Marlene Feist, Utilities Communications Manager, No Phone Number Available
Wednesday, March 2, 2016 at 5:20 p.m.
Last summer, our citizens were very aware of how much street and utility construction was under way. Major street work and projects to keep overflows from combined stormwater and wastewater sewers were found throughout the City.
These days, the City is focused on an “integrated” approach to these kinds of projects to make sure we deliver the best results we can. Integration is a holistic approach to public works projects that considers how the City can get multiple benefits within a single project.
The idea is to create value for our citizens. It means we might put a park area above a wastewater tank, add bike lanes, a trail and stormwater management features on a street reconstruction project, and include streetscape improvements in a business center to help encourage economic growth.
Investments in our street system, our water and wastewater utilities, and the Spokane River are important. To give our citizens a greater understanding of how their dollars are being spent, we have created the 12-page “Link Spokane” publication that provides an overview of our construction work and this approach.
Citizens can get a copy of the publication by picking up the March 3 Pacific Northwest Inlander at distribution locations within the City of Spokane. An electronic version of the publication also is available here.
This publication also will serve as a base of understanding for our discussion to update the Transportation and Utility components of the City's Comprehensive Plan. The Comprehensive Plan is our 20-year guiding planning document.
For us, this approach boils down to working together to get better outcomes at a better price. It's what our citizens expect.
