Suncrest, Washington — Suburb That Never Became a City

Suncrest looks like the sort of place that ought to have a city hall.

It has thousands of residents, subdivisions, schools, businesses and commuter traffic. What it does not have is an incorporated municipal government.

The community grew northwest of Spokane as better roads made rural and timber land practical for people whose jobs were in the metropolitan area. Long Lake added water, views and recreation within commuting distance of the city.

Growth changed the scale of local problems. Fire protection, utilities, schools and traffic began resembling suburban issues even though Suncrest remained governed through Stevens County and regional districts.

That mismatch is the community's defining modern fact. Suncrest is neither old-fashioned countryside nor a conventional suburb created by annexation. It is what happens when suburban population arrives before municipal boundaries do.