City Council Regular Meeting · Monday, April 7, 2025 · City Council Digest

3. SPECIAL BUSINESS

Public Safety Telecommunications Week Proclamation ID 1807

5 min · packet pp.5

Topics: Public Safety

▶ Watch from 1:03 Open packet at p.5 ↗

Staff report:

CITY OF ISSAQUAH Mayor's Office

Sexual Assault Awareness & Prevention Month Proclamation ID 1809

5 min · packet pp.7

▶ Watch from 6:02 Open packet at p.7 ↗

Staff report:

CITY OF v King County Sexual Assault WASHINGTON / Resource Center

Food Waste Prevention Week Proclamation ID 1830

5 min · packet pp.9

▶ Watch from 11:00 Open packet at p.9 ↗

Staff report:

SPECIAL BUSINESS c) CITY OF ISSAQUAH Mayor's Office

5. CONSENT CALENDAR

Accounts: Payables and Payroll of April 7, 2025, $7,384,919.15 ID 1788

Carried 7-0

Approve · packet pp.11–36

Topics: Budget

▶ Watch from 24:43 Open packet at p.11 ↗

Staff report:

Finance Department P.O. Box 1307 Issaquah, WA 98027 PH: 425-837-3050 www.issaquahwa.gov

Roll call:

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Lindsey Walsh

Minutes: City Council Regular Meeting, Feb. 24, 2025

Carried 7-0

Approve · packet pp.37–42

▶ Watch from 28:41 Open packet at p.37 ↗

Staff report:

MOTION: Authorized the transfer of $482,687 from the City's 0.1% sales tax (HB 1590) Issaquah Housing Investment Pool (IHIP) funding to ARCH to fund and manage a contract with Life Enrichment Options (LEO) to purchase Emily House; and

Roll call:

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Lindsey Walsh

Minutes: City Council Committee of the Whole Meeting, March 10, 2025

Carried 7-0

Approve · packet pp.43–44

▶ Watch from 32:40 Open packet at p.43 ↗

Staff report:

CONSENT CALENDAR c) 03-10-25 City Council Committee of the Whole Page (1) Minutes CITY OF ISSAQUAH City Council Committee-of-the-Whole 6:30 PM Council Chambers March 10, 2025 MINUTES 135 E. Sunset Way

Roll call:

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Lindsey Walsh

Minutes: City Council Special Meeting, March 31, 2025

Carried 7-0

Approve · packet pp.45–46

▶ Watch from 36:38 Open packet at p.45 ↗

Staff report:

CONSENT CALENDAR d) 03-31-25 City Council Special Meeting Minutes Page 1 CITY OF ISSAQUAH City Council Special Meeting – Joint Meeting with Issaquah School Board 6:00 PM Holly Street Early Learning March 31, 2025 Center 565 NW Holly St. MINUTES Issaquah, WA 98027

Roll call:

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Lindsey Walsh

Highwood & Westside Reservoirs Improvements (WT018), Change Order 1 AB 8970

Carried 7-0

Authorize Funding · packet pp.47–51

Topics: Budget

▶ Watch from 40:37 Open packet at p.47 ↗

Staff report:

The city combined two CIP projects into one bid to reduce construction expenses. On March 18, 2024, the City Council awarded the construction contract for the Highwood Reservoirs and Westside Reservoir Retrofit project in the amount of $2,845,068.72 (including sales tax) to T Bailey, Inc. (AB 8798). A

Roll call:

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Lindsey Walsh

2025 Lodging Tax Advisory Committee Funding Recommendations AB 9007

Carried 7-0

Approve; Authorize Funding · packet pp.53–137

Topics: BudgetTourism

▶ Watch from 44:36 Open packet at p.53 ↗

Staff report:

In the 2025-26 budget, the City Council approved an annual allocation of $50,000 from the Lodging Tax Fund to support tourism-related initiatives that draw visitors from over 50-miles. These funds are provided to businesses and nonprofits for services provided and do not need to be repaid. In late 2024, LTAC discussed and approved changes to the annual application to align with current conditions. These changes included focusing on the shoulder season and setting three funding levels for applicants to be more impactful. The focus on the shoulder season of October - April is when hotels and visitors are reduced. The decision to fund at three levels - $7,500, $10,000 and $15,000 - not only will be more impactful for initiatives, but will help invest in new and innovative ideas and support larger initiatives that draw beyond the 50-mile radius of Issaquah.

Roll call:

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Lindsey Walsh

6. REGULAR BUSINESS

Central Issaquah Station Area Vision and Guiding Principles AB 8955

Carried 7-0

Approve Resolution · 30 min · packet pp.139–180

Topics: Land Use

Open packet at p.139 ↗

Staff report:

Over the last 20 years, the City’s population has more than doubled, bringing about new transportation opportunities and challenges which require new strategies to meet the city’s goals. Considering this growth, the city is seeking to take a proactive, transit-supportive approach to ensure that anticipated future roadway improvements support the long-term transit network.

Roll call:

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

City Council Vacancy Process Debrief AB 9009

Direct Administration · 30 min · packet pp.181–183

Topics: Boards & Commissions

Open packet at p.181 ↗

Staff report:

Certain steps of the City Council vacancy appointment process are outlined in Chapter 2.03 of the City Council Rules of Procedure. The City Council Rules provide for:  an online application  a verbal presentation from the applicants  the method of making the final nominations and appointment

9. GOOD OF THE ORDER

Upcoming Council Meetings

▶ Watch from 1:43:55

2408 segments .txt ↗

0:12 ↗ Good evening everyone and welcome. I'm

0:14 ↗ calling the April 7th city council

0:16 ↗ meeting to order. Um and as a reminder

0:18 ↗ to those that are here with us and

0:21 ↗ watching online, we continue to have a

0:23 ↗ remote aspect to the these meetings.

0:26 ↗ Both staff and members of the public may

0:27 ↗ be participating in tonight's meeting

0:29 ↗ remotely via webex. First item in the

0:32 ↗ agenda this evening is the pledge of

0:33 ↗ allegiance and I invite you to join us.

0:38 ↗ I pledge algiance to the flag of the

0:41 ↗ United States of America and to the

0:45 ↗ stands nationy.

0:54 ↗ Thank you. What I might do if it's okay

0:57 ↗ with Trisha is reverse the order. Oh,

1:00 ↗ nope. Not going to reverse the order. Uh

1:01 ↗ we have some business tonight under

1:03 ↗ special business and I'm seeing some of

1:06 ↗ our staff walk in. The first item is ID

1:09 ↗ 1807 public safety telecom

1:12 ↗ telecommunications week proclamation.

1:14 ↗ And I'd like to invite police dispatch

1:16 ↗ supervisor Trisha Bizy to the lectern

1:18 ↗ with council president Walsh.

1:27 ↗ Excellent. Well, I think there's a lot

1:30 ↗ to say about our police dis dispatch.

1:32 ↗ Um, I call you guys all the time and

1:36 ↗ just have a great opportunity to reach

1:40 ↗ someone who is there for our community.

1:43 ↗ And I think many of our community may

1:46 ↗ not recognize that we do have our own

1:48 ↗ police dispatch. You know, that's not

1:50 ↗ very common. A lot of organizations and

1:53 ↗ cities work with NorCom and have a

1:56 ↗ centralized dispatch, but we end up

1:58 ↗ having a dispatch that is very familiar

2:01 ↗ with our community, very familiar with

2:02 ↗ our officers, and has that personalized

2:06 ↗ connection to our community, and it's

2:08 ↗ something that I think we need to

2:10 ↗ recognize and really um appreciate. So,

2:13 ↗ I'll say that. and then the

2:15 ↗ proclamation. Whereas emergencies can

2:18 ↗ occur at any time that require police

2:20 ↗ services. And whereas an emergency

2:22 ↗ occurs, the prompt response of police

2:25 ↗ officers is critical to the protection

2:27 ↗ of life and preservation of property.

2:30 ↗ And whereas the safety of our police

2:32 ↗ officers is dependent upon the quality

2:34 ↗ and accuracy of information obtained

2:36 ↗ from citizens who telephone the Isqua

2:39 ↗ Communication Center. And whereas

2:41 ↗ professional police or professional

2:44 ↗ public safety telecommunicators are a

2:47 ↗ vital link for our community and are the

2:49 ↗ first and most critical contact our

2:51 ↗ citizens have with emergency services.

2:54 ↗ And whereas public safety

2:56 ↗ telecommunicators are the single vital

2:58 ↗ link for our police officers by

3:00 ↗ monitoring their activities by radio,

3:02 ↗ providing them information and ensuring

3:04 ↗ their safety. And whereas public safety

3:07 ↗ telecommunicators of the Isiqua

3:09 ↗ Communications Center have contributed

3:11 ↗ substantially to the apprehension of

3:13 ↗ criminals and whereas our dispatchers

3:16 ↗ exhibit compassion, understanding, and

3:19 ↗ professionalism during the performance

3:20 ↗ of their job. Now therefore, I, Council

3:24 ↗ Member Lindseay Walsh, on behalf of Mary

3:26 ↗ Mayor Mary Lou Polly, Mayor of the City

3:28 ↗ of Isiqua, do hereby proclaim the week

3:31 ↗ of April 13th to 19th, 2025 to be public

3:35 ↗ safety telecommunications week in the

3:37 ↗ city of Isiqua. And I invite the

3:39 ↗ community to join me in thanking Isqua's

3:42 ↗ dispatchers for their service and

3:43 ↗ outstanding

3:44 ↗ contributions. Excellent. Do you like to

3:47 ↗ make a few statements?

3:49 ↗ Absolutely.

3:50 ↗ I want to thank you guys for having us

3:52 ↗ today. I'm just here to express our

3:53 ↗ gratitude on behalf of the

3:54 ↗ telecommunicators um and and your

3:56 ↗ ongoing support for our profession. As

3:59 ↗ we approach National Telecommunicator

4:00 ↗ Week, I want to take this opportunity to

4:02 ↗ highlight just how much your support

4:04 ↗ means to the telecommunicators who work

4:06 ↗ tirelessly behind the scenes every day

4:08 ↗ to ensure our safety. Telecommunicators

4:11 ↗ are often the unseen lifeline in the

4:13 ↗ emergency situations, handling stressful

4:15 ↗ calls and providing that vital

4:16 ↗ coordination for first responders and

4:19 ↗ the public alike. Your recognition for

4:21 ↗ their work is essential not only during

4:22 ↗ telecommunicator week but throughout the

4:24 ↗ year. The telecommunicator week serves

4:27 ↗ as an important reminder to that

4:28 ↗ critical role these professionals play

4:30 ↗ in our community. Their dedication and

4:32 ↗ quick thinking and calm under pressure

4:34 ↗ help save lives and protect the

4:36 ↗ well-being of our community. It's during

4:38 ↗ this week that we can come together and

4:39 ↗ celebrate their hard work and their

4:41 ↗ dedication. But it is the yearround

4:43 ↗ support that truly makes a difference.

4:45 ↗ By continuing to provide resources, the

4:47 ↗ recognition and their contribution and

4:49 ↗ advocate for the tools that they need,

4:51 ↗ you are empowering these professionals

4:53 ↗ perform their at their very best. Your

4:55 ↗ support ensures that they are equipped

4:57 ↗ to handle emergencies with the

4:59 ↗ efficiency and skills our city does

5:00 ↗ require. I also want to personally thank

5:03 ↗ you for recognizing their efforts during

5:04 ↗ the telecommunicator week and our

5:06 ↗ ongoing commitment to improving their

5:08 ↗ working conditions. Your unwavering

5:10 ↗ support has a significant impact in our

5:12 ↗ ability to serve and protect the public.

5:14 ↗ I know not one not everyone wants to

5:16 ↗ hear about statistics, especially me,

5:18 ↗ but there's a couple numbers that I do

5:20 ↗ want to share with you guys that I think

5:21 ↗ are really important. The standard is

5:24 ↗ that a n 90% of all the 911 calls should

5:26 ↗ be answered within the 10 seconds during

5:29 ↗ peak hours and 95% of those should be

5:31 ↗ answered within 20 seconds. In 2022, the

5:35 ↗ average time that we were answering the

5:37 ↗ phone was at 7.36 seconds. In 2023, it

5:41 ↗ was 6.92 seconds. In 2024, it dropped to

5:44 ↗ 5.42 seconds, and we're currently at

5:47 ↗ this year at 2.57 seconds. So, I want to

5:51 ↗ show you that it is a big difference

5:53 ↗ when you're on the other end of that 911

5:55 ↗ call and every second truly does count.

5:58 ↗ The reason I'm bringing this up is to

5:59 ↗ thank you for your continued support in

6:01 ↗ helping increase our staff. Without that

6:03 ↗ added support, we wouldn't be able to

6:05 ↗ answer those calls as quickly as we do.

6:07 ↗ Your commitment directly contributes to

6:08 ↗ our ability to respond effectively and

6:10 ↗ efficiently in these critical moments. I

6:13 ↗ believe I I'm sorry, I briefly want to

6:14 ↗ introduce a few of the team members that

6:16 ↗ I brought with me. I think you met Ryan.

6:18 ↗ He started with us in October 2023 and

6:20 ↗ he's now one of our training officers

6:22 ↗ and he is our training our newest which

6:24 ↗ is Kirsten. She has just started with us

6:27 ↗ last week but she does come uh with 10

6:30 ↗ years of experience. So we're very

6:31 ↗ excited to have her. Um again just thank

6:33 ↗ you for recognizing us during this

6:35 ↗ weekend. Always keeping us in mind.

6:37 ↗ Thank you Trisha. Thank you so much.

6:39 ↗ Yeah. Thank you. And uh we'd love to

6:42 ↗ have you all do a picture but don't

6:44 ↗ forget your mayor's an engineer and she

6:46 ↗ loves data. Thank you for slipping that

6:48 ↗ in. Love the data. Love the numbers.

6:50 ↗ Thank

6:59 ↗ you. Great

7:02 ↗ job. Thank you, Council President. The

7:05 ↗ next item we have this evening under

7:07 ↗ special presentations is ID 1809, Sexual

7:10 ↗ Assault Awareness and Prevention Month

7:13 ↗ Proclamation. I'd like to invite Karen

7:15 ↗ Sharp, chief operating officer for King

7:18 ↗ County Sexual Assault Resource Center to

7:20 ↗ the lectern with Deputy Council

7:22 ↗ President Michelle.

7:24 ↗ Yes, thank you. So Karen, thank you so

7:28 ↗ much for being here and thank you for

7:29 ↗ everything that you do. Whereas sexual

7:32 ↗ assault awareness and prevention month

7:34 ↗ calls attention to the fact that sexual

7:36 ↗ violence is widespread and impacts every

7:39 ↗ person in the community. And whereas

7:42 ↗ sexual assault is pervasive, every 68

7:45 ↗ seconds, someone is sexually assaulted

7:47 ↗ in the United States. And whereas black,

7:50 ↗ indigenous, and other people of color,

7:52 ↗ people living in poverty, LGBTQ plus

7:55 ↗ people, elders, people with

7:57 ↗ disabilities, and others who have been

7:59 ↗ historically oppressed are

8:01 ↗ disproportionately affected by sexual

8:03 ↗ violence in significant and complex

8:05 ↗ ways. And whereas sexual assault is

8:08 ↗ among the most underreported crimes for

8:11 ↗ many reasons, but survivors who are

8:13 ↗ already most marginalized face

8:15 ↗ additional barriers to reporting such as

8:17 ↗ language, immigration status, or

8:20 ↗ disability. And whereas ending sexual

8:23 ↗ violence requires us to address racism,

8:26 ↗ sexism, and all forms of oppression that

8:29 ↗ contribute to the perpetuation of sexual

8:31 ↗ assault. And whereas sexual violence

8:34 ↗ exists on a continuum of behavior that

8:36 ↗ includes racist, sexist, transphobic,

8:39 ↗ homophobic, abbleist, or other hate

8:42 ↗ speech. This ranges from rape jokes to

8:44 ↗ verbal harassment to physical assaults.

