Grandview-Thorpe Neighborhood Association

This dog is out roaming the neighborhood on Lindeke St off Fish Lake Trail. It has a collar but could not catch it. It's a pretty dog and looked lost?

The City has created a new Transportation Commission, in an effort to consolidate multiple boards and commissions that review traffic and transportation needs, including the Neighborhood-led Traffic Calming projects from red light camera revenue. If you're interested in the topic and have some extra time to commit, please consider applying to sit on this Commission as a representative of District 2! https://my.spokanecity.org/bcc/commissions/transportation-commission/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR3NRTDdd43DwQNp2on2OACXGvWRSFKWGVb0EWTPKfrYCdRsWedYj1I4uwA_aem_sxacQppUbcF2HBe4PJ70iw

Transportation Commission Transportation Commission

Fire season is here - no outdoor burning, please!

Spokane County and Area Fire Chiefs Enact Burn Restrictions Effective July 2  

Yep, this is our neighborhood 🥺

The risk of wildfires is causing some in Spokane County to lose their homeowners insurance Back in February, Nikki Hyche received an unwelcome surprise. Though she'd reliably paid to insure her home in Spokane's Grandview/Thorpe neighborhood since 2015, she received...

Meet the final candidates for the City of Spokane Police Chief!

Send a message to learn more

Draft minutes from our meeting on 6/12/24. Thanks Mary Beth, for being Secretary!

Hwy 195 & 16th Ave. Closure
• Neighborhood was not made aware this project was happening before road closure sign was put up. City and WSDOT (Ryan Overton) both were confused. Developer required/led project.
• Spoke with Dean Gable, Construction/Project Manager for Hill International. He says they are hoping for a completion date sometime during the week of 6/24.
• Confirmed new pavement height does not change clearance for overpass. He said it’s sitting at 6’3” of clearance.

Wildland Firefighting Practice
• Firefighters from around the country here practicing. Mary Beth McGinley will share details.
o Train the trainer for urban firefighters engaging in structure protection with encroaching wildland fires took place 11-12JUN, mostly on Canyon Woods Lane. Lots of media coverage and great simulation activities. Our entire area is now firmly on the radar of Spokane Fire Department. Ironically, in the middle of their hands-on training Tuesday, the Grove Fire broke out and ultimately many of the trucks ended up responding. Sobering but very timely example of why this training is so imperative.
• WatchDuty App recommended

Police Dept.
• Sgt. Wilkinson
o Extensive updates, including a criminal activity “heat map” for our area. Only 4 calls in the past month. (Photo or link to handout)
o Encourage to call anything in that you have a concern about (suspicious activity). May not get an officer response, but tracked. Handout attached at end of minutes shows who to call for what.
o Specifically addressed Catalyst – while many concerns were voiced, it has not resulted in increased crime in our area. They really want to be a good neighbor and contacting them directly has had some positive affect (parked cars, etc.)
o Sgt Wilkinson specifically asked that we not hesitate to email him directly and made sure we had his cell phone (business card attached).
 [email protected]
 His team of 8 officers take pride in community responses and care deeply for their neighborhoods (all areas south of the river except for Downtown). He cannot promise resolution but does promise review and reply to emails.


• Graffiti in Grandview Park, who to call?
o Attached at the end of the minutes is a sheet with tips for calling in any issues you might have.

Clean Up Day & Dump Passes
• Did Dan get totals to us?
o Totals not yet available.
• No more dump passes until fall
o We distributed 45 passes and 23 have been used. Encouraged to USE YOUR PASSES. More are coming and will be distributed in the fall.
• Maybe another clean-up day in fall?
o Unlikely but yet to be determined. Thus the push to use dump passes.

Community Assembly
• Updates from Tina L.
o Tina briefed on Community Assembly activities and items.
 There is $1K for beautification/cleaning up and it was discussed that we could do a “PULKING” (Picking Up Litter while Walking) event.
 Tina briefed on her response to City Council as they vote to create a cohesive Transportation Commission to combine a number of existing stand-alone commissions. This would now include a liaison member from the CA, plus an at-large representative from one of the council districts.
 Briefed on Safe Streets Now, a resolution sponsored by Zac Zappone to use traffic calming funds to focus on ways to implement cost-effective, quicker, likely more temporary projects that have immediate impact while waiting for what typically could be years for full planned implementations.
 Neighbor Leslie Hope is now CHHS Board liaison - and also Tina’s back-up to the CA!
 CA Design Review board has a vacancy if anyone is interested in researching it.

