Peter Barnes

While the class of 2008 will be the first to face a new Washington state requirement that students develop a post-graduation plan, schools in the Inland Northwest have spent time and resources for years preparing students for the increasingly complex job market. "We have to educate our students on what it is going to require for them post-high school, and we have to start really early," said Central Valley High School counselor Pam Stickney.

Spokane Valley's list of road projects is ripe with state and federal grants. Spending that money, though, and overseeing the work has eclipsed the manpower in the city's small public works department, which also faces several job openings for highly coveted engineers.

Spokane Valley can be a dead-end place, and a lot of people like it that way. The disjointed streets and the bulbs of private cul-de-sacs that speckle the Valley floor are often held in high regard by the families who live along them. But in the coming months the city will replace the rules on roads it inherited from the county with standards that could make residential developments more interconnected.

Neighbors a short walk from University High School are fed up with students using their street as a parking lot, and the Spokane Valley City Council agreed Tuesday to consider lengthening the school-hours no-parking zone on Collins Road. "It's frustrating because we were here before the high school went in," said Randy Kenworthy, who submitted a petition from homeowners favoring the change.

With snow frosting the Selkirks and clouds intermittently blocking the sunshine, revelers in North Idaho made the most of the first full weekend of fall and the festivities that come with it. In its 13th year, Oktoberfest at Daanen's Delicatessen in Hayden had cars lining Wayne Boulevard by early afternoon. "We've done this so long now we get phone calls, 'When's Oktoberfest?' " said Mark Daanen, who's sold European fare in the community with his wife, Irene, for 15 years. Like Daanen, a few others donned their lederhosen to complement the German atmosphere, replete with music, beer, food and activities to occupy the kids. Just up the street, the Kootenai County Farmers' Market was in also full fall mode, with pumpkin painting, a warmly dressed bluegrass band and the scent of cider wafting on the crisp air. "Our season's kind of done now," said Marie Schnore. Signs notified passers-by that Saturday was the last day this year for plant sales at the longtime stand. Although Wednesday was the final day for the Wednesday market in downtown Coeur d'Alene, the farmers market at Highway 95 and Prairie Avenue will continue through Oct. 20th for those looking for locally grown food, crafts and potential Christmas presents. Near Bayview, 350 people walked in Farragut State Park to raise a record $51,000 for Alzheimer's research and resources for caregivers, according to a release from the Alzheimer's Association. Selkirk School also held its fall fundraiser Saturday at Sandpoint City Beach. The school of about 20 students in preschool through second grade usually raises $3,000 to $4,000 with the event and community sponsorships. In years past it was held at the school, but this fall children bounded in the bounce house and parents perused the silent auction while the odd sailboat tacked behind them through the calm waters of Pend Oreille. "It's nice to have other people from the community here," said teacher and face pain

Beside the east shore of Liberty Lake, on the hillsides overlooking Spokane Valley and in scattered neighborhoods below, homes surround about 60 fire hydrants that might not provide enough water to put out a fire. Water pressure is critical to firefighters, who can run through a pumper truck's 700-gallon tank in less than five minutes.