8:47 ↗ And whereas by working together as a

8:50 ↗ community, we can alleviate the trauma

8:52 ↗ of sexual violence by ensuring

8:54 ↗ supportive resources are available to

8:56 ↗ all survivors while standing up to and

8:59 ↗ actively disrupting harmful attitudes

9:01 ↗ and behaviors that contribute to sexual

9:04 ↗ violence. Now, therefore, I, Council

9:06 ↗ Member D. We shall on behalf of Mary

9:09 ↗ Lupali, mayor of the city of Isiqua, do

9:12 ↗ hereby proclaim April 2025 to be sexual

9:15 ↗ assault awareness and prevention month

9:18 ↗ in the city of Isiqua. And I encourage

9:20 ↗ all citizens to join me in this special

9:22 ↗ observance and join advocates and

9:25 ↗ communities across King County in taking

9:27 ↗ action to prevent sexual violence.

9:29 ↗ Together, we commit to a safer future

9:32 ↗ for all children, young people, adults,

9:35 ↗ and families in our community. In

9:37 ↗ witness whereof, I appear unto set she

9:40 ↗ has where to set her hand and seal of

9:43 ↗ the city of Isiqua this 7th day of

9:45 ↗ April,

9:46 ↗ 2025. Would you like to say some words?

9:49 ↗ Here you go. Yeah.

9:53 ↗ Thank you so much. Really appreciate it.

9:55 ↗ My name is Karen Sharp and I'm the chief

9:58 ↗ operating officer at King County Sexual

10:00 ↗ Assault Resource Center, KARC for short.

10:02 ↗ a nonprofit that serves Isaakiqua and

10:05 ↗ all cities in King County. And I'm here

10:09 ↗ to accept this sexual assault uh

10:11 ↗ awareness month proclamation on behalf

10:14 ↗ of King County Sexual Assault Resource

10:16 ↗ Center. And first I just want to say

10:18 ↗ thank you for being part of the

10:20 ↗ solution. It's so important. And to

10:24 ↗ survivors in our community, I want to

10:27 ↗ say you are not alone. Sexual assault,

10:31 ↗ as uh you heard, is common. Half of

10:34 ↗ women and onethird of men have

10:36 ↗ experienced sexual assault in their

10:38 ↗ lifetime. People from marginalized

10:41 ↗ communities due to disability, race, or

10:44 ↗ ethnicity, or their gender or sexual

10:47 ↗ identity, to name just a few, are at

10:49 ↗ even greater risks. Chances are that you

10:53 ↗ know somebody who has been sexually

10:56 ↗ abused. The trauma of sexual assault is

10:59 ↗ something that could affect a survivor's

11:00 ↗ mental, physical, and behavioral health,

11:03 ↗ their ability to form healthy

11:04 ↗ relationships, remain in school, or in

11:07 ↗ the

11:08 ↗ workplace. But recovery from trauma, the

11:12 ↗ trauma of sexual assault is possible

11:15 ↗ with support. Kesark assisted 4,300

11:18 ↗ individual survivors and their families

11:20 ↗ in the last year alone. Almost half of

11:23 ↗ KEARK clients are teens and children.

11:26 ↗ And we know young people are the most

11:28 ↗ vulnerable to sexual assault and the

11:30 ↗ least likely to speak up about it and to

11:33 ↗ be believed when they do. I want to end

11:37 ↗ with another message to survivors. Free

11:40 ↗ and confidential help is available to

11:42 ↗ survivors or anyone who needs more

11:45 ↗ information. Our 24-hour resource line

11:49 ↗ is a good starting place and that number

11:51 ↗ is

11:53 ↗ 88899 voice. You know, we always say we

11:56 ↗ can't change what we can't talk about.

11:58 ↗ So, thank you all for your leadership

12:01 ↗ and your willingness to be loud against

12:03 ↗ sexual assault. It's very appreciated.

12:06 ↗ Thank you.

12:10 ↗ Thank you, Karen. And thank you, Deputy

12:12 ↗ Council President. If you could hang on

12:14 ↗ there for a moment so our city

12:15 ↗ administrator can take the

12:21 ↗ picture. Thank you. The next item under

12:24 ↗ special business is ID 1830, food waste

12:26 ↗ prevention week proclamation. And I'd

12:28 ↗ like to invite solid waste program

12:30 ↗ analyst Sam Tarvin to the lectern and

12:33 ↗ also council member Jen. Thank you for

12:35 ↗ doing this.

12:45 ↗ Yeah, thank you so much Sam for being

12:47 ↗ here.

12:48 ↗ Um, okay. So whereas estimates show that

12:52 ↗ more than onethird of the food produced

12:54 ↗ in the United States goes un unsold or

12:56 ↗ uneaten and whereas Washington generates

12:59 ↗ an estimated 1.1 million tons of food

13:01 ↗ waste annually including 400,000 tons of

13:04 ↗ edible food disposed in landfills. And

13:06 ↗ whereas the production, transportation,

13:08 ↗ and handling of food waste has

13:10 ↗ contributed to significant

13:11 ↗ environmental, social, and economic

13:13 ↗ impacts, including approximately $218

13:16 ↗ billion per year in total global

13:18 ↗ economic loss associated with wasted

13:21 ↗ food. And whereas a family of four can

13:23 ↗ save an average of $1,500 annually by

13:26 ↗ reducing food waste in their home. And

13:28 ↗ whereas Washington's climate and food

13:30 ↗ waste reduction goals include the goal

13:32 ↗ to reduce food waste by 50% by 2030 and

13:35 ↗ to reduce at least half of edible food

13:36 ↗ waste by 2030. And whereas through the

13:39 ↗ Isiqua climate action plan, the city is

13:41 ↗ committed to diverting 70% of its

13:43 ↗ municipal solid waste away from the

13:45 ↗ landfill by 2030 and 90% by 2050. in

13:48 ↗ addition to partnering with local food

13:50 ↗ recovery organizations to food waste

13:52 ↗ reduction in Isiqua through technical

13:54 ↗ assistance and outreach. And whereas

13:56 ↗ reducing and preventing food waste

13:58 ↗ increases food security for Isiqua's

14:00 ↗ most vulnerable populations fosters

14:03 ↗ improved local agricultural

14:04 ↗ productivity, economic efficiency, and

14:07 ↗ conservation of resources and energy.

14:09 ↗ And whereas preventing food waste is a

14:11 ↗ valuable activity people and businesses

14:13 ↗ in Isqua can take to reduce

14:14 ↗ inefficiencies and make the best use of

14:17 ↗ food grown and manufactured for human

14:18 ↗ consumption. Now therefore, I, Council

14:21 ↗ Member Kelly Jeng, on behalf of Mary

14:22 ↗ Lupali, mayor of the city of Isiqua, do

14:25 ↗ hereby proclaim April 7th to April 13th,

14:28 ↗ 2025 as Food Waste Prevention Week in

14:30 ↗ the city of Isiqua. And I encourage all

14:32 ↗ residents to observe this week by

14:34 ↗ committing to preventing and reducing

14:36 ↗ food waste in their homes, workplaces,

14:38 ↗ and

14:39 ↗ communities. And I'll hand it over to

14:43 ↗ Sam. Thank you, council, for having me.

14:45 ↗ So today is the first day of food waste

14:47 ↗ prevention week. Isiqua is a proud

14:49 ↗ official partner of this campaign that

14:51 ↗ aims to educate and encourage community

14:53 ↗ members to get involved in food waste

14:54 ↗ reduction in their homes, workplaces,

14:56 ↗ schools, and community. 40% of the food

14:59 ↗ in the US is wasted and almost half of

15:01 ↗ that wasted food is edible. Food waste

15:03 ↗ reduction is a powerful climate action

15:05 ↗ everyone can take and has direct

15:07 ↗ benefits to our local and global

15:08 ↗ community. The Isiqua solid waste

15:10 ↗ program is celebrating this week by

15:12 ↗ educating residents on food waste

15:14 ↗ reduction strategies, offering

15:15 ↗ resources, and hosting events. We

15:18 ↗ encourage everyone to take action to

15:19 ↗ reduce food waste in our community.

15:21 ↗ Thank you. Thank you, Sam. And thank

15:22 ↗ you, Council Member Jen. If you would

15:24 ↗ hang for a picture, that would be

15:25 ↗ wonderful.

15:35 ↗ That is the end of our special business,

15:37 ↗ but I do want to also thank our council

15:39 ↗ for always raising their hand to help

15:41 ↗ pro present these proclamations. The

15:43 ↗ mayor could stand up there and do it all

15:44 ↗ the time, but you're already tired of my

15:46 ↗ voice. So, it's very nice that when

15:48 ↗ something appeals to you and to your

15:51 ↗ values and our community values that you

15:53 ↗ stand up there and do this for our

15:54 ↗ community. So very very appreciative of

15:56 ↗ your volunteerism for this. We're going

15:59 ↗ to move on to audience comments. And

16:00 ↗ this is the time when members of the

16:02 ↗ public um may address council in person

16:05 ↗ or virtually. And if you've signed up in

16:07 ↗ advance to make comments, we'll call on

16:08 ↗ you first. If you're joining us

16:10 ↗ virtually and would like to make

16:12 ↗ comments, please raise your virtual hand

16:13 ↗ or send the host a chat message. If

16:16 ↗ you're in the room and you did not sign

16:18 ↗ up, I will ask for other speakers before

16:20 ↗ closing this portion of the meeting. And

16:22 ↗ city clerk, has anyone signed up to

16:23 ↗ speak this evening?

16:24 ↗ Yes. Thank you. Um, so if you are making

16:28 ↗ comments this evening, you're invited to

16:30 ↗ address the council regarding matters

16:31 ↗ that are directly related to Isiqua's

16:33 ↗ programs, projects, services, or events.

16:37 ↗ Comments related to political campaigns

16:39 ↗ are not permitted. And please direct

16:41 ↗ your comments to the whole council and

16:43 ↗ not individuals. And while this is not a

16:45 ↗ question and answer session, we will

16:47 ↗ contact you to follow up if needed. So,

16:50 ↗ when you are recognized, if you are a

16:52 ↗ virtual attendee, um, please unmute your

16:54 ↗ mic microphone. If you're in the room,

16:56 ↗ please step up to the center lectern and

16:58 ↗ press the button in the center. And I'll

17:00 ↗ I'll I'll start in a second. I have just

17:03 ↗ a few more lines to go. Thanks. Uh, make

17:06 ↗ sure you state your name and address or

17:08 ↗ relationship to the city. Speak clearly

17:11 ↗ and pause frequently and limit your

17:13 ↗ comments to five minutes. If you're

17:15 ↗ attending virtually and you do not

17:17 ↗ respond after your name or phone number

17:18 ↗ is called, or if we lose your

17:20 ↗ connection, we still need to proceed

17:21 ↗ with the meeting. Personal attacks,

17:24 ↗ obscene language, derogatory remarks,

17:25 ↗ and disruptive behavior will not be

17:27 ↗ permitted. And public comments, written

17:30 ↗ and verbal, are an important aspect of

17:31 ↗ the public process, and the city and the

17:33 ↗ council takes these comments seriously.

17:35 ↗ We thank you for taking the time to

17:37 ↗ address us. City clerk, who has signed

17:39 ↗ up to speak first? Kai Han. Kai Han, you

17:42 ↗ have the microphone. Thank you, ma'am.

17:44 ↗ Yeah, my name is a Kong Suk Khan. I'm

17:47 ↗ living in the

17:48 ↗ 1695 Pineville, Isakqua, Washington. I'm

17:51 ↗ a resident. And then I have a matter

17:56 ↗ with the city of Isakqua of first degree

17:59 ↗ assault. And then I will going to read

18:01 ↗ to you what's happening. Then my journey

18:04 ↗ state that the male subject kicked the

18:06 ↗ front door side the bumper of my

18:09 ↗ vehicle. I observe a footprint on the

18:11 ↗ vehicle but did not observe any damage.

18:14 ↗ The male then come up to his window and

18:16 ↗ hit the back of his left hand at is it

18:20 ↗ was on the door. Hit his hand hard

18:23 ↗ enough for his driver's side window was

18:26 ↗ not able to roll up after the hit.

18:30 ↗ That's what stated. Here is my wife's

18:34 ↗ witnesses. My name is Minhong. I'm the

18:37 ↗ wife wife of Kong Khan and have raised

18:39 ↗ two children and live in Isaka as a good

18:42 ↗ citizen for 10 years. My family has

18:44 ↗ suffer a lot mentally due to the

18:46 ↗ incident that happened in the Costco

18:49 ↗ parking lot a while ago. That day I

18:52 ↗ tried to park in front of the tire

18:53 ↗ center to check change the tire before

18:56 ↗ going to the airport. I went to Costco

18:58 ↗ with the two cars and there was no place

19:00 ↗ to park. So me my husband saw an empty

19:03 ↗ spot and stood there so I could park.

19:07 ↗ When I was about to enter the parking

19:09 ↗ lot, my husband said that my wife should

19:12 ↗ park, but the man swear at him. My

19:16 ↗ husband said that my wife was behind

19:18 ↗ him, but the man tried to hit my husband

19:21 ↗ by moving the car twice and tried to hit

19:24 ↗ my husband with his car. I was so

19:26 ↗ shocked and panic with his deino. I

19:30 ↗ witnessed that there was no physical

19:32 ↗ contact in this situation. So this one

19:34 ↗ is the situation. I'm a 60 years old

19:37 ↗ man. I'm a ski instructor. I'm a

19:39 ↗ business owners and then my two kid is a

19:42 ↗ graduate isaka high school. My son is

19:45 ↗ fourth year university and my daughter

19:47 ↗ is going to college. I'm American

19:50 ↗ citizen. I will swear I didn't touch

19:54 ↗ anybody because at that time I'm too

19:56 ↗ busy to going to airport. I was sitting

19:59 ↗ like this. Stay at the microphone, sir.

20:02 ↗ Thanks. Because otherwise people will

20:03 ↗ not be able to hear you. I'd address the

20:05 ↗ city council meeting because under the

20:07 ↗ city council administration, you

20:13 ↗ observe the police department. I told

20:16 ↗ the police department many times even at

20:18 ↗ that time police said that both guys

20:21 ↗ charging so we can clear the issue. and

20:23 ↗ I find that I'm the only one charged for

20:26 ↗ degree assault with the lying. Lying is

20:30 ↗ a criminal matter. If I lying to the

20:34 ↗ council member or police department, I

20:36 ↗ will put maximize my penalty. Million

20:38 ↗ dollar penalty, my lifetime prison, I

20:42 ↗ will pull responsible. I'm not lying. I

20:45 ↗ didn't touch

20:46 ↗ him. If he's

20:48 ↗ lying, somebody has to do some justice.

20:52 ↗ And I called the same thing with the

20:54 ↗ prosecutor, please do something. And the

20:57 ↗ prosecutor said that provide the

20:59 ↗ evidences. But I didn't have one. So I

21:01 ↗ have a court to trial that is May 6.

21:04 ↗ That time I have to make a decide either

21:08 ↗ do I have to hire the attorney or not.

21:10 ↗ If I going to hire the attorney is a

21:12 ↗ $10,000.

21:14 ↗ Madame Mayor. Yeah. If I may um step in

21:17 ↗ just a moment.

21:19 ↗ um he's making some statements about a

21:21 ↗ criminal case and he could be

21:25 ↗ um harming his rights to

21:28 ↗ selfinccrimination. So, thank you.