Community Engagement Grant
• Movie Night – Thursday, 8/15
• Block Party – vote?
o First big news! GTNC has received a Community Engagement Grant of $850.
o We discussed and ultimately voted on how we want to spend the money.
 Events and activities discussed include a Movie Night (August 15th) and, for the first time, a Neighborhood Block Party, proposed to be held at the dead end of 19th Ave. Washington Trust has a Hot Dog Truck that they bring to neighborhoods for these type of events so our date is tentatively early September, based on their availability. In addition, we discussed snack foods for movie night and items for the block party.
 A motion was made and seconded to approve the proposed distribution of the Community Engagement Grant of $850.
 Motion passed with a unanimous vote.

Neighborhood Leadership Academy
• Great multi-week program with many leaders from Spokane area government & businesses.
• Final project is to develop a project to propose that could be helpful for your neighborhood.
• Congrats to Briana McGlaughlin from Grandview-Thorpe for graduating from program this year.

Office of Neighborhood Services (ONS)
• Gabby Ryan
o Announced that Patrick Striker (Director) is leaving his position so their office will be short staffed.
o Spokane Police Chief finalists forum is 27JUN24 from 5:30 to 7:30 at (?) Central Library or MLK Center (?)
o In addition to gaining a qualified police chief, what does our neighborhood need? Please complete this survey by 01AUG. tinyurl.com/saferspokane

 There will be a second annual Spokane Neighborhood Summit on 02NOV24. This is a free, half-day event focused on Building Stronger Neighborhoods. Last year approximately 75 people attended and the hope is for 100 this year.
o This peer to peer learning opportunity brings together council leaders and members to gain tools and training to build better neighborhood councils, identify issues and successes.
o Multiple sessions will be offered addressing various topics, in 45-60-90 minute workshops.
o 08AUG is the deadline to contact Gabby if you want to lead a workshop
 Conference tracker includes:
• Diverse, equitable neighborhoods and councils
• Technical training assistance – help with using various platforms to aid in effective interaction.
• Safe and beautiful neighborhoods
• Engaging with the City – Writing effective resolutions and proposals
• Empowering neighbors and neighborhoods
o Take advantage of STA free or reduced fare pricing until 04JUL, including free downtown shuttles.
o Pools and splash pads are open. Sign up for free passes.
o Spokane Parks and Rec has lots to offer! Check out their activities and availability!
o SILENT DISCO! SATURDAY, 22JUN FROM 6:00 TO 10:PM. SPONSORED BY GABBY RYAN, TERRAIN (Same day event) and DOWNTOWN SPOKANE PARTNERSHIP



Asphalt Art
• Program sponsored by Spokane Arts (Briana M.) on hold because we don’t have an intersection to place the art that meets their requirements, such as ability to close road for 24 hours, etc.
o Tina is researching an alternative to paint just the corners at D Street and 17th Ave.

Town Hall Presentation
• Joy & Mary Beth shared neighborhood updates with City Council.

Street Cleaning
• Neighborhoods not notified. Just have to keep an eye on city’s website.
• Any volunteers to watch this for us and let us know before it happens so we can ask neighbors to move cars off streets?
o Dave Rasanen volunteered to monitor the website to then advise us of cleaning schedules.

Mobile Speed Feedback Sign (MSFS)
• Locations decided at our last meeting. First location (Grandview) has taken place. Will get data at end of year. (David & Priscilla – did it help?)
o It seems that traffic noticeably slowed at the point of the sign, then speeded back up. Tina suggested sitting near the sign holding a hair dryer LOL.

DNR Land on Thorpe
• Phil Larkin – Is it too late to write a letter of support to have it conserved?
o While the decision has not been made, it seems it is already in front of City Council.

Citizen Action for Latah Valley (CALV)
• Moratorium approved! Adam or Molly more details?
o While this year long (and extendable) moratorium was a huge win (and a campaign promise by Paul Dillon), it did not exclude 17 projects already deeply in the approval pipeline. It does apply to anything that has not passed some of the preliminary requirement for application.
o The focus is on safety, particularly fire and evacuation planning. The commitment to a fire station has strong support and our needs in Latah Valley are quite literally in the faces of City Council and the Mayor.
 One very interesting comment from the dissenting vote (Michael Cathcart) is his opinion that a moratorium is, at best, a band-aid and that a more permanent solution should be sought. His suggestion was to consider removing LV from the master growth plans for Spokane. Adam mentioned that doing something like that would save the City so much money!!
• Beard Addition Approved & 16th Ave (Prose) Apartments Approved
o While both of these projects are fully approved, (and Prose Apartments original plan was greatly reduced in size and layout), it is unclear when we might see activity.
 However, the 16th Ave/195 closure and realignment is a WSDOT requirement tied to these developments, so….
• Land below Scenic Blvd. - Does anyone have any updates about who purchased this from Gary Rogers & what their plans are? Trail access?

