Mayor Dennis Hession today issued the following statement:

"While I have great respect for the independence of the Park Board, I am surprised and deeply disappointed by the recent comments by Frank Knott, and I have asked him to explain his comments and to publicly apologize. Mr. Knott notified me today that he is submitting a public apology to the newspaper.

"Members of our community were offended by these remarks, and I want to assure them—and all of our citizens—that the City of Spokane is equally troubled by them. Diversity is one of our key City values. The richness of our population—in culture, race, socio-economic status, age, religion, thought, and more—strengthens our community and provides us with perspectives that we otherwise would not see.

"I believe that the City of Spokane's boards and commissions would benefit from greater diversity. In recent months, I have met with AHANA (African-American, Hispanic, Asian, and Native Americans) and others to seek ways to increase applications from women and members of our minority communities for both permanent and volunteer positions at the City. I have also directed our Human Resources Department to develop a diversity plan for the organization and will proceed with development of a training program for City board and commission members."

The Spokane Park Board is made up of 11 citizen volunteers who run the City's parks system. Currently, the membership includes five members from the north side of Spokane, including Council Member Bob Apple, and six from the south side.