21:29 ↗ Council member Joe, our attorney is

21:31 ↗ sitting here, so let's turn the

21:32 ↗ microphone over to her. Um Rachel, do

21:35 ↗ you want to make any comments about

21:36 ↗ concern about what our um testifier

21:40 ↗ might be doing? Well, I'm I'm not I

21:43 ↗ don't think any of us are in a position

21:44 ↗ to give him legal advice. That would be

21:46 ↗ inappropriate for me. So, um, hold on

21:48 ↗ just a second. I agree that

21:51 ↗ that he may be making statements that he

21:54 ↗ does, this is sounds like this is a

21:56 ↗ criminal matter and that it probably

21:58 ↗ would be better to do this in court

22:02 ↗ here. Give me one minute. But he does

22:03 ↗ have a first amendment right. So, if he

22:05 ↗ wants to say things that may incriminate

22:08 ↗ him later, that's going to be his right

22:10 ↗ to do so. Yeah. Here's what my my So, so

22:12 ↗ hang on one second. Um, city clerk, I I

22:15 ↗ think what I'd like to do is allow the

22:17 ↗ person testifying to be able to have all

22:19 ↗ the time. So, thank you for answering

22:21 ↗ the question. It's a good point, Council

22:23 ↗ Member Joe. However, I think we're going

22:25 ↗ to proceed and let him finish with his

22:26 ↗ time. Thank you, madam. Yeah, here's my

22:29 ↗ intention. If you are not going to do

22:31 ↗ anything, it's fine. I spend my money

22:33 ↗ for this cases, but city of Isaka is

22:37 ↗ liable because you are not prosecutor

22:40 ↗ liar. Somebody is lying to the police

22:43 ↗ department is a criminal matter. I tell

22:47 ↗ police department same thing they're not

22:49 ↗ going to do anything. Prosecutor they're

22:51 ↗ not going to do anything. I talked to

22:53 ↗ the judgy they say this she can't

22:56 ↗ reimburse. So I'm asking specifically

22:59 ↗ mayor or council members still we have a

23:02 ↗ time because we have a May sixes tell

23:05 ↗ the police department or prosecutor

23:08 ↗ department find the fact if I touch him

23:12 ↗ show me the evidence if not if I going

23:15 ↗ to the higher attorney that's a 10 to 10

23:18 ↗ the microphone so they can hear you. So,

23:20 ↗ I'm going to submit the reimbursement

23:22 ↗ plan. So, CD is liable for the all the

23:25 ↗ legal cost and my time. Thank you. Thank

23:28 ↗ you. Um, I see our attorney is back at

23:30 ↗ the microphone. The the city is not

23:32 ↗ going to speak to your your case or get

23:34 ↗ involved in your criminal matter, the

23:35 ↗ city council. It's not the place of the

23:37 ↗ city council to do that. We do recommend

23:39 ↗ that you do hire an attorney. Yeah. But

23:42 ↗ that's why I'm If I hire attorney, city

23:45 ↗ has to li all the cost. No, the city

23:48 ↗ does not. So, you can you can speak to

23:50 ↗ the your attorney about all of this.

23:52 ↗ What I would like to recommend is thank

23:53 ↗ you for your testimony. Very

23:55 ↗ informative. Um, and if uh our attorney

23:58 ↗ would like to step out and and answer

24:01 ↗ some questions because there may be some

24:02 ↗ basic information that is misunderstood

24:05 ↗ in this case, go ahead and do that. That

24:07 ↗ would be fine. Um, but otherwise, I'm

24:09 ↗ going to move on to see if there are any

24:11 ↗ other people testifying tonight. City

24:13 ↗ clerk. We do have one member of the

24:15 ↗ public with us virtually, but I don't

24:16 ↗ see that they're indicating a desire to

24:18 ↗ speak. Well, thank you. Um, and so

24:21 ↗ tonight we did hear from a resident who

24:24 ↗ is concerned with uh charges and are has

24:29 ↗ some questions about how all the process

24:30 ↗ will work. But I want to thank him for

24:32 ↗ coming in tonight and sharing with our

24:34 ↗ city council. I am not seeing anyone

24:36 ↗ else in the room this evening with a

24:37 ↗ desire to speak. I think our big crowd

24:39 ↗ was more for the special business part.

24:42 ↗ So, we are going to move on to the

24:43 ↗ consent calendar and I do not have any

24:45 ↗ remarks on the consent calendar items,

24:46 ↗ but I would like to give a chance for

24:48 ↗ committee chairs or chair designs who

24:51 ↗ would like to report on any of the

24:52 ↗ consent calendar

24:54 ↗ items. I'm looking around and not seeing

24:56 ↗ any reports. The consent calendar was

24:59 ↗ distributed to council in advance and if

25:01 ↗ authorized, the items on the consent

25:02 ↗ calendar will be considered together and

25:04 ↗ approved by one motion. Have the

25:06 ↗ payables and payroll been reviewed? They

25:09 ↗ have. They have. Thank you both. And

25:11 ↗ does any council member desire to remove

25:12 ↗ any item from the consent calendar and

25:14 ↗ consider it under regular

25:16 ↗ business? Not seeing an indication to do

25:19 ↗ so. Oh, um I am seeing something. Um

25:23 ↗ Council Member Jen, um I just wanted to

25:25 ↗ note for the record that one of the

25:28 ↗ recipients uh for the lodging tax

25:30 ↗ advisory committee funding is an

25:32 ↗ organization of which I am the board

25:34 ↗ president. Um, I talked with the city

25:36 ↗ clerk about it and it doesn't appear to

25:38 ↗ be an actual conflict of interest where

25:40 ↗ it needs to be taken off and voted

25:41 ↗ separately, but just wanted to note that

25:43 ↗ for the record and for transparency.

25:45 ↗ Thank you for saying that.

25:47 ↗ All right. Do I have a motion, council

25:50 ↗ president? I move we approve the consent

25:53 ↗ calendar as distributed. Second. It's

25:56 ↗ been moved and seconded. Is there any

25:58 ↗ council

25:59 ↗ discussion? Not seeing any. Council

26:01 ↗ member Jen, thanks for that

26:02 ↗ clarification. So the motion approved

26:05 ↗ before uh the motion before council is

26:07 ↗ to approve the consent calendar as

26:08 ↗ presented. All those in favor signify by

26:10 ↗ saying I. I. Those opposed.

26:28 ↗ Okay. Thank you, Council President.

26:31 ↗ We're going to move into regular

26:32 ↗ business. And the first item here is

26:36 ↗ AB9007-2025, Lodging Tax Advisory

26:38 ↗ Committee Funding Recommendations. Oh

26:41 ↗ gosh. Okay. Nope. Sorry. Did not get

26:43 ↗ removed. I am reading a script that

26:45 ↗ gives me many choices. So, I thank you,

26:48 ↗ city clerk. I'm going to move into AB

26:54 ↗ 8955, Central Esqua Station Area Vision

26:57 ↗ and Guiding Principles. The request

26:59 ↗ before council this evening is to

27:01 ↗ consider and approve a resolution. And

27:03 ↗ I'm going to turn this over to senior

27:04 ↗ transportation planner Thomas Valdez.

27:07 ↗ Come on up to the podium and welcome.

27:17 ↗ Thank you, member and mayors and uh

27:19 ↗ sorry, thank you mayor and members of

27:21 ↗ the

27:30 ↗ council. I appreciate your time tonight.

27:33 ↗ My name is Thomas Valdres, senior

27:34 ↗ transportation planner. Uh tonight I

27:37 ↗ will be uh requesting uh the council to

27:41 ↗ uh please uh review and uh consider for

27:46 ↗ adoption the central Isqua stationary

27:48 ↗ vision and guiding

27:51 ↗ principles. This is a key milestone in

27:54 ↗ our efforts to prepare for Sound Transit

27:56 ↗ Skylink light rail project as well as to

28:00 ↗ guide long-term growth in central Isqua.

28:05 ↗ The goal tonight is

28:06 ↗ to seek your approval for this

28:09 ↗ resolution adopting the vision guiding

28:13 ↗ principles. As this council is well

28:15 ↗ aware, central Isqua and its urban core

28:18 ↗ was designated as a regional growth

28:20 ↗ center and we're expecting the majority

28:22 ↗ of housing growth and employment growth

28:25 ↗ between uh now and 2050 uh in this area.

28:30 ↗ This reinforces the idea that we really

28:32 ↗ need to be creating a wellplanned

28:34 ↗ station area that supports anticipated

28:37 ↗ growth as well as transit oriented

28:41 ↗ development. Ski link or the South

28:44 ↗ Kirkland Isqua Link light rail extension

28:47 ↗ has been planned uh for many years. In

28:50 ↗ 2016, voters approved as part of ST3 the

28:55 ↗ creation of Ski Link. It will connect

28:58 ↗ South Kirkland through Belleview and

29:00 ↗ then finally terminating in central

29:03 ↗ Isqua. We're expecting to have service

29:05 ↗ in about

29:09 ↗ 204144. In March of last year, council

29:12 ↗ approved the light rail planning guide.

29:15 ↗ This provides best practices and

29:17 ↗ near-term actions for the city to take

29:19 ↗ in order to prepare for Sound Transit's

29:21 ↗ project.

29:24 ↗ The first major step in this uh planning

29:27 ↗ guide was to develop a vision and

29:30 ↗ guiding principles. So we're here today

29:32 ↗ to create that first

29:35 ↗ step. So why are we creating a vision

29:38 ↗ vision a vision and guiding

29:40 ↗ principles beyond it being called for in

29:43 ↗ the planning guide? This really creates

29:46 ↗ the framework that we'll need to

29:48 ↗ evaluate future decisions.

29:50 ↗ things such as station location, the

29:52 ↗ track alignment needed for that station,

29:55 ↗ and then future action items such as

29:58 ↗ land use and zoning updates to support

30:00 ↗ development of that station

30:02 ↗ area. In addition, it helps us uh

30:05 ↗ advocate for the community when we

30:09 ↗ discuss uh various things with Sound

30:11 ↗ Transit. So, Sound Transit will be using

30:13 ↗ this uh just as a starting point um so

30:17 ↗ that they know what our aspirations are

30:19 ↗ and they can identify a projects that is

30:21 ↗ going to meet both local needs as well

30:23 ↗ as regional

30:28 ↗ needs. This project has really been a

30:30 ↗ culmination of over a year and a half of

30:32 ↗ public engagement. So, just to

30:35 ↗ summarize, we began by doing three

30:37 ↗ pop-up

30:38 ↗ events. These discussions with community

30:41 ↗ members started uh us down this line of

30:44 ↗ thinking about ways that light rail and

30:47 ↗ the station around the station area

30:49 ↗ around light rail um might affect the

30:51 ↗ community and the things that that the

30:53 ↗ community might be interested in. From

30:55 ↗ these three pop-up events, we created a

30:58 ↗ multilingual community survey. This was

31:01 ↗ taken in three languages in English,

31:03 ↗ Spanish, as well as Mandarin Chinese by

31:06 ↗ over 805 respondents from all around the

31:08 ↗ community and

31:10 ↗ beyond. There were many key themes that

31:12 ↗ we gathered from the community survey

31:15 ↗ and we used those and rolled these in to

31:17 ↗ develop seven focus groups. These focus

31:20 ↗ groups covered various topics and they

31:23 ↗ were comprised of over 28 members from

31:25 ↗ the community.

31:28 ↗ We took all these ideas, all these

31:30 ↗ diverse perspectives and then created a

31:33 ↗ culmination event. This was really the

31:35 ↗ impetus of the first version of the

31:37 ↗ draft that you see

31:38 ↗ tonight. Bringing all these ideas

31:41 ↗ together, we met and we discussed and

31:44 ↗ then we created that document.

31:47 ↗ That initial document was then brought

31:49 ↗ to the economic vitality

31:51 ↗ commission and then the the EVC economic

31:54 ↗ vitality commission provided feedback

31:56 ↗ which we rolled into future meetings. So

31:59 ↗ we met with the planning policy

32:01 ↗ commission who received the second

32:02 ↗ draft, human services commission and

32:04 ↗ equity board. The fourth draft was uh

32:07 ↗ reviewed by the transportation advisory

32:09 ↗ board and then the committee of the

32:10 ↗ whole saw multiple drafts of this.

32:15 ↗ The slide shows a summary of the

32:17 ↗ direction that was provided to to staff.

32:20 ↗ Um, all of which has been incorporated

32:22 ↗ into the version that you see

32:24 ↗ tonight. In summary, the document has

32:26 ↗ been uh made more simpler and uh plain

32:30 ↗ spoken while still retaining the key uh

32:33 ↗ meaning and um making it easier for lay

32:36 ↗ people to um to absorb.

32:39 ↗ Other items that were incorporated,

32:42 ↗ especially within uh the introductory

32:44 ↗ section, include providing guidance for

32:47 ↗ the path forward, emphasizing the need

32:50 ↗ to uh have public transit operational

32:53 ↗ needs considered, emphasizing the needs

32:56 ↗ of others outside of the community who

32:58 ↗ may be using light rail, as well as

33:02 ↗ emphasizing forward compatibility. In

33:04 ↗ the event that Ski Link is expanded uh

33:07 ↗ beyond isqua, we'll need to think about

33:09 ↗ how that extension might

33:14 ↗ occur. In front of you today uh as part

33:17 ↗ of the resolution and within exhibit A

33:21 ↗ is the light rail vision and guiding

33:23 ↗ principles.

33:27 ↗ So just to summarize the vision

33:29 ↗ statement talks

33:31 ↗ about central Isqua being vibrant and

33:33 ↗ well-connected hub and it's designed for

33:36 ↗ walkability and

33:38 ↗ sustainability. It has lots of diverse

33:40 ↗ housing and business opportunities and

33:43 ↗ it's a safe and welcoming and inclusive

33:48 ↗ space. There are three guiding

33:50 ↗ principles in this document. I'll start

33:52 ↗ with the first one which is

33:53 ↗ accessibility and connectivity.

33:56 ↗ This talks about central Isqua being a a

33:58 ↗ hub for

34:00 ↗ transportation, that it's safe and

34:02 ↗ accessible, that there's thoughtfully

34:04 ↗ placed parking, and that the

34:06 ↗ neighborhood is transit

34:09 ↗ friendly. The second area talks about

34:12 ↗ diverse uses and

34:14 ↗ experiences. This conveys that central

34:16 ↗ Isqua will have a balanced mix of

34:19 ↗ housing, businesses, and public spaces.

34:22 ↗ that there's amenities and essential

34:23 ↗ services that support daily

34:26 ↗ life. Sustainability is at the heart of

34:28 ↗ this as

34:32 ↗ well. The third principle

34:34 ↗ is community connection and

34:37 ↗ values. This talks about central Isqua

34:39 ↗ being welcoming that it's designed for

34:42 ↗ adaptable spaces with strong social

34:47 ↗ connections. Sustainability, safety, and

34:49 ↗ inclusivity are at the heart of this.

34:52 ↗ And we want to intentionally design this

34:54 ↗ area to uh enhance quality of

34:58 ↗ life. Lastly, as an urban center, it

35:01 ↗ would balance the growth uh and

35:03 ↗ community goals as

35:08 ↗ well. The administration is recommending

35:10 ↗ council approve this resolution adopting

35:12 ↗ the central Isqua stationary vision and

35:14 ↗ guiding principles. And I'll stop here.

35:16 ↗ Thank you.

35:18 ↗ Thank you, Thomas. I'm looking at

35:19 ↗ council to see if you have any

35:23 ↗ questions. Although

35:30 ↗ um no comments or questions. Great. Then

35:33 ↗ I am looking for a motion.

35:43 ↗ Okay. I move to approve resolution

35:46 ↗ number 2025-09

35:49 ↗ adopting the central Isiqua Station area

35:52 ↗ vision and guiding principles.

35:56 ↗ Second. Great. Thank you. It's been

35:58 ↗ moved and seconded. Is there any further

36:01 ↗ discussion?

36:02 ↗ Mr. president. I don't want it to seem

36:05 ↗ like there has been any backroom

36:08 ↗ conversation or any reason why we are

36:10 ↗ not making comments on this other than

36:12 ↗ it's come before council multiple times.

36:15 ↗ Most recently, um we just wanted to make

36:18 ↗ sure to include um some final comments

36:21 ↗ and adjustments. I think this has done

36:23 ↗ that very well and I think we're all

36:26 ↗ really looking forward to getting this

36:29 ↗ um into use and into practice. So I I

36:33 ↗ don't think our silence should be taken

36:35 ↗ as lack of support. More just we respect

36:39 ↗ the time and um have commented quite a

36:43 ↗ bit in the past. Thank you. Any other

36:46 ↗ comments or discussion this evening?

