As unemployment rates have dropped in recent years, the underutilized workforce appears to have declined with it, Spokane-area labor experts say. At the county level, however, it's hard to say conclusively.

The city of Spokane Valley is taking some of the uncertainty out of development on an 840-acre northeast industrial area, near Barker Road and Trent Avenue. The goal is to save developers time and money by providing them with both a traffic analysis and

Spokane County has begun the permitting process for the planned $10 million renovation of a former carpet and wholesale flooring store at 102 S. Spokane, on the edge of the University District

The $40 million Sportsplex planned near downtown is currently in the design-review and budget planning stage under the purview of the Spokane Public Facility District's board of directors

The ongoing $22 million pavilion and $5.5 million promenade renovation at Riverfront Park are on track, says Garrett Jones, acting director of Spokane's Parks and Recreation department.

Veteran Spokane politician Lisa Brown has started a new role as director of the Washington state Department of Commerce, a position that she hopes will be enriched by both her previous experience serving in the state Legislature

A big surge in new construction last year left the Spokane County Assessor's Office feeling alarmingly under water in its efforts to process a huge backlog of projects so they could be added to the county's property tax rolls.