Malden celebrates ribbon cutting

MALDEN - A packed crowd filled the new Town of Malden Fire Station on Thursday, Feb. 15, to cut the ribbon commemorating the new municipal building.

Community members, supporters, officials, and news media were present to celebrate the construction of the new structure that will house the fire station, post office, town hall, and clerk's office.

Multiple town structures were lost in the Babb Road Fire on Sept. 7, 2020.

Mayor Dan Harwood said the building was funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Department of Commerce.

Malden received a grant of $4.2 million to fund the town hall and post office, and the Department of Commerce allocated the town a grant of $930,000 for the new fire station.

Several people spoke about the enormous strides the town has made in rebuilding and the teamwork that brought them there that day, proving that it takes a village to make a difference.

"Washington State Department of Commerce has assisted us in our water project expansion to give us more fire hydrants around the town," Harwood said, noting that the department came in. With funds from commerce, the town could get a survey of each block, so SCJ Alliance, a consulting service of Spokane, was able to do a zoning program to determine property lines.

FEMA representatives commended how the Mayor and the council came together with a vision to work with FEMA and use the flexibility of some of their grant programs to attend to some of the six buildings that burnt down and create two buildings that have six to eight different functions including post office, community center, and town hall.

Harwood said that the bid for the building went to Architects West of Spokane.

Commissioner Michael Largent congratulated the town, acknowledging the emergency management department and Commissioner Swannack, who could not attend.

"I see familiar faces, even with people I don't know, so I would like to say congratulations," Largent said.

Harwood invited Whitman County Sheriff Brett Myers to speak, noting that no one lost their life on the day of the fire thanks to the deputies and their service and the Whitman County Fire Departments.

Myers said he had seen a lot of fires just being Sheriff, and the Malden fire was an inferno with people asking him if he felt the town would survive.

"I put my money on the fact that this town would survive," Myers said, adding that there was a vision. "In the book of Proverbs, we read where there is no vision, people perish, and there was a vision," he said, noting that the building was the groundwork of that vision.

Myers said that it is fitting that a town with such beautiful people has such a beautiful facility, "Then again, it's not just the facility. It's the people that come here and make a difference every day, so congratulations," he said.

Myers wasn't the only person who acknowledged that it took a community of people coming together to bring the small town to life again.

"Communities are built by the people," said Avista Palouse Regional Manager Paul Kimmell, noting that it has been an honor for him to be helping rebuild the community since day one. "I'm not going to leave you; I'm still here. I'm committed to Malden. I'm committed to the success and vitality of this community," he said.

"We're here with you, and we'll continue to support your community," said Innovia Foundation CEO Shelly O'Quinn, "We know you've been through so much, and we just look forward to seeing where you go together," she added.

In closing, Harwood spoke about the devastating fires that often occur and how they impact small communities and those who lose their homes, encouraging everyone to talk to the local legislature and spread awareness for those who live in RVs and have no place to go after such a disaster. "I still have people living in RVs, and I cannot, for the best of me, find the correct program to help these people out, and that is my goal," Harwood said.

A blessing was said over the new building, and eighteen scissors were distributed, which Town of Malden Clerk and Treasurer Micki Harnois noted earlier wasn't enough for the number of people who contributed to the project. The ribbon was cut, marking a massive stride in Malden's bright future.

Jim Jacobs, 93, was honored with the first mail box key at the new Malden Post Office. Jacobs was excited to receive mail in Malden again, as "going to Rosalia was very inconvenient."