36:48 ↗ Deputy Council President. just a thanks

36:50 ↗ to staff for a really excellent uh

36:53 ↗ outreach and uh involving uh many

36:57 ↗ hundreds of Isipa residents uh in the

37:00 ↗ process of envisioning this. Um I always

37:03 ↗ love to see a terrific effort being made

37:05 ↗ and this was really outstanding. So uh

37:08 ↗ thank you for all the work that you did

37:10 ↗ on this. Thank you. Any other comments?

37:14 ↗ It has been moved and seconded to

37:17 ↗ approve

37:18 ↗ resolution 099 adopting the central ISO

37:22 ↗ station area vision and guiding

37:23 ↗ principles. All those in favor signify

37:26 ↗ by saying I. I.

37:28 ↗ Those opposed that carries seven and

37:31 ↗ Thomas. Thank you. And I think you heard

37:33 ↗ some nice compliments on the staff work

37:35 ↗ on this and I appreciate it. Well,

37:37 ↗ sometimes when they're quiet, it's

37:39 ↗ because they saw everything wanted to

37:41 ↗ see in it. So that's really great.

37:44 ↗ Um the next item of business this

37:46 ↗ evening is AB

37:49 ↗ 00009. This is a agenda bill on the city

37:52 ↗ council vacancy process debrief. Um I'd

37:56 ↗ like to introduce this item by saying

37:58 ↗ that the vacancy process was a success.

38:00 ↗ We have a very qualified and talented

38:02 ↗ person sitting in our seventh chair. Um

38:07 ↗ and so we always I think as a best

38:09 ↗ practice kind of like to review the

38:11 ↗ process and talk things through. So

38:13 ↗ council has the opportunity to look at

38:15 ↗ the rules that they use to go types of

38:17 ↗ processes. We also know that reflection

38:20 ↗ is important and we did get some

38:22 ↗ fabulous feedback from other people who

38:24 ↗ were in the applicant pool. So now I'd

38:27 ↗ like to turn this over to city clerk

38:29 ↗ Tisha Gizer to present this

38:33 ↗ item. City Council Tisha Gizer, city

38:35 ↗ clerk. Um I don't have a lot to say

38:37 ↗ here. Uh we all experienced this process

38:39 ↗ fairly recently. Um, what I did want to

38:42 ↗ just remind you is that your council

38:45 ↗ rules have some provisions for this

38:47 ↗ process, but actually not much. So, what

38:49 ↗ the council rules say about filling a

38:51 ↗ vacancy is that um you'll meet to uh

38:55 ↗ approve a schedule and appointment

38:57 ↗ timeline, which you did back in

38:58 ↗ December, and then the rules say there

39:00 ↗ will be an online application. And then

39:02 ↗ they say that there will be an

39:04 ↗ opportunity for a verbal presentation,

39:05 ↗ 10 minutes per person. And then they

39:08 ↗ provide the nomination and appointment

39:10 ↗ process. They don't really say anything

39:12 ↗ else about the vacancy. So, one of the

39:14 ↗ things that we were interested in uh

39:16 ↗ potentially hearing from you tonight is

39:17 ↗ if you would like um more uh in uh more

39:22 ↗ structure around this process in your

39:23 ↗ rules or if you like the flexibility. Uh

39:26 ↗ and then as the mayor shared just to to

39:28 ↗ get some input on this process, we did

39:30 ↗ send out a survey and heard from eight

39:32 ↗ of the 12 applicants and you were

39:34 ↗ provided their responses. A lot of them

39:36 ↗ centered around the question and answer

39:38 ↗ period on February 10th and then that um

39:40 ↗ narrowing of candidates. Um another

39:43 ↗ thing I just wanted to mention and I

39:44 ↗ took a look at today. Um there were 12

39:47 ↗ uh eligible applicants for this vacancy.

39:50 ↗ the average over the past seven uh

39:52 ↗ vacancies is eight and so it was a

39:55 ↗ little on the high side. Um the last

39:57 ↗ highest was I think 2018 we had 14

40:01 ↗ applicants but otherwise it's been you

40:03 ↗ know single digits. So that's just

40:04 ↗ something else to be thinking about in

40:06 ↗ the context of your conversation with

40:08 ↗ that. I will take a seat. Thank you city

40:10 ↗ clerk. Um, city clerk has also put

40:13 ↗ together a few questions that we can I

40:16 ↗ can use as prompts for conversation, but

40:18 ↗ I do want to say um it's exciting when

40:21 ↗ so many community members who have

40:23 ↗ volunteered and and we know them through

40:25 ↗ their commitments already show up to try

40:27 ↗ and fill a council vacancies. So, that

40:29 ↗ was very exciting. Thank you for that

40:31 ↗ data.

40:33 ↗ Um, so we have an op optional uh

40:37 ↗ additional motion this evening that we

40:39 ↗ can talk about as well. But first I'd

40:41 ↗ like to start with some prompting

40:43 ↗ questions and have you all just feel

40:44 ↗ free to indicate um your answers to

40:47 ↗ them. So we have a couple of questions

40:49 ↗ here. The first question is what

40:51 ↗ feedback do you have about this year's

40:53 ↗ vacancy process especially given the

40:55 ↗ high number of applicants? So, if you

40:57 ↗ have comments and thoughts about the

40:59 ↗ process and the high number of

41:00 ↗ applicants, please raise your mic.

41:02 ↗ Council member Mertz. Thank you, Madam

41:04 ↗ Mayor. Yeah, it

41:06 ↗ uh I mean, I guess we've had we had 14

41:09 ↗ not too long ago, but this this was a

41:11 ↗ startlingly well-qualified field. Um and

41:15 ↗ yet it it resulted in in some

41:17 ↗ frustrations, I think. And um for me

41:20 ↗ reading the comments uh from the eight

41:23 ↗ of the 12 who have uh who provided us

41:26 ↗ feedback, there were a couple of things

41:27 ↗ that stood out to me. Um having around

41:30 ↗ where we wind up with seven of the 12

41:33 ↗ advancing um I can see where uh I don't

41:38 ↗ I

41:39 ↗ I it felt very weird. Um, and it felt uh

41:44 ↗ if I was one of those five, I know there

41:45 ↗ were some really well-qualified people

41:47 ↗ that were in those five. Um, so uh and

41:51 ↗ the other is the comments that had to do

41:53 ↗ with um nom you the the the urge to get

41:58 ↗ nominations done quickly like the the

42:00 ↗ process that we use is such that there

42:03 ↗ is an advantage to being the first

42:04 ↗ person nominated. Um, and that feels

42:07 ↗ weird and not like uh it should we

42:09 ↗ shouldn't be having to race to get our

42:11 ↗ nominations in, right? I don't know how

42:14 ↗ I don't know how we solve that problem,

42:15 ↗ but that was that element that was

42:17 ↗ highlighted. Um, and also a related

42:20 ↗ question is the order of questions and

42:23 ↗ the fact that some folks got five

42:25 ↗ seconds to come up with an answer and

42:27 ↗ some folks had 20 minutes to come up

42:28 ↗ with an answer. So, those were the

42:30 ↗ things that I heard from the

42:32 ↗ participants that resonated with me that

42:34 ↗ I that I heard. I thought, "Oh, yeah."

42:36 ↗ Um, those are all things that I would

42:37 ↗ like to do better the next time that we

42:39 ↗ have. Thank you for sharing. I think

42:42 ↗ Council Member Ray just barely beat out

42:44 ↗ Council President Walsh. It's important

42:46 ↗ to be first.

42:48 ↗ Um, couple of of of thoughts. One is,

42:53 ↗ and I was I got this from reading the

42:55 ↗ comments, too, is you know, we get all

42:57 ↗ of our material ahead of time and we get

42:59 ↗ to think about it. and um giving people

43:02 ↗ the questions ahead of time I think

43:04 ↗ would have balanced some of the I'm

43:06 ↗ first or I'm last uh thing and it's also

43:09 ↗ a better emulation of the process that

43:11 ↗ we go through. So um from a just a

43:14 ↗ mechanical perspective I think that

43:16 ↗ that would be helpful. The other thing

43:20 ↗ that um strikes me, and this goes to the

43:23 ↗ city clerk's comments, is I like having

43:25 ↗ the flexibility to manage the process

43:27 ↗ because I went back and read the rules

43:28 ↗ of procedures, and they're very

43:30 ↗ um generic. Um but I think that's okay

43:33 ↗ because it's a difference because this

43:35 ↗ is my third. One was 14. I think the

43:38 ↗ next one was maybe five or six and the

43:40 ↗ next one was 12. And the process for 14

43:44 ↗ or 12 is not the same as you want for

43:46 ↗ five or six. So having the flexibility

43:48 ↗ to

43:50 ↗ um adapt to the situation is really

43:53 ↗ important, but I do think it is fair

43:55 ↗ that we give people a chance to think

43:57 ↗ about the information and the questions

44:00 ↗ we're going to be asking. Thank you,

44:02 ↗ Council President.

44:04 ↗ Yeah. Um in regard to the high number of

44:08 ↗ applicants and kind of how the process

44:11 ↗ went in that scenario, I actually think

44:13 ↗ that was wonderful. It was a good thing.

44:15 ↗ And in fact, I would credit it back to

44:19 ↗ partially um the fact that we had a Q&A

44:24 ↗ session um before applications were due.

44:27 ↗ People could come in, ask their

44:29 ↗ questions about what the process was

44:32 ↗ going to be like, what it was like being

44:34 ↗ in office, you know, and see the people

44:38 ↗ um face to face that they would be

44:39 ↗ working with. And so one of the things I

44:42 ↗ really would like to encourage is that

44:44 ↗ we consider adding that to our council

44:47 ↗ rules and of procedure that encouraging

44:51 ↗ the use of anformational session before

44:55 ↗ applications are due um is a way that

44:58 ↗ people can kind of help determine if

45:00 ↗ this is something that they want to go

45:02 ↗ for. And then the other thing I have

45:06 ↗ written down related to the 12

45:07 ↗ applicants is that obviously only one

45:09 ↗ person can be appointed to the vacant

45:13 ↗ seat and so that is difficult but we're

45:17 ↗ a little ways out from that and we have

45:19 ↗ seen several of these members either

45:21 ↗ express interest in running or apply for

45:25 ↗ boards and commissions and so I view

45:29 ↗ that as another element of success. us

45:32 ↗ that um you know we sent out a letter

45:35 ↗ afterwards saying thank you so much for

45:37 ↗ applying. We all very much um noted that

45:41 ↗ down in many of our comments that this

45:44 ↗ was a tough decision because there were

45:46 ↗ so many qualified folks. Um, and so I

45:50 ↗ think I will also second what

45:53 ↗ um, Council Member Ray said

45:57 ↗ about, you know, having the second round

45:59 ↗ of questions available ahead of the

46:01 ↗ meeting to allow for preparation more

46:04 ↗ likely mirrors um, our preparation

46:07 ↗ process. I think that's important. The

46:09 ↗ other things that I brought out um from

46:11 ↗ the feedback is that people were very

46:13 ↗ uncomfortable speaking from that central

46:15 ↗ podium with folks behind them. Um I

46:18 ↗ don't think that rises up to the point

46:20 ↗ of putting it in the rules of procedure,

46:22 ↗ but I think it's something important for

46:23 ↗ us to note.

46:26 ↗ Um,

46:28 ↗ and then I would say, well, I heard what

46:33 ↗ council member Ray said about wanting to

46:35 ↗ be able to be flexible depending on the

46:37 ↗ number of applicants and how you would

46:39 ↗ treat it differently. I do think it's

46:42 ↗ something where we could say, let's put

46:44 ↗ in our council rules of procedure, a

46:46 ↗ maximum of four people move through to a

46:50 ↗ second round. That way, if you have a

46:52 ↗ smaller group and you want to only do

46:54 ↗ two people or you don't want to do a

46:56 ↗ second round, that isn't a problem. But

46:59 ↗ I I would like to hear from other

47:02 ↗ council members whether you think that

47:03 ↗ is something that rises to the point of

47:05 ↗ putting it in the council rules of

47:07 ↗ procedure or not. Um because that was a

47:10 ↗ strong area of feedback that we received

47:13 ↗ from many of the applicants and I think

47:17 ↗ it's important for us to address it

47:18 ↗ here. Thank you, Council President.

47:20 ↗ Council member Hall and then Deputy

47:22 ↗ Council President. Oh, sorry, Council

47:24 ↗ Member Hall. Council member Jen, Deputy

47:26 ↗ Council President. Okay. Thank you. Um,

47:30 ↗ well, just to echo what you said, yes,

47:31 ↗ the process worked. We have an excellent

47:33 ↗ council member up here on the DEA. So,

47:35 ↗ um, you know, and and we are very much

47:38 ↗ the kind of council that always thinks

47:40 ↗ about where are the opportunities for

47:41 ↗ improvement. So, I think this is a good

47:43 ↗ thing. Um, just really quickly, a couple

47:45 ↗ things um to ditto. Um, I had also wrote

47:48 ↗ down that um, in speaking with some of

47:50 ↗ the candidates afterwards or during,

47:52 ↗ they felt really uncomfortable speaking

47:54 ↗ with people behind them. And so that's a

47:55 ↗ super easy fix. Nothing we have to put

47:57 ↗ in the rules though. Um, I also agree

48:00 ↗ about giving questions in advance. Um,

48:03 ↗ it's not really what we do um, often as

48:05 ↗ council, but sometimes it is. Sometimes

48:07 ↗ someone asks the question up on the day

48:10 ↗ we hadn't thought of before and we do

48:11 ↗ have to kind of respond in a new way. So

48:13 ↗ I almost hope in the future maybe we we

48:16 ↗ would do some mix of both where like

48:17 ↗ they're invited to come back. There were

48:19 ↗ three questions that they could prepare

48:20 ↗ for and three more that we thought up

48:22 ↗ ourselves on the dis or something.

48:25 ↗ Um I think

48:28 ↗ um

48:31 ↗ having it was really quick turnaround in

48:34 ↗ between executive session and going into

48:36 ↗ open session. And whether or not this

48:39 ↗ lives in the rules of procedure, having

48:41 ↗ some time and space between the two

48:43 ↗ sessions to collect one's thoughts and

48:46 ↗ think about what they'd like to say

48:47 ↗ would be really helpful because reading

48:49 ↗ over um the feedback that we received,

48:53 ↗ kind of some of my own reflections after

48:55 ↗ that first day and feedback from kind of

48:58 ↗ meetings I had with some of the

48:59 ↗ candidates afterwards as well. It's just

49:01 ↗ seemed like um almost all of the

49:04 ↗ problems could have been solved with us

49:06 ↗ just talking more up on the dis like

49:08 ↗ that first day in particular um when we

49:11 ↗ had advanced a candidate why did we

49:12 ↗ advance that particular candidate when

49:14 ↗ we advanced a big slate of candidates

49:16 ↗ why did we do that well we wanted to

49:18 ↗ recognize that there was amazing talent

49:19 ↗ and it's a very difficult challenge

49:21 ↗ before us even saying that I think would

49:22 ↗ have um put people's mind at ease a bit

49:25 ↗ more um when council members advance

49:27 ↗ multiple candidates why are they doing

49:29 ↗ it too because we're all showing up in

49:30 ↗ different ways Some of us are thinking

49:32 ↗ when I nominate someone, this is the

49:34 ↗ person I want to vote for. Some of us

49:35 ↗ are thinking when I nominate someone, I

49:38 ↗ just want to make sure that they're

49:39 ↗ included in the process. Both are right.

