Spokane City Hall Closed To the Public

Brian Coddington, 509.625.6740

Thursday, March 19, 2020 at 4:16 p.m.

The City of Spokane is announcing that starting tomorrow, Friday, March 20, Spokane City Hall generally will be closed to the public. The lobby will be open for deliveries, and access to public meetings will be maintained.

The closure is needed to accommodate the City’s efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19, ensuring proper social distancing and allowing more employees to work from home as directed by the governor. A full list of City service impacts is available on the City’s web site.

“This is a tough decision. In order to maintain our public services, we need to direct our citizens to interact with us through online and phone services,” says Mayor Nadine Woodward. “We are committed to delivering the services that our citizens rely on every day.”

Access to public meetings will be maintained:

City Council has moved their weekly committee meetings to City Council Chambers until further notice. Social distancing measures will be implemented during any public meetings. In order to reduce attendance at upcoming meetings, we highly encourage members of the public to comment on upcoming legislation by filling out this contact form.

  • City Council Committee meetings at 1:15 p.m. on Mondays in Council Chambers in the lower level of City Hall
  • City Council Briefing Sessions at 3:30 p.m. on Mondays in Chambers
  • City Council Legislative Meetings at 6 p.m. on Mondays in Chambers

These meetings will also be streamed live on CityCable 5 and the City’s web site. There are no Council meetings currently scheduled for April 6, 2020.

Additionally, here are some top services that are impacted by this change.

My Spokane 311

The My Spokane 311 customer service staff remain available by calling 3-1-1 or going online. The online portal includes links to the City’s ebill utility bill pay service, public records request system, class registration, and more.

Development Services Center

The Development Services Center also has alternative ways to get business done.

  • Pre-development and Project Intake meetings will be held virtually or waived. Applicants should contact their permit manager for direction on how to submit plans.
  • Non-urgent building inspections will be rescheduled for a later date; some inspections will be conducted virtually through video or photos; in-person inspections will be at the inspector’s discretion and subject to social distancing protocols.
  • Permitting staff will be available via phone, e-mail, and chat to assist with all permit requests.

Inspections and Code Enforcement

  • Building Official hearings are no longer open to the public for in-person participation. Many of the upcoming hearing items will be re-scheduled or cancelled, if necessary. 
  • Inspection staff are working remotely and will be retrieving inspection requests from the field. Inspectors are not available to speak to directly. Inspectors strive to perform all inspections on the same day. Requests received after 8:30 a.m. will be performed the next business day as often as possible.