Northwest Neighborhood Council approves division; proposal now goes to Spokane City Council

A proposal to divide the Northwest Neighborhood Council – the largest neighborhood council area in Spokane – is gaining support among neighborhood representatives.

The plan calls for dividing the council area into two neighborhoods.

In March, members of the current Northwest Neighborhood Council voted 13 to 0 with one abstention to endorse the division.

Then on April 5, the Community Assembly of neighborhood councils voted to support the idea.

The proposal now goes to the Spokane City Council for approval.

Victor Frazier, Northwest Neighborhood president said the size of the current area makes it difficult to monitor all of the potential issues in different corners of the council area.

He said the neighborhood would be split at Wellesley Avenue.

The existing neighborhood boundaries are state Highway 291 and Francis Avenue on the north, Ash and Belt streets on the east, the Spokane River and Indiana Avenue on the south, and the Spokane River on the west.

That area has 11,000 households and 23,000 residents.

The northern portion of the area would retain the Northwest Neighborhood Council name for the time being.

The southern portion could be renamed Downriver or Audubon/Downriver neighborhood to better reflect the geography of that area, Frazier said.

Naming the two areas would be up to members in each council, he said.

Frazier said City Council members Candace Mumm and Karen Stratton urged moving ahead with the division this year. They told neighborhood council members that funding for planning and other neighborhood needs would be available to each of the two groups, Frazier said.

“We were given a gentle nudge by our City Council members,” he said.

Frazier also said that splitting the neighborhood will improve representation to residents in each area.

He also said boundary adjustments that would place all of the residential area around Shadle Park into the same council would be open for future discussion. That would potentially involve placing portions of the area between Wellesley and Garland avenues into the northern of the two neighborhoods.