Spokane

For years, the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture used to sell a printed booklet of a walking tour of Browne's Addition. Eventually, those printed supplies ran out. That's when Bob Hansen saved the day.Hansen, a 30-year veteran of the information systems industry turned eBook designer and publisher, wanted to partner with the musuem to re-create that printed booklet into something still handheld, but digital. He wanted to create an app. The need for a new, updated digital walking tour seemed to supply the perfect project for the museum. "The MAC is eager to develop as many digital pathways for visitors as possible," said Rebecca Bishop, marketing and communications director for the MAC. 

Local H.O.G. (Harley Owner Group) Chapters join together each year to help raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, during "an evening with Harley-Davidson". This year is the 11th annual and continues to mark the beginning of the motorcycle season. Mirabeau Park Hotel is the site and Saturday is the night to help hundreds of kids suffering from any of the 40 neuro-muscular deseases under the MDA umbrella, silent and live auction along with great music from Sammy Eubanks all for $55 per person.

The Our Kids: Our Business campaign is in its fifth year of increasing child abuse awareness and proving that investing in our kids now will create healthy adults.  Don't miss out on your chance to take part in yet another Our Kids: Our Business event tomorrow morning at the West Central Community Center.  Headstart, the CEO of Early Learning and the Chancellor of the Community Colleges will all plant pinwheels at the center at 8:15 tomorrow morning.  Early childhood educators understand the importance of investing in kids early so that they're on top of things as they approach elementary school and enter the education system.  They understand that the investment now will pay off in the future. You're invited to the program tomorrow morning which is expected to last about an hour.  If you can't make it, make sure you check out the beautiful pinwheel display as you run by on Bloomsday.  The pinwheels will stay up through the race, May 1st.

Celebrate the Greater Spokane region's recent win as one of the 100 Best Communities for Young People by the America's Promise Alliance at an event for kids this Saturday, April 16. Fun, free activities are planned in Riverfront Park on Saturday, from 1 to 3 p.m. for children 12 and under. The event is being hosted by the Chase Youth Commission in partnership with a variety of community organizations to celebrate our recent award. The event also emphasizes Global Youth Service Day, so most of the activities are being provided by groups of teens and young adults as a community service to children and families. Find our more about Global Youth Service Day.

There's a new way to see the stars at Spokane Falls Community College! The new science building on campus features a state-of-the-art planetarium, opening up the universe to people of all ages.The 50-seat planetarium is the centerpiece of the 70,000 square foot science building. The interior dome features an HD digital projector, providing real-life views of the night sky. The project was paid for through donations from the community and money from the SFCC student government.SFCC plans to use the planetarium as a way to teach the public about astronomy. In addition to K-12 field trips, SFCC will offer public shows throughout the month.

Greater Spokane Incorporated is having a ribbon cutting ceremony Wednesday, April 13 at 5 o'clock  for a new business, Design I. T. Solutions.   The new shop is at the corner of 1stand Division, 8 East 1st Ave.   Design I. T. Solutions is offering a special for the grand opening, $50 pc repair flat fee (excluding hardware costs).  Also, for people that show up, it'll be giving a $25 off coupon so it would come out to $25 for a PC repair!   Design I. T. Solutions was formed 2006 due to an increase in need for I. T. consultants in the Inland Northwest. This company offers a variety of experience including more than 40 years in the I. T. industry.

Spokane major crimes detectives are looking for two persons of interest in a kidnapping case where the victim was beaten and her head shaved. The woman told police she had been tied up and held against her will in a downtown motel room the first weekend of April. The victim says her life was threatnened and she was assaulted before she was taken to a west Spokane county gravel pit and released with her arms still tied behind her back. A passerby took her to the hospital and police were called.

Spokane Wine Magazine is starting the first annual "Restaurant Wine List Awards". Readers are invited to nominate their favorite wine list based on the following criteria: Price, Selection and Presentation. Descriptions of the criteria are featured on their blog.

It was one of the worst apartment fires in recent memory. On a cold November night 29 apartments in the Houston House Apartments burned.The apartments--right next to Fred Meyer, off Francis Ave--were home to 89 people. All 89 people ended up homeless. The fire was caused by an unattended candle, that somehow, got knocked over. Almost no one in the apartment complex had renter's insurance.

