was treated to its final night market and street fair of the season last week. The founder of the event wants to see more like it for local businesses in the city. SPR’s Ember Braun has the story.
People, some in costumes, walk around a rented out parking lot near the University District, looking at items ranging from jewelry to plants.
The night market is organized and created by Alena Horowitz, under her business The Wavy Bunch. She says the goal is to bring a festival vibe to Spokane.
ALENA HOROWITZ: “I had the inspiration basically to — knowing that there’s not anything like that in Spokane, and knowing that the energy and atmosphere at big music festivals is so awesome that I want to see that in Spokane.”
Brandon Douglass is one of the vendors. He and his wife run a business called Funk Industrial. He’s been selling art at the night market since Horowitz started it, six years ago.
BRANDON DOUGLASS: “There should always be more. If there was enough for me to do two or three shows a week, I wouldn’t have to have a full time job, right? So there are a lot, but I don’t know that there’s a central place to find out where they all are.”
This is supposedly the last night market event of the year with The Wavy Bunch. But, Horowitz says she’s still deciding if she wants to do a Christmas-themed one in the wintertime.
I’m Ember Braun, reporting.
________________________________________________
Starting Wednesday, a portion of North Pines Road will be closed in Spokane Valley until Monday, October 19.
During that time, construction workers will finish paving the new Pines Road alignment. The portion between Mirabeau Parkway to East Trent Avenue will be closed. So drivers trying to use Trent Avenue in this area should take University Road or Sullivan Road instead.
The City of Spokane Valley says this is its largest capital improvement project so far. It says the project should save four hours per day of vehicle wait time once it's complete.
________________________________________________
Pulitzer Prize-winning presidential historian and biographer Jon Meacham will headline Whitworth University’s President’s Leadership Forum this week.
Meacham has authored biographies of Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, and George Bush, among others. His latest book, “American Struggle,” documents the history of dissent and compromise in America.
Meacham will speak at the Martin Woldson Theater at the Fox this Wednesday, October 14. His speech begins at 7 p.m. and will be followed by a Q&A with Whitworth president Scott McQuilkin. You can find tickets here.
SPR's Audrey Nelson called Meacham ahead of his appearance in Spokane. You’ll hear that interview on tomorrow’s episode of SPR News Today — or on the air during Morning Edition from 5 until 9 a.m.
________________________________________________
Happening this Thursday, Spokane Community College is hosting Trade Program Discovery Day. It’s a free event, and attendees can learn about the different technical and trade programs that the college offers — from cosmetology to architecture.
Those interested will be able to meet instructors, try hands-on activities and learn about applying for classes.
It starts at 8:30 a.m. and ends at noon, inside the Lair Student Center at Spokane Community College.
You can register for the event and find out more here.
________________________________________________
Washington voters are starting to receive their ballots for the midterm election in the mail. State Government reporter Sarah Mizes-Tan has more.
Voters will see on their November ballot a number of legislative races, congressional races and five State Supreme court races. There are also three statewide initiatives to weigh: One about taxing millionaires, another about parents' access to student records. Another initiative seeks to ban transgender girls from playing on girls' sports teams.
State officials are encouraging voters to mail ballots as early as possible — or use drop boxes.
Officials said in August that a record number of late ballots were disqualified in the state’s primary election due to process changes at the U.S. Postal Service.
Election day is November 3.
In Olympia, I'm Sarah Mizes-Tan.
_______________________________________________
Indigenous organizations and tribes hosted a community celebration yesterday in honor of Indigenous Peoples' Day. The gathering took place at Spokane’s Riverfront Park. S-P-R’s Lisa Leinberger went to talk to organizers and attendees.
Students from the Salish School in Spokane are singing a song about Sasquatch. They keep time with traditional drums and wear traditional dress.
It's the start of the first Indigenous Peoples' Day celebration in Riverfront Park. It's a day to celebrate the culture, language, art, and more from the Native tribes from the area. The morning activities include a blessing, time to recognize the veterans in the Native community and speeches about what it means to be Native.
MARGO HILL FERGUSON: "The Spokane tribe and our Indigenous people have lived here for tens of thousands of years. We've lived on this location for more than 14 or 15,000 years."
That's Margo Hill Ferguson.
MHF: "We don't need archaeologists or anthropologists to tell us where we come from or how long we've been here."
Using a combination of English and Salish, she tells everyone the creation story that her great-grandmother used to tell her, the creation of the Spokane River.
MHF: "[Speaking in Salish] And from those salmon, we got life. And there became the upper, the middle, and the lower Spokane."
Holding the event at the park along the banks of that river holds a special significance for Hill Ferguson. She says it's a reclaiming of the land after the U.S. Army forcefully removed the tribes.
Even as Indigenous community members remember where they've been, they take the time to celebrate where they are now. There are stick races, traditional dances, hands-on crafting, a fashion show, and vendors.
Richard Curry makes traditional dance regalia. He has a booth at the event selling handmade belts.
RICHARD CURRY: "Started making them about 40 years ago for the grandkids, but they've evolved to what I got now. I buy leather and the big pieces of leather, and then I cut them down myself, you know, strips, and then make everything piece by piece."
There are several craft vendors as well as a resource fair. There are representatives from local colleges, the Native Project and Spokane Pride. Conrad Durglow, who is Bitterroot Salish from the Flathead Reservation, runs the Two-spirit programming through Spokane Pride.
CONRAD DURGLOW: "And my work there has been to to create a safer place, a more inclusive place for a BIPOC community. I've noticed that our goals are one and the same — the tribal people, the Two-spirit people, and the LGBTQ+ community."
Skye Pageling is the executive director of the Camas Foundation with the Kalispel Tribe.
He came to the event with his children who attend the Salish School. He says keeping the culture alive through events like this and his children's school is so important.
SKYE PAGELING: "And I grew up on the reservation, surrounded by my people, but I didn't have the opportunity to engage in language. I didn't have the opportunity to engage in my culture, and that was due to some of the hardships my parents had experienced."
He says this is why all of his children go to the Salish School and are near-fluent in the language.
Davonica Browneagle is a member of the Spokane Tribe and one of the emcees for the day.
DAVONICA BROWNEAGLE: "It shows, like, how strong our Indian community is in the Spokane area, and that how we can all come together and celebrate together. And there's, you know, it's all just good feelings. There's no animosity, there's no bad feelings."
The strong sense of community carries on throughout the day, and the people hope to grow the event for next year.
I'm Lisa Leinberger, reporting.
_______________________________________________
SPR News Today is a production of Spokane Public Radio.
Reporting today was contributed by Ember Braun, Lisa Leinberger, Sarah Mizes-Tan and Audrey Nelson, today’s host and producer.
Web support was provided by Anna Gyure Havlek.
