Otis Orchards fights back

Otis Orchards residents are staring down an annexation barrel with trepidation as well as determination.

Otis Orchards has personified the down-to-earth life with plenty of hometown warmth, expansive five-acre homesteads, an array of farm animals and hearty chores that are part and parcel of the lifestyle these folks enjoy. Cindy Marshall wants to keep it that way.

Marshall grew up in Otis Orchards but also lived in Seattle for 13 years where she was “right in the middle” of an urban growth management plan that she believes is a developer’s dream come true.

“The urban growth plan was supposed to slow down the sprawl but it’s given the developers an easier way to grow because, by law, land has to be designated for development. It’s a win-win situation for the developers,” she said.

In 1994 Marshall returned to Otis Orchards and bought the 12-acre farm owned by her parents. Her brother and sister live on the same road with 5-acre and 3.5-acre parcels respectively. “We grow our own hay for our horses and enjoy the open space,” she said.

Last spring, Marshall noticed the same writing on the urban sprawl wall in Liberty Lake that she witnessed in Seattle. “It was sad to see land being built at such a rapid rate,” she said.

The River Crossing project is being undertaken by Jim Frank’s Greenstone Corp. and a subsidiary of the Cowles Co., which also owns The Spokesman-Review.

Frank has offered repeated assurances that there are no immediate plans to develop land north of the river.

Many, though, still worry about the future of rural land north of the river where abundant water rights and proximity to the new sewer plant and other public facilities could make it prime for development.

About 300 acres of a 1,200-acre district that would redirect sales taxes to subsidize infrastructure in River Crossing are on the north side of the river.

Otis Orchards residents see plans for a footbridge across the river as proof of the companies’ intentions to develop there.

Marshall met with Spokane County Commissioners and passed out flyers alerting the residents to a possible encroachment on their rural lifestyle. She began ROOTS – Residents of Otis Orchards Taking a Stand. The first meeting in August drew 100 people; a second meeting in October drew 300 people ready to discuss their concerns with Commissioner Todd Mielke.

“The meeting was to get information and feedback from him on the land issues in Otis Orchards,” Marshall said.

The tangled web of city councils, annexation rumors and developers’ desires is confusing. “The mayor of Liberty Lake stated he didn’t want anything to do with the north side of the river but the business people around here see this area as something that’s developable.

“It’s just gone crazy,” Marshall said. “It’s not Liberty Lake but the developers who are the problem.” “They have great money in their pockets,” said Cindy Glidden an Otis Orchards resident and member of ROOTS. “Like most political issues it’s ‘I’ll-scratch-your-back-if- you-scratch-mine’ type of thing.”

“We do like the rural setting we have out here and the small farms,” Marshall said. “One big concern is that not only is the rural atmosphere going away but also the increased population, traffic and crime that come with development.”

For now, ROOTS members feel they have the ears of the county commissioners. “We have enough positives on our side right now,” Glidden said referring to the group’s ability to hold back annexation by Liberty Lake.

“All three commissioners have said they appreciate the fact that there are voices speaking out on this issue. I have hope they’ll do the job we hired them to do,” Marshall said.

Although Mielke believes nothing will happen within the comprehensive plan for five years, ROOTS members vow to keep watch on the various land use issues throughout Spokane and to keep the residents informed.

They want the community’s voice to stay strong and united in their goal to remain a rural, unincorporated community, free from urban sprawl, developers and annexation.

“The wolves are at the door,” Marshall chuckled uneasily.