49:41 ↗ There's no wrong answer here, right? But

49:42 ↗ it's also just good to be able to speak

49:44 ↗ to that. Um, and then also after the

49:46 ↗ nominations, having this opportunity to

49:48 ↗ say, "Okay, now we have the slate. Do we

49:50 ↗ agree? Is this the right size? Maybe

49:52 ↗ let's take a minute and just discuss

49:53 ↗ about that." that. So I think a lot of

49:56 ↗ um opportunity for improvement kind of

49:58 ↗ lies in just being comfortable with the

50:00 ↗ very uncomfortable and just having the

50:02 ↗ conversation up here on the dis. Um and

50:04 ↗ so um I think it's a good idea to have

50:07 ↗ the conversation around should we put a

50:08 ↗ cap on the number of candidates that

50:10 ↗ move on to the next round. I think that

50:12 ↗ could also it could probably be solved

50:14 ↗ in a number of ways. Like that's one

50:16 ↗ option. Another could be to require a

50:17 ↗ second. that there could be that um we

50:20 ↗ just encourage council members to speak

50:22 ↗ to um why they're nominating someone or

50:25 ↗ or we encourage the council as a body

50:28 ↗ itself to speak to the size of a

50:29 ↗ particular slate. So um yeah, those are

50:32 ↗ kind of some of my thoughts, but again,

50:33 ↗ I mean, the process worked. We have a

50:35 ↗ good council member. We might be doing

50:36 ↗ it again in the future. So I'm really

50:38 ↗ glad that we're we're having this

50:39 ↗ conversation. Apparently we do it more

50:41 ↗ than any other city, I guess.

50:44 ↗ But you know, it is what it is. Uh,

50:46 ↗ Council Member Jen.

50:49 ↗ Great. Thank you. Um, yeah, I definitely

50:51 ↗ want to second what everyone was saying

50:52 ↗ about, you know, giving some of the

50:53 ↗ questions ahead of time because that is,

50:55 ↗ you know, preparing and doing your

50:56 ↗ homework is a key part of the job. And

50:58 ↗ the fact that that wasn't like

50:59 ↗ explicitly in the, you know, quote

51:02 ↗ unquote interview process does seem to

51:04 ↗ be um, not necessarily aligned with what

51:06 ↗ the job itself entails. Um, I think one

51:10 ↗ of the things, so I did pull up the

51:12 ↗ rules and procedures and this the

51:14 ↗ process of kind of narrowing down the

51:16 ↗ candidates actually is not explicitly

51:18 ↗ outlined at all. It just says um the

51:21 ↗ appointment process, you know, for the

51:24 ↗ voting on the nominations. So, I wonder

51:27 ↗ if it might actually be worth it to put

51:28 ↗ in a section in there about how like

51:30 ↗ some specific rules and how we narrow

51:31 ↗ down the candidates because I think, you

51:33 ↗ know, I I I think if there had been some

51:36 ↗ way that, you know, when there's seven

51:37 ↗ on there, I don't think anyone I don't

51:39 ↗ think there was like an agreed upon way

51:41 ↗ that some people could have been taken

51:42 ↗ off the list. And if you know, there's a

51:45 ↗ couple ways that I see you could do it.

51:47 ↗ You know, maybe limit it so that only

51:48 ↗ people can nominate only one. you can,

51:51 ↗ you know, nominate in second or you

51:54 ↗ could make it so that, you know, you

51:55 ↗ vote on everyone individually and then

51:57 ↗ each individual has to receive a

51:58 ↗ majority of votes to move on. So there's

52:01 ↗ a couple different ways of doing it, but

52:02 ↗ just because because I think, you know,

52:05 ↗ I what happened was that people got

52:08 ↗ nominated by one person and then the

52:10 ↗ slate got really large and then if

52:12 ↗ someone else nominated someone but then

52:14 ↗ oh what about this other person who

52:15 ↗ might have been equally good as this

52:17 ↗ person but you know they might have been

52:20 ↗ not like the top four or whatever. Um,

52:22 ↗ so I think you know there's a couple

52:23 ↗ different ways that we could do it, but

52:25 ↗ in general like having some more

52:26 ↗ mechanisms to determine if you know this

52:30 ↗ is actually the slate of candidates that

52:31 ↗ we want to move forward rather than

52:32 ↗ saying okay now we have seven and oh

52:35 ↗ actually now we're going to put two more

52:37 ↗ now it's nine and then that kind of you

52:39 ↗ know is not really the purpose of uh

52:42 ↗ doing that whole process. So, and I did

52:44 ↗ I thought um one another thing that

52:47 ↗ could have been useful was with the

52:49 ↗ speeches. One thing that I heard was you

52:51 ↗ know some some people had clearly like

52:53 ↗ asked you know what what's good to have

52:56 ↗ in the speech and touched on a couple

52:57 ↗ like specific areas. And I think if that

53:00 ↗ had been something that was just like

53:01 ↗ explicitly in, you know, the document is

53:04 ↗ like, oh, here you will have the chance

53:06 ↗ to make a speech and typically you

53:07 ↗ should try to cover these like four

53:09 ↗ areas, then I think that would also even

53:11 ↗ the playing field because, you know,

53:13 ↗ some people got like different advice

53:14 ↗ from different council members.

53:17 ↗ Thank you, Council Member Jang. Deputy

53:19 ↗ Council President.

53:21 ↗ Yes. uh keying off of Council Member

53:23 ↗ Hall and Council Member Jen, I I think

53:26 ↗ that um part of the lesson that we

53:29 ↗ learned or should have learned from this

53:31 ↗ process is we need to be more

53:33 ↗ transparent. We need to explain why

53:35 ↗ we're doing things. And I noticed some

53:37 ↗ remarks in here about why did we have

53:39 ↗ speech? Well, because part of council

53:42 ↗ member's job is public speaking. And so,

53:45 ↗ but I don't know that we explained that

53:47 ↗ clearly. That's the reason we want to

53:49 ↗ include that as part of the process.

53:51 ↗ Um, I also heard offline, not uh among

53:54 ↗ these comments, um, that at least one of

53:57 ↗ the candidates did not realize that they

53:59 ↗ could reach out to us and have a private

54:01 ↗ meeting beforehand. And, um, and so I

54:05 ↗ felt badly about that because people new

54:07 ↗ to the process may not just understand

54:10 ↗ that that's what what you do. And I got

54:12 ↗ to talk one-on-one with about seven or

54:14 ↗ eight of the candidates, but there were

54:16 ↗ four that didn't. and at least one of

54:18 ↗ them was because they didn't know that

54:19 ↗ that was what they were supposed to do.

54:21 ↗ So maybe when people apply, we could

54:24 ↗ have like an

54:26 ↗ automatic message that goes out and

54:28 ↗ says, "Here are some things you can do

54:30 ↗ to get ready. You can talk to any one of

54:33 ↗ the council members or all the council

54:35 ↗ members ahead of time and learn what it

54:37 ↗ is like to be a council member." So I

54:39 ↗ think uh the lesson I took away from

54:41 ↗ this is that we need to explain more why

54:44 ↗ we are doing things. Um on the issue of

54:47 ↗ narrowing down the applicants, part of

54:49 ↗ that is because we can't make decisions

54:51 ↗ in executive session. And so we have to

54:55 ↗ walk out here not really having had that

54:57 ↗ discussion about who we're going to vote

54:58 ↗ for. And so again, we need to be able to

55:01 ↗ explain that to people. We can't decide

55:03 ↗ in executive session. We can't take a

55:05 ↗ vote in executive session. And so yes,

55:07 ↗ it is a little bit messy. Um uh so and

55:12 ↗ I'm I guess that I would be on the side

55:14 ↗ of not including that in the rules of

55:17 ↗ procedures because I have a feeling it

55:19 ↗ would be the very first rule that would

55:20 ↗ be broken the next time around because

55:22 ↗ we don't know if there'll be 12

55:24 ↗ candidates next time or three candidates

55:27 ↗ next time or you know I I the

55:29 ↗ circumstances can be so different. you

55:32 ↗ could have one candidate that is

55:33 ↗ absolutely the most outstanding and

55:36 ↗ that's who you're going to pick right

55:37 ↗ away. So, um I think that writing in a

55:41 ↗ cap number is probably something that

55:44 ↗ wouldn't stand up over time. So, I

55:46 ↗ wouldn't be willing to put it into rules

55:49 ↗ of procedures. So, but I just think

55:52 ↗ throughout the whole process, we need to

55:53 ↗ think why are we doing this and then

55:55 ↗ let's talk to the candidates about why

55:58 ↗ we are doing it and make it the whole

56:01 ↗ process just more explicit, more

56:02 ↗ transparent. So, those would be my

56:05 ↗ comments. Thank you, Deputy Council

56:06 ↗ President. I think I counted correctly.

56:08 ↗ Uh, Council Member Joe, you may have

56:09 ↗ been the only person not yet to comment.

56:11 ↗ So, before I go back to Council

56:12 ↗ President, would you like to have a

56:13 ↗ comment?

56:15 ↗ Yes, thank you. Um, I would second uh,

56:20 ↗ council president, council deputy

56:22 ↗ president Barb Michelle's comment on um,

56:25 ↗ making the candidates aware that they do

56:27 ↗ have the ability to reach out to us to

56:28 ↗ have a meeting. Um, even to the point

56:31 ↗ where perhaps we provide a list of

56:33 ↗ emails and phone numbers as immediate

56:36 ↗ feedback to people that have applied and

56:38 ↗ said you're encouraged to reach out to

56:40 ↗ them and then um, sit down with them. I

56:42 ↗ I felt um in the means that that I had I

56:47 ↗ learned more from the candidates than

56:49 ↗ they probably learned from me. Um and I

56:51 ↗ think

56:53 ↗ that for council members, we are going

56:55 ↗ to be working with that person or

56:57 ↗ persons in the future. It's important

56:59 ↗ for us to be able to make sure that we

57:03 ↗ um have that um connection or

57:06 ↗ understanding in terms of their work

57:09 ↗ style. They understand our work style.

57:11 ↗ you know, there's there are all sorts of

57:13 ↗ different things you learn in a

57:14 ↗ conversation that aren't necessarily

57:15 ↗ something you can put into rules that

57:17 ↗ are out there. And so that kind of

57:18 ↗ brings to my second point that um I

57:21 ↗ would also agree with um the comment

57:25 ↗ that we may not want to be too

57:27 ↗ prescriptive in our rules. The rules

57:30 ↗ were rather general because each

57:32 ↗ situation's a little bit different,

57:34 ↗ right? And um you know, we had a large

57:38 ↗ number of candid candidates that were

57:40 ↗ all good candidates that you know, if

57:42 ↗ you were to do your NFL um you know,

57:45 ↗ fantasy football draft, you'd probably

57:47 ↗ draft three or four of them right in the

57:49 ↗ first round, right? And four or five of

57:51 ↗ them in the second round, they'd be your

57:53 ↗ pick. Um, so to mix metaphors, um, I

57:57 ↗ just think that we had a wealth of of

57:59 ↗ great candidates and the fantastic thing

58:01 ↗ is many of them are still engaged and do

58:04 ↗ want to remain involved whether that's

58:07 ↗ with the border commission or running

58:09 ↗ for council in the future. Um, and I

58:11 ↗ think that we as a council um, of course

58:15 ↗ want to have that deep bench. We want to

58:17 ↗ have that group of people that can come

58:18 ↗ in because you never know when I'm going

58:20 ↗ to get run over by a car or, you know,

58:22 ↗ something bad's going to happen. Someone

58:24 ↗ has to leave for whatever reason, right?

58:26 ↗ So, we want to have that deep bench

58:27 ↗ there. I'm being a little bit dark.

58:29 ↗ Sorry, dark today. Must be the weather.

58:32 ↗ I apologize. Very dark. But, um, the the

58:36 ↗ fact is that the bench needs to be deep

58:37 ↗ with good candidates are willing and

58:39 ↗ ready to step in, too. So, um I think

58:41 ↗ that the process that we had, while only

58:44 ↗ one person could win survivor style, we

58:47 ↗ have a number of other people that

58:49 ↗ are thinking about stepping up and we as

58:52 ↗ council members need to think about

58:54 ↗ encouraging them and giving them the

58:56 ↗ tools to make good decisions along the

58:58 ↗ way, both in their campaign and the

59:00 ↗ other steps that they're going to be

59:00 ↗ taking along the way. So, those are my

59:02 ↗ thoughts on the process. Thank you. That

59:04 ↗ is great. Thank you. And before I go

59:05 ↗ back to council president, um there have

59:08 ↗ been a couple of draft motions prepared

59:10 ↗ and we have heard a lot of great

59:12 ↗ comments tonight. Um I will go back to

59:15 ↗ council president, but I you didn't did

59:18 ↗ you not get to comment around two. Okay.

59:21 ↗ But uh what I would Oh, okay. But what I

59:24 ↗ would like to propose to is that when we

59:26 ↗ get through the comments, we may take a

59:28 ↗ five minute recess to allow myself and

59:30 ↗ the city clerk to regroup with council

59:32 ↗ leadership and come up with a proposed

59:34 ↗ motion that would work for all of you

59:35 ↗ after we've heard these comments. So,

59:37 ↗ council

59:39 ↗ president, so I've heard from folks the

59:42 ↗ interest in flexibility and not

59:46 ↗ providing to, you know, too much detail

59:50 ↗ in the council rules and procedure. I'm

59:53 ↗ wondering if people can

59:55 ↗ then respond

59:58 ↗ to do we feel like in a future situation

1:00:02 ↗ if we ended up with 12 members and we

1:00:05 ↗ had seven people nominated that that

1:00:09 ↗ would be an okay outcome. And if

1:00:13 ↗ not, how do

1:00:16 ↗ we make adjustments to that? I've heard

1:00:20 ↗ require a second. I've heard potentially

1:00:23 ↗ removing people from a slate. Another

1:00:25 ↗ option would be don't leave that first

1:00:28 ↗ night without narrowing down to a

1:00:30 ↗ certain number, even if you had to go

1:00:32 ↗ another round. I'm just wondering how

1:00:36 ↗ we take in the clear feedback from

1:00:40 ↗ applicants that it was pretty

1:00:42 ↗ uncomfortable and from people I've

1:00:44 ↗ spoken to in the community that it was

1:00:46 ↗ pretty uncomfortable to have potentially

1:00:48 ↗ seven um go through that. So, I don't

1:00:52 ↗ I'm not tied to the idea of putting

1:00:54 ↗ four, but I would love to hear other

1:00:57 ↗ ideas there so that we still address

1:00:59 ↗ this idea. Thank you. And I think it was

1:01:02 ↗ Council Member Hall and then Council

1:01:03 ↗ Member

1:01:04 ↗ Mertz. Council member Ray, Council

1:01:07 ↗ Member Hall, Council Member Mertz. Nope.

1:01:11 ↗ Get that thing down. Thank you, Council

1:01:13 ↗ Member Ray. We are on our way. All

1:01:15 ↗ right. Um, just to follow up on a couple

1:01:18 ↗ things. I think if we were to do

1:01:20 ↗ imprompt I'm just responding to things I

1:01:22 ↗ heard. If we were to do impromptu

1:01:24 ↗ questioning along with sending out

1:01:26 ↗ questions ahead of time um we should

1:01:28 ↗ have unique questions so that um each

1:01:31 ↗ person is not having the advantage of

1:01:34 ↗ being able to ponder a question where

1:01:35 ↗ someone else has to kind of come come

1:01:38 ↗ fast and furious on it. So um um if if

1:01:42 ↗ we went that way just we just have to

1:01:44 ↗ balance the playing field. That was

1:01:46 ↗ really the the the thing. Um, you know,

1:01:48 ↗ we didn't talk about other great things

1:01:50 ↗ that worked doing round two down on the

1:01:51 ↗ floor instead of the dis two thumbs up.

1:01:54 ↗ You know, that was really great. Um, and

1:01:56 ↗ I, you know, um, but to the council

1:01:59 ↗ president's question, and I worry about

1:02:01 ↗ overprescribing as council me being

1:02:04 ↗ overly prescriptive, as council member

1:02:06 ↗ Joe kind of touched on,

1:02:08 ↗ um, I I think that we could put in

1:02:12 ↗ something around what's the number to

1:02:15 ↗ carry. you know, there needs to be a

1:02:18 ↗ cut. Um, and seven, I think, was too

1:02:21 ↗ many. And part of the problem with seven

1:02:23 ↗ was it made the five that weren't, it

1:02:26 ↗ was very, very difficult on them. I

1:02:29 ↗ mean, just being really open about it.

