It was a hot day in June, and I was breaking in my new campaign sneakers knocking on doors near Corbin Park. This pair of shoes would eventually walk most neighborhoods in the city and stand at the doors of voters from Five Mile to Lincoln Heights. That day I heard from voters frustrated about rising homelessness and crime as well as runaway housing costs that were displacing seniors and preventing young families from moving home to Spokane. These concerns would echo from every corner of the city and ultimately define my campaign.
One of the last voters I met that day was a woman making sandwiches for a nonprofit to distribute to residents living on our streets. We had a spirited conversation where she shared the same concerns about homelessness and crime as her neighbors, but also embodied an optimism and belief that if we come together and each do our small part, we can make a difference on the issues challenging our community the most.
She is not alone. Students, faith leaders and families throughout our city told me repeatedly that they are ready to contribute to creating a better Spokane. They are looking to the city to lead. I share their optimism for our community and believe that a better way is truly possible. I am grateful Spokane voters have entrusted me as their next mayor to help deliver on that positive vision at City Hall, and I am thankful to Mayor Nadine Woodward for graciously providing the support necessary to ensure a smooth transition.
In early December, I convened a transition team of nearly 100 residents to provide immediate and longer-term recommended actions to achieve my administration's five broad goals:
- Enhance public safety and improve the criminal justice system
- Improve our health and housing options
- Support our families, neighborhoods and diverse communities
- Invest in our economy and workforce and small businesses
- Build a resilient future to prepare and respond to natural disasters and climate change
This team of community leaders, practitioners and individuals with lived experience include homeless service providers, criminal justice system professionals, educators, union members, builders, business owners and leaders from the arts community. This transition process also includes you. If you have an idea or suggestion to help our administration achieve these goals, share it with me and the transition team at betterwayspokane.com. The transition committees will share their recommended actions with me and the City Council in January.
"Lean in... get involved. This is our 'roll-up-our-sleeves' moment. "
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I enter city hall acknowledging that significant decisions loom on the horizon. We are facing a structural budget gap with expenses exceeding revenues and the city's rainy-day reserves depleted. The homeless response system is inadequate to the need, and the cost of housing is burdening nearly a quarter of families in Spokane. Inadequate public safety staffing is leading to burnout, and response rates are not living up to the standards that neighborhoods expect. These deep, complex issues require focus, buy-in from affected communities and communication and cooperation between my administration and City Council.
I campaigned on addressing these problems, and this work begins on day one. However, there is also the need for city government to lead on issues like preparing our youngest Spokane residents for kindergarten through high-quality childcare and early learning, unleashing the full potential of our thriving arts scene and guiding the region's response to climate change by meeting our own sustainability goals.
The to-do list is long, but the results of this work will make a difference in the lives of all Spokane residents for years to come.
The election season may be over, but I hope that you won't stop paying attention. Lean in, make your voice heard, get involved. This is our "roll-up-our-sleeves" moment. Whether it's volunteering with a nonprofit, serving on a city board or commission, joining your neighborhood council or seeking employment with the City of Spokane, there's a role for you to play in making our city a better place to call home.
An immediate need is for dozens of volunteers to join in the annual Point-in-Time count of our unhoused population. (Visit my.spokanecity/endinghomelessness/point-in-time-count to learn how to volunteer.) It is a count required by the federal government, but it is more than a count. Homeless individuals are interviewed and the information gathered helps us secure needed resources as well as make a plan to bring people inside.
As I begin this journey as your mayor, I feel just as energized and enthusiastic as I did on that hot day knocking on doors back in June. Even more, actually. Because since then I've come face to face with the beating heart of our community. I've been inspired and motivated by the amazing people who call this city home. Your hope for the future is infectious. Your belief in our shared future is the secret ingredient to creating a better way. ♦
Lisa Brown starts her tenure as mayor of Spokane this week.