Avista West Plains Transmission Line
• Don’t think this will affect our neighborhood but we were notified that Avista is in the process of routing and designing a new 230kV transmission line from Bluebird to Garden Springs, running northwest to southeast across the West Plains. The new line will increase the capacity and reliability of our 230kV transmission system. Here’s a link to the project webpage:
Bluebird-Garden Springs 230 kV West Plains Transmission Line Project(myavista.com)

Traffic Calming
• No projects being built this cycle.

Neighborhood Leadership
• Reminder that we are hoping to elect at new chair for 2025.
o Joy has been tireless in her role for a long, long time. We have many good candidates in our neighborhood and hopefully someone is able and willing to consider her plea to take a break! She is available to review her role and responsibilities with you!

Next Meetings
• Sept. 11 at Grandview Park
• Dec. 11, tentatively at Finch Arboretum

Questions?
Officers & Committee Members
Joy Sheikh – Chair
Mary Beth McGinley – Secretary
Molly Marshall – Treasurer & Land Use Committee
Tina Luerssen – Community Assembly Rep, Chair of CA Building Stronger Neighborhoods Committee
Dan Stoick – Clean-Up Coordinator
Vice Chair – Open Position! Learn the ropes now to become Chair next year.
Jessra Johnson – Safety Committee
Leslie Hope – CHHS (Community Housing & Human Services) Liasson
Bill Meeks – PeTT (Pedestrian, Transportation & Traffic) Committee
Briana McLaughlin – SNLA (Spokane Neighborhood Leadership Academy)
Gabby Ryan – ONS (City of Spokane - Office of Neighborhood Services) Representative
Paul Dillon – City Council Member, District 2
Lili Navarrete – City Council Member, District 2
Sgt. Wilkinson – Neighborhood Resource Officer

Our Community.
Our Water.

You’re invited to a home meeting on what PFAS-contaminated wells mean for the neighborhood.

Please join your nearby neighbors for a casual get-together to meet, talk, and learn about the PFAS impacts closest to us.

Monday, June 17, 6:30
Hosted by Laura Ackerman
At the Windsor Grange
4417 S Assembly Rd. ‭‬‬‬
(509)230-0869‬

Neighbors Working Together to
Solve Our Well Water Crisis
Web: westplainswater.org
Email: [email protected]

West Plains Water Coalition The WPWC is a citizen led nonprofit organization

Thanks to everyone who came to our meeting tonight! Someone left this notebook on the table...I brought it home and will happily drop it off for you! Just comment or message here if it's yours.

As it appears that fire season has begun, I recommend downloading the Watch Duty app. The current Grove Fire is a few miles SW of our neighborhood, and the Level 3 evacuation notice does not affect our neighborhood (as of 3:17pm 6/11/24).

Watch Duty - Wildfire Maps & Alerts Watch Duty, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, alerts you of nearby wildfires and firefighting efforts in real-time.

This is some of the graffiti that was sprayed on the concrete at Grandview Park. Do the images look familiar to anyone? Let's direct the "artist(s)" to more productive uses of their talent.

We walked through Grandview Park this morning, only to see the Parks Department cleaning vulgar graffiti off the play structure and concrete. If you're missing a purple can of spray paint, this may be a good time to talk to your kid(s) about vandalism 🤬

Saturday pickup this week, including recycling. We hope everyone enjoyed the holiday weekend! 🇺🇸

Garbage, recycling, and clean green pickup is a day late all week, with normal Friday services planned for Saturday. For more holiday info visit the City's website. https://my.spokanecity.org/news/releases/2024/05/20/city-closures-planned-for-memorial-day/

Don't forget, 16th Ave at 195 is now closed.

*Update 5/13* All passes are claimed!! The Neighborhood Council may have dump passes to share in the Fall.
If you have another load that didn't make it to Saturday's Clean-up, we have 1 dump pass still available that expires this Friday! Message or comment here if you'd like it.

Send a message to learn more

It's been talked about for years (decades?), and the time has come. We've been notified that construction will begin on Monday 5/13/24 to modify 16th Avenue at 195, eliminating our northbound access to 195. Construction is scheduled through 7/18/24 (but will hopefully finish sooner); Once re-opened, traffic will be able to turn right onto 16th from southbound 195, and turn left onto 16th from northbound 195. But from 16th Ave, traffic will be forced to turn right onto southbound 195 - traveling to the J-turn after Thorpe Rd. to then head northbound to access I-90. Pictures in comments provided by WSDOT.

Our neighborhood clean-up is next Saturday, May 11th from 9-11am; but if you're not available that day you can get a Disposal Pass and take a load to the Waste to Energy Plant yourself! This Friday 5/3 is the last day to request a Pass; in the Fall we will have a limited number of physical Passes available through the Neighborhood Council.

The final day to request a disposal pass through the City of Spokane will be Friday, May 3. The passes cover $25 in tipping fees at the Waste to Energy Facility. https://my.spokanecity.org/neighborhoods/programs/clean-up/

Good morning, neighbors! 2-for-1 moose on Grandview this morning. Mooses? Meese?

