(The Center Square) – More than six weeks after wildfires tore through parts of Spokane, the city is giving residents a clearer picture of the damage while shifting its focus from emergency response to demolition, cleanup and rebuilding.
The city has launched a new REBUILD Spokane damage assessment dashboard, an interactive tool showing the status and location of structures affected by the Spokane Complex Fire, which included the Old Trails, Autumn Lane and Fairview fires.
“Recovery does not end when the flames are out. For many of our neighbors, the hardest work is just beginning,” Mayor Lisa Brown said in the release announcing the dashboard and city’s efforts so far.
“At the City of Spokane, we want to make rebuilding as accessible and straightforward as possible. We are bringing information to the public, looking for legislative approaches to ease the burden, and putting our staff directly in the community to help people navigate this process.”
The dashboard covers impacted structures as well as properties generally located within 500 feet of the burn area. City building inspectors trained in FEMA damage-assessment standards conducted an initial assessment in about a day and a half before the information was combined with data from local, state and federal agencies.
The current assessment for the Old Trails Fire shows 577 destroyed structures and 26 structures with major damage.
The dashboard identifies 501 single- or middle-housing units lost, 12 multifamily units lost, eight non-residential structures destroyed and 66 garages, sheds and other structures lost.
Of the destroyed structures currently displayed on the map, 433 are identified as single-family dwellings. The interactive map allows users to view properties classified as destroyed, major damage, minor damage or unaffected/undamaged
The city cautions that the information can change as assessments are updated. In the coming weeks, the dashboard is expected to include demolition and construction permit status and eventually show which properties have been rebuilt and are ready for residents to move back in.
Meanwhile, demolition and repair work is moving forward.
Erin Hut, communications director for the City of Spokane, told The Center Square there are currently 76 demolition permits opened, including 31 under review, 42 issued and three in final status.
Hut also said the number of roofing, siding and window permits believed to be related to the fires is now 27, after the city determined five of the previously identified 32 permits were likely unrelated.
The city previously issued its first rebuild permit following the Spokane Complex Fire. That permit was for a single-family home originally built in 2023, allowing the homeowner to use existing electronic plans already on file with the city.
The city is also proposing changes intended to make rebuilding easier for fire survivors.
Those proposals include allowing some properties to be rebuilt “like-for-like,” allowing accessory dwelling units to be permitted and occupied before a replacement primary residence is completed, waiving certain general facility charges and allowing building permit fees to be deferred until a certificate of occupancy is issued, according to the release.
Spokane is also bringing permitting assistance directly into the affected community.
Beginning Sept. 21, the city’s Development Services Center will operate a temporary office at the Shadle Park Library from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Oct. 2. A city planner and plan reviewer will be available to help fire-affected residents navigate the rebuilding and permitting process.
Another major piece of the recovery effort reached a milestone Wednesday.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced it has completed its household hazardous-material removal mission following the Eastern Washington wildfires, clearing 789 properties in less than one month.
EPA crews removed more than 195,000 pounds of hazardous waste, including paints, cleaning supplies, automotive oils, pesticides, batteries and propane tanks.
The EPA said the work was completed ahead of FEMA’s 60-day deadline. The agency said homeowners will still need to obtain an asbestos survey, and a Notice of Intent from the Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency is required before building permits can be obtained.