Cinco De Mayo is a little less than a month away but a local grocery store is already getting ready for the big day.DeLeon's Foods at 102 E. Francis in Spokane is sending Tortillas and other Mexican products to service members in Afghanistan."We get requests all the time from family members asking how they can send our tortillas to their loved ones overseas. A good friend of mine is stationed at Forward Operating Base Shank in Afghanistan and asked me to send him some things for his company and Cinco De Mayo is the perfect time to send it," Sergio DeLeon said.

Ben & Jerry's Downtown at RiverPark Square is giving away a free scoop of ice cream or sorbet to everyone who stops by today. This is an annual event that also raises money for Safety Net. There will be donation jars there if you feel inclined to donate while munching on your free scoop of ice cream.

If you are looking for something fun to do this weekend, check out Whitworth University's 41st Annual Luau on Saturday, April 16.  The fun kicks off at 5:30pm at the Whitworth University Fieldhouse located at 300 W. Hawthorne Road. Enjoy an amazing meal featuring tradition luau food, Polynesian dancing and live music.  Ticket prices are $8 for children (6-12 years old), $10 for students and $20 for adults.

The City of Spokane has been awarded the Tree City USA Award for the 8th year in a row. Cities across the United States apply annually for the Tree City Award organized by the Arbor Day Foundation. This year, the Foundation accepted four new cities to the list to make a total of 80 cities with the award.The award is based on four standards: a tree board or department, a tree care ordinance, a community forest program with an annual budget of at least $2 per capita, and an arbor day observance and proclamation.

Ashley Furniture will toally liquidate all of their Spokane stores starting Thursday. All of the inventory from their other Spokane area stores will be moved to the Ashley Furniture store at 10425 N. Newport Hwy and sold.Then, once all of the inventory is gone, that store will close too.Ashley says that there will be discounts up to 75% on pretty much everything. They anticipate that it will take them around two months to sell everything and close the North Spokane store as well.

The removal of trees on South Grand began this morning at 35th & Grand. There are 19 trees total being removed due to poor placement, health or damage. Those trees will be replaced with 38 trees. According to Jeff Perry, the City of Spokane's Arborist, smaller trees will be planted on the east side of the street to stay out of the way of Avista's overhead and underground utility lines. Bigger trees will be planted on the west side. As you're driving down, you'll notice orange Xs spray painted on the trunks. Those are the trees being removed.  

Partners for Progress has brought in Nurse Alice to speak about the good work being done in Kopanga, Kenya.She will be talking at two locations this week, Jesper Auditorium at Gonzaga on Tueasday Night at 7 p.m. and then a fundraising breakfast Thursday morning at 7 a.m. in the Masonic Temple.She is working with many volunteers including those visiting from Spokane at least twice a year to improve the lives of some 16,000 Kenyans and many who cross the border from Tanzania to seek medical attention.

Wine has been a budding industry for Spokane and the surrounding regions in the Inland Northwest for sometime. Josh Wade, Owner of Nectar Tasting Room in downtown Spokane, described the local industry as increasing due to the younger wine-drinking demographic."Wine is becoming more accessible to all experience levels," he explained.

SCC's Flower and Garden Show is Saturday from 10:00 to 6:00. Crews at SCC spent all day Friday setting up the Lair Building for the big show. If you don't know about the Flower and Garden Show here's what it is. There displays of every flower and plant you can imagine. You can buy things or you can just look. They also have all sorts of ideas for lawn and yard decorations.

Ten very dedicated frozen yogurt fans were lined up this afternoon to greet the soft-opening of Blu Berry Frozen Yogurt on Spokane's Upper South Hill. In the hour after they were opened, co-owner Jen Heggenstaller said, "Over 100 had gone through their doors." As you walk in, their expansive space is still somewhat bare: "We still have a lot of cosmetic touch-ups to do," she said, "We'll also be getting some TVs."

Spokane Community College is hosting its first annual Flower and Garden Show on Saturday, April 9. Admission is free. The show includes a number of booths, as well as guest speakers, demonstrations, and activities for children. The show will be held from 10am to 6pm, in the Lair at SCC.