Recent fires shape Spokane County's resiliency policies in comprehensive plan update
Planners said resiliency and climate impacts are now mandated parts of comprehensive planning, citing recent local fires — Grove, Elk, Medical Lake — and a recent event affecting Spokane as reasons to emphasize evacuation routes, defensible space and street connectivity.
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Chesney said that resiliency is now an explicit element in the comprehensive plan because of recent wildfire and emergency events. "We saw it in 2023 with the Grove fire, the Elk fire, Medical Lake. And, unfortunately and tragically, we saw it this past weekend now affecting... Spokane," he said, using those incidents to illustrate why the county must consider climate impacts and evacuation design in planning.
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