The following excerpt is from an editiorial that ran in the Februry 15, 2013 edition of the Spokesman-Review (Spokane). I couldn’t agree more… Read the full article…
The Washington State Library and the Washington State Archives have about filled up the space available for housing the state’s most important documents and artifacts. Officials going back to the administration of Gov. John Spellman, who left office in 1985, have been aware of the looming problem, but damage from the Nisqually earthquake of 2001 finally got design for a replacement started.
In 2007, the Legislature authorized construction of a Washington Heritage Center that would house the archives and library. A general contractor was designated, and a campaign to raise private donations for the $140 million project was in place.
Money dedicated to the center’s construction was set aside from county document recording fees, mostly those related to real estate transactions.
The timing was horrible. The recession killed the project’s momentum, and legislators looking for every last dollar to support other state programs began raiding the heritage account, which was supposed to be used for construction.
