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Cmd41922 spec mtg Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes April 19, 2022 Page 1 EDMONDS CITY COUNCIL HYBRID SPECIAL MEETING - INTERVIEWS APPROVED MINUTES April 19, 2022 ELECTED OFFICIALS PRESENT Mike Nelson, Mayor Vivian Olson, Council President Kristiana Johnson, Councilmember Will Chen, Councilmember Neil Tibbott, Councilmember Diane Buckshnis, Councilmember Susan Paine, Councilmember Laura Johnson, Councilmember STAFF PRESENT Scott Passey, City Clerk Jerrie Bevington, Camera Operator 1. CALL TO ORDER The Edmonds City Council special meeting was called to order at 6:41 p.m. by Mayor Nelson in the Council Chambers, 250 5th Avenue North, Edmonds, and virtually. 2. INTERVIEWS FOR APPOINTMENT TO A CITY BOARD OR COMMISSION 1. INTERVIEW CANDIDATE FOR APPOINTMENT TO BOARD/COMMISSION Councilmembers interviewed Corbitt Loch, candidate for appointment to Architectural Design Board (ADB) position #7, planner, for appointment to the ADB (responses in italics). Council President Olson welcomed Mr. Loch and invited him to describe his interest in the ADB. I’ve lived in Edmonds 10 years, have a degree in design, have written design guidelines, served on design review boards, evaluated development proposals relative to design guidelines and a permitting process so I have a pretty well rounded knowledge of design guidelines. The only thing I haven’t done is worked as a designer. It is a fascinating field, and the fact that Edmonds will be updating its design standards is important because that is where the success lies, in the clarity of the design guidelines. My experience in writing design guidelines can be useful to the City. Councilmember Paine commented on his marvelous experience, and said she was thrilled to have someone with his breadth of experience both with municipalities and design boards. Councilmember Tibbott expressed his appreciation for his breadth of experience. He asked about his vision for incorporating architectural design in Edmonds when some areas have an older style some newer buildings are being added. What is your vision and experience incorporating new meets old? That is a conundrum for many communities that have a lot of historic character like Edmonds. I spent seven years as the planning director for the City of Snohomish; their downtown is on the National Register of Historic Places and the adjacent area that was somewhat rundown but walkable and close to downtown needed a shot in the arm. The design guidelines I was instrumental in writing helped speak to it. In my Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes April 19, 2022 Page 2 opinion, it’s inappropriate to create fake history and I would not be one to say let’s make buildings look like they are from the 1890s. Buildings should be contemporary and express their current time and place, but still be contextually related and appropriate for their setting. They may have architectural elements that reflect historical context and are compatible with them and not out of place, but not try to create false history. Council President Olson commented she loved that answer. Councilmember Buckshnis said she also loved that answer. She was glad he has the experience and understanding of architectural design related to historic buildings and historic districts. She asked his opinion about designating areas of the City as historic. That depends on the desired outcome. If you want to preserve an area exactly as is, that’s fine, but if it is pockets of the community, it might look weird long term, kind of like a monopoly board of architectural styles versus something more contemporary and sensitive throughout. Historic register designation does not mean the buildings cannot be demolished or that they have to be historical replicas, it means buildings should be sensitive to their context and not harm the historic character of the area. Councilmember Chen said he was blown away by the level of experience and knowledge base he brings to City and appreciated him stepping up to volunteer his time and expertise. Edmonds is very unique, there is the downtown area and the rest of Edmonds. He asked his vision to bring Edmonds together as one. I don’t know if that’s really possible. How could you make Highway 99 like downtown Edmonds and would you like the outcome if you did? One of two would be inaccurate or a misrepresentation of the community. There is nothing wrong with having different neighborhoods; Seattle is known for its distinct and wonderful neighborhoods. There are some uniform elements such as street trees, sidewalks widths, light standards, and other things that tie them together. The design standards for downtown should not be the same as those used on Highway 99. Councilmember Chen commented he did not envision they would be the same but asked if he had a vision for uniformity from a design perspective such as streetlights. Public infrastructure can tie it together while property development is consistent with their own neighborhood standards. There could be some consistent elements in the public areas that say this is Edmonds. Council President Olson advised the confirmations are on consent agenda; approval of the consent agenda means his appointment to the ADB has been approved. 2. INTERVIEW CANDIDATE FOR APPOINTMENT TO BOARD/COMMISSION Councilmembers interviewed Steve Schmidt, candidate for ADB position #1, architect, (responses in italics). Council President Olson welcomed Mr. Schmidt and asked him to describe his interest in the ADB. I am honored to represent the architecture profession for the ADB. I am a licensed architect for the State of Washington. I graduated with a Master of Architecture from Washington State University. I started my professional career in K-12 education, working on large public institutions such as E.C. Hughes Elementary School in Seattle as well as renovation of a historic high school in Klamath Falls, Oregon. I have also done civic design; one of my latest projects was the Tukwila Justice Center which brought together disparate programs including the Tukwila courts, the Tukwila Police Department, and the emergency operations center. It is located in a very prominent place on Tukwila International Blvd. The project brought a program to a neighborhood in need as well as a neighborhood needing revamp. I have worked on other elementary schools in the region including Parkwood Elementary in Shoreline and many other buildings in the aera. Most recently I worked on 100% affordable housing for the City of Seattle in the Georgetown neighborhood which is currently undergoing permit review as well as student housing Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes April 19, 2022 Page 3 including my most recent project for the university in Eugene, Oregon. I’m happy to be an architect living in Edmonds and working from home as well as in Pioneer Square where I see all types of urbanism in action. I’m proud to call Edmonds my home and look forward to representing the architectural profession and utilizing my experience in the City. COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER TIBBOTT EXTEND FOR 5 MINUTES TO 7:05 P.M. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Councilmember K. Johnson congratulated him for graduating from WSU, her alma mater. Councilmember L. Johnson referred to his comment about working on 100% affordable housing and asked him to share more about that. I am currently on a project in the Georgetown neighborhood, development of 150 units of affordable housing, 100% of those units will be accessible to individuals earning less than 60% of the area average median income. Units will be provided for local artists as well as the local labor force. They are family sized units that they hope to incorporate with Mary’s Place and other organizations. Councilmember Tibbott referred to his comment about urban and urban design and asked if he would consider Edmonds an urban environment, a suburban environment, or something different. Edmonds is a mix; the downtown core is one of the original plats of the City and has and urban center/heart whether that is the fountain, the ferry, or the arts district, there are lots of different places. There is not one place that is the heart of Edmond, but the urban core is where you see innovation, excitement, new restaurants, new businesses, new galleries, an area where a lot of effort is being put into it. At the same time, there are neighborhoods that ring the downtown core that could also be considered urban due to the condos and communities build along the waterfront. I live in Westgate, it is almost certainly a suburban neighborhood with few sidewalks and not much infrastructure for multimodal uses. As you move toward Highway 99, a different neighborhood emerges, one that might be called a transitional neighborhood due to the auto uses transitioning into more high density urban or urbane type environments like in Shoreline. Overall, Edmonds is definitely an urban town and will continue to develop in that direction in the future. Council President Olson advised the confirmations are on consent agenda; approval of the consent agenda means his appointment to the ADB has been approved. 3. ADJOURN With no further business, the Council meeting was adjourned at 7:03 p.m.