1:02:31 ↗ So, because everybody knew we were going

1:02:32 ↗ to one, but when I I you know, I didn't

1:02:34 ↗ make that first cut, it's like um so I

1:02:37 ↗ worry about that.

1:02:39 ↗ Um, so I have a couple thoughts. One is

1:02:42 ↗ every council member

1:02:43 ↗ gets as many as one nomination, which

1:02:46 ↗ would give us a maximum of six. That

1:02:49 ↗ could be problematic, but I don't know

1:02:50 ↗ that it's not a bad idea to talk about

1:02:53 ↗ um you know, you need two two council

1:02:56 ↗ members to support you to move to to

1:02:58 ↗ round two. Um so that's a first and a

1:03:01 ↗ second. So something where you know, not

1:03:04 ↗ not only have I convinced one person,

1:03:05 ↗ but I've convinced two that I'm uh I'm I

1:03:08 ↗ should be moving into the second round.

1:03:10 ↗ So,

1:03:11 ↗ um, but I don't know that I really want

1:03:14 ↗ to mess with the rules of procedure to

1:03:15 ↗ be really honest with you. I I kind of

1:03:16 ↗ like them the way they're written. I

1:03:18 ↗ think they give us flexibility. I think

1:03:20 ↗ there's some lessons learned that need

1:03:21 ↗ to be memorialized and uh and I would

1:03:25 ↗ look to the clerk to find a way to

1:03:26 ↗ memorialize them. And then some of the

1:03:27 ↗ mechanics we talked about like you know

1:03:30 ↗ telling people they can do this and

1:03:32 ↗ getting them this information I think is

1:03:33 ↗ also something that doesn't need to be

1:03:35 ↗ in the rules of procedure but can be

1:03:37 ↗ part of the the um process as defined by

1:03:42 ↗ the the clerk's office. So, um, so I'm

1:03:45 ↗ not really particularly inclined to want

1:03:47 ↗ to say let's go, u muck around with the

1:03:49 ↗ rules of procedure, but I am inclined to

1:03:51 ↗ say we should memorialize some of our

1:03:53 ↗ findings and, um, activate them next

1:03:56 ↗ time this happens. Council member Mertz,

1:04:01 ↗ thank you. Um, I I would have trouble

1:04:03 ↗ with four just because I think we would

1:04:06 ↗ be back to the thing of who nominates

1:04:08 ↗ first, right? and and you better get

1:04:10 ↗ your nomination in fast if if there

1:04:12 ↗ might be more than four. I love the

1:04:14 ↗ point about we should explain why. I

1:04:16 ↗ think maybe any motion by anybody on

1:04:19 ↗ that night should include a paragraph on

1:04:21 ↗ on why they're on why they're doing what

1:04:23 ↗ they're doing. I think that would be

1:04:24 ↗ helpful. Um, you know, we we're dancing

1:04:28 ↗ around this question about whether we

1:04:30 ↗ have one nomination or allow people to

1:04:32 ↗ do more than one nomination. I don't

1:04:34 ↗ feel particularly strongly about that.

1:04:37 ↗ if there's some other mechanism.

1:04:39 ↗ Seconding is a good idea. You know, I

1:04:41 ↗ got I cut my teeth on the Minnesota DFL

1:04:44 ↗ where tenacity was not the problem,

1:04:46 ↗ right? When we get to these three threes

1:04:48 ↗ and it's like who's going to back down

1:04:50 ↗ is not a great situation to get into.

1:04:52 ↗ But the way they do it in, you know, um

1:04:55 ↗ in state party politics is you winnow

1:04:58 ↗ down, right? If you have four people

1:04:59 ↗ left, after the next ballot, it's the

1:05:01 ↗ top three. Um that is one way to do it.

1:05:03 ↗ I I think seconding is probably the

1:05:05 ↗ gentlest way. um to to to to get a

1:05:09 ↗ smaller to get a smaller pool would be

1:05:12 ↗ my thought. Thank you.

1:05:14 ↗ So, Kelly, is that a comment or no? Yes,

1:05:18 ↗ council member. Um yeah, so I wanted to

1:05:20 ↗ second what council member Ray said. You

1:05:22 ↗ know, we don't necessarily have to put

1:05:23 ↗ things into the rules and procedures.

1:05:24 ↗ Currently, there's nothing in there

1:05:25 ↗ about how we narrow down the field at

1:05:26 ↗ all, but I think actually being very

1:05:28 ↗ clear about how it happens. um you know

1:05:31 ↗ for example the like nominating everyone

1:05:33 ↗ to the slate and voting on the slate as

1:05:34 ↗ a whole with no reasoning I don't think

1:05:36 ↗ is probably the way that we should do

1:05:37 ↗ that in the future but I think making it

1:05:39 ↗ really clear you know and even and I

1:05:43 ↗ actually don't remember if it was

1:05:44 ↗ explained to the candidates you know

1:05:46 ↗ okay here's here's going to happen

1:05:48 ↗ everyone's going to make the speech and

1:05:50 ↗ then this is the process to like

1:05:51 ↗ nominate people to the slate or not um

1:05:53 ↗ so I think just like giving being

1:05:55 ↗ extremely clear about the information

1:05:56 ↗ because I I mean I was not in the

1:05:58 ↗ executive session so we were all out

1:06:00 ↗ here speculating. It's like, "Oh, how

1:06:02 ↗ many people do we think are going to

1:06:03 ↗ make it to the next round?" And we all

1:06:04 ↗ were like, "Probably like three or

1:06:06 ↗ four." And then when it was seven, we're

1:06:07 ↗ like, "Wow, that was three plus four,

1:06:09 ↗ not three or four." Um, so I I think

1:06:13 ↗ just being very clear about kind of what

1:06:15 ↗ the expected outcomes of that are. And,

1:06:19 ↗ you know, more transparency is better.

1:06:20 ↗ That's one of the things that people

1:06:22 ↗ express as well. You know, we want more

1:06:23 ↗ transparency into why you're making the

1:06:25 ↗ decisions that you're making. Um, and

1:06:29 ↗ yeah, also on the rules and procedures,

1:06:31 ↗ I did note one thing. It says, it says

1:06:33 ↗ explicitly every candidate will have um

1:06:36 ↗ will be allocated 10 minutes to speak.

1:06:39 ↗ And I think we cut it down to 5 to 7,

1:06:44 ↗ but that's not technically in the rules.

1:06:45 ↗ So, I would maybe recommend changing the

1:06:47 ↗ rules to this may be addressed at the

1:06:50 ↗ discretion based on the number of

1:06:52 ↗ candidates or something like that. So,

1:06:54 ↗ great comments. Um, a couple of the

1:06:56 ↗ draft motions we have out don't

1:06:58 ↗ particularly suit the wonderful

1:07:00 ↗ conversation that you had. So, if the

1:07:02 ↗ council is in agreement, I would love to

1:07:04 ↗ pull the council leadership and the

1:07:05 ↗ clerk into the back room for a 5 to 10

1:07:08 ↗ minute recess so we can come up with a

1:07:11 ↗ motion that we think will work for

1:07:12 ↗ everything that you said. Mr. President,

1:07:15 ↗ I just want to make one comment um that

1:07:18 ↗ I heard about questions needing to be

1:07:21 ↗ unique. Um, I would like to point out

1:07:23 ↗ that in a candidate debate or forum that

1:07:28 ↗ isn't the case. And so that it is pretty

1:07:31 ↗ normal to have to differentiate yourself

1:07:33 ↗ after two or three people have spoken to

1:07:36 ↗ the same question. So I don't I wouldn't

1:07:39 ↗ say that's necessarily something that I

1:07:42 ↗ particularly would want to um

1:07:45 ↗ memorialize. So, and I saw a lot of head

1:07:48 ↗ nods. Oh, I'll come to Deputy Council D.

1:07:52 ↗ Michelle, but I saw a lot of head nods.

1:07:53 ↗ So, we'll go around with a few more

1:07:55 ↗ comments and then if you're okay with a

1:07:56 ↗ 5 to 10 minute recess, we'll go in that

1:07:58 ↗ direction. Yeah, just, you know, having

1:08:00 ↗ run for office several

1:08:02 ↗ times. Um, yeah, a wealth of experience.

1:08:07 ↗ Um, having different questions. uh

1:08:10 ↗ unfortunately I think you could get the

1:08:12 ↗ charge that you've biased uh based on

1:08:15 ↗ the question that you give a particular

1:08:17 ↗ candidate and I'm thinking of an

1:08:19 ↗ interview I had many many years ago

1:08:20 ↗ where my background was education

1:08:22 ↗ transportation I never got asked those

1:08:24 ↗ questions you know and so I knew somehow

1:08:27 ↗ I wasn't going to get that endorsement

1:08:29 ↗ so so um you know you I we want to make

1:08:33 ↗ it as bias-free as we possibly can and I

1:08:37 ↗ think that's what why we ask the same

1:08:39 ↗ question to the same candidates. So,

1:08:42 ↗ so if uh I saw some general agreement,

1:08:45 ↗ let's call a recess at

1:08:47 ↗ 8:08. Uh 5 to 10 minutes and I'll grab

1:08:50 ↗ council leadership, city administrator,

1:08:53 ↗ city clerk. We'll go in the back room

1:08:55 ↗ and we'll be right back.

1:09:05 ↗ Thank you very much.

1:25:27 ↗ with you. Blink the light if we are

1:25:30 ↗ ready to come back from our

1:25:32 ↗ break. There we go. Kind of weird, but

1:25:35 ↗ it works. So, we are back from our brief

1:25:39 ↗ recess and I do believe that we have um

1:25:44 ↗ a motion that uh council president would

1:25:46 ↗ like to put before you.

1:25:49 ↗ I would like to direct the

1:25:51 ↗ administration on the May 5th city

1:25:53 ↗ council me meeting to bring forward

1:25:56 ↗ amendments to the city council rules of

1:25:58 ↗ procedure around verbal presentation

1:26:01 ↗ length requiring nominees to have a

1:26:05 ↗ second and criteria that council should

1:26:09 ↗ discuss before applications are open.

1:26:13 ↗ Second. So we have a motion and a

1:26:14 ↗ second. council president and then

1:26:16 ↗ deputy council president would you like

1:26:17 ↗ to speak to it? Yeah. So um specifically

1:26:21 ↗ this is not putting any numbers into it

1:26:25 ↗ and it is clarifying the things that we

1:26:29 ↗ felt we heard strong interest in which

1:26:32 ↗ was verbal presentation length being you

1:26:35 ↗ know adjusting that to what our process

1:26:37 ↗ was um requiring the nominees to have a

1:26:40 ↗ second and then we created kind of a

1:26:43 ↗ catchall here that is criteria that

1:26:45 ↗ council should discuss before

1:26:47 ↗ applications are opened and so examples

1:26:49 ↗ of this might be whether we want to hold

1:26:51 ↗ an informational session, whether all of

1:26:53 ↗ the questions should be released to um

1:26:57 ↗ applicants before um what the questions

1:27:01 ↗ on an application would look like, you

1:27:03 ↗ know, things like that. The room would

1:27:05 ↗ be set up. Yeah. How the room would be

1:27:07 ↗ set up. And so those are some of the

1:27:10 ↗ things that we would discuss with

1:27:12 ↗ council ahead of opening the application

1:27:15 ↗ so that the information would be clear

1:27:17 ↗ to any applicants on what the process

1:27:19 ↗ would be like. But then there would be

1:27:22 ↗ other things and I think you can speak

1:27:23 ↗ to this that wouldn't be in the rules of

1:27:25 ↗ procedure but would be more you know

1:27:28 ↗ something that the clerk can note down.

1:27:30 ↗ So deputy council president. Oh thanks.

1:27:34 ↗ So, so basically this is a SOP a

1:27:37 ↗ standard operating procedure and it will

1:27:39 ↗ be our way of memorializing the

1:27:41 ↗ conversation that we just had and then

1:27:44 ↗ in future discussions memorializing

1:27:46 ↗ those we'll keep this SOP as a working

1:27:48 ↗ document not in the rules of procedure a

1:27:51 ↗ city clerk SOP right so for future

1:27:54 ↗ generations of clerk support and

1:27:57 ↗ consideration there'll be a list of best

1:27:59 ↗ practices that the council can go over

1:28:02 ↗ each

1:28:03 ↗ time. Any comments or questions? Seeing

1:28:06 ↗ a lot of nods like it.

1:28:09 ↗ Okay, great. So, if there is no more

1:28:12 ↗ discussion, it's been moved and seconded

1:28:13 ↗ to direct the administration at the

1:28:15 ↗ Mayfield city council meeting to bring

1:28:16 ↗ forward amendments to the city council

1:28:18 ↗ rules of procedure around verbal

1:28:20 ↗ presentation length requiring nominees

1:28:22 ↗ to have a second and criteria. I'm

1:28:26 ↗ friendly admin

1:28:27 ↗ considerations or criteria. We'll leave

1:28:30 ↗ it as criteria. criteria council should

1:28:31 ↗ discuss before applications are opened.

1:28:34 ↗ All those in favor of the motion say I.

1:28:36 ↗ I. Those

1:28:39 ↗ opposed. That carries unanimously. Thank

1:28:42 ↗ you. And thank you for allowing uh the

1:28:43 ↗ council leadership to take that break

1:28:45 ↗ after your thoughtful considerations.

1:28:47 ↗ You had a lot of great comments. We're

1:28:49 ↗ going to move to committee and regional

1:28:51 ↗ reports. And we'll start with council

1:28:52 ↗ member Jen. I don't have anything to

1:28:55 ↗ report at this time. Thank you, Council

1:28:56 ↗ Member Joe. Thank you, Madam Mayor. On

1:28:58 ↗ May 5th, the lodging tax advisory

1:29:00 ↗ committee will be meeting at 2 PM in the

1:29:03 ↗ afternoon at Spring Hill

1:29:05 ↗ Suites.

1:29:07 ↗ Um Cascade Water Alliance Board of

1:29:10 ↗ Directors will be meeting on April

1:29:12 ↗ 23rd. Um the Cascade Water Alliance

1:29:16 ↗ Public Affairs Committee will be meeting

1:29:18 ↗ on May 7th. That concludes my report.

1:29:21 ↗ Thank you. Thank you, Council Member

1:29:22 ↗ Joe. Council Member Hall. Um thank you.

1:29:25 ↗ I have three short reports, so bear with

1:29:27 ↗ me. Um uh starting with planning,

1:29:30 ↗ development, environment. So the

1:29:31 ↗ planning, development, and environment

1:29:32 ↗ committee met last Tuesday, April 1st.

1:29:34 ↗ It was not an April Fool's joke. We did

1:29:36 ↗ have a meeting. Um the first item on our

1:29:38 ↗ agenda was COMM 0103, middle housing

1:29:41 ↗ draft regulations. So this is to come

1:29:43 ↗ into compliance with the new state

1:29:45 ↗ requirements around middle housing and

1:29:47 ↗ ADU development. So we all know the the

1:29:49 ↗ famous House Bill 1110 and 1337. So this

1:29:53 ↗ is that started back in uh February last

1:29:56 ↗ year and since then there's been a lot

1:29:57 ↗ of public engagement, a lot of um tours.

