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Volunteer public‑safety group and tourism bureau present community programs and marketing plans
Summary
SCOPE described volunteer patrols, helmet‑fitting and recruiting; Visit Spokane summarized 2024 marketing results for Liberty Lake and outlined a 2025 content push including restaurant videos and travel‑writer outreach.
Two guest presentations at the Feb. 18 council meeting highlighted volunteer public‑safety services and regional tourism marketing for Liberty Lake.
Chris Conway, director of SCOPE (Sheriff Community Oriented Policing Effort), told council SCOPE is a nonprofit that runs volunteer stations and more than 220 volunteers in Spokane County and the Valley, and listed programs that include Citizens On Patrol, vacation home checks, business checks and bicycle safety/helmet fitting. Conway said SCOPE has expanded onboarding and basic volunteer training to monthly classes, increased recruiting with radio ads and billboards and added QR codes and updated station banners. Conway described the volunteers’ role as “the eyes and the ears for law enforcement,” and said volunteers do not enter residences but perform drive‑by checks and report suspicious activity.
Rose (representing Visit Spokane) gave a quarterly Liberty Lake recap and marketing summary for 2024. Visit Spokane reported 72 specific Liberty Lake business mentions across its social and website channels and 14 earned media pickups referencing Liberty Lake (including two UK travel writer features for Liberty Lake wine cellars). The bureau said it produced a new restaurant video package highlighting 14 restaurants and created shorter social media snippets for individual businesses. Rose said Visit Spokane contracted photography and video for restaurant partners and is applying for additional lodging tax funding to do more Liberty Lake‑specific content in 2025. The presentation also noted region‑level metrics — contracted room nights of roughly 84,500 in 2024 and visitor center foot traffic of about 35,000 — and a brand refresh and a digital advertising campaign that boosted web impressions from about 1.5 million to over 2 million.
Ending: Council members thanked both presenters. Council asked staff to keep partnering with Visit Spokane for business outreach and to support SCOPE volunteer recruitment information to residents.
