This week’s Spokane Valley City Council meeting began with an invocation, the pledge of allegiance, and approval of the following amended meeting agenda. Councilmember Merkel was excused from the meeting.
General Public Comments
Each week, community members have an opportunity to address Councilmembers for up to three minutes during the General Public Comment period, either at the beginning or end of each meeting, both in person or online.
ACTION ITEMS
#1 – Motion Consideration for Property Acquisition
Staff reported that in 2023, as part of a RFP process for affordable housing and homelessness services, the Council awarded a $1.46 million grant to Reclaim Project Recovery (“Reclaim”) to be used for:
• Development of Home Base; a multi-purpose facility (a thrift store, supporting services such as job creation, sobriety meetings, etc.)
• Organizational start-up costs and operational/administrative expenses
• Acquisition of and/or improvements to transitional/sober living facilities
For three years, Home Base was in operation and providing services to people experiencing homelessness and the organization worked to complete a transitional housing facility. $960,000 of the original grant has been reimbursed for actual, allowable costs. In late 2025, Reclaim began to indicate that they were facing significant challenges, and program progress had stalled. Now, Reclaim is unable to continue operations at Home Base and cannot complete the transitional housing project (located at 10619 E Trent Avenue). Under the City’s secured deed of trust, Reclaim agreed to transfer the Trent property to the City, removing the need for formal foreclosure actions.
After ownership of the property is transferred to the City, it may be used for purposes that align with Council’s goals of providing affordable housing and homelessness services. Staff also discussed how a small portion of unspent grant award funds could be reallocated to be used for closing costs associated with finalizing the property title transfer and securing/maintaining the property while it is vacant.
A motion to (1) authorize the City Manager, or designee, to finalize and execute any and all documents necessary to complete the settlement and property transfer for 10619 E Trent Avenue, Spokane Valley, WA 99206, from Reclaim to the City and (2) allocate up to $30,000.00 of the CLFR-related funds for affordable and homeless support category, which were initially committed to Reclaim for the purposes of their grant program, to be used towards closing costs of the City’s acquisition of 10619 E Trent Avenue, Spokane Valley, WA 99206 and cover costs associated with security and maintaining the property for future public use passed unanimously.
NON-ACTION ITEMS
#2 – Retail Recruitment Update
Each year, the Council receives a report on retail recruitment and market trends. Staff from Retail Strategies, a city-contracted consultant, provided an update on their recent in-market analysis, retail recruitment successes, in-process and future retail pursuits, retail trends, and regional retail expansions. They reported on:
• Positive financial impacts of municipalities investing resources in retail to increase the tax revenue base
• The 36-month timeline from first interest to store opening
• Recent retail recruitment successes in second-generation spaces
• Recent and current developments at Valley Plaza (Tractor Supply, McDonald’s, Trader Joe’s)
• Estimated and pending sales tax revenues of recently opened and upcoming retail operations
#3 – 2026 Economic Trends Report #3
Dr. Patrick Jones and Dr. Kelly Cullen of the EWU Public Policy and Economic Analysis Department reported on current 2025 economic analyses and trend reports for the City of Spokane Valley. Information presented about demographics, labor markets, employment, residential construction, non-residential construction, and taxable sales and revenues. Key points from the presentation included:
• Between 2025-2026, population growth in Spokane County has slowed, but is still noteworthy.
• The civilian labor force has rebounded with strong growth in 2026 to date.
• The unemployment rate in Spokane Valley is 3.3%, which is below the county, state, and national rates.
• Healthcare and Social Assistance is the largest employment sector in Spokane County and is still growing. Employment in the other sectors within the county, such as Retail, Hospitality and Manufacturing, Construction, and others, is declining.
• Construction of single-family residence units has slowed down a bit in the first part of 2026, and the average price of single-family homes has leveled off since 2025.
• Housing affordability for both median buyers and first-time buyers continues to improve.
In 2025, retail sales per capita in City of Spokane Valley continued the trend of outpacing the City of Spokane and Spokane County overall. The quarterly retail sales in Spokane Valley was over $1 billion in the fourth quarter of 2025, the highest ever.
#4 – Periodic Update – Change in State Statutes and Code Requirements
Staff from DOWL, a consulting firm working on the Comprehensive Plan update, provided a summary to the Council and the community on recent changes in the Washington State Growth Management Act and land use regulations by the State of Washington. They reported on recent Legislative updates regarding:
• Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) (RCW 36.70A.680-699)
• Middle Housing (duplexes, triplexes, townhouses, cottages housing, etc.) (RCW 36.70A.635)
• Co-Living Housing (independently rented units with shared facilities) (RCW 36.70A.535)
• Affordable Housing (HB2266) (2026)
• STEP (indoor emergency shelter, transitional housing, emergency housing, and permanent supportive housing) (SB5491) (2021)
• New Housing in Existing Buildings (RCW 35A.21.440)
• Unit Lot Subdivisions (SB5258, 2023) (SB5559, 2025)
• Administrative Lot Splitting (HB1096)
• Parking: General, Residential, and Non-Residential
• Day Care/Child Care Facilities
About Spokane Valley City Council
City Council meetings occur most Tuesdays at 6 p.m. at Spokane Valley City Hall, 10210 E Sprague Avenue, Spokane Valley and online via Zoom. Meeting agendas and minutes are available at Spokane ValleyWA.gov.Agendas.
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Spokane Valley City Hall is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Information is available online at SpokaneValleyWA.gov. Sign up to receive email updates about the topics that matter to you most at SpokaneValleyWA.gov/SignUp or follow the city on social media.