On June 23rd, Friends of the Falls is joining the City of Spokane to appeal The State Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO) decision to let expire a $530,000 grant to the City of Spokane to support development of Spokane’s Whitewater Park. Without this funding, about half the funds raised to build the park will be lost.
The Spokane Canoe and Kayak Club partnered with the City of Spokane Valley to greatly improve the aesthetics and functionality of the Spokane River access at Barker Road.
Due to construction issues, the long term viability of public access to the Spokane River at Barker Road is in danger. The River Forum reports.
For the third year , the River Forum’s Meet at the River Expeditions introduced people to the Spokane River. In 2010, there were fifteen river trips and 150 intrepid participants. The River Forum reports.
Although Friends of the Falls and other proponents continue to actively work on the project, building of the park is unlikely before 2012. The Spokane River Forum reports on why.
Hundreds of people are enjoying the Spokane River on hot summer days. The sheriff’s office is taking action to assure people are wearing life jackets. The Spokesman Review reports.
As many as thirty docks in an especially scenic and ecologically important stretch of the Spokane River are proposed as part of the Coyote Rock development. The City of Spokane Valley and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife are approving permits for these docks one at a time. Washington Department of Ecology has a different view. Siding with the Spokane Riverkeeper and Trout Unlimited, Ecology filed a petition contesting the exemption for failing “to contain appropriate conditions to address cumulative effects arising from the reasonably foreseeable construction of similar docks in the area.” The Center for Justice reports.
A developer dreams of 30 new docks on the Spokane River. Others worry about the effect on fisheries, creating motor boat traffic and aesthetics. The Inlander Reports.
Getting people to experience the Spokane River – whether it’s with hip waders, a kayak, raft or canoe – could help protect wildlife habitat, improve understanding of local history, and increase non-motorized access to the river. The Spokesman Review reports on the possibility of a Spokane River Water Trail.
That’s the theory of “water trail” proponents, who’ve spent the past year brainstorming ways to raise the 111-mile river’s profile. The trail concept was unveiled at a Tuesday conference sponsored by the Spokane River Forum.
It seems “insane” to Andy Dunau to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to clean up the Spokane River without improving recreational access. The Spokesman Review reports.