Interested in neighborhood safety? Everyone is welcome to attend this committee!

Hello fellow community members!
This is a friendly reminder that the Community Assembly Safety Committee will be having our monthly meeting on March 27th from 6pm to 7pm at The Hive 2904 E Sprague Ave in Events Room C.

Spring is here and now that the snow has melted we will most likely be noticing the cracks and holes in our sidewalks and streets. There have been some requests to address this issue within our committee, as a safety concern, being that this is also a hot topic in our community. Yes, there is a budget deficit in our city, and yes, it costs money to fix these things. The good thing is... it does not cost money to come learn about some of the ways to get involved in spreading knowledge to others of potential solutions and/or feedback.

We have some awesome guests who will be donating their time to come and provide us with a couple of presentations and answer any questions we may have surrounding the topic. We have Samantha Hennessy from Spokane Regional Health District, Mike Ulrich from Spokane Regional Transportation Council, and Abigail Martin who is the City Council Manager of Neighborhood Connectivity. We are excited to have them with us as they are a wealth of knowledge when it comes to safety on our streets as well as some of the resources we can utilize to provide necessary feedback to where it is most needed.

We hope you can join us. If there is anyone you know that would like to attend or get involved, there are no limitations. All are welcome. If you have any questions feel free to shoot me an email.

Respectfully,

Tyler N. Tamoush

Minnehaha CA Representative

Chairman, CA Neighborhood Safety Committee

Secretary, CA Budget Committee

Student of Communications, Eastern Washington University

Email: [email protected]

Thank you to all the neighbors who came out for our meeting last night! Mark your calendars for our next quarterly meeting on June 12th, 7pm at Grandview Park.

We'll be sharing information over the next few weeks about topics that were discussed last night: including Firewise training, Clean-Up Day, Neighborhood Movie Night, and a possible Neighborhood Block Party!

Anyone who lives or owns property within the Grandview-Thorpe neighborhood is welcome to be part of the Neighborhood Council. Please reach out if you're interested in volunteering to be an officer, or to serve on a committee!

Consider serving on one of our City's boards or commissions! Mayor Brown is looking into an option to reimburse for childcare expenses if it will help citizens to participate in these important roles. Follow the link for more information and to apply.

Stay tuned for our spring Clean-Up date (likely in May)! In the meantime, you can request a free digital Disposal Pass to use at the Waste to Energy facility.

City of Spokane residents can now submit a request for a disposal pass. The Disposal Pass program is designed to help residents remove extra waste by distributing vouchers at the Waste to Energy Facility. Request a digital pass today! https://my.spokanecity.org/neighborhoods/programs/clean-up/

There has been a lot of mailbox and car prowling reported recently on 17th Ave. Please try to keep your belongings secure so the criminals don't have reason to return, and call Crime Check (509-456-2233) to report suspicious activity. These reports create "hot spots" and the police are more likely to increase patrols in the area if they know that there is suspicious/illegal activity.

Hi neighbors! Hopefully everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. Reminder that this Friday is our final pickup for the green bins this year (and a Recycling pick-up as well).♻️
Save the date for our next quarterly Grandview-Thorpe Neighborhood Association meeting! Wednesday, December 13th from 7-8:30pm. We will meet in the building at Finch Arboretum (3404 W Woodland Blvd), so grab a neighbor and carpool down the hill to join us.🕢
Also, a gentle reminder to please keep an eye on your pets. There have been some loose dogs recently, and with all the wildlife we've been seeing around the neighborhood it's always the best practice to keep your pets leashed!🐶

Happy Thanksgiving, neighbors! Remember trash pickup will be on Saturday this week. Next Friday 12/1 is the final pickup of the year for green bins.

We've been seeing some wildlife on 19th Ave lately! Got any pictures to share?

Got extra candy? Donate it for our servicemembers! Contact Ashley Cratty for pickup or drop off 🙂

Remember to complete your ballot and mail or drop it in a ballot drop box by next Tuesday 11/7! 🗳
You can confirm that your ballot was received and accepted at

Voter Portal

Why did the moose cross the road? Maybe to use the bathroom 🤣

Happy End-of-October! 🍂

The Community Assembly Neighborhood Safety Committee is meeting this Thursday 10/26/23 from 3:30-5:00PM at The Hive, 2904 E. Sprague Ave. Events Room B (Door code 323583). I know we've got some folks in the neighborhood who are interested in Safety topics like Block Watch, Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CePTED), Evacuation Safety, etc. This meeting is open to anyone who wants to participate, you are welcome to show up and be part of the conversation!

This is the first meeting of this committee, and the ongoing meeting schedule will be discussed. If you're unable to attend but would like to participate, please reach out to us and we can get you on the email list for future meeting notices.