1:30:00 ↗ We we went on one of them and a lot of

1:30:02 ↗ touches at both planning policy

1:30:04 ↗ commission and PTE. Um it is scheduled

1:30:07 ↗ for tenative adoption at our May 19th

1:30:09 ↗ council meeting. But just a quick

1:30:11 ↗ overview of some of the major changes

1:30:12 ↗ that PPC recommended and then we

1:30:14 ↗ concurred with um with regard to middle

1:30:18 ↗ housing. Uh increase lot density to two

1:30:21 ↗ dwelling units per lot on all

1:30:23 ↗ residential lots. Allow four dwelling

1:30:25 ↗ units per lot if it's within a quarter

1:30:27 ↗ mile of a major transit stop or if one

1:30:29 ↗ unit is is affordable and they have

1:30:31 ↗ criteria for affordable unit means. We

1:30:34 ↗ have to allow um six different building

1:30:36 ↗ types and single family zones. duplex,

1:30:38 ↗ triplex, forplex, town homes, and

1:30:40 ↗ cottage housing. Um, two, three, four,

1:30:43 ↗ that's five. There's a sixth one, I

1:30:45 ↗ think, somewhere. Um, and then also, was

1:30:47 ↗ it cluster? Yeah, I think so. And then

1:30:50 ↗ there's, um, the proposal also includes

1:30:51 ↗ some requirements around parking, open

1:30:53 ↗ space, design standards, and then

1:30:55 ↗ matching different exemptions to single

1:30:57 ↗ family homes as well. Then for ADUs,

1:31:00 ↗ allowing two ADUs on one lot on in any

1:31:02 ↗ com configuration, removing the

1:31:04 ↗ requirement that the property own

1:31:06 ↗ property owner has to live on site and

1:31:08 ↗ then reassating the requirement that um

1:31:10 ↗ internal ADUs can be above a thousand

1:31:12 ↗ square feet. So again, you'll get much

1:31:14 ↗ more detail on May 19th, but in the

1:31:16 ↗ meantime, we did um Council President

1:31:19 ↗ Walsh and I did want to make sure that

1:31:21 ↗ um Valerie Porter and Kristen Leon and

1:31:24 ↗ all the planners and all the other staff

1:31:25 ↗ that touched us knew that they did an

1:31:28 ↗ outstanding job. They have been living

1:31:29 ↗ and breathing middle housing for so

1:31:31 ↗ long. So it was just great to see it

1:31:34 ↗ kind of come to a close and um I'm sure

1:31:36 ↗ you'll be very excited when it's before

1:31:37 ↗ council. Uh the second item on our

1:31:39 ↗ agenda was column 01 04. This was the

1:31:42 ↗ title 18 clarify amendments. So, um you

1:31:44 ↗ may remember as part of kind of our

1:31:47 ↗ reworking of title 18, we said, you know

1:31:49 ↗ what, we should identify and put things

1:31:51 ↗ off to the side when we need to update

1:31:52 ↗ it and and do that. This is us doing

1:31:54 ↗ that. So, these are really clarifying

1:31:57 ↗ home housekeeping um amendments that are

1:32:00 ↗ going through and um there'll be more

1:32:02 ↗ significant policy amendments coming up

1:32:04 ↗ later this year. Um, in fact, next month

1:32:06 ↗ our meeting is on May 6th and we will be

1:32:09 ↗ considering title 18 policy amendments

1:32:11 ↗ in the capital improvement plan since

1:32:14 ↗ that it is that time of year again. Um,

1:32:17 ↗ Eastside Fire and Rescue, our next Epher

1:32:20 ↗ meeting is this Thursday, April 10th. On

1:32:22 ↗ the agenda are updates on uh fire chief

1:32:25 ↗ recruitment and next steps for the

1:32:26 ↗ long-term policy ad hoc group. Um, we'll

1:32:29 ↗ also get an update on fire permit fees

1:32:31 ↗ and how that's going with the cities.

1:32:32 ↗ Sounds like Northbend is ready to uh

1:32:36 ↗ increase their fees and start passing

1:32:38 ↗ revenue on to Epher. And so next up are

1:32:41 ↗ Isaqua and Seamish. Um we'll have a

1:32:44 ↗ discussion of whether or not to give

1:32:47 ↗ contract agencies advisory seats on the

1:32:49 ↗ board, which is interesting, not

1:32:50 ↗ something we've done before. It kind of

1:32:52 ↗ came up a little bit during budget. And

1:32:54 ↗ the chief is going to start this

1:32:55 ↗ conversation with us. Uh and then we'll

1:32:57 ↗ also start a conversation around um

1:32:59 ↗ updating our public records fees just

1:33:01 ↗ like we did here at Isiqua. Um speaking

1:33:04 ↗ of just fire chief recruitment, quick

1:33:06 ↗ super quick update. We had our first um

1:33:08 ↗ or we had our kickoff meeting today with

1:33:10 ↗ the consultants um to go over the

1:33:13 ↗ schedule and kind of start talking for

1:33:14 ↗ steps. Um those first steps are really

1:33:17 ↗ stakeholdering and then developing the

1:33:18 ↗ profile of what the fire chief what we

1:33:21 ↗ want in a fire chief here in Epher.

1:33:23 ↗ There are two things I just want you to

1:33:24 ↗ like keep on your mind to be thinking

1:33:26 ↗ about over the next few weeks is like

1:33:28 ↗ who are the stakeholders that we want

1:33:30 ↗ our consultants to be meeting with and

1:33:32 ↗ getting feedback from? Of course, we've

1:33:34 ↗ got cities and fire districts and labor

1:33:36 ↗ groups and and the exec team and

1:33:39 ↗ regional partners, but if there's anyone

1:33:41 ↗ out of the ordinary that comes to your

1:33:42 ↗ mind, let me know or let anyone at Ephra

1:33:44 ↗ know so we can pass that information

1:33:46 ↗ along to the consultants. And then also

1:33:49 ↗ if there are any our consultant specific

1:33:52 ↗ question is what are the three to five

1:33:53 ↗ major issues that the fire chief will be

1:33:55 ↗ facing in the next six months. Obviously

1:33:58 ↗ we have our own ideas as a board but if

1:34:00 ↗ you have any other thoughts outside of

1:34:02 ↗ this big kind of long-term funding

1:34:05 ↗ question that's hanging over our heads

1:34:06 ↗ that we're talking about. Um please feel

1:34:08 ↗ free to let us know like core connect if

1:34:11 ↗ that's a really important thing over the

1:34:12 ↗ next six months that you think just yeah

1:34:15 ↗ let me know.

1:34:17 ↗ Um, and then last report, safety and

1:34:19 ↗ civics facilities task force. Um, so

1:34:22 ↗ Council Member Martz and I are on this

1:34:24 ↗ community task force. Thanks to the

1:34:25 ↗ mayor for appointing us. Um, we've now

1:34:28 ↗ met twice. Um, and it seems like

1:34:30 ↗ everyone's had an opportunity to tour

1:34:32 ↗ the police station in the jail. Um, and

1:34:35 ↗ they took a lot away from those tours.

1:34:36 ↗ They told us so. Um, so so far we've

1:34:39 ↗ just come up with some visioning

1:34:40 ↗ language around um, what we'd like to

1:34:42 ↗ see.

1:34:43 ↗ Um, I was going to go through the list,

1:34:45 ↗ but maybe I won't. Um, and, um, we've

1:34:48 ↗ also got a kind of space needs

1:34:50 ↗ assessment on IPD and an intro to

1:34:52 ↗ potential site locations for city hall.

1:34:54 ↗ It's a lot of kind of backtracking some

1:34:56 ↗ of the work that we've done already, but

1:34:57 ↗ getting everyone up on the same page and

1:34:59 ↗ and you can just see how eager and

1:35:01 ↗ thoughtful these people on the task

1:35:03 ↗ force are. Like everyone is very eager

1:35:05 ↗ to speak and and it seems very bought in

1:35:07 ↗ that there's need here. So, um, um, in

1:35:11 ↗ the sense of urgency. So anyways, it's

1:35:12 ↗ just really great to be part of the

1:35:13 ↗ group and our next meeting is Tuesday,

1:35:15 ↗ April 22nd. That concludes my report.

1:35:17 ↗ That's great. Council member Bright. Uh,

1:35:18 ↗ no report this evening. Council Marks.

1:35:21 ↗ Thank you, Madame Mayor. The Sound

1:35:23 ↗ Cities Association Public Issues

1:35:25 ↗ Committee will be meeting this

1:35:26 ↗ Wednesday, April 9th at 7 p.m. Amongst

1:35:29 ↗ the topics that will be discussed,

1:35:31 ↗ there's going to be a legislation

1:35:32 ↗ legislative update. Um, there's going to

1:35:34 ↗ be a conversation about wastewater rate

1:35:38 ↗ proposal. Um I don't think the

1:35:40 ↗ conversation is going to be how happy we

1:35:41 ↗ all are uh with the proposal. Uh and

1:35:45 ↗ then there's been an SEA membership

1:35:47 ↗ survey and so they're going to be

1:35:49 ↗ looking at the uh results and and

1:35:52 ↗ parsing uh what they heard back from the

1:35:54 ↗ member cities. This concludes my report.

1:35:56 ↗ Oh. Oh, and uh the uh services, safety,

1:35:59 ↗ and parks meeting for April is canled.

1:36:02 ↗ Thank you. Thank you, Deputy Council

1:36:04 ↗ President D. Michelle. Thank you, Mayor

1:36:06 ↗ Paulie. So on March the 19th uh we had a

1:36:09 ↗ meeting of the regional transit

1:36:10 ↗ committee uh at the caucus prior to the

1:36:13 ↗ regional transit committee. I was uh

1:36:16 ↗ elected as uh chair of the sound cities

1:36:21 ↗ association regional transit committee

1:36:23 ↗ caucus and then subsequently right after

1:36:26 ↗ that I was elected vice chair of the

1:36:28 ↗ regional transit committee. And so the

1:36:31 ↗ chair of the regional transit committee

1:36:32 ↗ is always a King County council member.

1:36:35 ↗ Uh and council member Baron is uh

1:36:38 ↗ holding that position right now. So um

1:36:40 ↗ at any rate, that was a a great honor.

1:36:43 ↗ So in addition to the regular general

1:36:45 ↗ manager report, we received an overview

1:36:47 ↗ of Metro's research platforms. That was

1:36:49 ↗ one of the items on the agenda. Um and

1:36:53 ↗ uh then the third item was uh the one

1:36:55 ↗ that had the most interest and that is

1:36:58 ↗ that Metro is going to start enforcing

1:37:00 ↗ fair payment again. Uh in fact they

1:37:03 ↗ started it on a soft approach on May

1:37:06 ↗ March the 31st. So, it's already

1:37:08 ↗ underway and starting on March the 31st,

1:37:12 ↗ uh, people who don't pay their fairs

1:37:14 ↗ will get a warning and they will also

1:37:17 ↗ receive counseling about Metro's

1:37:19 ↗ numerous uh, uh, programs for lowincome

1:37:23 ↗ and uh, other uh, riders uh, who may

1:37:27 ↗ need supplemental help. Uh and then in

1:37:31 ↗ early May, they will begin tracking

1:37:33 ↗ non-payers. And for their first

1:37:35 ↗ infraction, non-payers will receive a

1:37:37 ↗ civil fine. Uh and then on their second

1:37:41 ↗ infraction, they will be uh trespassed

1:37:43 ↗ off the bus system. Uh they can appeal

1:37:46 ↗ that trespass. Uh but uh they're they're

1:37:50 ↗ serious about enforcing it. Lots of

1:37:52 ↗ questions from members of the regional

1:37:54 ↗ transit committee about how this was

1:37:56 ↗ going to be applied. I think most of the

1:37:58 ↗ questions um focused on how equitably

1:38:02 ↗ the system will be uh enforced and

1:38:06 ↗ assuring that it will not be targeting

1:38:08 ↗ any specific populations or

1:38:10 ↗ neighborhoods or regions of the metro

1:38:12 ↗ system. So um this is uh you know this

1:38:16 ↗ was a a change after five years of not

1:38:19 ↗ enforcing fairs they're going back to

1:38:21 ↗ that. Um, and then on March the 20th, I

1:38:24 ↗ attended the board of health. This I'm

1:38:26 ↗ learning from attending the board of

1:38:27 ↗ health that they have packed agendas.

1:38:30 ↗ And this one was the same. These are

1:38:32 ↗ two-hour meetings and the agenda of the

1:38:35 ↗ meetings often run over. So, I'm just

1:38:37 ↗ going to um focus in on Dr. Khan, who's

1:38:40 ↗ the director of Seattle King County

1:38:42 ↗ Public Health, his report. Uh we had

1:38:45 ↗ just the week of the meeting heard uh

1:38:47 ↗ that the secretary of the department of

1:38:49 ↗ health and human services is cutting

1:38:52 ↗ funding uh for health uh and that impact

1:38:55 ↗ in Washington state is around $160

1:38:57 ↗ million of reductions. Um Dr. Khan

1:39:01 ↗ focused on the impacts to behavioral

1:39:03 ↗ health services which um are the

1:39:06 ↗ services that uh target mental health

1:39:09 ↗ and substance abuse prevention and

1:39:11 ↗ substance abuse treatment. uh services

1:39:14 ↗ and he said these virtually the cuts at

1:39:17 ↗ this point will virtually wipe out those

1:39:20 ↗ services and these do not include the

1:39:22 ↗ cuts that are being proposed to Medicaid

1:39:24 ↗ or Medicare. These are just cuts to

1:39:26 ↗ public health services across the board.

1:39:29 ↗ So chair Moscada suggested that she

1:39:32 ↗ would be writing a letter that we of

1:39:34 ↗ support that we could be signing. I

1:39:36 ↗ haven't seen that letter yet and I

1:39:38 ↗ suspect that that's because um every day

1:39:42 ↗ changes are happening and it's probably

1:39:45 ↗ very very difficult to come up with a

1:39:46 ↗ letter that actually expresses exactly

1:39:49 ↗ what we're asking for at this point. Uh

1:39:52 ↗ but it was a dire a dire report. Uh Dr.

1:39:56 ↗ Khan, after Dr. cons report. We also

1:39:58 ↗ heard briefings on hazardous waste,

1:40:00 ↗ health outcomes for homeless

1:40:02 ↗ individuals, the state of health and

1:40:04 ↗ human services workforce, and a

1:40:06 ↗ legislative update. So, it was a very

1:40:08 ↗ full meeting. Um, this Thursday on April

1:40:12 ↗ 10th, I'll be attending Eastside Human

1:40:14 ↗ Services Forum, and on April 11th, East

1:40:17 ↗ Side Transportation Partnership will

1:40:18 ↗ have its its monthly meeting. And that

1:40:20 ↗ ends my report.

1:40:23 ↗ Council President, thank you. The Puet

1:40:27 ↗ Sound Regional C Center's Growth

1:40:28 ↗ Management Policy Board met last

1:40:30 ↗ Thursday and continued all of the

1:40:34 ↗ diligent work on comprehensive plans. We

1:40:36 ↗ recommended certification of comp plans

1:40:39 ↗ for 13 cities. We also discussed how the

1:40:43 ↗ growth management policy board should

1:40:45 ↗ handle future situations because staff

1:40:48 ↗ um give us some information that some of

1:40:51 ↗ the future plans may not meet the

1:40:53 ↗ criteria for certification um

1:40:56 ↗ particularly related to housing or

1:40:58 ↗ transportation areas. And so we had to

1:41:00 ↗ figure out how we would handle either

1:41:02 ↗ conditional or non-certification

1:41:04 ↗ um recommendations. And then we also

1:41:07 ↗ received presentations on the regional

1:41:09 ↗ economic strategy update and the

1:41:11 ↗ comprehensive climate action plan for

1:41:13 ↗ the Puet Sound. And our next meeting is

1:41:16 ↗ May 1st. The King County affordable

1:41:18 ↗ housing committee also met last

1:41:20 ↗ Thursday. We approved comprehensive plan

1:41:23 ↗ comment letters for two cities and we

1:41:27 ↗ also heard about the growth

1:41:30 ↗ management planning council's approach

1:41:34 ↗ to housing growth target reconciliation.

1:41:36 ↗ And so Carnation and Snowquali have

1:41:39 ↗ requested the um adjustments to their

1:41:43 ↗ housing growth target um be adjusted and

1:41:46 ↗ so reporting on the recommendations

1:41:48 ↗ there and the next meeting there is also

1:41:51 ↗ May 1st. That concludes my report. Thank

1:41:53 ↗ you, council president. The next uh item

1:41:55 ↗ is the mayor's report. So there is no

1:41:57 ↗ executive session this evening. Um

1:42:00 ↗ Isiqua's 2025 community survey. Your

1:42:03 ↗ voice matters in shaping Isiqua's

1:42:05 ↗ future. Our community survey is a vital

1:42:07 ↗ tool that helps us understand your

1:42:09 ↗ priorities, concerns, and hopes for our

1:42:12 ↗ city. Whether it's parks, public safety,

1:42:14 ↗ housing, or transportation, your input

1:42:16 ↗ guides our decisions and investments. I

1:42:18 ↗ warmly invite you to take a few minutes

1:42:20 ↗ to complete the survey. Together, we can

1:42:23 ↗ ensure Isiqua remains a vibrant,

1:42:24 ↗ welcoming place for all. And residents

1:42:26 ↗ can find the survey on the city's

1:42:28 ↗ website or may also receive postcards

1:42:30 ↗ and requests to complete a survey by

1:42:32 ↗ standard mail. Thank you for helping us

1:42:34 ↗ build a stronger

1:42:36 ↗ community. We are currently recruiting

1:42:38 ↗ Fourth of July commission members. So,

1:42:40 ↗ join fellow Isqua community members to

1:42:42 ↗ help plan Fourth of July festivities.

