CLEAN v. City of Spokane

133 Wash. 2d 455
CourtWashington Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 13, 1997
DocketNo. 65262-7
StatusPublished
Cited by40 cases

This text of 133 Wash. 2d 455 (CLEAN v. City of Spokane) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Washington Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
CLEAN v. City of Spokane, 133 Wash. 2d 455 (Wash. 1997).

Opinions

Douliver, J.

— CLEAN et al. challenge by direct review a Spokane ordinance providing public support for a new parking garage in downtown Spokane.

Respondents/Intervenors Citizens Realty Company and Lincoln Investment Company (Developers) own River Park Square shopping mall and garage in downtown Spokane. In early 1995, the Developers approached the City of Spokane (City) asking for assistance with the renovation and expansion of the mall parking garage as part of a plan to redevelop River Park Square (RPS). The redevelopment includes a new Nordstrom store to replace the existing store on which Nordstrom’s lease will expire January 31, 1999. Nordstrom has not stated for the record whether it will remain downtown if the RPS project fails to materialize. Project proponents predict that the RPS redevelopment will create jobs, increase tax revenue, and improve cultural and recreational opportunities in downtown Spokane.

The Developers will renovate the parking garage and then sell it to the Spokane Downtown Foundation, a nonprofit corporation (Foundation). The Foundation intends to issue tax-exempt bonds on behalf of the City payable from garage revenues. The Foundation will lease the garage to the Spokane Public Development Authority (PDA), [461]*461which will operate the facility. The Developers will lease the land to the Foundation and the Foundation will assign that lease to the PDA.

When the bonds issued by the Foundation are retired, the City will acquire ownership of the garage at no cost. The City has contingently pledged parking meter revenue to cover the garage operating expenses and the ground lease payments in the event garage revenues are insufficient to meet the facility’s expenses.

The City applied for an Economic Development Grant (EDI) and a section-108 guaranteed development loan from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HUD has awarded the City a $1 million EDI grant. The section-108 loan application was still pending as of the date the Respondents’ brief was submitted to this court. The City has pledged its future Community Development Block Grant funds to repay the section-108 loan if the Developers default.

The Developers submitted a State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) checklist to the City. The City issued a Mitigated Determination of Nonsignificance for the project on July 2, 1996. This decision was not appealed administratively.

On January 27, 1997, the Spokane City Council approved Ordinance C31823 (the Ordinance) which authorizes City support for the RPS garage. On January 30, 1997, Appellant Priorities First presented a referendum petition to the Spokane City Clerk, seeking to overturn the Ordinance. Although referendum proponents collected over 8,000 signatures, the City refused to honor the referendum petition because the City Council declared that an emergency existed when it adopted the Ordinance, rendering the Ordinance effective immediately and precluding a referendum.

CLEAN et al. (Appellants) brought this action in Spokane County Superior Court to challenge several aspects of the City and PDA’s participation in the project, seeking declaratory and injunctive relief. The trial court [462]*462granted summary judgment to the City, PDA and Developers (Respondents). This court granted direct review on May 9, 1997.

The standard of review of a trial court’s order granting summary judgment is de novo. Wilson v. Steinbach, 98 Wn.2d 434, 437, 656 P.2d 1030 (1982). Summary judgment is appropriate where the parties’ pleadings, affidavits, and depositions establish that there are no genuine issues of material fact and that the movant is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law. Wilson, 98 Wn.2d at 437. When considering a motion for summary judgment, the court shall consider the evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Wilson, 98 Wn.2d at 437.

(1) Has the City acted in excess of its municipal authority under the off-street parking statutes RCW 35.86.050 and RCW 35.86.010?

Appellants first argue the City violated RCW 35.86.050 because it failed to develop a comprehensive parking plan before enacting the Ordinance. The statute provides:

In the establishment of off-street parking space and/or facilities, cities shall proceed with the development of the plan therefor by making such economic and physical surveys as are necessary, shall prepare comprehensive plans therefor, and shall hold a public hearing thereon prior to the adoption of any ordinances relating to the leasing or acquisition of property ....

RCW 35.86.050.

Respondents correctly observe that the statute does not discuss the level of specificity required of a comprehensive plan. The only case interpreting RCW 35.86.050 is In re City of Auburn, 65 Wn.2d 560, 398 P.2d 723 (1965). In City of Auburn, this court observed that, "there seem to be no guiding principles for the preparation of 'comprehensive plans.’ ” 65 Wn.2d at 563. Respondents [463]*463argue that, if the Legislature had so intended, it could have prescribed a very specific set of criteria for municipalities to follow when preparing comprehensive plans under RCW 35.86.050, as is evidenced by the specificity called for in the Growth Management Act (RCW 36.70A.070).

Lacking case law interpreting the level of specificity required by this particular statute, the trial court relied by analogy upon Hutchinson v. Port of Benton, 62 Wn.2d 451, 383 P.2d 500 (1963). In Hutchinson, we held the Port of Benton had satisfied a statutory requirement that it adopt a comprehensive harbor development plan before expanding the port because it had given "a fairly detailed picture” of what the project entailed. Hutchinson, 62 Wn.2d at 457. We acknowledged that the plan was not a "model of preciseness,” but upheld the project because the plan was sufficient to inform the taxpayers of how their money was to be spent. Hutchinson, 62 Wn.2d at 457.

The trial court in this case held the City had complied with RCW 35.86.050 because the statute does not require a specific checklist but rather a process that provides the public with specific information about the project.

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Bluebook (online)
133 Wash. 2d 455, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/clean-v-city-of-spokane-wash-1997.