[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6171753,"mediaKeyId","5393579-18f51ed4567361f4fc3b7d4014d8166e","parentId",5393579,"title","Council acknowledges written comment on critical areas ordinance as meeting suffers internet disruptions","audioSeconds",1010,"startMs",54000,"endMs",1064000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5393579-18f51ed4567361f4fc3b7d4014d8166e&start=54&end=1064","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5393579-18f51ed4567361f4fc3b7d4014d8166e/thumbnail_54000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6171753/Medical-Lake/Spokane-County/Washington/Council-acknowledges-written-comment-on-critical-areas-ordinance-as-meeting-suffers-internet-disruptions","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6171753-eae6cf3c0e081e83e9af667fc5e85827/orig.mp4?Expires=1771148603&Signature=gxl6Fy1RWpYdRmkQwNBQm3YNbB6lsya~O7znWXTJa9XcDClgNH2ZBJr5SK4~Mu4a9dJZOEYyEGOrRtTeurk5Wp2n~Tj99t8hPOmUNM1ntNpMoK7yDTHRhmMGpB2bdfyw9FErCVU7C64vZLYeYjAwYyoLKp2oc4HtaQNNS9iVch1ymPjrM5fB25Et9xn6OQS0jIPwPdMG2aaoTMkZgIHM3kYktVCC-~bDrxbOGJpUm3SOaHDAfTgTUHz34oDa2MGpC-VBj~KK5Rmp3Lkdtd7RdhVRY~O640jntrvXRMNz9DN4Lxjyqu1z1eLG3etjQ978aZkO787T0tRr9GMXFPgtsw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Medical Lake, WA","date","2025-07-16T01:30:48Z","article","The presiding officer of the Spokane Valley City Council told attendees at the start of the July 15 meeting that repeated internet disruptions had forced the council to treat the session as unrecorded and that the city clerk would keep written minutes as the official record.

“We are having internet difficulties, and we've already been bumped out a few times and able to reconnect, but it's not staying connected. So we're going to consider this a meeting that's not going to be recorded,” the presiding officer said, adding that staff would continue to reconnect and that “this meeting will have just written minutes as the official record.”

During roll call the council excused two members for the day and approved the agenda; those procedural motions were recorded without roll-call attribution in the transcript. The presiding officer then asked about public comment and confirmed that council members had received a single written submission: “Regarding critical areas ordinance,” the clerk said when identifying the subject of the written comment. The transcript does not include the text of that submission.

The city attorney, attending by Zoom, confirmed connectivity problems from his location and said he had been kicked off the meeting link: “I'm the city attorney. I'm attending this meeting by Zoom. The city's Internet keeps going in and out,” he said. Multiple participants later discussed switching between Zoom and YouTube streams, and several identified themselves as on standby by phone in case staff needed them.

Nut graf: Because of the technical problems the council made an administrative decision to rely on written minutes instead of a full audio/video record and to proceed with the meeting despite intermittent disconnections. The council acknowledged receipt of one written public comment on the Critical Areas Ordinance; the content of that comment was not read into the record in the available transcript.

The transcript records informal coordination among meeting participants after the disruptions. One participant said the city administrator, Sonny Weathers, would return to the office Thursday and that staff would confer with him about a pending request; another participant said a 250-word submission was being finalized for county review and was down to about 220 words. Several speakers attributed connectivity issues to wind at the Five Mile Prairie.

Ending: The presiding officer and staff said they would continue the meeting despite the technical limitations and the clerk would retain written minutes as the official record; the council proceeded with its agenda items.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","City Council","oneSentenceSummary","On July 15 the presiding officer told attendees the meeting would likely not be recorded because of repeated Zoom disconnects; council members acknowledged receipt of a written public comment concerning the city's Critical Areas Ordinance and agreed the clerk would keep written minutes as the official record.","taxTitle","Medical Lake, Spokane County, Washington","taxId",61153,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6171758,"Spokane Valley fire chief says department has prepositioned resources ahead of a long wildfire season",100,360000,460000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5393579-18f51ed4567361f4fc3b7d4014d8166e&start=360&end=460","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5393579-18f51ed4567361f4fc3b7d4014d8166e/thumbnail_360000.jpg","/articles/6171758/Medical-Lake/Spokane-County/Washington/Spokane-Valley-fire-chief-says-department-has-prepositioned-resources-ahead-of-a-long-wildfire-season","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6171758-2f24b4af40bddfbec9d011ef27daabfb/orig.mp4?Expires=1771148603&Signature=da3n8PfwHDKQQg~VbgWnoFGum-VUp16m7AmIuvTQ0kNbW0rriR5jkdbJwczzywBqB7kLKKPF4j4DiXe-4DtzHjVACOws1O6QiAX1MidFR6bxW1AoiM7K-smvNimv91t1z-TSaEiULXGDcyAEsLt7r3nfVOyEGIGSjuP0T8y8znha-WgjNu9Ovjck45qhqHQh3SHjkfu38iHjbhVsRzU9JB121F7yPp3i9RdftUEQnHi0B88FSA8sYqYl4qgdKgV3xl5ar6f9k54c75iGHBMdjpNUk45Rqm-23Sr7gsBCOyb1OfgFaMGc~KcsddKiDkVc7eLDusLX-olUZNuTvBNUew__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Spokane Valley fire chief told the City Council on July 15 that the region faces “challenging conditions” for wildland fire and that the department had prepositioned extra resources in response to red-flag warnings.

The chief said weather and fuels have combined to raise fire risk and that the department had mobilized additional personnel and equipment: “we brought on additional resources with the red flag warning and some of the other events,” the chief said. He added that, despite the high risk and a recent wind event, there were “no large new fires” at the time of his briefing and that the department remained “coiled and and ready to go if needed.”

The council heard a six-month summary from a departmental representative who said agency-wide statistics for the first half of the year — including calls inside the City of Spokane Valley — were showing encouraging trends for some serious call types, though the transcript did not provide the full statistical breakdown.

Council members acknowledged the report and expressed condolences over recent out-of-jurisdiction firefighting tragedies. The presiding officer said the city was “proud to have district 3 be our fire response team.” There was no motion or vote associated with the fire briefing.

Nut graf: The chief framed the briefing as situational awareness, advising the council that forecasts and indicators pointed to an extended, active wildfire season and that the department had already increased readiness. The council accepted the report as information only; the transcript records no direction for additional policy or budget action.

In discussion the chief noted a specific recent wind event lasting about two days and stressed the unpredictable nature of wildland firefighting: “no call is is routine,” he said, referring to the emotional effect of recent out-of-area incidents. Council members offered thanks and asked no substantive follow-up questions during the recorded segments.

The meeting record shows this was an informational report rather than a request for new policy, funding, or mutual-aid commitments. Any future changes to staffing, overtime or resource deployment would require separate council action or budget approval not covered in the July 15 transcript.

Ending: The chief closed the report saying, “That’s about all I had for our report out this evening, Amy.” The council moved on to other agenda items after brief expressions of appreciation for the fire department’s readiness.","At its July 15 council meeting, the Spokane Valley fire chief reported that the department is monitoring red-flag conditions, has added resources for a wind-driven event and expects a prolonged wildfire season; no formal action was taken.","actionData","errors"]

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Council acknowledges written comment on critical areas ordinance as meeting suffers internet disruptions

Spokane Valley fire chief says department has prepositioned resources ahead of a long wildfire season