1:42:44 ↗ Recruitment is still open for this

1:42:45 ↗ commission. Please contact the mayor's

1:42:47 ↗ office by email with your name and any

1:42:49 ↗ experiences that you wish to highlight

1:42:51 ↗ that would make an ideal member of the

1:42:53 ↗ commission. The first meeting is

1:42:54 ↗ anticipated to take place in late April.

1:42:57 ↗ And the sustainability fair is returning

1:42:59 ↗ on April 26th in celebration of Earth

1:43:02 ↗ Month. The third annual sustainability

1:43:04 ↗ fair will be held on April 26th at the

1:43:06 ↗ Pickering Barn from 9:00 a.m. to 2 p.m.

1:43:09 ↗ This year's event is shaping up to be

1:43:10 ↗ even bigger and better than last year's.

1:43:12 ↗ Check the city's website for sampling of

1:43:14 ↗ what is planned for the fair, including

1:43:16 ↗ a preview of the Isqua's Farmers Market.

1:43:18 ↗ You don't want to miss it. And we are

1:43:21 ↗ currently seeking Hall of Fame

1:43:22 ↗ nominations. Nominations are still open

1:43:24 ↗ for the Isiqua Hall of Fame award, a top

1:43:26 ↗ honor for making a lasting contribution

1:43:28 ↗ to our community. Each year, the mayor

1:43:30 ↗ and council presidents select a person

1:43:32 ↗ to induct into the Isiqua Hall of Fame

1:43:34 ↗ for their exemplary record of

1:43:35 ↗ inspiration, leadership, and service for

1:43:38 ↗ the Isqua community. The award will be

1:43:40 ↗ presented at the Chamber of Commerce's

1:43:42 ↗ annual Isqua Community Awards event on

1:43:44 ↗ June 3rd, and the deadline for

1:43:46 ↗ nominations is 5:00 p.m. April 30th. You

1:43:48 ↗ can submit nominations at

1:43:51 ↗ isquawwah.govnominate. That concludes

1:43:53 ↗ the mayor's report. So, we're going to

1:43:55 ↗ move into good of the order. I do have

1:43:56 ↗ some meetings to announce, but I want to

1:43:58 ↗ give an opportunity for any council

1:43:59 ↗ members to speak. Council President,

1:44:01 ↗ thank you. Just a quick note that

1:44:04 ↗ council member Jiang has been uh

1:44:07 ↗ appointed as our alternate member to the

1:44:09 ↗ East Side Transportation Partnership.

1:44:11 ↗ So, just wanted to make sure to notify

1:44:14 ↗ everyone publicly on that. Thanks. Thank

1:44:16 ↗ you for that, Council President. Council

1:44:18 ↗ member Joe.

1:44:20 ↗ Thank you, Madam Mayor. Um, Saturday

1:44:22 ↗ morning was a heartwarming event as I

1:44:26 ↗ was able to uh work side by side with uh

1:44:29 ↗ 35 volunteers in Confluence Park as they

1:44:33 ↗ celebrated Arbor Day. Um, they planted

1:44:35 ↗ 75 trees that morning. We had volunteers

1:44:37 ↗ that were as young as first graders and

1:44:40 ↗ a person who was over 70 participating

1:44:43 ↗ with us. Um, great event. Thanks to uh

1:44:46 ↗ Dan Hints from the urban forestry as our

1:44:49 ↗ urban forestry supervisor for putting

1:44:51 ↗ that together along with the other staff

1:44:53 ↗ members that gave their Saturday to help

1:44:55 ↗ uh repair the damage from the bomb

1:44:57 ↗ cyclone. It was a great event and I hope

1:45:00 ↗ we continue to do Arbor Day events in

1:45:02 ↗ the future. Thank you. Thank you,

1:45:03 ↗ Council Member Joe. Any other comments?

1:45:05 ↗ I have a couple that I want to do before

1:45:06 ↗ the dates.

1:45:09 ↗ Oh, sorry. City administrator at your

1:45:13 ↗ convenience. Oh, sorry. I just have a

1:45:15 ↗ item for good of the order. Then do your

1:45:16 ↗ good of the order item and then I'll

1:45:18 ↗ chime in. Thank you very much. Um I've

1:45:21 ↗ been looking for a consultant to do a

1:45:24 ↗ city council uh retreat in January of

1:45:28 ↗ 2026 and have found one and uh would

1:45:31 ↗ like to reserve a date of January 31st,

1:45:35 ↗ 2026. Um this would be uh bringing in a

1:45:38 ↗ firm that uh specializes in uh these

1:45:42 ↗ type of retreats. uh a consultant would

1:45:44 ↗ come meet with each of you uh ahead of

1:45:47 ↗ time to get a sense of where you think

1:45:49 ↗ the year is going in 2026. Uh they would

1:45:53 ↗ then facilitate a uh probably again a

1:45:56 ↗ threequarter day discussion and also

1:45:58 ↗ bring a visual facilitator uh who would

1:46:01 ↗ capture the uh discussions in in

1:46:03 ↗ graphical form uh up on on butcher

1:46:06 ↗ paper. So uh we need to put a deposit

1:46:08 ↗ down on this. So, I just wanted in the

1:46:12 ↗ absence of of of mayor serving at that

1:46:16 ↗ point, I thought in talking with the

1:46:17 ↗ council president uh would just bring

1:46:19 ↗ this up to make sure that there was no

1:46:21 ↗ objections or if that date at this early

1:46:24 ↗ stage is a problem for anyone. If not,

1:46:26 ↗ would uh would we would put down the

1:46:29 ↗ deposit, save the date. There are

1:46:31 ↗ hundreds of communities wanting to do

1:46:33 ↗ this sort of work in January and

1:46:35 ↗ February and want to grab uh want to

1:46:38 ↗ grab the date. So,

1:46:40 ↗ Not seeing any. Yeah, lots of nodding

1:46:42 ↗ heads. Looks good. Very good. Thank you,

1:46:44 ↗ Council Member Ray.

1:46:47 ↗ He's perfect for it.

1:46:49 ↗ Um, so I have a couple of topics I

1:46:51 ↗ wanted to share. And one is, um, very

1:46:54 ↗ high level, working its way down to the

1:46:56 ↗ King County Parks level, which is a very

1:46:58 ↗ specific one. Um, many of the tables

1:47:00 ↗ that I sit at with mayors around our

1:47:02 ↗ region or around the country recognize

1:47:05 ↗ that there is so much uncertainty right

1:47:07 ↗ now and so much anxiety with so many

1:47:10 ↗ different things, whether it's federal

1:47:11 ↗ level funding being withheld or

1:47:13 ↗ cancelled. Um, it's uh state uh

1:47:18 ↗ discussions about significant gaps

1:47:20 ↗ between revenues and funding. The county

1:47:23 ↗ council talking about the same funding

1:47:24 ↗ challenges. um all levels of government

1:47:27 ↗ not knowing whether or not federal

1:47:28 ↗ funding is coming through this year or

1:47:29 ↗ not. Um I commend this council and your

1:47:32 ↗ ability to recognize that the decisions

1:47:34 ↗ you're making in 2025 are totally

1:47:38 ↗ wrapped up in this chaotic little

1:47:40 ↗ circle. Um and that makes it really

1:47:43 ↗ difficult. But we don't know what we

1:47:44 ↗ don't know yet. We do not know where the

1:47:46 ↗ pain points are going to be. Uh what the

1:47:48 ↗ pain will be for 2025, let alone 2026

1:47:51 ↗ and beyond. And so I appreciate the work

1:47:54 ↗ that you all put in making your current

1:47:56 ↗ decisions in that very chaotic

1:47:58 ↗ framework. It's difficult. It's awful.

1:48:01 ↗ Um I am thinking of doing some community

1:48:02 ↗ messaging out to some of our community

1:48:04 ↗ members, whether they work for a

1:48:06 ↗ nonprofit that is losing its funding or

1:48:08 ↗ USAD consultant who fired everybody

1:48:11 ↗ within five days. All those different

1:48:13 ↗ kinds of things. I feel like our

1:48:14 ↗ community is very very anxious and uh

1:48:17 ↗ it's our job as elected officials to

1:48:19 ↗ keep our finger on the pulse and uh

1:48:22 ↗ listen because people are very upset

1:48:24 ↗ right now and very confused. Working my

1:48:26 ↗ way down to the King County Parks Levy,

1:48:29 ↗ um Council Member Mertz represents you

1:48:31 ↗ at the SCA public issues committee. He

1:48:33 ↗ went to I think one of the best meetings

1:48:35 ↗ I've ever sat in on on pick where many

1:48:39 ↗ many cities um provided feedback to King

1:48:42 ↗ County's staff that the proposed initial

1:48:46 ↗ levy format was not as hoped. Um several

1:48:50 ↗ issues. One is we all recognize in these

1:48:52 ↗ chaotic times anybody looking for a tax

1:48:54 ↗ increase is

1:48:55 ↗ really that's that's a maybe potentially

1:48:59 ↗ a little bit crazy. So the original

1:49:01 ↗ proposal came out with a significant tax

1:49:03 ↗ increase as well as um at the first

1:49:06 ↗ proposal nine cents of every dollar

1:49:08 ↗ collected in Isiqua would come back to

1:49:10 ↗ Isqua Parks. Um after lengthy

1:49:13 ↗ conversations with um the regional

1:49:15 ↗ planning regional policy committee um

1:49:18 ↗ the needle didn't move very much. So the

1:49:20 ↗ needle moved a smidge and so there's

1:49:22 ↗ going to be some push back from some

1:49:25 ↗ cities, some no positions from other

1:49:28 ↗ cities. Uh but this is a tough tough one

1:49:31 ↗ to support. And so if the council is

1:49:34 ↗ willing, we can have our parks director

1:49:36 ↗ talk about um the proposal, the

1:49:40 ↗ alternate proposal and where we landed

1:49:42 ↗ just to provide more information. But I

1:49:44 ↗ think this is going to get a lot of

1:49:45 ↗ media and I think you guys are going to

1:49:46 ↗ be asked a lot of questions about it. So

1:49:48 ↗ again, taking this in context of 2025 is

1:49:51 ↗ a horrible chaotic year. um got to put a

1:49:54 ↗ lot of thought into what we want to

1:49:55 ↗ bring to the public and when we want to

1:49:57 ↗ bring it and when we want to ask them

1:49:58 ↗ for more money when we don't know what

1:50:00 ↗ money we're not we're already not going

1:50:01 ↗ to get for critical human services. So

1:50:03 ↗ we don't know where our pain points are

1:50:05 ↗ yet. And I appreciate that this council

1:50:07 ↗ during co demonstrated that same kind of

1:50:09 ↗ big picture thinking of let's think

1:50:12 ↗ about what could go wrong and let's just

1:50:15 ↗ be cautious with how we reach out to our

1:50:17 ↗ community and talk. But also, thank you

1:50:19 ↗ very much for being out in the community

1:50:20 ↗ and thank you very much for listening to

1:50:22 ↗ the concerns and anxiety that in my 12

1:50:25 ↗ years of elected service I've never seen

1:50:26 ↗ at such a high level in so many

1:50:28 ↗ different places. So, uh, Council Member

1:50:30 ↗ D. Michelle and I will share some

1:50:32 ↗ information with you shortly on a

1:50:34 ↗ convening that was held with the

1:50:35 ↗ nonprofit community, human services

1:50:37 ↗ nonprofit community, which is really

1:50:40 ↗ staggering, staggeringly tough place

1:50:42 ↗ right now. So, those are my items.

1:50:44 ↗ Council President,

1:50:46 ↗ speaking of the level of uncertainty, I

1:50:48 ↗ just wanted to recognize

1:50:50 ↗ the estimated 700 person crowd um that

1:50:54 ↗ was here on Saturday um at the hands-off

1:50:57 ↗ protest and how first of

1:51:01 ↗ all how interesting it was to see people

1:51:05 ↗ lining up and the community response to

1:51:08 ↗ that. But I also wanted to take a moment

1:51:09 ↗ to thank the organizers for doing such a

1:51:12 ↗ wonderful job of making sure that people

1:51:15 ↗ stayed out of the streets and stayed

1:51:17 ↗ safe and they protected the um the

1:51:22 ↗ driveways in and out and just did a

1:51:24 ↗ wonderful job

1:51:26 ↗ of creating a good experience for those

1:51:30 ↗ who were at the rally and those who were

1:51:33 ↗ just driving into town and didn't know

1:51:35 ↗ that it was going on. So kudos all

1:51:37 ↗ around on that. Any other good of the

1:51:40 ↗ order? Well, thank you for all that you

1:51:43 ↗ do. We are adjourned at uh

1:51:47 ↗ 8:52. Have a great day. Oh, you know

1:51:49 ↗ what? Never mind. Sit. I have a few

1:51:52 ↗ little meetings I forgot to mention.

1:51:53 ↗ Sorry, sorry, sorry. I got too excited.

1:51:58 ↗ Uh or maybe I don't. Yes, I do. So,

1:52:01 ↗ there is a regular council meeting on

1:52:02 ↗ Monday, April 21st. And we're asking

1:52:05 ↗ council to arrive at 6:30 because we're

1:52:06 ↗ thinking this will be our picture photo

1:52:09 ↗ night. Uh we hope to have the photo

1:52:11 ↗ outside behind city hall. If the weather

1:52:13 ↗ doesn't cooperate, we will do the photo

1:52:15 ↗ inside in council chambers. Um, the

1:52:18 ↗ anticipated agenda items for that

1:52:19 ↗ meeting include the Squawk Mountain on

1:52:21 ↗ motorized improvement project, yay, 2023

1:52:24 ↗ 24 budget reauthorizations, the first

1:52:27 ↗ 2526 budget amendment, and Monday, April

1:52:30 ↗ 28th, there will be a city council

1:52:32 ↗ committee of the whole anticipated

1:52:33 ↗ agenda items include the state

1:52:35 ↗ legislative update, taxing authority,

1:52:37 ↗ and other revenue sources from the

1:52:39 ↗ windstorm follow-up. And there's no

1:52:41 ↗ executive session. And now you are

1:52:43 ↗ released at 8:50.

Approved minutes

Extracted from the next meeting's packet, where this meeting's minutes were approved as a consent-calendar attachment.

Open PDF

Attendance

Council / Members (7)

Barbara de Michele

Zach Hall

Kelly Jiang

Russell Joe

Tola Marts

Chris Reh

and Council President Lindsey Walsh

Staff (2)

Wally Bobkiewicz, City Administrator, Andrea Snyder, Deputy City Administrator, Rachel Bender Turpin, City Attorney

Tisha Gieser, City Clerk

Motions and votes (3)

approve the consent agenda as presented.

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

Carried 7-0

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Lindsey Walsh

Approve Resolution No. 2025-09, adopting the Central Issaquah Station Area Vision and Guiding Principles

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

Carried 7-0

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh

Direct the Administration at the May 5 City Council meeting to bring forward amendments to the City Council Rules of Procedure around: • verbal presentation length, • requiring nominees to have a second, • and criteria Council should discuss before applications are opened.

Moved by Council President Walsh · seconded by Deputy Council President de Michele

Carried 7-0

In favor: Barbara de Michele, Zach Hall, Kelly Jiang, Russell Joe, Tola Marts, Chris Reh, and Council President Walsh