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Council to consider MOU allowing Joint Personnel Recovery Agency urban survival training in Spokane Valley
Summary
City staff sought consensus to bring a memorandum of understanding with Joint Personnel Recovery Agency (JPRA) to council for approval; council signaled support for a notification‑based MOU to allow military urban survival training exercises with coordination to police and parks staff.
City staff sought council consensus on June 15 to proceed with a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Joint Personnel Recovery Agency (JPRA) and the Air Force's 336th Training Group to allow urban survival training exercises within Spokane Valley public spaces.
Deputy City Manager Eric Lamb said the training places small groups of trainees in urban settings to practice navigation, survival and recovery skills. Lamb said the trainees are not permitted to engage in illegal activity, are not dressed in military uniforms during exercises, and operate under the supervision of JPRA trainers who follow up and grade exercises. He said the program already occurs in the city of Spokane with no reported incidents and that the MOU is primarily to ensure notification and coordination with Spokane Valley Police and parks staff so officers recognize trainees if confronted via citizen reports.
Assistant Chief Sean Walter and city staff said they had reviewed the MOU, which mirrors a version used in Spokane, and added a provision for parks communication if exercises overlap with permitted after‑hours events. Council members signaled support and asked staff to bring back the MOU for formal motion consideration; no council vote was taken at this meeting.
Staff said exercises typically involve 16–20 trainees per session with multiple sessions annually and that trainers follow trainees in vehicles for monitoring and safety. Council members expressed support for the training as beneficial to military personnel and said the notification framework offered a reasonable balance between public awareness and operational training needs.
